Previously…

Tsuna is born into a family of three: mother, father, and grandfather. Sadly, his parents die in an accident and it's up to his grandfather to raise him with the little money they have. In their new shabby apartment in a shady part of town, they meet a woman named Adelina Hayate, who is not related to any canon character.


Chapter 4

Tsuna woke violently for the third time that week. His eyes darted to all corners of his room as he pulled his covers over his nose.

What was that? He didn't remember anything from the nightmare, but the feeling of fear was sticking to his sweat-soaked skin. He gulped and dug himself deeper under his covers. On impulse, he decided to look for his grandfather. Tsuna slowly got out of bed and walked down the hallway. He glanced at the dark living room. Was it just him, or did the sofa and flower pot look like unmoving creatures, waiting for him to turn his back so they could pounce?

He scurried to his grandfather's room and he pushed the door open. "Nonno?"

The room was dark, with only a soft shade of moonlight seeping through the window.

Tsuna walked in and climbed onto his grandfather's bed. "Nonno…"

"Giotto, what is it?"

"I'm scared!"

His grandfather yawned and sat up. He patted Tsuna's head and asked, "What are you scared of, huh? There's nothing here that can hurt you."

Tsuna wasn't convinced. The monsters in his mind and in the living room could prove that statement wrong. "I woke up and I was scared!"

"Ah…you had a nightmare, Giotto. Do you remember what it was about?" He received a shake of the head. "Well then you should have nothing to fear."

Tsuna sniffed again. "I wish…I wish…"

His grandfather smoothed his hair. "Me, too, Giotto. I wish your parents were still alive. But we'll get through this without them."

"How?"

"By staying alive," his grandfather said firmly. He shook Tsuna's shoulders gently. "I know that you can survive anything, Giotto. You have to believe that. You're made for better things. You will live."


Two days later, his grandfather came to him with a question that he wasn't expecting.

"Would you like to learn Japanese?"

Tsuna gasped as milk went down his trachea. He coughed and wheezed slightly as he tried to clear the passage. He looked at his grandfather, who was just setting down a plate of eggs and sitting down in front of him.

"What?" Tsuna wiped his mouth. "Japanese? Why do you want me to learn a language for a city that I'll never go to?"

"Japan is a country, not a city. It will be helpful to know a second language."

"But…but…" Tsuna stuttered. This was just too sudden.

"Calm down, Giotto. I just saw Adeline—the woman we met in the elevator—she wanted practice with tutoring children, so I suggested you."

"Hiiie! You want me to learn from a lady we just met? We don't even know her!"

His grandfather looked at the clock. "It's time for you to go to school. You can think about it and tell me your answer when I come to pick you up."

"But I can walk home alone," Tsuna protested. His grandfather only shook his head.

Tsuna let himself be pulled along by his grandfather since he was busy thinking about Japan and their language. He thought that it was a nice language after hearing the lady speak in the elevator. But if he was being honest with himself, he never expected to learn the language or to hear about it again after that one time.

"Now, don't pick any fights with anyone," his grandfather told him when they neared the school.

"I don't," Tsuna protested. He was wearing a simple blue t-shirt and shorts today, hoping, again, that he wouldn't stand out anymore.

"Be good now. I'll see you later."

"Bye, nonno!"


That afternoon, Tsuna discovered that if he hid during lunchtime, the bullies couldn't find him. Changing what he wore didn't erase the first impression his fellow classmates had of him. But he wasn't going to stop trying.

Tsuna was halfway done eating his sandwich when he smelled something.

"Here, the money," someone said. He froze.

"Finally."

He heard something that sounded like a paper bag being handed over to someone else. Then more funny smelling stuff in the air invaded his sense of smell. He scrunched up their noses in distaste and pinched his nostrils shut.

"Remember, the meeting is tomorrow night. Then the big night is the night after. Got that? We're going to raid until there's nothing left. Burn it to the ground."

"Yeah, I know. And make sure you watch out for her."

The voices faded. When the air around him seemed to be free of the smoke, Tsuna breathed in deeply and coughed.

What was that? Tsuna shrugged. He had no idea what they were talking about. All he knew was that if people were going to talk here, he didn't want to eat near them.


This time, Tsuna's grandfather was there waiting for him before the last bell of the day even rang. "Giotto, I'm over here," he shouted.

Tsuna ran to him and held onto his hand tightly, looking for the bullies who ambushed him before.

"So have you thought over what we talked about this morning? About letting Adelina become your tutor?"

"I guess it will be okay," Tsuna said slowly.

His grandfather nodded. "She agreed to teach you for free, if you are willing to go to her apartment every day after school from three to six. You could try it for a few days. If you don't like it, you can quit."

Something his grandfather said about quitting had him straightening.

"I won't quit!" Tsuna said before he could stop himself. What?! Where did that come from?

"Good, good," his grandfather chuckled and ruffled his hair. "I'll go with you to her apartment. She wanted to meet you today and see if you were up to the lessons."

When they entered their building and were waiting for the elevator, Tsuna asked, "Nonno, how long am I going to have the lessons for?"

"Three to six. Three hours."

"No," Tsuna said. "How long."

"How long? I just told you…oh. I don't know. She said a year, maybe two."

Tsuna's eyes popped out. "A year!"

"Er…yes."

They got off the seventh floor and knocked on the eighth door to the right. "Yes—? Who—s it?" The voice came from the faulty intercom.

"It's me, with Giotto," his grandfather said with a cough.

They heard the door unlock and the woman stepped out to greet them as the door slid into the wall, with a little help from her foot.

Tsuna looked at her. She had black hair, a small face, and looked very tall. She wore a simple shirt and pants, white and black respectively. Her hair was tied back and she wore frameless glasses in front of blue eyes.

"Hi, it's nice to see you again." She knelt down so the was on the same level as Tsuna.

"Hi," he said shyly.

"I'll leave him in your care then," their grandfather said. "Just come back down when you're finished, alright, Giotto? But call me first."

"Okay."

"Come in," Adelina said. Tsuna entered and the door slid shut. "Do you want some cookies?"

He nodded enthusiastically. It had been a long time since he had cookies. She guided him to the living room, where there was a plate of chocolate chip cookies and two small mugs of hot chocolate.

"So, why don't you tell me about yourself?"

Tsuna frowned suspiciously. She noticed this and smiled slightly. "Okay, maybe I should introduce myself to you first," she said and sat across from them. "My name is Adelina Hayate. I went to a college nearby—Clam College—it's affiliated with a university. I've been home tutoring since I graduated. So, it's been a total of five years. Other than that, I don't do a lot. I love to teach."

Tsuna's expression softened as she told them about herself. She was very honest and if Tsuna was truthful, he was starting to like her.

"Your turn," she said.

Tsuna began. "I'm Giotto. I'm eight and three quarters years old. We used to live somewhere else but had to move away after mom and dad died," he said.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Adelina said softly. "I'm glad that you want to learn more. I'm sure your parents would have been happy, too."

Tsuna looked at the woman curiously. "What can you teach me?" he asked.

"Well, for starters…"


The next three hours went by quickly for Tsuna. He absorbed what Adelina said like a sponge. He was awed by the language. It sounded like home to his ears, though he didn't know why.

"Thank you," he said happily to her when they were finished. "It was fun!"

Adelina looked relieved. I was worried I won't be able to get a connection with him. I'm glad it worked, she thought.

"See you tomorrow!" Tsuna shouted and waved until the elevators whisked him away.


The next month was like clockwork. He would go to school, come home after a rough bout with some kids on the streets, and rush upstairs. He would try to hide the bruises and scratches he collected but his grandfather always noticed. Then he would go through three hours of learning a second language with Adelina.

Adelina was proud to call him her student even if it wasn't going to appear on paper. He was so energetic and eager to learn more.

Tsuna continued to soak up everything he was taught. The sound of every word was so familiar to him. It was almost nostalgic, but that was impossible.

"How about I test you?" Adelina asked cheerfully one afternoon.

"Test?" Tsuna said.

"I've taught you most of what children your age would know and it has just been a month. I'm a bit worried that I might be going too fast with you but you've been doing so well…I just couldn't help myself."

Tsuna didn't face this with enthusiasm. He didn't think he liked tests of any form, especially since…he tilted his head. Since…?

"I'll be happy if you can answer anything I say from now on in Japanese," Adelina said. "Starting now." Tsuna let the thought slip away and concentrated on the present.

After thirty minutes, it was clear that he knew what they were talking about. There were just a few things Adelina corrected now and again.

She sat back, staring at him. He stared back, waiting for her to speak. "You're amazing," she said under her breath. It's as if he was born there, she thought, studying the boy. Maybe his parents brought him to Japan when he was a child. Perhaps he was exposed to the culture, or has heard the language for a while and would have possible started speaking it, before they moved back? How long were they there for? It…can't be possible for him to learn it quickly as a baby. He has a good memory. I can be sure of that. Maybe he just has a hidden talent. Maybe he'll grow up to be a genius. She laughed silently at her last thought.

"Great. Excellent! You did very well," she said and applauded. "Just a bit of polishing up and we can start something new!"

"New?" Tsuna wondered. "What's that?"

"How do you feel about being able to read and write?"


~EO!~

Chrome dangled her legs over the ledge as she watched Tsuna sit in apartment 708. Her lips were pressed together and her wings were twitching every few minutes out of worry.

He lost his parents so soon…I feel sorry for him. It must be hard.

"Chrome?" She looked over her slim shoulders and saw Yamamoto and Mukuro approaching. She smiled and stood.

"You've been checking in on Tsunayoshi once a day now."

She said softly, "Every day, another week passes by for him. I'm worried about him being down there so soon after the last mission…"

Yamamoto smiled reassuringly. "It's been…" He silently counted the human years on his fingers. "Almost nine years since he started. Stop worrying, Chrome. Nothing bad will happen to him!"

"Do you think his ease in learning Japanese might be because his memories weren't erased properly?" she asked carefully.

Yamamoto's smile froze. His eyes darted around quickly before speaking. "Someone might hear you, Chrome. It might start a panic with the other angels."

"I'm only worried about a friend," Chrome said in protest.

"Kufufufu…Chrome, what are you trying to say about Tsunayoshi?" Mukuro had no worries about talking at all.

"He's learning way too fast for a normal child," she whispered and looked back down. "Just three weeks after the lessons began, he was able to understand almost everything said to him in Japanese. Don't tell me that this is normal for a boy who has never even heard a word of Japanese before he met that woman."

They had nothing to say to this.

"Okay, I'll admit it. I felt that too," Yamamoto said. "I hoped that Tsuna might have been reborn as a genius. He was, after all, in his first life, a genius before he became an angel."

"We're never reborn with the same brain," Mukuro countered. "There's no way he could be as smart as he was in his first life."

Yamamoto shrugged with a worried smile.

"Well, hey! It's been a while since I've seen you three!" a cheerful voice said from above.

Looking up, they saw a green-haired angel gliding down slowly and lazily. His nose had a splatter of freckles and he gave them a crooked grin when he landed.

"Katsuro," Yamamoto said in greeting with his own quick smile. They didn't really want to speak to anyone at the moment, especially not this guy. He asked way too much.

"Have you heard?"

Not this again, Mukuro, Yamamoto, and Chrome thought.

Since the boys didn't look like they were going to ask, Chrome did. "Hear what, Katsuro-kun?"

"Oh…so you don't know?" Katsuro asked with an astonished look plastered on his face. "I'm sorry. I thought you did."

If you aren't going to tell us anything, don't lead us on… Mukuro gave Katsuro a cold look. "Kufufufu. It doesn't matter, my lovely Katsuro," Mukuro said. His words were so sweet that Yamamoto wanted to gag. Katsuro immediately stiffened and glared at Mukuro when he teased. "After all, it's probably nothing important; otherwise, someone else would have told us already," Mukuro finished with a smirk.

"The Advisor was murdered last night."

"Oooh… and that's big news, isn't it?" Mukuro asked as he stretched. "Kufufufu…thank you…for bringing the shocking news…I'm off." He spread his wings, preparing to take flight.

"Oi, Mukuro! Hold on a second," Yamamoto said hastily and grabbed hold of Mukuro's leg before he got out of reach. Mukuro jerked in the air and came down with a scowl. Yamamoto turned back to Katsuro.

"When did this happen?"

Katsuro shrugged and took his time to explain, now that he had their attention. "Just this morning. Gruesomely murdered. A pity," he said with a shake of his head. "Just what you would expect from the Fallen Angels."

Yamamoto, Chrome, and Mukuro's eyes narrowed at the mention of their enemy.

"How did they get in?" Chrome whispered. Her eyes roamed the skies as though the Fallen Angels were within hearing.

"Oh, it was terrible," Katsuro said with a sigh and a shake of his head. "Such tragedy!"

"Katsuro," Mukuro said through gritted teeth and forcing a smile on his face that looked more fitting on the devil than an angel. "Spill it already. Or I'll spill your guts along with the answer."

"No need to get antsy. We don't know how they got in yet, but we will soon enough."

"They're calling a meeting," Chrome said abruptly. They turned to look at her.

"What?" Katsuro said, confusion clearly in his voice.

"Something major is wrong with the Earth that Boss is. Those on Boss's team are to report to the archangel's chambers. Five minutes," Yamamoto said nervously, and tilted his head as though listening for more.

Chrome's face paled. "I guess we're going."

"Just hold on a minute," Katsuro said as their wings spread. "I didn't hear anything of this…"

"Kufufufu…That's because you're not connected to any open cases," Mukuro said with a smirk as he too received the silent summons from the Assistant.

Yamamoto smiled at him, but it was only a fleeting. "We'll talk to you later, Katsuro!"

They immediately took off and made their way to Byakuran. Other angels met them as they ascended. Exchanging nods and quick greetings, they entered the room they had met Byakuran when Tsuna first came back from his previous mission.

Chrome, Yamamoto, and Mukuro chose three of the ten seats that surrounded the table. Byakuran himself was standing in front of a vacant spot.

"So he called in other teams that have Angels on Tsuna's Earth," Yamamoto murmured. "This is big."

"Is this everyone?" Byakuran said as he surveyed the room. After a moment, he nodded. "Then we will begin." With a wave of his hand, the double doors slammed shut. "I believe that we'll need the angels on this Earth soon." He conjured up a misty profile of each angel who occupied the Earth Tsuna was currently on.

Tsuna...

Other angels murmured to their companions.

"Byakuran," Yamamoto said over all the other voices. They quieted and looked at the cheerful teen.

"Yes, Takeshi?" Byakuran replied with a closed eye smile.

"You do know that most of the angels on Earth probably aren't old enough or are too old to be of much use, right? You said "soon", but Tsuna's only eight."

"I'm sure you've heard rumours about the Fallen Angels by now," Byakuran said. "I suspect that they may be trying to create an uprising and take control. They will ruin everything that we have worked for up until now if they do."

"That's preposterous! There is no way they can rebel against us," an angel said.

Byakuran's eyes flashed dangerously. "It's not as impossible as you may think. When the time comes, I want a few of you to go down there and assist."

Mukuro's eyes narrowed. "By that, you mean…?" he said.

"Mmm…Yes, Mukuro. It means some of you are going to simply have to cross the line of the Elgan Order to Earth the hard way."

"Is that really necessary?" another angel said weakly. "Can't they just join with a human who will be born in the next few seconds?"

"The angels who are already on Earth are too young and will most likely still be young humans by the time they are needed. We can't rely on their powers if their powers haven't forced their ways to the forefront. If they are barely old enough, what makes you think that the ones we send right this second will be any better?" Byakuran asked. "That is all I have to say. Prepare yourselves. I will decide whose teammates to send according to where the Fallen Angels will attack. And don't breathe a word of this to anyone outside of this room or you'll wish you never died."


Chrome, Yamamoto and Mukuro gathered near the edge of their world. Chrome glanced down at their friend and comrade to see how he was doing. Satisfied with what she saw, she turned back to her two companions.

"I'm worried for him," she said quietly.

Yamamoto laughed cheerfully. "It'll be alright, Chrome! Tsuna's smart and strong. He can handle himself."

"Kufufufu…he hasn't even met with any of the Vongola yet. How do you expect him to be strong? It's different than before, when he had the home tutor from the Mafia. This time, he has nothing except for his dormant powers, which probably won't resurface in his life time."

"Mukuro, you really know how to joke," Yamamoto said with a chuckle though it sounded false. Seeing Yamamoto's glare, Mukuro knew that he shouldn't have opened his mouth. "We need to have faith in Tsuna. He's our boss!"

~EO!~


Three years later (age 11)

Tsuna was sitting in the kitchen doing his homework, which was a sheet of math questions. He was just finishing the tenth question when he heard something outside. He ran to the window to peer out.

"Nonno!"

"What is it?" his grandfather asked and coughed.

"I heard something!"

"What?"

"I HEARD SOMETHING," he repeated in a much louder voice.

"Oh! Yes, did you? Well so did I!" his grandfather shouted back and wandered into the kitchen to find some water. "What did you hear?"

Tsuna turned to look at him. "I don't know—"

BAM!

"See? There it is again!"

"Get down," his grandfather shouted and he pushed his grandson's head below the window.

"What? What?"

His grandfather coughed twice before speaking again, "It's dangerous to be up. No, don't look out the window!"

"But nonno, I want to see what's happening!" Tsuna's curiosity was stirred. What was happening?

The Cavallone and the Puniamo were fighting openly on the streets. Nonno didn't know a whole lot about the gangs, but he did know that this neighbourhood was on Cavallone territory. What that meant, he didn't know. That was how the poorer parts of the neighbourhoods were. They were run by gangs that claimed they had the people's interests at heart. He heard from the neighbours that their sons were impelled to join them after seeing the gangs in action. One day, they would come home with a tattoo or some other symbol of the gang, imprinted on them, never to be washed off.

He worried that his dear Giotto would end up like one of those boys if he saw them. He sucked in a breath when one of the men fell down. In a few more minutes, the fight was over and blood was spilled. One of the Cavallone men walked up to the Puniamo and said something. Then the Puniamo members scrambled to their feet and ran.

The Cavallone leader's gaze focused on the people who were looking from their windows. His eyes and smile were soft. "Don't worry," was the message they were sending to the people.

So young, and already the leader of a Mafia gang, Tsuna's grandfather thought as he watched the blond haired youth look at him.

Dino's eyes locked onto the old man's a few seconds longer than they did with the others. This was an unfamiliar face. He would have to welcome the old man into the neighbourhood at some point. He filed that note away in his memory. First, he had to deal with this…group.


The next afternoon, Tsuna walked home by his usual route alone, since his grandfather was busy tending to the shop.

I wonder what happened yesterday, Tsuna thought. Maybe nonno will tell me if I nag him enough! With new hope, Tsuna sped up until he was running home at full speed.

Two blocks later, there was a stand-off between teenagers, who were a few metres apart from each other. Tsuna was running too fast and tripped in his attempt to stop.

Right in front of Tsuna were three boys. The biggest one, standing in front, was wearing a black tank top and blue jeans. The two on either side of him were just as tall, but not as big.

The one to the right, who had brown hair, was standing a step behind and away from the other two, as though taking some kind of guard position. He stood relaxed in his black jeans, his hands tucked casually in his blue windbreaker's pockets.

"You'll pay for what you did yesterday. The Puniamo will be after you," the biggest boy said to the girl they stood against.

She had long blond hair that grew out with slight curls. At the moment, hair was in a french braid and wouldn't be in the way of fighting. On her right wrist, she had a bracelet. Tsuna recognized her and her friends as regulars in the neighbourhood. Her usual sweet smile was gone. Now, it was a sneer. "I'd like to see you try!"

The Puniamo member to the left ran to the girl and threw a punch at her face. He missed, letting the girl deliver her own blow. It hit bone and there was a crack. Tsuna screamed when the teen collapsed right next to him.

The teen noticed Tsuna and grabbed him. "Hiiiiiiiiie! Let go of me!"

"Shut up! Surrender if you don't want me to hurt this kid!"

The girl stopped and stood in a relaxing position. Her brown eyes were troubled for a second, but she hid it quickly. "That kid means nothing to me. What makes you think that I'll stop?"

Meanwhile, Tsuna was struggling not to pass out from panic. He looked at the older boys. The middle boy had a smile that came from Tsuna's worst nightmares. The boy to the right didn't even twitch. He didn't move from his position and his face was utterly blank. Not a sneer, not a smile, not a frown…But his blue eyes were on Tsuna, watching him closely. Tsuna couldn't figure out what the older boy was thinking, only that he wouldn't raise a finger to help. He had a marking on his neck—a red tattoo that peeked out from under his t-shirt's collar. Tsuna committed that to memory so that he would know to run the other way if he ever saw the boy again. He couldn't see what it was exactly, but he knew that they were stylised words in a language he didn't know.

He wriggled but his stubby feet were nowhere near the ground. Tsuna sent a silent plea to the girl in red. Please help me! Pleaaaaaaaaase!

"Kid," she said with gentle smile on her face. "If you want to get out of there, you're gonna have to fight your way out."

Tsuna's eyes became the size of ping pong balls. Fight my way out? How do you expect me to do that?

Before he had time to think, she pulled back her arm to throw a knife at Tsuna's captive.

"Hiiiiiiiiiiiiie!" Tsuna screamed, "STOP! THAT'LL KILL ME." Before he could think, he kicked until he hit something. The boy let out a painful shout and his grip loosened. Tsuna wiggled free and scratched the hand that tried to get a hold of him again.

He turned and saw a long gash across the left side of the teen's cheek made by the knife. Blood. Blood was pouring out—out onto the hand that was trying to stop the bleeding.

"Kid, get away from there!" The words spoken by the girl snapped Tsuna out of his trance. He looked at the girl and back at the teenager on his knees.

He got up and ran for home.


He didn't speak of his encounter with the older kids to anyone, fearing what would happen if he did. But it did change him. He began to recognise certain signs that indicated what 'team' people were on. Some had red bands while others had markings on their faces or arms and some just dressed oddly or had unique features to them.

He also saw some of the older students in their schools with them too, though not so explicit. He heard things about how someone was part of the Puniamo or the Cavallone, which didn't make any sense whatsoever.

As he grew older, he began to understand why his teachers didn't let any of the students go beyond the fence during recess, or why they had to practice lockdown drills so often, or why they made an effort to make sure that students weren't walking home alone without a parent or guardian.

And Tsuna's twelfth birthday passed with much caution: a simple cake, a present from his grandfather and Adelina, and extreme alertness whenever he left home.


A/N

Ugh. I was having internet problems. Let's leave it at that.

Clam College does not play a role in this story. I figured that I'd just throw it in for the heck of it. It's part of another story which I might never get to writing.

Hope you enjoyed this chapter!

Updated 2015-12-09th

Edited 2016-09-09th (Thank you for the suggestion, KK! You raised a good point. I've changed it now. Hopefully it is better than before.)


-LLM