Dino winced as another cup fell from his clumsy fingers. He hoped that he hasn't woken up anyone with the racket he has been making for the past few minutes (which, in hindsight, it is a vain hope since most of the residents in this household were assassins and Mafiosi and Reborn!). So far, he has already broken three cups, one mug, and the sugar holder (at least he assumed it was sugar since it was white and powdery; he had no culinary skills nor did he wish to learn any because of Bianchi) while he was trying to find milk and heat it up.

He could have woken Romario, at least to accompany him and create a lesser mess or better yet, to make him the cup of warm milk, but even his right-hand man was tired after the day's events.

After treating them like guests as Lupin requested, Reborn put Dino through remedial training, which consisted of the Smoking Bomb, Enzo, and a Dying Bullet (or ten). Romario could have done the smart thing and stayed away from the chaos, but he was loyal and knew how much Dino needed his presence to survive; and so he ran after them. This, in turn, spurned Reborn to add bazookas, bombs, and bullets (real ones) to Dino's training for making his subordinate suffer and look undignified. It was a never ending cycle of pain that lasted through most of the afternoon and evening.

By the time they returned, though, there was a feast prepared for them. The room - whole house, really - looked completely undamaged by the inferno made of Tsuna's Sky Flames. (He, unfortunately, noticed this after his third serving. He couldn't help it - Reborn was merciless and he was starving. And the food was delicious! He had no doubt that it was Lupin who made the treacle tart, which was simply heavenly.)

Since he was exhausted and full, he expected to fall asleep as easily as Romario; yet he didn't, which led him to attempting to make some warm milk.

"Don Cavallone!" someone shrieked behind him, which made him drop his second mug so his hands were free to hold his whips as he faced the intruder.

(And he belatedly realized that between the two of them, he was the intruder.)

"I'm not going to hurt you," Lupin, the Master of Death and Tamer of Reborn (because that was a real moniker in Dino's eyes), said as he held his hands up in a placating gesture.

"Ah, sorry about that," he said with a sheepish smile as he put away his whips. "And for the mess, too," he added as he gestured to the rest of the kitchen.

"That's all right, I understand," he said, gentle and calm, as he walked towards Dino, bare-footed. With a casual wave of his hand (and a falter in his step), the mess he made instantly cleared up and Dino had a sudden appreciation of magic. "More importantly, are you all right? Are you hurt?" he fretted like a mother-hen, which was both amusing and disorienting.

"No. I-i'm fine. Just a little clumsy, Master Lupin," he said, wincing at his stutter. He hoped that Reborn didn't find out (but he would anyway because he was Reborn).

"Master Lupin isn't my style," he said, shaking his head. "Just call me Harry. And I won't tell Reborn," he added with a wry grin.

Dino gaped because was he a mind-reader like Reborn? "I can't read minds. I suck at mind magics, unlike Reborn. You're just too easy to read, kinda like Reborn," he explained with a small chuckle. And Dino didn't know if he should be proud or horrified to be compared to Reborn.

But more importantly, "Reborn is easy to read?!" He couldn't help but point that out because Reborn's poker face was a stuff of legends. He didn't show anything he didn't want to show, and here was Harry saying otherwise, going against the basic laws of the world.

"Very," he answered so casually, shattering Dino's reality in the process.

"Would you like some pills, potions, or warm milk?" he asked in the silence he caused as Dino was trying to restart his brain.

"What?" he asked dumbly and Harry just gave him an amused look as he led Dino to a chair.

"You should be exhausted but you're still up, so you obviously need something to help you sleep. So do you prefer sleeping pills, dreamless sleep potions, or just ordinary warm milk?" he explained, silently urging the blond to sit down.

"I don't want to be a bother to you," Dino said, getting up from his seat, but Harry gave him an uncompromising look (which reminded him of Reborn's demanding stare, only more since his brown eyes glowed from behind his pink shades).

"I insist, Dino. You're a guest in my house," he said though Dino heard the so just sit down and accept my hospitality or else. He nodded meekly and Harry gave a pleased smile in return. (And it made him wonder if he and Reborn were related because he could recognize that pleased expression Reborn wore when Dino was going through his hellish torture called training.) "And besides, you might actually break all my dinnerware with your clumsiness," he added slyly.

"I'm not that clumsy," he protested weakly and Harry's raised brow exuded so much disbelief and amusement that it would have been insulting if it wasn't true. "I'm not, really," he tried again.

"Only when you're subordinates are around," Harry conceded as he gave Dino a cup of warm milk and sat down in front of him with his own cup.

"Did Reborn tell you that?" he asked, trying to learn the nature of Harry and Reborn's relationship.

Another wry grin came onto his face as he answered, "No, it's common knowledge." And Dino just flushed in embarrassment as he sipped his own milk since that was true. "You know, you could just ask since your attempts to subtly get more information is as subtle as a train crash," he continued and Dino pouted. He wasn't that bad at getting information; he was trained by Reborn!

"I didn't say you were bad, I just said you're not subtle. It's probably the sleep-deprivation, so you shouldn't worry about it. And besides, I don't do well with subtlety; I prefer being blunt and direct. Cunning manipulations are more of Reborn's area," he said before sipping his own milk and Dino just stared at him in shock.

Then he adopted a constipated look as he tried to telepathically ask Harry if he wore boxers or briefs, just to test his mind-reading skills.

"Is there something wrong with the milk? Are you lactose-intolerant?" he asked worriedly and Dino kept quiet as he tried to mentally ask his question.

"Dino? Please talk to me," he said, worried as he reached out to Dino.

"Boxers or briefs?" he blurted out, blushing in embarrassment. He didn't mean to say what was on his mind but he felt so guilty worrying the teenager like that when he has been nothing but a gracious and hospitable host.

"Boxers. Why do you ask?" he answered, despite his confusion.

"It's nothing. I just- Anyway, how did you and Reborn meet?" he asked instead, forcibly changing the topic. (And he cringed at the number of faux pas he has made in the past few minutes because Reborn would put him through remedial training, again!)

Harry gave him a raised brow, as if questioning his sanity, but sat back down and said, "Well, I was seventeen and Reborn was a baby," he started off and Dino couldn't help but interrupt, "How old are you now?"

"Seventeen," he answered glibly and Dino nodded. (Reborn must have met Harry just this year since Harry was still seventeen.)

"Sorry, please continue."

"It's all right. No need to apologize. Anyway, he looked at me with his cutest, most innocent baby face and next thing I know, he made me his bitch," he said, looking oddly reminiscent with a small smile on his face.

Though Dino couldn't imagine Reborn looking cute and innocent because this was the same baby hitman tutor who has chased him with bazookas and guns, the story sounded plausible. Reborn was the most manipulative bastard he knew and he was the type to pull unsuspecting victims into his web of control.

Then he realized what Harry just said and he blurted out, "But you were able to order him around!" It was supposed to be a question but Harry just decimated another rule of reality.

"Only because he lets me. Even though he likes playing the devil, he's a big softie when it comes to his family," Harry explained with a chuckle.

"What?" he asked dumbly because his mind hasn't registered what Harry just said. There were more people who could order Reborn around?

"I think the more appropriate question is who. And well, there's me. And there's James, though Reborn orders him around more often than not, citing big brother's privileges and all that. And then there's Lorcan and Lysander," and Harry made a pained face as he mentioned the latter, but it disappeared as soon as it appeared. "And there's you."

"What?" because was he hearing things correctly?

"You're family," Harry said, warm and kind, as he lowered his shades to look at him with intense yet gentle glowing green eyes. "You're practically Reborn's first born, which makes you family. If you need help, we - me and Reborn and the rest of the family - would gladly give it to you. All you have to do is ask."

. . .

Tsuna was trying to sneak out of the Ryuujin residence and go home, despite the pain and exhaustion caused by the burning sensation in his blood.

He would have left without anyone knowing better since everyone was asleep and the only people up were distracted but that wasn't possible in the first place. No matter how distracted Hari seemed to be, he was always aware of his surroundings. Always.

Using the skills he earned from hiding from Hibari in school, he was able to silently open the door and walk to the front door. Even before he reached halfway through the living room, he froze as he felt the weight of a stare.

With a gulp, he turned to face Hari, who was staring at him with an even - almost blank - expression. He leaned further against the wall when Harry stood up (after gently closing the mouth of the blond with a roll of his eyes and a small smile) and slowly - cautiously, as if Tsuna would run if he moved any faster - walked to Tsuna.

"You could have left through the glass doors in your room if you wanted to escape unnoticed, Tsuna-kun," he said when he was about three feet away from him. He stood casually, his hands were visible and his stance was relaxed and unthreatening.

(But Tsuna knew these didn't matter because he was anything but relaxed and unthreatening. He could be more dangerous than Hibari and all his bullies combined but he wasn't. Not at the moment because Tsuna was around.

He didn't know if he should be afraid of him or not.)

"I wouldn't have left unnoticed. You would know," he said softly, looking at the ground instead of those intense brown eyes.

"I would have," he agreed. "There is very little in this house that escapes my notice. So why are you up? You should still be asleep," he added as he moved closer to Tsuna.

"I have to go home," he said, still not looking at Hari as he closed his eyes, willing the world to stop spinning.

There was silence. When Tsuna finally got his bearings, he snuck a peek at Hari. There was a prominent frown on his face as his brown eyes glowed ominously. "Why?" he asked, though he sounded like he wanted to say something else.

"My mother is worried," he answered back and Hari closed his eyes, taking a deep breath.

"How do you know?" he asked evenly when he opened his eyes to stare at Tsuna with a blank expression (which honestly scared Tsuna because he has never seen Hari look so emotionless).

"I-i don't know?" he shrugged, hunching over for his vague answer that would most definitely displease Hari. He really didn't know how he knew; all he knew was that he had to get up and go home to reassure his mother that he was fine. (Never mind that he was trembling in pain and exhaustion.)

"I see," he said, moving even closer to Tsuna, close enough to touch him but far enough to give him space. "Then I'll handle it. Let's go back to your room because you look like you need more sleep," he said, reaching out to Tsuna to guide him back to the room.

But Tsuna shook his head as he held his ground. "But you don't like her." Though Hari hasn't said anything about Tsuna's mother, he Tsuna noticed the (disgustedangrydistrustful) looks he sent towards the house when he went to pick Tsuna up in the mornings.

Hari's eyes widened in shock as he said, "I-" Then he stopped, licked his lips, and then said, "I'll just tell her you're staying here for the time being until you get better."

"But you'll hurt her," Tsuna accused because as gentle as Hari looked, he was more dangerous than Reborn, who was the world's greatest hitman.

Hari was visibly taken aback at the accusation and immediately protested, "I won't attack her. I'm not that horrible a person." It was obvious that he was very hurt by Tsuna's words, even though the only sign of it was the lack of glow in his eyes.

And Tsuna, who only wanted to defend his mother because it was his duty as her son, felt horrible because he hurt Hari instead. Hari who never wanted to hurt him and has done nothing to hurt him and that made hurting Hari immensely worse.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that," he blurted out because he had to return the glow in Hari's eyes. "It's just-" he stuttered as he tried to find the words to make things right - to stop Hari from hurting. "You're probably going to tell her stuff that's going to hurt her. And I don't want her to get hurt. But I know you're a good person so you're not going to call her names or tell her lies or anything like that. But sometimes, even the truth hurts..." and he trailed off because he has never spoken that much in a single breath before but he needed to make Hari understand that no matter how dangerous and deadly he was, Tsuna knew Hari was a good person.

Unfortunately, speaking that long meant that he was out of breath and he wobbled as he tried to get his breath and bearings back. But before he hit the ground, Hari reached out to him and caught him in a half-hug. He couldn't help but lean onto Hari's side, basking in his warmth and gentleness.

"We really should bring you back to your bed," he mumbled even though he pulled Tsuna towards the dining room where the blond was still frozen in shock. "What if I promise not to hurt her unnecessarily? Will you let me handle it then?" he asked as he guided Tsuna to one of the chairs.

"You promise on your life?" because Tsuna was serious in protecting his mother.

"No," he shook his head, lowering his shades. Intense glowing green eyes bore into Tsuna as he said, "I promise on Reborn's life."

And Tsuna found it odd that he swore in someone else's life instead of his own or his ancestors' honor or graves. But somehow, he understood that he considered Reborn's life more important than honor, ancestry, or his own life. And so, by swearing on Reborn's life, Hari understood how important it was not to hurt his mother.

"Okay," he said, beaming. And Tsuna couldn't help but smile as well because the glow was back in his eyes.

"Good, so since you're planning to stay up, why don't you keep Dino company?" he said, gesturing to the blond.

"Dino, meet Tsuna, another one who can order Reborn around," he introduced Tsuna to Dino, who finally snapped out of his shock.

"What?" both Dino and Tsuna said at the same time.

Hari just laughed at their dumbstruck faces and winked at them as he prepared more warm milk. "What? It's the truth~!"

Truth About Family - end.

okay...this chapter wasn't supposed to happen but a lot of reviewers shared their ideas on what would have happened if harry and dino met and besides i need a transition chapter, so boom. then i made a draft which had conversations about different training techniques, camping with nundus (which are the most dangerous magical creatures), and enzo's birth/creation (which is a bit relevant, but i'll probably put it in another chapter. xP). then it turned out like this, which was more heartfelt than expected.

more importantly, the first part of this chapter (dino and harry) was in italian, while the second part (tsuna and harry) was in japanese. it doesn't really matter on what language they used plot-wise, but format-wise, this is less painful (for me) to read.

to KK, as always, thank you for your review and i'm glad that you're enjoying the fic. x3 and i actually, thank you for giving me food for thought about what will happen to tsuna now that his seal was broken because honestly, i never thought about it. ahahaha.
but the way i see it, sealing his flames held him back in terms of physical stats (like speed, strength, etc.), intelligence, and most especially intuition. so by releasing the seal, he suddenly has this ability to "see" (i'm using this word in the loosest way since not everything he sees is visible like motives and hidden emotions) more than he used to. but he doesn't have the emotional stability (due to his upbringing) and intelligence (due to the seal) to fully understand what he sees. also, by having flames, his body right now would be undergoing a lot of changes that are painful since he didn't have flames before. but once he adjusts, he should be stronger, faster, better. but that's way later.
so tldr; no sudden strength or boost in intelligence and a lot of pain; but a boost in intuition for now. i hope i was able to show this in the chapter.

to Grayfia, as always, thanks for your review and no, you haven't mentioned that before but i'm glad you like it. that's sort of how i think, you see, i don't stick to the serious stuff too long and my mind immediately jumps to something lighter. and don't be mean to mochida just becuase he's a bit delusional. and well, i kept trying to put funnier reactions between harry and dino but this is what came out when i put them together. xP and thanks, i'll try not to. ahahaha

to Guest (um, if you don't mind, would you at least kindly leave a name), thanks for your review. and yes, he does. x3 and their lessons will definitely overlap and they will definitely see a difference in training methods. x3

so to everyone who takes the time to read this, you know what would be awesome? to know what you think while/after you've read this. so if you don't mind, leave a review?