Episode 15: Control for the Weak
"Do you need me, like I need you? Or am I standing still, beneath the darkened sky? Or am I standing still, with the scenery flying by? Or am I standing still, out of the corner of my eye? Was that you passing me by?"
-"Standing Still" by Jewel

Two weeks. Two damn weeks. That's how fucking long it took to get to Italy. Granted, it was due to being found by a few of the Millefiore Officers, but I managed to light my Vongola Ring and my newer Ring to open the boxes.

Frusta and Vento were both really cool. Frusta, the leopard, had this special ability to elongate his claws and rip something in half without even trying. The hawk, Vento, flapped his wings and created a barrier, as well as use its wings as scythes. I myself used my twin guns, Michi and Ryuu, who were two bearded dragons that turned into guns.

We got stronger along the way, and Hikaru did, too.

Hikaru was a Cloud user, like Hibari. We nicked a box weapon off of one of the officers, which turned out to be a python that could wrap around anyone and suck their Flames away.

X Hayato Gokudera X

Over the next two weeks, they trained and fought. But the biggest shock for Gokudera was meeting that boy. The boy with the shining silver hair and bright blue eyes. His future son, Kaito Gokudera.

"Aniki!" the boy cheered. "Let's go play!"

Gokudera pulled away from Kaito's hold. "Sorry, Kaito, I can't right now. I have to go find the demon tutor." Kaito's face fell a little. "I'll play with you after dinner, okay?" The four-year-old boy cheered up immediately, nodding and running off.

That boy was supposedly his and Najika's. Why did he feel like he didn't know him?

X Najika Kamiya X

We reached the door of the Varia castle, right where Bel said it'd be. I turned to Hikaru. "Come on. We're going in." My companion nodded, clenching his fists. "Don't worry. They're harmless." I smirked and knocked on the door three times, a code that Bel told me to use.

The metal doors slid open and a tall blonde stood in the doorway. "You made it." He laughed a little, slinging his arm around me like he used to. "I knew it." He noticed Hikaru. "So you're Hikaru." The brunette nodded stiffly, uttering a small 'yes.' "You brought her here safely~"

"Yeah," Hikaru confirmed. "Um… I have nowhere to go, and if I go back to Japan, I'm gonna get caught. Can I stay here?"

Bel laughed darkly. "You could be a Millefiore representative for all I know. But…" He looked up from where I was under his arm. "You brought the Princess of Varia to us~ If you make any move at all, you're dead." He laughed again, making a cutting motion with his hands.

Hikaru noticeably flinched. "Stop scaring him, Bel, and tell me what the hell happened in these past ten years," I demanded, giving him a stern look. "And let's get going inside. Those Millefiore bastards can come at anytime."

The Varia assassin nodded. "Well, let's get in, shall we~" He led us both through the halls, where I saw everyone gaping at me. "Don't mind them, Princess. They're only rookies who heard rumors about you."

I looked up at him curiously. "What rumors?"

Bel thought for a bit. "Well, for one thing, you're the one who helped to fix relations between the Juudaime and Boss. You also were the one who's in charge of us in the Headquarters. You put in good words for us and stuff, you know?" He chuckled a bit. "You're a legend here, since you've got the complete trust and respect of me and the rest of those dirty bastards."

I scoffed. "Those 'dirty bastards' are your teammates, Bel. Show some respect." He shrugged. "You're hopeless."

"I know~" He motioned to one of the lower ranking officers. "You. Take care of him," he motioned towards Hikaru, "and make sure you don't mess up, or I'll kill you." Things were still the same as ever.

The scared officer nodded weakly. "F-follow me, sir," he squeaked. Hikaru raised an eyebrow, but nodded, following the black-coated boy.

The blonde Storm Guardian smirked. "I love rookies. Now, come on, Princess. Boss has been expecting you." He led me up the stairs to the most embellished doors in the entire place. He knocked on the doors and called, "Boss, the Princess is here~ I'm coming in~"

Xanxus sat there in his throne. "Girl. I've already been informed of your situation. As much as I hate Sawada, I hate owing you even more. You can stay as long as you need."

I nodded. "Thank you very much, Xanxus-san. I guess I owe you now." He scoffed and looked away.

"I… owe you my life. This isn't enough to repay that… debt yet." Bel chuckled at his Boss's words, earning him a glass thrown at him. "Shut up, trash," the Boss grumbled. "Get out."

Bel bowed mockingly. "The rest of them are waiting for you, Princess~" He grabbed my hand and dragged me out of the room. "Hey~ Guess who's here~" He called, dragging me down the stairs.

A familiar voice yelled, "Voi! Shut the hell up, you bastard! I'm trying to eat!" The long-haired Rain swordsman, Superbi Squalo, emerged from the kitchen. "Eh? Is that… Najika?" He blinked a few times in surprise. "Voi! I thought you were dead, Onda!"

"Onda-chan's here?" a high-pitched voice rang. "She's still alive!" The Sun marital artist, Lussuria, bounded down the stairs and swept me in his arms. "So cute~"

A low voice grumbled, "Shut up. Great, she's back. Whoopee." Well, someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed… Of course, it was the Thunder Guardian, Leviathan. "Welcome back. You look like a midget."

"Don't be so mean to Onda-sama," someone snapped in a monotone (Is that even possible?). A young boy around sixteen stood behind Levi. He had green hair and green eyes, with a giant frog hat on. "You don't know me, do you."

I shook my head. "Sorry, no."

He shrugged. "My name's Fran. It's good to see you again, Onda-sama." I shook his hand. "I'm the new Mist Guardian." That's right… Mammon was one of the Arcobaleno, and he died. "You know, you were actually the one to get me this position, Onda-sama."

Turning to Bel, I asked, "I did?" He nodded. "Well, I'm glad! It's nice to know I did something for someone. But why are you wearing a frog hat?"

The Storm Guardian laughed. "Because I made him~"

"Shut up, senpai. There's days when I think you're a bigger idiot than Levi," Fran shot back. I giggled.

Both Bel and Fran turned to me. "What's so funny?" Bel demanded.

I laughed again. "He reminds me of you when around ten years ago, Bel. I like him already!" Fran sent a victorious smirk at Bel, who pouted. "Of course, I like you, too, Bel." As I reached over to pat Bel on the back, he hugged me and pouted again.

"Can you stay with me?" I looked at him incredulously. "Please~ You died in this time, and I won't get to stay with you~" I sighed. Of course…

I gently pulled his arms from around me. "Fine, Bel. But no more pouting, okay?" I told him, turning to face him. Bel laughed and only proceeded to squeeze me harder. "Bel… let go!" I managed.

Fran simply smacked Bel's head and the Prince dropped me. "What the hell, Fran!" Bel roared angrily. "That's it, you're dead, damn it!" Fran simply stood there as Bel drew his knives out and tossed them at the teen. I sighed. Typical.

"I'm going back up to speak to Xanxus-san now," I sighed, rushing up the stairs and into Xanxus's room. "Xanxus-san."

He looked up, then back down and snapped, "Drop the formalities. We're not in Japan."

I chuckled. "Well, then, Xanxus. I noticed you still don't have a Cloud Guardian to replace Gola Mosca." He scoffed and looked towards the window. "I came here from Japan with someone named Hikaru Kobashi. He's a Cloud attribute fighter, and he's powerful, too."

Xanxus simply asked, "Does he know how to survive in this world?"

"He's saved my life at least five times already," I replied. "His box weapon is pretty deadly. He's still a bit of a rookie, but he's murdered more people on the way from Japan than I've fought in my short few weeks as a Mafioso."

Taking a sip of his drink, the Sky Boss seemed to think it over. "Fine. Bring him in," he ordered.

X Hayato Gokudera X

All of the Guardians were found, save for Najika, who was still missing. The future Hibari confirmed that the future Najika had indeed betrayed them, but he didn't seem to blame her. "She'd been tricked by Byakuran," he deadpanned. "She shouldn't have been blamed for it, though. Najika Kamiya wasn't a mole or a traitor."

Too bad for them that the future Hibari hadn't told them anything else before he was sent into the past, only to be replaced by the Hibari that Gokudera knew. They'd all been training for weeks for this.

It was time to strike the Millefiore where it hurt.

X Najika Kamiya X

Lal updated me with pictures and untraceable mail whenever she could. All of my friends were trying their best. I smiled a little at the writing that said they were going to strike the Millefiore's base. They really were going at their enemy.

Over the past few weeks, I'd been training hard to help the Varia. Everyone had been great. Maybe even assassins had hearts. Levi was still as gruff as ever, but he seemed to care enough. Lussuria was always trying to encourage me. He was also the one who chose my new… "battle outfit," as he called it. Fran was great. He was so sweet, but really tough. Bel was the same as ten years ago, still as understanding, but he was more open with it. Still as bipolar as ever. Squalo was usually my sparring partner, and he was even stronger than I remembered. Xanxus was the same, too, but he seemed more tolerant of me than before.

I also had gotten the surgery that Lal told me about before I left. I could see again. My eyes were still purple, but now, I could actually see, even though I retained the ability to see Flames like before.

I looked up. Today was it. We were going to be fighting the Millefiore on their turf today. Hitting home base, as some would put it.

That night, we all stood at the wall of the castle. "It's about time for us to get started!" Squalo declared, somewhat happily. I smirked as Bel giggled.

It was pointless. It only took the seven of us, including the newest addition to the Varia, Hikaru Kobashi, to kick the crap out of all of those Millefiore operatives. I was with Hikaru, Bel was with Fran, Squalo was on his own, and the last team was Levi and Lussuria. Looking back on it, it was probably the most fun I had in a long time, considering I could see my fights.

Hikaru and I were heading to the west, Bel and Fran were going east, and Squalo took the north. I smirked, taking out Michi and Ryuu. Those two were like my greatest allies as of now.

Hikaru and I were probably more of the suited pair for this mission. Our teamwork was pretty good, if I do say so myself. As for Bel and Fran, I worried that they would end up murdering each other before the mission was over. I also worried for Squalo, as Xanxus would probably end up complaining about something while he was on his mission.

It'd been around three minutes in, and I was bored. "Hikaru, I'm gonna go shake things up a little. You go on ahead. I'm gonna take as many of these jokers out as possible. Besides, if all of his subordinates are killed, don't you think the boss will come out?" I mused.

Hikaru shrugged. "Do what you want, I'm not gonna stop you." I sighed and ignited my Wave Flame, opening Vento's box. "Well, then I guess Monty's coming out, too." Yeah, he named his box weapon Monty. I guess it was supposed to be funny, as in, Monty Python, but it ended up being stupid. His Cloud Ring lit up and he let out the giant snake.

Two huge groups of Flames in the distance caught my eyes. "Heads up. They're coming from both left and right," I warned. Vento landed on my arm. "Let's burn off some energy, huh?" I asked my hawk. He chirped happily in response.

"You take left, I'll take right?" Hikaru asked. I nodded.

It took us both two minutes, as we both had our box weapons and our own weapons. I had Ryuu and Michi, my twin guns, and Hikaru used a collapsible staff with spearheads on each side. Both of my lizards were put back in their box when I was done. "You finished?"

The Cloud user nodded. "Yeah, but there's still no sign of the boss, is there?"

"Eh, he's probably going after either Squalo or Bel. What's the point of going after us two, right?" I laughed. "Neither of those groups are going to be losing anytime soon. Let's just keep going towards the end of the forest."

He was about to follow, but turned back immediately. "The boss is going after Belphegor and Fran. Let's go." I learned early on that Hikaru had great senses. He knew what happened to all of our teammates. That's how he was able to keep helping me.

As we kept rushing towards Bel and Fran, we found ourselves surrounded by a group of Millefiore soldiers that just kept getting bigger. We had to release all the box weapons we had. Frusta and Vento, my two weapons, and Monty and Liberty, a bald eagle, who were both Hikaru's weapons, were all fighting the best they could. I shot several down at once, while my partner kept swinging his staff, knocking down a whole lot of those soldiers.

When we finally got around to defeating all of them, I noticed that there were a group of three box weapons heading towards the castle. I gasped. Lussuria… and Xanxus… My eyes widened, then I smirked. No way that Xanxus would die that easily. Especially since his dinner was interrupted.

I exchanged a look with Hikaru, who nodded. We pulled Frusta and Monty back, running towards the castle with Vento and Liberty. Damn, was Xanxus gonna be pissed that someone went off and destroyed the castle while he was eating. He'd want someone to fix it…

And of course, he usually expected that someone to be Squalo, or one of his stupid subordinates. As well as they meant, all of those subordinates were, to put it lightly, complete morons. I groaned. He probably didn't even eat yet, knowing the hissy fits he throws before every meal.

I was also really worried about Lussuria. I don't think he got out of the castle in time. If he was dead, then damn it, I'd revive him and kill him myself! Stupid… Lussuria really was like my older sister than anything. All I could do was fight off those stupid subordinates and hope that he was alive.

One last shot was fired as the last one fell. "Well that was a complete waste of time," I complained, pocketing my guns again. "I really wanted to fight that bastard!"

"Ever since you got that surgery, all you've wanted to do is fight," Hikaru commented dryly. I rolled my eyes. "By the way… When you go back to the past, do me a favor, okay? Make friends with my younger self."

I raised one eyebrow. "Do you think I wouldn't? You're a great person now, and I hope that you'll be a good friend to me in the past."

He chuckled. "Hey, I would've talked to you, but your boyfriend, Hayato Gokudera, scares the shit out of me. He's a creepy guy, you know?" I laughed a little. "You and Sawada-kun both. Once you guys started hanging out with Gokudera-kun and Yamamoto-kun, it was like you were untouchable, even though Sawada-kun proceeded to stay weird."

"Hey, he's a Mafia boss. He's untouchable anyways," I joked. "By the way, don't mention his name around Xanxus. He'll kill you in an instant."

Hikaru chuckled again, but then asked, "What happened to your transmitter?" I felt around my ear for it, but my transmitter was gone. "Hang on. If you don't have yours, I should radio in to Squalo-!" He cut himself off when he realized that his was gone as well.

I sighed. "Well, isn't that wonderful…"

"Sorry," he apologized quietly. "I guess we should go find Squalo, then, right?"

Looking up, I saw the great orange flare light the sky. "Nope. It's over anyways. Xanxus probably turned that crazy bastard to stone. Judging by that huge-ass Flame, he even went all out and blasted him. Let's go back to the castle."

Of course, we were the last ones there. I saw Levi and Lussuria, Bel and Fran, and Squalo and Xanxus, the latter with his Liger lying lazily at his feet. I smirked and laughed dryly. This time was fun, but this was only one of the battles in the entire war.

Title - Basically inspired by the entirety of how Najika feels throughout the entire Melone Base Arc, even though she's not in the fight.
Song - Standing Still, because of the line that says "Was that you passing me by?" which, for me, refers to how Najika feels like she's been left behind, seeing as how they all feel like she's betrayed them to run to Byakuran.

Anyways, all I can say is that I'm really sorry for not updating for... two months? Dx School and homework and life in general got in my way. Plus I took a break for NaNoWriMo, which I entered Reckoning in. I lost though. x3 Oh well, I wouldn't have had it done anyways. Also, since I have finished this "novel," I am going to take a break from updating for a short while, and I'll have a Christmas one-shot for you guys, which will be a preview of my "next" story, which is undecided, but I'll just pick a random one. ;P

Well, hope you enjoyed!

Character Introductions:

TYL! Superbi Squalo, age 32. Still the Varia's Rain Guardian. His hair is still as long as ever, perhaps longer, and he's still screaming when he speaks.

TYL! Xanxus, age 34. Still the head of the Varia, the Sky Guardian. He still holds a hatred for Tsunayoshi Sawada after his horrible defeat in the Sky Match.

TYL! Fran, age 16. The new Mist Guardian after Mammon's death. He's sarcastic and speaks in a monotone, but is devoted to the Varia.

TYL! Leviathan, age 33. Still the Varia's Thunder Guardian, and still as "devoted," or obsessed, with pleasing his boss, Xanxus.

Kaito Gokudera, age 4. The son of Hayato Gokudera and Najika Kamiya in the future, and the holder of a Rain Flame and

TYL! Spanner, age 24. Once part of the Millefiore, and the creator of the Strau Mosca, but eventually sides with the Vonola for his love of technology.

TYL! Shoichi Irie, age 25. Formerly the Millefiore's Sun Funeral Wreath, and later, the Vongola's biggest ally in terms of knowledge about the Millefiore.

TYL! Kyoya Hibari, age 26. The current Vongola Cloud Guardian who was traveling with Tetsuya Kusakabe and his loyal pet, Hibird.