Title: An Unusual Request

Chapter Title: What Remains of the Past Still Haunts Us

Author: Primal Red

Character(s)/Pairing: Sawada Tsunayoshi. Miura Haru. Gokudera Hayato. Timoteo (Ninth Vongola boss). Gradual and eventual TsuHaru.

Genre: General/Drama/Romance

Rating: T/PG-13 for some blood, and dark themes.

Warnings: For now, elements of bullying and psychological themes in the background. Also, a little injury.

Summary: [Alternate Universe where Tsuna moves to Italy when he's 14 and Haru never meets Tsuna] Haru needs to be married by the age of 22. Desperate, she asks for help from the Vongola mafia family's Ninth boss to find a good husband. In return for the favor, she must help the Tenth Vongola mafia boss-to-be, Sawada Tsunayoshi, improve his poor academic record.

A/N: This chapter might go into what I think might have transpired with Haru's early years. Not always pretty and nice. Also… Chapter 5 and 6 are coming up. After my two finals next week, I will continue writing, that is…But, I can't guarantee more than 1 chapter at a time for each series. ^^; Damn me. Not to mention...I need to continue with Under the Endless Sky AND keep up with the new additions I have in store. So many to work on...

Chapter 4: What Remains of the Past Still Haunts Us

It was terrifying.

She had stopped speaking in third person.

In fact, she had started referring to herself normally, with the pronoun "I".

What had happened, really?

She usually spoke in third person, and though Haru knew that some of her speech mannerisms involved her early habits developed to survive being ostracized in school, the fact was that this Sawada Tsunayoshi—future mafia don of the powerful Vongola family—had unintentionally made her speak seriously.

Haru blinked as her expression intuitively went from solemnly considering to bewildered, then bit on her lip hesitantly. Damn, she was trying to be polite, and yet here she was shooting her mouth off. Something about Sawada-san's grades and script and the way he wrote in the answers so hesitantly and lightly—as though he was so desperate to fit in and be accepted and yet so afraid of failing—made her unbelievably mad.

Screw that. She had been furious. Downright livid.

Something in the way he referred to himself as stupid and a loser and as someone she could—and even should—laugh at despite his desperate, agonizingly sad attempts to be accepted with dignity like a human being made her want to scream at the world in rage.

Of course, she couldn't do that. Not in front of Sawada-san, of all people. If she did that, she might risk scaring the poor boy and even canceling the contract if she were to do something stupid.

Life is unfair, that ways.

"Alright. Now onto the last problem, number thirty. So far, from what Haru sees, you didn't really know where to begin with this particular one. From there, it seems you aren't familiar with the order of operations. In here, the multiplication goes before the addition, and same for division before subtraction. Also…keep in mind that the brackets do a lot of changing the results. For this problem, you first subtract nine from seven, then you multiply that result—which is two—by four. Then, you add it to one. The result is nine."

"I…er…I see. Hahah…"

"Basically, the order of operations depends on how the brackets go. What's more, exponents go even before every other operation, unless the exponent itself is powering up a bracket."

Haru looked up from the corner of her eye, and noticed that Sawada-san had scratched the back of his head, as if he was embarrassed. For some reason, the reminder of what he had said earlier burned again, and she frowned slightly. "It's nothing to be embarrassed about. You didn't know before this. And, if that's the case, it should be obvious that you are not a loser."

She glanced back at the paper, and glanced over the entirety of the test. So, two out of thirty. That means he only learned how to do a bit of addition and so forth, and even then it's tentative, since he doesn't know how to add properly in regards to the more complicated numbers. What's worse was that he didn't multiply well and had no idea about division.

Little wonder why he couldn't even get the order of operations. He was so far behind that he needed more help on the whole thing and more time. A LOT MORE.

"…Why?"

Haru looked up, and bewilderedly widened her eyes at the distraught expression on Sawada-san. If there was one thing for sure, it was that she didn't expect a future mafia boss to look so sad.

Where did she recognize that expression before?

The twelve-year-old dark-haired Midori student held her hands up to the mirror as she glanced exhaustedly at herself alone in her room. "Why do they always laugh at Haru? Why can't Haru ever have any friends?"

She then glanced straight into her eyes, and it was such a profound level of agony and frustration and resentment that she felt when she saw how downcast and defeated she had become. "Why can't anyone like Haru? What did Haru do wrong?"

"Why?"

"Why?"

"WHY?"

The glass crashed down to the floor as blood flowed around the edges. The twelve-year-old girl pullled her fist out from the crack in the middle of where the mirror once was and sobbed uncontrollably, as though the world and had destroyed all her dreams in front of her and laughed and left her desolately behind.

"…why?"

Haru blinked as her memory was pushed back into reality, and stared at Sawada-san. So, that was what it was. That was what had been bothering her right now.

Why was it that he looked so similar to her in the mirror at that time four years ago?

Haru bit on her lip, and then quietly replied, "What do you mean, Sawada-san?"

"Why do you say that I'm not a loser?"

Haru felt her eyes widen, then clenched her hands a bit on the paper. "Because you aren't one, Sawada-san," she replied flatly.

The answer seemed to have made the dark emotion go across his eyes even more, because the boy bit on his lip and almost glared at her. "What do you mean, 'you're not a loser'?"

"Haru means that you aren't a loser."

"I've been called a loser all my life!"

Haru felt herself hold her breath at those words, and something in her stomach clenched intensely to a strain of rage that threatened to come out. Her words, however, were deadly calm and low in a tone that almost froze the atmosphere. "…they actually call you that?"

At the sound of her voice, Sawada-san quieted, and a fearfulness almost seemed to overcome him from her deadly calm. "…um…yeah?"

"LET. ME. RESTATE. MYSELF." Haru gritted her teeth, and glared straight into Sawada-san's now-confused, slightly frightened eyes. "If they say ANYTHING MORE like that to you, then rest assured that THEY are the actual losers that you speak so lowly of yourself being."

Sawada-san winced at her words. "…b—but…"

"STOP IT!" Haru shouted, "THEY are the ones who are putting you down. WHY the hell don't you talk back to them, not even ONCE?"

Sawada-san flinched. "Stop that! You're yelling at me!"

"Does it even matter? Those bastards are the stupid ones! Don't you feel sad and angry and resentful that they are walking over you, that they never accept you for who you are and laugh at you every day even though you try to be nice to them? Why do you let them do that to you, anyways? You're better than that, Sawada-san!"

At her last words, Sawada-san blinked, as though he was suddenly given something that he had always, always wanted to hear and yet never did. "I…I am?"

"YES!" Haru leaped up from the chair, then pointed directly at Sawada-san. "YOU have more capabilities than you think, Sawada-san. The ONLY damn reason why you are still right where you are now has to do with the lost time and the negative perspective that have kept you back."

Sawada-san blinked and stared at her, and Haru huffed as she sat down again. "Sawada-san, I know that academically-speaking, your grades might have had a long history of…that kind. However, it doesn't matter what your grades were in the past. What matters is why your grades were like that, what is causing them to be that ways, and how to change them to what you want them to be. What matters is that you actually WANT those grades to change. What matters the most is that you actually TRY."

Sawada-san continued to stare off into space—as though she had said an epithet of the worst kind and had committed a great blasphemy of some sort—then, like the sun coming out of an eclipse, he glanced up at her with a slight bit of hope and uncertainty, as though he was so desperate to wish for his answer to be accepted. "…R—really? If I actually try?"

Haru nodded with all the genuineness and determination her enthusiasm could give. "Really. And if it helps, Haru will be there to help you all the way."

She watched as Sawada-san blinked owlishly at her answer, as though he had not expected her to give him exactly what he had wanted that it was shocking for him to gain so suddenly. Then as if something had made him profoundly content, he smiled.

It was the most genuine, wonderful smile that she had ever seen. It showed a profound acceptance and kindness in the boy that she had never imagined could exist.

Even Kyoko-chan didn't have that genuine of a smile, as cute and innocent as she was.

Haru felt a rush of pride in herself, and bit on her lip to refrain from blushing and returning the smile. Darn it…she was trying to retain her composure, and now all this yelling and so forth was making her mess up. What's worse, she was now embarrassed beyond all doubt, since she had tried to remain calm through the whole thing and had now failed.

What a troublemaker she was.

As though he had sensed her thoughts, Sawada-san smiled amusedly. "Well, if that's the case…I guess I don't mind you yelling too much. As long as you say that."

Haru blushed, and bit on her lip embarrassedly as she recalled her earlier actions. "Er, Haru didn't want to yell and point and all. Sorry."

"That's alright."

Haru blinked and looked at him suspiciously. For a mafia boss-to-be, he sure seems very accommodating and nice. It was quite odd to be meeting someone like this.

Though…the Ninth was definitely polite and considerate when she talked with him.

Some people do behave similarly.

Haru sighed, then placed the paper down on the table. "So…Haru thinks we might need to plan a study schedule."

At those words, Tsuna blinked. "S—study schedule?"

"Yep."

"Wait—what do you mean?"

"A schedule that decides on what to study for at certain times. Since Sawada-san is sometimes busy, there needs to be a schedule so that Sawada-san won't have any trouble with timing the schoolwork and studying so that he doesn't put off being a mafia boss AND a student at the Academia."

"R—right."

Haru frowned for a moment. That last response was a bit strange. Why did he sound so hesitant and uncertain when she reminded him of his mafia boss status? She shook her head, then continued. "So…um, may Haru see your class schedule?"

Tsuna couldn't help but smile as he watched the dark-haired girl go over his schedule and scribble over her own college-ruled paper. It was quite amusing, really, to watch her be so intently focused on things, albeit a bit comical that she was so unique in her expressiveness and intensely explosive personality. Of all the people he had met in his life, this girl was one of the few people who could be so devoted to a task for him—as devoted as Gokudera-kun. What amused him the most, though, was the fact that she had—just a few moments ago—declared to his face and dared to challenge him on the idea that he was every bit the useless-Tsuna that his peers outside of his family considered him.

The girl stopped, then looked up from the side of her vision, and Tsuna quickly turned a bit to hide his smile. For a girl who rushed into things, she was really damn sharp and perceptive. It wouldn't do to let her think that he was laughing at her.

Still, she was quite interesting. Just a few minutes ago, she had shouted and yelled at him for not standing up for himself in the past to people who jeered at him even when he deserved it. She had stood on the table, pointed at him directly, and stared him down straight in the eye to challenge him on how worthless he thought he was. What's more, she had told him outright that they—the people who called him dame-Tsuna—were absolutely wrong about him.

It was unthinkable, to say the least. That this girl, in just an hour or two, would tell him so blatantly that he was never as weak and useless as the world perceived him.

Seriously. Who is she?

Tsuna blinked, then glanced out of the corner of his eye at Miss Haru. For some reason, there had been a flood of emotions in her expression when he had shouted at her due to her statement that he was not completely useless. There was something in her eyes that had spoke of something akin to a level of connection that he couldn't quite pinpoint, something that frightened him when he realized how angry he had made her with it.

It was almost as though she had understood him. Empathetic, almost.

Nah. She couldn't understand him THAT well. She's a top-level honors exchange student with one of the highest grades in the top private schools. How on earth could she understand someone like him, a loser through and through who can't even get mediocre grades on a test?

It was ridiculous. Unless there was more to her than he thought.

He appreciated the kindness, though. Miss Haru might not necessarily know him that well, but she definitely was trying to help without much, if any, strings attached.

And, for that, he would appreciate her help. He needed all the help he could get, after all.

Tsuna watched from his view at the window in the study as Haru stepped into the car with the other mafiosi who were assigned to escort her to her dormitory. So far, he didn't know what to think of the entire thing, except that he was actually okay with the arrangement for some reason. It was one thing, though, to accept the contract completely right away, but it was completely another thing with this whole situation.

For some reason, he liked this Miura Haru girl as his tutor.

For one, she not only didn't call him a loser like the others, but she even outright went against that notion.

For two, she worked really hard and clearly to make sure he understood everything and was exceptionally thoughtful.

And, for three, somehow, he felt that she intended to help him. Somehow, when he had stated how others called him a loser, he had sensed a very dark, almost angry cloud in her mind and hands. There was something particularly terrifying about her when she yelled at him, something that was raging and wrathful and furious at the world for an injustice that he couldn't name.

And yet, for some reason, he felt that the rage she threw out wasn't directed at him, but at the people who made fun of him.

And, for some strange reason, he felt slightly happier, even almost to the point of being able to trust her, because of it.

Really, it was surprising.

"Tsu-kun."

Tsuna turned to the person who entered at the door. "Ninth."

"I think it's getting late, isn't it?"

Tsuna nodded. The entire session did take, after all, over four hours, and yet he felt rather accomplished this time around, unlike with the other tutors that didn't involve his Guardians.

It was, after all, the consequence of his status. His Guardians were good, capable people and wonderful friends, and yet they couldn't be around with enough time to help him with academics.

"So…how did it go?"

Tsuna blinked at his question, then smiled calmly. "I think it went nicely. Miss Miura Haru even gave me a time to make a good study schedule to go by so that the entire studying sessions will be organized and well-placed."

"Ah." The Ninth nodded approvingly. "I guess they were right. She definitely is a capable student."

"Yeah, she really is. She…er, knew that Math was going to be my hardest subject, so she said I would need a lot of time outside the business to practice with problems for it. She said that math takes persistence over time to get, so she told me that I needed to be patient with myself and more stubborn in order to do well. What's more, she has all the subject studying lined up so that we could look over each one of them right after each day…er, except Sports and Writing and Math. She told me that those need more attention. Well, at least…that's what she agreed to."

The Ninth nodded and said, "If that's the case, then it seems we're both okay with her. Though…how do you particularly think of her as a trustworthy tutor?"

Tsuna blinked, then thought for a moment. "I think she is actually being genuine with us. She was kinda afraid of me at first, and I think that has to do with her not knowing how to deal with the mafia…" He stopped, then thought for a moment and continued, "…I think she is really trying to help. She probably means well, and for that, I guess I feel strange about the whole thing, since…I'm not used to having someone help me so willingly outside of their own interests even when they know I'm the Vongola Tenth."

The Ninth blinked at this. "Well, she was originally requesting that we help her find a husband—though she didn't know what she could do in return for it. Nevertheless…it seems that she is willing to teach you far beyond what is expected of her."

Tsuna nodded as he recalled what Haru's request was. "So how did she feel about it?"

The Ninth Vongola Don smiled ruefully. "She was definitely embarrassed, to say the least, when she told us this. The thing is, many Japanese society families require that the women of their society at least marry sometime after their twenties or so. The problem for Miss Haru, however, is that she didn't have the time or means to consider this well and prepare for it. In ways, she is now trying to find a way to prepare, but she doesn't know what she could do for it without some help."

Tsuna nodded. "Then…since she wants to fulfill her side of the bargain so much, shouldn't we fulfill our side for her as well?"

The Ninth sighed. "We definitely could, but it won't be easy. To look for a man with a good record or a background that can provide is not an easy task. So far, we have already started on the work of profiling for this. From what she said to us about a day ago, though, Miss Haru had a few conditions in particular that she was concerned about."

"Really? Which ones?"

"She had three particular conditions: One, that her husband allows her to continue studying in college so that she won't be just any housewife. Two, that he is independent financially on his own. And three, that he doesn't look down on her or her dreams."

Tsuna blinked. "Hm," he said, "That is odd."

"Indeed. She's quite unique, isn't she?"

"Yeah. I mean, the first kind is not easy to find, because a lot of guys in Italy are not too exacting on letting their significant others go to school—though they won't mind much—while a lot of guys in Japan expect the married woman to stay at home and be a housewife, period. The second part is also odd, since…most girls would want the guy to be very rich, but this Haru would actually only require him to be independent. And the third one…how do we know if the guy won't laugh at her dreams?"

"Perhaps, though as far as we know, we don't know what her dreams are like."

"True." Tsuna replied at the realization, then turned to the side. "We might have to ask her about that sometime."

Haru sighed as she flopped onto her bed after the shower and drying herself up with a towel. Today, of all things, had been quite an eventful day. Too eventful, if anyone were to ask her.

Far too eventful.

She had met the boy who she would be tutoring—a future mafia boss, no less. She had signed a contract that she knew she needed to uphold and stand by, since her future depended on it. She had even shouted at said future mafia boss and helped him figure things out on academics.

If anything, she would rather that her life not have any of these sort of things happen all at once, otherwise she would end up with a heart attack somewhere down the line.

Haru breathed in deeply, then sighed. What the hell did she sign her name on?

She knew that a mafia organization was an illegal sort of business. Nevertheless, she didn't quite get into researching any materials in the administration of justice, and for this she wasn't sure if she could be accurate with her understanding of what went on in a mafia family. What's more, she didn't know if her parents would accept the idea of her receiving help from a mafia family on the matter that they wanted her to resolve soon.

If worse comes to worse, they might disown her if they knew.

And then, she will not have any support in this world. No one to care…no one to help her…

Haru closed her eyes and tried not to clench her fists. No. She can't lose. She can't let her dreams go away and prove those other girls right. She had to continue. If she didn't defy them, she will lose every right to talk back to those girls at her old school. They will be proven right about her inherent weakness and worthlessness…

—"You know, Haru-chan, you can't even talk right! Referring to yourself in third person is the dumbest way to talk in front of anyone!" The foremost of the crowd of girls rolled her eyes in disgust as she violently swatted the books out of the darker-haired girl's hands and stomped over the notebooks. "There's no way you can be worth ANYTHING. The fact that the in-crowd of this school picks on you due to your stupid costumes says a lot, doesn't it? Just give up on ever being anything special. You're born to be a loser and you're a loser until the day you die. Just give up going to school at all. Actually…just give up breathing! We'll even help you do the suicide, you know. Better to die than be such a weak parasite."

A catty giggle from another girl. "Of course. Haru-chan isn't from a truly high-class family like any of us. And she isn't even cute-looking, either. She doesn't even wear makeup! Why does she think she can be ANYTHING at all compared to someone like you, Sayuri-chan?"

"Loser! Loser! Born to be a parasite loser!" The lighter-haired girls chanted and shrieked in laughter around the lone dark-haired girl who silently picked up her books and forcing herself to be indifferent to what was being said—

She had to do this. She had to fight them and prove them wrong.

To be continued…