[fic] The Forgotten Time chapter 20

[metamorcy1]

Title: The Forgotten Time
Author: Metamorcy1 or Metamorcy on ff.net (me)
Pairing: Main is R27 RebornxTsuna there is Arcobaleno27, X27 and others
Summary: An incident with the 10-year bazooka leaves Tsuna stuck in the past... What's he gonna to do?
Rating: R/NC17
Warning: Two chapters of adult-content but the rest are PG13


This has been beta'd by 'AmbiguousThoughts'.

A note of warning to my readers: If you COPY my stuff and share it on YOUR site and CLAIM it as yours, I will find out and I will ban/report you somehow! If this happens repeatedly, I WILL delete my account here along with all my stories and move to LJ where I can lock all the posts/updates and only let members I approve see it (meaning I will check). Let that be a warning to everyone. If you see someone copying my stuff or anyone elses and claiming it as theirs, report them immediately!

"Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it." Helen Keller

Chapter 20: Relation

Tsuna knew far beforehand that the stunt he pulled with Verde wasn't going to make life any easier to him. It was as if things had changed the moment he returned home, for better or worse he wasn't entirely sure. There was one thing he noticed that was quite… obvious. Yamamoto and Gokudera were now always watching his every move, even during school. When he wanted to go to the bathroom, one of them would try to follow him (usually Gokudera). It came to the point that it was becoming nothing more than pure annoyance and he couldn't help but feel twitchy whenever they trailed behind him.

Before long, only a week after the kidnapping, Tsuna's patience snapped and he outright told them to stop. The looks on their faces almost made him regret saying such a thing and he gave into his guilt, deciding that it was best to make a compromise so that both sides could be happy. In the end, he'd allow them to follow him around but not to such extremes that would drive him crazy, for example, like the bathroom. The two seemed happy at that and did relax slightly, however, they were still cautious whenever they went home together especially when a car came driving too close to their side of the road.

Of course, things couldn't be said the same way about Reborn. The hitman was basically torturing him, giving him extra painful training, and even making him do things that were evidently impossible. Eventually, when the sun Arcobaleno had enough of making Tsuna scream, he seemed to drift away, getting quiet at times when he thought no one was looking. But Tsuna noticed it.

Ever since coming back, he's always kept a sharp eye out for the hitman. He loved him after all. There were times when Reborn would just stare out the window for hours, not bothering with the brunet at all, and other times he would act like normal. However, Tsuna quickly caught on that Reborn's comments towards him during those times weren't as harsh and his attacks weren't as painful. It was obvious that there was some hesitation within them. The reason why? Tsuna wasn't sure about. He had no clue what was going on in that baby's head. He had never been one to read minds, that was Reborn's job.

Also, during this time after Verde's appearance, the sky guardian noticed that the other Arcobaleno that had come to supposedly rescue him were sometimes seen around the area, none of them having gone back home yet. He thought that they would have left the moment everything was done, but no, they seemed to wander town and there were times he spotted Colonello at the school messing with Ryohei.

The CEDEF, however, left as soon as everything had been cleared up. They were missing half their members due to Verde's little explosive stunt as he escaped their hands and many were in shambles from the amount of deaths. A lot of the corpses were never found in the rumble that was left behind. Leaving as well was his father. Now that part made Tsuna livid. Iemitsu had left before going to see Nana, the one person that was waiting for him the most. Tsuna sighed, pushing the thoughts of his good-for-nothing father out of his mind. Maybe he got it from him… He really hoped not.

Right now, the brunet was settled into his seat in class, watching as the hands on the clock that was on top of the blackboard went by. 'Ahhh…so bored.' Quietly sighing, he made a small huff and closed his eyes for a moment. He was tempted to fall fast asleep but he didn't want to get scolded by the teacher in front of class again.

Deciding to peer around the classroom, his eyes settled on his classmates and began stopping at the students individually. His gaze seemed to linger on Kyoko, his old crush. As he stared, he quickly realized that his heart no longer pounded within his chest for her like it did before and he didn't feel his face heating up like usual. No, he felt nothing. He no longer liked Kyoko like that anymore; it was more of a friend. He smiled to himself. His heart belonged to Reborn now.

Still, he had to admit, he knew the reason why he had liked Kyoko so much before. Back when he was younger, before Reborn had come into his life, it was a puppy dog sensation. She was the only one that didn't treat him badly and he really liked that. Later on with Reborn, the reason he liked her so much was because she was one of the sane ones. With all the chaos that went around in his life and such, she was the only one that seemed… normal. Now, even when he knew he no longer liked her, he still liked that personality that she held.

His eyes trailed to Gokudera, who was diligently writing down notes for him as usual. He smiled at the sight; it was so like the other to do such things for him. Pulling his attention away from his storm guardian, Tsuna glanced to Yamamoto… who was obviously fast asleep in his seat.
'Guess he had a rough day at practice today. Must have tired himself out.' Tsuna chuckled at that thought, tempted to nudge his rain guardian awake but then decided against it. Yamamoto probably needed all the sleep he could get with everything that was going on.

For now, Tsuna decided that it was best to pay attention to his class if he didn't want to face the wrath of Reborn later on. He unconsciously rubbed the side of his face where he had been hit with a hammer earlier in the morning.

Skull hated his sempais… Well, most of them. They were rarely ever nice to him and always kicked him around, especially Reborn. He hated him the most. Colonello was second to that, though there were times when the blond did it in an advise type way. Lal, though, didn't do anything as harsh as the others and tried to watch out for him… sometimes. Mammon was… Skull didn't know how to describe him and left it at that. Fong was nice to him but only stepped in the fights to help him out when things got too far. Like that time Reborn had almost beat him to the very last inch of his life.

All in all, Skull hated Reborn. He was the person that gave him the most trouble and always enjoyed torturing him. But what could he do? He wasn't as strong as the others. He was well aware that he was the weakest of the group but if he didn't say anything to get himself known, to say that he was stronger, he'd never be seen or heard by them. It wasn't fair.

Even with all that, fighting just wasn't his thing. To be honest, he didn't even know how to fight. That always made him question why he was chosen and it tended to echo within his mind. He wasn't even that good at his current position of power within the Calcassa family. Skull was a driver. That was it. On land, running or walking, he was weak, but get him the controls of a vehicle and he'll do wonders. He'll go at high speeds, zipping pass the world or even getting away from enemies. He was the best at that.

But no one needed that.

No one needed a driver anymore.

Skull was useless in this current world and with his baby form, he could no longer drive. He wished for the old days where he was free.

Anyway, back to his fellow Arcobaleno, Luce wasn't a bad person. He actually liked her very much and would be willing to do anything for her. She was the mother he never had and he loved her dearly. Many times, she would come to defend him by scolding Reborn whenever he pushed him around like some sort of doll.

Still, that didn't stop the sun Arcobaleno from doing so even after she had passed away.

Like right now.

Forced to gather at Namimori shrine with the rest of the Arcobaleno (the ones that were here) except for Verde, who refused to show up. Apparently, they were supposed to talk about Verde's involvement with Vongola Decimo but nothing really came up. Reborn had tried demanding answers from the green-haired scientist previously but no matter how much he tried, he got nothing. Verde refused to budge and Tsuna wasn't helping. The brunet's lips were sealed on the matter and, even with all the threats and beatings he got, not a word passed though.

Reborn was starting to get irritated about this whole mess and, of course, the best way to get rid of his frustration was to use it on something or someone in this case. Poor Skull always got the worst end of the stick.

So here he was, the purple-haired Arcobaleno, walking down the street with a large bruise forming on the side of his face, his helmet gone. There was some grumbling under his breath, angry at his sempai for doing such terrible things to him but there was nothing he could do. At least, he managed to get away from everyone even if it meant getting drinks for them.

'Why do I put up with this anyway? I'm the great Skull! I should be getting everyone to bow down to me!' At that, he groaned, rubbing the side of his head in pain since he had accidently moved the side where the bruise was forming. He wanted to ditch the others but he knew better. Once Reborn and Colonello caught up to him, they would both beat him to a pulp.

Entering a small convenience store, he made his way to the drinks section and eyed the shelves of bottles and cans. He blinked, how was he supposed to get all the way up there? Grumbling more under his breath, Skull tried climbing and jumping up but he didn't get very far.

"Why does it have to be so high up?" Skull whispered to himself, staring up at the lines of drinks, unsure on what to do next.

"What are you trying to get?"

Blinking, the cloud Arcobaleno spun around shocked. He hadn't noticed anyone coming up behind him and backed up a little to get a better look since he was so small. At first, he didn't recognize who it was since he rarely ever saw the person until the features settled into his mind. "Hey, it's you! Vongola, right?"

Tsuna twitched at that title. Why did everyone call him Vongola? "Just call me Tsuna." He kneeled down so that he didn't have to strain his neck so much and couldn't help but notice that Skull didn't have his usual helmet on. That and there was a noticeable black and blue bruise forming on a check. 'Must have been Reborn...' He still remembered that time in the past when the hitman had been responsible for all of Skull's beatings. As he looked closer, he took notice of the bandages on the baby's face. 'After all this time, he still has those on.'

"Even Skull, who had started to worship you slightly since that day…"

A small smile appeared on the brunet's lips, never realizing how much an effect he had left on the cloud Arcobaleno.

"Let me guess, Reborn has been bullying you again." Tsuna sighed, staring into those big purple eyes that were slightly red around the edges. Skull had evidently been crying earlier.

Turning a little crimson, Skull immediately shook his head. "N-No, he hasn't. He hasn't done anything to me. I-I just fell, yeah, that's right. I fell."

Raising an eyebrow at that, Tsuna really couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Are you defending Reborn? Just to let you know, Reborn thinks of me as his personal toy."

The cloud Arcobaleno paused at that, realizing that the other was in the same boat as him. He didn't really know that there were others like him. "O-Oh..."

"So why are you here, Skull?" Tsuna questioned, though, he had a pretty good guess on the answer. Skull must have been sent to get something for the others, most likely drinks due to the fact that they were standing before some. Still, that left him with the question as to why. Why was Skull still in Japan? And why hadn't he gone back to the Calcassa family? It was odd. "Are you getting drinks for the others?"

"Yeah... um..."

"Which ones?" Tsuna glanced up at the numerous rows of bottles, some even higher up then him. He leaned over to pick up the baby and settled him on his shoulders. "Hang on, alright."

"Y-Yeah." Skull clung to the brunet's shoulder, blinking his large eyes, and couldn't help but find this person incredibly kind compared to the others that he had met. He pointed to the cold sport drinks that were on the sixth row but there was a problem. There were too many flavors. "I think it's the plain one... Two of them."

"I bet those belong to Lal and Colonello. Let me guess, Reborn gets coffee." Tsuna picked two bottles up and held them in his grasp before moving towards the hot drinks area.

"It's actually an espresso," Skull commented, tightening his grasp on Tsuna's clothes since he was using that to hold himself up. He was trying not to fall down. The ground didn't look all that friendly to his eyes. The brunet, seeing the trouble, placed the two current drinks to the side and reached back to help Skull up, letting him sit instead.

"Is that better?"

"Y-Yeah, thanks." The purple-haired Arcobaleno leaned to the side against the brunet's head. It's been a long time since he's had something nice done to him without asking for something in return. Long ago, only Luce had cared for him in all her motherly affections. He was so caught up in his thoughts he didn't notice Tsuna shifting around the room.

Grabbing the two bottles once more, the sky guardian continued to the other side of the drinks, looking over the numerous hot cans. He pulled out a small espresso and juggled it for a few seconds in one hand since he had forgotten it was hot. "S-So what's next?"

"Ummm… Oolong tea."

"I take it that's for Fong. Is Mammon there?"

"No, just the five of us."

"I see. Well, have you ever tried Ramune?" Tsuna glanced back to the cold drinks section, spotting a couple of bottles in different flavors. "Or bubble tea? Thai tea?"

Skull blinked questionably, not entirely sure what those are. They sounded interesting and secretly, he wanted to try them out. Whenever he came to Japan, he never really got a good chance to try their food and drinks. He was always forced to run around to complete things for his boss or for someone else. "Are they good?"

Tsuna paused, holding the four drinks, two in each hand, and immediately put them down to look through his wallet to see how much money he had. He had about enough to get a few items. Good thing he saves as much as possible considering his terrible luck of getting it stolen by bullies. Placing the drinks back into their original spots, he began making his way out the store.

The cloud Arcobaleno began panicking the moment he saw that happen. "H-Hey! What are you doing? I'll get in trouble if I don't come back!"

"Skull, I hate to say this but you would have gotten in trouble regardless. It wouldn't have mattered how fast you got those back, Reborn would still have kicked you." The baby went silent at that, finding truth in those words. It was true, no matter how much of a good job he managed to do, he still got hit and tortured. He buried his face into Tsuna's hair, wondering why he still did those things regardless of the end result. "So for today only, you'll get to try out some of those drinks. And you can put the blame on me if you like, I don't mind. I'm already in trouble since I escaped my friends. Reborn said I'm supposed to have a bodyguard with me at all times whenever I go out."

Skull found him turning a little red at that when he saw Tsuna's smiling face, tightening his grasp. "T-Thanks."

Tsuna chuckled, there was no difference between this one before him and the one in the past. They were so alike. It was nice to know but at the same time, it was sad to see Skull still being treated the same as always. Exiting the store, he made his way towards the nearest tea shop he knew, dodging and ignoring people that were in the way. Some looked at him strangely and in curiosity since he had a purple-haired baby dressed in a biker suit and wearing facial piercings. Of course people would stare.

It was only a five minute walk to the shop and when he opened the door, he heard the bell jiggle at the top to alert those inside and peered up at the board that held all the listings of drinks. People were either standing up or sitting in the couches in the area, many holding their own drinks.

"Well, choose which one you want to try. I've kinda already decided." Tsuna glanced over to Skull, who was still looking over the entire list. There were so many choices for him to choose from and they all sounded great. A minute or two passed and Skull still didn't know which one to try. Tsuna shook his head at the expression the other was making, recognizing it. "How about I recommend one for you? Maybe later, when you come back again, you can try another."

Skull deflated. "Yeah, please do. I can't decide."

"Um... How about trying mango? A lot of people, myself included, like it." Getting a nod in approval, Tsuna went up to the counter and made two different orders, one for mango and the other for green apple. Paying for the orders, Tsuna went towards a free table that was near to the window and sat down. Skull hopped off his shoulders and settled on the top. It didn't take long for their orders to be ready and Tsuna got up to grab them, placing Skull's on the table. Pulling the straw down, the Arcobaleno managed to take a sip despite his size, watching as a few tapioca pearls went up. Tsuna waited for a couple of seconds before asking. "Well? How is it?"

"It's good, I like it." Skull grinned, taking another sip, quickly downing the drink. Tsuna smiled at that and glanced at his own. He should have ordered the green apple jellies with his but he had forgotten. Turning his attention away from that, he peered at Skull, observing the baby.

'I wonder if he remembers me. Probably not, since everyone's been erased. But maybe like Verde's, I just need to jog it.' Silently studying the Arcobaleno, he took notice of those white bandages, realization coming to him. 'Could I use that?'

"Hey, Vongola." Skull had just started speaking when Tsuna suddenly waved his hand.

"Just Tsuna. I don't exactly like being called that. What's with people and calling me that?"

"It's easier that way. And I didn't really know your name."

"Oh..." The brunet bit his bottom lip at that. "Well, it's Tsuna. Just call me that. Now you were saying."

Skull darkened at little at that and then nodded. "Tsuna... you're really nice to me. T-Thanks. It's been a long time since anyone has done anything for me without wanting something in return."

Frowning, Tsuna pulled his lips away from the thick straw and stared at the other for a few moments. Skull's drink was halfway done and he could see multiple tapioca pearls lingering at the bottom. The brunet glanced outside for a moment and spotted something in a woman's grocery bag as she passed. An idea appeared in his mind from that and he jumped, picking up his drink and Skull at the same time. They made their way outside, well aware that the cloud Arcobaleno was crying out in surprise, wondering what was going on.

"Skull, your day with me isn't over yet. There are still a lot of things we can do. And don't worry, the others will be fine without you for a few hours." Tsuna crossed the street to make his way to another store. It was a sweets shop this time. "For today, relax and have some fun. There's no need to worry about the Mafia or Reborn until later."

Skull couldn't get himself to make a comment back to that and nodded his head, tightening his hold on Tsuna's shoulder. His drink was in one hand, which was a little difficult to do, but he managed. They basically went throughout the day, tasting certain foods and drinks here and there.

In the end, Tsuna didn't have to pay for everything as Skull offered to reimburse half since he felt that the other was doing everything for him. However, the cloud Arcobaleno went ahead and paid for most of the things, but he didn't mind. He was enjoying his time with Tsuna. Skull had to admit though that some Japanese food was strange, good depending on what he ordered, but his favorite so far had to be the sweets.

By the time they realized it, the sun was starting to set in the distance and Skull had long forgotten about meeting up with his fellow Arcobaleno. How long has it been since he had been able to go out like this and have fun? Too long for his tastes.

Tsuna was currently holding a dango in one hand, slowly chewing on a piece, licking his lips when the sauce got onto it. They were in a park now, enjoying the scenery and quiet that was contained in the area. "So Skull, did you have fun today?"

"Of course!" Skull grinned, eating his own dango happily, and swung his feet back and forth on the brunet's shoulder. "Thanks a lot."

"No problem. Hey I got a question. Why all the piercings?" Tsuna decided that now was the best time to start edging towards his goal. He had almost forgotten about all his troubles until now.

"Huh?" Skull tugged at one of his earrings and grinned. "Because I thought it would look cool… but… sadly not everyone thinks the same way. I'm made fun because of them."

"Then why don't you take them off?"

"Well, it's hard to say." Scratching the side of his cheek, his large purple eyes stared up at the other. "I've had them on for so long that I don't want to take them off. They're a part of me." Tsuna nodded to that and finally asked the question he had been dying to ask.

"What about those white bandages?"

At that, Skull paused, blinking his large eyes. He reached up to touch one of them and then smiled softly. "W-Well, I got this before I became an Arcobaleno of course. I met this really nice guy and he put them on me, well, he had to since I got beat up. And after that, they just remained on. Though, I changed them into something different so that it wouldn't cause any problems."

Tsuna closed his eyes. Skull remembered getting them and he knew that it was from a person. Did Skull know more about his memories then Verde did? "When was this?"

"When was what?"

"When did you get them? Like at a house or someone else's place?"

Skull hummed to himself, jumping off of Tsuna's shoulder, and landed onto a nearby table in the park. They were located far away from everyone else, hidden behind lots of trees. He looked confused about the question but answered regardless. "I got it at the man's house. I was getting beaten by some thugs. They even stole my money."

Tsuna jumped at that, eyes wide in surprise. 'What? That's not true! That's far from the truth! Skull got those at the Arcobaleno meeting when he got beaten up there! I healed him! I bandaged him!' The brunet froze at that, his eyes still trained on the other. 'Did… Did someone implant fake memories as well? I need to tell Verde about this. Something's terribly wrong here. This is no longer a memory erasure, its something more…' He growled to himself, feeling frustrated over the facts and problems that were piling up. He needed to see Verde badly, to tell him of what he had just found out. But he'd need to get past Reborn first… There was no way in hell Reborn was going to let Tsuna talk to Verde by himself.

"H-Hey…"

The brunet snapped out of his dark thoughts and turned to Skull, who was looking a little pale suddenly. Tsuna blinked. "Sorry, I zoned out."

"I can tell… Um… Why do you want to know how I got them?" Skull tilted his head. He didn't get it. One moment Tsuna was all smiles and now he was frowning, almost looking angry and confused. Reborn scared him so often but that dangerous look in Tsuna's eyes was a close second. Still, he knew that something was wrong, those questions may sound innocent and nothing more than simple curiosity but there was something deeper. But he couldn't figure it out.

"I'm just…" Tsuna made a face at that. "Curious. Yeah, I'm curious." Looking away, he stared off into the distance where he could see some kids messing around on the playground and sighed, his shoulders falling. He leaned onto the table, burying his face into his arms.

Skull tilted his head further and took a step forward. Sadly, he didn't get very far before something painful slammed into his side. One moment he was looking at Tsuna, the next, he was flying and seeing the sky pass by before crashing to the ground painfully, rolling on the rocks and grass. He remained still for a moment, his whole body frozen, before the gears in his mind started to work. Carefully getting up, he coughed and shook his head, his vision dizzy, and he could see objects fluttering before his eyes. Eventually, he managed to straighten himself up and peered up at the table only to pale in complexion.

Tsuna's face was a little white, staring at his tutor in fear despite their body sizes. The glare Skull was getting from the hitman made the poor purple-haired baby and the brunet shiver in horror. Reborn sneered, looking frightfully angry. He wasn't alone though. Colonello and Lal were right behind him and Fong was at the very back, all on top of the table. The storm Arcobaleno passed a glance towards Tsuna, surprised at finding the sky guardian here as well, and gave a polite nod, which Tsuna had to ignore because of his tutor's glaring gaze. While Reborn was seething in his anger, the other three behind looked a little concerned towards the purple-haired baby.

"Where the hell have you been, lackey?" The hitman glared, staring down at the cloud Arcobaleno. "You were supposed to be back hours ago." He pulled out Leon, transforming the lizard into a gun, and fired a shot, just missing Skull's head. The purple-haired Arcobaleno jumped at the sound, eyes glancing down at the hole, and immediately hid behind a tree hoping that it would be able to protect him. Though, in the back of his mind, he knew it was pointless.

Tsuna could only watch for a few seconds before jumping in. "Reborn, please stop! He didn't do anything wrong." Stepping in-between the two babies, he took a deep breath. "I'm the one that took him away and forced him to come with me."

The hitman only glanced at him, not really caring about his words. But he did freeze for a moment.

Tsuna sighed, taking that pause to rush over to Skull's side to help the fallen baby. He was acting like a barrier between the two even when he looked so frightened at the fact that he was standing against Reborn. Soon after arriving at Skull's side, he was kicked by the sun Arcobaleno, landing a few feet away. He rolled a bit, completely surprised by the attack, and blinked his watery eyes to get the dirt that made its way in out. His clothes were covered in dust and grass stains and the side of his face where he had been hit was blemished bright red.

"Dame-Tsuna, didn't I tell you that you're not allowed to go around without one of your guardians with you? What are you doing here?" Reborn growled, standing a little ways aside. He jumped off the table and gradually made his way up to the brunet, Leon still in his hands. Tsuna slowly got up, rubbing the spot he had been kicked at, and stared down at the hitman sadly.

Skull could only watch from the side, eyes wide, and for a moment to the unseen eyes something flashed within. It was unnoticed since all eyes were focused directly on Tsuna and Reborn. A whispered "Tsuna…" escaped his lips.

"Reborn, when are you going to get over the fact that Verde didn't really kidnap me? He's on my side."

Reborn narrowed his eyes at that. "You can't trust him. Verde will never fulfill his promise."

Tsuna casted his eyes downward, he knew Reborn was stubborn but didn't think he was this stubborn to the point of not listening. He knew that the concern Reborn was showing him was obvious and he understood it… but some of it… was uncalled for.

"Reborn, you've always told me to follow my intuition and I have. And it keeps telling me that Verde is okay. The only problem is that you can't trust me when it comes to these sort of things."

"What was that?" That comment seemed to throw Reborn off, glaring at the teen in rage. He kept it well under control, his fedora lowered to cover his eyes, but his teeth could be seen grinding together.

The brunet held his ground, he had to. If he so much as twitch, Reborn would take it as a sign of weakness and devour him though words only. But regardless, this was getting ridiculous. Ever since the incident with Verde, he'd been kept on constant watch. That wouldn't have been so bad if Reborn hadn't been getting stubborn on letting him do things he wanted to.

He refused to let Tsuna go anywhere without a bodyguard, no matter how many times Tsuna kept telling him that the kidnapping was just part of Verde's plan and there was no one really after his life. Not only that, Reborn kept making every single thing difficult. Going to school, going to the store, even going outside into his own backyard. Probably because of his frustration over everything now lead to this. Still... right now...

Tsuna sighed. "Look, I'm going home. I don't want to deal with this right now." He turned away, leaning down to pick up Skull, and began walking away.

"Tsuna, we're not done talking."

"Well, I am! I'm tired! I don't want to deal with this anymore, alright?" the brunet grumbled, still walking away with Skull still in his arms. The purple-haired Arcobaleno didn't have any comment and continued for cling to the other for dear life, he didn't want to stay behind, not with Reborn so angry. Eventually, the two disappeared behind the trees as they exited the park, leaving the rest of the Arcobaleno behind.

Tsuna sighed when he had gotten far enough, relaxing his shoulders. 'To think we're starting to drift apart. I only wanted to be close to Reborn but its not working. Now with everything that's just happened, there's a large rift between us.' Closing his eyes for a moment, he still wanted to love Reborn deeply but the hitman was just making it so hard. He didn't like the Reborn that was here before him, it just wasn't the same. 'At the rate this is going, I may not want him to remember. I may just want to make all of it disappear... Is that for the best?'

"Hey, Tsuna..."

Snapping out of his thoughts, the sky guardian glanced down into his arms, at Skull. "Yeah?"

The cloud Arcobaleno paused for a moment, staring at the brunet curiously. There was something noticeably flashing through his eyes. "Your name is Tsuna, right?"

"Huh? Yeah, didn't I already say that?" This made the teen tilt his head in confusion. "You should already know that."

"Oh..."

'That's odd... What brought this up?' Tsuna eyed the other in question. As he thought, something seemed to snap within, his mind putting the pieces together immediately. 'Is it possible?' He stopped walking, setting Skull down to the ground so that he could get a better look at the baby. He decided to ask one of his previous questions again. "Skull, who gave those white bandages to you?"

The cloud Arcobaleno froze at that, staring directly at the other. Skull then glanced around nervously as if something was wrong. He was pale and confused, that was clear and obvious, but why? Tsuna wasn't entirely sure. Finally, the baby answered. "You..."

Tsuna's eyes widened for a second then smiled brightly. "So you remember me now?"

"Y-Yeah, I remember clearly. When I saw you protecting me, I just remembered on the spot. It was as if everything cleared up. It wasn't thugs that were beating me up, it was Reborn and the others, and you were there to patch me up, right?" Skull scratched the side of his head, still confused about a lot of things. "B… But… How were you able to travel to our time period? I mean that was ten years ago, right?"

"Verde can explain that better than me, but it was through the ten-year bazooka. Actually, I'm pretty sure Verde is going to come after you for information once he finds out you remember. He's interested in this strange occurrence. He merely forgot, but you, on the other hand, had your memories replaced instead." Tsuna muttered the last few parts but Skull was able to hear it. He stared at the ground after kneeling down, deep in thought.

"So Verde remembers?"

"Yeah, he's the first one to do so, you second. The others haven't realized it and you can't tell them a single thing about what is going on." Tsuna leaned forward, pulling Skull closer. "Listen, Skull, please don't tell anyone about this. The only one you can talk to about this is Verde. If you tell the others, they won't believe you since their memories have been altered. Can you do that for me?"

Skull blinked for a few moments then nodded his head. He remembered all the feelings he had for the other from that time. It was a slow process but it was happening all over again. Tsuna saving him only made it clearer. He shook his head once more, only faster. "I'll do it!" Staring intently, Skull had gone back to his old worshipping state as Verde had described about long ago.

"Thank you. Well, right now, I need to head back home. I suggest talking to Verde about this sometime soon. He'll tell you everything you need to know."

"Alright!" Before Tsuna knew it, Skull was running off into the distance, vanishing behind a wall. The brunet blinked in surprise and then chuckled.

'Well, at least, he's energetic. Hope he'll be able to keep quiet about this.' Tsuna sighed and made his way back his home, hoping he wouldn't get too much of a scolding from Reborn.

He wished for that but in all truth he doubted it.

Well, this chapter came out earlier then I expected. Yay