Chapter 12 tells of the different choices to make
"G."
The crimson haired man standing right behind him looked up with a bored look, watching silently as his childhood friend reached into the clear blue stream water. Giotto was trying his best to wash off all traces of the pungent smelling liquid from the white dress shirt. A black tie was placed right beside him, the formal attire unkempt and caked with dried blood.
"I never knew that so there was so much blood in a human. And the windpipe was so hard to cut through."
Giotto's hands were trembling from the horror of just having murdered someone intentionally – the look of pure horror on the dead man's face burnt directly onto his retinas - although he was hiding it. He couldn't believe that he made such a fundamental mistake of attempting to decapitate the man. He should have just used his flames and gloves to punch him right through his heart.
Seriously, the man would have been in less pain – and the job would have been cleaner if that was the case. Then, there wouldn't be blood splattered all over the walls and floor.
"That's why I told you that I would do it instead."
"That's why I told you that I don't need your help, G. I'm the leader of Vongola. How am I supposed to be the leader of a mafia familgia if I can't even kill one stupid old man?"
G crossed his arms over his chest, not smoking for once, and scoffed at Giotto's attempt to take responsibility for his own decisions. One small part of himself still couldn't believe that the person he was seeing in front of him was actually his childhood friend – Giotto had been so kind and cheerful back then. Maybe, even a little clumsy and naive.
Really, the surroundings can change the nature of a human. G finally understood what the founder of that sentence meant.
"You've changed."
Giotto stood up and pulled on his shirt once more, using his long black mantle to cover the remaining few reddish-brown stains. "It's called maturing. Let's head back. The police will be over to investigate soon and I rather stay out of trouble."
o0o0o
"Asari-san, where is Giotto?" Tsuna inquired. He didn't want to appear pesky but he had been searching for the blond almost the whole day already and there was still no sign of him. Not to mention that he overheard what happened yesterday, so he was worried for Giotto's safety. Those guys might have ambushed him or something.
The dark haired man looked up from wiping the kitchen counter and shook his head. It was not like he failed to anticipate Tsuna asking him this same question, but Giotto had asked him not to mention anything about the mission that he and G went on.
"Sorry Tsuna, but I'm not sure," Asari lied smoothly, feeling a little guilty when he saw the genuine disappointment in the brunet's expression.
Unhappily, Tsuna sunk into the seat opposite Lampo and sighed. If even Asari didn't know anything then Giotto probably wanted sometime alone to himself. He shouldn't interfere with anything at all, even if he had even brought his pills and gloves along with him just in case.
Besides, there was no one else left for him to ask. Knuckle had already left for his work at the church early this morning; Daemon and Alaude had insisted on returning back home instead of remaining here for even a fraction of a single second longer; and G was probably together with Giotto or in the midst of some negotiation with some other company right now.
Lampo folded his arms across his chest and leaned forward, towards Tsuna. "If you are talking about the founder of Vongola, he left on a mission with G just now. The mission is from my Dad."
Unfortunately, Asari was out of hearing range to stop Lampo and the curious expression Tsuna had on fueled his enthusiasm to continue.
"They have to assassinate Marco, the man who is in charge of the trade monopoly in this area. Recently that man became corrupted and started to accept bribes from the rich people, in turn listening to their orders and increase the price of all the essential survival items – oil, salt, and even rice."
This was the truth. Food prices have risen way too high and so the people in the town are facing difficulties to buy their meals. In fact, many restaurants have closed down because of the lack of profit.
There might not be any methods to stop this prolonged misery except to eliminate the source, however Tsuna wonder if that was really the true solution – Giotto had seemed to him like a guy who hated using violence to solve all the problems even though they were the most common, basic and easiest solutions to most problems three-quarters of the time.
"When is he coming back?" The brunet asked. He was not really sure if he was actually interested to hear the answer or not. To him, it was probably just to keep the conversation with Lampo flowing.
At least he understood for someone that important, he would surely have plenty of guards. And to sneak past that many people to reach the person in the highest position would be tough, but Tsuna knew that Giotto was skilled enough to evade them all.
There was no need to worry.
"I don't know. Whenever he finished his mission, I guess. He still has to prepare to move into the new Vongola Headquarters my Dad prepared for him," Lampo muttered as he twiddled his thumbs like a bored child.
"Stop right there," Asari warned when he brought out dinner for the three of them. "I thought Giotto instructed you specifically not to mention this to Tsuna?"
Lampo shrugged. He was always acting more like a spoilt brat when G wasn't around because it meant that there was no one to scold or beat him for stirring up trouble. "Thought that he should know anyway. What's the big deal in hiding all of these anyway?"
Yes, Tsuna would find out all about it sooner or later – and it wasn't like he could do anything about it right now. He wasn't going to run out into the streets to find the blond, even if he managed to reach the scene without getting lost, there was a high chance that he would only get in the way.
He could only wait patiently for Giotto to return home.
o0o0o
The night village streets were empty, seemingly void of human life, and while walking down that long dark path together with G, they spotted the familiar redhead. Someone who they last met about a week ago.
"Cozart? What are you doing here?" There was no denying the fact that Giotto was shocked at seeing the faces of one of his best friends out here. Besides, Cozart didn't look like he was heading over to the inn, but waiting here for them instead – just as if he heard all about their recent conversion from a vigilante group into a mafia familgia and was here to demand an explanation.
"That's what I want to ask you, Giotto. Is it true that Vongola became part of the mafia?"
Just exactly what he expected. The blond nodded silently, telling Cozart wordlessly that what he heard was the truth. G tensed a little.
"Why?"
"To protect the people. The mafia have ways to get their hands on weapons, and with that name as a backing, I'll be able to crush the other mafia familgia without the police interfering. To me, it looks like a foolproof plan."
Cozart sighed, long since used to his friend's crazily rash ways enough to accept them. No one who joined the mafia could quit it. This was a Rule in that dark and brutal world and Cozart accepted this as well. He held out his hand towards Giotto for a handshake.
"Nice to meet you. I am the Boss of the Shimon Familgia, Shimon Cozart."
o0o0o
There was a soft sound behind him, at the other dark side of the room and Tsuna curled up tighter on his bed. It was approaching winter soon and the interior of the rooms were getting cold. The brunet knew he was poorly dressed for the season (with just a thin t-shirt and sweatpants) and the blankets he used were not exactly thick either.
Tsuna closed his eyes, and that was when he heard the sound again. It sounded like paper being cut by a sharp pair of scissors.
Once, twice. Then again.
It sounded like something was tearing slowly and Tsuna shivered in fear. He hadn't considered the possibility before, but there might indeed be a high chance that this place is haunted. It did look a little run down from the first sight, and …
The sound seemed to be getting louder and Tsuna found himself slowly turning around. At least if he were to be killed, let him know if it is a male of a female ghost first! Although he didn't really want to see the face of the monster which would most likely be disfigured, he could not help but be interested.
"Who are you referring to be a handsome and sexy male hitman, Dame Tsuna?"
The brunet perked up at that familiar voice and depressing nickname, instantly spinning around to see Reborn standing there.
Or rather, what looked to be Reborn.
There seemed to be something like a mirror which had a bright background, where the lights were on in the room that Reborn was at. Even so, Reborn appeared to be no more than something similar to a reflection - Tsuna was not able to reach him.
"Reborn! What are you doing here?"
"To save your sorry ass," Reborn explained, as unforgiving as ever when it came to using harsh words. "I think trust that you know this by now but you have been in the past for over a week already. Your body should be beginning to show signs of being unable to handle the large amount of stress from being transported so far back in time and for such a long period. To put it in simpler terms, Dame-Tsuna, you are dying."
Dying. Tsuna gulped.
"W-What do you mean? Besides, the ten year bazooka can't send me home even if I want to return and it's not really so bad over here," Tsuna laughed awkwardly, scratching the back of his head. It wasn't like he wanted to leave this area so quickly. Vongola was still a small familgia and Tsuna wanted to see it grow.
No, he was just lying to himself. Truth be told, what he wanted was to remain by Giotto's side – even though it still felt weird for him to say it out loud to anyone, himself included.
"Like I expected, you have really been too captivated by the past and became attached," Reborn analysed the situation. It was obvious to him that Tsuna didn't want to go back to his old life in the future, but for what reason, he was still unclear.
However, he knew that if he intended to persuade Tsuna, then determining the root of his desire to remain here would be the top priority.
Reborn frowned. "Give me your reason, or I'll drag you home even if I need to." There was no exact way for him to do that, thanks to Lambo and his destroying skills, but Tsuna had no need to know about that fact. In this way he can make the boy feel threatened enough and hence, making it easier for him to convince Tsuna.
"Giotto. He needs my help," the brunet offered in a small voice. His face was reddening, looking as if he was embarrassed to even mention the blond's name.
Reborn closed his eyes for a brief moment and tugged down his fedora hat lower so it shielded his eyes from sight. He hadn't expected that the problem would be such a ridiculous subject but unfortunately, it was.
The No-Good Tsuna had finally fallen in love – and it was really true love, not that mindless admiration that he had for Sasagawa Kyoko.
"But if you remain here any longer, you will disappear into nothing. Even if you do not notice it, you are slowly rewriting the past and that will bring about a large change to the future. If you decide to get into such a relationship with the founder, everyone in the later generations would vanish. There is no escaping from this fate."
Tsuna gaped at Reborn, unable to believe what he just heard. First, the Arcobaleno told him that he would die but now he mention that he was going to vanish. Tsuna had no idea which was the real truth, or perhaps both were. He fell silent, unable to respond.
"But Reborn, I..."
He knew that he was weak, someone who was indecisive and didn't deserve the title of Vongola Decimo. But even so, there were a few times when he wanted some things just for himself. Like right now; this very moment.
"At the expense of other people's lives," Reborn added stubbornly, as if he could accurately guess what his student was thinking. He probably could.
"Do you wish to erase everyone's existence so badly? No one would remember you if you do so. Even your body in this time frame will slowly fade away, there is no way to evade this fate. We have done research on time travel. Your body will grow weaker and weaker and eventually you will die. The most common symptoms are recurring fevers and nosebleeds."
Tsuna clenched his fist, wishing that the thing behind him earlier was not Reborn but a really really scary ghost instead. Anything was better than this. There was no way that he would be able to make a decision so soon – even though he should have been prepared to leave at any given moment – and he hadn't given this topic much thought at all. He had evaded it whenever possible.
And he regretted his stupid decision to do so.
"At seven tomorrow night, I'll ask Giannini to open up a portal for you to enter and it will lead back here, to the future. The portal only works once and there wouldn't be a second chance. Make sure you come to a decision before then, Tsuna."
The brunet slid to the floor heavily when the light which Reborn brought together with him disappeared entirely, casting the room back into its original dark and cold form. He still had no idea what to do, whether he should return home or stay in the past.
He couldn't make up his mind, even though he already knew what was supposed to be the right answer. He didn't want to make up his mind.
o0o0o
"Giotto, you finally returned home!" Asari clapped his hands together when he heard the front door of the shop open just when the clock struck seven in the evening. "Was the mission a success? Do you want dinner?"
The blond grinned as he crossed the room and up the stairs. It was weird to smile right after performing that gruesome murder but oddly enough, it felt natural for him to do so. The cheerful side of him was acting up again, despite all the miserable stuff that were taking place one after another recently, and it was becoming a little difficult for him to totally suppress it and become sad and mopey. It didn't fit his character.
"Of course, but because I'm tired, I'll go straight to bed without dinner."
He could hear whispering going on and was sure that Asari had requested for G to fill him in on the mission details. He didn't mind, not especially. He would rather go to sleep than to go back to stop them. Besides, it wasn't like this was going to to be the last time he will kill someone.
Being a mafia boss meant that he had to battle with the other familgia many, many more times. And more people will die. This was just like a rule whereby the strong will survive and the weak will die. There wasn't a way to get past rule at all.
At least Cozart was the same, like him.
Giotto found a little comfort in this fact.
"Tsu-" Giotto wanted to knock on the door when he noticed from the gap under the door that there was a bright light coming from inside the room. However, he knew that there was only a single candle in the room – nothing that could give off such a bright beam of light.
Something weird was going on. Giotto tensed.
"But if you remain here any longer, you will disappear into nothing. Even if you do not notice it, you are slowly rewriting the past and that will bring about a large change to the future. If you decide to get into such a relationship with the founder, everyone in the later generations would vanish. There is no escaping from this fate."
It wasn't a voice that Giotto recognised. It made him wonder who was in the room together with Tsuna. Was it a visitor? But Tsuna wasn't on close terms with anyone in this time frame. And Asari would have informed him beforehand if there were any guests.
"But Reborn, I..."
Reborn. That was indeed a name that Giotto remembered hearing. Tsuna had mention him before when he was introducing himself as the Vongola Decimo.
Giotto lowered the hand that he wanted to use to knock and pressed his ear against the door. He didn't like the thought of eavesdropping but he was intrigued by what the person named Reborn said earlier.
If something was going to happen to Tsuna, he should know all about it, right?
Because he was his ancestor, brother, and... maybe something more.
Giotto touched his fingers to his lips when he remembered the kiss the other day. He still hadn't got over it totally yet. How stupid it was for him to just kiss Tsuna because he felt like doing so the other day.
And Tsuna was sick that day too.
"At the expense of other people's lives. Do you wish to erase everyone's existence so badly? No one would remember you if you do so. Even your body in this time frame will slowly fade away, there is no way to evade this fate. We have done research on time travel. Your body will grow weaker and weaker and eventually you will die. The most common symptoms are recurring fevers and nosebleeds."
So Tsuna would die if he remained here or he could leave his side and go back to the future. Giotto stared down at his feet in silence.
"At seven tomorrow night, I'll ask Giannini to open up a portal for you to enter and it will lead back here, to the future. The portal only works once and there wouldn't be a second chance. Make sure you come to a decision before then, Tsuna."
The words seem to burn straight into Giotto's heart and the blond pushed himself away from the door, making his way back downstairs as calmly as he could, keeping a straight face on.
Somehow or rather, he found himself subconsciously pushing thoughts of all these silly little dying games to the back of his mind. He didn't want to think about them, even though they would keep appearing in his thoughts.
Really, he didn't want to think of it.
"Asari, I take back my words. I'll be eating dinner right now."
Author's notes: After spending a lot of brain juice on this... (collapse on the table) Feel like I'm getting retribution for making Tsuna drink that absolutely bitter concoction because I've been drinking bitter medicine myself for almost one whole week. And I'm slowly getting the feeling that I'm losing my touch on writing fluff... not that I wrote much of it in the first place (sighs) It's getting bitter... (blames the medicine for everything)