Summary:

desperate times call for desperate measures. also, bored hitmen call for desperate measures. reborn happens to be both.

also also, the lancia group meets with hokuto. it does not go as planned.

Notes:

heads up before going into this chapter: the general Underworld and Kakishima have different views and philosophies regarding Flames and what terms to use. might get a little confusing when they're mixed up, but reborn is usually referring to sicilian/underground traditions and perceptions while the kids refer to kakishima's. they're not SUPER different, but they are different. for the curious, you can read more about it on the au wiki on my profile page (yes i set up a wiki for the au. leave me alone.)

flames also have a different original purposes in this au, so there's a lot of stuff that will probably be confusing and out of place if you think about it as 'mafia only'.

WARNINGS: implied (major?) character death. oops.

Chapter 13: [oyster fortunes daily] the grass is always greener.

on the other side, in another life, in another time. in memories past.

"The phenomenon was termed as a Dying Will Flame by Iosephus Laurentius, now more commonly known as Geppetto Lorenzini—"

. . .

"No it wasn't. It's Dying Breath, that's probably a translation error."

"...Iosephus was Roman. Italian is derived from Latin. There is less of a translation error there than there is going into Japanese."

"Well that's not what we learned in school."

"Really, Hana? You ask what I know and you're going to keep interrupting? I've barely even started."

. . .

"It was named such when his colleague showed signs of this phenomenon, and after observing its effects and the way in which his colleagued harnessed it, he documented it in his papers as—"

. . .

"Dying Breath."

"Hana..."

. . .

"While Geppetto's research was surprisingly accurate for his time, recent science has proved some things contrary to his findings. For one, the Flame phenomenon is an energy that is derived from your life-force. Using it depletes your stamina, and it is recovered much in the same way stamina is, with food and rest. Practice and use refines control of it, while things such as exercise increase the amount you are able to use."

. . .

"Is that why you keep making me go on walks and morning runs around town?"

"Et tu, Tsunayoshi?"

. . .

"There are 7 core Elements—"

. . .

"Attributes."

. . .

"—known to us as the following: Storm, bringer of violence and destruction, renowned for their aggression and unyielding assault; Sun, the historical Witch, the Healer, known to work miracles and bring curses upon the people; Lightning, vanguard of defense, who must persevere against the harms that befall upon him in the name of those precious to him;—"

. . .

"Or her!"

. . .

"—Rain, who washes clean the slate with his own hands and finishes that which is left unfinished, who calms and pacifies when things are at their worst; Mist, most reliable yet also the most untrustworthy, shielding him and his from sight and leading his foes astray;—"

. . .

Nagi waves her hand, giggling, before Hana can make another comment about the apparent gender bias.

. . .

"—Cloud, defender, protector, attacker, who is efficient and deadly whether he works alone or with others. And finally, we have the Sky, like the young master. The Sky is Harmony, unity, the backbone that supports his people and who is in turn supported and served by those loyal to him."

. . .

"Hana I swear if you say another word- Diu dammi la pacenzia—!" [1]

"-Okay! Okay, not talking anymore!"

. . .

"These are the basics for understanding the concept of Harmonization. To put it simply, it is an exchange of Flames between a Sky and an Element, though it can be far more intimate than it sounds. In most common cases, the exchange goes from the Element to the Sky; rarely the Bond may go both ways, but it is not a major concern if it does not.

"Now, while the Flame is a form of energy, it has also been shown to contain bits and pieces of whomever it came from. Usually, this takes the form of thoughts, memories, emotions, and values. Every Element is different in nature and role, but every person will have something in them that they share with another. It may be a favorite food, a favorite smell, a favorite location. It can be an emotion. It can be a shared memory, a similar goal, or it can be even more abstract. The Strongest Seven of the Arcobaleno have historically Harmonized purely on the fact that they were all strong. For Vongola, we protect the Family, and that has been what many of the Guardians shared with their Sky since our founding. This is what we call our Will.

"There are three kinds of Flame Bonds, Renato. Remember it like this: Resonance is the matching of your Will with someone other than a Sky; Synchronization is matching your Will with someone who is Harmonized with the same Sky as you. Harmonization, then, is the matching of your Will with a Sky. Never mind the fact that Skies are rather rare outside of a given bloodline, it is always a blessing and an honor to be chosen by a Sky. The Elements and the Guardians exist for the Sky; and once Bonded, they cannot live without him."

"Why not?" Renato frowns. He gave up on taking notes a while ago, though he's made quite a bit of progress on learning how to write. Hedda hasn't had any such luck, so she's listening just as intently as he is. "The Bond's only going one way, right? Element to Sky. If anything it should the Skywho can't live without the Elements."

"Creating a bond is like.. turning on the faucet at full blast. Whether it is from Element to Sky or from Sky to Element, the flow of water is also the flow of the Flames from one to another. It will usually never exceed the Element or the Sky's individual absorption capacity, but it is constant and unseen. If the Bond should be broken for any reason other than mutual agreement, such as death, the faucet does not turn off. It breaks off. The flow does not stop, but without something to absorb these Flames, they linger and they Fester. They affect those around them, they affect their own owner. Many a man has unknowingly broken a Bond, only to find himself lit on fire immediately after.

"Be very careful with your Bonds, Renato, Hedda. No Sky is a bad choice, so long as your Wills align. But you should not attempt a Harmonization with Will that you disagree with, nor one in which you have nothing in common. If you find yourself in a Bond you no longer wish to be in, talk to the Sky. So long as both sides acknowledge the end of a Bond, the Breaking will proceed smoothly."

"What if it doesn't?" Hedda this time. "What if one won't let the other leave? What if it's only one-sided?"

The elder strokes the wisp of a goatee on his chin. It reminds Renato of the last trails of smoke from a dying wood fire.

. . .

"Blood. Guts. Death. If you're lucky." Reborn smiles at the group blandly. "If you're not lucky, you live and you suffer. Fun, isn't it?"

Of the 7 of them, Tsunayoshi is the only one who doesn't look remotely bothered. Yamamoto is a close second, and Kyouko and Hana are doing good impressions of it.

Lan and Mochida, though...

She's side-eying Mochida like she wants lightning to strike him in the head. Mochida himself looks a combination of nervous, constipated, terrified, and furious. He also looks ready to get up and leave, which is honestly fine with Reborn. Weeding out the weak is his job. Sort of.

Better to let them know what to expect out of it now than for them to dive in with some weird, fantastical expectations and never know what sort of jagged rocks lurked beneath the surface of an otherwise crystalline reef.

..Okay, that was a little too romantic. But that was the metaphor the elder had used, so Reborn finds it apt for the situation. He is the elder, here.

And these are the children who might grow up to rule the world.

(Or Sicily, at the very least. Maybe all of Italy too. That would be nice. Reunification of Italy.)

Mochida does get up- or tries to, an action thwarted by Tsunayoshi's grip on the back of his shirt.

"Second thoughts, Mochida?" Reborn tips his head at the boy.

"I'm—" He tries to pull away, but Tsunayoshi has proved to have an inordinate amount of strength at the oddest of times. "—I'm just not sure if this is such a good idea."

"Is it the Bond breaking that scares you? Not a surprise. It unnerves even the best of men, in my experience. But in this, Tsunayoshi is the one who extended the Bond to you first. If it ever broke, he would be the one to take the brunt of it."

"That's exactly why! Dammit, Tsuna- let go already!"

"You can't deny me this! I've been wanting it for years!" Tsunayoshi says in a probably false simpering pout. He switches over to grabbing Mochida's arm instead. "You broke my ribs. You have to take responsibility!"

"You said you wouldn't force a Bond!"

"I- I wouldn't!" Oh, that one's genuine. Now Tsunayoshi really is trying to pull Mochida down. "But— are you really going to give this up on the chance that I might get hurt by it in the future? Are you planning to do something like that?"

"Wha- no! Of course not! But—" Mochida falters, just enough for Lan to get up and shove him down by his shoulders.

"Tsuna's right, Ken-chan. You said it yourself— this could fix whatever's gone wrong. Isn't that good? Besides, it's not like you have to make the Bond."

"But I don't want to—"

"I can handle it, Damesuke," Tsunayoshi huffs, wrapping both arms around Mochida's to keep him in place. Takeshi in the background looks torn between beaming in a way that screams yes, finally! and also ready to hit something with that baton of his. "I'm not that weak."

And then before Mochida can argue anything else, Tsunayoshi surges up and kisses him and Reborn is sighing while Nagi wolf-whistles and Takeshi just lets out a single, eerie bark of laughter. It seems to be only for shock value though, because it lasts barely more than a few seconds and Tsunayoshi and Lan are quick to start maneuvering a frozen Mochida into place on one of the cushions in the middle of the room. By the time everyone else is in their positions, Mochida is only barely beginning to move again.

"..What-"

"Mochida Kensuke." Reborn crouches down beside them, lowers his voice so only the two of them can hear. Both boys seated across from each other look up, one more nervous than the other. "The fact that the Bond is incomplete means that you did, at some point, desire for it to be made. Something happened to cut it off, but that doesn't matter. What matters is what you want to do now. Make it, or break it? There's only one way this can end. Well, you could forgo it altogether and continue on with your lives as it is, but nothing will change. You will keep arguing. You will keep fighting, you will both keep trying to avoid and seek each other out and making trouble for those around you. Both of you will stay as you are now, but maybe with time it'll get less painful. Maybe you'll come to terms with it and it won't leave you bitter and lonely and resentful."

Tsunayoshi's eyes widen just enough that Reborn narrows his in turn. Just enough.

"Maybe you'll eventually be friends again. Maybe you'll put it behind you and it'll all turn out for the better." Maybe it will, and maybe it won't. "You're both still young. Everyone tells you to learn from your mistakes and it's okay to make them. This is not one of those mistakes you want to make, it's one that can and will drag itself out over the remainder of your life. If you doubt your decision for even a second, your best bet is to Break it. There is no we'll make it work, or we'll talk it over and smooth things out. This is not the same as a relationship. Break it. Think it over. Go at it again later. Are we clear?"

Tsunayoshi nods, idly, like he's not even listening. Mochida nods, but only because he's getting a little unnerved by Tsunayoshi's unwavering stare.

"Good." Reborn leans over more towards Mochida now, as though to insinuate something. "..From what I've seen of you these past few days, I recommend you break it off."

And with that he stands up, leaving the boy to his thoughts and Tsunayoshi's brief sound of protest.

He surveys the room. The windows and screen doors have been blacked out as much as possible, leaving only a dim light from the kitchen across the hallway to stream in through the doorway. Everything else is lit only by the candles placed strategically throughout the room, sending all their faces into sharp, flickering relief.

It's not quite the same as holding the ceremony within the stone walls of Vongola's grand church. Drowning in a halo of candles and braziers, wind blowing across the windows like a howling hymn. Not as impressive. But not as oppressive, either. There's no pressure to perform, no expectations of a fancy lightshow. No need to leave a lasting impression on anyone.

This is probably how the ceremonies were meant to be. Before each successive generation of Vongola happened to them. Repeatedly.

"Alright. Honestly, I'm not even sure if this ceremony will work with you kids since you're not Sicilian—"

"That's prejudiced and racist and I object to that."

"—but it might help with the little problem these two have, so we can give it a try. Also, I miss Sicily, so thanks for indulging me in this."

"Haha, it's a really nice atmosphere! Kind of like..." Yamamoto makes ghost nosies until Hana shoves at his shoulder.

"Normally we would have an elder reciting passages from the ritual tome, some lecture about Faith and Christianity, morals, loyalty, etcetera, but I haven't the patience to do that myself and I don't think there's any Christians among you guys anyway— Oh." Lan raises her hand enthusiastically. "Fellow God-fearer. I salute you. Anyway, it's not going to be that formal, so I'll jump right into explaining what's going to happen, what you two should do, and what the rest of you shouldn't do. Then we'll go from there. No interruptions. Capisci?"

They all nod, though Hana looks like she wants to say something again until Reborn fixes her with the Squinty Hitman Eyes and mutters some flowery Sicilian words in her direction. Her willpower crumbles easily. Reborn could probably recite the Bible in accent and she'd swoon. He doeshave a nice voice, he'll admit.

"You should visit Sawada town sometime if you like Italian, Hana-chan," Lan suggests innocently. "They use it a lot down the—"

Hana screams 'no' in a quiet, pitched, wheezy voice, completely red in the face and hiding in Kyouko's arm. Lan pats her on the back comfortingly.

"Harmonization is, in essence, a sharing of Flame energy. As I've already said, and as you may already know, Flame energy is more than just energy; it carries thoughts and emotions with it, though not always. To Harmonize, a Resonance Bond must be established first. Everyone's Resonance bonds will be different depending on who they Resonate with, meaning their Harmony Bonds will also be unique. This also means it's almost impossible to describe it specifically to another person, never mind the fact that most people consider it too private to speak of... Just out of curiosity, does anyone here have any experience with Harmony Bonds? Besides you, Tsunayoshi."

Only Takeshi and Lan raise their hands. Mochida kind of half-raises, then jolts when he sees Lan's. Tsunayoshi drops his arm with an exaggerated pout.

"And, out of curiosity, is anyone willing to talk about it? Not you, Mochida, you have to talk about yours with Tsunayoshi."

Mochida looks relieved, and then simultaneously terrified. Reborn really likes kids who wear their emotions honestly. Tsunyaoshi seems to be the outlier in that sense.

Yamamoto decides to go first.

"I, um, don't really remember how Tsuna and I harmonized! It was a lot of.." And off he goes with the sound effects, hands miming something that Reborn supposes like a mini nuclear explosion, complete with a pantomimed mushroom cloud and a towering bear? He knows enough Japanese to recognize the sound effects for fire, at least. "And then we went home and slept for hours."

He looks so proud of his own explanation. Tsunayoshi gives him a thumbs up, which he returns with fervor.

"Okay," Reborn says flatly, "but can you describe how it.. felt?"

"I just did?"

Hana shoves him again, this time with a pillow. Probably a lessen the blow. "Do you have nothing on your mind except baseball and manga?"

"I have Tsuna!"

Tsunayoshi raises his hand. "Can I throw my cushion at him on grounds of him being an embarrassment to the very concept of subtlety?"

"No. Hana's got it," he replies. Hana is blushing even though it wasn't directed at her, and she shoves Yamamoto again. "Also, you need your cushion."

Yes. These kids will rule the world. Reborn can already see it falling wonderfully to pieces.

"Anyone else, then?"

"Oh, me!" Lan waves her hand frantically and beams. "I asked a Sky about it after Ken-chan told me on Wednesday. The Bonds can really vary! Some of them are nice feelings, like happiness or admiration or respect. Some are kind of sad and depressing.. She said there's been people who Harmonized because of supposedly mutual rejection or.. despondency, loneliness, stuff like that. Oh, but sometimes.. sometimes it's just a sensation? Like, with Tsuna and Takeshi, they hold hands a lot. Unless you two are secretly dating or something, I think that's a sign of their Bond? The skin-to-skin contact."

"I do like touching Tsuna," Yamamoto says, nodding sagely.

"I, too, enjoy the holy palmer's kiss." Tsunayoshi nods, too. "His callouses get itchy after a while though."

Yamamoto gasps as though offended. Hana shoves him again and throws the pillow at Tsunayoshi and nails him in the side. Reborn doesn't think she's stopped blushing at all since the beginning.

"Lan is right. The Bond can take the form of anything from a memory, a sensation, or some other sort of urge. Physical closeness is common. Among Sicilians-" Among the Cosa Nostra, anyway. "-you would normally see old fashioned things like pledging loyalty on one's knees, kissing the back of the hand, things like that."

Yamamoto hums far too loudly and curiously. Tsunayoshi throws the pillow at him. It lands in Hana's lap instead.

"The problem with you two, however, is that one of you seems to have some hormone-addled urges screwing everything up. Teenagers, I swear." Mochida makes a muffled sound like he wants to argue, but doesn't really know what to say. "So here is what you are going to do. You are going to sit and think about these urges you feel. You are going to ignore them. Rationalize them away, compartmentalize, meditate to lower your extraneously libidinous desires, I don't care and it doesn't matter. Ignore them, and when they keep coming back, you will talk about those ones with each other. With any luck you'll figure out which one matches up before you both die of mortification and emotional overload. One of you, anyway. I have the utmost confidence that Tsunayoshi will probably survive."

Mochida swallows nervously.

"The reason for this is two-fold. For you two especially, it will help you separate the Bond urges from.. other urges. The other reason is that by focusing on the Bond, it acts as your.. well, I suppose you call it Resolve here. We call it a Will. It's essentially the same thing. It will help the process along that much more." Reborn turns his eyes to the one lone hand being raised. "..Yes, Mochida?"

"Uh. How.. how can you tell them apart? Like, Bond urges from.. whatever other urges. What if neither of them go away?"

"For one, the Bond urge is going to hurt like hell when you try to ignore it. That's usually the first clue... Actually, that's all we go by. I don't know if Kakishima does it differently. Or-" Here he finds himself looking at Tsunayoshi, even if unintentionally. "-if it's any different for Skies."

Tsunayoshi doesn't say anything. Doesn't even look at Reborn, actually.

"..He's been staring at me for, like, 10 minutes." Mochida shifts, not so much uncomfortable but flustered. "What gives?"

"Maybe he wasn't exaggerating about wanting the Bond for the past few years." Reborn tips his head, looking at the boy from a slightly different angle. Different enough to see a slight sheen of orange in his eyes. "...Once you've talked about it and narrowed these urges down, you will make skin-contact. That is usually the easiest way to initiate the process of exchanging Flames, until you learn how to do it without touching. The Bond will help with that. Which leads me to what you other guys and gals and everything in between or otherwise should not be doing: you will not interrupt the process. You will not try to help in any way. Yamamoto, you're in charge of keeping them from doing anything unnecessary."

"Wait, why him? Isn't he the first one whose going to try to do anything?"

"Because he's Harmonized, Hana. That's why he won't do anything unnecessary."

Yamamoto's entire being goes steely and his eyes glimmer in a shade of blue not usually seen among Japanese folk. Or any folk, really. Not naturally.

"Does everyone understand now? Any other questions?"

"Yes! Um. What about this thing we laid down?" Lan lifts the length of stiff yarn drawing a 3-branched plant on the floor, encased by a circle and other symbols as well as a number of cheap pillows and seat cushions.

"Cimaruta. A sprig of rue. It's a plant used in protection spells in Sicily. For this, it's to keep the Flames from being contaminated by envious onlookers. Not that that's going to be much of a problem here, but it never hurts to be careful. The cimaruta and the circle also helps keep the energy from getting out of control."

"How's that work?"

"By all of you sitting on the pillows, of course."

"Wait- wait!" Mochida jolts upright, breaking whatever staring contest he'd been in with Tsunayoshi. "If that's supposed to be the boundary then isn't sitting on it defeating the whole purpose?"

"Of course not. If they're sitting on it, you'll try all the more not to let the Flames go out of control, right? It's very effective in Sicily.."

..Then again, the Cosa Nostra is probably more used to the idea of being injured by exposure to intense Flame energy.

"Don't forget the Daruma. Our custom dictates that the two of you would normally make an oath to each other and burn something holy to bless the ceremony, but this isn't Sicily and I'm not an ordained priest. My blessings would be emptier than those cream puffs from that one bakery in Azayakatani. Kyouko knows which one I'm talking about."

"I do," Kyouko whispers vengefully.

"I think you two would believe in the Daruma more anyway."

He gives Mochida a nudge on the back, seeing as Tsunayoshi is way too enraptured with something on Mochida's face. Mochida grumbles but picks up the marker and draws an eye onto the Daruma.

Lan raises her hand again. "Where'd you learn all this from? I didn't know Italy had anything like this."

"It's a sect of Sicilian magic. We're a rather secretive sort, so you wouldn't hear about it normally."

"Oooh! So, you're.. a witch? Like, Wiccan?"

"Maghi dî Ciammi," Reborn says, just to see Hana jump and scowl at him. "Old World, Flame-based witchery. [2] None of that British nonsense."

She makes a face but doesn't say anything else. Reborn checks the candles again, just to make sure there's nothing flammable near them. More than one way to burn a house down, after all.

"Maybe you should say a few words before you run off on us?" Nagi quips from where she's sitting nearby.

"I don't usually start the vows. And I don't think they or Hana would appreciate any vowing here."

"I think they're too far gone to care, honestly."

She's right. Reborn hasn't even said start yet and Mochida is already blindly reaching for Tsunayoshi's hand as they murmur inaudibly to each other, frowning in concentration. They're a little ways apart though, so it'll take them a while to remember that they're going to have to scoot closer.

Leon changes into a blank Bible. Reborn flips to a random page and recites, in crisp English, the beginning of every stereotypically Western wedding script. "Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today..."

Hana chokes on a laugh, curled over to hide her face. Lan and Nagi both let out startled, muffled giggles that they cut off quickly enough. Kyouko giggles openly, but Yamamoto doesn't even so much as twitch. Neither do Mochida or Tsunayoshi.

At some point Tsunayoshi reaches his own hand out, meeting Mochida's half-way. The moment they make contact, a pulse of Flames sweeps out and comes up against the edges of the circle like smoke against an invisible barrier. The air shimmers, hot and heady like a summer fireplace.

Reborn does not generally see Auras beyond the color of their Flames. He hears and smells them instead, as most people do. And right now the room smells of peppercorn and charcoal, white charcoal. Salt brine and lemons. He smells an open campfire surrounded by pine needles, he smells Nana's cooking, smells the sweets that Tsunayoshi likes to eat so much. Smells his toothpaste. Strawberries and mints.

An open field of—

He blinks. Tsunayoshi's forehead is on fire and his eyes are a brilliant Sky orange. Reborn hears that, the staccato flickering of fire and Flame, the hum of energy that accompanies it. Mochida's is a violent, vibrant shade of red, almost a glowing neon shade. No doubt his eyes are the same.

But Reborn isn't looking at them, though their sudden slip into what appears to be Dying Will Mode does surprise him a little. He isn't looking at Yamamoto either, whose state matches theirs with a lazily flickering bright blue Flame.

He's looking at the others. Their eyes are unchanged but each one of their foreheads bears that same Dying Will Flame, bright and glimmering andgleaming. Even Nagi. Mist Flames are almost impossible to manifest physically in their natural state.

Hana and Lan are sitting across from each other and their respective Lightning Flames seem to be trying to leap across the space between them in an attempt to reach the other. Like calls to like, and where they were both watching Tsunayoshi and Mochida at first, now they can't seem to look away from each other.

Huh. This is probably why the officiators always said never to let non-Septet members on the circle. But surprise Resonance Bonding is probably more of a problem in the Cosa Nostra than it should be on the island. It's not like the two girls hate each other, anyway.

He circles around them twice, looking for any signs of Flame energy leakage. The yarn was a crackshot, honestly. He hadn't actually thought it would work. Vongola's church has a Harmonization circle carved into the stone floor and gilded with compressed charcoal, and Xanxus had his done in the circle already set up in the Varia compound's courtyard, though he painted over it whenever he used it. With blood.

Neither of those had any problems with Flames going out of control, but the tales are abundant in the Underworld of failed Harmonizations due to hastily made circles that couldn't contain the Flames.

Salt-crusted yarn is crude, but it seems to work. Probably because they're still kids with lower Flame outputs, and probably because there's 5 other Flames to help contain the energy. He can't imagine what their first attempt at Harmonization would have been like if their Flames are already thiswild, even with restraints.

Mochida's hand comes up to palm against the side of Tsunayoshi's neck, fingers against his pulse. Tsunayoshi seems to sit up straighter and the Flames grow larger, brighter, colors and scents and sounds melting together. Laughter, soft and breathless. Beeps and pings of a video game. Bamboo sticks knocking against each other.

Reborn takes that chance to duck out of the room for a moment. He feels his heart fluttering too quickly and wonders if it's about time he started getting old.

. . .

"How are they doing?"

"Wonderful, actually." Reborn leans against the kitchen doorway, unwilling to sit down just yet. Nana is seated at the far end of the dining table. Kurokawa Sougen and Sasagawa Chihei are on one side, Yamamoto Tsuyoshi and Mochida Kotonomi on the other. Feels a little like a cupola. "They're all lit up like Christmas lights."

"All of them?"

He dips his head. "Every last one."

"Is that... common?" Kotonomi asks, worried.

"It can be, Mochida-sann" he reassures her. Granted, it usually only happens to those who are already Harmonized. "I don't know if it's commonhere, but it's certainly common back in Sicily. It's a good sign, in any case. It tends to mean that the process will be finished quicker than usual."

"How long is that?"

"Oh, anywhere between a few minutes to a few hours. If they're particularly stubborn out each other, it could take days. your son and Tsunayoshi seem to have made up, though."

"Oh, that's a relief." Kotonomi sighs heavily, like a weight has been lifted from her shoulders. "I've been so worried since he told me about it last night."

"You had a whole night to think it over," Tsuyoshi says humorously. "Takeshi didn't tell me until he was heading out the door, little rascal."

Chihei's laughter is soft, just like her daughter's. "That does sound like something he would do."

"I admit, I'm a little worried about them Harmonizing so young.. Takeshi's never been happier, but- isn't it.. detrimental to their development to be forming these kinds of attachments so early on?"

"In.. certain societies, perhaps." Reborn concedes with a nod. "But I haven't heard anything about it from Sawada-san or anyone else."

"I don't know much about it," Nana admits. "I do know that they at around the right age to start forming the Bonds. Almost all the Bonds that have happened on the island were done in the Sawada compound, though, so I am a little worried about us doing it right in the living room.."

"I'll check in on them if I feel anything weird happening. The circle will keep them from damaging anything, at least."

"Oh, I'm more worried about them getting hurt. Sky flames are harmless enough, usually, but Storm... Oh- I don't mean it like that, Koto-san."

"Not at all, Nana-chan. Kensuke doesn't have many chances to practice his flames. I hope they both come out of this no worse for wear."

"I'll make sure that they do, Sawada-san."

She smiles at him, grateful. Reborn excuses himself for a moment to check in on the children, having felt a slight shiver in the Aura pouring out of the living room.

Most of them have their eyes closed now, or nearly shut, mimicking Tsunayoshi and Mochida's state. Or so Reborn assumes, anyway, since they're now forehead-to-forehead, close enough that he'd like to pull them apart. Especially given both of Mochida's hands holding him close by his neck.

But there's nothing more than that. Just that.. closeness. Reborn remembers it well. If that is their Bonding inclination, it's probably not a wonder they've been at each other's throats.

(Haha. Is it worth his image and reputation to say that out loud?)

(Probably.)

(But maybe someone else will say it first.)

Nana's presence slips up behind him, a gentle touch on his arm to let him know she's here. Not that he needs it, but she probably doesn't know that.

"I've never seen Tsu-kun give off that much flame energy," she says quietly. "Not since..."

"What was he like? When he was younger." What happened, he wants to ask. But he doesn't. There may not have been any Sealings done since Don Ricardo's death, but Reborn's imagination is enough to know it likely isn't a pleasant experience. To go through or to watch someone else go through.

"Oh," she sighs, and a flicker of a smile graces her lips. Soft, nostalgic. Wistful. "He was so beautiful. I know, most mothers will tell you the same thing, but.. he was wonderful, Reborn-san. He was..."

Nana covers her mouth, twisted and near tears. Her eyes close, and when they open again there's a shimmer of wetness behind them.

"..He still is. Beautiful. He- ... he always will be." She shakes her head, brushes a stray lock of hair behind her ear and wipes at the corner of her eye. "I wish you could have seen him, Reborn-san. I wish... I wish 'Mitsu could have, too. I wish he could've seen Tsuna when he was.. younger."

"Yeah," Reborn says. He does not specify what he's agreeing too. Nana doesn't ask him to. "That would have been nice."

Tsunayoshi's vibrant orange and Mochida's bright ruby red swirl around like liquids in a glass. Reborn is reminded of those colored oil-in-water toys; no matter how much you shake them they never mix together, because oil and water do not mix.

This is not like that. They are not oil and water, and if they were, they would still mix. Because that is the whole point of a Sky. To become oil or water at will, to do what otherwise cannot be done.

To accept. To accept so fully that some saw it as a weakness. To accept so strongly that it changed them, for better or for worse. To accept so openly that they had to be taught, as children, what they should or should not to. Who they should or should not accept. Because to accept everything and to forgive everything was to be a Saint.

The Cosa Nostra does not need Saints. They need bosses, not caregivers. They need leaders, not martyrs. They burn Saints, they burn martyrs.

Tsunayoshi won't last a day in the Underworld if he doesn't toughen u—

"Oh, they're kissing again."

Reborn is pumping the barrel of a Leon-shotgun before Nana even finishes that sentence.

"Ah, Tsu-kun pushed him away. That's my boy! I taught him that, I did." Nana hums and Leon turns back into a chameleon. Reborn huffs. Tsunayoshi shoves with the hand he has over Mochida's face again, muttering something. "It took him a while to understand the concept, but he's quite taken to it now."

"The concept?"

"That there are things he does and doesn't like.. that there's a difference between them, and that it's okay to avoid what he doesn't like."

"He'll have to learn to deal with them sooner or later, though. He can't go around avoiding everything forever. Like people, or foods, or.. duties. Responsibilities. It all catches up eventually."

"Reborn-san," Nana says, tipping her head just enough to look at him. "At this point, I don't think there's anything Tsunayoshi's doing that he doesn't already want to do. And, frankly, I don't think you should try to convince him otherwise."

"..Has anyone ever mentioned how much like a Sky you are, Sawada-san?"

"Maybe Tsu-kun is finally rubbing off on me after all these years." She giggles. "Well. We all have a little bit of Sky in is, too, don't we?"

"Maybe we do."

She gives him another pat on the shoulder. Reborn pushes off from the doorway and approaches the kids, now that the swirl of Flames has died down. Yamamoto and Mochida are trying to help Tsunayoshi stand, but it isn't doing much good.

"M'tired," he grumbles, somehow managing to lean heavily on the both of them at the same time.

Reborn's never seen anyone quite so exhausted from a Harmonization ceremony... but most people don't release as many Flames as Tsunayoshi did. Another thing they'll have to work on. Fine-tuning that control of his.

Yamamoto lets go and immediately starts collecting all the pillows into a pile, even going so far as to yank them out from under the ones who haven't snapped out of it yet, like Lan and Hana, or hadn't moved off of theirs quickly enough. He does apologize first, though.

In no time at all he has a nest going and Tsunayoshi is the first to fall into it, followed closely by Mochida because Tsunayoshi hasn't let go of his arm. Nagi looks dazed, but she gets to her feet and drops right into the pillow pile next to the other two with a hum. Kyouko slots in next to her. Lan huddles up to the other side where Mochida is, and Hana joins her there. And Yamamoto...

...tries to lay right on top of Tsunayoshi.

"Get off, you're damn heavy!" Mochida grouses, because Tsunayoshi is half on top of him and thus Yamamoto is laying on both of them. "Let go of my legs! Don't laugh at my suffering, Lan!"

Reborn shakes his head and pulls up the salt-stiffened yarn, crumpling it into a ball to toss out later. "You haven't finished the Daruma yet."

Mochida reaches for it with floppy arms and a pinched look on his face. Reborn tries not to laugh at him.

He picks up the Daruma and the marker and drops them on the back of Tsunayoshi's head. Mochida scowls and tries to maneuver his arms around to grab them.

"We'll burn it after," he says once Mochida has managed to scribble the other eye onto the Daruma. They would have made Tsunayoshi do it but the boy is out like a light. "Once everyone's awake. I'm going to assume this is a spontaneous Collective Resting Hour for all of you?"

Tsunayoshi answers that with a self-satisfied hum into Mochida's collarbone that makes him shiver.

"In that case— congratulations, Tsunayoshi. Mochida. I now pronounce you Sky and Storm. Enjoy your newly Harmonized life."

"I still think he should've picked a different Storm," Mochida grumbles, but he doesn't try to wiggle out of the pile of bodies. Or he can't. Yamamoto's pretty heavy. "Like.. a better Storm.

"Bullsh't," Tsunayoshi counters, muffled, sleepy, and thick with the local dialect. "You're good. I'll get another. Both. Two. I want two."

Mochida stares at Reborn. Reborn shrugs. He's never heard of anyone having more than one of any Element.

"..Are you trying to say I'm not good enough for you?" Mochida stares down into Tsunayoshi's hair.

Tsunayoshi props his chin up on the other boy's chest, eyes sleepy and half-lidded. "You tryn'a say ye can sat'sfy me alone, Ken-chan?"

Reborn's eyebrows go up. Mochida's mouth opens and closes a few times before he settles for shoving a pillow over his own bright red face and screaming into it. Lan giggles at his side and Tsunayoshi just cozies back down again.

He leaves the candles burning and heads back into the kitchen with a cheery Nana.

. . .

"That has to have been the fastest Harmonization I've ever seen," he says, slipping into a seat at the other end of the table from Nana. "..I suppose it helped that they were already partly Bonded beforehand. Usually it last at least an hour or two."

"Everything's okay?"

"Everything is fine, Mochida-san. No backlash, no discomfort. They just dropped off straight to sleep."

Kotonomi breathes another sigh of relief, no doubt wringing her hands under the table. She reminds him of Timoteo's old nursemaid who had somehow managed to outlive Ottavu herself.

"I hope this is not a tasteless time to bring it up, but I have been considering other candidates to fill out the rest of Tsunayoshi's Harmonization set. Skies in Sicily are generally not meant to remain Unharmonized for very long after their Flames go active. We've had cases of lone Skies that have ended.. badly, to say the least. I'm aware that on the island, it is circumvented by having all viable Skies living together to balance out the lack of Bonds, but.. Tsunayoshi is not there, obviously." Reborn meets Nana's gaze across the table. "..I worry for him."

"If Tsu-kun wants to complete his set," she says, wavering, "then I will help him."

He wishes he were just a few seats closer. Even a seeming gesture of sympathy might help. "The reason I am bringing this up now is because it would be safest if his set was chosen out of those he is closest to.. and from what I've seen, that seems to be the ones gathered here right now. To start with, in any case. I haven't been here long enough to know who else he frequently interacts with. All of you seemed amenable to the idea of harmonization, given that you've stayed behind either as support or supervision."

"Well.." Kurokawa Sougen rubs the back of his hand in thought. "I could bring it up with Hana-chan. I think that's the most we could do. We do have rather strong-minded children."

The others nod or make remarks in agreement. Reborn offers a smile that borders on friendly. "All the better."

"Is there a certain pattern he should be going in? Nao-san didn't mention anything like one whenever I asked her of it."

"Not so much a pattern as doing it in pair to balance the new influx of Flames. Rain and Storm often go together. Sun and Cloud, and then Mist and Lightning. The order in which each pair is brought in is more of a personal preference."

"Well.. given the ones around him, Lightning and Sun are probably next. I don't know that Kyouko has ever thought about it, though," Sasagawa Chihei notes. Reborn finds it a little.. surprising.

Not Kyouko having never thought about it. But rather, how little her mother has to say for or against it.

"Mm, Hana's a little rough with him, but I think Hana's rough with everyone," Sougen says of his daughter, chuckling. "Honestly I think she just worries about the choices he makes. No offense, Kotonomi-san."

"After what happened last year? I'm not surprised." She brushes it aside with a wave of her hand. "Not that I could find any one person to pin the blame on for what happened. The fact that Tsunayoshi insisted that it was an accident.. Well. What's done is done."

"Oh, if we're talking about Suns, doesn't Nagi know a good one? The one who worked on the particle cannon. Irie, wasn't it?"

"Ah, he did come by a few times. I don't know that Tsu-kun is much acquainted with him, though... But I wouldn't discount him as an option."

"For Lightning, there's the Kusakabes too. Takeshi says that Tetsuya boy comes up pretty often. Mostly because the Chairman always pops up whenever Tsuna or Takeshi get in trouble. Which still happens more than they like to admit."

"Oh, Tsuna should definitely get a Hibari for his Cloud. I think Hibari Kyouya is the only one young enough that Tsuna knows."

Nana hums happily. "Hibari-kun does seem to like Tsu-kun. Maybe he's willing to Harmonize, too. I don't think I've ever heard of a Hibari Harmonizing before, though."

"First time for everything." Sougen nods, thoughtful. "But does he really need a Cloud specifically? Most of our kids are Secondary Cloud or Mist. Isn't that good enough?"

Ah, yes. It certainly has been a while since Reborn was last this much blindsided by anything related to the island. He has missed this feelingdearly.

Confusion, his old friend.

"Nagi-kun would be a good Mist choice. Weren't they already Harmonized?"

"Hm? No, not that I've heard of. Ah, but Tsu-kun is getting to that age where he doesn't want to talk to me about anything.."

They turn to look at Reborn. He's still thinking about how they all seem to know Nagi, who is supposedly not even from this side of the island.

"..He hasn't told me anything about it either. Is there a reason why they should be?"

Now that they mention it, it was a little curious how friendly they had been with each other when he arrived on the island. Well, when he woke up from his coma after arriving on the island. Still can't forget that part.

"Kokuyo Leader and Hibari Leader assigned them to a few tasks together before.. Takeshi-kun, too." Nana taps on her chin. "I wouldn't be surprised if they were already Harmonized."

"Hana-chan thinks Tsuna tries to Harmonize with practically everyone he touches, so there's a good chance they are."

"Considering he doesn't actually like touching that many people, I think she may be on to something," Nana giggles. "We would have to ask Kokuyo Leader for permission if Tsu-kun wanted to Harmonize with Nagi, though, wouldn't we? I hear she's one of the candidates to be the next Leader."

"Ah, that's right. Well.. maybe it's okay if he doesn't have a dedicated Mist Bond? Tsuna is a Secondary Mist, after all. Isn't he?"

Tsunayoshi's mother makes a noise of agreement.

Of course he is, Reborn muses quietly to himself while the others discuss amongst themselves. Of course he is. That explains so much.

. . .

"You look a little confused, Reborn-san," Nana says once the children have woken up and parted ways after the Daruma burning.

All except for Yamamoto and Mochida, who insisted on staying put. No amount of plying or you have school tomorrow! could convince them to go home for the night. It probably didn't help that Tsunayoshi wouldn't let go of either of them. Something about hairclips and friendship bracelets. Newly established Bonds could be so clingy.. and was partly why the Cosa Nostra only allowed them after a certain age. Or maturity, rather. Clinginess is not encouraged among their kind.

"I'd just forgotten how strange this island can be."

Not least of all the way the three children are trying to figure out where to bunk for the night. Tsunayoshi's room is too small but the living room wouldn't be comfortable and there aren't enough futons. (Yamamoto suggests Sharing. Insistently.)

"Oh?"

"I noticed before that Tsunayoshi's eyes.. glowed, I suppose. Nagi-kun said it was a fiamma response. It's a common thing?"

"Oh, yes. That happens quite often here! All children are tested around the time they enter school to see if they show any evidence of fiammaresponse. That way, the medical staff and better help them adapt to the flames themselves."

It can't have been more than a century since Giotto arrived on his island, and yet they've done so much, it seems. To go from nothing to this. Where Flame testing sounds about as normal as routine autism screening.

"Is it normal for people here to physically manifest Flames as well? Somewhat like what happened during the ceremony."

"Mm-hm!" Nana hands him a wet plate to dry off. "Everyone who participates in the Cops and Robbers games must be physically fiamma active. The island does make it easier to manifest them, but usually it's enough if they can channel the energy into a weapon of sorts. We don't actually have that many people who can manifest them the way it happened in the ceremony... Well, Tsu-kun did it all the time when he was small, but— I haven't seen it happen since then. Some of the other Sawadas can, and I know 'Mitsu can."

"Hmm." Reborn nods idly. "It's rare enough in Sicily as well. There are a lot of us who can use them, but that amount of Flames usually only occurs during the Harmonization ceremony for us. Only a handful of people can make the Flame appear on their foreheads."

"Something about intensity and energy concentration, right?" Nana chirps, and the words themselves are enough for him to do a double-take. Right. Nana works at the Flame Research Facility. "Most people aren't able to focus that energy enough to reach visible density spectrum on that part of the body.. Maa, I guess Tsu-kun really was something special back then. I wonder if he'll be able to do it again one day..."

"..Pardon?"

"Hm? He used to do it all the time. Didn't I say that already?"

"I.. thought you were referring to him using Flames, Sawada-san."

"Oh, oh no!" Nana laughs, waving her hand in front of her face. "Tsu-kun doesn't use his flames at all! But, when he was young, his forehead would light up like a candela at any given moment. Scared me half to death every time, he did."

Of course he did, Reborn thinks again, quietly. Of course he did.

He's got a lot more planning to do.

. . .

Lancia curses quietly. Only because the Sassi di Matera is crawling with tourists and impressionable children. He may look the way he does but Lancia does happen to enjoy the company of their younger generation. A rarity among some camorristi, it seems. But the Italian government doesn't do shit for the youth in Campania; the Camorra are usually the only ones left they can turn to. Lacia, for one, wants them to be more than just muscle or thieves.

If his cute little blockheaded cousin can become a top assassin in one of the Cosa Nostra's most widely known assassination groups, then these kids here can grow up to do more than just die at the he hands of another camorrista. Or to choke on their own cancer in the Triangle of Death.

"Kane. Hey, kid." Lancia mutters something again and reluctantly snaps his fingers twice. The blond teen immediately whips around like he's been trained to respond that sound pattern. Lancia hates it. "What happened to Gina?"

"What?" Kane turns to Cachi, who stares back at him blankly. "What happened to Gina?"

Cachi shrugs. "I wasn't on watch duty."

"Aw, dammit Cachipi, we're always supposed to be on watch duty!"

"It was your turn."

"Oh. Uh.. Oops." Kane scratches the back of his neck. "The sandwiches smelled really good!"

"Well, go sniff him out and you can have one while I have our very important meeting. Excuse me." Lancia catches the attention of a passerby, trying not to look disgruntled by how startled and frightened he looks. "Have you seen a boy about this tall with a dark facemask over his mouth?"

The man shakes his head and scurries off. Lancia sighs. Kids.

He buys a few sandwiches from a nearby street stall anyway. It's a little after a lunch and the train ride had taken far too long for any of them. Gina had an especially difficult time sitting still for more than a few minutes. So did Kane, but Kane was just like that. Too much energy, not enough outlets. He's good at keeping Gina from getting cabin fever, anyway.

"Maybe he thought Kane was taking too long and went on ahead of us," Cachi says quietly. "Gina doesn't like wandering when he's awake."

"Did you hear that, kid? It's still your fault."

Kane fires back some Albanian nonsense, probably picked up from that Estraneo boss. Cachi murmurs something back that Lancia assumes was meant to be placating and Kane is just taking it the wrong way, because he can't imagine the possibility that both of them are just spewing profanities at each other.

"Yeah, yeah, I still have no idea what you're sayin- hey, don't call me a shithead. I know that one. Come on, we're going to the church. Keep an eye out for Gina on the way. Otherwise we're just going to have to look for him after the meeting."

"Aren't you supposed to say we have to spend the rest of the day looking for his sorry ass?"

"Look, I like you kids. You're adorable and you're vicious, and Gina probably has psychic fiery magic powers. But I am not going to skip a meeting with Vongola, civilian or otherwise, just to look for his spikey head."

"He says he likes us," Cachi says to the distracted blond, holding his hand out. "I win."

"Feh!" Kane smacks Cachi's palm with his hand. "I didn't bring money with me. You get it later. Cheater."

"Then I'll take your sandwich as interest."

"What!"

"Did you bet on whether I liked you guys or not? After all these years?" Lancia raises both eyebrows at them and hands over both shares of sandwiches to Cachi's outstretched hand. "That's a dumb move. You really think I didn't like any of you? I love you. I think you're the best. You're great. Creepy, really weird, stop trying to kill Don Cleto, I'm serious, but great."

Cachi face makes the slightest twitch. Kane reaches over to take one of the sandwiches. "Now he's being weird and gross about it so I'll just havethis since you don't have any money on you either."

"I changed my mind, you guys are awful."

Kane takes a monstrous bite out of his sandwich. "No take-backs!"

"I can't believe I'm trying to get you kids halfway across the world and into Japan just because Gina wants to see his twin." Lancia watches them squabble over sandwiches with a shake of his head. "..Or sister. Who is Nagi, anyway?"

"Noooo idea."

"Gina enjoys her company," Cachi says, pushing his glasses up, "so we just put up with her."

"Meaning she scares the living daylights out of you and you've never had the courage to ask her."

"Pretty much."

"She works for some government-type place!"

"She what."

"What? It's in Japan someplace, ain't nothing to do with us here in Italy."

"Lancia must be one of those old-fashioned authority is authority folks."

"You keep that up and I'm not taking any of you out for dessert after dinner."

That quiets them down pretty quickly. Don Cleto's place doesn't stock many sweets, aside from what the kids bring in, and gelato tastes best fresh, besides. He keeps telling them they can always go buy it from the carts themselves, but he figures they're just not used to confronting others. Still not used to it.

Also probably the fact that he always buys them the largest size of whatever mix of flavors they want.

Yeah, they're creepy. But they're still kids.

It takes a bit of meandering and trying to navigate the streets with nothing but the faulty GPS app on Lancia's throwaway phone, but they manage to arrive at the church a few minutes early for the meeting. Gina is already there, sitting on a bench next to an Asian man and...

..eating gelato.

Huh.

"Gina? Have you been here the whole time? We've been looking all over for you."

"No you haven't." The retort is somewhat muffled by the spoon in his mouth. His companion looks surprised.

"..You can talk after all?"

Lancia snorts. "You didn't know until now? That's weird. Usually Gina's a chatterbox."

"Only because none of you can read minds like Nagi can."

"Right. You and she have some super secret special bond that reaches the other side of the globe that you two play telephone with."

The other man looks between the two of them curiously. "You don't know about flames? Or Resonance?"

Lancia... just blinks. Those were not the sort of words he was expecting to be among a civilian's vocabulary.

"Of course I do. Was just teasin' him. I mean, he doesn't even get atmospheric interference or time lag like you get over the phone. It's ridiculously convenient and unfair to the rest of us."

"I could dig around in your head for an entire day if you want to know what it feels like," Gina offers idly.

"No thanks, kid. It itches when you do that." The teen shrugs. Lancia glances at his latest companion. "I take it you're Hokuto?"

"And you must be signor Lancia." The man stands up and extends a hand. Lancia shakes it, though he was half expecting some other kind of greeting, given Hokuto's.. very clearly Asian features and accent. "My apologies for delaying our meeting until today."

"No big problem. You let us know ahead of time."

He also expected someone a bit more.. timid, considering the fact that he's a civilian and Lancia, at least, is a camorrista. He's pretty sure his scars aren't there just for show.

"I didn't know Gina could talk.. he just came up to me out of the blue and sat down. I think he might have said something but I didn't catch it, and he wouldn't say anything else after that."

"Didn't say anything," Gina says, paling turning pink at the same time.

Hokuto smiles. "I can more or less guess what baba means, but I didn't want to jump to conclusions."

Gina goes mostly pink now as Kane leaps at him with some choice, excited words in that picked up mixed-language of theirs. Cachi does too, but more quietly.

"..Seeing as he doesn't go around randomly calling people dad, I assume there's something else going on here?"

"Well.. Nagi is my daughter."

Oh. Well then. "Is that why we're meeting with you instead of Vongola? Because you're a relative?"

"Yes and no. I'm one of the few liaisons Vongola has with Kakishima— ah, I think the mafia calls it the Madreperla. The fact that I'm related to her is just something of a coincidence."

"Madreperla.. that's the Vongola island, isn't it? Where their first Boss was buried or something."

"More or less. I'm not sure why the Sicilian mafia is so interested in it, but everyone has their vices... anyway, you needed to consult with me about something? I take it someone wants to visit the island."

Lancia tips his head in Gina's direction. "Your 'son' has been wanting to see Nagi for the past few weeks. It's driving the rest of us nuts so our Boss said we could try to take him there. Assuming the Vongola allowed it."

"Signor Lancia," Hokuto says pleasantly, but so coldly. "The Vongola Famiglia has no jurisdiction over my daughter, nor over the Madreperla. That is why you are speaking with me, and not one of Don Timoteo's people."

The kids have gone quiet. Lancia nods, slowly. The man is a civilian but seems to have enough of a bearing to be a low-ranking captain in any Underground group. Maybe he actually is one.

"Well, luckily, Nagi heard from Gina that you might be trying to get to the island, so she took the liberty of asking our government Authorities for permission and they've granted it. That was also why we had to delay the meeting."

"How did she— oh, right. Psychic fiery magic powers... definitely convenient and cheating."

"Have you had lunch yet? There's a good cafe nearby where we can discuss this further."

Lancia nods. Kane and Cachi stick close to Gina who seems to want nothing more than to hide behind Hokuto. Lancia would almost be offended by this sudden shift in attention if he actually cared to have it for himself. Regardless, it's a bit humorous to see. Gina is just about Hokuto's height but they look nothing alike. You couldn't even try to pass them off as father and son.

A civilian dad probably would do Gina some good, though. Especially if the kid keeps up with this trying-to-kill-Don-Cleto thing.

"..You feeling alright, Gina?"

He nods. "Had chocolate."

"Oh, that reminds me." Hokuto sets a bag onto the table after clearing away some napkins. "Gina informed me that you weren't going to get them dessert, so I bought gelato for the boys. Still cold."

"I was too going to buy them dessert," Lancia counters even as the other two teens dig into the bag, both trying to be the first one to pick which one they want. "I spoil these shits rotten and they know it."

"Thanks, dad! Not you Lancia."

"You're walking home, Kane."

"Boss Cleto won't let you do that!"

"It's not letting if I tell him you wanted to stay behind but didn't let me know had no money for a ticket later."

The blond sputters something about abuse and neglect, which are completely unfounded and untrue, and also meaningless among the Camorra. Lancia does have a soft spot for them, but seeing as Kane is always ordering the most expensive flavor of gelato he can get his hands on wherever they go just because he can, he's willing to put that soft spot aside every now and then.

"..Wait, you said he didn't say anything to you. How'd you know..?"

Hokuto's head tilts, as though indicating the obvious. "I didn't say he _spoke_."

"What's that mean? Did he do some.. weird magic psychic? Gina, what's he talking abo— Gina?"

The teen jerks upright. Looks like he'd almost fallen asleep in his seat. "—M'Fine."

"Tired?" Hokuto's hand makes an aborted movement. It's only through experience that Lancia doesn't react, hostile intentions or otherwise. That and he'd rather not risk messing up one of their only options for getting to the island.

"Haven't been sleeping well, that's all." Gina leans back in his seat and pulls the mask down just enough to drink his coffee. He's been chugging mugs of the stuff all week but it doesn't seem to have helped any. He hadn't started nodding off until just now, though. "Just the usual nightmares."

"It's never just nightmares where Mists are concerned," Hokuto says. He sets his own coffee down and turns just enough to show that Gina has his attention. "What do you dream about?"

Kane and Cachi have stopped in the middle of their sandwiches. Even Lancia has to admit he's been curious, and yet too cautious to ask outright, with them at the age that they are. And besides, he's not their parent. He hasn't any right to pry. Could demand, if it got to the point that it was affecting everyone in the clan. It isn't, yet.

"He says they keep telling him to kill the Boss," Kane jokes. There's an edge to his tone that suggests he might just actually believe it.

Gina doesn't say anything for a while. Doesn't even do anything, staring at his coffee until he realizes everyone else is staring at him.

Then he looks up, the way a lost child looks at the world.

"What do you dream about, Gina?" Hokuto repeats, hushed, with all the seriousness of the Vindice themselves. Not like a father with a responsibility to his son. Not like a stranger, entertaining a child or pitying a man. But like a person, regarding another person as no more, no less, than that. As a specimen of a human being. "What do you hear in the Mist?"

It's hideously cold and distant, even for a camorrista.

And it seems to be just the thing to get Gina talking, where all of Kane's careful plying and wheedling have failed.

. . .

By the time the end of September rolls around, Tsunayoshi hasn't gotten to Harmonizing with anyone else. Most of the month has been spent getting him and Mochida acclimated to each other again. Mochida is still calling him Tsuna and tripping over his words every time.

Reborn was really hoping it was just the Bond messing around with his hormones and not an actual infatuation. Infatuations are always so difficult to deal with within Septets. Or however many it is that Tsunayoshi intends to gather by the end of it all. He doubts it'll be more than 7. Skies just aren't meant to Bond with any more than that.

He's been going over his notes on everything in the past month, too. Nothing much to do while the Bond settles and the shift of Flames equalizes itself between the two of them. He tries to think of any other instances of a Sky Harmonizing with either more than the usual Septet, or with more than one of any particular Element. None in Italy or Sicily that he could recall.

(Though, there had been rumors of Daemon Spade's lover, Elena, and whether she was ever meant to be included in their number.)

They say the First Emperor of China had more than a thousand Storms at his beck and call. One could only speculate if he Harmonized with them all, if any. And the Egyptians didn't even have Skies, they worshipped Suns, of all things. Not that Reborn is complaining.

The average person can make Resonance Bonds with as many people as they like. Theoretically speaking, a Sky can Harmonize with as many as they like. Maybe there is no hard upper limit; maybe it's just something the Cosa Nostra decided on for themselves.

Also theoretically speaking you could Bond with practically anything that carried Flames, but no one tries Bonding with rocks or Australian monstrosities, so Reborn's going to take those theories with a lot of salt.

Besides, he has other, more pressing matters to deal with at the moment. More pressing than the fact that Tsunayoshi has about 2 months left to gather up at least 4 more Elements, Harmonized or otherwise.

"Yes, Leon, I'm sure this is going to work." The chameleon side-eyes him the way only a chameleon can. "..Well, I'd be more sure if you'd let me test it out on myself first."

Leon shakes his head.

"I know, I'm not exactly eager to die, either. But that won't happen, sè? It's the same concept, just in a different skin and a lot easier to use. Trust me, pìcciulu. It's going to work."

Leon finally concedes with a lizardly huff and crawls up Reborn's arm and onto his shoulder. Reborn sets his sprawl of papers aside and leans out the window, overlooking the back yard where Tsunayoshi and his gaggle of loosely-termed 'friends' are throwing each other around in a demonstration of self-defense and damage mitigation. Kyouko's evidently quite good at aikido, and they've nothing better to do on the last Sunday of the month, apparently.

"Tsunayoshi," he calls down.

The boy looks up from where he's sitting on the back porch, apparently benched after twinging his previously injured ribs from throwing Yamamoto too hard. His form for the throw had been otherwise perfect, though, considering the height difference.

"I have a theory I want to try out," Reborn says. Leon's tongue flicks out and jostles the curl of his sideburn. Reborn rubs a finger over his head. "I might need your help with it."

Tsunayoshi looks at the others, then back up at Reborn.

"Um.. sure?"

"Good. I'll be right down."

He's still sitting in the same spot by the time Reborn opens the door to the back porch, knees hugged to his chest, hair all askew and bits of grass stuck in it.

"This isn't going to be something weird like... going for a run at midnight, is it?" Tsunayoshi asks as he stands up at Reborn's prompting and hops down onto the grassy lawn. Perfect angle. "Because I can tell you now that's a very bad idea. It'll be dark and I'll trip over everything."

Reborn presses a hand to his chest in mock surprise. "Oh, come now, Tsunayoshi. Don't you trust me?"

He means it in jest. Because his very job description demands trust. Requires that his targets believe in him wholehearted, enough to be shaped and trained or otherwise thoroughly destroyed. Sometimes remade. Sometimes not.

Trust gets you killed.

(But not if you're the one that's being trusted.)

"Yes..? I guess?" Tsunayoshi blinks. "Yeah. Okay. What's this theory about?"

(He's never been all that good at distinguishing a 'yes' that's influenced by the copious Aura of his Sun Flames from a 'yes' that isn't. A 'yes' that is true and honest, or a 'yes' that's more of a 'if you say so'.)

Reborn smiles. Leon scampers down his arm and becomes a gun in his hand, as he has a thousand times before, and will a thousand times after this.

"You'll find out when you die."

It takes exactly 0.05 seconds to aim the muzzle, as always, and even less time to pull the trigger and fire a beam of nothing but bright shimmering yellow right into Tsunayoshi's forehead. As always.

(It's all the same to him, in the end.)

(As always.)

. . .

In retrospect, it was probably a bad idea to shoot him in front of his friends. But the end results were well worth an angry Leon and a broken nose.

oops.

[1] diu dammi la pacenzia-: (sicilian) 'god give me patience-' or so i hope anyway
[2] maghi di ciammi: lit. 'mages of the flames', though 'magia' is (i think) one of the many ways to say 'witch' or 'sorcery' in italian, depending on region and intention. will be loosely based on old world, pagan stregheria, and more current folk traditions. or what i can find of them, anyway.

so i'm thinking in this au, all forms of 'magic' utilize some sort of flame aura (healing with sun, cursing with a mix of mist and sun, etc), but only certain groups focus on actively manifesting flames. the maghi are one of them. not all of these aura-users are affiliated with the underworld like reborn is. he could just say 'i'm mafia' but that probably doesn't explain a whole lot by itself.

on a different note, i've been contemplating reborn's.. everything, really. low-empathy? antisocial boredom? general jackassery? c'mon, rebo, you adore the kid, why you gotta shoot him like that. (things reborn actually really cares about: himself, leon, and hedda, in that order. and maybe eventually tsuna. oh yeah and timoteo's on that list somewhere, too.)

anyway if we're lucky it's another 4-5 chapters before this arc ends uwoohh. if not, it'll be chapter 20 that it ends haha that's so many chapters /weep