OpalescentGold: I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn.

Foundation

This is how the Moon soothes the Sky.

Comforting

Tsuna paces in his bedroom, hands curled into fists and eyes stinging. He doesn't even really notice the many bruises and aches his body attempts to inform him of, mind on the remembered scene of both Hayato and Takeshi on the ground, left to the mercy of Squerbi Squalo's blade -

It makes him want to throw up.

What's with this entire ring business anyway!? Tsuna doesn't want to become a mafia boss, definitely doesn't want to go down that route of blood and sin and betrayal. And...And it was okay, even with Reborn kicking him into things he didn't want to get into, it was okay because his friends were on his side.

But now, even with his repeated denials of the position of Vongola Decimo, his friends are getting hurt, and that is not okay.

Even worse, his idiot, no-good father's back in town...and asleep in the living room after eating the food supplies that were meant to last them for a week, getting the kids drunk, trekking mud all throughout the house, and making his mother wash a load of his clothes.

Tsuna wonders what horrific deed he did in his past life to get this for his current life.

Seriously, what in the world did he do!?

Clack!

Tsuna jerks his head up sharply at the sound and looks around warily, half-expecting Reborn to pop up out of nowhere. But, no, he doesn't see any sign of the baby hitman, so what -

Clack! Clack! Clack!

This time, he realizes it's stones being thrown at his window and breathes a sigh of relief. Scrambling over, Tsuna wrenches open his window and almost gets knocked back by a stone to the forehead. "N-Nori-chan!"

His best friend stands casually in his backyard, as if this is an everyday occasion. Then again, she has pulled stunts like this before, normally in the dead of night. Noriko's smile is a welcome sight. "Hey, Tsuna. Come on down."

Tsuna doesn't hesitate before clambering down, having done this several times before. As soon as he's safely on the ground, he's being enveloped in a tight hug that smells of lavender and vanilla, comfort and home and protection.

He's shaking before he knows it, everything that's happened in the past few hours slamming home hard. Tsuna hugs Noriko back desperately, biting his lip against the tears pushing at his control. Not here, not here - !

As if she's a mind reader like Reborn, Noriko picks that moment to pull back and examine his face. Tsuna's not sure what she sees, but she nods like he's said everything that needs to be said. "Come on," she says and pulls at his hand.

Tsuna's not sure where they're going, but he follows her anyway.

(He never notices the pair of black eyes that observe them closely on their way out, but she does.)

Constant

For as long as Tsuna can remember, Nori's been a constant in his life.

They met in kindergarten, and they've been best friends ever since. Tsuna despairs more often than not of the situations that Nori pulls him into, but she always gets them out of those situations too, and he never really gets hurt.

Sorta like Reborn, really, but his tutor doesn't mind him getting bruised and battered before cutting in.

Even when Nori just casually pulls in other people - but they stay for Tsuna, something he never notices - she always stays. Even when Nana occasionally calls him useless and Iemitsu wanders in and out - mostly out - of their lives, Nori always stays.

Is it any wonder that when he needs help, an anchor, Tsuna always, always calls Nori first?

"You said Hayato-kun and Takeshi-kun were upset?" Noriko asks when they are two blocks away from his house, going someplace his addled mind hasn't caught on to yet.

Tsuna bites his bottom lip, unable to get over the terror of seeing his friends, his family, so close to death, to the sharp edge of a sword. "Y-Yeah. Th-They didn't do so well with the enemy, so..."

Noriko just nods and continues tugging him along as the setting sun paints crimson streaks across the sky, as red as the blood that had spurted from that unknown boy's small, fragile body, now in the hospital.

It's four blocks later when Tsuna finally speaks up. "Nori-chan? Where are we going?"

"Hmm...we're going to Hibari-san's," she says absently, heading into a section of the town that he's never been to before.

He blinks, surprised, before tilting his head to the side. Kyoya's not nearly as scary as he was before Noriko caught his interest, and in doing so, pulled Tsuna onto the prefect's radar, but that doesn't mean Kyoya isn't scary strong.

"Are you sure he won't bite us to death for insolence?" Tsuna asks and receives a low laugh, silver and sweet. The final tense inch of his shoulders relax despite the eminent danger by tonfa ahead.

"I don't think so," Noriko says, which really isn't as concrete as he might like it to be. Ten minutes later, they are standing in front of a large traditional Japanese house that Tsuna privately thinks fits the prefect very much.

Noriko lifts her hand and knocks on the door once, concise and precise. Not a minute later, Kyoya pulls the door open and stares at them with sharp grey eyes. "What do you want?" he demands flatly.

"Something happened," she says, smile unfaltering. "You've heard about the attack in the shopping center?"

Kyoya's clearly unimpressed. "Get to the point, Reiki."

"Can we please stay over for the night?"