[FIC] A Sense of Family (8059 kinda; PG)
Um. I don't know. I guess this is Dee's fault.
Title: A Sense of Family
by: nikki
Fandom: Katekyou Hitman Reborn
Pairing: 8059 + excess baggage
Rating: PG
Warnings: uh, there's a kid involved.
Disclaimer: Reborn (c) Amano Akira.
Dedication: for dtn and dreamlessness, if they ever want it ^^;.
Points to those who get the two reasons for Toshi's name. <3
Toshi's earliest and clearest memory was of his fourth birthday. He sat before a rather large chocolate cake with four white candles stuck in lopsided angles on it. There were balloons around him, and gifts and lots of food. He really wanted to eat crackers with artichoke spread, but his parents said it was not fit for a party. Instead they were having meatball spaghetti and sushi. Toshi, who had been in parties in both Tokyo and Florence, had a feeling that eating spaghetti and sushi together would be bad for his tummy.
Someone was waving a camera at the other side of the table, calling for a family picture. Toshi found himself squashed with his dad on his right and his other dad on his left. He smiled his best at the camera while his visitors, most of them oddly dressed in formal suits, smiled at them, amused at the little scene. Later on, he'd see his dad, the one who stood at his right, lovingly placing the picture within the confines of a picture frame and putting the frame on top of their mantelpiece, where pictures of the 'family' were displayed. Toshi would then be held up by his other dad to see the photos and silently, he'd notice that his picture looked a little different from those he'd seen in picture books and on TV. He wanted to point it out, but before he could speak he was placed down on his chair while his dad who carried him before chased around one of the uncles for placing octopus magnets on the fridge door.
*
Toshi once overheard his teacher telling his dad -- one of them -- that he was gifted. He could solve six-digit math problems when he was five and could play the piano 'brilliantly', as his aunt Bianchi put it. When he turned six, he could speak in three languages and can shift from one to another without difficulty. By the time he was seven, he could pitch a perfect game and leave his baseball playmates open-mouthed. Maybe he was really a genius, as his uncle Tsuna put it, but he couldn't find an answer when a classmate asked him how he ended up having two dads.
He would end up shrugging every time someone asked him about his two dads, since he did not really care about it. He was perfectly okay with everything, even though people, people who did not know his parents or his relatives but were just being nosy, kept asking him where his mom was. He thought it was not good to worry about something that didn't hinder him from doing what he loved doing. He had seen some of his friends' moms and aunts and how they took care of their children, but Toshi did not feel any longing for a mother or a woman in the house. He thought his family: his dads, him and their many relatives, were better than his friends' worrisome aunts. Still, his satisfaction did not keep him from being curious about his family, too.
Toshi's two dads, in order to avoid confusion, told him to call them differently. He was made to choose whatever he wanted to call them as long as they're different words. Toshi, only turning four that time, spent days wondering about what to call his two dads. He did not want to call them Daddy H and Daddy T. In the end, he called one of them Papa and the other Otousan. He remembered that one of his dads referred to his own father as "Papa" when talking with Aunt Bianchi while his other dad called his own father "Otousan" while talking on the phone. They were both surprised at his choice of names, and it took a lot of getting used to. In the end, though, the addresses used didn't seem to matter, for his dads would always know who he wanted to call and what he needed.
His papa, which his other dad fondly called Hayato, would often sit with him before the piano and teach him how to play tunes. They played the piano before dinner, sometimes seriously playing while reading a piece, sometimes randomly plinking the keys and laughing at whatever tunes came out. His papa would also often invite him for backyard experiments, where they'd mix a lot of stuff together until they become new stuff. When it's rainy, they would stay indoors, reading books together with his papa explaining what difficult words like 'carcinogenic' and 'photosynthesis' meant.
His otousan, which his papa called Takeshi, didn't play the piano or read much, but he was a wonderful baseball player (or idiot, as his other dad always said). When there's time after dinner, Toshi and his otousan would go out and pitch or bat balls, just the two of them, sometimes with his papa shouting cheers for either of them. They would watch games together, both of them cheering for a team, and re-enact the moves they had just watched. When it was too cold to play outside, Toshi would be ushered by his otousan to the kitchen, where he was taught how to make rice balls or miso soup. Most of the time, their adventures ended in disasters, and fuming, his other dad would leave his book and stand up to get the mop.
Every other Saturday, his Uncle Tsuna would pay a visit to their house, bringing with him scones or pudding or mochi (Toshi's favorite sweet). Sometimes, he'd willingly play computer games with Toshi, most of the time losing pretty badly. Some other times, he'd tell stories about Toshi's dads and how they behaved when they were young. At rare occasions, Uncle Tsuna would drop by with Uncle Kyoya in tow. Toshi would greet both uncles with excitement -- he loved it when people from the 'famiglia', as his dads put it, visited -- and Uncle Kyoya would study him with narrowed eyes and completely ignore him, but not before patting his head with a reluctant hand.
Sometimes, his Uncle Ryouhei would come and play, too. Uncle Ryouhei knew a lot of games, but he specializes in boxing. Toshi remembered how his papa almost threw Uncle Ryouhei out of the window because he accidentally knocked the wind off his nephew. As an apology, Uncle Ryouhei sent a couple of octopus plushies with a note. After a look, his papa asked if Toshi would want to know how to make explosives from kitchen stuff (It was quite a relief that his otousan came into the room early and discouraged the plan).
Once a month on a Sunday, Toshi and his dads would go to the 'big house', which was actually Uncle Tsuna's house. All his aunts and uncles would be there and they would all bring food or cook up a party. Aunt Kyoko's strawberry shortcakes were the best and Aunt Haru had the most amazing costumes. Aunt Bianchi said she was also a cook like Kyoko, but since no one wanted her to cook, she'd just bring the most delicious juices and chocolates from places unknown. Unlike most of his friends' big family parties, Toshi's family party was not awkward or stiff or strict. The ballroom would have a sound system ready to use for all-night karaoke (usually, it was Uncle Ryouhei who would hold the mic the whole night), there would be food that anyone can eat and most of all, there would be no people telling him off for running in the grounds. Aunt I-pin and Uncle Lambo would play games with him until they were tired and most of the time, he was asleep even before the party ended. He'd then regret not staying up enough, but his otousan would remind him that there'll be another party next time and he need not worry.
*
When Toshi was a little older, around six or seven, the bullying started. Some of his larger classmates teased him incessantly about his two dads. They called him names and insulted his parents with words not even his papa would utter. For days, he'd go home with clothes torn or with bruises and scratches. Both his dads nursed his wounds and mended his clothes with grim expressions, one of them more vocal of his thoughts of wanting to hang certain kids upside down.
The next day, his otousan went with him and met his bullies. They called him names once more, and Toshi felt anger rising to leave a bitter taste in his mouth, but his dad merely scratched his head and laughed. He challenged them to a baseball game and soon, the previous taunting was forgotten. After the game, his otousan took all the kids home and baked delicious stuff for them. All of them except for a couple became Toshi's friends after that.
When the two other kids wouldn't leave him at peace and when promises of a baseball game and cookies didn't work anymore, Toshi went home with a black eye once more. The next day, his papa came with him to the park and met with the two kids. He then calmly waved sticks of dynamites in the kids faces and threatened the boys to drop the bullying or they will be reduced to dust, and he gave a demonstration by setting fire to a row of shrubs nearby.
The bullying stopped but his papa had to pay for destruction of public property.
*
Once, he was asked by a female classmate if his two dads loved each other. Another time, another kid scoffed at him and told him that his dads are no way like her parents because her parents loved each other. Toshi wondered if his parents loved each other. They argue at the smallest things all the time and Toshi feared that maybe his family was not as happy as he was thinking.
One night, when his otousan was away for work, he decided to ask his papa about it. His papa looked at him, incredulous, and told him to forget about it and just read his chemistry book. Toshi decided not to probe deeper; his papa looked worried because his otousan was still out and it's past midnight. It was freezing cold outside and his papa muttered repeatedly about scarves and jackets. Toshi sat on the couch with his papa, since neither of them wanted to be alone while waiting.
The sound of a key turning the lock at the front door jolted both of them awake. Before Toshi could blink and rub his eyes sleepily, his papa was up and running to the front door, a string of curses and complaints directed to his other dad. Smiling sheepishly, his otousan just held his other dad close, murmuring something Toshi couldn't hear. When they pulled away, his papa was red and fumbling and sputtering, until Toshi went up to them and reached up for a hug.
And then there was another night, when his papa was out for work, that Toshi decided to ask his otousan about his worry. His otousan laughed after hearing his little speech, patted his head and urged him to go to his room and sleep. It was past midnight after all and it was raining hard. Toshi did not want to, but he knew better than say no. He trudged up the stairs, but just as he was about to enter his room, he heard the front door being flung open. Looking from above, he saw his otousan grabbing his papa to enter the house and holding him close. His papa managed to speak a few syllables before being wrapped up in an embrace. They stood there, unmoving and dripping wet, for a few minutes. Toshi wanted to go down and get his usual hug, but the look on his otousan's face -- his tightly-closed eyes and his little smile -- made him decide not to disturb his parents.
As he brought the blankets to cover his head, Toshi smiled. His classmates were wrong.
*
When he was seven, Toshi had a serious talk with his Uncle Tsuna. He had asked his dads the day before the ultimate question of why he didn't have a mother, and they both sent him to Uncle Tsuna who, as they said, will clarify things. He looked at his uncle who was fidgeting and playing with his fingers. Somehow, he doubted that his uncle would be able to answer his questions.
After an hour of story-telling of their daily lives, of talking about school and gossiping about her aunts, Toshi finally heard an answer from his uncle, although it was short and inadequate. He just said, with clear eyes, that Toshi's mother was a good woman. Unfortunately, she was unable to care for Toshi even though she loved him a lot. Toshi wanted to ask more why's and more how's, but his Uncle Tsuna held his shoulder and smiled, telling him that his dads loved him very much and for now, it should be only thing that will matter.
Somehow, Toshi felt that his uncle outwitted him and withheld everything he wanted to know. Still, his uncle had a point. Why should he bother looking for someone else when he had his hands full of love at present with the people with him?
*
Toshi's latest and most unforgettable memory was during his eighth birthday. There was still the cake with the lopsided candles, the balloons and the sushi, the relatives mostly dressed in suits. He had just finished blowing the candles and his Uncle Ryouhei was waving a camera around, asking for a family picture. His dads immediately stood by his sides and grinned their widest as they posed for the camera. Soon, everyone wanted pictures with the "cutest genius" in Italy and Japan.
He smiled for the camera numerous times, watching his parents look at him with proud smiles of their own. He had just won his first baseball game in school after all, just a few days after he gave the best piano recital of his life. His aunts and uncles stood around him now, praising him for his talents and hoping for his success.
Toshi looked at his papa, who smirked and turned up his nose at everyone, "It's in the genes," he proclaimed with pride, while Toshi's other dad nudged his side.
"Genes? But that's impossible," Toshi giggled. He had recently read one of his papa's genetics books and learned how heredity works. Surely, his papa was joking.
Right now, though, as the sudden silence turned awkward and smiles turned sour, Toshi didn't really care. No matter what anyone said or believed, he wouldn't be worried or unhappy. His family, whether it's eccentric or not, would still be the best family in the world.
And if anyone dared offer a contradiction, he could always set fire to a couple of shrubs.
.end.
Title: A Sense of Family
by: nikki
Fandom: Katekyou Hitman Reborn
Pairing: 8059 + excess baggage
Rating: PG
Warnings: uh, there's a kid involved.
Disclaimer: Reborn (c) Amano Akira.
Dedication: for dtn and dreamlessness, if they ever want it ^^;.
Points to those who get the two reasons for Toshi's name. <3
Toshi's earliest and clearest memory was of his fourth birthday. He sat before a rather large chocolate cake with four white candles stuck in lopsided angles on it. There were balloons around him, and gifts and lots of food. He really wanted to eat crackers with artichoke spread, but his parents said it was not fit for a party. Instead they were having meatball spaghetti and sushi. Toshi, who had been in parties in both Tokyo and Florence, had a feeling that eating spaghetti and sushi together would be bad for his tummy.
Someone was waving a camera at the other side of the table, calling for a family picture. Toshi found himself squashed with his dad on his right and his other dad on his left. He smiled his best at the camera while his visitors, most of them oddly dressed in formal suits, smiled at them, amused at the little scene. Later on, he'd see his dad, the one who stood at his right, lovingly placing the picture within the confines of a picture frame and putting the frame on top of their mantelpiece, where pictures of the 'family' were displayed. Toshi would then be held up by his other dad to see the photos and silently, he'd notice that his picture looked a little different from those he'd seen in picture books and on TV. He wanted to point it out, but before he could speak he was placed down on his chair while his dad who carried him before chased around one of the uncles for placing octopus magnets on the fridge door.
*
Toshi once overheard his teacher telling his dad -- one of them -- that he was gifted. He could solve six-digit math problems when he was five and could play the piano 'brilliantly', as his aunt Bianchi put it. When he turned six, he could speak in three languages and can shift from one to another without difficulty. By the time he was seven, he could pitch a perfect game and leave his baseball playmates open-mouthed. Maybe he was really a genius, as his uncle Tsuna put it, but he couldn't find an answer when a classmate asked him how he ended up having two dads.
He would end up shrugging every time someone asked him about his two dads, since he did not really care about it. He was perfectly okay with everything, even though people, people who did not know his parents or his relatives but were just being nosy, kept asking him where his mom was. He thought it was not good to worry about something that didn't hinder him from doing what he loved doing. He had seen some of his friends' moms and aunts and how they took care of their children, but Toshi did not feel any longing for a mother or a woman in the house. He thought his family: his dads, him and their many relatives, were better than his friends' worrisome aunts. Still, his satisfaction did not keep him from being curious about his family, too.
Toshi's two dads, in order to avoid confusion, told him to call them differently. He was made to choose whatever he wanted to call them as long as they're different words. Toshi, only turning four that time, spent days wondering about what to call his two dads. He did not want to call them Daddy H and Daddy T. In the end, he called one of them Papa and the other Otousan. He remembered that one of his dads referred to his own father as "Papa" when talking with Aunt Bianchi while his other dad called his own father "Otousan" while talking on the phone. They were both surprised at his choice of names, and it took a lot of getting used to. In the end, though, the addresses used didn't seem to matter, for his dads would always know who he wanted to call and what he needed.
His papa, which his other dad fondly called Hayato, would often sit with him before the piano and teach him how to play tunes. They played the piano before dinner, sometimes seriously playing while reading a piece, sometimes randomly plinking the keys and laughing at whatever tunes came out. His papa would also often invite him for backyard experiments, where they'd mix a lot of stuff together until they become new stuff. When it's rainy, they would stay indoors, reading books together with his papa explaining what difficult words like 'carcinogenic' and 'photosynthesis' meant.
His otousan, which his papa called Takeshi, didn't play the piano or read much, but he was a wonderful baseball player (or idiot, as his other dad always said). When there's time after dinner, Toshi and his otousan would go out and pitch or bat balls, just the two of them, sometimes with his papa shouting cheers for either of them. They would watch games together, both of them cheering for a team, and re-enact the moves they had just watched. When it was too cold to play outside, Toshi would be ushered by his otousan to the kitchen, where he was taught how to make rice balls or miso soup. Most of the time, their adventures ended in disasters, and fuming, his other dad would leave his book and stand up to get the mop.
Every other Saturday, his Uncle Tsuna would pay a visit to their house, bringing with him scones or pudding or mochi (Toshi's favorite sweet). Sometimes, he'd willingly play computer games with Toshi, most of the time losing pretty badly. Some other times, he'd tell stories about Toshi's dads and how they behaved when they were young. At rare occasions, Uncle Tsuna would drop by with Uncle Kyoya in tow. Toshi would greet both uncles with excitement -- he loved it when people from the 'famiglia', as his dads put it, visited -- and Uncle Kyoya would study him with narrowed eyes and completely ignore him, but not before patting his head with a reluctant hand.
Sometimes, his Uncle Ryouhei would come and play, too. Uncle Ryouhei knew a lot of games, but he specializes in boxing. Toshi remembered how his papa almost threw Uncle Ryouhei out of the window because he accidentally knocked the wind off his nephew. As an apology, Uncle Ryouhei sent a couple of octopus plushies with a note. After a look, his papa asked if Toshi would want to know how to make explosives from kitchen stuff (It was quite a relief that his otousan came into the room early and discouraged the plan).
Once a month on a Sunday, Toshi and his dads would go to the 'big house', which was actually Uncle Tsuna's house. All his aunts and uncles would be there and they would all bring food or cook up a party. Aunt Kyoko's strawberry shortcakes were the best and Aunt Haru had the most amazing costumes. Aunt Bianchi said she was also a cook like Kyoko, but since no one wanted her to cook, she'd just bring the most delicious juices and chocolates from places unknown. Unlike most of his friends' big family parties, Toshi's family party was not awkward or stiff or strict. The ballroom would have a sound system ready to use for all-night karaoke (usually, it was Uncle Ryouhei who would hold the mic the whole night), there would be food that anyone can eat and most of all, there would be no people telling him off for running in the grounds. Aunt I-pin and Uncle Lambo would play games with him until they were tired and most of the time, he was asleep even before the party ended. He'd then regret not staying up enough, but his otousan would remind him that there'll be another party next time and he need not worry.
*
When Toshi was a little older, around six or seven, the bullying started. Some of his larger classmates teased him incessantly about his two dads. They called him names and insulted his parents with words not even his papa would utter. For days, he'd go home with clothes torn or with bruises and scratches. Both his dads nursed his wounds and mended his clothes with grim expressions, one of them more vocal of his thoughts of wanting to hang certain kids upside down.
The next day, his otousan went with him and met his bullies. They called him names once more, and Toshi felt anger rising to leave a bitter taste in his mouth, but his dad merely scratched his head and laughed. He challenged them to a baseball game and soon, the previous taunting was forgotten. After the game, his otousan took all the kids home and baked delicious stuff for them. All of them except for a couple became Toshi's friends after that.
When the two other kids wouldn't leave him at peace and when promises of a baseball game and cookies didn't work anymore, Toshi went home with a black eye once more. The next day, his papa came with him to the park and met with the two kids. He then calmly waved sticks of dynamites in the kids faces and threatened the boys to drop the bullying or they will be reduced to dust, and he gave a demonstration by setting fire to a row of shrubs nearby.
The bullying stopped but his papa had to pay for destruction of public property.
*
Once, he was asked by a female classmate if his two dads loved each other. Another time, another kid scoffed at him and told him that his dads are no way like her parents because her parents loved each other. Toshi wondered if his parents loved each other. They argue at the smallest things all the time and Toshi feared that maybe his family was not as happy as he was thinking.
One night, when his otousan was away for work, he decided to ask his papa about it. His papa looked at him, incredulous, and told him to forget about it and just read his chemistry book. Toshi decided not to probe deeper; his papa looked worried because his otousan was still out and it's past midnight. It was freezing cold outside and his papa muttered repeatedly about scarves and jackets. Toshi sat on the couch with his papa, since neither of them wanted to be alone while waiting.
The sound of a key turning the lock at the front door jolted both of them awake. Before Toshi could blink and rub his eyes sleepily, his papa was up and running to the front door, a string of curses and complaints directed to his other dad. Smiling sheepishly, his otousan just held his other dad close, murmuring something Toshi couldn't hear. When they pulled away, his papa was red and fumbling and sputtering, until Toshi went up to them and reached up for a hug.
And then there was another night, when his papa was out for work, that Toshi decided to ask his otousan about his worry. His otousan laughed after hearing his little speech, patted his head and urged him to go to his room and sleep. It was past midnight after all and it was raining hard. Toshi did not want to, but he knew better than say no. He trudged up the stairs, but just as he was about to enter his room, he heard the front door being flung open. Looking from above, he saw his otousan grabbing his papa to enter the house and holding him close. His papa managed to speak a few syllables before being wrapped up in an embrace. They stood there, unmoving and dripping wet, for a few minutes. Toshi wanted to go down and get his usual hug, but the look on his otousan's face -- his tightly-closed eyes and his little smile -- made him decide not to disturb his parents.
As he brought the blankets to cover his head, Toshi smiled. His classmates were wrong.
*
When he was seven, Toshi had a serious talk with his Uncle Tsuna. He had asked his dads the day before the ultimate question of why he didn't have a mother, and they both sent him to Uncle Tsuna who, as they said, will clarify things. He looked at his uncle who was fidgeting and playing with his fingers. Somehow, he doubted that his uncle would be able to answer his questions.
After an hour of story-telling of their daily lives, of talking about school and gossiping about her aunts, Toshi finally heard an answer from his uncle, although it was short and inadequate. He just said, with clear eyes, that Toshi's mother was a good woman. Unfortunately, she was unable to care for Toshi even though she loved him a lot. Toshi wanted to ask more why's and more how's, but his Uncle Tsuna held his shoulder and smiled, telling him that his dads loved him very much and for now, it should be only thing that will matter.
Somehow, Toshi felt that his uncle outwitted him and withheld everything he wanted to know. Still, his uncle had a point. Why should he bother looking for someone else when he had his hands full of love at present with the people with him?
*
Toshi's latest and most unforgettable memory was during his eighth birthday. There was still the cake with the lopsided candles, the balloons and the sushi, the relatives mostly dressed in suits. He had just finished blowing the candles and his Uncle Ryouhei was waving a camera around, asking for a family picture. His dads immediately stood by his sides and grinned their widest as they posed for the camera. Soon, everyone wanted pictures with the "cutest genius" in Italy and Japan.
He smiled for the camera numerous times, watching his parents look at him with proud smiles of their own. He had just won his first baseball game in school after all, just a few days after he gave the best piano recital of his life. His aunts and uncles stood around him now, praising him for his talents and hoping for his success.
Toshi looked at his papa, who smirked and turned up his nose at everyone, "It's in the genes," he proclaimed with pride, while Toshi's other dad nudged his side.
"Genes? But that's impossible," Toshi giggled. He had recently read one of his papa's genetics books and learned how heredity works. Surely, his papa was joking.
Right now, though, as the sudden silence turned awkward and smiles turned sour, Toshi didn't really care. No matter what anyone said or believed, he wouldn't be worried or unhappy. His family, whether it's eccentric or not, would still be the best family in the world.
And if anyone dared offer a contradiction, he could always set fire to a couple of shrubs.
.end.