Tsuna had his hands full with the younger Belphegor, that was for sure; the blond boy was much harder to control than his adult form, more volatile and aggressive and, if it were possible, even more socially inept than in the future; Tsuna had lost count of how many times he had politely asked the older male not to try and stab him – at least the Belphegor of the future had enough sense to simply cut him instead of going for the killing blow, and stopped when first asked instead of repeatedly having to be told no.
Right now, the Storm Guardian was curled up on Tsuna's bed, a book open beside him as he read quietly. Tsuna was glad the other wasn't causing mayhem, finding these moments to be peaceful ones he didn't wish to break – Bel was handled best in small doses, his unpredictability almost too much for the Vongola Sky.
But alas, the Mist Arcobaleno was the one to shatter the silence.
"Did you buy that book?" The baby looked his friend over closely, suspicious of the fact he had never seen that particular novel in Belphegor's room before.
"Yup~ The prince bought it for cheap~" Bel turned the book to show his friend the front cover. "It's good. Mammy, your cheeks are puffy again~"
Tsuna had never really taken Bel to be a bookworm, but it wasn't uncommon to find him with his nose buried amongst pages; it was nice to see he had a hobby that didn't involve him cutting someone into shreds.
"Shut up." Mammon jumped from the bed, presumably finding something else to do. Bel laughed cheerfully, going back to his book.
Tsuna, who was sitting at his desk doing homework, looked up as a fight between Lambo and I-Pin sounded from downstairs. He sighed, glancing at his boyfriend and finding the other had taken no notice.
"Belphegor?" Knowing how Bel really didn't like surprises or being disturbed, Tsuna tried to warn the older male that the two babies would most likely burst into the room any minute now.
Belphegor didn't move the slightest, too occupied in what he was doing to hear anything around him.
As expected, the bedroom door was thrown open and the two kids ran in, ignoring the loud bang that sounded in their wake.
Bel jumped, his first instinct that someone was shooting at him. In a split second, he had pulled a handful of knives from his pocket and thrown them at the babies. Tsuna had seen it coming and moved them out of the way, but he wasn't fast enough to avoid the cut that soon marred Lambo's cheek.
"Belphegor!" The brunet was horrified to have seen what he had, and he was angry that the blond had dared harm the Bovino baby – Lambo was just a kid, and Tsuna didn't care what kind of life Belphegor had lived previously; there was no reason for this. "Belphegor, don't ever throw knives at them again!"
Bel was breathing heavily, his obscured eyes darting around at his surroundings. He growled, his body tense as he prepared himself for a fight.
On the sidelines, Mammon watched in silence, as if he knew something the other didn't. He was prepared to cast an illusion or two, but he would wait to see how it played out; he didn't want to lift a finger if he weren't being paid for it, and truth be told he wanted to see how the youngest could handle himself against Bel – if Tsuna were to be able to stay with the blond, he would need to learn how to survive him first.
Lambo had started crying at the pain in his cheek, reaching up to take hold of the Ten-Year Bazooka. He ended up dropping it in his distress, the object bouncing across the ground. At the same time, Bel had rushed blindly at the younger males, his mind hazy with rage. He didn't see the bazooka that was coming straight towards him, soon finding himself swapping places with his ten-years later self.
Tsuna frowned as the older Bel stood before him, hoping the man had had time to calm down from what the other might still believe had been a break-up.
Unfortunately, it seemed as if Belphegor was still hurting as the blond looked away, his own frown crossing his face.
"Belphegor...?" Tsuna reached out warily, his fingers brushing against the taller male's hand. Bel shivered beneath his touch, pulling away. "Are you... still mad at me...?"
Bel was silent for a few seconds before he shook his head. When he spoke, it was in a soft voice. "I'm mad at myself because I didn't believe you... I must have made you hate me with the way I acted..."
"You didn't, Belphegor..." Reaching out, Tsuna wrapped his arms around the other's middle.
"...Why am I here...?" Bel looked down at the younger, hesitating before he returned the embrace.
"You got hit with the Ten-Year Bazooka. I don't know what happened; you just...snapped."
Bel cocked his head to the side, noticing the two babies still sitting behind Tsuna, their tears having stopped. "What did they do?"
"They ran into the room suddenly."
"Did the door bang?"
The brunet nodded. "They startled you, too."
"Gunshot..." Bel murmured as he looked away, a tremor ripping through his body at the words. "It would have reminded me of a gunshot..."
"But why would it make you react so badly?"
Bel didn't reply verbally; he just looked away before he lifted his striped shirt, revealing scarred flesh on the man's middle. "On my first solo mission, a rival family shot me. They took me back to their base, and they burnt my body, trying to get information. I was only young; when I wouldn't tell them anything, they kept shooting me... I probably would have died had Squalo not come searching for me... He said I was there for two weeks, being tortured... Ever since then, gunshots make me remember... I didn't start to calm down until I was older... I was scared... I didn't want to be hurt anymore..."
Tsuna tightened his hold on the man, burying his face in against the other's middle. "I love you, Belphegor... I didn't know..."
"Just do me a favour..." Bel ran skinny digits through his tousled locks. "Please love my younger self; it's... been a very painful ten years... I just want love, Tuna-Fish; that's all I need. Please... Just don't hurt me again... Don't leave me... Not again..."
Tsuna nodded, knowing that the boy he was currently with didn't need to be treated any differently than his older self; he was still the same person, desperate for love and affection – the younger one was just in more dire need of it.
"I won't, Belphegor... I love you..."
"I love you, too. Can the prince tell his tuna-fish something?"
"Of course."
"The adult tuna-fish loves the prince, too." A soft smile crossed the Varia Storm's face. "He is just as gentle with the prince as the younger tuna-fish~ He feels very loved by his boyfriend~"
"That's great, Belphegor." Tsuna was sincerely happy for the man, glad that he had been able to move on from how they had parted and make himself happy. But then, he remembered something important; how was the teenage Belphegor going to react when he returned? "Umm... Your younger self... You're much more difficult as a teenager."
"Shishi~" Cocking his head to the side, the older male grinned lopsidedly. "Adult tuna-fish will be dealing with me, I'm sure; we were just about to make love before this."
Tsuna smiled back, relieved that not only would someone else be dealing with the volatile teenager, Belphegor seemed to be doing great in his absence - if that was even the right word for it.
"If the little tuna-fish had stayed, the prince would have fucked him - but the grown-up tuna-fish likes to be dominant, too." Leaning down, the blond rested his chin in brunet locks. "Anyway, the prince is probably going to go back soon; it only lasts for five minutes, right?"
Tsuna nodded, wishing Belphegor could have stayed for longer. Reaching up, he patted the other's head, drinking in the moment until a puff of pink smoke surrounded him once more and the teenage Bel was standing by his side, confusion prominent in the other's expression.
"Belphegor...?" Tsuna was wary, hoping the other had been tamed already; he didn't know how to control this Bel just yet, especially not with him in such a dangerous mood.
Bel ignored his boyfriend as he made his way back to the bed. He pushed his book beneath the pillow as he laid down, pulling the blankets over his scrawny body. He was lying on his side, his back to the younger, not saying a word.
Tsuna approached the taller male slowly until he was standing by the bed. He wasn't sure what to say, but remembering what Bel had asked of him, he knew what to do; extending both of his arms, he reached out until he had the boy in an embrace.
"Get off!" Bel shouted, struggling in the other's arms. He didn't sound angry; in fact, he sounded as if he were anxious. "Don't hug me, you stupid peasant!"
Tsuna didn't obey; he instead tightened his hold until the Varia Storm had given up on resisting, the boy instead relaxing as he slowly got used to being held.
"...No one's ever hugged the prince before..." Bel eventually murmured, laying still. "...No one's ever really touched the prince before at all, really... Is there... something wrong with me...? Why won't anyone come near me...? I don't have diseases... Do I...?"
"No, Belphegor; there's nothing wrong with you," the student promised.
"Are you sure...?" The boy rolled back over, looking up at Tsuna.
"Positive." Tsuna leant down, pressing their lips together; he was starting to appreciate the younger Belphegor, though it would probably never be the same as the relationship the brunet had had with the blond's older self.
Bel was hesitant to kiss back, still getting used to the younger; he had never had a boyfriend before, and though he still wasn't one-hundred per cent sure he liked males, much less Tsuna of all people, it wasn't as much of an experiment as it had been from the start; there was something about Tsuna that kept him coming back, after all.
This story actually took one hell of a different turn from where I had originally imagined it going, to be honest. It was never intended on being a long story, so I want to end it here for now unless there's something you guys want to see. I'm considering making a second part to it, but it might be a while as I'm trying to work on old fics that are in hiatus to try and finish those off just to get the stress off my back for a while.
To be honest, I'm a bit worried that this was a bad place to end this fic, so if anyone has any problems, just let me know and I'll put out another chapter or two to end it better.