AN: The climax! More action! Do be aware that I changed the order of which the royals disappeared for plot's sake.
CHAPTER 31: I NEED YOU
He doesn't know what to say to that smile. He felt as if he couldn't remember how to smile back. "Mukuro?" He says again, trying to sit up again, but falling back down in a helpless heap. Uni dutifully supports his head though, and she too is staring up at Mukuro with wide eyes.
Mukuro's expression collapses, and his smile is gone, instead replaced by one of wide pleading, "Tsunayoshi! Princess! You have to get out of here," Mukuro uses his trident, to dip under the constricting green foliage and pulled up. The flowers' stems snap, effectively freeing Tsuna. The teen scrabbles to his feet, with the help of Uni at his arm. "I don't have much time," The man says, "I don't think I'm going to last, he's taking over me," Mukuro grimaced in pain, falling to one knee weakly.
Who, Tsuna was about to ask, but Mukuro shoves them away, "I'll do my best to stave him off as long as I can. Run, and don't trust me when you see me next time. "
Don't trust you? He was even more wary as he was once more pushed hurriedly away, this time by Uni's insistent tugs.
"Sawada-san," Uni said, staring at Mukuro warily, eyes glossed over. She obviously didn't seem to like their standing. "I think we need to go."
For a short pause, Tsuna observed the glazed look in Uni's eyes, the look she got whenever her own intuition was overpowering her. Her intuition was different though, as hers tell of the future. He decided not to test fate and did not hesitate in running with Uni, away, away from Mukuro, who was obviously in a deep struggle with a thing they could not see. He felt horrible for leaving a friend like that, but something didn't set right in his stomach either.
That atmosphere before Mukuro, it felt too strange. He didn't ever want to feel that again, whatever that was.
"Where do we go now?" Tsuna asked, eyes wide. He couldn't think of places to hide, places to seek shelter. They were defenseless, they had no way of actual transportation now, had no adult supervisions. They couldn't go to Giglio Nero, it was just too far, they wouldn't make it. He and Uni didn't know the way back to the Bureau and didn't know where to start for the Varia castle. He tried not to feel absolutely helpless.
But as always, Uni had a plan. "We need to go to Vongola," She said, panting lightly as they stopped to catch their breath, "I think that we can find out the base's location if we go in the underpass. There's railroads we can follow down below. That is, if they're not completely decimated."
Tsuna nodded. That sounded like a good plan, "Where is the underpass?" He asked, straightening.
She looked thoughtful for a moment before answering, "We need to look for a bridge."
—
The "underpass" was actually a bend of a ditch under a collapsed bridge. It had been blocked off by rows of boarded wood, and a sign was left to caution those who approached it. They were pretty small, the both of them, and it it took no effort in squezing underneath the barricade. It did sullied their already ruined clothes though. There was a iron door at the end of the narrow, that sat unaffected by the state of destruction around it, if not a bit rusty.
Tsuna was wary as Uni tugged on it with both hands, and slowly, managed to pull it open. The still, stale air instantly hit them both, and they jumped when a gust of wind rushed past them. It seemed like even the air hated being trapped in there. It was unbelivably dark in there too, and they hesitated, looking at one another. They ventured inside after a shared look, wisely closing the door after them, shutting all hope for light out and cloaking them into complete darkness.
Tsuna turned on his flame, giving them some much appreciated lighting.
The tunnel was long, but there didn't seem to be any railtracks as of yet. He was focusing in and out of his thoughts, noticing vaguely they were both silent, Tsuna concentrating hard on keeping his flame alight and Uni worked at conserving her strength. She never was one to run so much, she never experienced being hunted down like this, and it was taking a toll on her. He jerked out of his reveries when Uni sighed in relief, her exhale cutting through the empty quiet air.
"We're here," She said, "This is the abandoned part of Cielo's railways, it's a station that they put out of commission only due to the fact that there was a mass rodent infestation they couldn't fix. Tore up their machinery."
They stepped from the tunnel into what looked like a plaza, it was rather spacious, and Tsuna saw the abandoned cafes, their tables and chairs sat littered among the thick blankets of dust and cobwebs. Obviously, no one had ever set foot in here for ages. He could already see the railroads, lined in single file to respecting tunnels, leading to other stations in Cielo. They walked past the cafes, stepping over overturned chairs and reaching a foot away from the railroads.
They moved to stand in front of a bulletin board, the glass on it was covered in dust, making the lettering nearly intelligible. "It seems Vongola would be in the Fiamma district. Though I have no doubt it'll be difficult to find when we arrive." They followed the arrow pointed to the tunnel that led to their destination, Uni talking distractedly of her experiences and knowledge of the area.
They were almost at the edge of the plaza when a peculiar sound caught Tsuna's hearing range.
"Sawada-san?" Uni's voice was curious as she realized he was no longer walking beside her, and she quickly followed his line of sight. "Did you see something?"
He heard something in the abrupt quiet again, and this time Uni heard it too. A motor...and the sound of rapidly moving metal. It was like a feral growling but then it would mellow down to a vibrating purr. The sound crescendoed then dropped to another rumble, and Tsuna nearly froze over in shock when he recognized the sound after some heartbeats. He hadn't heard it since he last watched a scary movie, long ago.
It was the sound of a chainsaw. Not one, but two.
His childhood fear of the dark was suddenly relived when, alarmed, Tsuna turned off his flame. It threw them once again into an inky blackness, so dark he couldn't see his hand in front of his face if he tried. Tsuna was already grabbing Uni's forearm, just to keep her close. He didn't know where that sound was coming from, but he didn't like the idea of two chainsaws down here with them. He had only seen too many scenarios in movies with dark places and chainsaws. And he most certainly didn't want to relive them.
Did they even had chainsaws in Cielo? He wasn't sure, and he didn't really want to find out. Uni's arms were cold and clammy, covered in various goosebumps. And she was too spooked to ask why Tsuna was backing them slowly against the wall. They quietly stepped over the stray debris, barely breathing, eyes wide, searching for the source of the sounds in the darkness.
The chainsaw motor roared again, it's tag being pulled back laughingly, as if it knew they were afraid.
It was pretty close enough. He's never been so scared in his life. Some or two things were also breathing the same air as them, and they were in the plaza too.
He ran his hand blindly to the wall, hands shaking, keeping track of where they were. If he was right, they were approaching one of the railroad's tunnel. All they would have to do is edge their way to it, then quietly escape. They were successful, there were still some stuttering of the motor, but the sounds did not come closer to them. They reached the edge after a long moment, and he had to let go of the princess to clamber down first. Uni was petrified with fear, only allowing instinct take over as Tsuna urged her silently with a tap of her legs to step down the ledge.
When Uni got down however, they turned stone-still when the motor stopped. Uni was tightly gripping his wrist in fear as they made no movement in the abrupt quiet.
Tsuna had to stop his scream when the motor returned, only this time, it came from right above them, the ledge they had just been standing on moments before. It was deafeningly loud, and from this close, it was hard to mistaken the sound of it. It was more than one chainsaw, it was most definitely two. He didn't understand what this could mean though: was there more than one person up there?
Suddenly, the earth heaved beneath his feet, making him gasp in surprise. The air around him trembled and instinct had him shutting his eyes and diving for the ground, pressing his arms over his head as the plaza trembled and a massive roar pummeled at his ears. His insides including his ribs shook with the force of the shock wave, stealing his breath and making him gasp in dust and smoke as massive crashes tore through the square.
It seemed to go on for an age, a constant nightmare of sound and movement in which he was an insignificant and meaningless thing. Like a ship in a storm-tossed ocean, he could only cower and wait until the noise finally died away. In its wake an eerie silence fell, taut and painful. It was as though the entire world had frozen in shock, and Tsuna cautiously lifted his head to see a mass of destruction in front of him.
It was bright now, the darkness chased away by the grey of Cielo's sky.
Within heartbeats he realized the station itself was a wreck of jagged stonework, little more than rubble and broken glass. Most of the ceiling was gone, and that which still remained was turning black as the smoke blossomed against it before spilling into the air at the fake sky. There was light now, and he knew he and Uni were exposed. A couple of smaller explosions rang out, and Tsuna flinched before he realized that it was the steam engines in the depth of the fire, tearing themselves apart as the flames heated their cast iron shells beyond tolerance.
Staggering to his feet he groaned, grateful that he had covered his ears. A faint ringing interfered with his hearing, but it wasn't enough to block out the agonized wails from the rubble, or the distant, frantic ringing of the emergency alarms. Unsteadily he glanced about, realizing that he and Uni had been right on the edge. Any closer – it didn't bear thinking about.
Uni!
He spun around frantically, his breath catching in his throat as he tried to see her among the debris. Someone tugged on his sleeve, and he slumped in relief when he saw her next to him. Her face was ashen, and she was clutching at her side, her face contorted with pain. Hastily he reached out for her, catching her easily as she almost fell. "Where does it hurt?" he asked gently, skimming his fingers over her side and pressing at her ribs. Nothing felt broken, but she still winced at his touch before pulling away. "I'm all right, but you're not. Do you feel light-headed; can you see okay?"
"What, why?" He asked, blinking. Tenderly, Uni reached up to his temple and brushed her hand across his skin. Pain exploded through his head, making him flinch away. When she withdrew her fingers were crimson with blood, and he realized that a sticky trickle was working its way down his face and neck. "It's nothing. I didn't even feel it until you did that."
She was shaking hard with delayed shock and staring around with huge blue eyes. She barely noticed when he put her arm over his shoulders, and he knew that she was distancing herself from what was happening. It was an automatic human reaction, and he panicked slightly when her teeth began to chatter.
Looking around he tried desperately to think, but his mind was sluggish with pain and its own defensive numbness. Parasols had been ripped from the cafés and lay like broken wings, flapping forlornly. Tables and chairs were overturned and crockery lay broken. If they had still been sitting on that bench outside of that abandoned cafe they would both be dead. There was almost nothing left of it, and he grimaced when he saw a bloody newspaper rattle soggy pages at the wind.
"Come on, Uni," Tsuna said quietly, taking her hand and urging her back towards the station. If he kept her busy and distracted her with something else, then the shock would begin to fade away. Leaving her to follow, he began to search the rubble for their preferred route.
By the time Tsuna was standing on the remains of the platform he knew that it was hopeless. If the building had just collapsed then perhaps they might have found away out past the debris, but if the explosion hadn't torn them apart then the smoke would have stolen their lives.
"There you two are!"
Uni and Tsuna whirled around to see Byakuran with his hands on his hips, waving at the thrown up dust irritably, "I told you not to run off! Now I think I had enough of playing with you." Byakuran turned to Xanxus, who hands were glowing. It was strange to see him so dulled, so muted, even with his flame on. Xanxus taught him to be passionate whenever he used his flames. To see him like this, seeing him use his flames in a dead mechanical way, sort of hurt to look at.
"Xanxus, be a dear and break their legs for me."
He knew for sure that they both couldn't get away this time, they had no help, no allies here. Distraction. Distraction. They needed a distraction.
Without even thinking on both parts, Tsuna's flame flickered on like a match set off, and as Xanxus advanced towards them, the teen skittered down to his hands and knees and charged-crawled, going for Xanxus legs, and succeeding on toppling the man over. Tsuna took the full brunt of the fall however, and Xanxus took over their situation and Tsuna found himself momentarily dyspneic as the Varia boss pushed his full weight on him.
Uni took this as a sign to run without mulling too much on what Tsuna was trying to do, and screamed as the large shadow from earlier loomed over the direction she headed. She could not skid to a halt in time and only ran into the shadow's waiting arms. She was pivoted, and just as she was about to struggle and bite her way out of his dark embrace, the sound of a chainsaw right at her ear froze her movements.
The two chainsaws, held by one giant man, cloaked all in black. His face was no visible, for it was hidden behind a demonic mask. His arms half-embraced Uni, waiting for the order to inevitably saw off the girl's young head. Uni's eyes were unseeing as she stared at the sharp blades just inches from her face. "Well that was a lot faster than I thought. Good job, Torikabuto!" Byakuran praised, clapping as he began walking leisurely towards Uni.
"Don't you touch her!" Tsuna shouted at them, his face being pressed into the dirt. Byakuran threw a smile in his direction, also pleased to see Tsuna tamed.
"Don't worry, we'll all be on the same page in a minute, the less you struggle the less painful it will be." As if to emphasize his controller's words, Xanxus gripped the hair at the back of his head, grinding Tsuna cheek onto the ruined tile. He grunted, exhaling loudly, sending stilled dust that rested on the floor into the air. Byakuran turned to Uni, arms outstretched, "Now Uni-chan, it's time to come back home."
He never witnessed it happen, and it was morbid curiosity that fueled him to silently admit that he wanted to know how Byakuran controlled people. The man's smile widened as he recited, "'When I acquire them all, I shall obtain ultimate power'. Tsunayoshi-kun, there's a reason why I am the King of Hearts. I have control over the manipulation of a person's dying will flames. Their flames, their dying will, their literal heart. It becomes all mine."
It suddenly made so much sense. Why Xanxus' passion disappeared, why his wrath was gone. Byakuran literally stole his heart, Xanxus' dying will, his flames. That was why the King of Hearts was so different from the other royals. He had an ability that gained him an upper-hand. Xanxus could not control anyone, and Tsuna knew by first hand experience, but Byakuran could. And it only made the situation even more frightening than it was moments before.
Uni shrieked, turning her head side to side. She was nearly hyperventilating, her breaths coming in short and coming out fast. There didn't seem to be enough air and she couldn't care to find it. She was going to forget, she was going to lose herself again. Uni never wanted to feel that lonely emptiness, that isolation that put her real conscious inside a locked box. Worse of all, during the times she was controlled by the Millefiore last time, she could not remember anything. She could not even remember Gamma.
She was sobbing openly as Byakuran stood a foot away from her, still smiling, and Tsuna watched, as his back was...growing a mound, and that mound was becoming increasingly bigger by seconds. Eventually, white showed, with hints of lavender, just like Byakuran's own hair, began to fold itself out of the man's back and stretch. Wings.
This guy had wings. It's great berth was long enough to measure two men and a half's arm length side by side It's clean, primped feathers flexing absentmindedly.
So that was how the Millefiore boss caught up to them so quickly.
He could not comprehend what he was seeing, because it was just not possible. Uni recognized those wings apparently, if her increased dry sobs were any indication. She began struggling more earnestly, lips pulled back to show gritted teeth as more tears pummeled down her cheeks. But seeing her so desperately wailing, it was hard to say nothing and just watch, "Uni!" Tsuna shouted, "Run Uni!"
But she could not run, could not even try, and Tsuna watched helplessly as Uni was exchanged from Torikabuto's rough hold to Byakuran's hug. The wings folded after a second stretch, and encased both him and Uni in it until he could not see neither the man nor the girl, for the feathers blocked out any prying eyes completely. Uni's sobs were still audible, close to desperate screaming. It rose goosebumps on his skin, hearing his friend plead.
But when Byakuran opened his wings again, Uni's crying had not stopped. He was expecting to see the clear-slated faced girl he had met at Al Forno, expected to see the dullness in her eyes that matched the one of Xanxus. Instead, she was still crying, still beating her fists repeatedly against Byakuran's chest.
"What is this?" Byakuran hissed, eyes narrowing as he gripped Uni's shoulders and death gripped her. Her crying quieted to fearful hiccups as she sensed the frustration and rage roll of the man in waves that even Tsuna could sense from all the way over where he was. Her heart was still in her, her dying will still intact.
It was just a guess. But Tsuna had an idea. And the results of this failed mind control only confirmed his suspicion. With renewed determination, Tsuna shot up to sitting position, and clapped his hands over Xanxus' face, the men in the room stunned in surprise. He mimicked Uni's ability, and with all his might, pushed a tidal wave of his sky flame into Xanxus. He pushed and pushed until finally, Tsuna was thrown off the man.
He felt himself soar through the air, hitting the tiled pavement hard. He was unsurprised to see Xanxus' murderous expression as he propped himself up with his elbows with a tiny wince. Tsuna watched as the man's scars on his face darkened with his displeasure, his shoulders rising and falling with carefully bated and furiously controlled breath.
Tsuna breathed a sigh shakily, relief seeping through his weary muscles. He did it. He freed Xanxus.
He half-expected him to hound on Tsuna, but Xanxus whirled around to snarl at Byakuran's direction, who stood pale and off-guard, "Millefiore-garbage!"
In a beat, Xanxus tore across the space between him and Byakuran, but before he could make it close, Byakuran was flapping his wings frantically, sweeping backwards in alarm. Uni managed to duck as Xanxus barreled past her, not even noticing her in his fury, and she scrambled to run back to Tsuna's side as the others were distracted. Tsuna gratefully accepted her return, and gently eased her fall as she collapsed to her knees, leaving him to nearly drag her behind a curved overturned floor for flimsy cover.
The evergreen-haired girl was nursing her side more openly now, the bruising inevitably hurting more after her struggle.
Tsuna watched the two brawling man afar: wincing as each time Byakuran desperately tried to take flight, he was pulled roughly down by Xanxus to unhappily receive more hits. He had no doubt Xanxus was going in for the kill, and planned on making the punishment as brutal and slow as possible. He knew the Varia boss well enough that he was planning on murdering Byakuran now and there was simply no escaping the inevitable.
But then, Byakuran started laughing, and momentarily distracted, Xanxus froze mid-hit.
Tsuna watched as four new people arrive, and his stomach drops like a rock. Kikyo manages to throw Xanxus off his boss to the wall with a resounding bang as Daisy creeps closer in a eerie slow pace, reading to give the second blow to the stunned Varia boss. However, Nigella was helping Byakuran up, levering him as the Millefiore boss delicately wiped his face with a smile. And what was even worse: Mukuro stood at attention in front of Byakuran, trident hoisted and ready to attack.
He already controlled Mukuro? But that was impossible because he was the strongest illusionist alive.
Tsuna could not believe what he was seeing, his To be controlled by another, that had to be the work of an illusionist—and especially of Mukuro's calliber—the sheer notion of it had to be some sort of sacrilegious act. Even as the King of Hearts, there was no way he could possibly be that strong to control Mukuro of all people.
"...Don't trust me when you see me next time."
Tsuna gritted his teeth, someone much more powerful than Mukuro was at work here, and the uncertainty of the situation left him cold. Kikyo and Daisy were holding off well against Xanxus, throwing the Varia boss down whenever he tried to reach a hit to Byakuran. The man in question was steadily making his way to Tsuna's and Uni's direction, Mukuro and Nigella flanked on either side of him.
Uni had stayed silent during his observation and he realized with a jump that she was nearly unconscious, her head was lulling front to back, eyes fluttering between open and closed. "Uni?" He asked, shaking her lightly in concern. "What's wrong? Is it the bruise?"
Her blue eyes forced themselves wide then slowly narrowed again tiredly, "I...I'm not sure what this is..." She shook her head, "Could it be, that it's time...?"
Time for what, he was about to ask, and he had a good idea, but was cut off short as a hand suddenly shot out to his arm. He jerked in the hold instantly, his muscles tensing fast in alarm. He was glaring at Nigella, and tried turning his flame on when...
Nothing.
Tsuna could not feel the burning intensity in him, he knew it was in there, but he couldn't bring it out.
"Nigella!" Uni cried, just realizing his presence, but then hesitated. She couldn't be sure anymore if this was her Nigella. He did not smile at Uni, his face a careful blank, slated clean of any emotion. The first thought that came to her mind was that he was controlled, but his eyes were unapologetic, uncaring, and did not seem to hold back showing it through muted eyes. When she realized her words weren't reaching any of them, she began backing away.
She only went a short distance before she backpedaled into Mukuro's chest, who pushed her back, and Nigella wrested her wrists together.
Tsuna was panicking at this same moment, because he couldn't find his dying will. But Byakuran hadn't taken it, not yet, so he thought he would stand a fighting chance. He was jerked to his feet, feeling vulnerable as he was pushed into Byakuran's waiting arms. He felt the man's breath in his ear as he fought valiantly, twisting his torso and throwing his head to thump loudly and hard against Byakuran's chest.
The man didn't seem to be affected by it however no matter how hard he twisted his body and kicked at him, as he kept whispering in his ear, "I think, that if I get to you, maybe I can get the others? I don't believe I've ever tried controlling you yet."
He watched, in muted horror as the wings stretched lethargically behind Byakuran at this comment, his struggles increasing in earnest. "You see, it's almost time. And I think if all of us unite, we can stall our due date. You just have to trust me now." He explained with a sweet smile, arms growing tighter. Tsuna shouted when he felt his back bend uncomfortably under the iron bars of Byakuran's arms.
"Never!" Tsuna shouted into the wide smile.
They were chest to chest, and he was growing desperate as his feet was lifted completely off the ground. He began to strain his arms outwards, but there wasn't much room to move in the death embrace. He tried pushing all he had into bringing his flame back but nothing was there, there was simply nothing to give. "Your flames are trying to recuperate itself—preparing itself for the big finish." Byakuran explained as he realized what Tsuna was trying to do, "You wouldn't have had this problem if you just listened to me earlier. It's not good to go through so much strain in such few hours, Tsunayoshi-kun."
And it was true, he realized with heavy lidded tiredness, he never went through so long using his flame. He used it to escape, to get back, all those times he rode Alato, their ambush in Al Forno. Even here at the plaza, the few minutes he used to keep the darkness at bay. And worse still, he knew he hadn't recovered completely from Kikyo's Bellflowers, Uni's life-flames were helpful, but simply not enough, simply not strong enough like he would be at full power.
"Tsunayoshi!"
And Tsuna cried out in response, recognizing the voice at the first syllable, before his name was even finished. It was a struggle to twist to see Hibari standing at the opposite end of the plaza, his chest heaving either with exertion or panicked stress. Tsuna could only watch helplessly as the man advanced towards them, tonfas held up and ready, when someone stood tall between them.
"You." Hibari accused viciously as he barely was able to stop himself from barreling forward, staring at Mukuro's blanked face in evident rage.
"No Hibari-san!" Tsuna shouted without affording to look away, eyes still trained on Byakuran's wings warily. He already knew what conclusions Hibari was jumping to without smarts and it was understandable. But still, Mukuro didn't need to be killed needlessly for something he couldn't control. "He's not in his right mind! He's—" When the resounding sounds of metal against metal, tonfa meeting trident, echoed through the grounds, Tsuna knew that his pleading would not work. Hibari was just too angry, too rash to listen to what Tsuna had to say. He just hoped to god that Mukuro, even if he was controlled, could withstand Hibari's murderous strength.
And Tsuna screamed one last time as the wings folded, descending on them both like a white blanket. Everything was just going wrong now and Tsuna felt as if he was in some drawn-out nightmare he couldn't wake from. He could distinctly hear people calling his name above his terrified cries. Was that Uni? Hibari? Reborn? Gokudera? But he could not see, and soon he didn't know why they were shouting. Why he was shouting.
It was the strangest feeling he ever felt.
It was as if everything in him was shutting down one by one. His nerves were being terminated and deleted, deemed useless. Everything was just turning white, like someone was erasing ink on a white board. He found himself hopelessly empty, and he couldn't for a second remember why he was here. Who he was. He couldn't remember, but he knew he felt anxious, for something, but for reasons he didn't know. Cocooned in this never ending white, this never ending emptiness.
But in the emptiness of the whitened horizon, Tsuna did remember something.
A heavy weight in his pocket, golden and shining. A pocket watch. And in the other pocket on his right hip, a matching golden chain. He still didn't understand why that was so important, why such insignificant little things were so crucial.
Byakuran's arms were loosened as Tsuna began to lose comprehension and his struggles ceased all together, leaving him a limp doll. The only thing holding him up now was Byakuran. However, when the sounds of everyone shouting at him, and the muted fits of brawls brought him back slowly. But still, Tsuna did not tense in Byakuran's arms. Not yet. He could feel himself being brought back to his feet.
And Tsuna opened his eyes.
With all the strength he had left in his body and powered by the determination to just beat the shit out of the man in front of him, he pulled back his fist and it connected to Byakuran's nose. The following results were instantaneous: a sharp crack of a bone snapping out of proportion, a scream of pain, and the pure white wings flew open, the winged cocoon breaking and exposing the two inside.
His hand really hurt, for he didn't know how to really throw punches, especially without the help of his flame, but Tsuna didn't find it in himself to care. He pounced on Byakuran as the man fell, straddling his stomach as he pulled back his fists and pounded into either side of the man's cheek. Left then right respectively. He was going to keep going, despite the gush of blood that spurted from the man's nose and reddened his knuckles, but suddenly, he couldn't lift his arms.
"I have to stop you right there," A voice said, a voice he did not recognize, "I need him alive."
Tsuna toppled sideways like a heavy wet weight, eyes wide as he noticed that everyone else in the plaza was frozen just the same. Everything was thrown into an eerie quiet as everyone felt like they had weights on their back, and were forced to lean down to withstand the pressure. Like gravity increased three times its normal pressure.
Gokudera laid at the plaza's entrance and in the gravity pulled him down just as he was running, forcing him on his stomach. Reborn was on his shoulder, but even he fared no better. Chrome was about the same situation, only the trident kept her upright as she kneeled down on one knee. Gamma was closer than everyone else and was by far the nearest to Uni.
Hibari was on his knees, and that itself was a spectacle, his tonfas imbedding themselves to the floor to at least keep him falling fully.
Even Byakuran's Funeral Wreaths were being pushed down, and that was an oddity by itself. Tsuna had thought this strange pull was a trick by the Millefiore but they were caught in it as well.
However, there was only one man who stood tall, unaffected by this strange pull of gravity. His balded head was dusty with up-thrown pavement powder in the air, but his trademark tattoos stood red in dark contrast of his tan skin. He was blanked faced, but Nigella—no, Tsuna thought, that wasn't Nigella, he proved that himself—the man seemed to be darkly amused by the powerless Cielonians around him.
"Allow me introduce myself," Nigella said, and they watched with confusion—the selected few that knew of this form watched in horror likewise—as the tan skin rippled, clouding and merging, disappearing in smallest particles. The tall frame shortened, turned skinnier, and a white stark uniform was revealed as the mist dissipated.
In the place of Nigella was a man he didn't recognize, who could not even have been older than Hibari. His ear-length hair was a dark aruba blue color, his politely wide eyes the same shade. He had a look of permanent courtesy, his mouth quirked into a shy smile, but to Tsuna it was just a deceptive mask.
"Leonardo Guido Greco Lippi!" Gokudera roared, and the young man tipped his head in an incline, reacting to the call. But Tsuna knew that name, and it was enough to make him break out into cold sweat. This was the man that Hibari had long hunted for, who was presumed dead, but ever so elusive to catch. This man was wearing a White Spell uniform, and worse: he was the only one standing, even if he was obviously of the Millefiore familiglia.
"Please," Leonardo stuttered kindly, "It's Leo." The man twiddled his fingers nervously, peeking abashedly at all of them, as if noticing everyone's eyes were on him. "That name is too long, I prefer Leo."
"That's not—" Tsuna shouted, but then stopped abruptly. Everyone looked at him, surprised by his outburst. He didn't know why, but he was sure of it. Even if he never really saw this person in his entire life, but he was just sure of it. "That's not Leonardo Lippi?" He ended it with a question, for he himself was uncertain of why this man wasn't Leonardo. But he just knew it.
The smile disappeared along with the cordial air, and a frown and a sense of mock tantalize replacing it. "Ah, of course you knew right away, your highness." Leo began making his way towards his and Byakuran's direction, who was trying to busily stop the flow of blood from his nostrils, as he he spoke. His voice was full of disdain, eyes hardened with a domineering look to Tsuna. "That's an annoying trait you've inherited."
Before he could speak, Leo grabbed a fist full of Tsuna's hair and yanked, pulling the teen cheek to cheek, his chest to Tsuna's back. Tsuna could do nothing but be pulled, for he had no power, and the weight was increasing by seconds.
He hears Gokudera protest first loudly, but he's too stunned to tune into what he was saying. He thinks he hears Hibari snarl something too, but he's still unable to think for a moment.
They both looked at Byakuran, who had an amused look, despite the gushing red that dripped down his hand. "See, look at this man." And Tsuna didn't seem to have a choice as they stayed silent for a moment to just observe Byakuran. "This is the man that I wished that would become the ruler of Cielo. I've been working with this man for quite some time, or rather, he's been working for me. I enjoy him. He's a treat to us all, and no one could ever be at par to his visions."
"Ambitious. Greedy. Self-interest." He shook the hand that held Tsuna's hair in emphasis at the three words, forcing the teen to wince in pain each time, "That's all the things you should've been, you see. Or we wouldn't have this problem."
Tsuna tried maneuvering his arms, but was silently fuming that he could move nothing. The heavy weight was still there, like three fat men were sitting on his body. Leo's free hand reached down, slipping into Tsuna's pocket and retracting the watch that nestled inside. He then moved to the other pocket at his right hip and retracted the chain, easily connected the two items in one hand.
He suddenly felt stupid. Stupid and immensely disappointed in himself for not realizing it sooner. So that was why the words 'Vongola' were etched on the golden chain, because it was for the Vongola pocketwatch. He should've known or at least thought about it. Leo dangled the watch in front of Tsuna's eyes, and laughed when he noticed the teen's eyes follow the sway of the watch.
"What is that?" Tsuna asked through wane breathing.
"This?" He stopped swinging the watch momentarily before resuming the movement, "This is the key, Sawada Tsunayoshi. This is the curse's rebound." By Tsuna's furrow of the eyebrows, Leo knew he didn't understand. To humor him, he explained, "This is the cure. The reverse. It's my pocketwatch."
What? Tsuna thought, mind racing. That pocketwatch-that was the key? That was why Giotto told him not to tell anyone he had it? Good god, it was that important? He had that thing since the very beginning, and he hadn't thought it was that important. He had only kept it out of convenience because it had been a gift from Mukuro, because it gave him time in a skyless world.
That small thing, that could reverse time, Hibari could age once again, it could bring back Cielo's sky, restore it back to the way it was. Worse still, he had it on his person since the very beginning. But he had gotten it from different people, given in pieces in different circumstances. This really was making no sense.
Leo fished it to his palm by the quick maneuver of deft fingers with its chain, and weighted the trinket in his hand absentmindedly. "It's very old. And I've been looking for it for a long, long time. It's nice of you to keep it safe for me."
"Who are you?" Tsuna asked through gritted teeth.
"I suppose a real introduction is in order." Leo said, straightening into standing position. Tsuna toppled over, staring wide at Leo, at the man's dissipating form. The man's white attire was being misted away, his hair growing slightly longer, growing a few shades lighter. A shocking amount of bright celadon blue. His clothes were nothing like he ever seen before: a greatcoat with a thick gold stringed epaulette upon each shoulder. He wore breeches, gaiters under his boots. He had an air of an aristocrat, tall and regal. "My real name is Daemon Spade."
Beware of a man named Daemon Spade.
"I am more than just an illusionist you understand?" Daemon wiggled his fingers, "I exist here in only apparition. I exist only to see the end of Cielo, to see that my curse fulfills its purpose. And now that I have this," He wiggled the pocketwatch, "There will be no interruptions in the process of our impending destruction."
What hit him the most was the fact that he looked so much like Mukuro. There were some differences, like the absent presence of homochromatia, the two instead of just one cropped hair, and the shorter bangs. But still, it made so much sense why Mukuro had Daemon's pocketwatch. It had been passed down to him, for he could not deny the shared blood between this man and him.
He watched as Tsuna struggled for a moment in mute silence.
"You must be wondering why you can't move," He waved vaguely at the others around them, "It's a neat trick of mine, and after years of honing my abilities, I found that I can control anyone of Cielo blood, half or full blooded. A pleasant addition to my control."
Piling up to his dread was the realization that this was the man Giotto had warned him about. And now he was literally right under his thumb. Stall. He had to stall while the others did the thinking, especially while Daemon's attention was still solely on him. "Why...why would you do this?" Why did he want to destroy Cielo?
Daemon blinked slowly, smile growing into a thin line. "Hatred." Was the reply, "I'm sure you know Giotto, he is the former Prince, and he was my greatest friend." Daemon fingered the pocketwatch, "When he came to Cielo, I befriended him. I was fascinated by his origin, unlike so many of the others. I helped create and founded the Vongola, with him as its leader. However, he was crowned prince, that was when everything, including my opinion, changed."
The aristocrat's face was on of hostility, as he was remembering the distant past, "An outsider took my rightful throne. I was the rightful heir, the Prince of Spades was my future, and Giotto," He spat his name, "Usurped me. He was my trusted friend and he betrayed me. I had to spend years swallowing my pride, and finally, the day has come to truly get my revenge. I made this curse, I resented all those ungrateful emulators that favored Giotto over me, and I forever sent them into punishment."
He ignored the part about vengeance to fuel the fire on Giotto's situation. No, there was just no way. Giotto would never betray someone like that, let alone his friend. Tsuna knew this because he would feel the same. "I don't think he betrayed you," Tsuna protested quietly, "You're wrong: the people, Cielo, chose him, not you. There wasn't anything he could do about it. You have no one to blame but yourself."
He knew what he was saying would only further anger Daemon, but it would give the others more time to think of a plan. "When I was a kid you tried to kill me."
The replying look was one of disdain. "You resemble him so much, it's rather disgusting." He peered down at Tsuna. "It's true: I did try to give you an early end, despite my original plans. But I was stopped by Hibari Kyoya. I would have returned to finish the job but I could not risk blowing my true cover. I had to lay in the shadows until the right time came to bring you here."
"That night—" Tsuna realized, "That night I came to Cielo—it was you. You brought me here. But why?" And how? Obviously, this man was an illusionist, a mist-user, but yet Tsuna could not deny that it was Nigella's flame that took them to Namimori and he could not deny that it was a cloud flame that brought him here. How could it be possible that he had more than one flame at his disposal?
Daemon laughed, eyebrows rising mockingly, and seeing Tsuna's silent confusion, he held up his hand. He watched in mute shock as different color flames sprung in the palm of his hand. Storm, sun, thunder, rain, mist, and cloud flames circled each other in a tightly strung circle in his hand. This man was able to use all these flames, and that was probably a disadvantage for all of them. He vaguely noted that the sky flame was not among the throng of colors, and he tried not to show the satisfaction on his face.
But he did not get an answer, nor a reason, as suddenly the weight was lifted from Tsuna's shoulders. Immediately, he sprung up to his legs, ready to bolt it, but then he stopped as he ran into an unexpected barrier. Orange began forming at his feet, growing larger and spreading out until it took a familiar shape around him. The flame shot up, containing him in an enclosed amber container.
A spade.
An orange spade encased him, he held out fingers to briefly touch the wall, and it was solid. Was this Daemon's doing? Tsuna turned to look at the man in question, but was distracted by what was happening just beyond him. Uni likewise was also contained in her own walls, an amber club shimmering at her feet, and she too, could stand up freely. She was pushing the walls with her spread hands, testing it gingerly just as he had.
He looked to Xanxus, who was busily beating the diamond chamber, pushing his flames of wrath into the solid orange, snarling angrily when his efforts had no effect. Byakuran however, seemed to know what was going on, for he stood calmly, arms crossed and glaring most particularly at Daemon.
"What is this?" Tsuna asked, volume rising as panic set in, "What are you doing?"
Daemon's smile spread, "Do you remember the order of which the royals disappear?" Tsuna knew. The King of Diamonds went first, then the Princess, then the King of Hearts, then lastly the Prince. But what did that have to do with anything? Daemon stepped closer when his expression gave no look of comprehension, putting a palm to where Tsuna's own palm was pressed onto the opposite side of the orange glass. He whispers, "And do you remember what happens after they're gone, Sawada Tsunayoshi?"
Cielo's sky disappeared after they were gone, Tsuna's expression seemed to say for itself, why? But then he realized, eyes widening. This time, there was no sky to disappear.
That only meant one thing: the end.
"No!" Tsuna gasped in despair, stumbling away, his back meeting the opposite side of the spade. "No!"
"Yes!" Daemon said, teeth showing, "Oh, yes!" The man began moving away from them, deciding to watch the spectacle, his creation, from afar. The cerulean-haired man sat on a seat-length upturned pavement, crossing his legs as he lazily spun the pocketwatch in his hand.
His panic was momentarily diverted when he noticed an increase in saturation to his left. He looked up, eyes squinting to see through the burning orange. He realized what he was looking at. Xanxus! Xanxus was already disappearing, but it was just so bright, he couldn't see much except the outline of the Varia boss's figure. He was slumped, tiredly leaning against the wall, still weakly beating against the wall.
Was that going to happen to all of them? They were just going to fade away just like that? Without even a fight? He just couldn't accept that, couldn't find it in himself to give in.
He looked to Hibari, who was stubbornly trying to stand on his feet, eyes locked on Tsunayoshi. He seemed to want to come closer, and Tsuna had no desire to stop him. Tsuna had to do his part too. His flame ignited, and he was happy to find it now, and he began pushing his flames into the wall, beating it with his fists as hard as he could. Each hit gave no effect, but he still wasn't going to give up.
"It's useless, you know." He stopped momentarily to look at Byakuran, who leaned against the wall of his own container. He was looking at him through sleep-filled eyes. "Even Uni knows." He jerked his head to Uni, who sat on the floor of her own barrier, eyes closed. She sat on the edge closest to where Gamma was. Gamma was speaking lowly to her, whispering things only they could hear: last words, Tsuna realized.
"I, I'm not going to give up," Tsuna said, throat thick with despondency. "We have to keep trying, we can't just end like this."
"Why not?" Byakuran shrugged, his eyes closing sleepily. His voice was slurring, the effects of the curse creeping in, "What makes us so special? The first royals went the same way, why should we be any different?"
Tsuna was starting to feel sleepy himself, suddenly tired. "Because we are different. Because we're not them. And that's why we should fight this, because we have a chance." Xanxus would have understood, and probably would've kept on fighting. He looked at the blindly bright diamond. But he was already gone, and Tsuna hadn't, or couldn't have, done anything to help.
Byakuran seemed interested enough in this notion, walking closer to the edge of his heart. "And what do you think we should do?" He challenged.
Tsuna did know, didn't have a prayer or an answer to anything. It was hopeless, he knew it, and worse of all: the sky wasn't even coming back, not when that pocketwatch was still in Daemon's possession.
Everyone who was not a royal was dead quiet, the opposite of what Tsuna had imagined would happen. They were unmoving in their gravitational pull, and Tsuna wasn't sure if he was hallucinating but: were they turning gray? He looked closer, and gasped, realizing that Gokudera wasn't even struggling, his face in the dirt. His body...it was as gray as his hair, and Reborn too. Chrome, everyone, they were just graying over.
Like the sky had been generations ago, only, it was now Cielo entirely.
Uni was long gone already, her eyes closed peacefully in what looked innocently like sleep. Byakuran was close, one of his eyes were shut as he struggled valiantly to stay awake but failing quickly.
He looked at Hibari, and the man could do nothing but stare helplessly back, eyes sternly pleading. Both of the boogie man's legs were rendered completely useless, his body crumpled to the floor like a broken mannequin. It was the effects of the gray taking over. Hibari had resorted to using his arms and tonfas to pull him closer to Tsuna, but eventually that was no longer an option, the gray spreading quickly.
Daemon, he, he was laughing.
Overwhelming tribulation crashed over him. A brick of comprehension hit him when he realized there was nothing he could do. It was too late, it was too late! God, how could he have been so stupid? What could he do? How could he turn the tables? How could he save everyone, including Hibari? God, everyone was going to die. His hands shook, and he was gasping, as he grasped his head and gripped his hair tightly, what could he do? Hopelessness took over, his body growing wearier as seconds pasted.
His physique was growing heavier with something new, and it wasn't any gravitational pull. He was getting exhausted, sleepy. His eyes were drooping. The light was getting brighter, and the tension was creeping out of Tsuna, leaving his muscles lethargic.
But then something flew past him. It was something small, yellow, and very fast. Tsuna gasped, shooting up to the wall again when he realized what it was.
"Hibird?" Tsuna shouted incredulously, fully awake again, beating the wall. What was Hibird doing here? How was it in Cielo? Did Hibari bring him here? He looked to the man for an answer but the boogie man seemed just as surprised to see their little pet as he did.
The little bird flew at top speed, becoming nothing but a yellow blur as it swooped, talons out, and deftly helped itself to the pocketwatch in Daemon's hand. The usurped royal found himself so surprised that he let go just as immediately, and watched with widened eyes of his own as Hibird began struggling to flap its wings, the heavy watch weighting the little animal down, making it fly much slower and closer to the ground.
It was making its way towards Tsuna, its wings beating frantically towards him. Hibird was trying to get him the watch, he realized.
"No!" He screamed Hibird's name as something long whacked it to the floor, the bird dropping like a stone to the floor. It let out a weak chitter as it stared with its beady eyes at the man that towered over it, the blunt side of his scythe hanging over Hibird menacingly. "Daemon, don't! Please!" He couldn't bear to see the little bird's life get snuffed out just because it was trying to help them.
The scythe was huge, it's blade curving in erratically artful bends. But Daemon ignored him, ready to drop the weapon, when a thick cloud of dust swept around the area the bird and the usurped royal were. Tsuna's heart stopped, because he was sure that Hibird was definitely dead, but when the dust settled, it was only Daemon who stood alone.
"No!" Daemon shouted, staring disbelievingly at the empty spot at his feet.
He seemed just as surprised, and Hibird was gone and so was the pocketwatch, taken from right under his nose. "You forget: only those who are born from Cielo can't move." A familiar voice said to Daemon, whose head snapped up to find the source of the newcomer.
"Tsuna!" For a moment he thought he was hallucinating that voice, because there was just no way he was here, but then Yamamoto stepped into view. He had been crouching behind an upturned food stand. He was wearing the same jeans and shirt, only a sports jacket thrown on now. His hair was tousled messily, and in one arm he held a katana. The opposite in a cupped palm was Hibird.
What was he doing here? How did he get here? He couldn't stand a chance against a honed illusionist like Daemon, he would only eat his friend alive.
"Yamamoto?" Tsuna said, eyes wide and disbelieving. "Wha—how—"
"Don't have time to explain," Was the quick reply. Yamamoto winded his arm back, and his arm shot out, the watch soaring through the air. It passed through the orange wall, thankfully, but Tsuna had trouble keeping a good grip on it as he fumbled to catch it. "But I've had a few tricks of my own."
The teen cupped the pocketwatch, noticing how it was glowing a bright blue. It was getting increasingly hard to see through the bright amber of his own container. There were two options that could happen if Tsuna didn't act fast: one, if Tsuna changed his mind now, Hibari would die. Two, if he quickly got this over with not only would the sky return, the feeling in Hibari's legs would come back and his life would be spared.
Gamma, who laid gray and unmoving behind the boogie man was a great testament of what could happen to him very soon.
He watched with unseeing eyes, uncertain of what was the right choice, as the man spoke, quietly, "Please." Hibari gritted his teeth in frustration, "I need you. I need you to stay alive." It was a sentence of pure selflessness. He was ready to give his life up if it meant Tsuna would live. The words were enough to spur his determination anew, to alight his resolution completely.
"Hibari-san," Tsuna said, "You're going to see stars, just like the ones back in Namimori. You'll be able to see clouds and see snow and rain all over again. But not in Namimori," Through the haze of orange and realized something he should've known days, months, years before. "But here. You're going to see it here in Cielo."
He felt nearly close to comatose as he continued, "You know," Tsuna began softly, "I should've told you this. And I'm sorry."
Their bond was strong, he realized unsurprisingly, it was stronger than any friend or any parent Tsuna may have had in this life or the last life previously. So strong, Tsuna would give up his life willingly. He found if it had been for someone else, he wouldn't have been so determined, so resolute. He knew what this was now, it had just taken so long to find out what it was.
Hibari looked momentarily confused through the pain of the numbingly empty void of where his legs used to be. Tsuna seriously wondered if he could even hear him.
"I love you," Tsuna said, breathing becoming slow, he struggled to keep his head above the water. He couldn't give in, not yet. Just a little more. He had to tell him. "And I knew it all these years, but it took just now to realize what it was." He repeated for good measure, "I love you."
And Tsuna fell asleep.
AN: Everything on here is unbeta-ed so do expect a lot of typos and unfinished scenarios. I managed to finish this just before I headed off to school, so I hope you enjoy guys! Crap, I'm gonna be late for my bus LOL. One more chapter and a epilogue to go!
PROMPT VOTING RESULTS: So now we've reached the deadline, and prompt 2 won by a landslide! The red-thread curse story won, and I've named it "Tangle Me Red", my new main 1827 project. Thank you all for voting, I've already got the first chapter (or prologue, yes) out!