Timeline: Mukuro's Arc. Fuuta's kiddnapping avoided?

"Home is where you feel at home and are treated well."

~Dalai Lama

Tsuna paused in the middle of entering the living room eye scanning over the familiar faces with bubbling fondness. Gokudera and Chikusa were talking excitedly in the corner about UMA's or something, Tsuna wasn't really sure. Well, more accurately Gokudera was chatting, but Tsuna had seen Chikusa nodding and adding a few short words here and there. He could see Yamamoto and Ken outside through the open sliding glass door seemingly playing catch while the little kids Lambo and I-pin tried to steal the baseball midair.

His mother was accosting Mukuro where he sat in one of the chairs with a book open in his lap, asking brightly what type of food he liked and trying to shove some treats she had made into his hand.

"Mou, Mukuro-kun you're too thin! Eat some Onigiri! I made them just for you!"

His brother was sitting on the couch a book in hand with Fuuta stretched out on the floor drawing a picture by his feet. Tsuna watched as his brother covered his mouth with his hand to hide a snicker as their mother managed to shove a rice ball into the protesting Mukuro's hand.

"It's best not to argue with Mother, Mukuro-san. Especially when she's trying to feed you." His brother's voice carried a hint of laughter that made the Mukuro turn his glare on him.

Tsuna smiled as he stepped into the room.

He felt Reborn shift on his head but ignored his tutor's tension.

It had been a week since the fight with the weird bugs and their temporary truce was starting to become not so temporary. Not that the three new additions to the household would admit it. Mukuro seemed to have some strange obsession with threating to possess him or something like that, but Tsuna had grown up with both Hibari and Hiei-nii so he was used to that sort of thing. Hiei-nii even threatened to eat him when he was a kid! Though that was only once and he was fairly certain his brother lectured the shorter boy for that thoroughly.

Besides, despite Reborn claims that Mukuro was extremely dangerous, Tsuna hadn't felt seriously afraid of the older boy.

He smiled when Mukuro sent him a halfhearted glare as he bit into the unwanted snack. His mother clapped her hands and spun away to go harass Chikusa and Gokudera about eating. Tsuna was fairly certain she was on a mission to fatten everyone in the household to at least twice their current weight.

His smile faded slightly when his eyes landed in the thin ridge of Mukuro's shoulder.

Then again, twice their current weight would probably a healthier weight for their new guests. They looked a bit worse for wear when they arrived. Tsuna hadn't missed the way they marveled at being able to shower, change into clean clothes and sleep on the extra futons laid out in the living room for them. He glanced away nervously when Mukuro noticed his glance and glared more heatedly. His mismatched eyes flashing with a knowing glint.

The older boy had the same uncanny ability Reborn and his brother had to know exactly what he was thinking.

Hiei-nii, Tsuna knew, actually read his mind (though he still didn't know how), but those three just seemed to know by facial expressions and body language alone. Sometimes not even that since Reborn often knew what he was thinking despite sitting on top of his head and not being able to see his face.

Mukuro opened his mouth and Tsuna prepared himself for another complicated conversation with a slew of backhanded insults and comments with hidden meanings and implications that made Tsuna's head spin and Reborn tense. Tsuna never felt like he was in danger of the other boy, but it sure was hard to talk to him. No matter what Tsuna said, the older boy took the worst possible implication from even the most benign word choice.

Tsuna had a sneaking suspicion that he was searching for a reason to hate him since he didn't do this with anyone else.

(And Tsuna knew why too. He remembered that awful conversation he had with Reborn. Where his tutor explained just who Mukuro and his little gang were. He guessed Reborn wanted to scare him into trying to convince his brother and mother to turn the three out, but Tsuna couldn't stop thinking about how utterly painful and terrifying being experimented on must have been. He could see its lingering effects in the way they shied away from his mother's kindness. Sometimes he felt like he could almost see the lingering memories in the shadows clouding their eyes. In the end, even though he was a little nervous about them being fugitives, he didn't say a word about them sleeping in his living room.)

The knock on the front door was a godsend and he leaped to his feet.

"That must be Ryohei-nii! He said he'd come over later! I'll go get it!"

Or at least he hoped it was Ryohei-nii he wasn't sure if he could deal with another fight between Mukuro and Hibari. He wasn't even sure why they hated one another. He couldn't get a coherent word out of either of them. Mukuro just laughed creepily and claimed to dislike rabid dogs, while Hibari muttered something about carnivores intruding on his territory. Reborn mentioned something about his cloud instincts reacting to a threat to his sky, but Tsuna still wasn't sure what all the weather analogies meant.

(But Hibari did seem to take more offense from Mukuro's threats toward Tsuna than anyone else. Tsuna still wasn't sure what he thought about that.)

It was not Ryohei-nii at the door.

"Is this the Sawada residence?"

Tsuna opened his mouth, but he couldn't make a noise. He could feel himself shaking as he stared wide-eyed at the ominous cloaked figures standing on his doorstep. He wasn't sure why, but just looking at them made his stomach knot up and his teeth chatter in fear.

"I see you've finally decided to show up." Reborn murmured lowly, tugging lightly at Tsuna's hair. "Tsuna step aside. These are the Vindice."

The Mafia law enforcers.

Reborn had told them who they were and had told him that they'd come for Mukuro, Chikusa and Ken.

He told him that they were terrifying.

But, this was…

(Something was wrong, wrong, wrong. Something deep inside screamed at him to back away. To not engage.)

"We have discovered Mukuro Rokudo's trick and have taken Lancia into custody to be interrogated. Where are the criminals?"

Tsuna wasn't sure which one spoke, but the voice was low and grating like they didn't talk often.

"Livingroom," Reborn replied simply.

Tsuna jerked, a flash of betrayal cut through him, but he couldn't force his body to move as the three figures stepped by him with a swish of their cloaks and the faint rattle of chains.

As usual, Reborn read his conflicting emotions like a children's book. He jumped from his head and tugged him towards the living room, where the murmured of voices had suddenly been silenced.

"Tsuna, although they can be stubborn on some issues the Vindice do allow for negotiations. In fact, they are more lenient with the Vongola family that most mafia groups. And you will be the Vongola Tenth."

"I don't want to be a Mafia boss." He murmured on reflex.

His eye's scanned the room. Nearly everyone was on their feet. Frozen. He could see his mother trembling in the corner with the younger kids sheltered behind her. Gokudera looked pale where he stood by a confused Yamamoto, holding onto the baseball players arm probably to prevent him from interfering. His brother stood slightly in front of their mom, face blank.

Chikusa, Ken, and Mukuro were the only ones not on their feet.

Instead, they were kneeling in the middle of the room as two of the three Vindice members stood behind them. Ken already had a bruise forming on his cheek, which told Tsuna that their position wasn't exactly voluntary.

"Mukuro Rokudo, Chikusa Kakimoto, and Ken Joshima. You three are under arrest for breaking Mafia law."

Tsuna knew from the beginning that this odd little truce wouldn't last.

Reborn said it wouldn't last.

Mukuro said it wouldn't last.

He knew that Mukuro was a criminal hunted by the mafia.

He knew that the mafia law would eventually come after him.

He was mean and a little bit scary.

His backhanded insults and circling conversations made Tsuna's head hurt.

But…

Their eyes met.

Chains rattled as the Vindice moved.

Tsuna saw fear.

He wasn't sure what happened next, but something burned in his chest and his vision fractured. He didn't feel himself move, but suddenly he was standing in front of the three. The chains wrapped around his arms were so cold it felt like they were burning. They tangled themselves around his forearms and cut into his skin, but the flames inside of him only burned brighter at their touch.

Small droplets of blood dripped onto the floor at a steady pace.

Normally he'd freak out.

He didn't like pain or blood. Reborn was constantly lecturing him about screaming and crying over even the smallest injuries.

But, that didn't matter right now.

Because if those chains weren't around his own arms then they'd be around Mukuro, Chikusa and Ken.

And he couldn't allow that.

"Tsunayoshi Sawada." The Vindice member murmured. "Step aside. You are not to interfere with our arrest or you will be arrested as well."

"Tsuna is the candidate for the next Vongola Boss." Replied Reborn calmly. "You cannot simply arrest him."

"We can and we will." The Vindice voice was cold. "Step aside Tsunayoshi Sawada."

He didn't move.

If he did then they'd take the three away.

He couldn't allow that.

(He wouldn't allow that. There was something in his chest that was burning, burning, burning. It had been simmering for so long, but now it was like a bonfire in his chest.)

He glared up at the bandaged figure in front of him.

"I want to negotiate for their release."

"No." The response was immediate.

Flames licked at his arms, shattering the chains.

"Tsunayoshi Sawada."

The group step towards him in unison, but Tsuna still felt no fear.

"Ah, thank you Hiei. That was good timing."

Eyes turned to flashing green as his brother slowly stepped up to the cloaked figures with a smile on his face. Distantly Tsuna noticed that his brother wasn't really as calm as he seemed to be. With his vision fractured he could see the tension in his body, the edge in his smile and the shadow in his eyes. Every line in his body seemed to scream that he was angry; livid even.

"If you won't make a deal with my brother, then how about this?"

Tsuna blinked as his brother held out a fancy looking scroll. He glanced at Hiei, who had apparently entered the room during the commotion. He was scowling fiercely at the Vindice, dull red eyes practically sparking with annoyance.

The chains were gone, but Tsuna didn't move.

Instead, he watched. With his weird fractured vision, he saw a lot more than he normally could. Things like his brother's rage and Reborn's concern. He blinked slowly and watched at one of the Vindice took the scroll and began to read.

He noticed the confusion, the shock and for the first time, he noticed something else about the masked figures. There was a certain sorrow etched into their figures, their very movements. Like they themselves were weighed down with chains. Something deep inside him whispered that things weren't as they seemed. Something, something was wrong.

But, his vision was starting to blur.

"A letter from Lord Koenma is sufficient. However, should they step out of line again…"

They left the threat hanging as they swept out of the room as silent as they came.

(Safe. Everyone was safe now. He could tell. So, so he could relax.)

The burning within him faded away and with it his remaining strength. Its disappearance also brought back a horrid pain that spread through his body and made him sway on his feet.

"Tsuna!"

"Tsuna-sama!"

"Tsuna-nii!"

He could distantly hear the voices of his friends and family, but he couldn't reply. He fell back. Arms wrapped around him, preventing him from hitting the floor. He blinked up at mismatched eyes and felt himself smile despite the pain.

"Vongola..."

"Ah, you're alright. That's good. I'm glad." He whispered. "Sorry…I'm useless. I…couldn't really help in the end."

With that, he was out like a light.

Unaware of the impact his actions had on a certain group of would-be assassins that had until that point been planning his death. It seemed in bad taste now though.

Well...it's been a while...yeah. Thing is this chapter was written then rewritten multiple times until I was happy. I had to walk away from it for a little while in order to actually finish it. Also, life stuff. I live in Houston, you see, so things got a little...wet. We're doing good now though! Anyway, tThere were several small things I wanted to establish, that'll be explored more in the full story (If I ever finish chapter 3 arrggg!), that I had a hard time with, since Tsuna isn't exactly the most observant fellow outside of Hyper will mode. Just little things like a budding inferiority complex that even he doesn't realize, or Mukuro's struggle to accept this life by being a general ass. Things like that.

Anywho, till next time my beautiful readers! I love all of you and am super, super flattered by your reviews!