A/N: Hi there, now I should probably be updating D.B right now, but I'm having trouble with Yamamoto's chappie and I needed a break. So I wrote an ubsurdly long oneshot that I may or may not continue! Ah...procrastination. Anyways, if you recognize it, it isn't mine, and that also includes the odd quote or two I put in here. Now with that being said, this is very deserving of it's T rating, there are minor references to sex and maybe a cuss word or two. This is also an AU, so prepare for plot holes and weird OOCness.

I apologize in advance.

Now that being said, enjoy!

(He wants to make you happy...)

Sawada Tsunayoshi is kind. That much he knows.

One day, his kindness will be the death of him. That much he also knows.

And Sawada Tsunayoshi does not mind this, because he loves his precious, precious people.

And as he grasps at his orange pacifier, brushes his fingers over his ring, and stares into worried eyes, he smiles.

Sawada Tsunayoshi does not mind this, because he loves his precious people.

Even if they do not love him.

It is years before anything. Tsunayoshi is fifteen and growing, short and soft, with one toe still placed into the hint of childhood and his eyes bright with the gentle boldness of youth. He walks up to the front of the doors to the room of the strongest seven. He braces himself, clutching a tupperware box in his hands -like that was going to fend off bullets- and shakily opens the door.

And it is oh so very dark in there.

And what scares him the most is that no one complains about the lack of light.

The table is a round one, set in the center of the room with a small dim light hanging just above the table. There are seven people surrounding it. The chairs are no more than an arm's length apart, but they all are so distant with each other, they might as well be in different countries.

And Tsuna is their Sky.

And Tsuna is just fifteen.

And Tsuna is weak.

And Tsuna has just learned about the mafia.

And Tsunayoshi sees them, and he just knows that he is right where he is meant to be.

He offers them all cookies, and as he walks around, his eyes take in the people he will come to know.

Verde has the prettiest pair of green eyes he has ever seen, along with similarly colored hair. He doesn't even glance at him, but he does move his hands slightly to let Tsuna see his work. Judging by the way he is still writing, he isn't even aware of it. Tsuna sucks at science, but he looks anyway, trying to find something he knew. He fails, but he does give an apreciative nod, after all, he may be a Dame, but he can acknowledge thoe who aren't, and the way Verde works is amazing. Verde straightens himself up in his chair and signs his name in big, elegant fancy lettering on the bottom. He tries to keep his eyes on his papers, but he does give the cookies a oddly mistrustful and longing glance. Then he sees Tsuna looking. Tsuna gives him a smile, and Verde nods.

Verde is afraid of not being worthy in others eyes.

Viper, or Mammon rather, sits slightly hunched, trying to dissapear while keeping his face towards the numbers he was punching in. As Tsuna walks by, he sits up straighter, and tries to ward him off through body language. Subtly, his hand comes up to cover the tattoos on his face, and pulls the hood down longer.

Mammon was afraid of being put down.

Skull eagerly grabs a cookie, takes a huge bite, then begins to praise him happily. He shouts and tries to keep Tsuna's attention. He looks as if being talked to is the best thing to ever happen to him, and when Tsuna walks past, Skull gets a downtrodden expression, but perks up everytime Tsuna's eyes fall on him. His eyes brighten when anyone in the group tells him to shut up or to stop being annoying.

Skull was terrified of never being noticed.

Lal Mirch glares at him as he walks past and refuses his cookie. He smiles brighter because it had been the first time that someone had verbally told him that they didn't want a cookie. He may be patient, but manners had been drilled into him since birth. Lal is staring at him like he was defying her very exsistence, like he was a threat. Her hand subtly passes her gun as he walks by, and Tsuna smile dims a little.

Lal was afraid of others doubting her strength as a woman.

Fon has been watching him the whole time, placid smile never leaving. As he goes to offer him a cookie, he grins as Fon bows slightly and takes one. His hands lightly brush Tsuna's as they go. Fon's eyes try to memorize each and every detail of his face. His fingers flutter past his pulse. His nostrils flare ever so slightly as he takes in Tsuna's scent. Tsuna slows his steps and lets him, because while to most this was odd behavior, Tsuna knows better.

Fon is terrified of losing people. He is also afraid of forget those he has lost.

And even though they just met, Tsuna is a Sky. It is in any flame's instinct to protect one.

So he lets Fon finish, lets him commit him to memory.

Because he is kind that way.

And now Reborn.

Reborn is wearing a sharp Italian suit, with a sleek fedora hat and polished dress shoes. His eyes are pitch black and like Fon, he has been watching Tsuna the whole time. Only Fon had been watching to know. Reborn had been watching for threats.

Tsuna feels somewhat shabby, dressed in his soft orange sweater, faded denim jeans, sneakers, and a pair of mittens hung around his neck. His long tail of hair has been pulled back in a messy ponytail down his back. The top is as untameable as ever, though.

And Reborn makes the chair look happy to be there as he lounges in it, showing off his alpha dog status while still being on alert. He has locked eyes with Tsuna now, and Tsuna doesn't have to fake a smile as he offers him a cookie. And because the man hasn't given him an inkling of a response, he says.

"Would you like a cookie?"

And Reborn stares for a minute before shaking his head.

"Sorry, but no, I don't like sweets." Reborn tilts his fedora down to cover his eyes, but his body language remains open. So Tsuna tries a different tack.

"O-Oh?" Curse his stutter! "W-Well, would you like some expresso then? I just made it," Aaaannd he has forgotten how to complete a sentence. Damn it. "Outside," he finishes lamely.

Reborn stares from beneath the brim. Then he snorts.

"Do you really expct me to believe that a brat like you can make coffee? It's probably poison." Reborn has a beautiful baritone to his voice with the barest hint of an Italian accent.

Tsuna sees the hidden meaning behind the words. He ducks his head while still smiling, eyes shadowed by his bangs.

"Well then," he smiles, and pours two cups, one in front of Reborn, and one stays in his hands. "We can go sip for sip if you don't believe me."

He is persistent because that is how he knows he will reach Reborn. Because Reborn isn't scared of trusting, but rather having trust broken. And Tsuna gets that. So he takes a sip of coffee, and he waits.

Reborn eyes widen in the barest of tiny fractions and Tsunayoshi smiles at him again. Reborn doesn't move to take the cup, but he does start to twirl his curly sideburns and Tsuna says to him,

"I think that your sideburns are adorable."

Tsuna was pleased with his lack of a stutter. Reborn stares at him, then he picks up the cup. He maintains eye contact as he sips, and after he does, he slowly sets the cup down.

"Passable, Dame-Tsuna," Tsuna just grins, ear to ear and suddenly, for Reborn, the dark room gets just a little bit brighter. He lives a life in the shadows and yet...

He can't bring himself to mind.

(He wants to make you happy...)

And the passage of time goes ever so slowly, but in the best way. Tsuna, at fifteen, is happier then he has ever been.

Because Tsuna is not alone.

Because he loves these people.

And because they love him.

He is not a saint, but he does know how to pick up the cracked shards of ice around a heart without damaging it. He does know how to break down walls without making a sound. And above all things, he knows how to love.

And he gives away his heart freely, to his family. It takes time, but one day, they gave him a piece of theirs back. The difference? Tsuna gave his all away... And he can never get it back. But that's fine. He doesn't want to anyways.

Skull takes hims out drinking one night after a particularly bad mission. Tsuna, being a rather weak person, had taken a bad hit while invading enemy territory and Skull had been taking it hard. Despite his rather cheerful appearance, Skull had been taking the angry jeers from the others to heart. And Tsuna was no fool because he knew that even though Skull was rather irresponsible, the way his eyes linger on Tsuna's wounded shoulder speaks worlds to one who knows how to look for that sort of thing. Skull is blaming himself. Skull is blaming himself and he is terrified that Tsuna is going to hate him and leave him alone. And Tsuna knows he lets Skull support him onto his bike even though his legs are fine, and he lets Skull hold him close as if he's terrified Tsuna will leave.

Because Tsuna is kind.

When they get to the bar, and Skull orders Tsuna a drink and Skull laughs because Tsuna is a complete and total lightweight, a couple thugs decide that Tsuna is to be their night's fix.

"Hey, hottie, why don't cha ditch this punk and gettcha 'self a real man." At this Thug A flexes his muscles and grabs himself suggestively, smirking in a way he must've thought was seductive but to Tsuna was just creepy. "One who has the balls to make you scream in pleasure."

Skull flinches and rears back if struck. Tsuna feels a strange heat inside of him because Skull is a better man than any of these punks hope to be and above that, Skull is Tsuna's friend and let it not be said that any of Tsuna's friends gets insulted while Tsuna just sits by and does nothing.

"I'm sorry, but my friend is more of a man than you will ever be," he states, and Thug A's face turns red and Skull looks at Tsuna like he has given him the world. Tsuna memorizes that face, that happy expression because it's the best thing he has seen all day. That look fits Skull's face like a glove.

The moment is broken by Thug A when he roughly grabs Tsuna's injured shoulder and Tsuna cries out in pain.

Skull has never moved so fast.

He may be the weakest, but he is one of the strongest in the world and one does not get that title without some credibility. Skull wasn't a fighter, but no one insults Tsuna and gets away with it.

And if you hurt Tsuna... well then, may the heavens help you.

They ended up getting kicked out and spent the rest of the night walking from bar to bar, and in the end it was Tsuna who was supporting Skull on the long walk back home, chuckling because Skull says some ridiculous things while drunk.

But it is when they are lying on the couch back home, or rather Skull is lying down, and he has dragged Tsuna down with him to be his pillow that Skull speaks without a slur.

"Tsuna...promise me that you won't leave me, okay? Please promise. I'm so sorry for letting you get hurt, I'm so..." He trails off, and Tsuna can feel wet tears on his shirt and pants from where Skull is in his lap.

Tsuna...hates seeing people cry. And the wound was not Skull's fault. So he promises.

Because he is kind.

And Skull curls up and goes to sleep with a smile on his face.

Tsuna frowns however, and resolves himself.

He needed to get stronger so that people wouldn't be hurt or feel guilt because of him again.

And as he thinks this, his eyes bleed from honey brown to and orange gold, stark in the dark of the night.

(Have you ever tried to catch a cloud?)

Tsunayoshi sometimes stays up at night, especially when his Hyper Intution needles at him. So when his mind starts ringing alarm bells and the door to the kitchen opens, he tenses. And he relaxes immediately when he sees Mammon at the door.

Mammon's shoulders are sagging, and for once he is dressed down, wearing a soft purple shirt and sweatpants, with his long hair covering his eyes.

His cheeks have tear tracks on them.

Another nightmare, then.

Tsuna doesn't pounce like he wants to, but he does get up and walk over to the fridge to pour the esper a glass of strawberry milk. Mammon sits. Tsuna sets the glass down, and sits.

And they are quiet.

"...How much for the milk."

"Free, as usual," Tsuna replies, falling easily into the familiar greeting. Then,

"I won't charge you if you stay."

And Tsuna nods, smiling gently.

"I will take you up on your bargain then." The both of them knew that Tsuna could've had to pay a billion dollar fine and he still would have stayed. Mammon knows this, but this is how he communicates, because he is used to all things having a price. And Tsuna knows this, so he doesn't mind.

In the dark and the in the silence of the night, Tsuna's voice, in its hushed whisper, is like the soft sounding of church bells. Then Mammon wants to laugh because he doesn't go to church.

'Demon Child!'

A shard of the nightmare that stirred him from a fitful slumber pierces his mind and he stiffens. He relaxes soon enough but nothing gets past Tsuna. And though they all put on airs, they are all grateful that someone watches and reaches out like Tsuna does. Because deep, deep, deep down in their cold hearts, they are all. so. lonely.

And Tsuna knows this.

Because Tsuna is kind.

"Will...will you tell me? About your nightmare, Mammon?" Tsuna is looking at him like he is the reason for Tsuna's being, like Tsuna needed him.

Mammon, cradling the glass, just looks away.

Mammon had always been greedy.

And if he wanted, he could just take Tsuna away. He could scoop him up and stare at his eyes, lock him in an illuson and just keep him-

Pale skin lashed with blood strokes like a demented painter took the brush.

He could-

His own thumbs pressed on the eyelids of deep brown eyes.

Tsuna would be-

He shoves his thumbs in, and Tsuna screams as illusions wreck his mind and Mammon' s hands wreck his face-

A warm body sits next to his, and soft hands pat his head gently, reaching up just a bit to do so.

Tsuna had once told him that he had adored the color of his hair. It had been the first time anyone had complemented him, ever.

In the underworld, his talents were recited with fear or scorn or terrified respect.

When he was little, people tried to burn him alive for witchcraft.

And Tsunayoshi thought that his tattoos were 'cool'

"You...don't have to tell me, Mammon," Tsuna says in his pure church bell voice, eyes wide and soft and orangey brown.

"...No..." If he says anymore, his voice will break.

Tsuna nods, but he doesn't push.

He never does, because Tsuna is kind.

One day, Mammon might tell Tsuna. One day, he may divulge his past. But he knows that he has a the time in the world, and that Tsuna will never ever force him to tell, and that Tsuna has immeasurable patience. Mammon...likes that. That looseness of time. That freeness. And Tsuna's patience.

Tsuna is a saint.

And later, when Mammon falls asleep on Tsuna's shoulder, it is Tsuna who puts him back to bed, staying by his side, just in case the nightmares come again.

Just in case.

(Have you ever tried to embrace the mist?)

It is hot. It is so, so, so, so hot and Tsuna skin is burning and it hurts and he just wants to die because the pain is so bad and it won't stop-

Verde, meanwhile, is in what one might call a calm frenzy.

Papers are strewn everywhere along with pens, books, test tubes and whatever else is in the man's way. And yet the look on his face is one of frightening calm.

Tsuna has been poisoned.

And if he can't make an antidote, then Tsuna has only twelve minutes left to live.

And that thought scares Verde more than he would like to admit.

The needle has gone under testing. Tsuna has gone under testing. Hell, Verde tried to remake the damn thing because then he would know what he was facing, but no.

Nothing.

Nothing at all.

Tsuna...Tsuna was...

"Ver...de."

Tsunayoshi voice is a harsh croak that grates his ears. He doesn't look back, because if he does, he'll see his failure and he'll once again be worthless and Tsuna believes in him and-

"Verde!" Sharper, attention grabbing.

Reluctantly, he turns his body to face the teen on the bed and he walks forwards.

(It's not my fault that we fight! If you would just spend time with your boy-)

(And if I was worthy-)

"It...'s fi..ne," Tsuna looks at him, eyes glazed over from pain and poison and somehow, somehow, he manages to convey everything he wants to say in his last few minutes.

"Every thing is going to be alright"

"I trust you"

"Don't worry, just focus"

"I promise, I will be fine"

Verde takes in a breath, steels himself, and tries again.

Tsunayoshi lets out a scream from the bed and as he whips around, he feels the blood drain from his face.

Tsunayoshi is on fire.

And the flames, are so very, very pure but that does not matter because TSUNAYOSHI IS ON FIRE.

As the bright fire on his forehead dies down, an odd steam pours from Tsuna's mouth and eyes. Then he relaxes, without making a sound.

Verde, fearing the worst, rushes over to Tsuna's side, and places his hand against the teen's forehead.

It is just warm enough.

He checks the pulse.

It is regular.

He smooths his hands down to Tsuna's chest, pressing his hands against his heartbeat.

It is like the thudding of a soft drum.

He lets out a shaky breath, Tsuna is fine.

Tsuna is fine.

Tsuna is fine.

Tsuna is fine.

And he says this to himself over and over again as he moves away to get a small blanket to give to the exhausted teen on his bed.

Tsuna almost died.

He had almost failed.

And if Tsunayoshi was awake, he would be berating Verde for blaming himself. And he would tell him that he does not have to prove to Tsuna that he is worth something. And that the poison wasn't his fault. And to 'quit moping because you're already great, Verde."

And Verde is torn between hating himself for basking in those words that have been told to him all the time, and taking pleasure in the fact that Tsuna truly cared about him.

He looks to the teen on the bed, and sighs, running fingers through his hair. Turning back to his computer screen, he begins to take down the notes of what just happened, just because he doesn't want this to ever happen, ever.

Sky flames or no, he was never letting Tsuna volunteer to do tests again.

(When I was younger, I used to catch lightning bugs in jars! Oh it was such fun!)

.

.

.

(I...really, really, really miss those days...)

Lal Mirch takes him to CEDEF headquaters one day.

Or rather, she tosses him out of bed with monster strength, throws him into the shower while it is freezing, the drags him out by his ear to the car.

Okay.

When they get there, Tsuna finds himself more relieved than he should have been to find that his father was out on a mission of some sort. It wasn't like he hated the man, but his father did not want Tsuna, and so Tsuna did not want him. Simple as that.

Lal takes him on a tour of the building, and when they get to the training grounds, Lal is glomped by a man with hair the color of fool's eyes are the bluest eyes Tsuna has ever seen. He is bright and cheerful, with a joke on hand and and smile on at all times. No wonder Lal likes him.

He watches as Colonello -such a strong name- laughs and flirts with Lal and grins.

Lal catches him mid-Colonello-slap. He winces.

"And what are you smiling about?" Colonello is dropped to a laughing, flirting heap on the ground.

"Oh~nothing," he chuckles, and gives Lal and inside wink. "Just thinking of baby names..."

Lal flushes pink.

"Why you little-!"

Colonello laughs.

"I can see why you like this one, kora!" The two boys share a secret smile.

"Hmmm...Barnabas?"

"Nello?"

"Matthew?"

"Mr. Nello?"

"Rick?"

"Soldierita?"

"Marcus?"

"Lalnelloco?"

Tsuna pauses.

"What in the hell was that last one?"

Colonello laughs again, and Tsuna decides that he likes the way Colonello laughs. It sounds like the strong rain on the windows.

In their amusment, they have made a terrible mistake.

They have forgotten about Lal.

A dark aura seeps from behind them, and as one, the two males pale.

Lal pulls out a rifle from nowhere and takes aim.

It is frighteningly close to Colonello's man bits.

"...You have five seconds."

They both take off running with Lal behind them and Tsuna laughs even though rubber bullets are bouncing off the walls.

'The both of you...I hope that you find happiness...'

(Some people feel the rain.

Others just get wet.)

Sometimes, Tsuna goes for walks in the mornings.

The best ones are where Fon joins him.

Fon is his eye in the storm. His one speck of sanity in a raging world. Sometimes they talk. Other times they don't, but it doesn't matter.

The two grow close anyways.

And as they sit together, beneath a sakura tree, and Fon hums a low tune beneath his breath and Lichi makes a comfy nest in his hair, well.

Tsuna finds the calm quite nice.

And as Fon's fingers discreetly find the pulse on his wrist, he doesn't bring himself to mind, taking comfort in the small action.

Tsunayoshi is kind like that.

(When it storms outside, he sits on the porch and watches. The noise brings him peace.)

The alleyway is dank and disgusting, rank with the scent of odd waste, gunpowder and blood.

There is so much redness that Reborn can barely remember what the other colors look like.

There is a splash from behind him, and he swings around with his gun at the ready-

Tsunayoshi is staring wide eyed down the barrel of a handgun, eyes wide as he looks at him.

Swiftly, he yanks his hand away, throat closing up violently as he realizes that he almost killed Tsuna.

He almost killed his sky.

And now Tsuna, pure, sweet, innocent, kind, soft skinned, smiling, bright eyed Tsuna is standing in front of him with blood soaked sneakers, hair just barely flattened by the rain. There are groceries in his hands, his realizes dully through the red in hs vision and the ringing in his ears. And there are ingredients to make one of his favorites, chicken alfredo.

Tsuna is gripping the bag, staring at him and it is then that he realizes that he is standing in an alleyway filled with corpses and he made those people into corpses and Tsuna, pure Tsuna, is afraid and he does not want Tsuna to see him as a monster.

It would kill him.

Shakily, the gun is raised to his own temple.

At the same time, Tsuna's eyes go huge and he jumps, dropping the groceries and grabbing Reborn's hand.

The gunshot fires.

And thank anyone who's listening that it just knocks the fedora off Reborn's head.

And that the gun is on the floor.

And that Tsuna is clutching him close, uncaring of the blood soaking his clothes.

His is wearing white today, and it the only good color in his surroundings.

"Oh my gosh-Reborn I thought that you were- and then you- Oh my gosh I thought that- And the gun- Ohmygosh-" Tsuna cuts off, and now there are tears flooding his gaze. Reborn feels an odd stirring in his gut because it is he who has made those tears.

Tsuna's face...it doesn't look right crying.

"Reborn..you almost died..."

Oh. Oh. Oh.

Tsuna wasn't afraid of him.

He was afraid for him.

And as he let's himself be hugged close, he thinks that Dame-Tsuna is going to get himself killed one day, because he will give away too much kindness.

Reborn doesn't want Tsuna to ever stop beng kind.

So he will just have to be there to save Tsuna when that happens.

And he knows that it will.

Because Tsunayoshi is kind.

(You are my sunshine...my only sun...shine...you makeme...hap...py..when my skies are...grey-

Tsuna hiccups as he sings in his garden

And tears hit the floor)

They are happy.

They are family.

And Tsuna is happy.

And Tsuna is still kind.

And on his sixteenth birthday, he makes a promise.

"I will never, ever hurt you. You are my elements, and I am your Sky, and I shall protect you all."

Tsuna promises a lot.

And he never regrets it

Because they are as close as family can be.

Then the Curse blew it all to hell.

The day after the Cursed Day, they all scuttle around each other, like black cats, each one afraid to cross the others path.

These forms are humiliating.

At least for them, but when Tsuna woke up and he was the exact same way as he was before but wearing an orange pacifier he didn't understand.

Then he coughed blood into the sink, and feels the drain on his core.

Oh.

He was...dying.

And he couldn't tell anyone because none of them wanted to talk to him anymore.

He had failed.

Lal leaves first, Colonello in tow.

(The future is black as pitch.)

They leave behind a page of wedding plans.

Whether out of spite or not he does not know, but it still stabs him in the chest.

Especially since he sees the words underneath 'Best Man'

Sawada Tsunayoshi.

He doesn't cry.

He won't cry.

He will be strong.

And he says that to himself for days as the absence of his spirited rain drives a crack into his heart.

And as they leave him, like the picking of petals from a flower, that crack splits wider and wider.

He has started a garden now, because he needs something that needs him. And he plants many things, but in the very back, he places eight pots. One for everyone.

Lal gets Gladiolus- strong spirited.

Colonello gets Stephanotis-Good luck, because that man didn't have to do what he did.

And Tsuna barely knew him, but he still wished them both the best.

One day, Mammon answers the door to a blond boy with bangs covering his eyes and a crown on his head.

He pretends not to see the way Mammon sits on the prince's shoulder.

He pretends that Mammon had been talking to him and smiling, not matter how slight, at him too.

And when Mammon turns to him, and he says,

"I'm leaving."

He gives away gifts, he pretend to smile, he pretends like he is happy for this opportunity, and he pretends that he thinks he will see Mammon again.

And Mammon leaves.

And the crack splits more.

And Tsuna still refuses to cry.

Mammon gets yellow Poppies -wealth and success. Because that is what he wishes for him.

Fon just goes.

He gets no warning, no goodbye, no nothing.

He just wakes up, feels something wrong, crawls to Fon's room because he has been coughing blood for days now and he can barely move but he doesn't tell anyone because they have their own problems and Tsuna-

Tsuna has to be strong.

And when he opens to door, leaning on it as his vision blurs, he sees the window open and all of Fon's possesions gone.

He does not go walking that morning.

Or anymore.

And, Tsuna still will not cry.

Fon gets a scarlet Zinnia, because Fon was his one constant, his eye of the storm, and his friend.

It is when they all sit down for dinner one day that things come to a head.

It starts when Skull yells about Reborn being a bully.

Reborn starts an argument.

Verde ands fuel to the fire.

Tsuna treis to intervene.

"You guys, please don't fight-"

And Reborn whirls on him and his mind flashes back to that night in the rain and-

"You. Don't. Speak. To. Me."

He has never, never heard more venom in a man's voice.

Seeing his expression, Reborn just snaps.

He is yelling at Tsuna, and even though he doesn't hear what Reborn is saying over the buzz in h ears, his eyes fill with tears. Upon seeing them, Reborn looks triumphant and keeps going, his mouth keeps spitting awful, awful things.

The tears in his eyes are blinked back and do not spill over.

"-All your fault!"

And nothing.

Nothing.

Tsuna does not say a word.

His eyes become hidden by his bangs.

And he gets up from the table, leaving a full plate of food behind.

He doesn't really eat anymore anyways. He ends up puking it all back up in the end.

And he goes upstairs.

And he shuts the door to his room.

No slamming, just a soft click.

Then he curls up into a ball on the ground, and does not cry.

He is too tired.

He just whimpers softly as his poor, kind little heart splits in two.

Skull gets Lavender-Admiration and Solitude

Verde gets Pink Carnations- I will never forget you

And then Reborn.

Rebon gets a Daffodil-because Reborn was his Sun and the sun always shone brighter when he was with him.

And when that is all done, he plants Asphodels.

I'm sorry

I'm sorry

I'm sorry

I'm sorry

I'm sorry

I'm sorry

I'm sorry

I'm sorry

And he coughs, and the petals get stained with blood, and he hopes that his blood will pay back for his broken promise.

'i shall protect you all'

He can only hope.

Weeks later, he decides to leaves the old and empty house. It is also then that he hears from the other Arcobaleno.

Mammon sends him a check.

Fon sends him a box of white tea.

Lal sends him a set of knives.

Colonello sends him a pair of army boots.

Skull sends him a motorcycle helmet.

Verde sends him a videogame.

He gets a small picture from Reborn, of him and his cute little Leon standing together by a lake.

And it is then that he cries because he doesn't want money he wants Mammon and he doesn't want tea he wants Fon and he doesn't want knives he wants Lal and he doesn't want boots he wants Colonello and he doesn't want a helmet he wants Skull and he doesn't want a game he wants Verde and he doesn't give a damn about where in the hell Reborn is because he wants to get down on his knees and say he's sorry-

And Tsuna cries.

And he leaves, his only compainion, Byakuran, leading him out.

And those blood stained flowers die.

He does see them again.

He sees Reborn first, after getting a flyer in the mail.

He wonders why Reborn comes to see him, but then he looks into the baby's eyes.

Reborn has forgotten him.

And that night, Tsuna curls up and cries himself to sleep.

He almost wishes he won't wake up.

(Hayato thinks Tsuna has saved him. Tsuna smiles at him and nods his head when he asks to be his subordinate. Because that's what Hayato calls a friend, and the first thing he does as a friend to Hayato is cough blood on his shoulder as he falls.

He asks Reborn to not use those bullets again.)

He sees Skull and Colonello on Mafia Island.

Colonello pretends to have never met him.

Skull...glances at him, then looks away so fast it could have been a trick.

Tsuna...Tsuna can't cry tonight.

He is having trouble breathing.

(Yamamoto wants to die. And Tsuna, who is going to die, alone and helpless, has never felt more angry with another person in his life. He runs up to the rooftop, scolds him and drags him away.

He has a life left to live.

And as Tsuna's vision fades away from where he is standing on the edge of the roof

And as he falls,

He wonders if Reborn wants a Sky again.

And if he does,

If he will want a half-dead one.)

It's when the Varia appear that he sees Mammon again.

And he laughs, just a little, when Xanxus says that he will fight him for the Vongola.

Tsuna never wanted the Vongola.

The Vongola killed his mom.

The Vongola took his dad.

And the mafia took his life.

And when he says this, Reborn gives him a funny look and Xanxus gets a odd expression on his face.

Mammon sits on Belphagor's shoulder, and does not say a word.

Not a single word.

Lal Mirch is a surprise, and she talks to him too. She comes alongside his stupid father, who stares at his face with an odd longing, nods, then walks away to some bar.

Lal is the first one who remembers him to talk to him like a human being that they knew before.

"I...am so sorry, Lal."

"...I know."

She has not said 'I forgive you'

And he walks away

And they don't see each other again for a very long time.

(He doesn't speak to Mukuro. He doesn't have to.

He just catches the teen as he falls.

And as Mukuro looks up, he smiles gently.

He opens his mouth to speak, but Mukuro has already fallen unconsious.

Later, when Mukuro possesses Chrome and wraps him up in his arms,

He says that when Tsuna smiled at him

He thought that Tsuna was an angel.

Tsuna had been startled and flattered all at once.

It didn't stop him from keeping Mukuro's hands away from his behind though.)

He had thought that with the arrival of I-pin, he would have seen Fon sooner.

(And when he sees Hibari, it hits him like a thousand pound hammer to the gut. Hibari had seemed so surprised when the little animal had teared up and reached hands out to his face whispering "I'm sorry." over and over.)

And when he sees Irie pop up talking about his friend who is brilliant and has green hair, he had thought that he woud see Verde sooner.

But no, he sees them when he is getting over the fact that he has just killed his beloved Mare sky who went crazy after seeing Tsuna die at the hands of his own father, who couldn't stand seeing his dead wife's face every time he looked at Tsuna.

According to what he had heard, he had been strangled to death. He laughs about that in private because that feels like a little victory.

The pacifer didn't get him in the end then.

But as Verde ignores him and Fon looks aside, he sobers.

After all, Byakuran, his wonderful Byakuran, is dead.

And now, now that the Arcobaleno are back from the 'dead', after he nearly killed himself to bring them back, he supposes they will never forgive him.

And now the ring and the pacifier are going to kill him.

And he just wants his family back.

He closes his eyes.

If a few tears trickle out, no one will blame him.

(Ryohei runs every morning, and when he passes Tsuna, Tsuna gives him a bottle of water.

He wouldn't have thought that that would be enough to start a friendship with the boxer.

But what did he know?)

It is when Checkerface gives them all the same dream and he says that they can all be normal again that Tsuna finally sees the wheel start to turn.

Because he knows how the cycle works.

And Checkerface knows how he knows this.

And when Checkerface told him, Tsuna knew what he had to do.

(When Lambo arrives Tsuna treats him kindly, like he would any other child.

Then the ten-year bazooka comes out to play.

Fifteen year old Lambo sees him and his eyes tear up,

Then he grabs him close.

Tsuna doesn't understand until Lambo's fingers brush past the pocket where he keeps his pacifier and his heart skips a beat

Oh.

He loves his precious people.

So why does he keep hurting them?!)

The final battle and Tsunayoshi's poor soul has been run raw from seeing the true forms of his family.

He has not taken a representitive.

But he does fight Bermuda, because there is no way in hell that this kind of person is going to insult his family without getting his ass beat.

And he doesn't care that he is using as many flames as he is despite the fact that he might die, and he doesn't care that his skin is starting to burn or that his shirt has burned away, revealing his pacifier to the world.

He can do this because he is selfish.

And because he is kind, even with his heart as cracked as it is.

And when Talbot appears and passes him the contraption that he asked him to build, and when Reborn looks at him wondering what the hell he is doing and the other Arcobaleno stare at him with different eyes that he gives them all a genuine smile.

(Goodness, how long had it been since he had smiled?)

And as he feeds his flames into the sphere, he just lets it all go.

The pain.

The guilt.

And every single speck of his flames.

And as he finishes, and as he falls, and as he sees the adult faces of his elements, he smiles.

He expects them to let him fall.

So when Reborn of all people catches him, he is so surprised.

And when he feels Fon's hand tangle with his and his fingers go for his pulse he is surprised.

And as he sees Skull's tears.

And as he sees Lal's heartbroken eyes.

And as he watches Verde clench his fists.

And as he feels Mammon's hand slide into his other one.

And as Colonello hides his face in Lal's shoulders.

He smiles.

Because Tsuna is kind.

'They do care about me... I'm so, so, so, happy...'

Something wet on his face has him looking up at Reborn, who has silent tears trickling down his cheeks.

"Why?" He has never heard so much fragility in a man's voice.

Tsuna has known the answer since that day he walked into that dark little room with a round table and a tupperware box of cookies as his protection.

"Because all of you are my precious people," he says.

Reborn swallows, and his tears fall onto Tsuna's own cheeks, running down his face. Tsuna is grateful because he has no energy to cry, and he has cried all his tears out a long time ago.

Reborn clutches him closer.

"Tsuna...I...we...are so, so, sorry."

And Tsuna just feels himself fall apart on the inside because the reason he could die peaceful was because he was sure no one would miss him too badly. And now?

Now that they wanted him.

And now they wanted forgiveness.

And Tsuna is kind.

"I for...give...you..."

Why now? Why now? Why of all the times now?

He doesn't want to die.

He wants to be with his family and laugh and move fowards into a brighter future.

But no one has ever cared about what Tsuna wants.

And life is never fair.

"Can...you...forgive..me?"

His vsion swings in and out.

Tsunayoshi is dying.

Reborn wants to scream, he wants to scream over the repressed memories that have come back. He wants to scream about how Tsuna doesn't deserve to die. And he wants to scream over his mistakes, how he never should have left.

But Tsuna doesn't need that.

Tsuna just wants one thing.

"O...Of course, Tsuna."

And Tsuna looks so, so, so happy. So happy, like the world had just become his and his alone.

"I'm...tired, Reborn." A small cough and blood trickles down Tsuna's lips.

And Reborn wants to do what he usually does, which is snort and say 'so?' as he forces a couple dozen more laps on Tsuna, but now...

He leans in brushes his lips to Tsuna forehead.

"Then go to sleep, Dame-Tsuna. Take a rest. You've done well."

And Tsuna's eyes slide shut, but not before he says a few more words.

"I love you guys..."

And then Reborn has to hide his face in Tsuna's neck as he cries, because Tsuna is still warm. And even as the body cools and the battle medics come, he stays by the body.

Some things should never change.

And he will live his new life to the fullest, because Tsuna has given it to him.

Because Tsuna is kind.

And that never changes.

No matter how cracked and chipped Tsuna's heart is, he is always, always so kind.

Always.

Once upon a long, long, long time ago, a boy lost his mother while in the market place.

The boy, tired and hungry, stumbled his way into an antique shop where he met a man.

The man, upon seeing him, made him a cup of warm tea and sat him down.

After a while, the man asked him a question.

'What is forgiveness?'

And with the honesty of a pure and innocent child, the boy answered.

'It is the smell a flower makes when it is crushed...'

The man nodded, ushered him out the door and into the arms of his mother.

He never saw that shop again.

Sawada Tsunayoshi

19XX-20XX

The one true sky

The one above all others

...

.

.

.

we forgive you, Tsuna

we always will.

the end.