A/N:

@michiko-chan27: Who knows what will happen, really. Will R27 make up before, during or after the Sins and Aria move? I've been wondering about that too. No. Takeshi won't join Tsuna back to the Academy. He's been away from his father, and he's a summoner now. But you'll see him in the future chapters, no worries. I could update everyday. My mind is on overdrive, always (no wonder my head overheats though. Had to put a wet towel over it to keep it down hahahaha!). But the problem is the internet, and we don't want to end the story immediately. HAHAHA. Also I hope I don't disappoint you in the upcoming chapters, I'm crappy with action scenes. Thank you for calling me a genius too. But really, I'm not. Also thank you for loving the fic. This first AU fic of mine, and it feels nice that a lots of you like how I wrote it, even though Tsuna comes off like an OP character.

Ps: I know. I feel you. I often gush to My sister who doesn't even read fanfiction! And I love how she wrote it! I think I read almost all of her stories KHR related. Have you read the 'A swarm of stars'? It's so heart wretching and fluttering that I have to scream on my pillow. I love Tsuna there! A mixture of Bella Swan and some side character vibe that became MC suddenly. Also Yugen! Tsuna as a doctor is damn. I love med field stuffs, mix it with KHR? Kill me (well not literally. Hahaha!).

@MichiruLeIdiota: I don't really have a fave chapter, but I really liked those moments Tsuna had with Vasya (shit. The name is so cool that it just rolls off my tongue) and the rest of Arcobaleno. Arco27, people!! Anyway, five chapters after this and you'll see the Sins once more. Mwahaha! Good job guessing about Lal and Colonnello, but who knows? HAHAHA!! But hey, instead of counting down the remaining chapters, let's enjoy them. I'm also hanged up on this fic. Can't stop reading it too like a guest reader for proofreading and stuffs, so just relax, and stay safe while reading. I don't want you overheating too. HAHAHA.

@guest: Thanks!

@Nette: Happy reading! (And yeah, Aria! Don't snoop here! We had the Sins already!)

Yo! Thanks for the other reviews. Sorry if I'm late. I took some shut eye to keep my energy a little pumping. Hope you like this chapter though.

Anyway, go on. Don't mind me.

Chapter Forty

"If you didn't push me off the cliff, none of this would have happened!"

"No! If you just tried to listen to me, we could've escaped easily! But you didn't and look what you got!"

"So the blame is on me again?!"

"Why?! It was really your fault in the first place!"

"First place? First place?! First of all, I wasn't the one who took up the mission! Second, I didn't sign up to be your buddy on it! And third I wasn't the one-"

"Okay." An orotund voice said out loud.

A wave of sky aura flashed them out. The two arguing demons suddenly eased up to the comfort of the sky. It was strong enough to drown them, but it didn't. The aura only settled the heat and calmed them down to breathe air.

Tsuna eyed Lal and Colonnello as he sipped his chocolate drink. They appeared like they've been through a lot in the part of Noerim, but Lal's clothes aren't torn nor burned like Colonnello's. The brunet inspected the blond's well-being and it did came of that he suffered a lot. Even his bandana has a big tear.

"Lal." The Mist-rain looked at Tsuna who smiled pleasantly. "Mind if you go back to Fiant until I call for you? I don't think it's best for the two of you to stay close."

The lady Arcobaleno frowned.

"You're the eldest, right?" The brunet asked, and got a confirmation. "Then you must understand that Colonnello needs his time alone."

Lal stared at her brother before wordlessly opening a portal and stepped out of Mundane world. Colonnello sat beside Tsuna and sighed. The Sky patted the Rain's shoulder. Brazenly, the blond leaned on the young man and closed his eyes.

"Thanks Tsuna." Colonnello expressed, exhaustion is clear on his voice.

"It's the least I can do." Tsuna responded before guiding the blond down to his lap. He softly caressed the dirty blond hair. "Sleep, Colonnello. We'll figure everything out after you're rested."

"Hmm..."

By the time the rain arcobaleno woke up, it was one in midnight. He abruptly sat up in panic and looked at Tsuna who has a blanket on his shoulders and seemingly absorbed with the book he's reading while leaning on the pillar behind his back. Brown eyes slid away from the letters and gazed at him. The brunet nodded in acknowledgement before going back to his book again.

Colonnello felt guilty of what predicament he did to Tsuna. He was here since lunch, and they stayed in that position for hours. The brunet must be stiff hard if he didn't move from there just not to disturb him.

"I'm so sorry." Colonnello apologized earnestly.

"It's okay." Tsuna closed his book and stretched his back and shoulders, legs were still tucked in. "My legs are numb though."

"I'm so sorry!" The blond cried.

The brunet waved it off with a laugh. "Just carry me upstairs. I can probably hold it off until I get comfortable in bed."

"Are you sure, kora? Don't you wanna call Bermuda to transport your or Viper to trick your mind so you won't think of the prickly feeling of your legs? Just why didn't you wake me up, kora?"

"You look tired." The Sky replied, eyes telling him he understands the feeling of fatigue. "And you were so peaceful while asleep so I didn't want to disturb you. Bermuda and Mammon are probably asleep or in a mission. Their thoughts were kinda messy awhile ago."

"You're bounded?" The blond asked, surprised.

The young man nodded. "I have four new contracts."

"That's..." Colonnello stared at the little sky who yawned. "That's amazing, Tsuna. You deserve it, kora."

"Thank you." Tsuna expressed.

"Alright. Let's go upstairs. I don't want you to catch any cold, kora." The Rain fussed.

Tsuna looped his arms around Colonnello's shoulders and let the demon take him carefully. The brunet visibly grimaced in pain so the blond stilled for a moment. When the Rain deemed it better, he stood up and went inside the house. He closed the sliding door with his feet before quietly making his way to the stairs.

The young man was pretty amazed with Colonnello's stealth. There were no creaks on the usual places nor the scratching sound on the floor whenever the blond walks. It was fairly quiet, yet the demon is walking like he owned the place. His grandfather should be awake by now if Colonnello was any noisy.

Colonnello looked around the second floor and then to Tsuna. The brunet pointed a door with a tuna sign on it. The blond held in a chuckle before proceeding to get inside the room. The sky's chamber was alit by the moon. It wasn't that messy but there are a lot of papers on some parts of the room. He put Tsuna on the bed, covered him in his blankets before looking around. When he looked back to the human, the brunet was already asleep. He chuckled and crouched to see the young man looking so peaceful.

"No wonder you don't want to wake me up, kora." He mumbled as he stared at the Sky.

Standing up, he started to snoop around. It was his first time in Tsuna's room. There were some interesting stuff other than books. There were daggers hidden in a compartment, a small gun under the study table and a Japanese short sword, tanto, under the bed. What really caught his eyes was the paper with Reborn's name on it. It has doodles here and there, and looked so intricate.

Looking back to the small sky, he realized that Tsuna and Reborn were apart for a month and a half now. Being a rain, he knew how much it pains the two. The sun arcobaleno once told him that he felt so empty after Tsuna cut off their connection. But he couldn't blame the human. Reborn was really an ass. His ego was like a long stick shoved to the hitman's behind. And he doesn't even know if the demon is taking this well. Maybe he is. Reborn is Reborn.

Or not.

After deciding that he wants to visit his comrade, he found Reborn sleeping on his bed and hugging an essay to his chest. The hitman does look okay, but that doesn't mean he's not suffering from any loss.

Colonnello made a contemplation about his choice before nodding to himself. He made a sound that he knew it will wake the Sun up, and it did its magic. Reborn's eyes opened up, a materialized gun in hand and aimed the muzzle to the Rain's direction. The action caused Colonnello to chuckle while raising his hands in mock surrender.

"What are you doing here?" He heard the other mumbled, still sleepy.

"I just came back, kora."

"So?"

The blond's brows shot up. 'Well, isn't this new, kora?' "I wanted you to come with me for a thirty minutes trip, kora. Would you like to come?"

"Can't it wait for tomorrow?" The hitman murmured, being lured back to sleep.

"Nope. This is a one time chance, kora." Onyx eyes opened and eyed him. 'Ah. Reborn is back to himself.' "He's asleep, kora."

"Should I?"

"You should." Colonnello opened a portal that showed Tsuna's sleeping form. "Come on, kora. It's only for thirty minutes. Just stare at him. Like you're dreaming or something, kora."

The blond grinned when Reborn went out of the bed and walked towards the portal. He saw hesitation so he pushed the other in before closing it. He maybe glad that the hitman is coming back to his senses pre-Luce time, but that doesn't mean one should stay in pain.

Reborn stared at Tsuna.

He stared at his love's face that he hadn't seen for a month 'n a half but felt like forever. He stared as he stepped forward before stopping just near the bed and sat crossed legs on the floor from there. He watched the brunet's chest rise and fall, those tiny changes on his face and the momentary twitch of his hands and lips. He listened to him breath and hear the beating of his heart. If Reborn was behind the child and hugging him, he'll feel the young man's back moving as his chest rises and falls.

A single tear fell from Reborn's eyes as he realized how he missed the person he loves. God. It wasn't a month and a half. It was four months and counting. From the moment he ignored his summoner's need, he already missed him. Why did he even do that?

Ah right. Unexplainable and unjustifiable jealousy and stupidity.

Reborn reached out and took the free hand of his love. He caressed the finger tips, the fingers themselves before pressing his hand to the palm. Then his breath hitched when the brunet's hand twitched. He watched as the thumb anchored itself on his before the rest of the fingers enclosed his hand and kept him there. He did the same and brought the back of Tsuna's hand to his lips.

"I love you." He murmured on the skin. "I love you Tsuna."

"Reborn..." He heard his summoner breathe.

Reborn looked back to see a portal getting in shape until it showed a grinning Colonnello. Regardless, he continued to watch Tsuna.

On the other hand, the blond studied their position, taking note of the hands especially. He nodded when the hitman glanced at him again. He saw how reluctant the Sun on letting go the hand he's holding. He could only look away when the hitman neared the young man's face. Nope. He didn't see his fellow Arcobaleno kiss the Sky.

Colonnello pursed his lips to stop himself from grinning too much when Reborn walked toward him. He's afraid that he might split his face into two. Hell. The way the hitman's face was kept in an expressionless façade almost cracked him. He may get deceived with the face, but the red ears don't lie.

"I'll probably stay with him, kora." Colonnello informed as he stepped in the room. Reborn eyed him. "Lal and I aren't in good terms right now."

"I see."

"Don't worry." He guaranteed. "Tsuna is safe with me, kora."

"I know."

Colonnello was about to close the portal when he heard the quiet whisper.

"Thank you."

He could only chuckle.

"The man in suit last night." Colonnello perked up at what Nana said while she sat beside him and stitching some torn sleeve of a shirt. "He's Tsu-kun love, right?"

The blond gulped, a little nervous for Reborn's welfare. "Yes."

"He's such a sweetheart." The lady smiled softly, making the Rain breath a little easier.

"He's also a gentleman, kora." He informed.

The Sawada matriarch looked at him with twinkling eyes. "My. Tsu-kun found quite a man."

Colonnello can't help cacchinating. He can't just come up with any reason why not be captivated with the whole members of Sawada family. Ever since Tsuna introduced him to the rest of the family, he has been in cloud nine of how carefree they were. Imagine Nana cooking and singing without a care in the world and the three males dancing as if her back up dancers (well, Ietsuna was subtle about it. He was just moving his shoulders and head, but that's considered dancing right?). They were so full of life in the early morning. Add on the fact that Iemitsu is so full of jokes and stories. Don't get started with the grandfather's sarcastic remarks and harmless jabs.

Tsuna told him that this is how they are everyday. Even the other contractors enjoyed these early morning routines. Even Verde did not escape when Nana swayed him to help her with the table setting (Colonnello can imagine it so he cracked up).

Really. Sawada family is a good family to be with.

"Do you know what made them apart?" Nana queried.

The blond hummed. "My friend is quite a possessive fellow, kora. He did not want to share Tsuna to us as a summoner, so when Viper helped Tsuna, he got a little jealous."

"A misunderstanding then." The brunette nodded.

"I was like that with Nana." Iemitsu commented from the edge side of the house. "I'm so in love with her and I don't have anything to hold as a promise that she won't be taken away from me, so I get jealous on a lot of things."

"But eventually, it stopped." The brunette continued on. "We did fight too but we figured out the problem in the end and then settled with a compromise."

"What compromise, kora?" Colonnello asked but the two only grinned mysteriously. "Oh come on! I'm not even that young! I'm older than the two of you, kora!"

"Nah. It's a couple thing." His fellow blond dismissed with a teasing smile. "You have to have a mate to know what it is."

"True." Nana seconded before giggling. "Though if Tsu-kun was here, he'll probably understand."

Iemitsu laughed while Colonnello pouted. "Unfair, kora."

"That's life." The Sawada couple sang in unison.

While Colonnello groans in protest at the teasing of the two Sawadas, Viper dropped Tsuna in front of the Arcobaleno house. The brunet thanked the Mist before the latter disappeared to get to his own mission. Looking around, Tsuna noted that everything was unkempt. Regardless, he opened the door of the house and went in.

He sighed at the disarrayed appearance of the house as he weaved through the living room and looked around the second floor to see where Lal's room was. Only to find nothing. Though his eyes lingered to the room by the far east wing of the house. Nope. He shook his head and tapped on his lines.

'Where's Lal's room?' He asked.

'West, second room from the stairs.' All four voices answered, earning a laugh from him.

'Thanks.' He expressed before moving to go in front of the said room. He softly knocked on the wood and waited.

"What?!" Lal scowled as she opened the door. The lady looked abject with disheveled hair and wrinkled clothes. It's as if she didn't catch any sleep at all even though she was also exhausted from their mission.

Tsuna stared at the female demon and grinned teasingly. 'It's probably wise to act normal.' "So you were the one who trashed the house."

The Mist-rain gawked at him. "Why are you here?"

The brunet nodded to himself with a sage-like look. "I'll take that as a yes."

The woman grunted, making him laugh a little.

"I was worried." He responded before ushering the other in. "Go shower so we can start cleaning."

"Yeah yeah." Lal grumbled and closed the door.

Tsuna scooped the house for cleaning tools, and he found them in a closet downstairs. He was already arranging the living room when Lal came down, freshly showered and dressed in her usual clothes. The brunet tossed a soft broom to her and continued to arrange the chairs.

After the wiping coffee table and windows, they moved to the dining room and the kitchen. Tsuna did the dishes while Lal wiped them. They wiped the counter and table clean before finishing the outdoors. All they did outside was sweep the dirt and take out the weeds in the flowerbeds. They rested up for a bit, drank water and eat some snacks before going back to work.

Tsuna looked left to right in the length of the hallway. Since Lal took the stairs and the railings, it was up to him to do the hallway including sweeping the floor and dusting off the pictures and vases present there. He did the dusting first before he swept the floor clean. He was going down the stairs after doing his part when Lal pointedly stared at him.

"What?" He asked, confused.

"He's asleep. You can go to his room while I finish this." The Mist-rain shooed away whilst cleaning the steps of the stairs.

"Lal-"

"We both know you miss him, Idiot. So while you have a chance, stare at him." The Arcobaleno gave him a glare. "Face the reality, kid. You can't keep this up forever with how you linger by his door in any ways."

Tsuna bit the bottom of his lip. "Isn't he a light sleeper?"

"He would've been out already if he was." The lady uttered dismissively.

The brunet chuckled before stepping back and went for the door by the east. He stopped right in front of the door, hand on the doorknob. He looked back to Lal who rose an eyebrow to him. Unable to back down because Mama bear is pretty scary, Tsuna opened the door and silently shuffled in.

The room is still as it was from the last time he was there. The only noticeable thing was the stacks of papers on the table side of the bed which is kept in place under the black fedora and the hitman who is sleeping on the bed, hugging one of his long essays. Tsuna mused how cute the other was.

Tsuna stared at Reborn's face as he walked in further. For some reasons, the hitman looked tired, with bags under the eyes and the visible frown on his face. Tsuna slowly kneeled beside the bed, no clue what he wanted to do. His mind wanted to touch the hitman's face, or just stare at him. In the end, he caressed the outreached hand.

Slowly and softly, Tsuna traced the hand with his own. He felt those hard skins that are used in wielding guns and fighting. Moving it slowly, he pressed his lips on one fingertip before doing it for the next four then held the hand with both of his and rested his forehead on the back. He kept his tears at bay, not wanting to hint the demon that he was here.

His emotions are overwhelming him. The urge to say something, touch him, wake him up and announce his presence or just talk to him is so strong that he can't breath. He had to control himself. He misses those deep sounding chuckles, smirks, smiles, and those onyx eyes that held so much danger for his being. He misses those arguments they do, the banter they make and the comfortable silence they share.

He misses him so much.

Tsuna looked up again to see Reborn's face. The hitman is still asleep, as if he didn't feel Tsuna's presence at all. The brunet wonders what the demon is dreaming. Probably something the other likes since he looked so serene.

The young man sighed when he heard Viper's voice in his head, saying they're done. Standing on his knees, he reached out for Reborn and kissed the sun arcobaleno's forehead. He slowly backed away, gently put the hand on its previous position and stood up. But before he left, he whispered 'I miss you' in the air.

Lal was sitting on a single sitter sofa when he went downstairs. The female demon looked at him and smiled knowingly, resulting him to blush red. He let out a small cough to mask his embarrassment as he sat down on the couch and gave the Mist-rain a pleasant look.

"Since the house is clean, I wanna talk to you." Tsuna started off.

"About Colonnello?" The lady asked, a brow raised at him.

The young man nodded. "Basically, your relationship."

"He's just a brat."

Tsuna sighed. "You're oldest, right?" The woman give him a 'seriously' look. "Do you know how hard it is to be the youngest between you? Or even among the Arcobaleno?"

Lal opened her mouth to answer then stilled before closing it in an audible click. She looked down for a sec before shaking her head.

"You should know that Skull is fifteen millenniums older than the rest of you." The lady looked up, surprised. Tsuna nodded with a smile. "If my counting is right, Bermuda is the youngest."

"Of course he is."

"Yet you act like he's one of the eldest and never regarded Skull any respect he needed." The Mist-rain clammed up. Tsuna still kept his cheery disposition. He knew it makes him look scary and gives a lot of guilt pressure on the receiving end. "Colonnello may act like Skull at a certain point, but he's a level headed person. Do you know what's wrong with the way you treat him though?"

"No."

"You think he's still a baby." Lal swore that the answer felt like a knife stabbing her gut. "He maybe brash, reckless and idiot, but he's calm when he wants to. He's a rain. He needs to take everything in a stride and think of them all at once. When you think you're the most composed between you two, he's the one who always points out things you overlooked. When you want something, he'll give. When you decide something, he concede. Have you thought of that? Notice even?"

The Mist-rain shook her head, guilt growing on the pit of her stomach.

"Now think back to what you did in your mission. What did you do that made him blow up like that?"

The lady took a deep breath. "I don't give him the credits he deserves. Nor gave him any choice. I didn't listen to him and blamed him for the bad things that came to us. The last straw was when I pushed him off the cliff without telling him so we can escape. I dictated everything we do and never considered giving him freedom. I treated him like one of my soldiers instead of a comrade and my brother."

"You finally got it." Tsuna cheered before he went sheepish. "I'm sorry if it came out like I'm blaming you, Lal."

"No. It's okay. You did the right thing yesterday. If you didn't send me off, we could've started a brawl right there."

"It's the least I can do for you." The brunet offered.

'I'm here, Tsuna.' Viper's silvery voice rang inside his head, making the Sky stand up.

"Mammon is here. Keep the house intact, will you?" He bid as he strode towards the door.

Lal stood up and followed him. "You're going already?"

"Yup. I need to finish things. And I promised Jii-jii that I'll read with him this afternoon." The young man responded as he opened the door.

"No messages?" The lady questioned as she watched the brunet take Viper's hand.

"I would love to, but I don't think he'll appreciate it." The human replied with a small smile. "The essays are enough for now. All I wanted to say to him are in there. Just keep him out of the trouble and in shape, yeah?"

"We all do." The mist-rain arcobaleno assured. "I'll see you later, Tsuna. Thanks for everything."

"For a friend, I'll be there." Tsuna smiled before he and Viper disappeared.