10 Year Mishap

15

Their pride slightly hurt, Mukuro, Takeshi and Lambo agreed not to tell anyone of their consistent losses to the child in their care. They didn't tell Tsuna, though, because they didn't want him to feel bad. In retrospect, that was a bad idea. The second the four walked into the dining room, Tsuna ran over to Reborn and smiled up at him.

"Did you have fun today?" the hitman asked the child. Mukuro and Lambo had skipped out on their duties today, so he had had to cover for them. Lest to say, he was not in a good mood. Though, Tsuna's smile and the shudders from the Guardian's when he glared at them made him feel slightly better.

Tsuna nodded enthusiastically. "Yep! We played lots of games in Lambo's room!" Lambo - who had introduced himself t Tsuna shortly after their game day started - froze in his place, Takeshi and Mukuro joining him. "Mukuro and Takeshi and Lambo taught me how to play all sorts of games! My favorite was Uno."

"Oh?" Reborn was not ignorant to the three's reaction to the boy's words. "Did you win?"

Again, Tsuna nodded. "Mhmm! I won ten whole rounds!"

"How many did you play?"

"Eleven!"

The entire dining room had gone quiet near the beginning of the exchange, mostly wary of Reborn. They all knew the man was in a bad mood, so everyone was watching the child who was now sitting on his lap. After Tsuna had delivered his news of winning ten out of eleven games, though, no one could hold back their laughter at the three Guardian's expense. No one was going to let any of the three live it down.

Reborn was the first to stop chuckling, though his smirk lingered. "Sounds like a fun day/ You ready to eat?"

Tsuna stopped for a moment, staring into space, before nodding. He was a bit hungry. It was an unusual feeling, he realized. He'd been hungry before, but that was when his meals where days apart, not hours. Was this a good thing? He'd asked someone later.

When the food was served, the laughter finally died down and the nightly chatter began. Most people talked about their days or their plans for the night, while others jumped from topic to topic.

The mirth in the air from before the meal began was still lingering, promising for a good night. Very few were unhappy, but hid it well. Among them was Reborn. He'd been in the lab all day, watching the progress on solving their problem while also having to check in with all of Tsuna's Guardians. What had the most of his attention was the failed messages from Tsuna. It was obvious that his former student had tried contacting him twice already, but the messages had failed to load. But if he'd gotten them, did that mean his parallel self would have gotten them as well? It wouldn't end well if that was the case. He knows himself - parallel version or not - well enough to know that any unknown number is not going to be met with good intentions.

Tsuna had picked up on Reborn's mood fairly quickly. He didn't know what to do, so he waited until after he was done eating to talk to the man. Though, Reborn was so lost in thought that it took the child several minutes to get his attention.

"Reborn-san?" he asked in Japanese. He remembered the man telling him to work on it, so he was going to try holding a conversation is what was apparently his home language.

"Hai?" the hitman answered as he quickly finished his food as well.

"Are you alright? You seem to be stuck in your head."

Reborn nodded, "I'm alright, kid. Let's go to the ballroom. You've been slacking on your training."

Tsuna didn't argue and got off of the man's lap, following him to the ballroom. Once there, Reborn had him repeat the same thing he'd done before. A quick warm-up, ten laps around the room, ten push-ups, ten sit-ups, and a cool-down. It was a bit much for the child, but Tsuna didn't want to disappoint, so he did it. Passing out on the floor when he was done, however, was not a part of his plan.

Reborn gave a small, fond smile when the kid collapsed. Chuckling and shaking his head, he picked the boy up and carried him on his back piggy-back style. He left the ballroom, remembering to turn off the lights before closing the door. On his way to Tsuna's bedroom, he let himself get lost in his thoughts, though he remained aware of his surroundings. 'Wherever you are, brat,' he thought, 'you better be safe and smart or I'll kick your ass when you get back.' He didn't - couldn't - let his mind play with the fact that 'when' should be 'if', all things considered. It was a stupid - and very human - thought to have and it went against everything he'd lived by. 'Only a Sith deals in absolutes,' he mused. Tsuna had made him watch Star Wars and always quoted it whenever the opportunity presented itself. 'Call me a Sith Lord, then, because that idiot is coming back, even if I have to drag him back by his ear.'

He ignored everyone he passed on his way. When he got to his destination, he open the door and let himself hin, not turning on the light. He carefully made his way to the bed where he placed the young child down and covered him up. A sense of deja vu came over him when he felt a small, but tight, grip on his sleeve. He looked back, slightly amused, at the child who had is eyes open a sliver.

"Don' go..." the child pleaded in Japanese, "Tsu-kun don' like nigh'mares."

Now that was a curious thought to think. Had this kid been having nightmares during his whole stay so far? If so, how had no one noticed? Shaking his head, Reborn made himself comfortable on th floor beside the bed, Tsuna's grip being moved to hold his shoulder. He'd ask the kid in the morning about it. Though, it was so like Tsuna to not tell anyone his problems.