Tsubird

It was Reborn's' idea that I, the no good Tsuna, Vongola Decimo get to know my guardians better. I know Gokudera, Yamamoto, onii-chan, Chrome, Lambo and surprisingly even Mukuro well.

The only one that remained as a mystery to me was Hibari-san. There were times when he was scary which to me, is probably always. Then again, there are times when he will help us all but still say some scary things. I really have no idea as to what goes through his mind. To be truthful, I am afraid of him no matter what people say.

"Tsuna! As a Mafia boss you must get to know your guardians better, starting with your cloud guardian."

That was the last thing I heard before being shot in the head.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

I woke up surprised to find some really bright lights in an airy place. I tried to get up and actually fell off somewhere I thought was rather high. It hurt badly but I could not shout. What came out was something that greatly resembled a high pitched chirp.

I lay on the ground, stunned, as I studied my surroundings. There were objects that I recognized as furniture except, they were at least a hundred times larger than normal.

Then, I picked up soft footsteps and tensed up instinctively. The door opened and I started to tremble uncontrollably when I heard the voice, "What are you doing down there?"

Too petrified to move, I chirped weakly. The owner of the voice gently carried me off the hard carpeted ground and placed me on his bed which was much softer. I shivered so much that the owner of the house brought me a towel to wrap over me, thinking I was cold. Then he sighed and looked at me with those piercing cobalt-grey eyes.

I had used to think of those eyes as cruel and unfeeling. However, upon closer scrutiny I saw how terribly wrong I had been. They spoke volumes about him and I mentally slapped myself for fearing him.

Those cobalt-grey pools contained warm emotions and behind the Icy King demeanour, I sensed something tenderer. It was as if there were hidden secrets that could not be exposed behind the wall of ice he had built around him. Reborn must have known something about it and curiosity got a better hold over me than my logical mind.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

For the next few days I stayed at my cloud guardian's house with Hibird and occasionally followed him on his patrol. I was too afraid to go to school in fear that Gokudera or anyone else might recognize me. It might sound silly but I doubted it was difficult to recognize me with my brown feathers and three significant spikes of brown clustered feathers on my head. Hibari-san did not seemed to have suspected anything yet, which sounded so far so good.

As usual, it does not take long for my stupidity to catch up with me; even in my bird form. I just had to fly around and crashed into Hibari-san's glass cabinet and cause the book on the top most rack to drop on me.

After regaining my sense of balance and direction, I hopped over to the fallen book and saw an open page. In it was scribbled in neat handwriting the date and some names. I happened to see my name in it and wondered why it would be in there. I read further to see the comments by the side and saw an asterisk drawn saying that said I should refer to the back of the book for more details.

It took more effort than usual to flip the pages of a book as a bird. I eventually did it and made a cheep of satisfaction. I began reading the words on the page and almost immediately regretted it.

There was nothing more depressing than to be admired by a person who was deeply respected by everybody and yet be unable to meet his expectations. At that moment, I felt that I had really let Hibari-san down. The words stared back at me "…I wished he could always be as strong as the time when he defeated Byakuran back in the future…"

I never knew that Hibari-san had thought so highly of me, even though I was no-good Tsuna. Hibari-san in the future also looked up to me and Reborn said I was his pillar of strength. I just never believed any of those and now tears just streamed freely as I continued reading.

"I know that he is the person who can bring me to greater heights and help me protect not only Namimori but also all the weak in the world that I cannot see because he is such a person with a generous heart to embrace everyone, including his own enemies. I have faith in him for as long as I live for I know that he will succeed somehow. Every day I see him grow stronger and his smile becomes brighter although the reality and the threat to his life increases… yet he does not realise how much he has grown over the short period of time. I will willingly give my life to this person without hesitation because I believe in him…"

The tears now cascaded freely and I could no longer hold back my cries. It felt as if my world had crashed with a meteorite and shattered to pieces. It might have been better if I did not know what Hibari-san thought of me. Reality is a harsh and cruel thing. However, I never expected it to stab me in the back. What I just found out was simply too cruel to bear. How could Hibari-san still believe in me after all the times I got everyone dragged into those shady mafia businesses?

I felt the shame burn through me thoroughly and the guilt eating me up from inside. There was nothing worse than the feeling of helplessness which was what I felt. If only I knew, if only Reborn told me, if only I had watched and observed Hibari-san more closely, then I would have realised he was constantly looking at me. This is my entire fault and it probably is already too late to make any amendments with my bird form.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX

Hibird perched on my shoulder and chirped my name happily before making my head its nest. I hated how its tiny talons poked at my scalp but I ignored it. If Hibird was happy then I had nothing to complain about.

The sun was a globe of golden that slowly exited the sky's stage. I wondered about Tsuna at my house. How was he coping? The baby had told me of the effect of the new bullet. A Tsubird was cute but I wonder how that little carnivore will cope with the changes.

I shrugged off these annoying thoughts and headed for home. If having a Tsubird in my care will transform that little carnivore into a stronger one, then I have no qualms about it. In fact, I am rather interested to know the outcome of this queer 'training' as the baby calls it. Will I be able to go all out with the carnivore this time?

When I reached home I walked to my room and heard a muffled sobbing sound. Did the Tsubird hurt himself again? A wave of panic and worry swept over me as my feet took me to the source of the noise.

I looked around my room and saw no Tsubird. Instead, in its place was the little carnivore. "Tsunayoshi," I called out and saw him visibly flinch.

Tears were still rolling down his cheeks. I felt a little sorry for using such a harsh voice earlier but did not dwindle on the thought for long. Crossing the room to where he sat in three fast strides, I leaned in and lowered myself so that our eyes were on the same level.

"Tsunayoshi," I asked, "what's wrong?"

I did not expect him to burst into tears again. My only response was to pet his hair gently and wipe away those big droplets of tears. I waited till he calmed down again so he could speak.

"I'm so sorry Hibari-san! I disappointed you. There is no way I can be someone strong, I'm just the no-good Tsuna who can't do anything right," he cried.

I sighed and rubbed the bridge of my nose. This was going to be a long talk. The baby must have already foreseen this and I made a mental note to bite him later.

"Tsunayoshi," I began. "Nobody asked you to please anyone. Nobody wants you to be strong if you don't want to. Nobody is expecting anything of you. You could be the worst student in school for all I care; nobody is going to hate you for that. However, what I can't accept is the way you demean yourself! I hate it when you think of yourself as less than anyone. I hate it when you give up easily. I hate it when you smile and assure everyone it's alright when you really are not!"

He looked at me, shocked.

I continued "I hate it when you tell yourself you deserve it when you get injured or something bad happens. I hate it when you treat your life as less important than everyone. I hate it when you are so caring about everyone else that you forget about yourself!"

I paused to catch my breath. "However, that's why I admire you Tsunayoshi. I admire your courage and rare streaks of boldness. I like the way you always seem bright and cheerful, full of hope even when the odds are stacked against you. I like how you make everything seem so easy. I respect how you treasure your friends and the value of life. I admire you because of who you are and not what you do, Tsunayoshi. Do you understand now?"

The little animal looked at me with widened eyes at the speech I just made.

"Hibari-san…" he sobbed.

I merely huffed and looked away. I felt ridiculously embarrassed for having said so many words all at once in my entire life. The little animal however, seemed touched by it.

Then, the smile I looked forward to every time I was down appeared like a rainbow after a hurricane.

"Thank you Hibari-san!" he smiled.

I merely huffed to hide the light tint of pink on my cheeks. This Tsubird of mine will grow up strong. One day, perhaps, I will really be able to bite the sky. Until then, I would need to continue watching over my Tsubird.

Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX