Genesis - Katekyo Hitman Reborn - Chapter 26

Summary: There was a reason why Reborn got Haru involved with the Mafia. Even if she was useless to them in fights and even if she couldn't provide as much emotional strength as Kyoko, she was vital and without her, there would just be no Vongola. G86/GiottoHaru

My lack of KHR knowledge might make some things untrue or some characters OOC!

I don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn!

Please forgive any mistakes, both character-wise and grammatically-wise. I don't have time to re-read or edit things.

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Genesis: Chapter 26

HappyFace1886

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Leaving the village wasn’t a simple matter.

Haru was more than aware of this, especially due to her special circumstances. She wasn’t sure what sort of world was out there and for all she knew, leaving this village was a big mistake. There might be dangers out that that she couldn’t even dream of. However, the thought of Giotto-sama wasting away in such a horrible place helped her maintain her conviction. He wasn’t meant to be trapped in a place like this.

“Haru, stop dazing about and help Adelina with the linens.” She heard Adelina’s mother call out.

“Yes, ma’am!” Haru called out before rushing towards where Adelina was folding the mountain of laundry that had been washed and dried today. Without the convenient usage of modern equipment like washers and dryers, there was work to be done every day. “How are you feeling, Adelina?”

The younger girl’s eyes were puffy as though she had cried herself to sleep, but there was a look of relief that softened her normally hardened features. “I’m fine. What about you?”

“Me?” Haru asked, looking confused.

Adelina gave her a look. “You’ve been daydreaming all day. Did something happen between you and him?”

“Him?” Haru echoed, her bemusement only going.

Adelina looked around before leaning closer to her, whispering in a tentative voice. “Giotto.”

Haru smiled. “No. We just talked and went to sleep.”

“Is he... Is he okay after what happened last night?” Adelina asked, busying herself by folding a long bed sheet by herself. The speed she was moving in was amazing and it was obvious that she was moving robotically.

“He’s doing just fine.” Haru reassured, brushing her arm against Adelina to comfort her. “What about you?”

Adelina scowled at her. “I told you, I’m okay.”

“That’s fine if you are, but if not, you can tell me anything.” Haru said patiently, knowing the girl well enough to know that Adelina had a hard time expressing herself. “But you should know, I won’t always be here.”

At first, Adelina seemed puzzled at what Haru was saying before her eyes widened in realization. She dropped the shirt she had been folding before grabbing Haru’s hands, causing Haru to drop the clothes she herself had been tending to. Adelina looked up at Haru with hopeful eyes. “Are you... Are you-?”

Haru nodded. “Yeah.”

Adelina’s joy couldn’t be contained as she sucked in air quickly before launching herself towards Haru. The older girl giggled and held Adelina back before spinning in a circle. Adelina pulled away slightly, still holding onto Haru. “When? When are you two going to leave?”

Haru chuckled sheepishly. “About that... we’re not sure yet.”

“Why?”

“It’s not easy to leave just like that.” Haru explained with a sigh. “We’d need to figure out how we’d survive out there. I’m trying to get Attilio-san to help, but...”

Adelina snorted. “The Father may seem chaste to the people, but I don’t trust him. He’s probably the last one you should rely on.”

“Attilio-san does care of Giotto-sama.” Haru protested before looking at the ground hesitantly. “He may appear to be listening to the villagers, but I believe he takes care of Giotto-sama in his own way. If he didn’t care, he wouldn’t have taken in Giotto-sama for so long.”

Still, Adelina stubbornly frowned. “If he really did care, he would have taken Giotto out of here years ago.”

Haru smiled. “I suppose... but if he did, I would have never met Giotto-sama.”

Adelina paused and her scowl seemed to deepen even more before she let out a heavy sigh. “Perhaps you’re right. I’d rather you be by Giotto’s side than that man.”

The two smiled at each other, happy that for once there was a way to change the past that had hurt everyone so much. They chatted with each other enthusiastically, folding the remaining laundry with a newly brewed vigor... completely unaware of the shadow that stood behind the door with hands tightly clutched into fists.

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Giotto sat in the open field, closing his eyes as he inhaled deeply. The air was so cold, but he didn’t mind. Though he felt the changes of the seasons, he wasn’t as sensitive as the others when it came to the changing temperatures. A fortunate thing, he supposed, since it helped him survive the winters all those years ago.

He tilted his head back to see the sky and couldn’t stop his smile.

Finally, he’ll find freedom.

Just like the sky he’d watch with such intense yearning he didn’t know what to do with himself at times...

And he owed it all to Haru.

To others, it would have been a simple matter. Leave the place that did not want him. There was no point in lingering.

But where would he go? The village was all he had right now and they had, at one point, showed him compassion and treated him as one of their own.

It was too frightening, too lonely, to do at the spur of the moment. And out of all things, the thing Giotto feared the most was being alone.

Perhaps the fear was due to a lingering trauma over the violent death of his parents... and of how he had waited by himself for so long, crying and longing for the warm arms of another...

Giotto closed his eyes. It didn’t matter now.

He had Haru.

That was all that mattered.

He opened his eyes when his instincts pricked of a stranger slowly making their way towards him. Giotto stiffened and stood up. How foolish. After what happened last night, he had given into the temptation to venture to the area he and Adelina had once played years ago. However, that area was close to the village. It would be easy for him to accidentally meet another and if that were to happen, his chances of leaving with Haru might be hindered.

Giotto quickly pivoted on his heel to run into the forest when he heard a voice call out to him. A part of him wanted to ignore it, but another part of him heeded that he listen.

“Wait!”

The two sides warred into Giotto before he settled on hiding behind a tree, to at least determine who it was that had called out for him. If it was one of the village heads, the elders, or the adults, he would leave. Associating with them would bring nothing but trouble for him.

He peered over the trunk and felt his eyes widen slightly at the sight of who it was. Years may have passed, but Giotto never forgot anyone he had interacted with in the past. “Michael?”

Brown eyes peered at him cautiously before he looked away, unable to handle staring at those unnerving two-toned eyes any longer. However, he tightened his fists and marched towards Giotto determinedly. He stopped a few feet away from him. “It... It’s been a while...”

“It has.” Giotto agreed. Though Giotto had often seen Michael, he and the boy had not interacted as often. Michael would shy away and watch from the distance. It was a good trait, Giotto had determined, for someone who would take over the village. Michael wasn’t simply staying away because he was shy, but because he was watching and observing what was going on. Even as a young child, Michael had been the precocious type. “You shouldn’t be here.”

“I know.” Michael said, breathing deeply to calm his fried nerves. Whether or not Giotto was truly a demon or not, one did not simply forget the words spewed by people who truly believed. The conviction and fear they had in their voices could not be easily disregarded.

“...and yet you are...”

Michael hesitated and stuffed his hands into his pocket, his right hand touching the checkered bandanna Adelina wore. Finding strength, he lifted his head to speak. “Adelina said that you weren’t a real demon.”

Giotto stared at him, keeping silent.

“...I... I want to know the truth about everything. I-I want to know what really happened that day, from someone who was actually there.”

“There were other villagers there that day.” Giotto said hollowly.

“Still, I-.” Michael stammered.

“What do you hope to gain by knowing? It would-.”

“Adelina said she was the demon, not you!” Michael yelled, unable to hold it in. When Giotto didn’t reply, Michael took that as a sign to continue talking. “She said... She said that she turned you into a demon... and I wanted to know what she meant by that.”

There was no reply and for the longest time, Michael wondered what he was doing here in the cold. He was probably going to get in trouble by his father for venturing out without permission and for returning with muddied boots. Was this a fool’s quest? Was this all for nothing? Was this-?

There was a soft chuckle and Michael looked up in confusion. He then saw Giotto laughing quietly to himself, hands clutching onto his stomach. Michael’s face flushed and Giotto looked at him in amusement. “You still care for Adelina, I see.”

The flush on Michael’s face deepened. “I-I... you... that’s not the point!”

“You’re right, it’s not.” Giotto conceded. “But this is also Adelina’s story. It’s not my right to tell you anything.”

“Adelina won’t tell me anything. And... And I’m worried about what the elders might be planning. I don’t want Haru and Adelina to get dragged into anything dangerous... and... and if you truly are innocent, I wouldn’t want anything to happen to you as well.” Michael replied honestly, fiddling with Adelina’s bandanna while he kept his eyes to the ground.

Giotto’s eyes softened slightly. “Why would you care whether or not I am innocent?”

“Because it wouldn’t be right!” Michael said, sounding surprised that Giotto would even ask such a thing. “Since I was only a kid and... and Adelina had returned with horrible injuries, it was easy to just assume that... that you were the cause... especially since that’s what all the adults were saying. But I always thought it was weird that Adelina had vehemently denied it at first, saying you saved her. Everyone said it was just the devil tempting Adelina and that she was just a confused child... but the way she spoke... she sounded so desperate and scared.”

“But why now? Why try to find the truth now?”

“Because things have changed.”

There was no need for Michael to expand on that. Giotto already knew what he was talking about. The elders were starting to move because Haru was now in the scene. Adelina, after what happened last night, must’ve changed as well. For someone as observant as Michael, he would have noticed everything.

“I could lie in order to make myself appear innocent.” Giotto remarked.

Michael clutched onto the bandanna. “I’m willing to take that risk.”

Giotto gave Michael a small smile, one that took Michael by surprise. “We should sit down then. This might take a while.”

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::tsuzuku::

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AU: Erm... At first, Giotto felt a little OOC compared to the previous chapters, but in the end, I think it felt right. We don’t know his true personality, after all, since he’s had limited interaction with other people. 8D Also, this is a very, very rough chapter since I figured you guys would rather have a chapter now instead of waiting longer.

Chapter 25                                                                          Chapter 27