Disclaimer: I do not own KHR.
Chapter 14: A Nightmare's Dream
Tsuna stared at the noodles in front of her with a dissatisfied sigh. The noodles, which were supposed to be thin strong strands, puffed; soaked with water. The dish was made cold so most of the flavor remained, but this really wasn't satisfactory.
Tsuna wasn't picky with her food; she ate whatever Nana cooked and put on the plate, whether it be pasta, miso, omelet or plain rice. However, there was a fine line between okay, and plain bad. The family (and its permanent guests) had been eating the same thing (not to mention some of the noodles were leftovers from mid-year gifts) for a week straight and it was beginning to bother her.
"Mom, is there any reason why we've been eating this every day?" she droned, staring at her bowl with blank eyes.
Nana's face grew anxious and disappointed. She covered her sadness with a small pout and replied, "Don't complain! It's good for us, financially…"
Anger simmered in the back of Tsuna's mind. 'Financially? We shouldn't be in such a bad situation if he left his wife for his work. Where's his income going to?'
"I like the noodles that Maman makes." Reborn piped up casually.
"I like it too." Bianchi parroted.
Tsuna made sure to keep her eyes away from the woman sitting beside Reborn. Bianchi was happily slurping away her food. There were the couple of intense stares aimed at her in random intervals, but she made sure to act as if they didn't exist. But they flashed a warning in her mind: Danger. Beware of the love-struck mafia woman.
'At least she isn't trying to kill me.'
Bianchi and Reborn's comments cheered the mother up considerably and shifted the worry lines into a peppy smile.
"There's one more person who likes soumen!" Nana exclaimed, as if to comfort herself.
Bangs and stomps were heard outside the kitchen door.
"GAHAHAHA!"
The door was burst open, and there stood Lambo in his openly foolish self. What was interesting today was that his horns were stuck the wrong way in his afro. (But his outfit was always strange; it garnered unneeded attention at all times.)
"It's me, LAMBO!"
The horns weren't really a big deal and she didn't wish to see him freak out embarrassed, like he did every day, so she left him be. Her eyes retreated back to the noodles.
Her effort was put to waste, as Nana had told the infant for her. "Lambo-chan, you're horns aren't sticking properly." She informed kindly.
Lambo squeaked in shock and shame. He felt his horns, before pulling and sticking them back properly on the sides of his head, sniffing.
"I-I knew that! It was intentional… but I'll fix it anyway" he stammered.
At times, he could be such a joy to watch: he was a cute, unknowing, naïve baby. The only problem was his high maintenance and violence level, as well as the various dangerous weapons he kept in his nest of a hair… One he was rummaging out from his afro.
Reborn must have looked at him in a condescending manner, for Lambo to take out his bazookas.
"I-IT REALLY WAS INTENTIONAL! DIE REBORN!"
Reborn, the way he was, had to nonchalantly stop the bazooka (that had come from a distance of two meters) with his chopsticks and fling it back to the child. The bazooka flew straight at Lambo's gut, and the infant went flying away with it. He was pushed out of the window into who knew where; he always came back, somehow.
Nana watched the infant outside the window silently. The scene had happened right in front of, her, but some portion of her mind had reassured herself that the baby was safe. She might've seen another moment like this before, and felt it normal. She wasn't worried. He always came back. Somehow.
It was these small moments where Tsuna couldn't comprehend her mother. She wasn't dumb, so she knew not where the ignorance came from.
But she didn't bother to find out; content with the fact that Nana was Nana, and she wasn't going to change (for the worse).
…
While Reborn, Tsuna, and Bianchi had continued to eat, Lambo was still flying airborne. It was only till a building tall enough to block him had appeared did he stop. Or rather, did he crash into someone's apartment complex with a loud boom.
Curious as to the origin of the sound a boy—possibly in high school—slid open the door to the room. He stood frozen.
"What was that sound?" His mother came from another balcony holding the laundry.
"Why are you just standing there, Shoichi?" The sister peeked out from the room next door.
Inside the room was a child; an infant, sprawled unconscious on the floor. Behind the boy was a wreck of debris and two broken walls that led outside, letting in the arid breezes from outside. Comments leaked out through the net of astonishment.
"It's a child!"
"Is he… okay?"
"I can't believe it. What's going on?"
DING DONG DING DONG
The outlet of words was blocked by the ringing of the bell. The teen's mother ordered him to take the door.
Outside the door was a muscular man who held a crate. His genes were most likely not from Japan: that accounted for his strange accent, and Shoichi Irie was hesitant and doubtful of the man's honesty. He might've been some sort of terrorist for all he knew!
But regardless, the crate was shoved into his arms as the man fled and slid down a large pole. Like a firefighter, but he wasn't going to comment. Shoichi closed the door before calling out, "Some kind of contraband arrived…"
He went up to them and nervously opened the crate. Inside was a sheet reading:
'Bonivo's Summer
Assortments For Apology.
Pasta x2
Olive Oil x3
Wine x1
We're very sorry that our Lambo
has caused a great amount of trouble this time.
This is a little something in our behalf.
In addition, please give the
Cow printed bag to Lambo.'
Lambo was most likely the small boy lying on the floor. The family was speechless, and silence simmered in the air before surprise erupted.
"Oh my! A wad of bills is in it!"
The mother held out a stack of bills that was underneath the cow print, along with the rest of the goods that was mentioned.
"This kid's family's insane!"
It was a shock to the whole family. Just who was this boy? And were they truly going to use the fishy money to fix their broken wall?
Shoichi knew deep in his heart, that this was really not safe, and probably something illegal. But curiosity got the better of him, and he held up the cow print bag for closer inspection.
A grenade slipped out the bag and clinked on the floor.
"Th-This is…" He hesitantly held up the object, before it was snatched away by his sister.
"What's this? A toy?" she dismissed and threw it back at him.
He was sure his heart was trembling as he carefully caught it and placed it back into the bag.
"Sorry Sho-chan, can you return this box too when you send the boy back?" his mother asked him. Or really, ordered him.
"M-Me?"
"Obviously! Men should do the job. Women are weak!"
His sister was always lazy like that, but there was no way on earth she was weaker than him…
"But I don't know the address!" He tried to create himself a sliver of hope in the situation.
Oh no problem! It was in the boy's pocket." The mother held up the address paper. He had no idea she even went near the boy!
He was given the crumbled piece of paper, barely deciphering the messy writing. By no means was it handwritten; it looked typed. The only problem was that it was crumbled, and a few letters had been blurred, along with the strangely sticky, green colored sections.
But besides that, the letter looked daunting and intimidating. Just what exactly did 'order' and 'target' mean?
"…Well, If something happens, we'll come get you." His sister gave him a hard smack on the back for comfort.
"I'll lend you my phone, so contact us."
Shoichi gave up trying and nodded his head submissively. 'It's always me at times like this…'
…
Finding the house had been easy enough. Now all he had to do was go and return the kid and the box to the people inside (who would hopefully know what to do), and leave.
Shoichi stared at the Sawada name plate nervously before peering inside.
He immediately hid back behind the wall, his heart thumping with fear and shock. He didn't know what to do. So without hesitation he dialed the home phone using the cell his mother had given him.
"Hello, Mom? There's a lady in a bathing suit sleeping in the yard!" He loudly whispered, wanting to conceal his presence from the strange person inside.
His mother answered with a laugh. "Oh Sho-chan, that's just sun bathing. Unlike us, rich people do stuff like that. The Sawadas are celebrities aren't they? Is the mansion nice?"
"E-" Before he could say anything, the call ending with a loud beeping. He sighed.
"Is there something you want?"
Shoichi quickly jumped at the charming sound before turning. Behind him was the woman, still wearing her black bikini.
A large blush rose up on his cheeks as he tried to give a response. Merely a strangled choke left his lips.
He just wasn't used to these things.
"Peeking into people's houses…" The woman did not look angry, or even ashamed (not that someone who wore swimsuits without going to swim would). Her voluptuous yet muscular build were shown to the public, and her eyes oozed sex.
It was too much for young, inexperienced Shoichi, and he closed his eyes before responding, "R-Reborn…?" What he really meant to say was something along the lines of, "Is this where Sawada Reborn lives?" but somehow his anxiety had caused him to put forth only a single word.
Regardless, the woman had known the person, 'Reborn', though there might've been a misunderstanding, since he was greeted with a murderous glare after opening his eyes. Sweltering eyes had chilled to ice as she continued to glare him down. And this time, he didn't have the confidence to close his eyes in fear.
"What's wrong Bianchi?" A voice called out.
The lady turned away with a love-struck look in her face, and Shoichi sighed in relief. He was saved.
"Reborn!"
From inside the walls came a… child? The boy had a black fedora with an orange stripe. His face was chubby with glittering eyes of innocence stapled on. The boy wore a Hawaiian shirt, and held a can of…beer? The child was full of contradictions, but that wasn't important.
'Is this truly 'Reborn'?
When Shoichi had imagined him, he was thinking of a man more, manly, or tall, or old, or dangerous looking. The only thing that matched the description was the fedora. And even that was splashed with a stripe of colorful orange.
"Ciaossu" the child spoke, talking a gulp of his beer.
Well, it didn't matter too much. His job hadn't changed: he needed to give back the child. Maybe the cow-kid was a friend?
He pointed to the child on his back. "Um, Is thi-"
Before he could speak however, a loud squeak boomed in his ear as the kid woke up.
"Gahahah! DIE REBORN!"
The horns were plucked out of his afro and the child hurled them at the other child. It went soaring, and the sharp point headed straight at Reborn's face. But what even more surprising was that the other child had somehow gained a bat, and swung it at the horn. It hit the child on his back, the sharp point digging into the kid's forehead. He fell down unconscious.
"!E-Excuse me!"
Shoichi left the baby and swiftly ran away. His trembling fingers jammed the buttons on his phone with rush and he cried out.
"Reborn-san is still a baby!"
His mother on the line was definitely confused.
"Eh? A baby?"
"But he was drinking beer! And he's so strong at fighting!"
"Ah! So it's not a baby, but a mommy with guts!"
"NO!"
"So she doesn't have guts… Is Lambo-kun awake yet? Is he alright?"
Ah! He had forgotten all about Lambo…
"LAMBO IS A BOY OF TOLERANCE~"
A large cry erupted from above, and Shoichi looked up to see the baby he had just left… How he had gone up a tree without falling, he didn't know. But Shoichi was extremely freaked out.
"I'LL JUST BOMB YOU! BOOM BOOM BOOM YOU!" The boy was weeping heavily with closed eyes, and held up a bunch of grenades…
Grenades? If memory served him right, wouldn't the grenades in the bag he had brought with him? He took out the cow print bag, only to find it empty…
Shoichi feared for his life, and slowly stepped back—one foot at a time—away from the crazy, weapon wielding child. As he did so, the infant cried out, "STUPID" before throwing the grenades into the air, most likely at Reborn though he couldn't see.
Just as he did so, the grenades flew right back at the glossy eyed, unsuspecting Lambo.
BOOOOOM
Shoichi was about to cry.
"What in the world is Lambo doing!"
A female's voice rang out underneath the chaos, and Shoichi cowered, hoping it wasn't that same scary woman from before. He wanted to run way. But he had a job to do, and get the hell out of this crazy place. So with bated steps, he snuck back and peered in the front yard of the Sawada house. Back to the beginning.
What he saw was a normal looking girl, her face shaped into a frown, her chestnut hair wild and free flowing down. But that wasn't important. What was important was that she looked normal. Hope erupted so quickly it warmed him with comfort.
Then his heart was shattered when she opened her mouth.
"Bianchi, I would appreciate you wear a bikini somewhere I— or anyone else for that manner— cannot see you. It burns my eyes."
Did she not notice the burnt baby crying on the ground? 'She wasn't normal after all' he lamented.
However, there was nothing he could do. She was the most normal looking and acting of the lot. She would do. He started running at her, his feet carrying him slowly (he was never a good runner) across the grass lawn. One step, two steps, three steps…
Alas, he could not finish his journey; Lambo had popped up in front of him, and took out a bazooka. A bazooka! He shielded his arms in front of him and shit his eyes tightly, terrorized.
POOF
There was a 'poof' sound, and nothing else happened. Huh?
Warily, Shoichi peeked open his eyes, only to widen them to a huge degree. Was he really seeing what he was seeing? Gone was a child, and out forth came this nice-looking teen dressed in a yukata, holding a piece of yakinuku with chopsticks.
"Goodness. And I was just savoring the inn's cooking…"
The phone was brought out once more, his mother speed dialed, and he screamed, "BECAME AN ADULT-"
His mother was on the phone instantly laughing. "I'm proud of you Sho-chan. But that's not something you say about yourself."
"NO!" He slammed his phone shut, silently muttering about his mother whilst watching the scene that was being performed.
The teen (presumably Lambo?) walked up to the girl and spoke nicely.
"Oh, hello, Onee-sama." (Was she someone special?)
Olive green eyes widened then, as the teen stared ahead, at the scary woman, Bianchi, probably. Surprise shifted to dismay as he muttered, "I think I'll excuse myself today…"
Strangely enough, the girl stood and watched saying nothing. Shoichi thought that maybe she was used to such things; he was absolutely positive he would never be.
The next thing he knew, the scary woman cried out, "Romeo!" throwing bowls of purple colored food at him. Shoichi streaked, terror bubbling in a mixture with horror and trepidation in a cauldron that was his stomach.
Purple noodles landed on the dirt ground, before poisoning the earth a sickly color, and sinking into the depths of the ground. The scary woman was becomign a nightmare for him.
His heart sank into his sizzling cauldron as the teen ran at him, the crazy woman following with killing intent. If her poison were to land on him…
Would this be his last day on earth?
Shoichi dropped to the ground and he curled up tightly into a small ball, clenching his knees as if he was groping salvation. He was prepared for the worst possible situation—death—and flashes of his gruesome body flickered in his mind.
But they passed him still running.
His previous despair overrode the joy that shook him. He was alive, but that didn't account for much.
BANG BANG BANG
He flinched at the loud gunshots, apprehensive of what was happening. Slowly, quietly, he looked.
Just as he did so, another shot rang out, and he saw merely a flash. His cheek burned for a second, and he brought his hand shakily up to his face, only to feel the warm, red life stream flowing onto his hand; seeping down to his wrist and slithering, pulsing, dripping from his chin.
No tears could leave his eyes; his trauma was so great.
…
Tsuna watched with slightly narrowed eyes. She watched teenage Lambo pop up and Bianchi chasing him. She watched, as her front yard's fresh green grass sizzled down into the dirt, and her ground and wall riddled with holes. She watched as Nana's precious garden (even if the woman wasn't the best gardener) was destroyed in the havoc.
Most of all, Tsuna watched the young boy: An innocent glasses-wearing boy who was caught in the fray. He was probably the soppiest, laughable, embarrassing excuse of a male specimen; snot and tears trickled down his face along with splotches of blood.
The boy was in a state of complete hysteria.
He ducked his head, cradling the phone he held and was moaning about his mother, or something of the like. Then a new voice rand out from the phone, a young woman's, and Tsuna inferred it was his sister, or some relative. She couldn't hear what they were saying, but she could see the boy's dismay as he dropped to the ground on all fours, his phone dropping to the ground.
The nerd was cowering, Lambo hiding, and Bianchi running around in a bikini. It was utter chaos, and Tsuna had the urge to return to her nice, quiet room.
Lambo and Bianchi would be taken care of as soon as he returned back to his 5 year old self. The problem was the boy. She didn't know what problems would arise with the boy. He needed to be driven away from here. He needed to leave.
And she didn't know what had possibly led him to her garden; especially that type of herbivorous boy that would definitely die early. She didn't know, but he would have to leave before he ended up in a pile of dead rotting flesh.
So Tsuna slouched down the trodden grass and head towards the still whimpering boy. She picked him up with her arms and sighed. Reborn wasn't doing anything, like always. He continued to lie on the sunbathing chair, sipping his can of alcohol.
With a grunt, she walked (he was unsurprisingly light) out the exit and dropped him a block away. Throughout the journey, the boy had said nothing. It was only till she slide him off her back did he open his clenched eyes and stare.
His shocked face was hilarious, especially with the frames of his glasses tilted, and the tears that were begging to fall. It was almost cute.
"H-huh?" a strangled cry of confusion made known his surprise.
"You should go home now." She ordered him.
He looked at her in shock, and a tear rolled down his cheeks. And then he obeyed, walking back to him apartment complex with a throbbing heart.
…
Shoichi believed the whole matter was settled. He had given the child back to the family, and remained unscathed, for the most part.
The only hint of his failure was the box that sat beside his bed. His mother and sister dared not to use it, so he was left with it until he could return it
Nightmares plagued him each night; dreams really. He dreamed of the infant that held a bat and beat others up, a scary woman that killed people with her poison, the baby had could transform into a teen with a bazooka, but most of all, he dreamed of a girl.
An ordinary looking girl that could lift a boy taller than her up in her arms like a princess. A girl who looked normal and actually talked to him. A girl who didn't frighten him to death (probably), or yell at him like his sister did.
He had never received the girl's name, and it gnawed at the bits of his heart each day. He utterly disliked not knowing...
She remained in his mind when he was sleeping, at school, when he was working on a project (his computer, broken electronic equipment, etc), everywhere. It didn't help that he didn't have a lot of friends; he spend a lot of time by himself: a hole that let his thoughts flood.
She never left his life. She became a normalcy he contained, but never got used to.
A tingling feeling in his stomach let a spark in him: It put a peaceful (or not so peaceful) vision that the girl would remain in his mind for a long, long time.
He hoped he'd get to meet her one more time in the future.
A/N: I'm not sure if I should apologize or not. It really has no impact on whether or not you waited for this update. But if it helps, after I finished by Nanowrimo I felt like I just didn't know my character as well anymore, so I reread everything, edited everything in case you want to reread, and now I have the chapter up.
Please review and comment.
And also, the plot will be changing, but nothing big.
Yoruko Rhapsodos- Yes, Haru is forever destined to love Tsuna at first sight, no matter what. That's just the type of character she is... Though I tried to make it more meaningful than just Tsuna getting hit by the bullet and saving the girl easily. To tell the truth, I don't see anything wrong with the girl, except that she's too dramatic.
Sachiel Angelo- Yes, slapping a stranger is definitely wrong, yet I try to put myself in my character's shoes. Haru, who loves babies like any normal teenage girl (just a bit more is all) hears this baby spouting random nonsense about being a hitman, assassin, etc, and sees this girl staring blankly ahead: Tsuna looks like the irresponsible character. Of course, slapping a stranger is wrong, but Haru's prone to blowing up, like Gokudera, who likes to threaten with his bombs.
sunstar13- I agree whole-heartily. Haru is a strange girl. But Gokudera is a strange boy. They're so similar...
hetaliajapan1- Well, the reason Hibari isn't in the poll is because I don't think he's a really great pairing with Tsuna. They might encounter each other at times, but for me personally, I imagine Hibari with someone delicate: either calm and cute, or capricious and hardworking. I think of Hibari's beloved (someone he'll care for more than just a combat partner) as a 'pet'. For Hibari, he needs a submissive that'll cater to him, love him, yet make him love her with a possessiveness that extends to much more than just 'pet'. Subtly, she will be the one in control, though still in his control. That is his 'true love'.