"You know, some people say it's the quietest people who have the loudest minds."

Reborn could read minds. This wasn't a particular secret that he hid. After all, whenever people screeched about how could Reborn possibly know about that, Reborn always truthfully answered that he could read minds.

It wasn't his fault no one really believed him.

So, Reborn could read minds. It was a useful skill to have. Very few people actually said what was on their mind, pretending to be people they weren't, using a smile to hide what they were really feeling. It made his job much easier, without having to resort to digging for information with the likes of torture or the potential of alerting his target.

Minds were fickle things. His ability wasn't infallible. Some people's bias colored their thoughts, assumptions twisted them more. Others had learned, subconsciously, how to keep their thoughts private. Artists were a treat to find, the burst of creativity they held was like listening to a beautiful symphony. Some people were loud with their thoughts, shouting and raging at the world. Some people were quiet as if they barely dare to think such a thought.

Meeting Tsunayoshi was… fascinating.

Reborn wasn't expecting much when Nono requested him for this job. Reports told him of the quiet shy boy who didn't have any friends, had a crush on a school idol, clumsy, and not very bright. His observations of Tsuna more or less confirmed the reports. But that all changed upon Reborn walking through the front door.

Tsunayoshi's mind was loud. It was frantic and desperate and for a quick moment Reborn assumed this was the result of not speaking his mind when he wanted to. Part of it was, Tsuna was largely ignored by everyone. No one wanted to hear his thoughts and opinions. But the other part…

Tsuna's mind was inquisitive, creative, and rather bright.

'I wished Hibari-senpai would take notice to what Mochida-senpai is doing. Kyoko-chan only puts up with Mochida's advances because she doesn't have the power to actually stop him. Her oblivious airhead act is more of a defense whenever Hana can't stop them.'

'This is stupid, Gokudera! Why are we fighting?! Reborn spent all day yesterday telling me the only reason why I'm the Decimo Candidate is because I'm the last blood heir. That would imply something is tied to blood otherwise they would have picked a more competent person to be the next Decimo instead of a stupid clumsy civilian kid!'

'Why are you asking me, Yamamoto? I'm Dame-Tsuna. The best advice I have is the same advice everyone keeps telling me, try harder. It hasn't worked for me, but maybe it will work for you.'

'Lambo is having nightmares again. I should offer to let him sleep with me tonight.'

Tsuna's thoughts didn't match his outward reactions. Not even the slightest. They were loud, projecting his thoughts. They were intuitive, a rare insight, that Reborn didn't think Tsuna had. There was an understanding of people, especially the more he got to know them, the quiet observations.

There was the way where Tsuna kept peace, trying to maintain a certain status quo and going with what everyone else wanted. There was the way Tsuna feebly protested, trying to express himself but ultimately failing, expecting people not to listen. Something his friends accidentally reinforced with the way Gokudera disregards Tsuna's half heard pleas not to be addressed as Juudaime.

There was the way he belittled himself. A lifetime of bullying and neglect left him with such a negative impact on his thoughts. Reborn heaped on as much direct and forward praise as he could, trying to foster and stabilize Tsuna's sense of self.

It wasn't working. Tsuna grew more comfortable, could easily call Gokudera and Yamamoto friends, but he still wasn't expressing himself, his thoughts or feelings. Tsuna didn't dare express his opinions, which was why after the fifth time this week that they had ended up in Takesushi, and Tsuna with a plate of tako nigiri that Tsuna didn't even like, Reborn had enough.

So, Reborn tried a different method.

'Why am I have such a hard time with math? This is so irritating. It always has been.'

Reborn sat Tsuna down and slowly explained the math problems to him, patiently repeating as Tsuna struggled to understand. No bombs, no bullets, no pressure.

Tsuna looked at him warily, unsure of what Reborn was doing. 'Reborn is acting weird.'

Reborn mentally snorted. That was possibly the first time Tsuna's thoughts matched his outward reactions.

Slowly, Reborn forged confidence into Tsuna, becoming the support that Tsuna had desperately needed. If Tsuna wouldn't express what he truly needed or wanted, then Reborn would simply have to abuse his ability to the fullest extent and fill in the missing holes. In return, Tsuna relaxed, releasing a certain tension Reborn hadn't even noticed that he was carrying. Reborn took an extra step and started pounding the lesson of observation into each of the Guardians. If Tsuna wouldn't speak his mind, then he would teach his Guardians to become near mind readers because anything less would get them killed.

Reborn considered it a success when one day out of the blue, Gokudera stopped referring to Tsuna as Juudaime and only as Tsuna-sama. Followed by the time when Hibari stopped mid-fight and dragged Tsuna off to Ryohei before proceeding to clean the school out of Tsuna's bullies. Or even the time, Yamamoto had asked Tsuna where they should eat and didn't let Tsuna deflect him with 'wherever you want' answers. They could be taught to hear what their boss wasn't saying.

One morning, Reborn walked into the kitchen to find Tsuna at the counter, oddly focused. As he sat down at the table, Reborn caught one of Tsuna's more quieter thoughts.

'Thank you, Reborn for always hearing my thoughts.'

Reborn looked at his student's back. As always Tsuna's thoughts didn't match his outward reaction. In fact, Reborn wasn't sure Tsuna even knew he was in the kitchen, not with the way Tsuna was so focused.

"Tsuna," Reborn called out.

Tsuna turned, a cup of espresso in hand. "Reborn," Tsuna said. Sliding the cup over, Tsuna took a seat across from him.

Reborn accepted the cup, taking a sip. Exactly how he liked it. He looked back at Tsuna, probing at Tsuna's thoughts.

"Thank you," Tsuna said, repeating his thoughts. There was knowing reflected in his brown eyes. 'No one was interested in hearing my thoughts, but you always do and you don't ignore them.'

It wasn't a secret that Reborn could read minds, but no one had ever believed it before. Despite his ability, somewhere along the way, Tsuna had made the shift from a skeptical joke to full belief. Fascinating. It seemed even after almost a year of knowing each other, Tsuna was still capable of surprising him. Reborn grinned as he took another sip of the espresso.

"You're welcome, Tsuna."

I wanted to explore more Reborn's mind reading abilities and the idea that people rarely listen to Tsuna. It's always the quiet ones right? Despite his screeching, Tsuna always come across to me as quiet.

Please leave a review on your way out. :3