"A woman has two smiles that an angel might envy, the smile that accepts a lover before words are uttered, and the smile that lights on the first born babe, and assures it of a mother's love."

- Thomas Chandler Haliburton

Chapter 2

"I won't say it again."

Nana glared at Reborn who took the time to observe Tsuna's sleeping form. The brunet occasionally twitched and mumbled incoherent phrases before sinking back into his slumber.

"It was Nono's decision," Reborn said calmly.

"Iemitsu has the power to refuse it! Nono knows about his condition and Tsuna is incapable of taking the title. Find someone else."

Reborn placed his cup down on the table with an almost firm thunk. "Xanxus is clearly out of the question and two of Nono's sons are dead. Federico is mentally unstable at the moment and shows no signs of recovering. Tsuna is the only legitimate person close enough to the Vongola's blood without any of these issues. Asperger's Syndrome won't be a problem if you raise him right."

"Are you saying that I didn't raise him correctly?" Nana said with a glare. "Look, Reborn, I understand the problems going on but this is my son. I am his mother and I won't allow for this to happen. Tell Nono to look elsewhere."

"I did not mean about your methods of raising him. I'm inferring to my methods on shaping him into a mafia boss."

"I won't accept this! Never."

Reborn nearly broke the cup he held in his hand, but kept his composure. "Nono's decision is final. I am here on his orders and I will train Tsuna to become a mafia boss. I don't expect you to treat me with hospitality but I do expect you to not interfere with our training. If you don't abide with what I just said, I will not hesitate to kill him."

Nana clenched her hands into fists and her eyes practically glowed in fury. "Leave."

"That wasn't - " He whipped out Leon who took the form of a gun and aimed it at the sleeping brunet. " - an empty threat."

Nana immediately moved to cover Tsuna and glared at Reborn with her eyes ablaze in fury. "You will never take him away from me. He is my son."

Suddenly, Tsuna snapped his eyes open and looked around frantically as if trying to find something. He laid his brown orbs on Reborn who seemed to stare back at him all the same.

"Reborn," Tsuna said slowly, testing the name on his tongue. "Reborn."

"Tsu-kun, why don't you go upstairs to your room and - "

It all happened too quickly; glass suddenly shattered from the window and blood pooled from Tsuna's shoulder who stared at the wound, stunned.

Nana shrieked and pushed him down when another bullet was shot. "Tsu-kun, are you okay? Tsu-kun!"

The brunet looked at her in a daze. "It hurts, Mama... Kiss it away. It hurts."

Nana held him tightly in her arms and crawled behind the sofa. She tore off her arm sleeve and wrapped it firmly around Tsuna's wound. His blood soaked her trembling hands as she cradled him while whispering comforting words in his ear.

Reborn raised his arm and took aim, pulling the trigger. He shot two more times and, with each shot, Nana flinched. How many were there?

She glanced at the phone and immediately picked it up, dialing a number while holding Tsuna closely to her chest.

"What is your emergency?" a man said on the other line.

Before Nana could speak another word, pain shot up her hand and she dropped the phone to the ground. She gaped at her bleeding hand before sending a weak glare at Reborn. "What the hell are you doing?"

Reborn's small lips suddenly twisted into a large, cheek-splitting grin. "My job, sweetie."

Nana watched in horror as the baby contorted into a young woman with short red hair and green eyes. The woman took out a gun from her holster and aimed it at Tsuna. "Sleep tight, darling."

"Tsuna, run!" Nana screamed as she shielded her son.

Tsuna gaped as she pushed him away. His back slammed against the foot of the stairs and he watched with wide eyes as blood pooled from his mother's limp body. "Mama…Mama…"

The red-haired woman scoffed as she kicked Nana to the side. Tsuna's eyes were still trained on his mother. His mind suddenly collapsed as it accepted the unthinkable, the impossible. "Mama!"

He tried to run to his mother but the woman slammed her leg against his chest, making him fly across the house. He screamed as pain shot up his shoulder; however, all he saw was Mama.

"Oh, dear, stay still, won't you?" the woman said with a smirk, slamming her heavy boot on Tsuna's wounded shoulder. "There." She cocked her gun and pulled the trigger.

Before the bullet reached her target, a sudden explosion of bright orange flames surrounded Tsuna's body as he screamed. His cry was mixed with agony and anger, and his eyes narrowed, gleaming an orange color.

The woman barely had the time to dodge his fist; a strong gust of wind blew against her cheek. She pointed her gun at Tsuna but his fist was faster. He was too fast, inhumanely so.

She could barely register what happened next when her head slammed against the wall. Tsuna dragged her face along it, digging her head deeper until a long jagged trail was left behind. Chunks of debris fell to the ground and dust billowed in the air. Tsuna threw the woman to the ground and stared into her eyes blankly but curiously.

"What happens when I do this?" Tsuna whispered, enclosing his flaming hands around her throat. "Will this get Mama to wake up?"

The flames suddenly burst, growing higher and higher, before it engulfed the woman whole as Tsuna continued to choke her with his newfound strength.

The woman gasped and heaved and screamed and thrashed, but Tsuna never stopped until everything burned, until she burned.

And it continued. The inferno raged on and consumed the whole house, leaving nothing in its wake. Only a boy and his mother were spared.

"Mama," Tsuna mumbled, rocking his mother's body in his arms. "Mama, wake up…Mama, wake up…"

In his ears, he did not hear the crackling of the flames or the sirens; all he heard was a faint melody overlapping with his mother's scream.

A/N I apologize for the late update and for such a short chapter! I was a bit stumped on this one and had multiple routes, but I decided on this one.

Thank you for the reviews and favorites! Much appreciated!

Thank you for reading. See you in the next chapter!