andsuddenlydynamite | (no subject)

The time flew by quickly as they stood next to eachother in comfortable peace. And then Hayato spotted something, and a smile spread across his face.

"Ryuutaro, look!" He pointed to the port coming into view, "Messina!"

And there they were greeted by Messina's famous greeting landmark, when they got closer the older more classical buildings came into view, and the buildings seemed to stretch back into the mountains creatin a very lovely sight. As Hayato had said, it was lush and green, and luckily, not raining. Though a bit of snow could be seen in the higher mountains.

Hayato just stared... he was unsure of whether he wanted to be happy, or just flip his middle finger as high as he could to his homeland. But here he was... home.

Ryuutaro looked it all over carefully, thoughtfully. He definitely didn't have anything negative to say about the countryside of this. When he was done looking, he turned to glance at Hayato.
He had to feel odd about this. That stare just proved it.

Ryuutaro decided that he didn't know what to say, so he just took Hayato's hand.

"Vos et ipsam civitatem benedicimus." He scoffed, "Latin for the biggest load of bullshit we could make in big white letters."

He let out a sigh as he gave Ryuutaro's hand as the ferry turned and backed into the port. He waited a bit for the crowds to dissipate before taking Ryuutaro off the boat. He looked around for a moment and took a deep breath.

"I'm... home..."

Ryuutaro tightened his grip on Hayato's hand reassuringly.

"You are."

It was an unnecessary statement, but he somehow hoped that if he said it as well, it would sound better. Just like Hayato's presence had made his own home feel so different. They were proof to each other for how far they'd come since the time they were home.

The squeeze was returned, and Hayato finally starts walking through the streets looking around. He had spent some time in Messina... it was the last place he spent in Sicily. It's where he got his start in the Vongola.

Without meaning to he started to wander to a rather nice looking joint... and he paused and just stared. This was where Marco used to play. It was too early in the day for someone to be playing not though. He just stared at it... not sure if he should go inside or not...

"That's... that's where I met the Ninth for the first time... he suckered me into playing there for a week..."

Ryuutaro looked the place over... Even if he wasn't a person for the past, again, he couldn't help imagining a younger Hayato walk through the door. For a moment he wished he could see the past just like the future, but that was stupid.

Ryuutaro took a step forward, but only a single step. If Hayato wanted to go there, he'd continue walking, Ryuutaro was sure.

And Hayato did continue... though he simply assumed Ryuutaro was the one who wanted to go there. It was a surprisingly nice establishment... which, even Hayato in his current-day attire, Hayato clashed horribly with. Nevermind imagining his as a filthy kid off the street. Luckily, the place was mostly empty...

and after a brief look around, he was sure that there was no Marco, or his little shit looming around. He... honestly wouldn't know what to say to him if he ran into him. Personally he had just hoped everyone on the island assumed he had died.

It was honestly a stupid move coming here. There where probably a number of people here that would recognize him, and now that Marco was no longer playing here it was doubtful one of those people would be the ninth. Even so... he couldn't really bring himself to leave.

This building was part of the chain of events that had essentially saved his life.

His eyes wandered to the piano for a moment, but then he seemed to lose his train of thought and looked at Ryuutaro.

"So... you hungry or somethin'?"

Sure, this place was on the nice side... which they probably weren't dressed for... but then again, since when did Hayato conform to normal social standards?

Ryuutaro opened his fan, a gesture which could equal a shrugging of shoulders the way Ryuutaro did it.
"A bit, maybe."

It was not like ever really was hungrier than a bit, he just was that kind of person to not eat much. But right now he didn't feel like making definite statements for once anyway. For once he was willing to do just whatever Hayato wanted to do, he knew how much of a tender subject all of this was.

Hayato nodded, that sounded like a 'yes' to him. Hayato lead Ryuutaro over to a table, and sat down. He's silent for a moment, just looking around the place and thinking. Then he turned his attention back to Ryuutaro.

"I... never really told you about how I got out of Italy, did I?"

He had kept a lot of his life on the streets a secret, and he intended to keep it that way... mostly.... but this was something that was just such an important turning point in his life. As his boyfriend, Ryuutaro had the right to know this. Besides, it was... a bit easier to talk about over some of the other stories from when he was on the streets.

Ryuutaro sat down as well, still kind of busy taking in the entire atmosphere and feeling this place carried to it. He was kind of sensitive for those things, when he wanted to be.

"No, you didn't", he then replied, curiously tilting his head as he looked back to his boyfriend.

Gokudera took in a deep breath, then let out a sigh.

"It happened when I was twelve. It was.... well, after I had gotten beaten up real bad in a fight and got knocked out, some guy named Marco brought me in to his house and fixed me up. When I woke up I kinda freaked out and slammed him in the face and stormed out. But he started followin' me around. I didn't get why at first, but I guess he was worried. He started trying to get between me and my fights. During one of the fights, he hurt his wrist. I didn't know at the time but he played the piano.... here. I wandered in here once because his kid was hangin' out here. That's where I met the Ninth for the first time. I didn't know who he was at the time though. He kinda... conned me into taking Marco's place until he got better... so I ended up playing here for a weak."

He was briefly uninterrupted in his story by the waitress. He quickly orders his drink then looks to Ryuutaro, "what do you want?"

Ryuutaro almost wanted to close his eyes as he listened, trying to summon up images of these events before his eyes, but that might have looked really odd, so he kept them open.
Sadly he could imagine younger Hayato getting beaten up just too well... Maybe he didn't even need to close his eyes after all.
He wasn't sure what to make out of this story, but he was thankful for this Marco-person's existance. Hayato would have needed so much more people like that back then.
It felt odd to think this way, seeing that he usually was a person who believed in strengths from being alone. Maybe Ginga taught him better. Maybe Hayato did.

At the question however he looked almost helpless. Even with drinks he had just no idea what Italian restaurants were like. Was there tea? Wasn't there?
... culture was nice, but why did he have to get into another one again.
"Trusting you with this, this is your country."
Yes, he was just painfully oblivious to anything European. Ever. In existence.

Hayato asks the waitress something and she nods in return. Lucky for Ryuutaro they had tea. He ordered himself a coffee and then continued on with his story.

"Well... after that week was over... I got a job. It was going to be a hit, a big one, on one of the most powerful families in Italy- the Vongola. I'm not stupid, I wasn't going to take the job at first. I mean... you'd have to be a special kind of stupid to go up against the Vongola... but then they said they would take me in to their famiglia if I did, and I was all kinds of desperate, so I took the job. Back then a lot of people got cheep work out of me with that promise."

He let out a sigh and continued.

"I set up the bomb and everything, it was for some sort of pianist concert sponsored by the Ninth, but on my way out I ran into Carlo's kid. He was the one playing that night, right above where I had set the bomb up. At first I just left... I mean... I really wanted to be a part of a family. I changed my mind though and started to head back to disarm the bomb. I knew it would piss off the guy that hired me... and I would get labeled as someone unreliable, which meant no jobs and no food for a while, so I tired to go back anyway. But I ran into the guy that hired me. His goons grabbed me and I could go move. Then he told me that he really didn't plan to let me join the family and pulled out his gun. Pointed it right at my forehead."

He smirked a little.

"Next thing I know there's blood on my face and the guy is down on the ground. His guys panic and I got away and gunned it down to the basement and disarmed the bomb. I could hear Carlo as I was doin' it too... it was real close... but I did it. He even... asked if I was listenin' in the audience after..."

And Hayato started to get misty eyed. He remembered sitting in that basement and just crying after. He wouldn't cry here though, so he was quick to wipe his eyes clear with the palm.

"Th-the Ninth took me in not long after that. I was lucky... if he didn't take me in, I would have been killed for what I had learned about the Vangola..."

This place was just so cruel. But maybe Ryuutaro shouldn't constantly blame it on the worlds. Maybe he had just been lucky where Hayato had not.
But that wasn't even important anymore.
Ryuutaro had started looking down on the table somewhere along the story, putting all the little pieces of information in his head in order again.
Even after all his time in the Manor, he was still so far away from all of this that it was hard to imagine it properly.

As Hayato finished he reached over to take his hand and looked up again.
"I see... But I'd rather say he was lucky for deciding to take you in. Or at least he was lucky just as well", he smiled.

Hayato blushed and laughed a little at Ryuutaro's words.

"After all the shit I put him through? I probably aged him 20 years faster... I was a real big mess back then."

He sighed again, and happily accepted Ryuutaro's hand. lacing his fingers together. Just in time for their drinks to arrive, and while the tea may taste quite different being of Italian origin, it wasn't too bad.

"Maybe he's here! I could introduce you... to the Ninth... not Carlo. I don't really know what happened to Carlo after..."

Ryuutaro could imagine Hayato being a lot of trouble. He must've been so much worse than when they met and yet Ryuutaro sometimes felt like he was stuck on a roller-coaster back in the day.

"If the oppurunity comes up, I'd be honoured."

He took a sip of that tea. He was not really picky with tea (or food in general - after all he liked to live as if he was rich but in reality his life was 'take what you can get'), so this was perfectly fine with him, he seemed content.

Hayato smiled and continued with his drink,

"Yeah, I'll find a ride and get us over there." He pauses to think for a moment, "I should... probably do somethin' about my hair though. I kinda stick out, I used to get a lot of flack for bein' an 'albino'... among other things." Which was, kind of inaccurate. He clearly had pigment... his eyes were green after all, and his hair looked more grey than pure white in the winter when he wasn't outside as much. Well, maybe it wasn't completely inaccurate either. He had to be some sort of albino mutation at least. He was far paler than the most people on the island with their olive complexion, and his hair was definitely was an unusual color for his age. Still, albino was probably one of the least offensive terms that was used on him, but it was still something that made him easily identifiable.

"It would suck if someone I pissed off back then recognized me."

Then again, as long as he was with Ryuutaro he was going to stick out. Someone from Japan was never a good sign on an island run by the mob. It meant business with Yakuza was going on... and that always meant something was going to go sour for someone. Luckily they were young... and Ryuutaro could easily pass off as girl so long as he didn't talk. Gokudera could play it like they were tourists- as long as no one recognized him. That would be key.

"I could dye it black with somethin' temporary... I'd look more Japanese. We could pass off as tourists until we got to the Ninth's and I could wash it out."

Because as much hell as he caught for it... he knew it was a trait he inherited from his mother, and he'd be damned in hell before he would ever act ashamed of it.

Ryuutaro said nothing for a moment, as he imagined Hayato with black hair. It was pretty hard, even the other versions of Hayato he'd met always had this exact hair-colour and hairstyle after all.

"That sounds like an acceptable idea. You should be careful though, darker colors are hard to wash out of brighter ones. I hate to say this, but the lower the quality of the color is, the easier it's to be washed out. I don't imagine many people to get suspicious over hair-colours anyway."

Not like Ryuutaro had ever colored his hair or even thought about it, but somehow being informed about this went along with his almost professional knowledge of make-up. It seemed natural to him.

Hayato nodded, he figured Ryuutaro would know better than he would. The teen took another sip of his drink mulling the decision over a little more, not really paying attention as the door to the little joint opened. The thing that shakes Gokudera from his thoughts is the sudden silence that overtook the the joint. The teen looked up at the entrance and his eyes widen... of all the worst possible outcomes...

There didn't seem to be anything particularly odd about the group now standing in the doorway... at least considering where they were. Five men all well dressed in suits. The one in the middle of the group whispers to the man to his right who quickly and quietly orders two of the other men to secure a table. It was clear that this was someone very important, and very much in charge.

...and shares the same dull-green eyes, that seem to be set in a permanent state of displeasure.

Hayato quickly reached into his pocket, shoved a wad of cash on the table and leaned over to Ryuutaro so whisper in his ear.

"We gotta go. Don't say anything, and keep your head down."

Hayato was clearly put on edge by this new arrival. He did not like having to just blatantly give Ryuutaro an order, but right now it was necessary. He slipped his arm around Ryuutaro to get him to move swiftly enough so that they could blend into the rest of the crowd leaving. They're almost out, but they have to squeeze by the man in charge... unfortunately the man seems to notice them and turns to give a cold, stern glare at Hayato.

"E qui ho pensato che siete stati morti negli ultimi sette anni." ((And here I thought you've been dead these past seven years.))

Dammit. The teen growled, and looked up at the man. The resemblance is mostly difficult to see. Hayato had taken after his mother, blessed with her softer features. The only noticeable resemblance was the scowl, the way their eyebrows knit together so tightly over the half-mast dull green eyes. Hayato knew he would have to respond, but refused to address the man in Italian. He hated him so much... he was going to make this as hard for him as possible.

"Bullshit, you only wish I was dead."

While usually Ryuutaro would immediately question being ordered around like that and not obey without half-an-hour of discussion, he had come to trust Hayato when it came to their safety and learned to obey such orders immediately and without any sort question at all.

He looked at the man in the doorway though, as unsuspiciously as he could. He knew he reminded him of somebody, but the thought seemed to ridiculous and unlikely, he didn't bother finishing it. He could ask Hayato about this later.

And then the man talks and while Ryuutaro could not understand a single word he felt that he knew Hayato.
And then Hayato's reply...
Now Ryuutaro had to take another wary closer look at the man's face.
No, it was just silly, why would---?
But he knew about fate and its odd ways better than anybody else.
It seemed to match and the tension Hayato was radiating...

Ryuutaro would say nothing now, but he felt himself getting really nervous as well.

A pair of men come behind them and grab their upper arms. Hayato quickly jerks his arm out of the grip causing the second man to free Ryuutaro to go for a weapon. Hayato responds by reaching for his own, however Hayato's father raises his hand and his subordinate pauses and backs down.

Gokudera hisses something at the two men in Italian and holds Ryuutaro closer. Then he turns his attention back to his father, still refusing to speak to him in Italian.

"What the fuck do you want? I'm done with you."

"Tu sei mio figlio. E 'stato un po'. Dovremmo parlare." ((*You're my son. It's been a while. We should talk.))

The man holds his arm to the car out side. Gokudera growls and looks around. Out numbered, and in a space like this dynamite would be risky. He takes a deep shaky breath to keep his temper in check and leans in very close to whisper in Ryuutaro's ear.

"I'm sorry Bambino, we gotta go with him."

Ryuutaro nodded. It looked like they had no choice at all. He did not exactly see why Hayato felt like he had to apologize for it though. It was not his fault at all. But this was not the time to have another of those conversations.

So he just let his hand run over Hayato's arm unsuspectibly and very shortly, trying to reassure him even if he had no idea what would be reassuring and how this would end.

Hayato's father looks at Ryuutaro, assuming he's a she, then turns back to Hayato.

"Chi è?" ((*who's she?))

Hayato just growled at his father and hissed out his response bitterly. The situation was dangerous enough as it is, he couldn't bring in Ryuutaro's gender into this, not when he had the disadvantage. "None of your fucking business!"

His father sighed and lead them out to the limo out front. Hayato kept Ryuutaro protectively close as they got in, obviously letting his boyfriend have the window seat in case he needed air. His Father sat opposite of them, remaining stoic and quiet as two of his lackies sat next to him, while the other two were up front, driving.

The drive remained silent, Hayato simply leaned against Ryuutaro and looked out the window with a sour expression on his face. After about 20 minutes a large and lavish mansion estate comes into view. After a moment pausing at the main gates for a moment they are brought around front, and Hayato's father escorts them inside. The teen seems to calm down a bit, his utter hatred for the man before him quelled slightly by the curiosity about how his home changed over the years. Was his room still their like Ryuutaro's had been? What about the family pictures they took? Were they still where he remembered them? Did his father regret not looking for him? Maybe there was some excuse that he wanted to give him, maybe an apology! Of course he could never be forgiven, but to know that maybe he was worth an apology and that his father had regretted what he had done would feel... well, he didn't know how it would feel. But it was something he had been waiting for since he ran away. As much as he hated him... it was still his father.

The man turned around to regard the two teenagers, and finally gave in to his son's demand to speak Japanese. Though his Japanese was a long way off from Hayato's. His knowledge of the language was shaky, and he made no effort to conceal his accent at all.

"I have business to take care of. Meet me in my office in half an hour." And he turns and walks away with his men in tow, leaving the boys alone.

Ryuutaro looked around inside, trying to take as much of the information in as he could, if he was already here.
It was weird, he had never been interested in anything from the past, but when it came to Hayato it seemed very important.
There was just so much he needed to know to understand present and future as well and not knowing could be disastrous. It had gotten so much easier lately though, because they knew each other and their stories a lot better.

As Hayato's father finally left, Ryuutaro looked up at Hayato again, questioningly.
What now? Being here did not seem like exactly a good idea, but how much choice did they have?

At first the only thing Hayato wanted to do was slam his fist into the wall repeatedly as hard as he could and scream. Finding someone to beat the shit out of would have worked too.

But just seeing Ryuutaro look up at him like that, all the tension seemed to fall from his shoulders. He smiled a little and let his arm drape around Ryuutaro's shoulders in a more casual and relaxed gesture, rather than the protective way he had it before.

"We should be fine for a while. We can't leave yet but no one's gonna bother us. I guess, I could show you around."

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FFFT GUY'S NAME IS CARLO NOT MARCO. I AM GENIUS.

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