The Family Flame

Tsuna woke up covered in sweat and with his intuition screaming bloody murder at him. Not once had he been misled by these feelings, and he knew that now was not the time to start to doubt them. Still trying to wake up, Tsuna stumbled out of bed and tried to locate his discarded shirt while being as quiet as possible as to not wake Kyoko from her sleep. Once he found the missing garment, Tsuna tugged it on and he swiftly left the room, not even bothering to button up the wrinkled shirt.

He reached his destination too quickly, dread now building up as he stood outside of his daughter's room. His hand pushed the cracked door open to see his worst fears realized. An empty crib and an open window.

Rage engulfed him momentarily as he took in the scene, memorizing small details and listing possible assumptions. Forcibly Tsuna calmed himself, burying the fear and anger deep inside of himself for later, and made his way out of his daughter's room.

Whoever did this was going to pay.

It didn't take long for Mihae and Shuuma to realize that they couldn't have a kid on their own. Though it was a heartbreaking revelation, it only pushed them to want a child more, and they unsurprisingly decided to adopt.

When asked about their preferences, they had said they'd wanted a baby, probably a girl, one that wasn't too fussy. The staff showed them little Sena, who had been found on their front step with her name written on a torn up napkin, and the couple instantly fell in love with her. And within a few weeks, Sena was crawling around their house, taking in the new sights and smells as her adopted parents watched over her with ecstatic smiles.

Like most children seem to do, Sena started to grow up too quickly, changing from a young energetic baby to a shy child. Mihae was worried about the change, that maybe Sena wasn't making enough friends, and with Mamori (a young redhead a year older than Sena who started mothering the brunette the first second they met) spinning tales about bullying, her fears weren't quelled at all.

One day though, Mihae and Shuuma noticed a great change in Sena, who now seemed happier, though a bit more exhausted than she would usually be after a day of school.

"What happened to you, dear?" Mihae asked once she had gotten a proper look at Sena's now muddy uniform.

"There's a new kid in class," Sena started slowly, as if she wasn't quite sure how to go about telling her mother the story, "and he's teaching me how to run fast." Mihae blinked slowly at her young daughter, processing what she had just been told as Shuuma looked at her over his newspaper, nose crinkling when Sena mentioned that her new friend was a boy.

"That's wonderful!" she exclaimed, giving her daughter a bear hug, not minding the dirt that was getting on her apron. Shuuma grumbled under his breath in the background, but was ignored.

Blushing a light pink at her mother's reaction, Sena squirmed out of her arms and bolted for the bathroom to take a quick bath before dinner, unaware that her parents were left behind in awe at her speed.

"Sena's growing up so quickly," Mihae sighed fondly, dusting her now dirty apron with both hands.

"Should I go ahead and invest in a vicious guard dog for Sena?" Shuuma wondered aloud.

"Please don't scare off Sena's friends," Mihae answered without actually saying no.

So they didn't get Sena a dog bodyguard. Instead, they got a cat. A young black kitten Sena affectionately called Pitt. Shuuma would have pressed the dog issue if Riku (the boy who had apparently tried to teach his daughter to run, though what that meant, Shuuma wasn't too sure) hadn't already moved away, causing Sena to revert to her shy persona once more.

Time once again flew by, and before either parent really knew it, Sena had graduated from middle school and was about to head off on her first day to Deimon High School. Neither of them knew what was in store for their family by letting that happen.

It was as if by magic, as they watched their tiny, cautious daughter grow into her too big uniform and become more confident than they had ever seen before. Sena still had moments where she stuttered or shied away and she was still incredibly polite for a young girl her age, but there was still a marginal difference that had been overcome in just a few months. Then, of course, they found out why she had gone through such a dramatic change.

American Football.

Mihae didn't exactly know how to react to that. On one hand, American Football was so incredibly dangerous. There were teenagers that she had heard that would fall on the field and would be crippled, or worse, for the rest of their lives. On the other hand, Sena had made so many new reliable friends, even from other teams, that she knew she could trust her daughter with. Though it was slightly concerning that her daughter's friends consisted of about 98% of boys.

Shuuma, for all of the complaining that he did about all of those boys, had supported Sena from the moment he saw how happy it made her.

They both knew that they were incredibly proud of her, and made sure that Sena knew that as well.

And now…

"My baby," Mihae sniffed, "off to challenge the Americans in the Youth World Cup! Oh, I'll miss you so much! You have to call me every day, and I'll watch all of your matches and cheer you on from here."

"I'll do my best," Sena conceded, before turning to her father to hear his piece.

"Remember, no regrets," Shuuma grinned before patting her head lightly, before his face suddenly turned grim. "And make sure they give you a separate room from the boys."

"O-of course," she appeased, embarrassment obvious with the return of her stutter and her bright red face.

It's not too much later before she's leaving behind her home, catching up to her new and old teammates, and then leaving Japan behind without too much thought.

"Hey Tsuna, are you going to come watch the game with us?" Takeshi asks after sticking his head into the office of his boss. "We have to support Japan's youth, don't we? Besides, both Hayato's son and mine are really pumped; you should see the sugar high going on out here."

A twinge of an old pain resurfaced for a moment when Takeshi mentioned the other children, but a small smile lit up his face, because even though they aren't his missing (possibly dead, and becoming more possible with each passing day, hour, minute, second) daughter, he still loves them because they are his family, his dear nephews.

Hayato, his loyal and hardworking right-hand man, had a son a year older than his own daughter, and the boy had loved her almost more than Tsuna and Kyoko did. The family never missed an opportunity to tease the silver-haired male on the passing of genetics. He was named Tsubasa after having told Hayato that, 'no, he didn't have to name his child after Tsuna', so they settled for something close enough for no one to get confused.

Takeshi's son was a few months older than Tsuna's daughter, but a few months younger than Tsubasa was. As he grew older, it became obvious he had inherited his father's laid back and happy personality. He also greatly enjoyed the young girl's company (as everyone did), and took great joy in making her smile or laugh. Takeshi had named him Ryo, and it seemed to fit the boy well.

Both boys had taken an interest in American Football, much to Takeshi's joy and Hayato's amusement, but it was obvious how hard it was to get anywhere in the sport while they lived in Italy, much less make a national team ready to play in the Youth World Cup. So they were stuck supporting Japan, the place where their parents grew up, and they had yet to stop talking about the possible matches that Team Japan would have to face.

"Alright, alright. I just finished, so tell everyone I'll be down in a moment." Takeshi nodded his head with a pleased hum and shut the office door gently behind him when he left to spread the news.

Letting out an aggravated sigh when he popped his back, Tsuna soon stood up in front of his desk so that he could join the rest of the Family downstairs, but hesitated when he saw a light catch something out of the corner of his eyes. Tsuna felt his eyes widen as he took in the picture, one he had been able to take of his baby girl before she had been stolen away from him, and felt his intuition bubble up again. The picture had never caught the light from that angle, and the picture had not ever been touched since the day his daughter went missing.

"Does this mean I'll be seeing you soon, Sena?"

"Wow, look at that guy run!" Ryo cheered, eyes glued to the TV screen as Eyeshield 21 took the ball and zoomed down the field. The entire Family was crowded around the TV as the game continued, though a miracle in itself, wasn't nearly as amazing as the fact that they had been watching the game as calmly as they had. It was as if they had the same sort of feeling that Tsuna had earlier before he had left his office. Was this game really going to reveal the fate of Sena, Tsuna and Kyoko's missing daughter?

Suddenly, Eyeshield 21 was tackled from his side with considerable force, and fell to the ground so harshly that his helmet fell off. Long brown hair that was artfully pinned to the back of the head was seen, and then Eyeshield's head lifted to reveal that 'he' was actually a 'she'. Tsubasa whistled lowly.

"Wow."

Tsuna barely heard the impressed comments and words of concern over her harsh tackle as his eyes locked onto the face on the screen.

"Pause the game," he ordered, scrambling for the remote in a way that reminded him of his awkward teenage days. The second his hand came into contact with the desired object, he snatched it away and paused the TV.

"Uncle Tsuna…"he heard one of his nephews whine, but ignored it in favor of scanning the face of the young girl recovering from the impact, a slight smile on her face despite the fact she had just been mowed over by a boy twice her size.

"Is everything okay Tsuna?" Kyoko asked, laying a hand on his shoulder to comfort him.

"I…" Tsuna paused, not wanting to get his wife's hopes up, but not wanting to miss such an opportunity. Besides, his intuition told him that he was right, this girl could only be-, "She reminds me of Sena, is all." Kyoko's hand on his shoulder squeezed with an amazing amount of force at the news, and the rest of the Family froze in surprise. Reborn hopped up from his seat on the couch and shoved his way through the gaping people in his way in order to get a better look. He took in the brown hair, which was a brown that matched Tsuna's, the shy sort of demeanor that reminded him of Tsuna just a few years ago, and the facial structure that reminded the hitman of Kyoko, before turning his sharp gaze to Tsuna's hopeful one.

"Let's keep watching the game and see if we can pick up a bit more information." Reborn hit the play button on the way back to his seat, and everyone leaned forward, even closer to the TV than they had been previously. They were startled by the loud voice that seemed to echo through the speakers.

"Ouch, that had to hurt! Seems that Eyeshield 21, or Sena Kobayakawa," another collective gasp filled the room, "took a clean tackle from the American's, but is quickly helped up by her longtime rival Seijuro Shin. How will she respond?!"

"A-ah, thanks Shin-san," Sena stuttered, bowing as soon as she was steady on her feet. Shin nodded in acknowledgment before heading towards Hiruma, who obviously wanted them to join the huddle.

"Hurry up you shitty lovebirds!"

"Coming, Hiruma-san!" she called back, her face red with embarrassment that Hiruma would even imply that she and Shin were even- would even-

She couldn't even think such thoughts without flustering herself badly!

As she reached the group, the redness in her face ebbed away and a gentle smile had retaken its place upon her lips. Truly, American Football was one of her most treasured things, giving her such great friends, proud parents, and the confidence to do more than she could have ever hoped for.

They all came down in a huddle, waiting for Hiruma's instructions patiently. Soon enough, Hiruma's maniacal grin stole its way onto his face, probably scaring a few spectators who had their seats close enough to the field to see the disturbing display.

"So fuckers, here's the plan…"

"I can't believe it, that was amazing!" Ryo gushed, shaking Tsubasa excitedly. Tsubasa, who usually had a cool head on his shoulders, was obviously just as impressed with the game's outcome.

"For them all to go into illegal overtime like that, ignoring such a prestigious honor and award money, they must all really love the game. I wish we had more of that over here in Italy." Pouting a bit at the reminder, Ryo pressed on.

"Technically we did find a team, we just didn't find them in time enough to make it to the Youth World Cup." Tsubasa snorted in distaste at the reminder, but then suddenly grew serious.

"But what about Eyeshield 21, Sena Kobayakawa? Could she really be the missing girl we've been searching for all of these years? There are so many details that don't add up…"

"Like what?" Ryo asked, not minding the abrupt change in subject. He, too, had been curious about the suspicions that they would conveniently find Uncle Tsuna's and Aunt Kyoko's missing daughter, their own missing cousin.

"How about the fact that her first name is still Sena? Wouldn't that have been the first thing that the kidnappers would have changed when they first took her?"

"They might have kept it if they knew we would think along those lines, or maybe they would keep her name if they knew they could mock us with it later." Tsubasa started to pace, his short silver hair swaying every time he would turn sharply on his heel. Ryo watched him, eyeing his cousin critically with the 'hitman' eyes he'd inherited from his father.

"Why would she be sent to Japan of all places to be raised? That's where all of our parents and Uncles and Aunts came from, that's just strange," Tsubasa rambled, desperately wanting to be proven right or wrong, Ryo was not yet sure.

"Since she is the product of two Japanese parents, and therefore looks Japanese herself, there really isn't a better hiding place," Ryo countered easily, watching as Tsubasa hesitated for a brief moment, then went right back to pacing.

"Why in the world would they let her be a famous football player? Don't they know, whoever they are anyways, that we could better track her down if she's constantly in the limelight like that, with same name, looks, everything that could connect us to her?" With each word Tsubasa's voice raised, and by the end he was nearly screaming in frustration, his hands threatening to rip the hair out of his head. Ryo could only ponder his question for a moment, coolly surveying his cousin who rarely had such nervous breakdowns.

"Maybe, just maybe, this wasn't a part of their plan at all."

"What are you talking about?" Tsubasa asked tiredly, his fingers now massaging the bridge of his nose and his feet still upon the ground.

"It's just, you know not every plan can run smoothly, especially ones that may seem easy or the ones that can't really afford slip-ups. I'm saying that whoever took her made a colossal mistake, and they couldn't undo it once it had been done, it would probably bring too much attention to them and Sena. I bet you, right now, the adults are looking into every aspect of Kobayakawa's life. Do you know what I think they'll find?" With his earlier explosion over with and his logic taking over, Tsubasa's eyes widened in realization.

"Adoption papers…"

"Bingo," Ryo answered with a smile, happy that Tsubasa was finally able to calm down. "Jeez, you know something's wrong when I start to figure stuff out before you do."

"Why you-," Tsubasa started, his infamous temper rearing its ugly head.

"See ya' later!" Ryo called out playfully before running down the hallway to any place that would give him enough cover from Tsubasa's wrath. The silver haired boy growled as he gave chase, letting his usual mature nature take the backseat as he gave chase.

In the shadows Reborn smirked. Those boys were going to be fine mafia members one day.

They were all heading down to the hotel's breakfast bar, tired and sore from the previous day's game, but all of them were sporting a smile. Sena let the calmer air buzz around her as she sat at a table, her eyes closed and her hands around a warm cup of tea. Oh yes, this was a great morning to be sure…

"YA-HA!" It was almost a great morning, at least. Sena calmly opened her eyes and raised the warm drink to her lips, completely unsurprised by Hiruma's morning actions. If she were on the football field, she would probably be tensed, ready to dodge bullets that would certainly come her way, but in the early hours of the morning inside of a hotel's dining area she wasn't even going to bother. It was amusing, though, to see others that were still not used to the friendly fire jump up like Hiruma was suddenly going to decide to off them now that the Youth World Cup was over.

"Hiruma…" Kurita fretted as he tried to calm the situation, but curious to the battle-ready attitude his friend displayed so soon after finishing the last game of their high school career.

"Listen up!" Hiruma demanded, his gun slamming into the ground as to make sure that all eyes were on him. "I just got off of the phone, and I have some great news for you." Sena's shoulders tensed and her grip tightened around her drink with the realization that the news couldn't possibly be positive at all. This was Hiruma, after all. "Team Italy, someone you noticed wasn't able to make it to the Youth World Cup, challenged us. So pack up all of your shit because we leave in ten minutes!"

There was a pause of disbelief where nobody moved, staring at the mad man that was the Devil Bat's quarterback, before Hiruma got tired of being ignored. With a renewed psychotic grin on his face, he picked up his gun once more and started to fire.

The effects were immediate. His teammates scrambled from the room, leaving behind their partially eaten breakfasts, to cram all of their belongings into a suitcase and make it back downstairs before they were left behind.

"I just got off of the phone with him. They'll be in Italy shortly," Reborn reported, hanging the phone up.

"Thanks, Reborn, for setting that all up for me," Tsuna replied gratefully, unsure what he would have said to get the rumored Devil to agree to come challenge his nephews' American Football team.

"It was nothing. Now, don't you have to tell the news with your nephews and their team? And remember to get one of them to perform The Test." Grimacing at the mention, Tsuna let a small sigh escape his lips as he exited his office. He was happy to find a lead on his daughter and have her potentially in the same country as him and the rest of the Family, but to have to perform The Test on her…

It wasn't as if it were deadly or traumatic, it was just something that, as her potential father, made Tsuna cringe. The Test was composed of a simple kiss, which was used to search for flames that had not yet developed enough to show themselves, as most people who weren't in the mafia were like, due to the lack of threats and emotional distress. The flames first usually come out when the person is close to death, but somehow survives, or goes through something so negatively impactful that the flame forces its way out to protect that person from then on.

Tsuna stalled in the middle of the hallway for a moment, remembering the first time Reborn had 'killed' him, sending him into in Hyper Dying Will Mode, and ultimately releasing his Sky Flame for the first time. If this girl turned out to be his daughter, he hoped she would never have to experience anything like he had.

Soon enough, Tsuna reached the exercise room he knew Ryo and Tsubasa would be in. They had been training ever since they had heard that there was a possibility that they would be going up against Team Japan.

"Hey boys, we've got confirmation that Team Japan will be leaving America today so that they can come answer our challenge."

The game so far had been pretty unassuming, but the other team had been good enough to snag a good amount of points here and there. Hiruma knew this was because of the Japanese-looking duo that Team Italy had, the rest were regular players, but he could tell they worked hard.

"It kind of reminds me of us," Kurita said, as if reading his mind. Hiruma rolled his eyes at the sentimentality of the statement, but didn't disagree. The one with black hair, (Ryo, his information network provided) leaned over to whisper in a fellow player's ear before they both nodded in agreement.

Looks like they were trying to outwit them. Hiruma smirked at the obvious challenge, it wasn't everyday someone thought they could go against him as a control tower.

The game once again lifted off as Hiruma sent a pass towards Sena, making his way towards his next position on the field quickly so that they could go forward with the rest of the play. Suddenly, despite the fact he had not been able to do so before, Ryo sped up to Sena's unimaginable pace, catching her and the rest of the team by surprise and tackling her forcefully to the ground.

Whistles from the referees filled the air, but were drowned out by the murmuring of both the teams and the audience watching them. Hiruma's eyes narrowed in suspicion. That kid shouldn't have been able to pull off that run, hell, probably had just ended his time on the field today by pulling that off. What was the point of that?

He saw members of Team Japan start to make their way over to the teens sprawled on the ground to help them up, when Ryo finally pushed himself delicately off of Sena. He got up onto his unsteady feet, both his and Sena's helmets in his left hand, the black haired boy stuck out his right to help pull the running back up. To his surprise, and the surprise of everyone on the field, in the audience, and the ones who were watching through their TVs all around the world, Ryo pulled Sena with too much force, causing the girl to practically fly into his arms, foreheads bumping and lips locking haphazardly together.

'Shit,' Hiruma thought, a headache already starting to pound with the inevitability of the problems that were soon to come.

The world slowed to a dizzying stop as Ryo felt his lips connect with Sena's, his mind on the true task at hand: administering The Test. A whisper of his own flame snaked out through to their connected mouths and sent a quick search through Sena, looking for her hidden flame. Ryo then felt the echo back of Sena's flame, strong though it was hidden, and the response took his breath away.

It felt like comfort and home. Like his father and his Aunts and Uncles having playful arguments. Like… like…

Like the wide open Sky. Just like Uncle Tsuna.

There was no doubt.

Sena Kobayakawa was truly Sena Sawada, the daughter of Tsuna Sawada, the Mafia Boss of the most influential Mafia family: The Vongola.

Ryo had to report this right away.

The arena erupted with noise as the two separated, faces blushing unimaginable shades of red and trying to apologize over each other in rushed Japanese and bowing gestures.

"Hey!" called Riku as he speedily made his way over the two. "What do you think you're doing with Sena, huh?!"

"Riku please," Sena begged, embarrassed enough already without Riku adding to the torment. "It was an accident."

"Yeah right," he snorted, glancing cautiously at the flustered boy in front of him before snatching Sena's helmet away from him, "like I'd believe that for a second. C'mon." He placed his hand on the shoulder of his childhood friend and guided her back towards the bench, where the rest of their teammates started to head now that they knew Sena was making her way over too. Riku looked back over his shoulder to see a guy with silver hair help the guy that had just tackled Sena back to their own bench. Seems as though that move really did wipe him out the rest of the way.

If he was that tired, he shouldn't have tried to put so much strength behind his pull, Riku concluded, fully knowing what had just happened wasn't really an accident. But really, what was the point of wasting all of your energy and your team's chance at winning to kiss Sena? Not that the answer mattered, because Riku was not going to let it happen again.

As they neared the bench, more worried teammates crowded around them, asking Sena questions and generally worrying over her.

"I- I'm fine!" Sena tried to get her point across, but failing as her still red face only got redder with every word that came out of their mouths. She looked at Hiruma, her eyes begging him to relieve her of this madness in the only way he could. Hiruma looked back at her, eyes calculating one thing or another before finally bringing his gun out and letting out a few deafening shots.

"Now that we're all settled," Hiruma began now that the team had gone quiet. "What the fuck was that?"

"It was an accident!" Sena squeaked immediately, her cheeks somehow still burning.

"Fuck, stop blushing so much, you'll make yourself faint. And I wasn't asking about that anyways. I want to know how he caught up to you."

"How am I supposed to know that?" Sena asked, trying to calm herself down after such an embarrassing situation. Hiruma 'tch'ed at the answer, but wasn't really expecting a different one from her.

"It doesn't fucking matter anyways. One of their main players is now out for the count, so now is our time to really widen the score gap, just in case they are able to put him back in. Are you able to go back out?" Hiruma asked Sena, bringing their team meeting to a close.

"Y-yes!" Sena responded, wanting to go ahead and put the mishap behind her. Besides, that tackle really hadn't hurt that much, despite the fact that the force had been enough to knock her helmet off. In fact, she couldn't feel the aftermath of that hit, not even a tingling sensation was left behind. How strange.

"What a waste of time," Agon moaned, stretching his muscles and then leaning against the bench in the men's change room.

"I have to admit, Hiruma, I'm not quite sure what the point of coming all the way over here was," Kid contemplated, turning to look at the frowning blond devil. Hiruma snorted in response, continuing to change his clothes and ignore the others around him.

"C'mon," Monta pestered, curious to know. "What did they bribe you with?"

"Apparently, nothing," Hiruma finally said, a smirk on his lips.

"What do you mean?"

"The guy on the phone said that if we came and met the challenge of Team Italy, we 'might get to be a part of something exciting'. I don't see how though."

"You agreed to something so vague?!"

"I thought it was interesting, and the guy I was talking to usually doesn't let me down," Hiruma shrugged, completely uncaring.

"Do you see what we put up with?" Monta screeched at the rest of the players, his arm waving in huge arcs towards the quarterback. He was largely disregarded, and the room fell into an uncomfortable silence.

"So we're leaving, huh? I feel like we barely got to do anything here," Sena sighed, not feeling well at the prospect of leaving for some reason.

"We have a flight out of here in two hours, so you could look around, but you just wouldn't make it to the airport on time." Yamoto told her, a bit disappointed himself that they had no time to look around.

"Yeah, I know. I just don't understand why it bothers me so much."

"Are you feeling okay?" the original Eyeshield asked her, concern once again starting to show.

"A-ah, yeah! I'm absolutely f-fine!" She denied instantly, her voice a bit panicky because of his sudden worry.

His face continued to show worry, and he was about to ask her another question when he was cut off by a man in a fancy suit.

"Excuse me, is there a 'Sena Kobayakawa' and a 'Yoichi Hiruma' here?" Team Japan stopped short, sending curious glances to the two that were being asked for. Sena took a moment to gape in confusion while Hiruma stepped forward with a nonplussed look on his face, his sugarless gum popping casually.

"Who wants to know?" The blonde asked, standing toe to toe with the suited man.

"The man who called you here, Tsuna Sawada, the CEO of Vongola Incorporated."

EDIT: Well, when I first published this, I was not aware that the site didn't save my scene changes indications. I'm sorry if I confused you!

Okay, so I started this with a few foreseeable problems in the future. One, I don't know much about KHR or how anything works, so I've made a bunch of stuff as I've gone along. For examples, see how I explained why certain people have flames and others don't. Yeah, it was pretty bad. But, it works for this story so I don't want complaints about it please. If I get something drastically wrong, please leave a review, because I, again, don't know anything about KHR.

Another thing, I have so many things I haven't updated in forever, and this might become another one of them. I'm hoping not to make this too long, but you know how it is for me.

Any questions or concerns? Review! Or send me a PM. Or even shoot me a message through my Tumblr: theroadtosomewhere. tumblr. com. (No spaces.) Yeah. Thanks for reading!