Mercy is bad for the vision.

Set sometime WAY into the future of the Vongola Family. Title taken from the 31 Days theme for April 20, 2008.

"You're going about it the wrong way, little brother," he says. "You don't order him. You wield him."

Tsuna's head jerks up in surprise. Dino Cavallone does not seem to notice. The two of them are in the older boss' mansion with a desk full of paperwork and a tray of half-forgotten tea and biscuits between them.

"Kyouya doesn't take to being told to do things," Dino says, as he leans back in his seat, puts his legs up on the table. "He's a creature of willpower. Sheer willpower, and determination. Oh, and did I mention sex?"

Dino chuckles at his own joke. Tsuna knows that he ought to laugh and play along too, but it always unsettles him, the thought of his Cloud Guardian being with anyone.

"You know why he stays with your family, right?"

"...I think so? It must be because—"

"—he likes to fight," Dino finishes for him, with a smile and hooded eyes. "Kyouya operates on two instincts: fight or fuck. There is no 'flee' in his vocabulary."

Dino pauses there, and reaches for his tea cup as though he suddenly remembered its existence. Tsuna watches the man's long fingers curl around it. He always latches on to the strangest details when he's nervous.

"Weapons don't know when to give up," Dino says, after taking a sip. "The hand that controls them, however, might. By the way, your tea is getting cold."

"A-ah. Thanks."

And Tsuna barely tastes it. He's too busy mulling over Dino's words. Dino, on the other end, is watching him with open amusement.

"Weapons like... no, they need to be controlled, little brother. Commands are an unnecessary kindness."

Tsuna wants to question those words, but then he thinks back to his younger years, to Guardian rings and training stories. Tsuna sets his cup down.

"I think I understand now."

And Dino smiles again. He pours himself a little alcohol.

The next morning, Tsuna finds himself seated in his office at the Vongola Mansion, arms folded across his chest, eyes closed against the onslaught of a terrible headache. Somewhere in front of him, two of his Guardians are having a spirited argument. He doesn't really want to watch them at it. Hearing them is enough.

"—the hell do you mean you won't do it, you bastard? You're in the best position to handle this!"

"It has nothing to do with me."

"You're still saying that shit?!"

In his mind's eye, Tsuna can see Ryohei grimacing in the far corner, Lambo seated near the window looking like he wanted to melt into the floor, Chrome fiddling with her cellular phone close to his desk and Yamamoto by the table munching on the remains of their lunch. He can see Gokudera standing at the center of the room with his fists clenched and all heckles raised, radiating barely suppressed rage. He can see Hibari standing by the door, eyeing Gokudera with arched eyebrows and that particular curl in his lip that he seemed to reserve for the notably unsightly things in his life.

"You are wearing a ring, just like the rest of us," Gokudera is hissing now, through clenched teeth. He only stood like that when he was ready to reach into his coat for several hundred sticks of dynamite. "Don't be such a fucking princess."

"I think 'princess' is a word that could be put to better use when describing you or Mukuro," Hibari returns with a yawn. "I'm going. Crowds are bad for my health."

Tsuna opens his eyes. He stands up, setting his hands down on the table. He pretends not to hear that squeak of relief from Lambo, or that low, impressed whistle from Yamamoto's corner of the office.

"Hayato, you're going to handle the negotiations for us. As for you, Hibari-san, you're going to go to the docks and subjugate the gang in that area."

Hibari scoffs. "I go my own way, Sawada."

"That wasn't a request on my part, Hibari-san," Tsuna returns, in as even a voice as he can manage. "That was a statement of fact."

Tsuna's words are greeted by deathly silence. He wonders if his building headache is the reason why he's not deathly scared of the smoldering look in Hibari's eyes. He wonders, a moment later, if the reason why he winces at the slamming of the door is not because he's just made Hibari storm out of his office and quite possibly out of Cloud Guardianship, but because he had only recently gotten someone to replace that door after a recent attempt on his life and it wouldn't do to dish out more funds for it so soon.

"Takeshi," he says in a softer voice, "it looks like you'll have to handle the docks. And Hayato, please contact Dino-san for me. I'd like to speak to him as soon as he's available."

Kyoko is sympathetic later that evening, when Tsuna comes home and heads straight for the bed, barely remembering to tug off his shoes and loosen his tie before he crawls under the sheets. She doesn't waste time, just sets her book down on the night table, crawls over and pulls the blanket away from his shoulders. A second later, Tsuna can feel her hands, small and delicate, kneading at the knots building up near his neck, down his back. He can feel her hair tickling the nape of his neck – she's been growing it out ever since he proposed to her.

"Another tiring day at work, huh?"

"…You could say that."

Kyoko clicks her tongue in a way that reminds Tsuna momentarily of his mother back in Japan. He's suddenly very tempted to make a rain check on that big meeting with the Longchamp Family tomorrow and just lounge around in bed, lulled into passivity by the smell of Kyoko on his pillow. Then his mobile phone rings and Tsuna, for a moment, wishes that he hadn't thought about it at all – it's easier to be a boss when you think that there's no such thing as a vacation.

"Yes?"

"Hey, Tsuna, it's me!" Yamamoto sounds cheerful, as always. "The docks are clear now… I didn't have to do anything though!"

"Eh?"

"Hibari took care of everything. He was leaving the scene by the time I got there."

And Yamamoto prattles on about the latest game between the Hanshin Tigers and the Yomiuri Giants, completely oblivious to the fact that Tsuna is no longer listening.

A week passes without event, and then, on the afternoon of the eighth day, Hibari slips into Tsuna's office just as the Tenth Generation boss of the Vongola Family is on the phone with Dino, (half-)listening to the Cavallone talk about olive plantations and angry sex with his favorite (and only?) partner. Tsuna cuts Dino off, mumbling "give me a sec" into the receiver. He doubts that Hibari will appreciate being made to wait.

"I didn't do it for you," Hibari says, as soon as he has Tsuna's full attention. It takes Tsuna a full minute to understand what the other man was referring to, and by then he's turning away, stalking back out of the office.

Tsuna smiles to himself, returns to his phone call, and pours himself a cup of coffee.