Chapter 95:
Everything will be fine.
I'm going to apologise for how long this has taken to write. I know it's been a very long time, and I'm very thankful for all of the encouraging and worried reviews I got whilst I was gone. They really mean a lot to me and made me smile during this stressful period.
A very big thanks is owed to Erephen, who finally forced me to write this chapter. She dealt with my mood swings and threats to kill accountants and solicitors when I was going through a stressful time at work, along with all my moaning and groaning without once telling me to shut up (even if I did apologise for it). She was always bugging me to get this chapter written, giving me ideas when my brain refused to and even writing one section for me that I physically couldn't write (I mean that literally, I turned away from the laptop whenever I even thought about it), and even distracting me at times with rather sexy pictures of Hayato (she knows my weaknesses too well).
So if you want to thank anyone, thank her- I'm sure a Xanxus plushie would be greatly received XD
This chapter isn't one of my best, but considering all I did was hit one block after another, I'm amazed I got anything out at all. Tsunayoshi's speech in this one is far from grammatically correct, mainly because he's an excited almost-six year old, and because I'm writing colloquially rather than grammatically.
Although on the good side, this chapter is 8,000 words long without these ramblings, so I hope you all enjoy it~
Have fun~
"Thank you very much Emiko, that was wonderful. Okay then, let's see. Next we have… Fran. So if you'd like to come to the front then Fran." The teacher smiled in an encouraging way as the children clapped.
"I don't know why you are all clapping. I haven't even done anything yet." Fran says as he stands and walks to the podium set up at the front. He looks at the class with a serious face before tapping a collection of cue cards on the desk in a professional manner. The class settle down and turn their attention to Fran, interested in what this weird boy was going to say and what type of family someone like him had to be like this.
"Ahem. Ah-h-h-hem." Goes Fran after a few seconds of high tension silence. The anticipation in the room increases…
…
…
"I was abandoned. The End." Fran bows and starts to walk back to his seat.
The class blink, having expected something different than that.
"Now now Fran." Says the teacher in a warning tone, tutting. "No joking around and do this properly. All your classmates have shared with you so it's only polite to do the same."
Fran sighs before turning around and walking back to the podium. "If I was joking, then I would have come up with a better one, Miss Fake Glasses. Is that a joke too or are you seriously trying to seduce a room of 5 year olds?" Fran tilts his head, looking up at the teacher, as do all the other students.
"Fran…" Growls the teacher.
"Hai, hai. I'll do the 'proper' version now. Don't blame me when you all prefer the other version." Fran mutters, walking back to the podium.
The cue cards were once more banged against the podium, drawing a close to the children's mutterings. "Ahem… Ah-h-h-h-hem…"
...
...
...
"I really was abandoned, tragic, I know. For as long as I can remember, I've moved from family to family. At first they were all really nice to me, treating me like anyone would treat a son, like one of the family. At first it was fun, but eventually it changed, it always did."
Tsunayoshi felt rather sad for Fran, having been moved around so often. His story was an interesting one, for more than one reason. The other being the little people moving around the cue cards as Fran talked. As Fran explained more about the families he had lived with, Tsunayoshi could see each one in perfect clarity right down to the spots on the fourth family's pet dog. Most students assumed it was something Fran had planned before hand, a way to make his presentation more interesting; he had never once looked down at the story unfolding between his hands on the desk. But Tsunayoshi wasn't sure that was the case. He was sure something more was going on here. Tsunayoshi's suspicions were becoming more and more founded with every figure appearing on the cards.
"The change was usually a slow one. First they'd just give me funny looks, or tell me off for doing practical jokes when I hadn't done anything. But after a little while they would start to act differently around me; they would be scared of me, send me to bed early, blame me for things I hadn't done. It got so bad that they eventually couldn't even look at me. It was then that they handed me over to a different family. I didn't know why I was being moved, but I didn't mind, I thought it was kinda cool."
Fran shrugged his shoulders, rolling his eyes as if he really didn't care at all. The pictures on the cue cards changed once again, showing different houses, different gardens, different families.
"But then the same thing happened, they got scared of me and shunned me. So I got moved again. And again. And again. I stopped thinking that moving was fun, they were just getting rid of me because they thought I was scary or possessed. It didn't matter how nice I was to them, how much I smiled or pleaded or acted like an angel, they still sent me off to someone else after a few months. So I just stopped caring. It didn't change a thing. Where I'm living now is alright though. Grandma is a senile batty lady who can't see well enough to tell her melon from her lettuce, but she's kept me for nearly a year now without once looking at me strangely. Yeah, you, in the front row, you're doing that look pretty well, have you met my uncle Fred? So any questions?"
Silence.
"No, I didn't think so." Fran nods his head before going and sitting back down at the table. Tsunayoshi watches as the pictures disappear, there one moment, gone the next. The silence still being given by the class gives him a few seconds to think. Despite how preposterous the story sounded (or at least to most of the sheltered civilians, it was more believable for the Mafia-born) Tsunayoshi had a strong feeling that it was true. He had images of a teen in a frog hat and a man with a trident flitter through his memory: One of those mysterious feelings that was unexplainably true.
Brrrrring!
The sound of a bell wakes Tsunayoshi out of his thoughts, making him look around the room.
"Alright then children, it's time for a break. We'll continue these when everyone comes back, okay?" Announces the teacher. The children nod, glad to be able to stand and run around, having gotten bored of sitting.
After packing away his stuff, Tsunayoshi walks over to Fran's desk. The hatted male looks up at him, tilting his head slightly. "Yes, Trap-chan?"
Tsunayoshi had no clue what that nickname meant, but he didn't really care either. Instead, he was trying to hold back his tears. "F-Fran…" No, he couldn't do it! "FRAN!" He hugged Fran tightly, tears spilling down his cheeks. Fran was shocked, and more than a little confused, not that you could see it on his face, and sat there for a moment, wondering what to do. Tsunayoshi's friends froze from where they were around the room, turning to look at where their friend was, wondering why he was so distressed.
"Oi! What did you do to Tsunayoshi-sama?!" Hayato shouts, stomping over to the desk, a stormy look on his face.
"Tsunayoshi, what's wrong?" Kyoko asks, patting his back gently.
"I-i-it's j-just so-so-so sad!" comes the answer through a torrent of tears and choking sobs.
"Hey, give Tsunayoshi-sama some space!" growls Hayato, pushing the others back. Although it was clear that they were all worried about Tsunayoshi, he didn't usually burst out crying for no reason. Pacing for a little bit, Hayato tries to think of a way to get Tsunayoshi-sama to calm down. If only they were back home this would be so much easier. Ah that's it!
"Ken." Chikusa says, tapping Ken on the shoulder. Ken turns around with a growl- the whole crying thing was annoying him, even though he too was worried about Tsunayoshi- only to find what had troubled Chikusa.
"OOII~ Hayato! Now is no time to be jumping out of windows! That'll only make Tsunayoshi-chan even more sad!"
"Idiot! I'm not going to jump out of a window just because Tsunayoshi-sama is crying! I'm looking for the Arcobaleno! They are always around Tsunayoshi-sama, therefore logic dictates that they should be around here too. I doubt they'd leave him alone here and not 'at home'. But I can't see any of them!" Explains Hayato, leaning out of the window as far as he can to get the best view.
Fran watched this with amusement; Tsunayoshi's friends always amused him, they did a lot of funny stuff. Hayato's behaviour in particular amused Fran. "Ne, Boy who is too cute to be male, you're getting my uniform wet. I would like an explanation. I don't usually offer my services as a human handkerchief to just anyone." He gently pushes Tsunayoshi away from himself to be able to see his face, and to stop his uniform getting any wetter. Then he sighs. "Aaah, why are you one of the lucky ones? Able to cry whilst still looking pretty. Very few people can manage that you know. It's no wonder all the girls are envious. You make a better girl than most of them."
Tsunayoshi laughs slightly, taking that as a compliment- it was never easy to tell with Fran. "I'm sorry Fran. I just think that what happened to you is really sad, especially when none of it is your fault. You just didn't know about that stuff. Maybe if your real parents were still around they'd tell you about it. But-But instead, all that bad stuff happened!"
"You're not making sense." Fran states.
Tsunayoshi shakes his head, wiping the tears away with the back of his hand. "Ah, no, I might be wrong. It's just I see you as that same indigo." He mutters before looking around him. "Ah, Ken, Chikusa, could you find Mukuro for me? I want him to check something."
The pair practically fall over themselves trying to get out of the door first- after having pulled Hayato down from the window of course. After a few minutes, the pair return with Mukuro in tow.
"Oya oya, what's with all the tears, my dear Tsunayoshi?" Mukuro asks, gently holding Tsunayoshi's chin. He gives a disapproving glance at Tsunayoshi's current 'seat'. He'd seen the boy hanging around with Tsunayoshi's group, but he hadn't paid the apple hatted child much attention before now. And on the few occasions they had met, the boy had driven Mukuro so mad that he wished to plant his trident deep into that silly hat and shut the child up for good. But he currently had to be on his best behaviour, especially when it came to him wanting to kill people- he was sure some of the Arcobaleno would use any excuse to get him away from Tsunayoshi.
"Mukuro…" Tsunayoshi whispers, voice hoarse from his crying. Mukuro blinked- damn, if he could harness the power of that look he could fell any enemy. "Please Mukuro, I need you to check something for me."
"Kufufufu~ of course. But you owe me when we get back home Tsunayoshi." Mukuro chuckles, releasing the boy's chin to stand back up tall and proud. "So what is it that requires my presence specifically?"
"Umm, it'd be easier if I show you. I don't want to put ideas in your head beforehand." Tsunayoshi explains, looking through his bag for what he wanted. "Ah, here. Fran, can you read this book for me?"
Fran had no clue what was going on, although he was worried about what Mukuro would do to Tsunayoshi when they got home. Mukuro's tone had been rather suspicious. "Hai~ I'll read it, Carino-chan~." He took the book from Tsunayoshi before turning the boy so he sat properly on his lap, both facing the desk, his arms either side of the boy to place the book in front of them. Luckily there was no need to hide his grin- his face would never show it- since the reaction from the others was rather hilarious. The boys seemed personally offended and the girls just found it normal. These people were going to be very fun to play with, he could tell.
"Once upon a time, there was a cat and a dog…"
As Fran started to read, Mukuro soon realised what Tsunayoshi wanted him to see. Sadly that made this annoying boy a little more interesting. Although he was proud of Tsunayoshi noticing it.
"Cease at once. Your voice is annoying me." Mukuro orders. "I would still take him to Mammon-sensei if I was you, but I think you have made the correct assumption. Make sure to stay away from him Tsunayoshi- you know what they say about those who remain untrained."
" So I was right!" Tsunayoshi giggles in glee, ignoring Mukuro's comment. Tsunayoshi then turns to look at Fran over his shoulder. "Don't worry Fran, there's nothing wrong with you, you're just special! Those people who looked after you just didn't know it! But everything is going to be okay from now on!"
The few in the know sighed softly. For when Tsunayoshi said everything was going to be okay, it really would be.
"Hmm, who should go next?" Hums the teacher, looking out over the class of students. As usual, some were slinking down in their chairs, trying to hide from her gaze, and whilst others were looking out the window instead. Although she had chosen an inattentive student last time, this time she had better pick one of the nice children.
"Tsunayoshi, why don't you come up next?" She decides, giving him an encouraging smile.
The small boy leaps up with a huge smile on his face, practically bouncing towards the desk prepared at the front of the class. Tsunayoshi didn't even need notes for prompts, he knew exactly what he was going to say. If anything he had too much to say.
"Well, my family is really big, and everyone is different from each other. So that kind of leads to lots of arguments, but we all love each other really. And I love all of them lots and lots, equally! I bet they'd get into a big fight if I said that I didn't, hehe. But I do anyway, so that's alright!"
The girls of the class cooed at his enthusiasm and the way he was stumbling over himself to get his words out. It really showed how much he loved them. Ahh~ If only Tsunayoshi spoke about them like that!
"So first off is Luce. She's like everyone's mother and takes really good care of us all. She looks after us when we're ill, or when I've hurt myself, and her kisses make everything better! And she makes me loads of pretty clothes too. Luce likes dressing me up in the outfits she makes, and she makes sure that they fit wherever we're going or whoever I'm with. They're cute and safe! Although she gets really mad if I get them dirty or ripped. So everyone tries really hard not to let my clothes get dirty, it's almost like one huge game!"
So this Luce lady was responsible for making all the cute hoodies and jumpers Tsunayoshi came in? Ahh she was a genius! The fangirls would forever bow to her fashion greatness!
"Although the best person to play games with is Colonnello, he gets really into them. And he plays with me even when he's tired from training all day. Colonnello always makes me smile because he's always smiling too. Oh and he's always teasing everyone, which makes everyone else laugh, although it does mean he's always running ALL around the house away from the person he's teased. But the best thing about Colonnello is that he's always looking out for me; he's like a really cool older brother. Whenever I'm worn out or tired or feeling like I'm going to cry, he takes me out to the forest and we look at the sky or the stars together and he always manages to calm me down again."
That guy sounded like a great older brother. As long as he didn't tease their darling Tsunayoshi though. Or else.
"The person Colonnello likes to tease the most is Lal because she doesn't smile that often, even though her smile is beautiful. She's quite strict at times and likes to shout a lot, but that's only because she's in the army and is used to shouting all the time. Because of that, she doesn't like to appear weak or girly infront of anyone since she thinks she'll get teased. I don't tease her though. I know that she's got a soft spot for me because she doesn't shout that loud at me and she even gives me hugs sometimes. So I always make sure to save a piece of chocolate cake for her since she likes that best. Lal protects me in her own way by trying to make me stronger so I can protect myself and she teaches me to work through my fear because I get scared of a lot of things, hehe."
Oh his face was so cute when he said that. Although the class had to wonder how true that statement was considering the people he had as friends- the three Gang leaders, those scary adults from a few months ago, even the Vindice guards. If he got scared easily then how did he manage to spend his time around those frightening people?
"Although the best person to help me through my fears is Fon. He's the calmest person at home and I love him lots because of that- the others can get pretty crazy at times. And I love Fon's cooking too, he makes really yummy stuff that's good for your body. He's teaching me martial arts at the moment which are really fun! He says that I'm getting really good at it. Although I don't think that I'll ever be as good as he is. He's the best! When we're not practicing that then we sit around relaxing- he reads me bed time stories sometimes, or we play video games together."
No one except those who live with him could imagine Tsunayoshi doing martial arts, he just seemed far too cute for that. Instead, people tried to stop themselves imagine what the bed time story scene looked like, Tsunayoshi, eyes tired, tucked up in bed, listening to the soft soothing voice of this man (or so they imagined).
"But when it comes to having fun, then Skull is the best at that. Skull and I have SOO much fun together, he always makes me laugh and smile. So in return I protect him when the others go too far in their teasing. The others say that Skull is weak but he's really not, he's just strong in a different way from them. Whenever I'm in trouble Skull is always the first one there, protecting me no matter how much damage he gets instead. I know that I'm always safe whenever Skull is around, even when we are doing dangerous stunts as part of his stage show. I love doing stunts with him because that always means flying and that's the best feeling in the world. Skull is always so cool when he's doing his stunts, almost like he's a totally different person. Sometimes I wish I had the confidence he does to do dangerous stunts like him."
It was amazing how soft Tsunayoshi's smile had gotten at mentioning this person. And how bright his eyes had gotten, obviously thinking of all the fun times they must have had together. Even if those stunts sounded dangerous. Was this the person who picked Tsunayoshi up everyday with that dangerous leap of faith? (which actually wasn't a leap at all if anyone bothered to look clearly).
But wait a second... Stunts... Skull... Surely Tsunayoshi couldn't meant THE Skull?! Immortal stuntman from Hell whom the Reaper rejected?
"Everyone in the house has dangerous jobs though, so that makes me worry about them a lot. But there are two people other than Skull that me and Luce worry about and the first of them is Verde. Since he's a scientist he has a habit of staying in his lab all day and not eating or taking breaks. So I have to go down there and drag him back up or else he'll get sick. Me and Luce are the only people who can safely drag Verde back up. I wouldn't know what to do if Verde got sick, because he's also a doctor and is the one who makes everyone better when they fall ill. There are always interesting things happening in Verde's lab and he often lets me watch as long as I'm fully protected. And I get a really close up view because he lets me sit on his lap. I also learn a lot of things from Verde; whenever I don't understand something, or a word, he makes sure to explain it to me until I do understand. Verde seems cold and distant to people he meets but he's never like that with me, which I think he finds strange for some reason."
Tsunayoshi lived with a scientist? It was no wonder he knew a lot of things once he knew the Japanese words for it. The children couldn't help but imagine what living with a scientist was like, with fizzing chemicals and things going bang, and maybe... maybe a scene right out of Frankenstein with zombies and evil laughter! How cool would that be?
"The second person Luce and I worry about a lot is Mammon because she doesn't come out her room a lot either. She always sleeps in until noon and everyone knows not to wake her up before then or else she gets cranky. She's a famous psychic, so when I was younger before I could talk, she used to read my kind to know what I wanted. She still does that sometimes, which I think is pretty cool. She took me to one of her Psychic Fairs once so I got to see how good she really is. She could tell all of these amazing things about a person who she had never met before. That's because she's the real deal. Skull and I reckon that she's actually a witch~. I get lots and lots of hugs from Mammon, which I love, 'cause hugs are the best and she gives really good ones. Everyone in the house knows to be careful with money because otherwise Mammon gets really angry."
A witch and a scientist in the same house? That was strange. Although not getting up until noon sounded amazing! The girls were slightly jealous of this Mammon person, getting to hug the cutie so often. They'd just have to give better hugs than she did!
But the name sounded familiar. A famous psychic... Mammon... No way, was that yet another famous person Tsunayoshi knew? Or was he just making it up? This line up was starting to sound suspicious...
"The next person in the family is Bermuda. To anyone outside the family he's quite cold and formal, but with us he's really friendly and caring. He talks quite poshly because of his noble heritage. You can tell when he gets really mad because he starts using olden-time words. He doesn't get angry very often though, usually he's very calm. Bermuda and I play video games together and sometimes he reads me a story before bed as well. Bermuda is always protecting me, especially when the others are fighting. I think Bermuda's secretly a knight because he's always protecting everyone even though everyone is scared of him."
A knight sounded rather romantic and cool. And being someone of the nobility to boot! What amazing people Tsunayoshi lived with.
"And the final person is Reborn. Reborn can be scary at times but I know he's only that way to make me stronger and he's always teaching me how to protect myself and how to be a man. He teaches me a lot of life lessons that I have to take to heart. Reborn is always looking out for me even though he doesn't admit it, but then again he's protective over lots of things that he considers his. Reborn is one of the only people who doesn't fall for my puppy dog eyes, most of the family does, but he doesn't. Hmm... I don't think I can say anything else without ruining Reborn's image, he likes his image a lot, hehe."
There was silence as Tsunayoshi finished, the class shocked by what they had just heard. Terrific truth or fantastic fiction?
"He said he lives with Skull-sama!" One boy whispered to his friends, outraged but curious. "Is it the truth or is he a liar?"
"Mammon? I know that name! She's sooo epic and really awesome and her powers are the thing! And he lives with her?" The friends of that girl were looking at the cute boy in wonder.
"Che! He claims he lives with the best hitman in the world? Stupid liar!" A boy, who was from a mid-sized mafia family, mumbled to himself, as his friends who also were in the know nodded furiously.
There was no way this kid could live with all those famous and epic and powerful people!
"Nee, Tsunayoshi, can I ask you something?" A small girl raised her hand. "Who's your maman?"
'Maman! Maman! Gimme grape candy!'
'C'mon Dame-Tsuna, let's go home. Maman is worried.'
"Well, my maman is Mama Luce!" Tsunayoshi answered with a happy smile, although the whispers he heard made his heart hurt. Why didn't they believe him?
"Uh, and your da?" A light-haired boy with a thick accent butted in, clearly interested. "'Cause I kno' ho' lady Luce looks an'ya don' look like her, ya kno'?"
"Uuuhh..." Tsunayoshi was startled a bit. Who was his dad?... yeah, who?
'I hate him!'
'You've always been away and never come back home. What would you know of me?'
"I don't know..."
"But how? Even I know who my da is, and my parents stopped being together a bit before I was born!" One of the students piped in, looking at the boy with innocent curiosity. Other kids were also nodding, this was really, really strange!
'... abandoned me and my mother in that house, alone forever...'
"I-I I don't know..." Tsunayoshi muttered, looking around the room at all the people.
"Che, shut the hell up, what does it matter?!" Hayato growls, slamming his hands on his desk.
The question made Tsunayoshi realise, he didn't know. He'd never asked, never even cared. All the Arcobaleno looked after him like a father or a brother, so it hadn't mattered. Luce had insisted being called 'Mama', it was one of the first words he had learnt.
'Ahlala, did you hear that darling? Tsu-kun just called me mama!'
'Ah! That's wonderful Nana. Just wait until the people at work hear that my little boy spoke his first word!'
'Ne, Tsu-kun, can you say Dada?'
Just who were these people? He didn't know them! Ow, his head hurt so badly. Why didn't these pictures stop? Why did his head hurt tremendously when anyone mentioned his father? Did it really matter that much?
Would someone make it stop!
Holding his head in pain, Tsunayoshi ran out of the classroom. The teacher and the rest of the class were silent for a moment, staring in the direction of the door, where all Tsunayoshi's close friends were trying to fit through at once in their rush to get to him.
Tsunayoshi ignores the shouts of his friends trying to follow him and instead makes his way towards the courtyard of the school, stumbling every now and again when a painful flare of a new memory makes his head hurt. Finally he makes it out onto the courtyard, blinking away the sudden brightness of the sun that hurt his already teary eyes, looking round for the Vindice officer that was always guarding their school.
Instead he finds someone else.
"Herbivore, what is going on? You seem to be the cause of a rather undisciplined ruckus."
Hibari had heard the noise Tsunayoshi's friends were making and after arriving on the scene and seeing the pile of squirming bodies squashed in the doorframe, all trying to be the first out of the door, he knew immediately who had to be the cause. And indeed, here before him was a crying Tsunayoshi, looking flustered and weak like a mouse, not the lion cub he knew the boy actually was.
"Leave me alone Hibari." Tsunayoshi mutters, walking past Hibari on his way to the gate, hoping the Vindice officer was there instead.
However a few steps later, Hibari steps infront of him, looking annoyed at being brushed off. "Herbivore." the Prefect growls.
"You can't help me." Tsunayoshi interrupts, voice louder than usual since the pain was only getting worse the more he thought about the situation. "I need Her!"
Taking a step forwards, Hibari was about to take hold of Tsunayoshi's collar to ask what was going on and who the woman he needed was (to restore order of course, not because he was actually ever-so-slightly concerned about the little lion's tearful state.), when someone new appeared and interrupted.
Tsunayoshi looked up at the new person and realised that his vision was starting to go slightly indigo-tinged. Luckily, it was the person he had been looking for.
"Take me back home! I need to see her!" He pleaded, taking ahold of the Jailer's cape and pulling.
The Jailer had his orders (do whatever the child asks or else be left Flameless- the Officer wasn't sure how far the order of 'whatever the child asked for' went, but to be brought home was a reasonable request) so he placed a hand on the boy's fluffy hair to calm him. Whilst he was not at the Vendicare that often, he too was fond of the boy who always made sure to greet him every time they met, so to see him in crying and clearly in pain made him concerned. He knew Bermuda-sama would want the boy seen to immediately.
"As you wish, Tsunayoshi-sama." The Guard intones, voice deep and emotionless. Stepping back and waving his hand, a starry black portal appears in the air next to him. After taking the boy's hand and reminding him to take a breath, both step through.
Which leaves a very annoyed and slightly confused Hibari standing in the middle of the courtyard, still with no answers. Although that problem could soon be sorted out after a visit to a certain classroom. That doorframe would soon be free, once he was through with Tsunayoshi's friends.
Within the space of a breath, Tsunayoshi and the Officer are standing infront of the gate to the Arcobaleno House and the Jailer is opening the gate for him. This was as far as he was allowed to take the boy.
"Thank you." Tsunayoshi hisses, ever polite as always even when in pain, before running up the path towards the house. The front door gets slammed open, shoes kicked off and the stairs stomped up. He didn't care what the time was, he didn't care that he was going to get charged a wake up fee; she could charge him as much as she wanted, enough that it would take eternity to pay off, he didn't care as long as she made this pain go away.
Opening the final door, Tsunayoshi dodges the reflexive knife thrown his way and flings himself on the bed.
"Viper!"
He climbs half on top of her, burying his head against her chest as he clutched the covers.
"Please make it stop." He begs, voice a high pitched tight whine.
"Tsunayoshi, what's wrong?" She asks, half sitting up, the other hand rubbing along Tsunayoshi's back. She had absolutely no idea what was wrong with the boy, having been asleep ever since she got back home at three that morning. She didn't even stop to wonder how on earth the boy had gotten home when he should have been at school. The only thoughts in her head were questions about why the boy in her arms was crying and what she could do to make it stop.
"My head... hurts... those... those..." Damn he really needed a better term for these. "...aah... feelings I get... I can't stop them...hsss... even though... they hurt... I know you... can ... haah... fix it." Her little boy looked up at her, painful desperation clear in his eyes. "Please, Viper."
Viper nods. How could she not? A few seconds of manoeuvring, and she had her back against the headboard, Tsunayoshi curled up in her lap, his head tucked under her chin. Fantasma had come out during that time, for once not jealous of the boy who was stealing his mistress away from him. Instead he sat on her shoulder, watching carefully. But as soon as his mistress's hands glowed faintly indigo, he knew what he needed to do.
Ribit. "Breathe in."
Ribbit. "Breathe out."
Ribit. "Breathe in."
Ribbit. "Breathe out."
"Tsunayoshi, I need you to think back for me." Her voice was barely a whisper, timed to perfection between breaths. "Back to when these feelings started earlier." Her little boy whimpers but nods, still breathing in time to Fantasma's calls.
She gently places her fingertip to the centre of his forehead, just like when he was a baby, and looks back across his memory.
Oh.
This was bad.
Like with all of Sky's memories, they appeared on a trigger, in this case, familial attachments. It provided Tsunayoshi with key life experiences and knowledge far beyond his years. It was another point of view of the world that didn't quite exist. It explained a lot of Tsunayoshi's weird behaviour as he was growing up, and had been something the Arcobaleno had gotten used to in the year and a half since they had learnt the truth.
But the problem was, it wasn't very easily tampered with. For starters the Flame used, whilst a Mist element, was not her own. Secondly the person that had cast this spell was pretty powerful in their own right. When they had confronted Iemitsu and realised that he despised the child and wanted nothing to do with him, Viper had tried to lock the memories of him in particular away. But it wasn't very easy considering she couldn't get direct access to the memories she needed. So she had been forced to compromise.
Had she known that Tsunayoshi was doing such an assignment, she would have been more careful, maybe put in a few words/threats to allow Tsunayoshi to skip it, or even pretend that he was ill for the day. Anything (and when Viper, the money-orientated, Varia-Quality witch of the Arcobaleno said 'anything', she truly meant it) to reduce this possibility. However Tsunayoshi had hidden it, gone to the park to think instead of allowing them to see his opinions. But it had happened and now there was nothing she could do except fix the problem as best as she could.
Which sadly was going to be a painful process for them all.
It wasn't hard to remove the mental blocks she herself had put in place. This eased the pressure in Tsunayoshi's head, no longer having two Mist spells conflicting each other. The physical relief was clear to see, the boy falling limp in her arms compared to the tight frame he had had earlier.
"You can come in now." She says, addressing the collection of adults pretending to have business in the hallway outside her room. Although she was relieved that they had the sense to leave her alone until she was done.
"Ah, Tsunayoshi! Bermuda said you weren't feeling very well." Luce cries, sitting on the edge of the bed, a cookie and a warm glass of milk with honey in her hands- this was obviously something that a kiss and a plaster wasn't going to fix.
"My Officer informed me," Says Bermuda in explanation.
"I've had words with the Dean about what happened, as well as with your teacher. You'll be excused of your behaviour and the incident forgotten about." Reborn says, leaning against the wall as usual, a carefully blank expression on his face. If he was feeling better, Tsunayoshi would have laughed at the image of Reborn 'having words with the Dean' aka, Reborn having words with himself.
Tsunayoshi looks up from where he had buried his head in Viper's nightdress, straight at Luce with a strange gaze, something the Arcobaleno had never seen on Tsunayoshi's face before. "Mama, I need a hug."
Luce nods, smiling her gently beautiful smile at him before placing down the items and opening her arms wide in his direction. "Come here darling."
Crawling out of Viper's lap, Tsunayoshi instead sits on Luce's, hugging his mother even tighter than usual. "You are my mother right? Not that other woman. I don't even know why I'm imagining another woman, you're all the mother I could ever ask for."
The Arcobaleno freeze at the mumbled statement, their fears coming true. Reborn had warned them about what had happened at the school that day, and being the only ones to know about the other set of memories residing in their child's head, they knew better than anyone what was going on. They hadn't expected this talk to come so soon, naively hoping it could be put off and put off and maybe never even arrive. But that hadn't happened, and now it was here, as was yet another hard conversation with Tsunayoshi.
"Of course I am." Luce croons softly. "If that's what your heart says, and that's what you feel, then I'm your mother. I even have a pretty piece of paper that makes me your mother in the eyes of the law too."
"Then... who's my daddy?" Tsunayoshi asks, casting an eye over the males in the room. "I don't look like any of you."
The Arcobaleno look between each other, wondering who is going to be the bearer of bad news and start off this rather painful conversation. As much as he wanted to comfort the child, Bermuda knew this was not a conversation he could join in on. He had only learnt about Tsunayoshi's past once he had become a member of the household and he'd asked the exact same question. And as much as he'd like the title of figurative father, he had other obligations to attend to. He'd be better off as the wacky uncle instead.
"Tsunayoshi, there is something I need to clear up." Verde starts, pushing his glasses back up his nose before looking at the child. "In this world there are two different types of parents; ones that gave birth to you, and the ones you call by those names. For most people both names are given to the same people. But in some cases, they are given to different people. Certain circumstances mean children get separated from the people who gave birth to them and transfer the name to a different person who fulfils the same emotional and societal role. Take for example the Shimon children. They all know that Cozart is not their father, yet they still call him as such."
Tsunayoshi nodded, understanding the basic concept even if he didn't understand every word Verde had said. He didn't like where this conversation was heading though.
"The same thing is happening here Tsunayoshi." Colonnello continues, his voice strangely soft and quiet. "Luce wasn't the person who gave birth to you, but she is your mother because she did all the work of bringing you up and because you feel like she is. In the same way, none of us are your biological father- that's Verde's posh term for the people who gave birth to you- but that doesn't mean you can't call any of us daddy if you wanted to."
"It's just a name brat, there's no need to get so worried about it." Lal says brusquely, looking at the floor instead of Tsunayoshi.
"No one on the island cares because Mafia Families aren't made of people connected by the blood they share, but by how they feel about each other instead. It's called a family because they take care of each other." Fon explains, smiling at Tsunayoshi in a reassuring way. "We're a family because we care about each other, no matter how we show it." The invited laugh was answered by a small chuckle from Tsunayoshi- the Arcobaleno had a rather violent way of showing their love for each other after all.
"So what about those two people I keep seeing?" Tsunayoshi asks, still looking confused.
Finally Reborn steps forwards to stand before the child, looking down at him. "That lady is the one who brought you into this world, who gave birth to you, hence why you look like her instead of any of us. However Tsunayoshi," Reborn made sure they had eye contact, that the boy could see just how serious Reborn was. "She is dead."
The boy's eyes widen, and he looks at Reborn with a slightly unbelieving look, mouth open in surprise and shock.
"When you were just a baby, she was killed by some very bad men. When she tried to run from them, they got mad and killed her. I saw it happen Tsunayoshi, so I know it's true." Tsunayoshi's mouth shuts, lips pressing together as he took what Reborn was saying to heart. "It so happened that I was on a mission to kill those bad men at the time. And I did. I arrived too late to be able to save her though, she was already dead when I got there. After I had killed them, I heard a baby's cry, coming from her arms. I don't know why I did it, I'm not the type of person who would normally do so, but I brought the baby home. And that baby was you."
"It's the best thing Reborn-sempai ever did!" Skull exclaims from his position sat on the floor by Tsunayoshi's knees, grinning broadly in an effort to cheer Tsunayoshi up. "We don't know what we'd do without you Tsunayoshi." He rests his head on Tsunayoshi's knee, grinning when the boy ruffles his hair.
"But... what about the blond guy I keep seeing?" Tsunayoshi asks, looking up at Reborn. "I get the feeling I don't like him."
Bermuda watches the others and their reactions to that statement. Even he had heard about the Arcobaleno's trip to the CEDEF headquarters one day. No one had actually known why they went, they could only guess, but now Bermuda knew, and could see the curling of fists as the Arcobaleno remembered what had happened in that office room that day. But despite that, there were still confused and relieved looks at the second half of Tsunayoshi's statement.
"Do you recognise that man?" Verde asks, carefully.
"No." Tsunayoshi replies. "I don't usually see faces from these memories."
Knowing that could have been a relief, but to be honest it wasn't. This whole situation had started because Tsunayoshi didn't know who his biological father was, so edging around the subject and taking the easy way out wasn't going to help. Instead they were going to have to tell Tsunayoshi the cold hard truth.
Lal and Colonnello step forwards, drawing Tsunayoshi's eyes towards them whilst Reborn goes back to standing against the wall.
"Tsunayoshi, we know who your father is, he lives on the island in fact. When we realised this, we went to him to talk about who was going to keep you."
"The thing is, he told us he didn't want to keep you, kora. He was very upset because his wife had died and didn't want to be reminded of her." Part of it was a lie, but they weren't going to tell Tsunayoshi the full truth, the boy didn't need that burden of being blamed for his mother's death.
"That man was...Iemitsu from the CEDEF."
Tsunayoshi blinks and thinks about that, looking between the two occasional CEDEF members. A lot made sense now that he knew. The Arcobaleno had always told him to stay away from Iemitsu. Oregano and Basil did their best too.
And the memories of his first outing to the CEDEF house...
"The age is right, the hair, the eyes," the man mumbles under his breath. He finally looks at Luce, "Is he… my Tsunayoshi?"
Huh?... His!
Tsunayoshi cuddles closer to Viper, feeling her grip on him tighten too. He didn't have a clue who this man was and he certainly wasn't going anywhere with him. He 'belonged' to the Arcobaleno, he never wanted to leave them.
"According to our research, yes, he is." Luce quietly confirms, wanting to look away but knows she can't. But none of the Arcobaleno are ready for the expression that crosses the man's face.
For it's one of anger.
"Oh... I understand." Tsunayoshi says. The Arcobaleno give him unbelieving and concerned evaluative looks, wondering if he really is okay about it all. "No really, I do. And I don't mind. Plus he's got Basil to look after." He looks between each of the Arcobaleno, giving them a shining smile that lights the room back up.
"I would rather be here anyway, because I love you all."
Tsunayoshi quickly finds himself buried under a collection of bodies and hugs, or just a hair ruffle or pat on the back in certain people's cases. As expected, Skull was already crying, with Luce well on her way. Tsunayoshi squeaked from his position somewhere in the middle. The only people he got dogpiled on like this by were the Shimon, and they weren't as heavy as the Arcobaleno.
"So do you feel better now Tsunayoshi?" Fon asks from somewhere infront of Tsunayoshi.
Their precious child nods. "Yup. Now I know what's going on, my head doesn't hurt anymore. Although all of you are currently squishing me. Not that I mind, but it would be nice to breathe every once in a while." The others laugh but stay where they are. Tsunayoshi tried everything he can think of to get them off, even doing Luce's ordering-clapping thing, but none of it works.
"What did I tell you brat, you're a hundred years too early to order us around." Reborn smirks.
However the others quickly relent after that; without Tsunayoshi trying to get away there wasn't much point and this kind of hug was quickly getting awkward.
After escaping, Tsunayoshi lays flat out on Viper's bed, panting since he could now finally breathe once more. He would need some time to think about what the Arcobaleno had just told him. After all, finding out that your real mother was dead and your dad didn't want you was a lot to take in. But at the moment he just wanted to get those worried looks off of the Arcobaleno's faces. He didn't like seeing those looks, everyone looked better when they were smiling. He should apologise for making them worry. And he knew the perfect way how.
When Tsunayoshi suddenly runs out of the bedroom and down the stairs, the Arcobaleno worry and dash off after him.
Only to find him with kitchen equipment all around him and covered in flour. Already. How he managed that in the 30 seconds he was out of their sights, they don't know.
"Wow, that's quite a mess, kora. What'cha doing?"
"Saying sorry."
"Ha. By making a mess for Luce to clean up? That'll only please her you know."
"No, it's a surprise."
"Tsunayoshi. Darling. What are you doing with that whisk? You know you're not allowed to use it unless I'm holding it too."
"Wahh! Tsunayoshi! She didn't mean for you to drop the whisk and use Verde's automatic mixer instead. That's even more dangerous!"
"What are you trying to say about my inventions?"
And as usual, it all devolved into one huge argument. Things (and people) got shot at, many objects would have hit the floor if not for Fon's fast reflexes, and a shouting match ensued that was quite possibly the loudest one to date in Tsunayoshi's opinion.
But eventually, an apology chocolate cake was made.
Somehow.
Again, I apologise for the long wait and bad quality, hopefully the next chapter will be better.
I'm not sure when the next chapter is coming out, this is my first week back at Uni so I'll need to settle a bit. But it won't be too long. My creativity is always at its best when I'm academically engaged.
Phantom Hitman 1412
First Published: 24 September 2013