Author's notes- I'm back! Thank you everyone for being so patient with me, and for the favorites and follows. They were a big motivation that kept me writing despite my horrendously packed schedule. I also sincerely apologize for not keeping that promise in the bonus chapter, to update before my winter break was over. I caught a cold, and there were midterms, then in the beginning of February I had my competition, but those are just excuses. I still should have updated. The good news is, now I have more free time, and that means faster updates. ( Or likely, who knows what school will throw at me. )

Disclaimer-I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn

Warning-Light yaoi (boy x boy) You have to squint to see it, but it's there.

Well, enjoy!

January, year 20xx 20:59

Tsuna gently shook the pan by its handle. Steam rushed toward his face as he stirred the complicated concoction with a spatula, with his knee he twisted the knob until only the cyan section of the flame remained. He watched the substance bubble and sprinkled the last pinch of salt before scooping the finished dish into a bowl. A chunk of tomato was stabbed with a fork, and when he decided that the vegetables were tender enough he turned the stove completely off. The edges were brunt where the two metals met.

He untied the knot behind his neck. The apron that was wrapped around his waist limped, finding its way into his arms. He folded the cloth into a block and did a haste check on his appearance.

Walking into a formal gathering with flour smeared on his noses didn't seem very polite. He was in a suit too, but if he had to answer truthfully, he doubt the family would mind even if he had raw eggs dripping from his hair. The material was all black except for a single orange line that ran from his left shoulder down to the cuff. A golden tie fell on top of his revealed shirt, on the bottom of the triangle was an outline of a flower. The petals were slanted to give the impression of a blooming. Judging from the arrangement, it was likely a jasmine. He straightened his attire, and for the fifteenth time fumbled with the buttons to make sure they were connected correctly.

" Hey . . ." Adelheid started, slapping the male encouragingly in the back. " There's no need to be so tensed."

Tsuna lowered his shoulders, which were hunched from the sudden impact and scratched his cheek timidly.

" It just habit I think, and I'm not use to wearing these. Maybe that's why I'm so nervous." He rotated his wrist. The lush fabric was reserved for rare occasions-definitely not something he brings out on a daily basis.

"You look fine to me."

" You think so?" He asked, doing a spin.

" I do." She scooped the bowl from the counter.

Her dress was navy blue, lace covered her shoulders, leaving them practically bare. There was a cut starting a few inches above her knees, but a crises-cross of ribbons hid her skin. Tsuna thought she looked lovely. A sloppy soup stain was better to be avoided.

The girl didn't need words to decode the message behind Tsuna's pregnant stare.

"Oh, it's the least I can do." She replied, waving her hand dismissively. " You've done pretty much all the cooking, and this event's specifically for you anyways."

" Specifically for me?"

He didn't understand.

"You'll see."

She approached the archway that separated the dining table from the kitchen. Tsuna followed. The crowd of noises became more evident as they went closer. A mingling of clanking plates and utensils with friendly conversations.

Plastic containers were centered in the middle of the table, within them were clusters of biscuits, roasted mini sausages and a gleaming loaf of buttered bread. The main dishes were next to them, raw but seasoned and prepared to be boiled, seafood, and typical mountain plants like cabbages, carrots, and mushrooms, with the exception of the soup placed by Adelheid seconds later. Bits of crab meat floated to the top of the cardinal liquid.

Koyo and Julie were filling the air with irrelevant insults. Shit.P sat between the squabble and was examining her hair, now dyed an explosive purple. She tugged on a loose strand. Her abstract mug rolled away from her as one of her seat partners stood up abruptly. Kaoru caught it before it reached the floor, rescuing the vassal from becoming another one of Victor's toys. The fox was somewhere between the chairs, under the shadows for a nap. Tsuna was extra careful not to step on Victor's tail as he slipped into an empty seat next to Rauji, who was busy speaking enthusiastically. Enma nodded once in a while to show that he was listening. Adelheid sat beside him, well manner with the grace of a proper lady. The hems of her gown flowed like fluid lice pillars.

The Shimon boss waited until his guardians finished their end sentences and tasks.

He cleared his throat. The effect was immediate.

As their voices died down, only his was audible. He spoke softly. A glass of white Zinfandel in hand as he rose.

" Good evening. It has been a troubling year with this tiresome war demanding our attentions. Our ordinary lives have much to mend to, but it is for a invaluable reason. To bring an end to the detestable Vongola." The red hair's brows narrowed at the mention of their enemy familia, indicating his distaste.

" But that is not why we are gathered here today. We are here to celebrate the New Years, a time of opportunity. I hope we can enjoy ourselves at this moment and rest well for the final battle."

Standing with their arms out stretched, they tipped their glass until the rims touched.

" But before we drink I would like to make an announcement."

" Oh? " Tsuna thought. The pair of crimson orbs were on him. The brunette gulped nervously in response.

" Tsuna. You have been with us for the past months. We disregard your history. You are one of our own, sharing our pain, hatred and happiness without prejudice. An official consent from us was not need, but in respect to you I thought we should ask for your permission." He gave a tranquil smile.

" Won't you let us give you a new home? Join the Shimon Family? "

Tsuna blinked. He glanced around. In the room were familiar faces displaying acceptance. No opponents to the proposal, inviting a stranger into their private circle.

" of course. "

His eager voice could have been mistaken for someone else's. The confidence so unlike him.

Enma finished his speech with the sound of clinking glass.

"Cheers."

Tsuna drowned his portion. A scorching sensation took over the roof of his mouth and as he swallowed he felt the fizzling go down his throat. Alcohol wasn't his favorite. The male preferred juice over carbonated drinks or sparkling wine. Yet, as he grabbed the bottle to pour himself an additional cup, he decided that the intoxicating beverage tasted exceptionally sweet.

It helped the uneasiness thumping on his heart fade a tad.

The entering breeze stole his warmth as he stripped off his expensive garment for a casual jacket. Tsuna hopped on a stool and hooked the latch beneath the glass panels. With the zipper to his neck and the sleeves embracing his knuckles, the cold needle air still managed to break through his cotton barriers, its touches were microscopic bites. The male rubbed his palms together forcefully, in hope of generating friction and in return-some precious heat.

Victor was on his bed, cuddled into a ball. A blob of snow in a mountain of blankets. He smoothed her fur as he lied down beside her, petting the fox from its bent ears to her puffed tail, her flames were almost transparent, and those sharp orbs had lost their intensity. There were no hostile growls as he continued. Tsuna knew that the box weapon was too tired to protest, and her stomach too full to get up. Her scrunched nose was a lazy protest.

When her eyes finally closed and he felt the creature's body rise and fall in steady beats, Tsuna withdrew his hand, but not before tracing his fingers gently over the small bump on her back. A tug on his lips.

He turned to stare at the grayish and fading paint on the ceiling. Bare and peeling, patched repeatedly.

Just like him.

His mouth formed a straight line at the intruding thought. He shoved a pillow out of the way as he got up.

The question nagged him the whole day. In the midst of excitement and chores Tsuna forced himself to ignore it, an itch that marked his skin. It was at dusk's arrival when it consumed him. The urge to confront it was much stronger now that he's alone, free from the fear of someone suspecting his worried expression behind that cheerful facade. It shouldn't be this hard. Really, he didn't have to do anything to answer it-simply a declaration to himself, to forget. To move on.

No one asked to borrow his limbs or a couple healthy pints of blood, but as his mitten winked to him from across the room, he thought someone might as well have.

Those belonged in the trash. Not lying neatly on a desk, washed regularly, and treasured.

He could never toss them.

Nor could he abandon the search for his lost memories to snuggle in the new-found comfort.

Regardless of how secured he was in the family, how fictional his doubts seemed, or how convincing Enma's voice sounded, like the first time they met inside the tiny medical room. The sheets so clear. The air would have tasted bland if he bit into it. And that painful throb in his head reminding him that his place wasn't there. It wasn't his home. Even if it did become his home, there was no guarantee that he wouldn't lose it again.

His steps were awfully heavy. Tsuna blinked when he realized that he had walked in front of his makeshift table, cardboard boxes as legs, without meaning to. His fingers laced between the gaps of the mittens absent-mindlessly. Twenty-seven was a random number to him. It wasn't suppose to be. The unfamiliarity scared him, but why would it matter?

He was a Shimon. Though the others didn't comment on his troubling amnesia issue, he felt a need to make a decision, because if he didn't, still clinging onto the remains of an uncertain past.

Wouldn't that be betrayal?

Tsuna gripped the material, crumpling it into a ball. He almost apologized at the amount of force he put into that one squeeze, but then remembered that they were inanimate objects incapable of telling the difference in pressure. Their crinkles stretched into creases as he slide the them on. A weak breath filtered his lungs, his chest sunk inward.

He tilt his head upward to the ceiling at the crust of the fractured paint, where at one time, he believed, was a whole piece that wasn't split like fragmented islands.

I want to see him.

" So, what would you like to talk about? "

Shelves of uneven books encircled him, their colorful spines dulled by the erosion of time. Through the cracks he saw those burning eyes. Crisp, gold autumn leaves with a metallic luster. The owner of them made his way steadily toward the brunette.

" I assume that I'm unconscious again. . . " Tsuna said unfazed. There was no danger here, and quite frankly he welcomed a distraction. A formal work area settled in the back. A bean bag chair slouched opposing it, the lemon color in strips.

" You've gotten used to this." Came the reply.

" Well, I just saw you this morning. I don't freak out that easily." Tsuna pouted. His reflection smiled, always understanding. Not at all the personification of evil and harsh reality like he claimed he was.

" Shall I make some tea? " A door materialized where one of the shelves had been. An odd sight, considering that there were no support for the frame, but it was far too down his list of things to care. So when the other entered into a checkered lobby that should have been empty air, and the whistling of a tea kettle become surprisingly real, he didn't question his sanity or if his senses failed him and flopped gladly into the over sized bean. A sea of marshmallows submerged him.

He wanted to stay there forever.

" If you would like to rest, I suggest returning to your world. We can talk tomorrow." Tsuna shook his head. He raised himself to receive the cup with weary determination.

But he wanted an answer more.

After almost choking on his drink, and thanking his flame for a napkin, he started with a light conversation to avert the attention from his growing blush.

" You've changed your clothes."

His reflection held his arms up at the comment, clueless to how his suit had miraculously transformed into a military uniform.

" So I did."

" I see that you changed the interior too. " Tsuna blew at the surface of his drink, taking quick sips. The caffeine was doing its job alright.

" Do you like it? It seems to change according to your feelings. I was surprised when these suddenly sprouted." The man chuckled, gesturing vaguely to the tall racks. Tsuna stayed quiet, taking in the thickness of each titles and the wide range of their subjects, their pages were nicked and soiled. Someone had been searching through them in a desperate manner.

" I wonder why these appeared? . . " He heard his reflection ask. Tsuna didn't turn his head, knowing full well that the piercing gaze was on him. He refused to meet it, and instead looked at the bottom of the minuscule lake he had in his hands.

" . . . So what would you like to talk about? "

" I. . before the amnesia, what sort of person was I? " Tsuna asked reluctantly, not able to articulate the swirls of emotions.

" Generous, grateful, worrisome, and forgiving, not much different than you are now."

" And. . did I have any friends? What were my parents like? Did I have a job-what occupation was it?" He tried again.

" You had friends, many of them who are loyal to you. Your mother was a caring Japanese woman. She gave you all the love she could to make up for your father's absence, due to his work. As for your occupation. . . "

His reflection paused.

". . I guess for the correct classification, you were a business man." He lean on his locked fingers, watching Tsuna's features twist into disappointment.

" That's it?" He questioned weakly, pretending to study that drifting petals in his cup. The man didn't lie. This was what he wanted, but it was dry, depth-less facts, parts were omitted from the context. The irritation under his skin didn't go away.

What did he expect to hear?

" Yes."

Tsuna pushed himself up with his arms, finally meeting the gaze directed toward him.

" This isn't it." He grit through his teeth. So much venom in his tone, so much spite. A spoiled child's. He hated it. Those eyes stared straight into his. They've hardened with resolve.

" This can't be it. " Tsuna repeated, feeling lost, his tone softer.

" Then what would you like to know? Names? Numbers? Dates? " The other asked coldly.

It was the first time the man had spoke to him like this. Tsuna fell back into his chair, his mind a desert. The cushion cradled him. Other wise he would have collapsed.

"Tsunayoshi, you have an answer." His reflection said. He was back to normal, taking on the mentor's role, forcing him to see the truth he avoided.

" You can't deny it. Why won't you accept this?

" I can't."

The books were gone, so was the chair that kept him up. He barely stood on his feet. The needle air prickled his skin, the same fragmented paint towered over him, scattered islands. Tsuna lowered his head.

" I just can't"

Sparks of gold melted within his caramel orbs.

The mittens he wore had morphed into durable leather. The sapphire gem glowed lively, lending its metal casting a milky sheen. The symbols were punctuated, an X-shaped blocked the words, but it was inevitable. The black ink was impossible to miss with the bright background.

VONGOLA

The simple word crushed him.

He looked at them like filthy rags.

Why? Deep down, he must of knew. His brain warned him, countless times, that something was wrong. Out of every group he could have belonged to, it had to be Vongola. The chance was less than a millionth, but he was still the winner of the unlucky lottery. He could laugh at his own situation now. How ironic it was. His past family was the one he was going to destroy.

" Tsuna? "

His eyes was back to their original chocolate brown by the time he had stuffed the evidence in his pocket, but he didn't turn around, afraid that the red hair would recognize his guilty expression. The dim lighting would have masked his frown either way.

" Y-yes?"

He hoped Enma didn't notice, stuttering had always been a hint to his nervousness.

" I came to tell you that we're leaving tomorrow. Get some rest. It'll be a long journey."

Oh Enma. If only he knew. It was tempting to tell him, that the stranger who invaded their lives was indeed an enemy after all.

" Good night."

There was a bitter taste when the Shimon boss left.

When Tsuna reached his bed, he buried his face inside his knees. Victor tunneled under the blankets, not even a twitch when her tail got stuck in the closed space. The fox knelt down next to him, unsure of what to do. She climbed into his lap, rested her front paws on his chest and licked his cheeks.

There were no tears.

He didn't know what he actually felt anymore. Or if he could still feel anything at all.

Author's note-So, the big realization happened in this chapter. There needed to be progress and from here on, the pace is going to speed up. I'll be doing days instead of months to indicate the time.

I believe that with hyper institution, Tsuna should be able to at least sense that becoming a Shimon was dangerous. Especially after activating his flame and hearing the name mentioned so many times. Second, Tsuna realizes that he's a part of the Vongola family, but not Vongola Decimo, and it doesn't mean that he'll return to Vongola. It's his choice, ultimately. His flame was acting as a guide.

If you didn't understand the whole ramble I put in, in short it was about Tsuna knowing he's a Vongola after meeting his flame ( hyper institution ), but was unwilling to face it, so he kept on denying the truth and his Hyper-dying-will self forced him to accept it. I'm not sure if I convey the message through in the story, but I didn't want it to disturpt the plot development.

Okay. I'll try to start the next chapter soon, further update status are on my profile page.