Who said this story was complete? I already said in the last chapter that it just takes me a really long time to type out this story compared to the other ones since I'm trying to follow the cannon as closely as possible.

Sigh.

But I want to say a HUUUUUGE THANK YOU to:skidney, anna the viking XD, xxtoushirou, AoKuroUsagi16238, moonlight0904, OneWhoWasForgotten, icecream flies, Unknown, and KnichtOwl for reviewing! It means a lot and helps me push forward with this story when I would rather work on the others. So thank you!

I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Chapter XXXI

"I still can't wrap my head around the fact that the Varia is helping us," Tsuna muttered.

The group was sitting in the kitchen, Kyoko and Haru having just left to complete chores, discussing the upcoming battle. Hailey was sitting with the group for once, Alicia seated by her side. Though, the latter was snoozing away.

The white haired girl chuckled. "I don't see why not. Xanxus and the others have been a great help these past few years. Then again, if you listened to the older Alicia, you would still think all of you were still at war. But that's partially Tsunayoshi's fault."

"Eh! Mine!" The brunette exclaimed.

Hailey shook her head. "No, the older you. I suppose I should clear this up now and save myself a headache later. When I refer to you by your given names, I'm actually talking about your older forms. If I'm talking about the present you, then I shall refer to you as per the usual from ten years ago."

The group nodded in understanding. It did make sense if they thought about it.

Hailey smiled and continued. "Five years ago from this timeline, Tsunayoshi sent Alicia and myself on a mission with the Varia. The two of us were to be disguised and escort the group through a get together with another famiglia. You assigned me as Xanxus's date for that mission."

"No way!" Tsuna exclaimed.

"And you made it out alive!" Gokudera shouted.

The girl laughed. "If you think that was bad, then wait 'til you head who Tsunayoshi assigned Alicia to be the date of."

The brunette paled. "Oh no."

Hailey nodded. "Alicia was Squalo's date. She held it against the older you for month's Tsuna. Her revenge got so bad that even Reborn had to step in, or you'd surely die of starvation thanks to staying in your office and allowing nothing in or out due to your fear."

"Then why didn't you stop her woman!" Gokudera demanded.

Hailey smiled slyly. "Well, that was my revenge for sticking me with that guy."

The boys shivered. Girls were scary when they were mad.

The white haired girl laughed. "You guys should hear about all the things all of us have done over the years." Her smile tapered off into something more nostalgic and forlorn. "We've all done so much in ten years."

"You speak as if you've lived through it," Reborn pointed out.

Hailey smiled sadly. "In a way, I have."

"What do you mean?" Tsuna asked gently.

The girl sighed. "In order to finish up this mission, I needed to remember everything that occurred through my life. So I left behind my memories so that my past self would be able to retrieve them the moment I appeared in this time. It was sort of like how Shoichi removed his past self's memories of his future experiences, just the other way around for me."

Reborn nodded. This confirmed what he had suspected. "Is that why you don't wear the Vongola Star ring?"

The young woman gazed at the small hitman, observing the cursed man before smiling her sad little smile once again. "A month after the Varia battle, you figured out what the Dimenticato's second mission was. You came to the two of us once again, but this time you asked us to do what we could and not to take up the position as guardians. Alicia and I carry the rings with us, not because we needed to appear as guardians to others, but because Tsunayoshi asked us to carry them because we were family. That is why we don't wear them on our fingers, but still keep it close."

"So is that why Byakuran implied you two knew each other closely?" Alicia interrupted, sitting up and proving that she had actually been listening all along. "Did you two get to know each other between these ten years?"

Hailey's gaze became unfocused. "Byakuran huh…He-…Byakuran has been and always will be one of my biggest regrets. And he's one of the many I'll never be able to amend."

"Hailey," Daniel said softly, having appeared from the shadows. She placed a gentle hand on the shorter woman's shoulder. "It wasn't your fault."

The white haired girl closed her eyes for a moment. "I suppose it's hardly ever someone else's fault. I just can't help but…"

The raven woman nodded. "I know. Your family feels the same way."

Hailey smiled a little. "I know it well. The Dimenticato all have their regrets, don't we." She stood up. "Well, you appearing before me means that there must be something I need to attend to. I'll speak with the rest of you on a later date."

"You should take some time to rest properly," Daniel muttered as they left.

However, Hailey just waved her away. "Leave the resting to the living. The allotted time is running out."

The door closed completely before Reborn could catch the rest of their conversation. He was growing rather frustrated…again. Those two, well three, kept mentioning something about time as well as making the implication that they weren't really living. But that wouldn't make any sense, since they were obviously alive, so was that code for something else? An inside joke perhaps?

Meanwhile, Danielle left Hailey to her work after discussing the details of the upcoming events. The white haired woman sighed and gazed at her office, thinking back to what felt like eons ago even though it was really only a few weeks.

Flashback

She allowed herself a soft smile as she recognized a couple of the males; she figured the driver must have been a hired hand. "Finally! Someone I know!" She said loud enough for the men to hear.

They jumped and whirled around, preparing to attack, when they saw whom it was drawing up to them and froze. Hailey smirked and started to wave when the last male finally climbed out of the car. Hailey's eyes widened a fraction of an inch and she too became immobilized. The man took notice of Hailey as well and stared.

Hailey was the first to regain full use of her brain. She face palmed hard. "Oh for the love of-!"

"Hai….ley…" Gokudera mumbled.

Hailey sighed before looking up again. "Yo, Gokudera, Yamamoto,….Tsuna-kun."

"Before we say anything else, perhaps we should head inside…" Tsuna said calmly.

The others agreed and followed Tsuna to one of the entrances.

"You don't seem all that surprised that we're heading into an underground secret base," Gokudera commented.

Hailey smiled. "Come one Gokudera, you know you can't surprise me. I've known about this one for ages. I bet I even helped with some of the design!" She eyed the doorway that had yet to have a filter for the non tri-ne-sette radiation installed.

"You know everything huh…Even when you were going to die," Gokudera said blankly. It wasn't a question. After Alicia's dying words, none of them had a doubt in their mind that the twins always knew.

Hailey's smile became forced. "Hm~? What makes you say that?"

"Alicia." It was Tsuna who answered this time.

"Oh? And how much did Alicia tell you?" Hailey kept an even pace and tried to maintain a smile, but she knew it wasn't fooling anybody.

"Alicia said that she knew the day and method that she would die," Tsuna answered quietly. "She also was the one to tell us that you had died, and that you knew there was no cure for your illness."

"Hm, is that all?" Hailey sighed a little. "Then there's nothing else I can really say, Tsuna-kun."

Tsuna stopped walking and whirled around to face the young girl. "You know everything, right? That's what you were always tell us. So you know of a way to stop your death from happening! How can we save you two?"

Hailey had also stopped walking as well and just stared at the man with blank and emotionless eyes. She didn't even bother to keep her happy façade going. "There is no change. We died when we were supposed to. There's nothing else to it… Why are you so desperate, Tsunayoshi?" Hailey studied the man. She seemed to find something because she sighed and smiled sadly. "I see. Then, it appears Alicia and I have failed out second mission. We have failed to be forgotten."

"How could I, or any of the others, forget two of our friends…our family?" Tsuna asked softly.

"You would have done better to forget us. It would have been less painful." Hailey sighed and closed her eyes for a bit. "Tell me, Tsuna-kun, what do you know about me and my sister? Tell me something unique, something others wouldn't. If you can, then I will tell you a piece of the future. But not now." Hailey started walking again, leaving the three men behind. "Either I'll go to your office, or you can come to mine. But I think it would be a good idea if I get an idea of the whole situation."

The girl walked off without another word, heading off into a portion of the base that looked the most out of place. Eventually she came to a doorway with a small star engraved upon the top of the doorframe. With a quick glance, she spotted a panel off to the left and managed to open it so that she could type the password, allowing her entrance to her room.

She wasn't surprised to see it a mess. Her room was always more of a wreck since she had to lead such an organized life. Her room was the one place she could just let loose. The layer of dust was also unsurprising, seeing as her older self was dead for a few months now.

A pang of fear shot through her heart, but she pushed it back, trying her best to ignore one particular upcoming event. Instead, she strode over to the computer to see if she could find out why she had appeared in the future before Tsunayoshi had died.

"Hey me!" A video popped up onto the screen the moment the computer started up. "I know you probably weren't expecting this. Well, the fact is that neither was I. This was a last minute change because of certain unforeseen…changes… In any case, you'll find all your answers by activating a little doohickey Aria and Talbot helped me with. It's in the safe beside the bed, you should be able to figure out the password rather easily…" The older Hailey paused, looking hesitant. "Look, it's probably a little weird that I'm apologizing to myself, but…I'm really sorry about…everything. Good luck! And don't do anything stupid!"

Hailey was left staring at a blank screen in confusion. What could have possibly happened to create such a dramatic change in plans?

Eventually, the young girl shrugged and went over to the safe as instructed, taking out what looked like a coin of glass, sparkling like a diamond.

"Well…Now what?"

Hailey flipped the coin, bit it, tossed it on the ground, and anything else she could think of. After a bit, the girl sat down with a huff and glared at the stupid thing.

"What do you want from me? A bit of my life essence?" The question was sarcastic, but a sudden uncalled flame sparked from the girl and was absorbed by the gem like disc.

The next thing Hailey knew was that she was in a world of pain. Several lifetimes of experiences were being shoved into her head and forced into her memory bank. Every pain her future selves went through, she could feel all at once, be it mental or physical.

It was too much.

All too much. She screamed in pain, distress, and hatred, just wanting it to stop, for it to all come to an end. She didn't want to see- no, remember all of these things…All of her regrets. It was just too much…

"It's not fair…" The girl murmured, tears streaming down her face even as she clutched her head and curled into herself. "It's not fair. It's not fair! It's not fair!"

She grabbed the nearest object and threw it into the wall, barely noticing it shatter to pieces.

The girl giggled, slowly turning into laughter. But not of glee. It was hollow…and insane.

"Good evening, Decimo."

"Ah, Danielle!" Tsunayoshi called out, distracted from his thoughts of Hailey's appearance. "What brings you here?"

Danielle looked around slowly before turning back to the Vongola don. "Where is Hailey? I was sure she arrived today…"

The brunet male frowned, his thoughts returning to the younger version of his friend and her task. "She went off to find her room I believe."

"Merda!" Danielle hissed and rushed out of the office.

Tsunayoshi blinked in surprise and immediately followed. He caught up outside the open door in time to see Danielle shaking the younger girl, who was laughing in odd intervals in a mentally unstable fashion. He was shocked to see such a manic grin upon the young girl's face, though her eyes were covered with her bangs and tears ran down her face.

"Hailey!...Hailey!" Danielle shook the girl again. "Come on, snap out of it!"

"Isn't it funny, Danielle?" Hailey asked, giggling a little. "The world is funny, right? Everything we experience is just a joke. That's how people escape pain, right? If you treat life like a game, then it can't hurt you, because it's not real."

"Hailey, don't you dare fall toward that!" Danielle hissed.

"But it hurts and I don't want to hurt," Hailey argued. "If this is just a game, no a story, then I can dictate the ending, right? It's not real, so it's okay if I change everything. Then I won't have to hate so much, and regret so much, and hurt so much. Then all the bad things will just go away."

"I know it hurts, but if you treat life like a game, then you'll end up hurting more people and regretting everything even more. I know you didn't expect any of that to happen, but that's no reason to lose yourself. I know you've seen good things too. I know you still have hope."

The grin faded and Hailey finally looked up, her eyes desperate, sad, and…old. Too old for one with such a young face. Tsunayoshi pulled back and leaned against the wall, out of sight.

"It's all my fault Danielle and…and I don't think there's any way to save him. He's my…he's my family and I can't save him. And then I hurt so many others too. What about him? How do I face that man now? And…and him too? All three of them? What do I tell Alicia? I've done so much wrong since I became a Dimenticato. Why couldn't they just fail me and end everyone's misery. I hate myself enough as it is. Why do they have to continue pouring salt over my wound? Why can't I just die?"

"You know that's not how it works," Danielle said softly.

Hailey laughed bitterly. "It wouldn't matter anyway. I'm too scared to even take my own life this time around. Is this my punishment? The reason I keep having to experience this? Is this all because of what happened before I died?"

"Oh Hailey. Life is just a test and everyone's trial of life is different." Danielle pulled the girl close. "We all have our regrets…some more than others, but it's something we must experience in order to become our own person. We have to believe that the sun will always rise after the darkness. We just have to push forward until then."

"What about Kyoya and Brandon? How do I face them after everything I've done? And what about Malcolm? I've done so much to all of them…"

"None of that was your fault," Danielle murmured. "You couldn't help those events from taking place. No human has the power to change something like that from happening."

"It's so difficult…How do face Tsunayoshi and the others? I've always wanted to tell them the truth, but now…I don't know if I can continue to hold my tongue. But at the same time…I don't know if they would be able to handle the news and trust us ever again. I wouldn't even believe me. And I don't want to hurt them anymore."

"That's what your smile is for, right? Even my past self could tell it was always a mask. You and I are very alike. We've always lived in the shadows, but tried our best to ignore that fact. That's why we're here, in this famiglia. This is our chance to show our other side and prove our souls aren't painted as black as we believe they are. It's going to continue to be tough, but we have to give it our all, until the very end."

"You sure I haven't run out of time? There's so little of it left. I don't think I can do it…"

"You have to try, Hailey. You have to."

Tsuna pushed away from the wall silently and walked away, managing to make it all the way back to his office unnoticed.

So those girls were more vulnerable than they seemed. He suspected as much, but to see it happen right in front of him…No wonder they were so against saying anything. But what else could they be hiding?

Was there a chance to change their fate?

Flashback End

Alicia stared at the doorway, long after her sister had left. It was frustrating how much of a…stranger, her sister seemed to her.

"Risa-san…" Tsunayoshi said softly, hesitating as he tried to figure out how to word his question. "You and Hailey-chan talk keep mentioning a time before your two were in the Dimenticato, and I was wondering…were you two always like this? I mean…what was it like before?"

Alicia smiled nostalgically, yet it was also…rueful. "Hailey and I didn't exactly have the perfect childhood. Then again, I suppose the reason I don't like it so much is because of how everyone else treated my sister."

"What do you mean?" The brunet asked softly.

The raven girl harrumphed. "Our relatives were just a bunch of spiteful pigs. The only reason they even liked me was because I could do so much. But since Hailey was born abnormal in their eyes, they always treated her horribly. They never said anything near our parents, but we could hear them talking everywhere else. But it was all too obvious how they would shun her. She never got any praise for her rights, but they were always sure to scold her for her faults. But Hailey would never do anything but smile. I never understood how she could do that, so I was mad for her. But even through those smiles, I know she hurt. She would always go to the library whenever our relatives came to visit, saying she had to work on an essay, even when she had already finished her homework. Even when our classmates bullied her, she would keep smiling. She never once has she ever fought back against anyone. No matter how hard they pushed, she would just get back up and keep going."

The boys remained quiet, digesting what they just heard. It explained a small amount of Hailey's personality. However, Tsuna couldn't help but feel like there was something missing…but what?

"Ah!" Basil exclaimed. "I have forgotten to give my gratitude to Hailey-dono for sending me the book of information!"

"Haha! That was Hailey's doing?" Yamamoto asked.

Alicia reached over and flipped through the book. "Yeah, it's her handwriting alright. It's a little different, so it must have been by her older self."

"Just how far ahead do you know?" Gokudera gripped.

"We know what we need to," Alicia yawned. She blinked and reached up to press a button on the communication device in her ear. "Ah? Alright then. We'll be there in a few. Ciao."

"What's going on?" Tsuna inquired.

"Shoichi and Spanner are ready to send us to the past to get those Arcobaleno seals," Alicia answered, pushing away from the table and leading the way. 'Still, it's weird. I was sure that Basil appeared after these guys obtained the Arcobaleno seals. But it makes more sense like this, after all, Shoichi said that everyone who traveled to the future needed to be there. So we couldn't just go to the past without Basil. Ah, who cares.'

After checking on Reborn, Shoichi turned to the rest of the group. "Have you recuperated already?" He was relieved when they nodded.

"Shoichi," Spanner called out. "I'm done with the final check. Everything's normal."

"Thank you, Spanner," the red head said with a grateful smile. But he turned back to the younger group with a serious gaze. "I guess you will be pretty troubled when you return to the past. I hope you won't mention anything about this era." The man relayed the rest of the information they needed to know and greeted the two girls when they entered. "So everyone, are you ready?"

"Y-Yes," Tsuna confirmed, turning toward the others to make sure it was alright, his gaze lingering on Yamamoto a bit longer as he remembered the teen's predicament. Thankfully, Yamamoto noticed and tried his best to placate the others.

"Okay, let's set off now." Shoichi motioned for the twins to step forward. "You two know what to do, right?"

"Aray, aray. No one said I had to work," Alicia gripped.

Hailey sighed and smiled a bit. "But our flames are necessary, so there's no use arguing."

The two stepped forward and placed a hand on the machine.

"Hold up, there's one more thing," Shoichi interjected. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small black box. He tossed it to the white haired girl.

However, Hailey barely touched it before tossing it right on back to the other. "That's okay, why don't you continue to hold onto that."

Shoichi frowned and threw the box again. "Hailey-chan, you told me this was essential to your duties."

"I'm good. I've changed my mind," Hailey argued, volleying the small container back toward the red head.

"You said not to trust your arguments," Shoichi disputed.

"Well now I'm saying that I really don't need it," Hailey refuted.

But Shoichi tossed it right back. "You know this is important, even if you didn't tell me what for."

"Hot potato!" Hailey flicked the small cube in a random direction.

There was an insufferable sigh and the box was caught by a new person. "Hailey, just take the damn box and make up with it already."

"But, but," Hailey pouted. "Danielle, that thing hates me."

The violet eyed woman scowled and shoved the box into the younger girl's palm. "If you two don't make up by the time I next see you, there's going to be hell to pay."

Hailey hissed and held the box away from her persons by her other hand, the other one bleeding a little. "Look! See! He's still mad at me! And I don't want to work with him either! He's a bully and does whatever he wants!"

"Gee, I wonder who that reminds me of," Danielle grumbled. She turned back to the red haired technician, ignoring the younger version of her late boss. "Go ahead and get them out of here."

Shoichi nodded a little hesitantly and turned to the other technician. "Spanner."

"Roger." The blond turned back toward the keyboard and began typing away.

The moment the group appeared in the past, Hailey took off. She only had a week to complete the first part of her plan. And if she could, she would like to start on the other part as well.

It was an impossible task.

Everything Reborn had just told them. If it came down to a fight, there was no possible way for them to succeed. And if that happened, then their future was doomed.

Was it even worth trying?

Even Skull, who has been bullied and pushed around by Reborn during every meeting, was actually a whole lot stronger than they could have imagined.

"Don't worry Juudaime!" Gokudera interrupted his friend's musing. "We'll be able to get through this! I know you'll be able to overcome whatever the Arcobaleno throw at us!"

"Besides," Yamamoto added, "we can always ask Risa and Hailey for help!"

"No go," Alicia replied bluntly.

"What!" Gokudera snapped. "Why not!"

"This is a battle for Vongola Decimo and his guardians, and I am not one of Vongola Decimo's guardians. Therefore, the task you give me is invalid and won't be accepted by any of the other Arcobaleno as well." Alicia flipped through the channels of the TV in boredom, not finding anything particularly interesting at the moment.

"Then tell us what you know about the trials so that we can prepare!" The silver haired boy demanded.

"Gokudera-kun," Tsuna admonished lightly.

"That is also an unacceptable task," Alicia reminded the group stoically. "Future affairs are meant to remain future affairs, dealt during the given time and place. The repercussions for telling you something out of place may end up worsening your position even more than where you currently stand, and I don't want to have to clean up that mess. But if you continue to be so persistent, why don't you try asking Hailey. Maybe she has something she feels is alright to tell you."

"Oh? By the way, where is Hailey?" Yamamoto inquired.

Alicia hummed a little, continuing to flip through the channels. "Beats me. I haven't seen her or David since we got back."

"Then where the hell are we supposed to find them!" Gokudera shouted.

"Try a cell phone and see how far that gets you." Alicia yawned and finally stopped on some random soap opera. "Now if you don't mind, and I don't really care if you do, I'm going to take a nap now."

Tsuna sighed. "Come on guys, let's go see if we can find Hailey-chan."

The trio trooped out of the apartment complex and were about to head toward the town center when Reborn jumped out from seemingly nowhere, landing painfully on his student's skull and forcing said student's head into the ground.

"Reborn! What was that for!" Tsuna demanded the moment he was able to sit up.

The hitman smirked. "A boss should always be aware of impending attacks."

Tsuna sighed. He really should have seen that one coming.

"In any case," Reborn continued, "I know where you can find Hailey. She boarded a plane to come back to Japan a few hours ago and should be heading toward one of her alternative residences in Namimori."

"Alternate residences! How many does she have!" Tsuna exclaimed.

Reborn smirked. "A smart assassin always has more than one household to throw off any trails and to fool the enemy. But I happen to know just the house she'll be returning to. If you hurry, you'll be able to catch her just as she arrives, which will give you a better chance to discuss your problem."

The sky guardian's features switched from that of shock to one of determination. Their best chance was to get information from one of the twins, and if Reborn was helping, then maybe he agreed too.

The trio raced to the given location, coming up to house on the outskirts of town in time to hear a crash and see a tree fall over. The three gaped in shock, sharing a look of shock before racing forward to see what was the matter. Had they arrived even a second earlier, they would have been able to catch sight of the black box animal. However, their arrival only gave them the chance to see the Dimenticato boss holding Hailey up in the air, his hand around her neck and his dark unforgiving gaze trained on the bloodied and battered girl.

David dropped the girl, who landed on the ground in a crumpled heap, breathing hard. "You lost control again. At this rate, those flames will consume you and your friends. Your flimsy excuse of control and resolve is pathetic."

Hailey coughed and pushed herself up into a sitting position. "I know."

"Get up," the man commanded. "We're going again."

The girl managed to push herself, though she wobbled dangerously. "Not here. I don't want spectators."

David's gaze trailed off the girl and over to the four intruders. "Take five. We'll start again after that. Don't take any longer. I don't need to remind you how short on time you are."

Hailey nodded once, just managing to catch the damp cloth tossed her direction. She spared a tired glance toward the concern gazes of the group before stumbling over to the house and leaning against it's cool wall. "You're supposed to be discussing the upcoming trials, so why did you lead all of them over here, Reborn?"

"Hailey-chan, are you alright?" Tsuna interrupted. He could tell that the girl was pushing past the brink of exhaustion.

The girl's lip quirked up for a short smile. "I told you my training was harsh, didn't I?"

"But even so…" The brunet trailed off, unable to believe that anyone would push themselves through a life or death battle in the name of training.

The girl shifted a little so that she could move to another cool spot. "We only have one week before going back, and the only one I can really train with properly is alive in this time, so I have to push myself past my current limits. I need to have ten years' worth of training by the time we leave and I already knew the consequences of asking for this training, so you don't have to worry. I'll be sure to come out alive…I have to."

"What about Alicia," Reborn chipped in. "Doesn't she need the same type of training?"

"Ah, well…our situations are a little different," Hailey mused. "I need my body to catch up to my mind, and then there's…" The young woman's eyes glazed over in thought. Suddenly she blinked and looked back up. "It doesn't really matter for your situation. You came here to ask about the Arcobaleno trials, yes?"

Tsuna frowned a little. It was obvious that the white haired girl was trying to lead the conversation down another direction.

Yamamoto laughed a little in an attempt to ease the tense atmosphere. "That right. Haha! Do you know anything that could help us?"

Hailey hummed and tapped her chin. "Don't get too worked up if you can help it. It'll work out if you allow you follow your beliefs." She smiled a little. "I'll try to check up on you guys from time to time. Good luck!"

It was an unmistakable dismissal.

The four said their good-byes and left, heading back to Tsuna's place for a late lunch. The trip back was unusually silent for the three teens, each of them caught up in their own thoughts and similar concerns.

Why did returning to future seem even worse than before?

Reviews are lovely~!