And here's the next chapter~

Chapter 11

"Hey, check this out," said Azzuro, pointing down a gravely pathway. "This looks like fun, eh, Princessa?"

They were standing outside the Vongola Mansion, on a side of the property Luca hadn't been to before. She was sitting on her Uncle's shoulders; at first she didn't know what he was talking about, but then she noticed. A playground.

Azzuro walked briskly down the pathway; Luca tried not to squirm too much, but she was excited when she saw that not only was there a playground, but children too. She hadn't been around other kids much lately and the chance of playing excited her. After a few more steps, Azzuro helped Luca down because she was fidgeting too much. Together, they walked the rest of the way to the playground.

The playground was filled with sand and had more slides, swings, and climbing things than any park Luca had seen before. Running here and there were at least five different kids. As Luca came to a stop at the edge of the playground, one of the children stopped and ran over to them. She was dark skinned with reddish orange hair and wild green eyes—a strange combination; as soon as she got close enough, she tackled Azzuro with a war cry. Luca flinched, staring with surprise and confusion.

"Zuro!" cried the girl, her arms around his neck. Azzuro laughed and struggled to put the girl down; he was grinning. Luca immediately felt a pang of jealousy; who was this girl who hugged her Uncle as if he was hers? Glowering, Luca sidled over to Azzuro's side, reaching for his hand protectively. He didn't see her hand and instead placed it on the strange girl's head, much the same way he would for Luca. Shock rang through her, and then anger. Feeling tears come to her eyes, she sprang away from Azzuro and ran into the playground, looking for a place to hide. Azzuro noticed and called after her, but she was already diving under one of the playground structures and trying to get as far out of his reach as she could.

It was cold and the sand felt damp, but Luca didn't care. She wiped at her eyes, feeling betrayed. Did Azzuro have other nieces then? And if so, did he like that girl more? She sniffed loudly, wishing she had Cosimo with her.

"Hi," said a voice behind her. Luca jumped, hitting her head on the playground structure above her head. Holding the sore spot she looked at the source of the sound. A boy a little older than her was crouched at the far end, grinning. Luca stared at him, surprised, hurting and upset. He didn't stop grinning. "Who are you? You look new."

The boy's name was Nikos. Somehow he managed to talk Luca out from under the structure and into the sunlight, although it was on the opposite side of the playground, which she was glad for. She didn't want to see her Uncle being so friendly to another kid.

Nikos introduced himself before Luca had even asked his name. He seemed a little forceful, but friendly. She liked him already. He said he was a son of one the 'allied famiglia' whatever that meant, and that he came to the Vongola house often. It seemed that he had a kind of accent, though Luca didn't know what. He seemed to be a pretty normal boy, regardless. He had a shaggy mess of mud brown hair that framed a chubby face with bright golden eyes. His clothes were a little dirty and torn, and he had a few scratches on his cheeks that looked as if they came from tree climbing (Luca would know). He seemed fun. He wanted her to play a game with him, but Luca kept glancing back at Azzuro's direction, distracted.

"Is that your dad?" asked Nikos, suddenly climbing up to sit atop the railing on the playground structure. She attempted to join him, climbing almost as easily as he had. Azzuro was still on the other side of the playground, talking to someone who at first Luca didn't recognize, but after a moment realized was Azzuro's friend Calder. His scar was visible even from as far away as he was; she wondered how he got it. "Is the blonde guy your dad? Hello?"

Luca blinked at Nikos in confusion, then shook her head. "He's my Uncle." Nikos nodded, as if satisfied with her answer. Out of nowhere, the orange haired girl popped her head over the opposite side of the playground structure.

"That makes you Luca, then, huh?" she said a bit loudly. Scrambling up and over, she kneeled next to them and held her hand out to Luca in greeting. "Mayu Lapaglia," she announced. Luca didn't take her hand, still not liking the girl who had hugged Azzuro. As if knowing, she grinned. "Don't worry, that guy with the scar is my Daddy." So she was Calder's daughter then; well, it didn't excuse her from hugging Azzuro like that. But Luca felt a little relieved, because it meant (as far as she knew) she was his only niece. "So, let's have her meet the others," declared Mayu, before taking Luca's arm and dragging her off.

"Bam, you're dead!" shouted Nikos, pointing at the only other boy, Cesare. From what Luca could tell, he didn't really like, let alone know how to play. He looked at Nikos the way Serafina Nerrezza had looked at her—with contempt.

"I'm not playing your stupid game," said the dark haired boy. His face was shaped as if he were forever pouting, which Luca wouldn't be surprised if that were really the case. Cesare crossed his arms over his chest as if he were important and declared, "I want to play…Castle."

"But we're playing Cops and Mafioso," replied Mayu, "Even those two," she gestured at the other two children, "want to play that. You only want to play so you can be King! And no one else wants to play Castle, so stop being a baby!"

"I'm not!" he snapped, looking like he was about to cry. Mayu turned around to the other two children, both girls. They were introduced to Luca as Ursula and Noella Casale. They were siblings, Ursula, the pale and dark haired one with freckles over her nose being the older sister, and Noella the shy, lighter haired and plain featured younger sister. Noella was younger than Luca by about two years, and kept putting her thumb in her mouth. Ursula was a little older than Luca, and kept scowling and pulling Noella's hand away from her mouth. Nikos was the eldest, being nine, and Mayu was only a year older than Luca. So far, they hadn't been able to play, because Cesare kept disagreeing with the game they wanted and failed in getting them to play what he wanted. Luca wasn't liking him very much.

"I'll be a Mafioso boss, and Luca…you should be a cop!" said Nikos, trying to initiate the game. Luca grinned and made her fingers into a gun shape; holding her hands out at him, she pretended to aim.

"Okay, then you'd better run!"

Not too long after they started playing did Azzuro suddenly start calling for Luca. She ignored him, instead tackling Mayu as she tried to put imaginary handcuffs on her wrists. The two of them rolled in the sand, squealing and shrieking until Nikos jumped on the both of them shouting 'vengeance is mine!' and pretending to shoot Luca in the chest. Luca cried out, clutching her chest as she fell backwards, grinning. Noella screamed and ran to her, tears running down her cheeks. The little girl apparently didn't understand playing dead, and Ursula didn't like that Luca made her cry, intentional or not. She stomped up to Luca as she was getting to her feet and pushed her; Luca fell backwards into the sand, her grin fading as she realized it wasn't in play.

Mayu jumped between Ursula and Luca, scowling and calling Ursula a name that Luca only used a few times when she was really upset. That made Ursula even madder and she tried to hit Mayu. Within a minute the two of them were screaming at each other and pulling at each other's hair and clothes. Nikos tried to stop them, but Noella began sobbing and clung to his side. Helpless, he looked at Luca for help; she looked at Cesare, but he was watching coolly from a distance. It was up to Luca.

At first, she simply tried to keep them apart, but Ursula attacked Luca and the two of them tumbled around in a tangled, yelling mess. Mayu jumped on Ursula's back to save Luca, and Luca started to jump back into the fray, but all of a sudden, she was lifted into the air by a pair of strong hands. Confused, she flailed, only to be met with the stern voice of Azzuro. Guilty, she let herself go limp in his arms, refusing to look at him. Instead she looked over to see Calder holding Mayu in a similar fashion, though Mayu was snarling and still trying to get at Ursula, who was making faces from the embrace of an almost eerily identical-but-older version of herself. Noella was clinging to the Ursula-older-look-alike and Luca figured it had to be their mother.

"What is wrong with you kids?" asked the lady in an uncomfortably high-pitched voice. She put her hand on the top of Ursula's head, "Can't you play nice?" Her dark eyes flashed to Calder, then to Azzuro. "You men need to reign in your girls better. They need to be raised as proper ladies, not urchins."

"She started it!" accused Mayu. Calder silenced her with a look. Mayu just scowled deeper. Ursula smirked at both her and Luca, before her mother led her and Noella away.

Azzuro let out a whistling sigh and gave Calder a look; some sort of secret exchange went between the two men, but Luca didn't know what. After a moment more, Azzuro placed Luca on the ground but didn't completely let her go. Instead, he crouched down in front of her and put his hands on her shoulders.

"What was that all about, Princessa?" he asked in a quiet, but displeased voice. "Why were you fighting that smug little…girl?" Apparently he was going to say something other than girl, but relented. And apparently he hadn't been paying attention. Luca frowned and tried to explain what happened, but Azzuro seemed to be only half listening. He nudged her back towards the playground where Nikos and Cesare were waiting. "Just try and behave, okay? No fights." She frowned at him, but nodded, before looking at Mayu who was just barely being released by an exasperated Calder. Mayu looked at Luca, gave her a nod of some kind, and the two of them rejoined the boys.

"I can't say I'm proud that you were fighting that girl," said Azzuro, a couple hours later as he carried her back to the mansion. "But I'm glad you held your own against her, even if technically it was two on one… But try not to fight with other kids like that, eh?"

"Okay," replied Luca, her hands gently resting on the top of his head as she sat balanced on his shoulders. He didn't seem to completely believe her, but at least she wasn't punished. She smirked a little at his compliment.

"So," he said in a lighter tone. "What shall we get for dinner, my birthday girl?"

Grinning, she replied. "Pizza?"

He bounced her as they made their way to the kitchen. "Pizza it is then!"

Azzuro placed the order with the kitchen staff, who did not seem to keen on letting him in, and then he carried Luca off towards their room. When they got there, Azzuro had Luca climb down and stand between him and the door. "Alright, princessa, I want you to cover your eyes and walk in, okay?" He asked. Luca nodded and covered her eyes with her hands. He gently led her into the room. "Keep them covered," he said, closing the door behind them with a soft click.

She could hear strange sounds, but she didn't know what they were.

"Alright, you can look now, Happy Birthday!"

Luca opened her eyes and stared at their room. It was still the way it was before, except there were now shelves built around the head of her bed and they were filled with books, toys, and a couple new stuffed animals. Built right out of the bottom part of the shelves on both sides of the bed were nightstands with drawers built in. On one of them was a small lamp, and the other had a large pad of paper and various coloring tools.

That on its own was amazing, but it wasn't all. In front of the mini-fridge was a folding table, on top of which was…something. Luca walked towards it curiously. It was vaguely round shaped, covered in chocolate frosting, and topped with pink blobs with green arms (roses?—she wasn't sure). A candle in the shape of the number 6 sat haphazardly and half melted in the center.

"What is this?" she asked, a little horrified. She glanced at Azzuro for an answer and flinched at his hurt expression. Immediately she tried to cover her horror, "You made me a cake? It's so cool!" That seemed to satisfy him; she now understood just what he had been doing in the kitchen the day before. And why the cook had been crying and cursing.

Pulling a lighter from his pocket, Azzuro lit the candle.

"Alright Luca, make a wish!"

Luca wished Azzuro had just bought a cake. Two hours later, both she and her Uncle were moaning and groaning as they crawled around on the carpet with the most horrendous stomachaches. It wasn't the pizza. It could only be thanks to the disaster of a cake.

"This is worse than my worst hangover," Azzuro said into the carpet, looking very much like he was dying. Luca felt his pain, and then felt worse, and started to say as much, but...

In a flash, she was running into the bathroom with her hands clamped over her mouth.

The next morning was of little improvement. Luca still felt sick to her stomach, but otherwise was fine. Azzuro on the other hand… He was lying in bed, sweaty and shivering. Every now and again he would either sneeze, have a coughing fit, or blow his nose like a trumpet, sometimes a mixture of all three in random sequences. The floor around his bed was littered with used tissues.

"Is there a doctor?" Luca asked, attempting to sweep up the tissues with a magazine; her other hand was clenched around her middle. "Uncle, what do I do?" He couldn't get out of bed; earlier, he had tried that—and ended up sliding onto the floor, dizzy. It had taken their combined strength to get him back in bed—not that Luca could help all that much.

"Phone…" he moaned, holding out his hand. Luca dropped the magazine and handed him the phone; Azzuro had to dial three times, the first two being misdials. "Get me…S-Shamal…" he croaked into the mouth piece. After a moment, a faint voice could be heard on the other end. Azzuro coughed a few times, and then: "I need your help. No, come on…the kid's sick too… I think it's food poisoning… Yeah, my fault… No, don't do that… Please? Yeah, same room… Okay."

Half an hour later, there was a knock on the door. Luca staggered to it, fiddled with the knob, and finally opened it. A man was standing in the doorway, staring down at her a little horrified. Luca guess she didn't look much better than her Uncle.

"You poor girl," he said, attempting to help her to her bed. Before Luca quite knew what was happening, the man was putting a stethoscope to her chest, listening to her heart beat. Then he took her temperature. Luca stared at him, not sure how to react. The man was around her Uncle's age, with wavy brown hair and stubble. He smiled at her, making her look away.

"Does your tummy hurt?" he asked. Luca looked up at him and nodded. "Does your throat hurt?" He touched the both sides of her neck, just below her jaw; Luca jerked away and shook her head no. "Hmm. Have you been coughing?" Again, no. After a few more questions and a look at her throat and ears, he stood back. "Well, it looks like she doesn't have the worst of it," he said.

"Worst…of what?" asked Azzuro. The man glanced back at him and shrugged. "There's been a bug going around. The Ninth's son got it, and a whole bunch of others. Looks like you got it too…" The man turned back to Luca and tried to put his hand on the top of her head like Azzuro liked to; Luca didn't let him. The man chuckled. "This one here's lucky. If you're showing the symptoms, it means she should have already caught it…but other than leftovers from your so called cooking, she seems healthy enough. She'll be fine. But I'll leave some ginger candies and vitamins, just in case."

He pulled out a handful of strange looking candy and a bottle of pills from his bag and put them on Azzuro's bedside table. Then he started to leave. Azzuro moaned and sat more upright in bed.

"Shamal, aren't you going to do something about me?" he coughed miserably. The man, Shamal turned around and stared at him incredulously.

"Ah that." He shrugged. "You know I only treat beautiful women and adorable little girls, and you my friend, are neither." Opening the door, he glanced back. "I'll tell you this much; as long you don't overdo it, and you drink water, you'll be fine." His eyes moved to Luca. "As for you, little one, I will treat you anytime. Ciao!" And with that, he was gone almost as quickly as he came.

Azzuro moaned and covered his face with his hands.

The next day, Azzuro was a little better, but couldn't head out to work. But that didn't stop him from making sure Luca was tutored. Sometime in the late morning, Colonnello came to their room and picked Luca up, rather than the usual, which was Azzuro dropping her off in the usual place—a room used solely for schooling. He didn't seem very sympathetic towards Azzuro's state, and he didn't stick around long enough for Azzuro to start chewing him out again over his style of teaching. Instead, he led Luca away quickly, carrying his clipboard, water bottle, and grin like usual.

The day seemed to go on at a slower pace than usual. Luca's schooling started with math, followed by economics, and then some review of the previous day's work. Somehow, Luca managed to get through it all without a tantrum—Colonnello seemed pleased.

"You're doing well," he commented at the end of the day. "Keep it up, kiddo." Luca felt a little proud; she kept up with Colonnello as he led them back to her and Azzuro's room. Luca's poor Uncle was still there, snoring loudly. A bottle of flu medicine was still clutched in his hand; as soon as Luca opened the door, he snorted and sat upright, half asleep but in defense mode, the bottle held in his hand defensively. Colonnello smirked, following Luca in and shutting the door behind him.

"Feeling any better?" he asked, "Drink more water and you'll definitely get better!" He held up his trademark water bottle as if to prove it. Azzuro just blinked sleepily at him. Unfazed, the cheerful blonde man made his way to the door. "Well, I'll go then. Err… Tomorrow the Ninth is wanting to go over Luca's flame training… You should probably stick around, eh?"

By the time Azzuro woke up enough to comprehend, Colonnello was already gone.

Taking a swig of the flu medicine, Azzuro made a face before looking at Luca. She was turning on the TV to an afternoon cartoon marathon. Feeling his eyes, she looked back at him.

"That should be interesting, eh princessa?"

Hmm... What do you think so far? I might be a little rusty... I didn't quite like how I ended this chapter, but I didn't want it to get too long. If I had moved on to the upcoming event-the flame training-this chapter would have been doubled, and I myself don't like reading chapters that are too long... I dunno.

Until the next time~!