A/N: Sorry if this chapter doesn't flow as well as it should . No matter, I hope it's not eye-rape for you all! O_o There were quite a few intentions that had to be explained and a bit of catching up that had to be done among characters. Even if you think there are a few loose ends, don't worry, they're meant to be there :D it wouldn't be fun if everything was explained right? =) it was difficult to find a cut off point though, and I'm not sure I did it very well, so please forgive me for that – it had to end somewhere though – otherwise it would be a hideous monster of a chapter...
But Yippee! My muse came back! (It had better be permanent. I am going to nail her to my desk chair and demand that she never move again D:)
There's quite a lot that goes on in these next few chapters, so please, do pay as much attention as you can :) It seems my love for dramatic supernatural movies got the better of me in this chapter and it'll be a 'yeah like that could happen' kinda thing, but hey, its AU, so don't I get a little leeway for my imagination ;)
Chapter Eight – As time goes by We Change
Though it was soft and unobtrusive, the knock at their door jolted both boys awake in a tangle of flailing arms and kicking legs.
"nyugh...uhnh?" Gokudera groaned intellectually, shielding his eyes like the light coming in from their window was blazingly bright. When the knock at the door came again, he just refused to pay attention to it and flopped back down onto bed, ready to fall back to sleep next to Yamamoto. Except, it seemed Yamamoto was far more of a morning person and managed to get out of bed without toppling over from the sudden ache in his muscles. Damn, lactic acid could sure be a bitch.
Hurriedly, he tossed on a shirt and tugged on a pair of khaki cargo pants and motioned for Gokudera to try and cover himself with the sheet with at least an attempt at being modest. The Italian grumbled as he yanked the sheets over his hips, leaving one of his legs bare, hanging off the edge of the bed, chest bare as well. The sight was wonderful to behold, but whoever was stood on the other end of the door would certainly be losing whatever patience they might have and he opened the door.
He started at Tsuna stood there in the doorway, his round amber eyes just as surprised as Yamamoto's.
"Ah! Y-Yamamoto, I thought you were still asleep," he said it in an apologetic way and Yamamoto immediately cocked an eyebrow at him teasingly.
"I wouldn't have been actually, considering how you kept knocking," he joked friendly.
Tsuna's face flushed in embarrassment and Yamamoto felt a familiar weight stamp down on his bare foot. Jeez, Reborn had to lose some weight – it wasn't natural for a toddler to be this damn heavy!
"I was the one knocking Yamamoto," he said indignantly, "You're both wanted downstairs in less than ten minutes. Get up get," he looked at him sceptically, "properly dressed, and have the bikes ready outside pronto."
Yamamoto knew better than to complain but couldn't help indulging his curiosity, "what're we gonna do with the bikes?"
Reborn had turned away and waved a dismissive hand that Tsuna followed, "It's no concern of yours."
How helpful of Reborn. Barking orders and then vanishing – he really was something, that kid.
He shut the door softly and stretched, trying to coax his muscles into some sort of working state. He'd slept well, but he still couldn't help the stiffness that seemed to be intent of clinging to him. His chest strained under the tight bandages and he wondered how long it would take for the wound to heal. It wasn't dangerously deep, so maybe it should only be a few days.
Gokudera didn't seem to be in any mood to move and stayed curled up in bed stubbornly, feigning sleep. He wanted to put off facing the world for as long as possible and would be damned if he didn't at least try.
Though the image was wonderful enough it could have been photographed and hung on the wall, Yamamoto tossed a pillow at his lover lightly. It smacked into his face with a 'thwump' sound and with the attack, Gokudera sat bolt upright immediately, gripping the plump thing in his hands, bleary eyes fiery with annoyance.
Yamamoto snickered at the dark surly mood Gokudera was in and collected up some random bits of clothing, chucking them in the Italian's direction at random. There had to be another sock around here somewhere.
"Uh...Takeshi? What're you doin'?" Gokudera's words slurred a little. He rubbed his eyes and raked his fingers through his mussed silver hair. He had a pounding headache from all that crying last night and there was a certain other area of his that was claiming his attention. Damn he was sore.
Yamamoto was already half dressed and decided that he would just have to wear differently coloured socks. As long as his feet were covered by something, he doubted the colour meant too much.
He looked over to where Gokudera was trying oh-so-hard to get himself out of bed and shook his head at the adorable picture, "You heard Reborn. We're wanted downstairs."
Gokudera took his arm away from where it covered his eyes and cocked a brow at his lover, what the heck for?
If I knew, I would have told you, he replied with a mocking look in his arms. It made him smile to see the Italian lose his normal sharpness when still half-asleep.
"C'mon, get your butt out of bed," Yamamoto spoke with mild-annoyance. He didn't want to get another smack from the child hitman again within the hour. Gokudera groaned in a typical late teenager way but sat up indignantly, kicking his legs over the edge of the bed. He stretched but groaned at how sore he felt. His muscles were ordering him to collapse back onto the mattress, but Yamamoto's commanding gaze won out.
What're you gonna do? Dress me yourself? He asked teasingly to the Rain Guardian as he crossed his arms stubbornly. He'd already sat up for the swordsman – he wasn't going to do much else without some sort of feedback.
You know I wouldn't end up dressing you, he threw the retort back with the raise of an eyebrow, zipping up his jacket.
Oh really? I'd like to see that.
They bantered fondly with their eyes but soon after Gokudera obliged, tiredly dressing himself in the clothes Yamamoto had strewn over the bed. Damn Yamamoto - all he had to do was frickin' stand there and the Italian would do exactly what he said. Getting too soft, he scolded himself but his tone softened as he countered the criticism. If it's around him, I think I can deal though. To Gokudera, that was as close as he could get to a confession.
Finally dressed, Gokudera went to stand but his thighs twitched spasmodically, his spine locking up. He whimpered and collapsed back onto the bed, gripping his lower back, just above that area.
Okay. Ow, that really hurt. His body had obviously taken more of a beating that he'd realised, both from Mukuro and from his and Yamamoto's passionate love making. Yeah, somehow he thought whatever Reborn wanted to do with them was definitely going to be as fun as he thought. Brilliant.
"Hayato?" Yamamoto asked worriedly, hurrying over to him. Shit, he hadn't been that rough had he? His legs felt weak at the thought.
Though Gokudera winced when he tried to straighten up, having to latch onto Yamamoto for support while his lower body jerked a little, he smirked, "Damn, stupid muscles. It's nothing Takeshi," he consoled his fretting lover, forcing his brow not to crease in dull pain, "Just a cramp."
Though the pain ebbed away slowly, Yamamoto stood there, clutching the quivering form of his lover. Just standing was difficult, but the pain was fading, satisfied with him acknowledging the fact that his body was in no fit shape to be taking on any form of exercise. Well, his muscles were in for a big surprise.
"You okay?" Yamamoto asked softly, not wanting his lover to seem weak. Gokudera absolutely hated looking weak in front of others, and it was rare that he let himself slip up much, even in front of Yamamoto. Events from the previous night were quite an anomaly but Yamamoto knew his lover was not about to make a habit out of it.
Gokudera reconsolidated his hypothesis by pushing away from him and arching his back, hands pressed firmly on hips. There was a very soft, but still audible crack and Gokudera sighed in relief. There we go, all fixed.
He turned to Yamamoto and grinned cockily; locking his mouth with the Rain Guardian's while he fumbled for a belt to keep his trousers up. Funniest thing about his physique – it could handle many things such as torture but when faced with a pair of jeans, his slim hips just couldn't manage. The irony made him smile into their kiss which he wished devilishly could morph itself into something more. But then again, neither wanted to be faced with a rampant Reborn, nor face the wrath of his heavy shoes, so broke away reluctantly.
Just before walking downstairs, Yamamoto turned and asked the storm Guardian, "Hayato, are you sure you're alright?" He didn't want the boy to strain himself when he'd already been through enough these past few days.
Gokudera punched his right shoulder and looked up at him with a smirk, "Oh yeah. Good as can be expected, 'specially when I'm with such an unappeasable deaf twit like you around." He grinned sardonically, "I'm fine Takeshi, quit your whining or you'll be the one in pain tomorrow," he waggled his eyebrows suggestively and it took a great deal of control for Yamamoto to rein in the surging fire of desire that was beginning to pool in his groin. Damn, if Gokudera kept looking at him like that, then he might just take him right here.
Reborn called out to them though, breaking the boy's apart. They hadn't even noticed how close they had gotten – chest to chest, lips almost brushing over the other's when they spoke.
Yamamoto seemed unabashed in any way, but it was a stark contrast to Gokudera's flushed cheeks and burning ears. He pushed past Yamamoto gruffly and stamped down the stairs with his face down, throwing Tsuna his customary 'Morning Tenth' but with a twinge of embarrassment. Yamamoto could help shaking his head and smiling endearingly at his lover. Typical Gokudera...
Having grabbed a piece of toast each, the boys finished their mouth full, stood outside Haven, mildly surprised to see the others there. What both worried and amused them the most was seeing Hibari there as well. The prefect looked sullen though, and when Gokudera accidentally made eye contact with the older boy, he wondered if it were possible for someone to freeze under the gaze of another. Damn, how on earth did his family cope with his insatiable moods?
Reborn looked around, satisfied now that everyone was gathered and announced, "Alright, hop on the bikes, we're leaving now. Whatever you ate for breakfast is all you're going to get until we get back, so it had better have been filling."
Gokudera and Yamamoto fixed each other with looks of suffering. Honestly, Reborn could have warned them. Irritably, Gokudera's stomach growled, obviously discontent with having only been fed one piece of toast and he unhelpfully imagined a plate filled with crunchy bacon, steaming eggs and toast...his stomach complained at the image and he wiped the thought away. Oh well, it wasn't like he hadn't had to go out and do things on an empty stomach. Though, it could be argued that he at least knew what he was going to be doing. Reborn was being pretty tight lipped about it and Gokudera's patience only went so far.
Silently, he hooked a leg over the seat of his bike and revved the engine, looking back to the others and to Tsuna in particular, "Well, ready to get going Tenth?" The powerful engine purred eagerly beneath him, its sleek, streamlined body built to tear down high ways at a faster rate than light. Whatever image Giannini had thought would suit him was perfect to a T. The framework was smooth, easy to handle and had an almost annoyingly sensitive steering system that responded to any movement. Right now, it hummed along with his own pulsing beat, fuelled by his own flame. Nifty, the things Giannini could do – having the bikes run only on heir own flames.
Tsuna felt unable to not smile at the enthusiasm in Gokudera's eyes, and the way he didn't seem as...lost, as he had been the other day. Whatever Yamamoto had done had obviously worked – in fact, though it seemed strange and oddly dangerous, their personalities, no matter how different, seemed to gel with each other, and Tsuna was glad for their relationship. It must have helped Gokudera overcome whatever had gone wrong in his head the other day, and for that, he was grateful to Yamamoto.
Just about to push the bike out onto the road, Gokudera froze as an Aston Martin V12 Vantage rolled towards him, its ferocious engine purring like a prowling cat as it slowed to a stop. What baffled him all the more was who was behind the wheel.
"Dino?" Gokudera couldn't help his eyes running over the sleek silver body greedily. To feel the way it handled around corners, the exhilaration of hitting its maximum speed...all those amazing experiences relied on its machinery and powerful engine. To dismantle it and examine all its bearings and admire the careful workmanship nearly made him hop off and pop the bonnet.
What didn't surprise him was seeing Hibari sat in the passenger seat, that same indifferent yet sullen face glaring out at them, arms crossed, eyes very much blazing a fiery brown.
Gokudera felt one side of his face flinch at the blazing gaze, but instead manoeuvred his bike around the sleek growling sports car, trying not to shove Dino aside so he could hop in instead. His eyes widened at a familiar face sat tentatively in the back seat – Chrome. She fidgeted frantically, like she couldn't sit still, probably sensing Hibari's piercing gaze. Such a timid spirit, no wonder she was squirming like a fish out of water. Gokudera's thoughts on the Mist Guardian were mixed. He'd been told she was mentally and physically linked to Mukuro, and that irked him enormously, but she was her own person, and it took a great deal of will to remember that. She relied on the illusionist to survive, but then again, now that he was in Vindice prison, so did Mukuro. Her views were similar to his, but she didn't out rightly despise the mafia and wish for its demise like Mukuro did. She just went wherever he did like a good little pawn. That was all people meant to that guy, he was sure of it – all pawns in his sick twisted game whose goal was unobtainable without a startling array of sacrifices. He guessed based on his last experience with the guy, humanity wasn't a virtue the Italian had been blessed with.
He stifled a groan when he noticed that she wasn't fidgeting for the sake of fidgeting but instead to try and buckle Lambo into his seat.
Fuck my life, Gokudera groaned inwardly. Did that damn wretched excuse for a Guardian really have to come along?
He revved his engine again to blot out his slowly reddening thoughts, and smiled tightly as Tsuna rolled up alongside him.
Without any further invitation from Reborn who was sat in front of Tsuna on his motorbike, they drove off almost soundlessly; their purring engines the only sound that could be heard in the otherwise soundless suburban area.
The drive had been long, but reasonably smooth navigation wise, the opposite for how comfortable it had been, dipping in and out of potholes every thirty metres – in general, tolerable at the best. The scenery had gotten dull and Gokudera's back felt stiff and resentful towards him for having made it stay in such an awkward position for so long. He rubbed it soothingly, but it didn't seem to work. Maybe a warm bath would work out the kinks in his tired muscles.
Yamamoto kicked down the stand on his bike and stood behind his lover precariously close, hands resting on his hips. His thumbs rubbed gentle, relaxing circles of warmth into his sore body. He exhaled softly, resting against his lover's back, oblivious to anyone else but Yamamoto's touch. It felt so damn good he thought he could melt. His muscles calmed their infernal jerking, painful spasmodic twitches and sank into the Rain Guardian's touch.
Aha, so that was it. Yamamoto was most definitely using some of his affinity of rain to calm his body and help soothe him. Helpful, but unnecessary – with a grateful squeeze to Yamamoto's hand, Gokudera stepped forwards, opening his eyes again to reality.
The only one that had seemed to notice had been Dino and Tsuna, both who looked a little embarrassed to be caught but still approving none the less. They knew how good the two Guardian's were for each other and how difficult it had been for them to act as naturally as they were to each other in public. No doubt Hibari had seen the small intimate moment he and Yamamoto had displayed, but showed no signs of that knowledge, focusing himself instead by standing incredibly close to Dino.
No matter how many times they insisted Hibari just come clean, they knew the prefect would rather be shot between the eyes than accept to anyone that he had an emotional attachment to the Cavallone boss. Dino had welcomed his lover's strange declarations of love – like when he would get the crap beaten out of him, both in bed and on the battle field – with welcome arms, admiring the Cloud Guardian's stubborn, unbending will. It almost outmatched his loyalty – though Hibari's intentions were thoroughly masked by his unappeasable personality, once he'd sworn an unspoken fealty towards someone whose strength he respected, he would defend them to the death – it was a strange, contradictive way of life but seemed to make sense to Hibari and no-one dared question it but Dino. It always surprised Gokudera to see him alive every time he saw him – yet another obvious indication of his favour in regard to the Cloud Guardian.
Hibari shot Gokudera a withering look like he could read his mind. Gokudera flinched; face scrunching up, his body tingling to start a fight with the irritating prefect. He never could stand the guy with his obnoxiously distant look on life, and it hadn't been so long ago that they'd gotten into a fight. One rescue didn't make everything all dandy, and Gokudera was eager to settle the score.
Yamamoto placed a restraining shoulder on his lover's shoulder, trying not to be distracted by how thin Gokudera's shirt was, and how smooth his pearly white skin was below. He gripped his shoulder and murmured lowly by his ear, "Focus Hayato."
Gokudera looked ready to retaliate and his mouth opened for a retort when Reborn silenced them with an unexpected statement.
"I'll be honest; I'm very disappointed with every one of you."
Each one of them, even Hibari, snapped their gazes towards where reborn stood on Tsuna's motorcycle.
"W-why reborn?" Tsuna stuttered anxiously, thinking that he was going to be reprimanded by his tough home tutor for his insolence.
Reborn crossed his arms and spoke in a monotone, "If I have to be monosyllabic about this, then I suppose I'll just have to cope. By now, I expected every one of you to be far more experienced and skilled than you are now. You have not, but an enormous extent, reached my expectations in any way. You all have immeasurable talent and potential, but seem unable to grasp at it on your own."
Slowly, nearly going unnoticed, Dino pulled away from Hibari and went to stand beside his former tutor.
"Because of your incompetence, I have always felt uneasy and dissatisfied whenever you are put in a dangerous situation. You are all liabilities to me and I refuse to have you dampening my reputation because of your inability to learn. Today you will either acquire the level for which I have always expected of you, or, if you are unable to," he raised his head, his gaze piercing, "You will be permanently dismissed as a member of the Vongola family. Is that understood?"
Gokudera and Yamamoto were unsure of Reborn's intentions, whether the pressure was the release whatever potential he thought could be under such strain, or if the infant really had just lost his patience with their slow progress. Either way both boys' nodded and soon, Tsuna and Ryohei followed suit. Hibari's only response was the angry narrowing of his eyes. It made the corner of Gokudera's mouth twitch up in a smirk. He could tell how much it irked the self-righteous jerk to be lumped in with the rest of them, especially Ryohei who pissed him off the most, more so than Gokudera.
Enduring this kind of tension was far outside the limits of Gokudera's small horizon of patience and he fumed, "Well duh, it's not like you just spoke to us in Latin."
His snarky response only seemed to irritate the hitman, "I could if it'll help you grasp the importance of this training exercise. This is no joking matter Gokudera Hayato. If you lose, it may not just be your title that is stripped from you. You of all people should know what it's like to come from nothing."
The blow was below-the-belt and well aimed, digging at the still healing wounds deep in Gokudera's heart. He wasn't sure if he should feel pissed off or hurt. He went with the mixture of both. It was rare that Gokudera had Reborn give him the futile urge to pound the infant senseless – usually that was Lambo's area of expertise.
Ever the honourable lover, Yamamoto stepped in, curling a protective arm around Gokudera's waist, fingers clutching at his shirt with barely contained fury, "Reborn, that's eno-"
"Oh, don't start complaining Yamamoto. You act as the protective lover later, after you've all proven yourselves worthy. Until then your words hold no value to me. Especially yours Lambo – I can feel my IQ lowering just by looking at you."
Lambo mumbled the words 'tolerate' under his breath, his breath hitching at Reborn's deadly serious tone.
Both Yamamoto and Gokudera weren't concerned by the child's bruised ego but by their own. Both of them blushed as Reborn carelessly threw 'lover' into his retort but no-one was bothered by it except for them. They'd come out about it a while back, and everyone else had moved on and accepted it easily enough – it seemed it was only the two in question that had a little adapting to do.
Being picked up and sat on Dino's shoulder from where he had stood atop Tsuna's motorbike, Dino began to walk into the forest where they'd stopped, just off a dirt track they had been driving along for the past half hour. Wherever they were now, it most definitely was nowhere near Namimori. The thick, endless horizon of trees only confirmed it.
Each of them followed with expressions of anticipation and suspicion. None of them enjoyed being led to an unknown location right up the back-end of nowhere – it made their senses rear up defensively at once. The training Reborn was talking about was either illegal or dangerous enough that he didn't want any unsuspecting citizen to be caught up in the middle of it.
About ten minutes into the trek, Chrome snuck up on them shyly, her violet eye looking up at Gokudera earnestly.
"G-Gokudera-san," She stammered, blushing at her own forwardness. With excruciating effort, he restrained himself from cocking an eyebrow at her mockingly. Her overly timid personality was so damn amusing.
"Yeah, what?" He feigned indifference but was annoyingly intrigued by what the illusionist wanted to say.
"Uhm," she stalled, "About when you were held..." She paused whilst searching for the right word but bit down on her lip, worried by what the Storm Guardian would do if she said the wrong word. His temper was startlingly volatile.
"Captive?" He supplied in a flat tone. Great, he didn't want her fricking naïve condolences...Jesus.
"Yes," she blurted with relief, "When...yeah, that. Well-"
"Get on with it would you?" He was already feeling fed up of her franticness and usually it put him at ease to see someone as innocent as her so untarnished by the mafia's black hands. But then he would remember that she was tied to Mukuro and that innocence didn't seem so solid.
"S-sorry," she fumbled, "I just wanted to explain that Mukuro-sam-"
"Is a sadist? Jeez, you sure are slow. I'm pretty sure everyone on the planet knows he's a frickin' mother f-"
He stopped as her eyes began to haze over with tears at having her precious Mukuro insulted and he shut his mouth. Dealing with tears was something he enjoyed straying from as an area of expertise. Leave that to the people that actually had some social skills, like Yamamoto.
"What I meant was," Chrome spoke determinedly, wanting to redeem her sullied master, "Is that Mukuro-sama didn't want to out rightly..." She gulped, "Torture you," she spoke in a hushed tone, pain flashing across her eye. It was a difficult word for her to say. Mukuro had thoroughly tortured throughout his entire life, and had built strong, faultless mental walls around him to protect himself from the pain. She knew he would never force such hardship onto another if it wasn't for their own good. He didn't believe in torture for the greater good – that's what the Scientists had told him whilst they opened him up whilst he was awake, prodding around until he passed out. They'd even tried to remove his bewitched eye at one point, but not even the heaviest of sedatives had any effect on him. He'd escaped that day, and had sworn the death of the mafia by his own hands. Knowing all this, Chrome had to believe that his intentions for Gokudera had to be in his best interests.
"He wanted to help you Gokudera. When I," she frowned, "read you, partially looking into your psyche to check your mental stability, I could tell that there had been a lot of damage, but..."
Gokudera wasn't particularly pleased with where this was headed, but didn't want to have to deal with an anxious, jumpy Chrome the whole day, and sighed, "Just get on with it. My mind was fucked, got it. What's that got to do with Mukuro's mind rape? He practically tore me apart mentally," he seethed at the man's brutality and felt Yamamoto's strong protective gaze on the back of his head. His expression was blank, but his eyes were scorching in their intensity. Looked like Mukuro had lost another fan, oh dear how sad.
"Listen to me!" She pleaded in an annoying whiney voice that made his skin shiver and crawl. She was just so girly.
"Fine, fine ok? I'm listening," He consoled impatiently but added, "Just keep your voice down alright? I don't need the entire country knowing that I had a breakdown."
Chrome nodded in earnest and continued in a low tone, "Mukuro-sama was aware of your mental instability, even before I was and wanted to release the locked up memories before they broke through." She swallowed, "It was like looking at an earthquake site Gokudera. Everything was strewn everywhere. Nothing was where it was supposed to be. I'm amazed you could even walk. But I know why," she looked admirably at Yamamoto before she followed through, "but that's not my point. You're memories were sealed away poorly Gokudera-san. With the stress you were under, had you recalled them maybe as much as a day later, you would have lost your sanity. I don't mean that with any sort of hyperbole. It scared me, seeing into your consciousness to see that much carnage. I felt so worthless. Mukuro-sama had noticed and had tried so hard to get you to remember in a weakened state so that you're body wouldn't have rejected the memories but you had one memory...that one memory that you just didn't seem to allow anyone to see..."
Gokudera's thoughts wandered back to that blacked out, white paned window and the large, intimidating oak door with its rusting chains. He couldn't remember why it had crumbled – had it been his resolve? It must have, everything else he had dared to try when he was younger had been of no use. Maybe it was true though, maybe because of his weakened physical state, Gokudera had known he had nothing to lose – no pride to trample on, or ego to protect. He'd been nothing but a skittering empty shell with half a past. His courage had come from knowing he had nothing. And yet he'd emerged from nothing with a handful of a past he hadn't ever wanted. Wow, life really bit you in the ass didn't it – right when you don't expect it. He didn't regret it though, remembering everything he did. It had made him feel whole and strangely more at peace – able to move on fully, though the scars would never fully heal, it would idealistic to think that they would waft away so easily. They may fade, as would those awful nightmares, but would remain. It would difficult not to do a double take on any blonde now, to freeze when he noticed someone with piercing blue eyes.
He cleared his throat, the gesture banishing his sombre thoughts, "Well, I'll be honest, I'm pretty impressed. The guy does still have some humanity left in him," he added mockingly, "No matter how lewd and distorted."
Chrome's brow puckered, ready to defend her master again, but was distracted by Tsuna who had called out to her from ahead. She bowed slightly while on the move and trotted over to the Vongola successor, bowing so sharply she stumbled. Tsuna caught her in tumbling flail of arms and just managed to keep her upright. Both blushed a maddening red and turned forwards, back rod straight as they walked on like nothing had happened. The comical scene made the Italian snicker in mild amusement and Yamamoto swooped in to capture his lightened mood, pressing his lips against his lover's smooth cheek. Gokudera called out angrily and swatted the dark-haired teen away. Yamamoto made a shocked face and put his hand on his heart in feigned hurt before they both turned forwards, hiding their smiles as best they could.
Walking close together, they moved forwards, both watching Ryohei as he strode forwards with his head tilted upwards, watching the sky that managed to filter through the thick foliage. It was quite a scene – he managed to step over every stray branch and rock without stumbling or faltering in any way. His instincts were amazingly acute and he shot them a toothy grin when he felt their curious gazes on him. Gokudera returned it with a frown mixed with a mocking smirk and Yamamoto a genuine friendly smile.
They trudged along for a good half hour, and by then Gokudera's patience had all but fizzled out to dust, especially when Lambo kept on asking for a piggy back. His nature was explosive in almost a literal term, but right now he thought he was about to erupt with irritating. He'd gotten into three fights already with the five year old Bovino child and was in no mood for another. Lambo had given up on Gokudera though, especially when he had earnt himself a swift kick to the butt when he'd begun to sing 'Mary had a little lamb' atrociously off key and had scarpered off to Tsuna who had unwillingly hitched the child onto his back. If only Gokudera could have that kind of patience, maybe less natural disasters would happen. He was sure his violent mood swings were a trigger for mass Tsunami's and Earthquakes. He was the Storm guardian, so such phenomenon's' went under that category. It certainly would explain their unpredictability.
He stuck right by Yamamoto, close enough that their shoulders brushed continually until Yamamoto gave up and wringed his arm aroun his lover's. Hibari looked ready to pounce on Dino and pound the lights out of him for leading him into unfamiliar territory, but hung back respectfully, seething silently. That kind of restraint was quite spectacular in Gokudera's opinion and he refused to be bested by the uptight stoic prefect and feigned indifference, though his stomach was putting up quite a fight. It churned and gurgled pointedly at him and he felt his mouth watering as he imagined what there had been in the fridge that morning, what he could have cooked up for lunch...he cut off his thoughts before he bit into someone, mistaking them for a hot dog. No need to stir up the tense atmosphere with some slap-stick humour.
Yamamoto knocked his shoulder lightly against his lover, dipping his head a little so he brushed his lips against his rustling silver locks. Being this close to him and only being able to link arms was too much for him and he decided to spoil himself and indulge in the temptation, even if it was just a peck.
Without any kind of notice, Dino froze and turned on the spot to face them all. They'd just broken through the foliage into a large circular clearing that seemed to be filled with silence – a vacuum compared to the noises of the forest around them. Tsuna was the first one to stop, but was jostled by an unawares Ryohei that had been admiring the scenery to pass time. Hibari froze too, his dark moody eyes locking with Dino's. The Cavallone boss made a small quirk of a smile before he set Reborn down, who took the lead.
"I don't want to go into the nitty-gritty details of why I've brought you all out here. I'll keep it short. What you're about to do is incredibly difficult, but expected of you as Vongola Guardian's. If anyone outside of the mafia, or even outside of the Vongola family were to see this, then we would be put in a great deal of trouble, which would be an inconvenience for me."
He pointed up and Dino, "Dino Cavallone has accompanied me because he thus far is the only student I have had which has been able to master this technique."
Reborn wasn't surprised at the blank, tired looks his subordinates gave him and sighed, "Dino, kindly demonstrate what I'm talking about."
"Of course Reborn," he replied curtly, smiling smugly at Hibari's intently curious expression. He was irritated that his own tutor had kept a technique from him. He'd thought the Cavallone boss had shown him every technique he had mastered, but it seemed there was still one skill that light was yet to be shone on.
Closing his eyes, blotting out the world so all he could hear was the thrumming of his own pulse in his ears and the welcomed heat of the sun's rays, Dino took a breath, imagining a burning, glowing flame, purifying it with his resolve. It dazzled his senses as he imagined it and let the sensation spiral through his nerves, spreading through his muscles.
Come alive, he thought softly and let the overwhelming sensation of his flame engulf him. His skin felt incredibly hot, blistering under his scorching blaze, but it passed quickly, his body accepting the flame.
He opened his eyes to the shocked gasps that attacked his ears and smiled bashfully. He decided he could indulge himself and let himself feel proud. It was difficult to be able to do this, an ability only a few mafia members knew how to conjure without spontaneously combusting in a gulf of flames. The balance of your body's control and the free will of your own flame was precarious that was backed by your own resolve. Your resolve was the foundation. Without it, the balance would tip and if it went in the wrong direction, your existence would go up in flames. An Un-extinguishable flame of your own affinity – surely there was no worse way to die than to be engulfed by your own element. To have let it consume you enough that it had overcome your own control. Any flame was unpredictable, but in Gokudera's case, to refine his skills to both conjure and control all of the flames like a Storm Guardian should, surely that was too much to ask of such a young boy with such potential. If Gokudera were to miscalculate anything, the Cavallone boss shivered at the thought, but didn't dwell. He had to take his own advice and focus. It wouldn't look good at all if he slipped up now.
Gokudera was dumbstruck. Dino's body had erupted in flames, but they hadn't touched his clothes of his skin – hadn't burnt him away like he had thought. They didn't have the properties of an actual flame though – by that he meant the whole combustion reaction and all that scientific mojo. There'd been no fuel or spark, so nothing to start a flame. Instead, they had seemed to pulsate from his skin and curl around him. He'd become a living torch to a flame that wasn't a flame. It was brighter and jerky, a cross between lightning and fire moulded together. The inner flame was a startling blue crossed with gold and it took Gokudera a moment to realise it was Dino's element of light that he must possess from being the Sky bearer which had sparked the flame. It was his dying will encasing his entire body. Miraculous – an absolute scientific phenomenon. What the Italian would have given to have his glasses and take down studies.
He teasingly touched the underside of Yamamoto's jaw, indicating to the Rain Guardian that his mouth had dropped into China. Bashfully, Yamamoto snapped his mouth shut with a light flush creeping up his neck. It was so easy to embarrass the easy going boy sometimes. Gokudera fixed him with a wry grin that disappeared at Reborn's clipped tone.
"All of you get in line, Tsuna in the middle."
They all obliged, but their expressions paled when they heard Reborn's next words, "Listen to Dino and make sure you pay attention," he looked at Lambo coolly, "You especially you stupid Cow. Though I do not acknowledge you, I might if you are able to overcome this hurdle."
Lambo glowed with anticipation all but screaming 'oh yeah, I'm so gonna ace this'!
Gokudera's eyes rolled at the child's enthusiasm but he was a little hyped as well. Yamamoto seemed eager, and Ryohei was practically jumping from foot to the foot with his extreme excitement. Chrome was anxious but that was no surprise, and Tsuna looked pained. He seemed to be under no illusion that whatever Dino was doing, would not be as easy as a bird falling from a nest and noticing it could fly if it tried really, really hard. Hibari seemed intrigued and almost stunned by seeing his 'lover but not lover' on fire and Gokudera wondered if that had been a spark of dark desire flashing through those brown eyes. Only Hibari could find something like a human torch a turn on. No pun intended.
Reborn looked up to his student and smirked, sensing the direction of his thoughts, "Tsuna has the right attitude, unlike the rest of you enthusiastic fools. Be wary, all of you. You get this technique wrong, and I don't mean very wrong, but slightly wrong," he looked at each and every one of them, "Just the slightest loss of concentration, or the faltering of your resolve will not just lead you to injury but to irreparable brain damage and near immediate death. This is no joke Guardian's. I did not ask this of you earlier because of these risks. Even now, I can calculate that there's only a forty-three percent chance that you will be successful," he cocked an eyebrow at Lambo, "twelve percent for you Lambo," His tone was snarky.
It seemed even the infant couldn't help jousting at the Bovino child whenever he could, "I'm tired of having to wait for you to mature and develop your skills, and so this will come first. This training will not be in vain though, in any way. Master this and you will become the Kings and Queen's of the Vongola family, ultimate Guardian's to Tsuna, Vongola Decimo." He stopped and looked to Dino who stood there with a stoic expression, obviously trying his hardest to stay focused, "they're all yours Dino."
Dino looked up, his eyes burning in a similar way to Tsuna's when in hyper-dying-will mode. He smiled at his home tutor but his expression hardened as he turned it back to the students in front of them. It wasn't just their natural talent that Reborn was relying on. Dino was just as key a component in this exercise as the Guardian's aptitude. One wrong instruction won't just burn them like Reborn had warned – it would kill them. The process of adaptation would be long and gruelling, but Reborn was prepared for the worst of outcomes. He had faith in every one of the Guardian's. He didn't doubt their resolve and strength, no matter how unique. Each of them had something to live for, a purpose, and with that, he had faith that they would master this dangerous skill. It would be difficult and fatal is misused but if the hitman had faith in anything, then it would have to be these Guardian's. None of the other Vongola Guardian's from Vongola Secondo would be able to fully master this power but maybe, just maybe, with the blood of their ancestors flowing in their veins, these teenagers just might. It was a gamble, but one the infant was willing to make.
"Allora va bene. Alright then," he added in Japanese, knowing only a few of the Guardian's understand the Italian, "I'll start with the basics."