Ah yes, I'm back to making Xanxus suffer. Please, don't forget to review and follow.
Many people seemed to forget Zero Point Breakthrough wasn't like any ordinary ice. It was a self-sustaining prison, colder than any regular ice. Every silver of flame Xanxus had produced had been snatched by the thec and used against him to keep the ice that imprisoned him.
Xanxus' body had learned to throw out as many flames as possible as a helpless attempt at self-perseveration, as a result, causing his flames to disperse.
It made Xanxus exceptionally cold on bad days, and today happened to be one of those bad days.
...
He woke up in the middle of the night, feeling a chill so deep, so strong, all he could do was shake and shake, desperately trying to will his flames to warm him as tears of frustration burned his eyes. His body was hot, but he felt so cold.
Xanxus dreaded getting out of bed in the morning and attending the Vongola alliance meeting. (The meeting had been suddenly called right after Xanxus had returned from his mission. Said meeting was supposed to be held weeks after the ring battles. Not months later)
He would usually have Squalo or one of his other guardians attend for him. But since they were all on missions, Xanxus was forced to go—to attend the meeting that decided his faith.
...
During the meeting, nobody seemed to notice Xanxus shivering despite the heater being on and his Varia jacket on and zipped up instead of having it draped over his shoulders like usual. Everyone was too busy trying to decide what to do with him. Most of them wanted Timoteo to seal Xanxus in ice again, while the others wanted Xanxus tossed back into the slums with his flames sealed.
At this point, Xanxus didn't care about what happened to him. He was tired and cold. So cold, it sapped the warmth from his flames and seeped into his bones.
It made Xanxus feel like he was trapped in ice again.
The shivering increased, worse than it had last night. The tremors were far more violent, shaking his body. He felt his flames try to warm him up. Could feel them dance under his skin, flare up and burst, spreading around like they had during his time sealed in ice.
It was like his body thought he was still trapped in ice, and Xanxus was beginning to think maybe he was, and that he had never been thawed out and losing the ring battles and everything with Dino never happened, that it all had been some sick twisted dream his mind came up with, and he was just as delusional as his mother.
He began to panic at the thought of never being able to escape, of forever being stuck in ice and never being able to see Dino or the Varia again.
Xanxus could hardly breathe, struggling for a full breath that only froze his lungs.
He could still feel the ice chilling his bones, could still feel it pressing against him, could still feel it biting and nipping at his flesh, freezing his blood, sucking the warmth from his flames, and trying to turn him into a human icicle.
He shook violently, his breaths coming out in quick, shallow gaps. The air not seeming to be enough as his heart pounded in his ears and the voices in the room started mixing together, ringing in his ears and getting louder and louder, more frantic by the second.
He couldn't breathe, couldn't move, coul—
"—Xus, Xanxus! Fuck! He's hyperventilating!"
Xanxus barely registered Dino's voice, his lungs still trying to take in oxygen.
"Xanxus, baby. Listen to me, focus on me, okay? Breath. Take a deep breath, come on slowly—hold it. Okay—now let it out. Repeat. Good, good. You're doing so good, baby," Dino said slowly, keeping his voice from breaking and tears from falling as Xanxus, despite being in a state of panic, followed his breathing and managed to calm down.
But…
Then Xanxus lifted his head and saw Timoteo, and the panic started up again.
Timoteo was standing so close, too close, his eyes boring holes into him.
Xanxus' breath hitched, still shivering, still so cold.
Timoteo was going to seal him in ice again, and this time he wasn't going to let him out. H—He—
"Hey, hey, don't look at him. Look at me instead, okay? You're okay." Dino's face came into view as Dino placed his hands on on Xanxus' face, almost flinching from the intense heat, and gently directed Xanxus' attention to him, blocking Xanxus' view of Timoteo.
Xanxus could barely see Dino through the tears that blurred his vision, and couldn't stop himself from sobbing and shaking in Dino's hands.
Tsuna was startled from beside Dino, sending Xanxus a worried glance as Xanxus let out more whimpers and sobs, while Dino pulled Xanxus into his arms, letting Xanxus grasp onto his shirt and bury his face into his chest. "Is he going to be okay?" Tsuna asked, biting his lip. He knew he shouldn't be worried about Xanxus, not when Xanxus tried to kill him and his friends on multiple occasions during the ring battles. But Tsuna couldn't help it. It was kind of hard not to.
"I'm taking custody of Xanxus," Dino declared, dismissing Tsuna's question. He just got Xanxus back. He wasn't going to lose him again.
Nobody, nobody, was going to take Xanxus away from him.
Timoteo was stunned for a moment before plastering a smile on his face. A smile that fooled everyone into thinking he was a sweet old man. Instead of the monster, he truly was. "I apologize, but I cannot allow that," He spoke in a kindly tone. "My son must face the conce—"
"I'm allowing it!" Tsuna cut him off, suddenly feeling a burst of confidence as he glared at Timoteo. Hearing Timoteo call Xanxus his son made Tsuna feel sick. He didn't deserve to call Xanxus' his son. "I—"
Timoteo's lips twisted into a thin line. "Tsunayoshi, I—"
"I won the ring battles. I should be the one to decide what happens to Xanxus," Tsuna said, voice firm and controlled despite freaking out in the inside. He had no idea what he was doing. Yet, his hyper-intuition was telling him letting Timoteo near Xanxus was a bad idea, and his intuition was always right. "And I've decided to put Xanxus under the custody of the Cavallone Famiglia." He wasn't letting Timoteo anywhere near Xanxus. Not after everything Dino had told him and Reborn about what Timoteo had done to Xanxus, and whether Xanxus liked it or not, he was a part of Tsuna's family, and Tsuna protected his family.
Dino mouthed a 'thank you' before turning his attention back to Xanxus as Xanxus sobbed louder and gripped onto him tighter. It was clear everything was taking a toll on him.
Dino pulled him closer, rubbing his back and blanketing his flames around Xanxus, soothing him and easing back his distress.
Tsuna gave Dino a shaky smile as Dino slid an arm under Xanxus and gently nudged Xanxus' neck with his lips. "Xan, baby, can you wrap your arms around my neck? I'm going to carry you, okay, sweetheart?"
Xanxus only gave him a small nod before slipping his arms around Dino's neck, holding onto him as Dino carried him out of the meeting room, ignoring the backlash of protests that erupted.
All that mattered right now was Xanxus.
The next chapter will be up somewhere next week. Please, review x3.
