Iemetsu Sawada's house had always been a place where Reborn could come and would be welcomed by the warmth of a family. It was those times in between missions for the ninth that he cherished the most. It was the one place where no one looked upon him with awe and fear, which admittedly he deserved given his skill in killing, it was only smiles and laughter that met him in that house hold.

In his normal bleak life he survived off of the rations that were provided for him in his mission. In the Sawada household Nana Sawada, Iemetsu's lovely wife, would create the most delicious meals for him. Always catering to his taste and giving the barely post-pubescent man food that not only filled his stomach but helped heal the wounds in his soul.

In his normal bleak life he was surrounded by screams and death. In the Sawada household he bore witness, intermittedly at least, to the long nine months of Nana's pregnancy and saw all of the smiles, laughs, and happy tears that came with the arrival of Tsunayoshi Sawada.

From the moment the child was placed in his arms Reborn felt a connection with the child. Iemetsu smiled proudly as his son gripped his finger with his strong hand looking at Reborn, "Do you want to be the god father?" he asked mostly joking.

He knew Reborn wouldn't get attached like that.

That's why the Fedora wearing man's answer shocked him, "Please?" Reborn asked his eyes locked on Tsuna's smiling face, "Please may I?" he asked his grip on the baby tightening marginally.

"Of course Reborn-kun!" Nana's voice bubbled up from beside the two men, Nana didn't know what it meant for Reborn to be asking for such a thing, but Iemetsu was never very good at denying his wife what she wanted.

"There you go Reborn. You're the kid's God father." Iemetsu smiled throwing away his unease and remembered the pleading tones Reborn had used to assure himself.

"Thank you." Reborn said smiling down at the child, "I'll protect Tsuna with my life." He swore his hand touching the child's cheek.

A few days past and Reborn had come to see Tsuna every day, absolutely infatuated with the chubby child. When Tsuna could finally get taken home the two parents steeled themselves for what they had heard from other couples to be the toughest part of rearing a child.

Those other couples didn't have Reborn as their children's dedicated godfathers.

The baby monitor they set up would flare to life once a night alerting them to Tsuna's tears and before Iemetsu and Nana could get out of their bed the crying would stop. The first time that this had happened Iemetsu had been terrified, thinking that one of his enemies had come and attacked his child. He rushed into Tsuna's room and found not armed assailants but Reborn holding Tsuna close and rocking the child back and forth.

Reborn didn't notice him as far as Iemetsu could tell, the assassin's full attention focused on the baby in his arms. Reborn soothed the child in an instant.

Though sometimes not even Reborn could sooth Tsuna with just one touch. The first night that such a thing had happened Iemetsu, Nana, and Reborn stayed up half the night trying to get the child to rest. Nana had fallen asleep in the rocking chair and Iemetsu had fallen asleep on the floor, needless to say when they both woke up the next morning with no sign of Reborn or their precious baby they panicked for a moment. Iemetsu burst into Reborn's room and was met with a sight that had Nana running for the camera.

Tsuna and Reborn's foreheads were just barely touching one another and Reborn had an arm wrapped delicately around Tsuna's fragile frame. The professional hit man was perfectly curled around their baby boy and Nana couldn't have been more gleeful.

When the time came that Reborn had to leave a year later he held onto the loving one year old extra long. Somehow that image of Reborn struck him as absolutely tragic, "No matter where you go in the world, you'll always be Tsuna's godfather, and no matter what you do this house and Tsuna will be waiting for you when you need us." He reminded the hit man softly not willing to pull his son away from the young man that gripped him so desperately.

Minutes felt like seconds before the hit man let go of the child, and Iemetsu knew that in Reborn's mind no time would make it okay, "I know." he touched Tsuna's mop of brown hair, "I'll be back." he swore and Iemetsu watched his own heart hurting as with an almost physical struggle Reborn broke his last remaining bit of physical contact with Tsuna, "I'll be back no matter what." he swore mostly to himself as he turned and walked out the gate.

The Sawada family did not see or hear from Reborn for thirteen years.

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Reborn woke up to a moan, Tsuna turned in his bed his back now facing the wall but his face was filled with discomfort, whether it be from whatever dream the future mafia boss was having or from something else Reborn didn't know. With a sigh the world's best hit man got out of his hammock and made his way over to Tsuna's bed.

The teenager didn't budge and though he was annoyed that Tsuna still couldn't sense danger in his sleep he acknowledge that Tsuna would never be able to sense him, because to Tsuna he wasn't a danger of any sort.

He laid down next to the slumbering boy, smiling a little as he realized that even thirteen years later Tsuna still made the same face as he slept, and he let his forehead barely touched Tsuna's. Reborn felt the same calm flood his system that he had experienced more then a decade before and fell asleep without another thought.