Archive of Our Own ^beta

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"Uhm. E-excuse me, Sawada-senpai."

Hayato tried not to scowl when Tsuna lifted his head from its comfortable position on the Storm's shoulder. The brunet had turned to look at the girl who had spoken. She stood there just a few feet away from their group that was huddled under a tree in the school's courtyard. Kyoko had brought a picnic blanket and had called for "Famiglia Picnic Day", which was quickly becoming a daily thing for their group after they entered high school.

Tsuna seemed to notice the girl's stutter and her nervous fidgeting because he gave her a kind smile, his Sky flames instinctively coming out to comfort even though the girl couldn't know what he was doing. Hayato tensed despite the calming effects of Tsuna's flame that wrapped around him like a blanket. It was mirrored by Takeshi, Kyoko, and even Hana and Hibari (from where he was perched on a tree branch above them). From the blush on the younger girl's cheeks, they all could tell what this was going to be about.

"Yes? Can I help you?" Tsuna asked softly, his tone kind like always. Hayato loved Tsuna. He was the Storm's all-encompassing sky. But right now, he kind of wanted to scream at his clueless boss who seemed to be making it worse for everyone involved. The girl's blush deepened and Hayato wanted to punt someone into the sun. (He'll never hurt a civilian but god, he was so tired.)

"I-I wanted to ask if I could uh, talk to you?" Tsuna tilted his head to the side in askance, the gesture was too cute for anyone to witness. Hayato wanted to squish his cheeks. 

"Of course. What do you want to talk about, miss…?"

"Oh! Uhm, Uchida Maya. I'm in the year below you. A-anyways, I was wondering if we could talk p-privately?"

Hayato scowled then. He glanced at Takeshi to see that the guy wasn't smiling his usual annoying smile, apparently as unamused by this as he was. He looked back to the still clueless Sky when he answered.

"Sure, Uchida-chan. Why not?" Tsuna shrugged as he stood up, shooting their group a smile. "Be back in a second, guys."

"Hurry back, Tsuna." Takeshi had his smile back on again. Though it didn't help to hide the coldness in his eyes.

"Tsu-kun, your food will get cold if you don't move fast." Kyoko teased with an ease which made Hayato jealous.

Tsuna just chuckled at them, their borderline separation anxiety completely flying over his head. Hayato watched as his Sky followed the girl towards one of the benches a few meters away from their group. They could still see the two but they couldn't hear what they were saying.

"Damn, that girl's got guts, I'll give her that." Hana commented after a moment of silence with them just staring at the two. 

Kyoko hummed, her eyes not leaving Tsuna's figure. "I didn't think anyone would actually confess. I thought everyone believed the rumor."

Hayato grimaced at the mention of the rumor. Takeshi caught his expression and laughed in his face.

"Shut up, baseball idiot." He grumbled, which just made the others join in on the laughter.

"Oh, please." Hana threw a grape at him as she rolled her eyes. "As if you don't enjoy the rumor."

Hayato could feel his face warm as he blushed. "Shut. Up."

"You know, if you hated it that much, I bet I could take your place." Kyoko had a mischievous smile on her usually angelic face. Hayato glared at her. The deceptively disarming girl just laughed. The menace . "I'm joking!"

"The rumor was a good idea but I guess it didn't convince all of them." Hana seemed to take pity on Hayato and steered the conversation slightly (but not completely) away from him.

"Yeah, well. I think it just started becoming more and more outrageous that some people just got skeptical." Takeshi added, eyes still tracking their Sky, a brow quirking at the sudden blush on Tsuna's face to match the flailing girl. "I think the one where we're all supposedly in a polyamorous relationship with Tsuna was the nail in the coffin."

They all collectively snorted. It was just in time to see Tsuna bowing, an apology written all over his cute, blushing face.

"Tsu-kun's so clueless though. I bet he'd combust if he heard anything about that rumor." Kyoko sighed fondly. "I don't even know if he knows what polyamory is."

Hana snorted again. "As if that isn't basically what it is. You guys are all so obsessed with Sawada that it's frankly disgusting." 

There was a chorus of offended "Hey!"s following her statement but no one really corrected her. 

Hayato perked up though when Tsuna seemed to finally be done talking with the girl. Said girl looked disappointed but otherwise fine. She smiled up sadly at Tsuna before saying something. The Sky nodded after a second and Hayato's eyes widened when the girl threw herself into Tsuna's arms. The too kind boy patted her a few times before letting go and waving goodbye. He watched her disappear into the school building before making his way back towards their group.

"Guys—Eek!" Tsuna yelped in surprise when Hibari jumped down from the tree and landed directly in front of him. "H-Hibari-senpai! You scared me!"

The Cloud Guardian said nothing as he eyed Tsuna, flicking his gaze up and down the smaller boy's figure. 

"Hibari-senpai?" Tsuna titled his head to the side in confusion.

Hibari straightened when he seemed to find no problems with the Sky. He ruffled the brown fluffy hair as he muttered something like "little animal" before walking towards the school building. Hayato heard Hana say "obsessed" under her breath with a roll of her eyes. 

"What was that about?" Tsuna muttered to no one in particular as he watched the older boy walk away. 

Hibari had warmed up to them after middle school happened and they all bonded over shared trauma, but he was still as unreadable as ever. Tsuna shook his head as if to clear his thoughts and sat back down in between Hayato and Takeshi.

"So, Tsuna! How did the confession go? Did you say yes?" Takeshi asked cheerfully. They all knew Tsuna didn't say yes. The pity hug was telling (okay, so maybe Hayato was bitter about that). But making Tsuna flustered was the Rain's favorite pastime, which even Hayato had come to appreciate. 

Secretly. 

A blushing Tsuna was cute, okay? Sue him.

And as if on cue, Tsuna flustered, his cheeks going pink. "W-What? How do you know about the confession?! Did you hear us?!" 

"We didn't need to. The girl was being very obvious about her intentions." Kyoko explained serenely. You'd have to know her really well to notice the teasing tone in her voice. And Tsuna had known her for years now. He frowned.

"No, she wasn't." The brunet huffed.

"Yes, she was." They all answered in unison.

Tsuna groaned as he buried his face in Hayato's shoulder. "Am I dense?" His voice came out muffled but the embarrassment was clear.

"Oh, extremely."

"Yup."

"The densest."

"Well, things do fly over your head sometimes, Tenth." Hayato added gently.

Tsuna groaned again. 

Takeshi chuckled before ruffling the Sky's hair, adding to Hibari's efforts to mess it up even more. "So, how'd it go?"

Tsuna slowly lifted his head and looked contemplatively as he answered. "I was flattered even though it took me completely by surprise. But I didn't know her and I don't think I'm looking for anything like romance right now so I told her I'm sorry. She was very gracious about it." He picked up his forgotten onigiri absentmindedly. "It's so weird though. I can't believe someone actually likes me like that."

"Tenth!" Tsuna startled as Hayato grabbed his shoulders. "You're such a wonderful person! Of course you have admirers!"

The others nodded their heads in agreement, even Hana who did so begrudgingly. 

Tsuna smiled softly at that, although he still looked doubtful. "Thanks, Hayato. Everyone." He leaned in to Hayato a bit and the silver-haired boy did the same to touch their foreheads together. After a while, Tsuna pulled away to lean comfortably on the Storm's side once again. He seemed to stare a beat too long at Hayato though. It made his face heat up a bit. "Oh."

"Tenth?" Hayato asked. 

"This is why people think we're dating." Tsuna declared as if he just found the answer to a particularly difficult question.

Hayato sputtered, hands coming up to hide his face as he contained the urge to scream. Around him, the three menaces laughed. Tsuna just looked confused as he took a bite out of his onigiri.

☆ ☆ ☆

Takeshi strode up to the fluffy-haired boy from behind and deliberately placed his arm around his shoulders. Tsuna looked up at him, not even surprised by his presence but questioning his intentions nonetheless. Takeshi smiled down at his Sky.

"Hi, Tsuna! Do you need any help?" Said boy had his arms full with a stack of notebooks. Tsuna gave an apologetic glance towards the guy he was talking to before answering Takeshi.

"No, actually, Matsuoka-san here was just offering to help me." Matsuoka, who was one of their classmates if he remembered correctly, fidgeted as Takeshi leveled him with a cold stare, a smile still in place.

"Oh? That's very kind of you, Matsuoka!" Matsuoka flinched, he seemed very uncomfortable with the sudden attention from the Rain Guardian. 

"It's nothing…" He muttered as he looked at the floor.

"Hey, but it's all good, man. I got it from here. I'll help Tsuna." Your help is unnecessary , was what Takeshi meant. And from how quickly the guy bowed and fled, he seemed to have understood it perfectly.

"Huh. He looked nervous. I wonder if he's okay…" Takeshi looked down again to see Tsuna frowning at the fleeing boy. He bumped his head lightly on the fluffy mane of hair.

"Don't worry about it, Tsuna." Takeshi grabbed the stack of notebooks from Tsuna as he was still distracted and began walking towards their classroom. 

"Hey!" The brunet huffed in annoyance when he realized what just happened. Takeshi just laughed and kept walking, Tsuna grumbling and trying to grab the notebooks all the way as he trailed after Takeshi. 

When they got to their classroom, Hayato was glaring across the room at Matsuoka and his group of friends. Takeshi set down the notebooks on the teacher's table before walking up to the back of the class where Hayato, Kyoko, and Hana were.

"What's going on?" Tsuna asked when they sat down in their seats. 

Kyoko had a sly smirk on her face and Hana was looking particularly amused. Uh-oh, Takeshi thought with some amount of glee, that's not good.

"Tsu-kun! Tsu-kun! We overheard Matsuoka saying he's going to ask you out on a date!" Kyoko cheered. Takeshi's initial glee disintegrated in the blink of an eye. From his periphery, he saw Hayato's frown deepen. 

"What?!" Tsuna's eyes widened in surprise.

"Yup! He was talking about how cute and adorable you were to his friends earlier." Hana's eyes sparkled with the promise of teasing Tsuna about it for the foreseeable future.

"Eep!" The fluffy-haired boy was beginning to turn red. And although Takeshi loved seeing Tsuna flustered, he didn't particularly enjoy it when it wasn't because of him or their other friends. 

Takeshi scooted his seat closer to Tsuna's and wrapped an arm around his shoulders. "Aw," he cooed. "You're so cute and adorable aren't you, Tsuna? Like a fluffy little bunny." If a bunny can kill a man with its bare hands.

Tsuna groaned but he didn't shrug away from Takeshi. It made the Rain's insides warm.

"Don't worry, Tenth! I'll keep that bastard away from you! How dare he have the audacity to ask for Tenth's affections!" Hayato stood up, fully bent on charging towards Matsuoka. Takeshi wouldn't put it past the guy to challenge their poor classmate to a duel in Tsuna's honor or something equally outrageous. 

Tsuna, probably thinking the same, rushed to stop Hayato, wrapping a hand on his wrist. It was probably done unconsciously on Tsuna's part but the comforting burst of Sky Flames was a much more effective deterrent than the physical restraint. The Storm Guardian visibly relaxed as he stopped in his tracks. 

"You don't have to do that, Hayato! Please, you guys probably misheard anyways. There's no way another person likes me." Hayato sat back down, a worried look pointed towards their Sky. Takeshi was also feeling unpleasant. He really hated it when Tsuna talked bad about himself. "I mean, one person liking me was already a stretch. But another just seems like a bad joke…You know what, that's it. Matsuoka-kun was probably just joking around."

Takeshi squeezed the clueless boy's shoulders, pulling him closer, and tucked the fluffy head under his chin. "Stop talking like that, Tsuna."

"Tenth, anyone would be incredibly lucky to have your affections." Hayato seemed like he was speaking from experience. Takeshi would've teased him about it if they weren't in the same boat.

"Tsu-kun, you're a wonderful person. You should see yourself how we see you and maybe you'll understand why so many people like you." Kyoko said softly. She looked like she wanted to hug Tsuna. She probably would have if he wasn't cocooned in Takeshi's limbs.

"Dude, you really wanna talk about being unlikable when you literally own a harem?" They all looked at Hana with a deadpan stare. Tsuna looked like he was going to faint. "What? It was getting too mushy in here."

Takeshi huffed, the sound not unlike laughter. The tension broke and they all started bickering. While the others started debating the definition of a harem, the Rain Guardian didn't let go of his Sky.

☆ ☆ ☆

When people looked at Ryohei, they saw a musclehead who only had boxing in mind. They assumed he was a clueless idiot, loud and extreme as he was. And although he might not be academically gifted and he might be a tad bit (read: very ) obsessed with boxing, he wasn't stupid. And he wasn't clueless . So when things started changing, he noticed. He was probably the first to notice. 

Tsunayoshi was a great guy. Ryohei knew this to be true. After all, he wouldn't be surrounded with people who loved, adored, and respected him if that wasn't the case. But the only one who didn't know this was perhaps Tsuna himself. Ryohei didn't like it but his little brother had so little self-confidence, even after Reborn had beaten the ways of a mafia don through his skull. Perhaps the only time Tsuna didn't falter in his belief in himself was when he was leading everyone to battle. He was a commander, through and through. But in everyday life? Tsuna barely believed people actually liked him. Much less see him as a love interest.

So it was interesting to watch all of it unfold. 

Tsuna had changed. He had changed from the guy who always slouched in the corner of the room to the guy who walked with purpose, somehow commanding the attention of any room he walked into. Anyone with eyes could see that. For all that Tsunayoshi was short, he had a presence about him, now presented to the world in its full glory with his flames unsealed. Tsuna was always kind and compassionate, but those were exacerbated by the fact that Tsuna actually had people on his side now. People who believed in him. That belief he didn't use to have brought out the side of himself that had been hidden under all the bullying.

Tsuna changed (but not really, his core remained the same) and Ryohei watched as people took notice. The other Guardians didn't like the new kind of attention their Sky was getting. They had always been possessive of Tsuna so that was no surprise. Ryohei himself was protective of his little brother but the others' protectiveness was…extreme. They were Tsuna's Guardians, yes. But for most of them, Tsuna was also their first exposure to a Sky. And Tsuna was a powerful Sky, arguably the most powerful after Primo himself. So when Tsuna harmonized with his elements, it was done with such a force that it had both parties reeling. 

So, no. Ryohei couldn't blame the other Guardians. But it was amusing nonetheless. 

"Sawada, are you free on Saturday?" Mochida, the kendo club captain, asked casually. Too casually. Not casually at all. Ryohei remembered the guy as the one who challenged Tsuna all those years ago for Kyoko. He noted the faint blush on the captain's cheeks and smirked to himself. Oh, how the turn tables.

Tsuna looked up from wiping his sweat with a towel. They had just finished their biweekly boxing session. Tsuna never did end up joining his boxing club but he indulged Ryohei once in a while. Their Sky did this thing with every one of his Guardians where he would spend one on one time with them. And this was Ryohei's.

Mochida was standing just outside the boxing ring, leaning on the ropes as he watched Tsuna and Ryohei cool down. 

"Hi, Mochida-senpai! Uhm, I have to check first, but may I ask what this is about?" Tsuna ever-so-politely asked.

"I was wondering if you wanted to join me on a hike on Namimori Mountain." Smart , Ryohei thought. If there was one way to spend time with Tsuna, it was through training or some variation of it. Middle school had really changed the Sky's views on getting stronger in general. 

"Oh?" Tsuna seemed to think over it for a second. "You know what? That sounds like fun! Sure, I'd love to."

Mochida beamed. "Great! Here's my number. Text me so we can talk about the details later." After giving a slip of paper to Tsuna, Mochida walked away from them with a bounce in his step.

Ryohei internally said a prayer for Mochida for when Takeshi and Hayato inevitably find out about this little excursion.

"Little bro, you do know he was asking you out, right?" Ryohei turned to Tsuna who was now putting away his things in his bags.

"Hm? Yeah, he said we were going out to hike." His oblivious little brother said absentmindedly.

"No." Ryohei said slowly. "Ask you out…like on a date."

Tsuna paused. Then he looked up at Ryohei. The Sun Guardian could see the gears spinning in those amber-colored eyes. And then it clicked.

"WHAT?!"

Ryohei only laughed loudly as he clapped a heavy hand on the shocked boy's back.

The next Saturday, Ryohei sent a silent apology to Mochida when explosions were heard in the mountains. But really, he didn't feel that bad about letting the little date slip to the others. After all, he was more afraid of the other Guardians than he was of the kendo club captain.

(Oh, but it was amusing indeed.)

☆ ☆ ☆

Hibari stalked through the hallways, the other students parting to get out of his way. 

He was annoyed. There was some gang activity in the outskirts of Namimori and he spent last night dealing with it. Then some of his men just had to get injured and he had to take care of that too. 

He was already in a bad mood this week and now some idiot gang from outside of town had to cause trouble and push him over the edge.

He made his silent way through the halls as his eyes searched for his target. And when he had finally caught sight of the fluffy, brown head, his scowl deepened.

This . This was what had him in a bad mood for the week. Tsunayoshi was surrounded by a pack of herbivores that he did not know the faces of, and his usual band of misfits wasn't even with him. One of the nameless herbivores giggled and moved to touch his little animal's arm, and Kyoya's eyes narrowed into slits.

With a flick of his wrists, his tonfas slid down from his sleeves into his hands. He was about to strike when Tsuna's head snapped towards his direction and they locked eyes. The skylark stopped at the light warning in those amber-colored eyes.

"Sorry guys. I have something I have to do with Hibari-senpai." The little animal addressed the crowd of herbivores. The weak little things clammed up at the mention of his name, and flinched when they caught sight of him just a few feet from them. They scrambled to get away. Good. 

Kyoya watched the herbivores disperse before he put away his weapons. Tsuna approached him with a soft smile on his face.

"Hi, Hibari-senpai. Would you like to head to the rooftop with me?" Sometimes, the Cloud Guardian wondered if the little animal's intuition allowed him to read minds. 

"Hn." He turned around, and started heading towards the staircase leading to the rooftop. He could feel the little animal's comforting warmth follow him from behind, effectively calming down some of his earlier annoyance.

When the rooftop door closed behind the Sky, Kyoya turned around abruptly and grabbed the smaller boy by the arm. The skylark dragged him towards the fence, the brunet following along without resistance even though the Cloud was pulling him a bit too roughly. Kyoya sat down with his back on the fence and pulled Tsuna down onto his lap. The usually stoic and aloof guardian didn't hesitate to wrap his arms around the other's waist as he buried his face into the crook of the Sky's neck. 

Tsuna felt the stuttering in the Cloud's breathing from where he was pressed on Tsuna's back. He released some of his Sky flames more freely and noted how it relaxed the other almost immediately.

After a few minutes of Kyoya just breathing in the little animal's comforting scent and basking in the familiar warmth, the other started to wriggle in his hold. The growl that escaped him was entirely unconscious. The little animal paused minutely before amping up the output of his Sky flames. Kyoya melted and didn't complain anymore as Tsuna just adjusted his position on the Cloud's lap so he was facing him.

"Hibari-senpai…" The little animal's soft voice brought him somewhat back into reality. Those doe eyes briefly flashed orange and Kyoya just buried his face in Tsuna's neck once again, arms tightening around the younger boy's figure. Tsuna brushed a gentle hand through the skylark's hair. 

Kyoya did not purr. He did not.  

His little animal hummed, the sound vibrating through where their bodies were connected. "When was the last time you slept, senpai?"

The Cloud swore the little animal could read minds. That, or he knew him—and the other guardians—too well.

Kyoya just grunted. Which was apparently not the right answer because there was a light tug on his hair that made him growl in mild irritation.

"Please. I'm worried about you. Tell me what's wrong?" The palpable concern in his Sky's voice made him want to whimper. 

Kyoya was strong. He knew this. Everyone knew this. He never showed weakness. Being weak was something he absolutely despised. But Tsuna was perhaps the only person he was comfortable enough to feel vulnerable with. Sometimes, he still had trouble accepting that fact and would challenge the Sky to a fight. Other times, like right now, he would allow himself the luxury of tearing down his walls in front of his most precious person.

"The herbivores keep crowding around you." He huffed after a beat of silence, his voice muffled as he did not want to raise his head yet. 

Tsuna hummed again. "And that upsets you."

"Hn." 

"It upsets the others too. Although I can't imagine why." The Sky mused. Kyoya wanted to snort at that. "You guys treat me too much like I'm fragile. I can handle myself, you know."

The Cloud wanted to point out that that wasn't the problem. He knew—they all knew—that Tsuna could wipe the floor with all of them, and they weren't worried about that. They were just a bit…possessive of their Sky. But explaining that to the oblivious idiot with self-confidence barely enough to fill a teaspoon was a futile endeavor. 

"Hn. They don't deserve your time, little animal." But still, he could try driving it in. It was the Guardians' side project: boosting their Sky's self-worth. 

He felt Tsuna muffle a laugh by burying his face in the skylark's hair. "What does that even mean?" The clueless omnivore said with mirth in his voice.

"It means, they are a bunch of nameless herbivores. They do not deserve you." Kyoya grumbled. His earlier annoyance was all but gone now, but Tsuna's obliviousness was a new kind of irritating. 

"They're nice. They treat me kindly now. You and the others worry too much." But of course the intuitive Sky (oblivious but still ) would pick up on one of the roots of their concerns—one of them but not all of them. 

"They have not apologized. They deserve to be bitten to death." Even Kyoya had apologized (grumbling and slightly aggressive as it was) for his past transgressions. At least, for the instances that were completely unprovoked. But for the most part, he was unapologetic about disciplining Tsuna in the past when he broke the rules.

"They treat me kindly now." Tsuna reiterated. "That’s enough for me." 

Kyoya hated the little animal's herbivorous side. ( Lies. He loved Tsuna's kindness as much as his fierceness.)

The skylark opened his mouth to argue some more but a yawn came out instead. He could feel his eyelids closing as his senses focused on the gentle hand that continued to comb through his hair. He felt warm and protected, wrapped in the familiar Sky flames. Kyoya realized what was happening even as his consciousness started to surrender to the lull that promised rest. Damn Skies and their tricks.

With an annoyed grumble that came out as a whine, the Cloud's eyes closed. The last thing he heard was Tsuna's softly murmured 'rest' before he was out like a light. 

☆ ☆ ☆

Tsuna watched the sleeping form of his Cloud Guardian, the skylark's head on his lap where he repositioned him. The Sky didn't feel bad about making the older boy sleep. Hibari obviously needed it. He would take the beating later if that meant Hibari didn't risk collapsing due to exhaustion.

Tsuna absentmindedly ran his hands through dark locks as he contemplated what the older boy had said. Tsuna knew to an extent that his friends were overprotective of him. But it seemed to have gotten worse recently. Tsuna could barely go anywhere without one of his Guardians escorting him. And although he loved them to pieces, it was getting to be kind of ridiculous. He just hoped they would get over whatever this was soon or at least, hoped that he could figure out why they were acting like this in the first place.

☆ ☆ ☆

Lambo was vibrating with excitement. Like, physically vibrating. Today was a special day after all! 

He could barely stop himself from running ahead, although Fuuta's firm hold on his hand helped keep him in check. On Fuuta's other hand was I-pin who appeared to be just as excited as him, if only more subdued. I-pin had always been the calmer one between the two of them.

"Fuuta! Hurry, hurry!" He tried tugging the older boy to make him move faster but his brother just giggled.

"Calm down, Lambo. We have plenty of time before the festival even starts." The festival! Oh, how Lambo loved the sound of it! 

When his Tsuna-nii told Lambo that they were having a cultural festival and that Lambo was allowed to visit, he was ecstatic. He’d always wanted to see where his Tsuna-nii spent most of his days and experience being there with him. Being the youngest Guardian, he was excluded in most things the others got to experience with their Sky. And that was awfully unfair to Lambo. He wanted to go on an adventure with Tsuna-nii too! And from what he’s heard from the others, their school was where constant chaos occurred. Lambo was eight years old and had been going to elementary school with I-pin and Fuuta for a while now, but none of their playtimes seemed as interesting as the chaotic stories his older siblings always told him about. 

But now, Lambo can visit their high school and join in on the fun! And since it was a special day like the cultural festival, there was bound to be more fun than any normal day! Lambo couldn’t wait to see Tsuna-nii and the others!

He started pulling his two companions along again with the thought of fun and adventure with more of his favorite people in the entire planet. He could tell Fuuta and I-pin were as excited as him because they gave up on trying to pretend that they were trying to slow him down and keep him in check. 

Soon, they were jogging through the streets, giggling as they maneuvered around passersby. They stopped at the gates of Namimori High School and Lambo’s eyes sparkled. It was absolutely bustling with activity! There were so many colors! His eyes went to the balloons and streamers decorating the gates with all the colors of the rainbow. A big sign with a bubbly font was up there announcing Namimori High School 64th Cultural Festival . And beyond the gates was the walkway towards the main building which was filled with booths of all kinds. Lambo noted the food stalls in particular and his mouth watered when he saw takoyaki, candied grapes, chocolate bananas, yakisoba and so many more delicious-looking delicacies! 

He was about to run forward, forgetting about his older brother’s hold on him, and almost face-planted as he was tugged back.

“Fuuta-nii!!! I want the candied grapes!” He demanded instead as he hit his brother with his best puppy dog eyes. Sure, Lambo came here to see Tsuna-nii and the others, but surely, he couldn’t be blamed for getting sidetracked by mouth-watering festival food. 

Fuuta chuckled at his display. “Geez, Lambo. Calm down. I’ll buy you and I-pin snacks and then we’ll go straight to Tsuna-nii, okay?” He and I-pin cheered in agreement.

Soon enough, they had their hands full with food, some of them in a plastic bag for later because they simply did not have enough limbs to hold them. Lambo also made sure to buy some stuff for mama. She wanted to come too but had something to do for the neighborhood council. So Lambo made sure he bought her favorite festival foods for her. 

Having eaten their fill, they skipped towards Tsuna-nii’s classroom. It wasn’t that hard to find even though the school was huge. Turned out, his brother Sky was well-known and every single person they asked knew where his room was. It made Lambo’s chest puff out in pride at his Tsuna-nii’s obvious popularity. His brother was great after all, so it was natural that everyone knew him. 

When they got to the classroom in question, Lambo was dismayed to see so many people crowding in front of it. 

“There’s so many people here.” I-pin voiced out what he was thinking. 

“Yeah. Tsu-nii said they were having a cosplay cafe. Maybe their food is good? That, or Haya-nii and Take-nii are doing the crowd-gathering.” Fuuta guessed with a considering look at the crowd. Lambo remembered Fuuta once ranking Hayato and Takeshi for fun and one of their rankings was Most Conventionally Attractive in the Mafia . Bakadera was 27th and Take-nii was 38th. 

They had their answers when they finally approached close enough to see the center of the small crowd in front of the classroom. The three of them gaped.

“Tsuna-nii?!” Fuuta gasped out loud and Lambo couldn’t help but mirror the sentiment.

Their brother Sky’s head swiveled in their direction and bright, amber eyes landed on them. It was like there wasn’t a crowd surrounding him as he smiled softly at seeing them there. 

“Fuuta, Lambo, and I-pin! You guys got here safely! You didn’t get lost, did you?” Tsuna-nii excused himself from the people surrounding him and they parted like he was some divine being. Lambo thought he looked like a divine being. “I would’ve come to get you guys at the gate if you told me you were already here.”

“It’s fine, Tsuna-nii! We walked around a bit at the food stalls anyway!” Fuuta hurried to assure their brother who had the tendency to mother hen them. “But, more importantly Tsuna-nii, what are you wearing?”

Lambo wanted to ask that question himself. Tsuna-nii’s costume was…revealing (or so Bakadera would say). He was wearing a white costume with gold accents. The sleeveless crop top barely concealed his chest which left his abdomen exposed. The top had a wide hood attached to it that fell loosely around his shoulders and he had on long fingerless gloves that covered almost his entire arm. He had on shorts that ended way too high up his thighs, the only saving grace perhaps was the thigh highs (or thigh high because it was only on the one leg). There were aquamarine tattoos adorning parts of his exposed thigh and abdomen that almost shone when the light hit it directly. Most eye-catching of all was probably the angel-like wings sprouting from his back that had unconventional golden rings on each wing. Tsuna-nii was also holding a fancy-looking lyre and had a single white flower pinned to one side of his hair. 

Lambo didn’t know who or what his brother Sky was cosplaying as but he looked like something he would find in those Greek mythologies he liked to read or maybe the bible. 

“Oh! I’m dressed up as this character called Venti! You know that game Haru’s been obsessed about? Well, she basically threw me in this outfit when I told her we were having a cosplay café.” Tsuna-nii chuckled as he thought about Haru-nee’s wild tendencies. He did a little twirl for them and Lambo—although he knew nothing about costume design—couldn’t help but admire the details in the outfit that made it that much more authentic. Not to mention, Tsuna-nii looked great in it. “Haru’s so talented, isn’t she? What do you guys think?”

“You look very pretty!” I-pin gushed immediately. “Haru-nee did well!”

“Lambo-sama thinks you can pass as a god, Tsuna-nii!” He chimed in as well. The soft smile directed at I-pin and him made Lambo’s insides warm. 

“Reborn will certainly be proud.” There was a teasing tone in Fuuta’s voice and his brother Sky only rolled his eyes. 

“Reborn already visited. Apparently, ‘ he taught me well .’” Tsuna-nii mimed quotation marks. Lambo could tell that his brother was only acting annoyed. There was fondness there for the terror of a hitman. And Lambo couldn’t help but agree that Tsuna-nii was Reborn’s student through and through. Tsuna-nii could wear anything without batting an eye much like his tutor. Reborn—the ex-arcobaleno with the flair for the dramatic—had beaten into the Vongola Decimo that only lesser men made a fuss about wearing a skirt or anything that wasn’t traditionally “masculine”. Lambo didn’t understand most of it but he remembered the happy look on his brother Sky’s face when he first wore a dress and that was all that mattered to him. Tsuna-nii was the most beautiful and stunning when he got to wear what he wanted. 

“I’m surprised the others didn’t stop you from wearing this. I at least would’ve thought Haya-nii and Take-nii would be hovering over you. Where are they anyways?” Lambo couldn’t help but agree with Fuuta. The other Guardians—especially Bakadera and Takeshi—were very protective of their Sky. It seemed odd that they weren’t with Tsuna-nii. 

“Oh, they tried to wrap me up in a blanket when I first showed them.” Tsuna-nii chuckled with a mischievous glint in his eyes. “Convincing them was easy though. They’re inside the classroom serving customers if you guys want to see them?” 

In the end, they only stayed for about 15 minutes inside the café. They were served by Hayato who was dressed as Great Explosion Murder God Dynamight and Takeshi who was dressed as Dazai Osamu.  Lambo didn’t know who these characters were but they looked cool. Tsuna-nii was also relieved from his post outside for a moment as he joined them in their impromptu tea time. Lambo noticed how the other two Guardians kept stealing glances at their Sky, and how they glared at the other patrons if their eyes lingered too long on him. Lambo understood how they were feeling. Sometimes, Lambo worried that his Tsuna-nii would be stolen away from him, from them, by someone. And so he scooted his seat closer to his brother Sky and followed the older Guardians’ example by glaring at people who looked at his Tsuna-nii funny. 

Tsuna-nii didn’t seem to notice the attention he was attracting though, he just kept talking animatedly to them and listened attentively in turn when they had their own stories to share. After finishing their tea, they decided to go explore some more. It was still Tsuna-nii’s break so he announced that he was going with them. 

Before they went outside the classroom, Ahodera had pulled him aside for a second and instructed him to “watch Tenth’s back”. He had stuck his tongue out at him. Bakadera didn’t need to tell Lambo that. He was going to do it anyway. He said as much and Bakadera only flicked his forehead in response. 

They went around the school, Tsuna-nii being stopped by multiple people all throughout their tour. Some seemed to know him, and others just wanted to take a picture with him. But despite it, they had fun with the festivities. It was Lambo’s first time going to a cultural festival (There were a lot of firsts for Lambo ever since he came to the Sawada household. The Bovino Famiglia wasn’t really a conducive environment for a happy childhood), and he had extra fun because he was with three of his favorite people.

There was only one notable incident that slightly took away from the fun Lambo was having. It was right after they got out of class 3-B’s haunted house, he noticed Tsuna-nii looked peeved. He knew why when he saw a guy leering at his brother from the exit door of the haunted house. The guy looked like he was one of the people who played the haunting crew as he was decked in zombie attire. Lambo looked at Tsuna-nii who seemed to be curling into himself, and then at the zombie. Lambo frowned. He didn’t like this at all.

So, Lambo, being the trigger happy 8-year-old who was raised by the mafia and other, just as trigger happy people, skipped over to the zombie guy and slapped a hand on the guy’s arm. The sorry excuse for a human looked down at him in confusion and he grinned as he sent a jolt of electricity from under his skin. The guy spasmed for a second before collapsing as a heap on the floor.

“Lambo!” Tsuna-nii gasped in surprise before he tugged Lambo away from the now unconscious man. Unconscious, because as much as he wanted to, Lambo was not about to kill someone in public with so many witnesses. Reborn had (tortured) taught him better than that. “Why did you do that?”

Tsuna-nii looked frazzled and just a little bit like he was in shock. But Lambo could also see how he was no longer acting as if he was uncomfortable in his own skin. The young Lightning smiled innocently up at his Sky. “I’m sorry, Tsuna-nii. I was just so excited to see a real zombie! My lightning just escaped.” He tried to seem remorseful but from the look Fuuta gave him, he doesn’t think he was very convincing.

Miraculously, Tsuna-nii seemed to believe him which said a lot about how shaken he was by the now-unconscious guy. After all, Lambo usually couldn’t lie to his brother about anything courtesy of his intuition. Now he really didn’t feel bad about potentially inflicting maybe permanent damage to the pervert.

Tsuna-nii gave one last look at the fallen zombie before ushering them out of there. 

After, when it was time for Lambo, I-Pin, and Fuuta to go home and they had said their goodbyes to the older boys, Hibari had jumped down from a tree near the gates and ruffled Lambo's hair. He looked up to see an approving look from the normally stoic Cloud and Lambo couldn't help but preen. After all, he was Tsuna-nii's Guardian too. 

He could protect their Sky too.

☆ ☆ ☆

"Tsunayoshi, you're late today." Rokudo Mukuro watched as the fluffy-haired boy rolled his eyes, entirely exasperated by his presence. He smirked at the lack of reprimand for dropping in unprompted into the Sky's home. Unprompted, but Mukuro knew he wasn't unwelcome. After all, his dear Tsunayoshi had told him over and over that he was always welcome.

"I did say you're welcome to visit as you please, Mukuro, but I meant through the front door. Preferably." Ah. Well. Mukuro could stand to listen to this slight reprimand. 

But he wouldn't be himself if he didn't set out to get on other people's nerves, even if said person was Sawada Tsunayoshi. So, Mukuro just leaned more comfortably on the wall of the other boy's room as he watched him put his school things away. Tsunayoshi just sighed.

" Kufufu~ You did not answer my question, my darling Decimo." 

Tsunayoshi turned to him with a slight frown. "I got held up by my underclassmen." 

"And what could  they have possibly wanted from you?" 

"I don't know? Tips? Exams are coming up so some of them wanted to know what will likely come up." Tsunayoshi just shrugged as he sat down on his bed.

Ah. Mukuro had heard from the other Guardians (mostly from Hibari when the skylark managed to corner him into a fight) that there were some pests hovering around their Sky recently. He guessed these underclassmen were one of those pests. The mist user strode across the room to stand directly in front of Tsunayoshi. His dear Sky looked up at him in question.

"My darling Tsunayoshi, are those pests bothering you? If so, I would gladly get rid of them for you."

"Pests?" He sounded confused before his eyes widened in alarm. "Mukuro, please don't tell me you're talking about my underclassmen."

The Mist just stared down silently at the other. Tsunayoshi sighed.

"Mukuro, what did we talk about threatening bodily harm to civilians?"

"...Don't do it?"

"Don't do it." The Sky reiterated solemnly before sighing. "So? Are you sitting down?"

Mukuro sat down on the bed with some amount of hesitation, a foot of distance between him and the shorter boy. He tried not to fidget, it was always harder in the beginning. But Tsunayoshi didn't pay his obvious discomfort any mind and just grabbed a book from his bedside table. Mukuro recognized the Italian writing and was amused to see that it was titled How to be a Mafia Boss for Dummies Vol. 3 . 

Tsunayoshi made himself comfortable as he leaned back on his headboard. Mukuro tried to mimic his body language with as much grace as he could muster. Slowly, ever so slowly, Mukuro leaned into the inviting Sky flames surrounding the shorter boy like a halo of warmth. 

They stayed like that in peaceful silence. The only sounds in the room were the flipping of the book pages and the ticking of the wall clock. And faintly, Mukuro could hear himself breathe, the rhythm of it harmonizing with Tsunayoshi's. The Sky read and the Mist watched and tried his best to let go of the perpetual tension he was carrying on his shoulders.

Soon enough, Mukuro found himself settling on Tsunayoshi's side. He placed his head on the shorter boy's fluffy mane of hair, and wrapped a careful arm over his thin waist. People would call this cuddling but Mukuro would vehemently deny it. This was just him resting and making use of the personification of comfort available to him. 

With one last flip of a page, Tsunayoshi closed his book and placed it on his side. With gentle motions as if coaxing a skittish animal, he guided the heterochromatic boy with him so they both lay on the bed. Mukuro buried his face in the Sky's shoulder as he was wrapped comfortingly in Tsunayoshi's embrace. A soft hand ran through his hair and he nuzzled closer into the warmth of the smaller boy who was holding him as if he was someone precious. Someone who was more than a murderer and a monster. Someone worth something.

Mukuro's heart clenched as he was held, cocooned in that warm flame. Somehow, he wanted to cry. It wasn't anything new. They'd been doing this ever since Tsunayoshi found him in the middle of a flashback one day. Unseeing of his surroundings and utterly inconsolable. But every time he was hugged like he was deserving of it, he felt like bursting into tears.

Which, no. He might trust Tsunayoshi, but he wasn't going to cry in front of him. Not again.

Mukuro tightened his hold on Tsunayoshi's waist and burrowed further. If possible, he wanted to be one with his Sky. Just merge into one entity so he was never cold again and always warm instead. But Tsunayoshi would probably look at him disapprovingly if he tried to possess him again so he would have to settle for this. 

Tsunayoshi's hand brushed over a particular spot and he couldn't help but sigh contentedly. Yes. I could definitely settle for this.

"I meant what I said, dear Tsunayoshi. If someone's bothering you, I'd gladly take care of them." He said even as it was muffled with his face still buried in the other's neck.

"Mukuro, nobody is bothering me. And even if they were, I'd take care of it myself." Tsunayoshi sighed. "You know, you remind me of Hibari-senpai. Both of you are so unexpectedly, unnecessarily, overprotective sometimes."

Mukuro was about to scoff at the offending comparison but was stopped as the Sky flames continued to wash over him. "I adore you, Tsunayoshi. But if you compare me with that unsavory skylark again I might have to do something drastic."

Tsunayoshi didn't say anything in response but Mukuro could practically feel the force of his eye roll.

Silence fell over them once again. But it wasn't uncomfortable or awkward. It was never uncomfortable with Tsunayoshi. Just warm and safe. Just the feeling of being accepted whole-heartedly.

"Are you staying the night, Mukuro?" His Sky hummed more than asked, the sound vibrating through where they were connected.

"Yes." He answered without hesitation. Because for the first time, Mukuro had found something he never thought he'd ever find. And he found it in Sawada Tsunayoshi, his all-encompassing Sky.

Mukuro had found a home . 

☆ ☆ ☆

"What," Tsuna tried to keep his voice level even as his eyebrow twitched. "do you guys think you're doing?"

He noted with satisfaction when his Guardians flinched at his tone. Even Hibari-senpai and Mukuro had the decency to lower their weapons, looking properly chastised. Lambo pulled his hand away from his hair where he was just about to reach for his bazooka. Hayato and Takeshi looked away from the group of students they were just terrorizing, Takeshi even started whistling in a comedic effort to lighten the mood. Only Ryohei-nii seemed unfazed, jogging in place from behind the group with a grin on his face as if he found all this to be an amusing show he could watch while training.

"What. Are. You. Doing." He asked again when no one answered.

"Lil' brother! It's nice to see you to the EXTREME!" Ryohei-nii fearlessly stepped up to him, wrapping an arm around his shoulder. Tsuna's eyebrow twitched once more.

"Ryohei-nii, please, please for the love of all things holy, tell me what's going on." 

"Well, little brother, the others were threate—"

"It's nothing, Tenth! We were just playing a game Mr. Reborn taught us earlier." Hayato cut the Sun Guardian off rather unconvincingly. He never could lie to Tsuna well. 

"Really." He deadpanned.

"Yup! Don't worry about it, Tsuna! No one's life is in danger or anything!" Tsuna swore he could hear the unsaid ' yet ' in Takeshi's tone and he squinted in suspicion.

"You were literally just about to throw dynamite at us and run a sword through our corpse!" A voice from the group of students behind Hayato and Takeshi spoke up with something like righteous fury.

Tsuna looked over to the person and for the first time in a long while, wanted nothing more than to wring his Guardians' necks. Because the person who just spoke was Kozato Enma. Enma with his other Guardians behind Hayato and Takeshi. Enma who was his friend, maybe even his best friend. Enma, who Tsuna had presumed was also the others' friend, if not by their own volition then by association. 

Tsuna wanted to scream.

"What is going on?" He meant for it to sound demanding but it came out as more of a pained wheeze than anything remotely threatening. 

Hayato, maybe realizing that he really can't lie to Tsuna, stumbled all over himself to stand in front of him with arms waving frantically. "Tenth, believe me, this isn't as bad as he's making it out to be!" 

"Mukuro is still trying to get inside my head as we speak!" Enma looked hysterical with his eyes wide and stance ready to bolt at any second.

Tsuna glared at his Mist Guardian who hastily looked away and dropped his attempts at possession. 

"Is anyone going to actually explain what's going on?!" His patience was running out fast and he was so close to strangling his Guardians. 

Sensing the Sky's rising anger, Hibari, the most fearless out of them, stepped up. "Tsunayoshi, this pest was talking nonsense so we were just about to bite him to death."

He stared deadpan at the skylark before turning to the others. "Anyone else wanna try with the explanation?"

"Tsuna, if I could just talk to you for a second." He turned to Enma who had a pained look on his face. He probably wanted to get out of this situation as much as Tsuna did. "Privately, please."

Done with it all, Tsuna was about to follow Enma to wherever he deemed to be private when Lambo started bawling out of nowhere. He was immediately crouching in front of the 8 year old, hands hovering worriedly as he puzzled over the sudden tears.

"Lambo, what's wrong?" The child had gotten better with controlling his emotions as he grew up and this was the first time in weeks that he'd seen him cry. Tsuna was rightfully worried that something was wrong with the child ( his child ).

"Tsuna-nii," the small child hiccupped. "Please don't leave us."

He frowned. "Lambo, I'm just going to talk with Enma. I'm not going to be gone for long."

"NO!" Tsuna flinched at the sudden outburst. "That ugly guy is going to ask you to marry him and then you'll leave us and never come back!" 

The small Lightning started crying again but Tsuna snapped his head towards Enma when the words registered. His best friend was blushing furiously which just made Tsuna more confused. "What…?"

"W-wait! It's not like that! I was just going to…ask you on a date." That last bit was said almost in a whisper but Tsuna heard it regardless. His face reddened, mimicking the color on the other boy's face.

"Oh."

"No no no! He said he was going to 'date you with the intention of marriage'!" Lambo wailed which snapped Tsuna away from his bashfulness. Right , crying child. 

Tsuna scooped up the little boy in his arms, softly shushing the boy as he muttered some comforting words. He turned to Enma, who had a gentle look on his blushing face. 

"Enma, I'm flattered, really. But as you can see, my Guardian," he looked to the others who were still glaring at the poor Earth flames user. "— Guardians need me. I don't think I can afford to date anyone any time soon. I'm sorry." 

Lambo stopped crying at that, nuzzling into Tsuna's neck as he sniffled. He heard Hayato utter "Tenth!" with a touched tone to his voice, and Hibari harrumph in something akin to smugness. Takeshi moved closer to place an arm over his shoulder, and Mukuro wrapped his around his waist, tugging lightly. Ryohei-nii was probably watching all of this unfold with amusement. 

Enma looked dejected for a second before he smiled with resignation. "Yeah, I kind of figured." He rubbed his neck sheepishly. "But hey, if you change your mind, I'll be here."

Tsuna blinked as his Guardians shifted their stances threateningly. He instinctively released calming sky flames (someday, someone's going to call him out for abusing his flame's properties but hey, why fix what isn't broken?) and watched as the others almost collapsed against him. Enma just laughed, a bit hysterical.

In an instant, they had dissolved into a cuddle pile, right there in the middle of Tsuna's backyard. He didn't bother struggling, just letting the others curl around him as they slowly drifted into a light nap. 

Tsuna rolled his eyes. His Guardians were such a handful. They were possessive, overprotective, and concerningly okay with dishing out violence, but…but they were his . 

He looked around at his Guardians, each of them with a relaxed expression on their faces, and Tsuna felt so much fondness. He felt just as loved by the others as he did them. Tsuna looked at his Guardians, and even though they were more trouble than anything, he also knew this was where he belonged.

And Tsuna wouldn't want it any other way.

☆ ☆ ☆

Enma sighed as he watched Tsuna's Guardians literally melt around the Sky. 

"I guess this is what Hana-san meant when she said Vongola Decimo had a harem of possessive psychos." Adelheid mused next to him.

Enma sighed again. He should've listened to Hana and Kyoko when they said he had no chance. Still, he wanted to at least give it a shot. 

He was about to leave with his Guardians when a wild mop of hair peeked over from the cuddle pile. The Lightning child who bawled his eyes out earlier looked at them blankly before…his face contorted into a shit-eating grin. 

Enma's eye twitched in annoyance. Yeah, a bunch of possessive psychos indeed.

☆ ☆ ☆

fin

☆ ☆ ☆

OMAKE ( Before the Cultural Festival) :

“Tenth, please, please at least wear a jacket over it.” 

“Haya is right, Tsuna. It’s way too revealing.”

“Little animal, this is a violation of the school’s dress code.”

“I think it EXTREMELY fits you well, brother!”

“Shut up, lawn head/senpai.” Hayato and Takeshi said in unison. Hayato glaring, and Takeshi smiling sharply.

Tsuna looked at his four Guardians in front of him, three of them with disapproving looks. He sighed. “Look, it’s not like I’m the only one with a slightly revealing outfit. And come on! It’s cosplay! We’re doing a cosplay cafe! And Hibari-senpai, I know for a fact that we got permission from the student council for this. Not to mention, Haru made this specially for me. Would you want her hard work to go to waste like that?” He deployed his best weapon: his puppy dog eyes. 

The three grumbling Guardians looked away. He heard a whimper from Hayato and had to stop himself from smirking. It was mean but he knew they couldn’t resist him when he was… asking nicely like this. Ryohei-nii ruffled his hair with a knowing grin. He loved the Sun’s ability to see through his not-so-manipulations. It was fun to share the joke with someone.

“I think it’s not a problem, bro bro. It would be an extreme crime to keep Haru’s art from the world anyways.” Yeah, he loved Ryohei-nii alright.

Takeshi was the first to recover as he looked at Tsuna. And again at what Tsuna was wearing. His eyes shone with dismay. “There’s just…so much skin, Tsuna. They’d eat you alive.”

Tsuna didn’t know who they referred to so he ignored it. “Take-chan,” he noted a small flinch at the use of the endearing nickname and Tsuna suppressed his laughter. “Please? You know I love dressing up! It’s fun for me. And I rarely have the occasion to do it.” 

His three stubborn Guardians’ shoulders slumped minutely at that. And Tsuna, sensing his impending win, decided to drive it home. “How about a deal? You let me have this and I’ll wear whatever outfit you guys want me to wear after. I’ll even ask Haru if she’s willing to make it. I’m sure she’ll be thrilled.” Haru had been itching to dress him up as much as possible ever since they discovered his love for it. He was going to do it anyway but his Guardians didn’t need to know that.

He could see it had worked when he noted the interested gleam in the Guardians’ eyes. Even Ryohei-nii had a mischievous look as he considered Tsuna. Well, if Ryohei-nii wanted to, then he supposed it was only fair.

“Fine.” Takeshi grumbled finally, the other two also humming their agreement. Tsuna cheered, making his wings bounce as he did. 

A week after the festival, Tsuna found himself in an impromptu photoshoot in his backyard as he was dressed up in a yukata, a nurse outfit, a chinese qipao, and a cat-maid dress. It resulted in a very happy Takeshi, an even more puppy-like Hayato, a surprisingly subdued Hibari, and an amused Ryohei. It wasn’t worth mentioning the chaos that ensued when Mukuro crashed said photoshoot and demanded Tsuna be put into a lolita dress as well. (Haru had made one in the end. Mukuro was quite docile after it.)

Tsuna—taught by Reborn, the World’s Greatest Hitman, and master manipulator—learned that it didn’t take much to get his way when it came to his adorable Guardians.