As their summer continued, Dino and Rosetta spent most of their free time sparring and hanging out together. Through this the two of them grew closer than ever, genuinely enjoying each other's company. Before they knew it, the vacation's end was fast approaching and soon it was almost time for them to part for another year.
"Wow, color me impressed Dino." Rosetta commented after he had managed to steal her weapon with his whip - something he'd had trouble with lately. "You may actually have a chance in winning this one."
"Indeed. You have grown substantially better in combat since Rosetta agreed to spar with you more." Reborn added from the sidelines with his usual smirk adorning his face. "However she has grown stronger herself so keep your guard up."
"Right. Thanks Reborn." the young Cavallone said with gratitude, dodging a couple of her attacks before continuing. "And thank you, Rosetta. I wouldn't be this strong without the two of you to help me grow."
"Where did this confidence and resolve come from all of a sudden?" Reborn was mildly surprised for a moment but quickly changed tones. "You're sounding like a mafia boss already~"
"There's still no way I'm becoming a boss." Dino replied defiantly before turning to Rosetta. "Instead I'm aiming to become stronger to protect those dear to me."
He then readied his whip for the final blow but he didn't notice that his words had such an impact on her, making her freeze from shock. The young Cavallone continued and cracked his weapon in her direction then realized when it was too late.
"Dino stop and pay attention to your opponent!" His tutor instructed urgently.
He flinched in response and then turned his gaze to his friend, seeing that she was frozen and in a daze. He tried to pull his whip away but it was too late - it ended up nicking her upper arm. Immediately she snapped out of it and winced in response, cradling her arm.
"Sorry Rosetta! I thought you would dodge that one…" Dino apologized while running up to her.
"It's okay. I wasn't really paying attention anyway." The brunette waved it off with a small smile.
"While that is true, what Dino said still froze you in place." Reborn instructed seriously. "Dino, you need to be aware that what your words can be a weapon too."
"Sorry…" his student said once again.
"It's really okay." Rosetta smiled and lifted her hand away from her wound, revealing that she had healed it. "See? Like it never happened." - her friend expressed shock at her action and she winked at him in confidence - "It'll be our secret."
"At any rate, what you did say was admirable." The pint sized tutor chimed in. "But I must know…if you were referring to Rosetta, she is leaving soon so how will you protect her then?"
"O-Oh…Well I didn't think that far ahead." the young Cavallone turned his gaze away, looking embarrassed and annoyed. He then slumped his shoulders and continued sadly. "The time really did pass us by though. I forgot you were supposed to leave at the end of summer."
"I've still got a week left though." Rosetta assured him with a bittersweet smile. "And even then it's not like we'll never see each other again."
"But I feel like we never got enough time together…" Dino trailed off and looked away, failing to notice his friend's cheeks turn pink.
"W-Well we always have next summer, and the ones that will follow…" the brunette stated hopefully, gazing at him with reassurance. "But let's not focus on that and make the most of the rest of our summer." - she then turned to Reborn - "Should we continue with our session?"
"No. We're done for today." The tiny hitman replied, his mind on other things. "I just remembered that I need to make an important phone call…"
He then left the two teens to go to his private room to do just that.
"Hello, Reborn. We haven't spoken in a while." A calm suave male's voice greeted from the receiver lightheartedly.
"It has been a long time, Xaviero*" the hitman tutor replied. "Listen, I have a favor to ask."
"A favor? You rarely ask for favors…" the man called Xaviero sounded surprised and yet intrigued. "Very well, I'm listening."
"It's about your daughter. She's supposed to be leaving within the week, but I know she'll learn and grow more if she continues to remain her through the school year."
"So you're proposing she stays with you and attends the young Cavallone's school?" Xaviero paused to think for a moment. "I'm afraid I cannot accept. Rosetta is still unable to fully control her abilities. I cannot risk her going out of control in a place full of strangers and possibly hurting them as well as herself."
"Even if it's a place owned by your famiglia the Mezzanotte?" Reborn made his case seriously. "Also might I add that in the presence of Rosetta I have seen that she has near perfect control of her abilities." - he then realized something - "Wait...It's not Rosetta but Nero that you're concerned about isn't it?"
Xaviero sighed. "You got me there, Reborn. Without Rosetta, we've noticed that Nero has trouble controlling himself when training. He also has trouble socializing. We've been working on that, but if Rosetta isn't there to balance him then it may have a negative effect."
"I firmly believe however that Rosetta has grown substantially since her first day here, and she along with Dino may continue to grow if she remains here. The relations between the Mezzanotte and the Cavallone may become stronger as well."
A long pause followed. "You make a good argument, Reborn." Xaviero responded with difficulty. "Give me a few days to consider. I shall get back to you before the week ends."
The week passed them by and when the time came, Reborn assembled everyone together for he had an announcement.
"So what did you need us for, Reborn?" Rosetta asked curiously upon entering one of the Cavallone mansion's living rooms with Dino in tow.
"Hopefully nothing bad…" her friend stated in response. "The fact that he even called us and didn't just appear is off putting."
"I wouldn't be able to carry the monitor if I came to you." The tutor said in reply.
The young Cavallone gazed at him incredulously. "Why do you need a monitor?"
"You'll see. Have a seat."
Once the two had hesitantly taken their seats opposite Reborn and the monitor, the tutor tapped the button on the monitor to turn it on. The bust of a man in his late thirties was revealed on the screen. He had the same colored eyes as Rosetta but had darker hair than her that was messily slicked back and had a short beard to match. He was currently wearing a white button up shirt as far as they could see.
"Dad…?" Rosetta uttered with bewilderment.
"Hello, sweetheart." The man replied with a loving smile. "How has your summer been?"
"It's been great." His daughter answered. "I enjoyed hanging out with Dino and Reborn and I've learned a lot of things from them too."
He smiled and then aimed a sharp unwavering gaze at Dino. "And have you been treating my daughter well, young Cavallone?"
The blonde flinched and then answered with, "Y-Yes sir,"
"Dad, please be nice." The brunette pleaded with an embarrassed pout before becoming curious. "All greetings aside what's the reason for this video call? I'm coming back home tomorrow so isn't it kind of redundant?"
"Yes it would be under normal circumstances, but Reborn presented an interesting proposal to me last week after telling me of your growth under his tutelage." Rosetta's father explained. "I have given it some thought and have decided to allow you to attend school with the young Cavallone if it's your desire to."
A moment passed as she let it sink in, then her eyes lit up. "Really Dad?!" She uttered with excitement before reigning it in to ask with concern. "What about Nero? Will he be okay with this?"
"Don't worry about your brother. We're figuring it out as we speak. I am sending Antonio to you however. There may be people I can trust at the school but there's no one I can trust more with keeping you safe when away from home."
"Thank you so much Dad! You won't regret this, I promise." Rosetta then turned to her friend. "Isn't this exciting Dino? We'll be going to school together!"
"Honestly I didn't see this coming," was all he could say at the moment.
"I leave my daughter in your capable hands then Reborn." The man on the monitor stated.
"Of course Xaviero." The pint sized hitman replied before the display went black.
Before the day ended Antonio came to pick up Rosetta just as her father had said. When he arrived she took the chance to introduce him to Dino.
Antonio looked a little younger than Xaviero with a tall and slim figure. He had straight dark brown colored hair with a side part that flowed over the right side of his face, nearly concealing one of his indigo colored eyes. He seemed very learned with his rectangle shaped glasses but was dressed very averagely. He was currently wearing a blue tinted black turtleneck under a brown overcoat and grey slacks with black semi formal styled shoes.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Dino Cavallone." He greeted smoothly with a deep respectful bow.
"Uh, likewise." The young Cavallone replied, so thrown off by Rosetta's uncle's appearance and gesture that he couldn't help but utter loudly. "…Is Mr. Antonio not your uncle by blood, Rosetta…?"
The two Mezzanottes stared at him blankly in response, making him realize the mistake he had made. He immediately apologized but Antonio took it rather well.
"It's quite alright." He stated calmly. "Your thinking was correct, young Cavallone. I am not a Mezzanotte by blood. I was adopted by Rosetta's grandfather."
When he had finished and a moment of silence passed, Rosetta felt the urge to speak. "You're just going to leave it there when your adoption is such a compelling story?" She asked with slight aggression.
"I just didn't feel the need to elaborate at the moment. Besides, we need to get going to prepare for your enrollment…" He trailed off when noticing Dino's interested expression and turned to him before continuing with a smile. "Perhaps next time."
The two teens agreed hesitantly and together the uncle and niece left.
*Xaviero is the father of Rosetta and the boss of the Mezzanotte family, if you didn't figure it out.
Also in a nutshell Antonio's family was killed by bad mafia men and just as they went for him he escaped. Rosetta's grandfather found him on the streets and took him in, knowing that he was one of the victims of one of his rival famiglias. Once Antonio was well enough the two of them worked together to take down the enemy and once that was done he became a well respected member of the Mezzanotte. (I just wasn't sure how to fit it into the flow of things).