When Tsuna woke up, it was to the distant calls of frantic men, the coo and cry of early birds, and of dew settling coldly on his skin. On the heels of those small comprehensions quickly came the dawning of the fact that he was freezing!
He shivered as he sat up, body feeling tense and slow, mind fuzzy as he yawned through chattering teeth. He had a lot of questions, but he would settle with the biggest one on the tip of his tongue. "WHERE THE HELL AM I?" The brunette peeked around himself, unsettled to see himself in the middle of what appeared to be a clearing. The ground was flat, nearly perfectly so, and green grass stretched from tree to brush in almost ideal oval around him.
His fingers interwove in the lush turf, even as he frowned. There was a distant memory, right there where he could feel it, but he just couldn't see it… something to do with a crater? Or was it spots? He looked more carefully at his surroundings and liked to think it odd that, aside from the grass, there was nothing growing within a 10-foot radius of him.
"TENTH!" Someone screamed, just beyond the forest barrier. Tsuna jumped at the overbearing noise, wondering just who the hell roared so loudly obviously so early in the morning. But, then again, he shouldn't be outside so early in the morning.
"TSUNA?" Two other voices called out, even louder and making the teen grit his teeth.
"Oya~ I don't think it's necessary to shout from here," interjected a much more soothing tone. "As a matter of fact, I implore that you stop."
After blinking stupidly for a moment, it occurred to him that he knew exactly who those people were. "Guys, I'm over here!" Thank goodness for good friends, no, family. Gokudera and Yamamoto flew through the foliage straight at him, skidding around him to wrap their arms around the brunette like safekeeping.
"Tenth, I've been so worried about you! First, we had to find the bastard who kidnapped you and then you weren't where we thought you were and now you could catch a cold and die!" The silverette was freaking out, rather deafeningly, into Tsuna's right ear. His rant went on to include insults about the 'bastard' (Mukuro) in three different languages, seventeen different ways of torture he planned to use on himself for losing him, and then, finally, fell to an awkward silence as his mouth caught on the words, "and then your father got involved!"
Tsuna raised a brow, not quite sure what that meant, but was sidetracked by a happily laughing Yamamoto before he could ask.
"Mah mah, what I think Gokudera's trying to say is that we're happy to see that you're okay… Ah, but you're really cold!" He frowned, murmuring to himself of how to remedy the situation, seeing as how he had left his own coat at home and wasn't really a furnace at the moment either. Gokudera stared at the floor in shame, much in the same predicament.
And then a huge, hot jacket settled over his shoulders, weighing down on him. Looking up, he peered into the sharp blue eyes of his father.
"I don't know what you were thinking coming out here like that, but I'll just add it to your list of quirks like having a flower for a lover and running away from Chihuahuas."
"H-hey, I haven't run away from that fleabag down the street since – " hold up, wait a minute, WHAT THE HELL? "Heh heh heh…" He laughed nervously before gulping, seeing out of the corner of his eye Gokudera's shame increase by tenfold and Yamamoto find uncanny interest in the grass. "W-what do you mean a-a flower for a lover? W-we're not lovers!" And then, as a last thought, "And what do you mean 'flower'?"
The hulking blonde gestured blithely to the two other teens, unbothered himself. "They told me all about the letter you got from Lambo and how he," he pointed a thick finger at Mukuro, standing some feet behind him, "came with it."
Amazing, how someone could be conflicted in thought so many times over such a short period. He felt relief that he didn't have to hide the truth from his father, betrayed that his friends went on and told his father without his permission, and confused over waking up in the middle of the woods. He let those emotions simmer in his thoughts and heart, letting them flow because he just couldn't take it if he had to suppress them now and face them later.
Finally, he took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Okay," he accepted mercifully, both of his friends visibly brightening up while Gokudera seemed on the verge of tears for the joy of forgiveness. "But, uh, what are you doing here to begin with?" Gokudera and Yamamoto he understood; he had already predicted that they would be coming. But why was his dad there?
"I had something to ask you, but…" Iemetsu shared a look with Gokudera and Yamamoto, eyes sparkling in a 'secret, secret' way, "I guess I forgot what that was."
"Huh…" Tsuna tilted his head, accepting that.
There was silence as Tsuna warmed himself back up, staring at the grass and wondering why he felt it shouldn't be there.
"Well?" His dad at last pressured.
"Well, what?" Tsuna blinked huge brown eyes at the figure.
"Aren't you going to ask how we found you 3 miles into the woods without a huge search party?"
Tsuna thought about that in all honesty and then shook his head. "I think I already know." His gaze slid tellingly to Mukuro, a small smile perking his lips.
If Mukuro's blood had been able to search him out, imagine what the plant himself could do. After all, Mukuro had said that everything about him was alive, everything about him wanted to come home, and Tsuna… Tsuna was home. Tsuna had created Mukuro's home using everything he was until he was… well, everything to the alien.
He flushed darkly at the thought. That just sounded cheesy. And he wasn't cheesy… he just wasn't!
Iemetsu followed his gaze with a raised eyebrow and then proceeded to glare at Mukuro, jaw clenched and nostrils flaring like a bull about to charge the red cape. "Okay, what'd you do to my son, you pervert?"
The brunette's mouth dropped open, shock filling him at his father's question, and it was all in time for Gokudera to snap around and suddenly realize that an entire night had gone by with Tsuna in the arms of the very creature he despised… alone. Without Gokudera to protect his virtue!
HOLY SHIT, Mukuro just might have made a man (Buddha forbid) of his beloved Tenth! "NOO! I'LL KILL YOU FIRST, YOU FUCKING PLANT!"
Yamamoto laughed unsurely as Tsuna stared at his vengeful angel of an ally, uncertain whether to piss his pants or admit this as his temperamental friend. Except, in all honesty, this was a kind of outburst he had heard… well, never before.
He looked at the baseball player while Gokudera charged Mukuro with dynamite in hand, wondering if maybe Yamamoto would know.
Takeshi caught his eye and rubbed the back of his head bashfully. "Hah hah, I think that's the battle cry he's been saving for whenever he thinks you're not a virgin anymore!"
"You've got to be joking!" He cried, horrified.
Yamamoto looked at him apologetically and Tsuna knew that joking was the last thing he was doing, most likely actually being painfully honest.
A hand clapped his back, Iemetsu smiling down on him. "Well, I've got to say, Tsuna, the family you've made for yourself is… well, it's everything you deserve plus some."
He felt his heart clench in sweet pain. "D-dad… Thanks."
"Nah; thank you. Only someone as great as my boy can remind me to forgive, am I right?"
Tsuna wanted to say something along the same lines, but it was too late. His dad hugged him tightly, too tightly for him to speak, and then, like a shadow heading back into the darkness, his father disappeared into the woods and was gone. The brunette watched after him mutely, wondering if that was honestly all there was to it. If so, well then… that would definitely be an Iemetsu-way of saying goodbye – aspiring, ragged, and kind.
He sighed and then grinned, snorting at the ridiculousness of the man who sired him. It occurred to him that he really should be heartbroken over having just gotten his father back and now he was losing him all over again, buuut~ as it turned out, he had a little too much family to handle as it was.
Gokudera and Mukuro were trying to kill each other (or maybe that was just Gokudera trying and Mukuro was amusing himself by taunting the silverette) while Yamamoto decided to leave Tsuna's side and soothe the other teen in the midst of a bloodless war.
"You bastard! How dare you stop me! Do you know what filthy things that bastard must have done to Tenth before we could save him? I will never forgive him! OI, don't laugh at me, you dumbass plant!"
Tsuna's face turned a brazen red as Gokudera's chin was captured in Yamamoto's one hand and turned towards the Japanese, lips on lips in what was clearly not a friendly kiss but definitely a gay, 'we've done this a lot' sort of molestation.
While Gokudera was distracted, Mukuro slipped away and came to Tsuna's side, offering him a hand to his feet and then tangling a hand in his hair, gently stroking.
"Kufufufu~ your shock looks cute, Tsunayoshi~" Mukuro nuzzled his ear, blissfully ignoring the teen's surprised jerk. "What, didn't you suspect them?"
Well, yes, but suspecting was a lot different from learning firsthand!
Mukuro rested his chin on Tsuna's shoulder and then withdrew, nose crinkling in distaste. "Your father smells terrible. I prefer your scent…" He trailed off with a pout.
Tsuna looked from him to his friends, to his friends and then back to Mukuro, gawking. Finally, he smiled.
The world was suddenly, abruptly, entirely beautiful… and he wasn't completely sure how that had happened, considering his state of mind the night before.
"I don't know what to tell you, I can't just dump it somewhere."
"Kufufufu~ of course you can. And if you're still cold, I can lend you my coat! Smell~" A sleeve was shoved into Tsuna's face.
Mukuro's natural sweet scent flooded his mind, blurring Yamamoto and Gokudera in his vision. But he smelled so damn good, he had to take a second whiff, just trying to determine what exactly it was. How could someone smell so tantalizing?
As his mind hazed over completely, the last coherent thought to flash through his mind was Gokudera's yelp.
"GAH! Not again! Save the Tenth!"
Somehow, even though he was only somewhat aware of what Gokudera was talking about, he had the feeling that it was far too late for him to be saved.
Author's Note: Mukuro seems to have that effect on Tsuna to the point… heh heh~