Interlude II

“Are you sure about this Tsuna-dono?” Basil asked. It was a brisk day for early May as he drove through the unusually rainy streets of Munich, passing by the same road sign for the third time. The man knew where he needed to be, it was just that he was unsure about what sort of reception was going to welcome him. He had Tsuna on his cellular phone, sounding as clear and confident as the day he took over for Timeteo.

“Yes, I am absolutely certain about this,” the Vongola boss said. “He is the perfect candidate for the position.”

“Did you at least talk to his parents?”

“Did my father ask permission from my Guardians’ parents?”

“No…”

“Just trust me Basil.” Tsuna let out a laugh. “You’ve been so jittery since you took over for my dad that you’re almost not yourself anymore.”

“I am just worried about Kiyohiko-dono,” Basil said, finally pulling over into a parking space. He leaned up against the curve of the steering wheel and sighed. “The two of them have never met before in their lives.”

“So I guess we are going to have to change that. Good luck Basil; I’m counting on you.” Tsuna hung up the phone, leaving Basil alone.

He paused for a moment and looked at the entrance to the high-rise apartment building. The very act of him walking in there was akin to signing his own death certificate in some ways, but it was what Tsuna-dono wanted…

Basil got out of the car and rushed into the building to beat the rain. He headed straight to the elevator and went directly up to the top floor, where he was dumped into a small corridor. He rang the doorbell to the flat and awkwardly awaited an answer as the rain came down upon the overhead skylight.

Almost a minute had passed before Daria Elsner opened the door. Basil knew that it was rare for the business mogul to be visited at her home and was nervous about being potentially kicked out before being allowed to enter. She looked at Basil suspiciously, recognizing him instantly. The years between their meetings had clearly not been numerous enough.

“Herr Basil, it has been a long time,” she said, stepping back to let him in. “I hope you are not in a hurry; Hayato took Hans out a while back and I am not quite sure when they’ll return.”

“I can wait, if that is alright with you Donna Daria,” Basil replied. “I do not wish to be a burden.”

“Oh, not at all,” Daria said as she led Basil to the living room, where there was another skylight that displayed the developing storm overhead. The room was immaculate and designed perfectly, looking more like a film set than someone’s actual flat. Basil took a seat on the leather sofa while Daria sat opposite him on an armchair. There was an awkward silence between them before Daria spoke up again.

“Wouldn’t it have been easier to call Hayato instead of coming here in person?” she asked. “I would think that the boss’s right-hand man could stand to be informed by telephone every once in a while… unless this is something top-secret that is.”

“How perceptive of you Donna Daria,” Basil smiled.

“I know that although Hayato cherishes the time spent with his son, he is still prone to working while here. What project is so important that he had to drag the CEDEF head out here for?”

“The matter at hand is something that only Tsuna-dono, Don Xanxus and I have been planning without any further knowledge of the other Guardians. I would be highly surprised if Gokudera-dono knew anything of this.”

“…if I knew any of what…?” Gokudera asked. Basil and Daria looked at the entrance to the living room to see him standing there looking rather irked. His stonewashed jeans were dark from the rain, his t-shirt was stuck to his body and the shirt he had thrown over the t-shirt was dripping on the carpet. A small boy was half-standing behind him, staring at Basil. The CEDEF head assumed the child was Hans Elsner; he looked similar to Gokudera with his light hair—though cut shorter than his father’s—and fashionable appearance. He was only eight, nearly nine, years old, yet Basil knew the boy already had the schooling of most high school students thanks to a combination of private tutors and the smarts inherited from both his parents.

“You sure did return quickly,” Basil said. He stood up and began walking towards them.

“Did you two run home?” Daria asked, rather perturbed that her young son was soaked to the skin.

“I was out having a smoke and saw him in his car, so I knew I had to get here as quickly as possible. My car was in the very back of the parking lot though,” Gokudera explained sourly, gesturing at Basil. The storm overhead cracked, sending a flash through the room. Hans hid his face in Gokudera’s wet shirt.

“Are you scared?” Basil kindly asked Hans, crouching down so that he was eye-level with the boy.

“Who are you?”

“I work with your father,” Basil said, putting on a reassuring smile. Hans came out from behind Gokudera and looked the stranger in the face.

“Really?”

“Yeah.” Basil reached inside his jacket pocket and began to dig for something. “I brought you something Don Hans.” It took only seconds for Gokudera to grab Hans by the shoulder and protectively pull the boy behind his larger frame.

“Not my son,” Gokudera said sternly. His eyes narrowed, showing the experience and wear that came with age. “As much as it pains me, I promised Daria I would let him have nothing to do with this.”

“Nothing to do with what, Dad?”

“Hans, I think it’s almost time for a snack,” Daria said, edging over towards the kitchen. She saw the look in Gokudera’s eyes meant that Basil was up to something and the best way to handle the possible series of explosions, both figurative and literal, to come was to get her son out of there.

“I want to know what Dad’s coworker brought for me!” Hans said excitedly. “Is he another member of the international sector of your company, Mom?”

“Go with your mother,” Gokudera snapped at the boy, not taking his eyes off Basil. “Dad has to deal with business right now.” The boy refused to move, however, instead watching his father and the strange man exchange words.

“This is beyond you Gokudera-dono,” Basil said blankly as he straightened to his full height again.

“I promised Daria!”

“You have no say in this.”

“So you intend to make me a liar after all these years?!” Gokudera’s nostrils flared in anger; his fingers twitched in anticipation.

“You don’t even know what is happening, do you?” Basil asked. Gokudera’s eyes narrowed as his voice dropped to a low growl.

“The Eleventh’s sixteenth birthday is in a month; I’m not daft.”

“Then you realize the importance of my visit.”

“He’s just a kid.”

“Do not think Tsuna-dono has ignored that fact.” Basil smiled inwardly as he saw Gokudera’s eyes widen in shock. “There is only one candidate Tsuna-dono sees fit and that is Don Hans here. You wouldn’t disobey a direct order from Tsuna-dono, would you?”

“Hayato, what is going on?!” Daria demanded. She was growing angrier by the second at not only her lack of understanding, but an alarming sense of helplessness was enveloping her. The foreign emotion, something unbecoming for a businesswoman, was putting her on the edge. “What does he want with Hans?”

“The very thing you and I did our best to prevent,” Gokudera replied, his voice lifeless and distant. “It’s the Tenth’s orders and it seems like we cannot do anything about it.”

“Bullshit,” Daria hissed. She stomped over and grabbed hold of Hans’s wrist. The second she did, Basil pulled a gun from his hidden shoulder holster and pointed it at her forehead.

“An order is an order ma’am,” he said. “If there is anyone to hate it is not Gokudera-dono or myself, but the one who made the order. Tsuna-dono decided this shall be done, so I must carry out his will.”

Daria looked from the uncharacteristically emotionless Basil to a speechless Gokudera and finally down to her frightened son. Processing the situation, she slowly released her grip on the child’s wrist and took a few steps back. Basil returned the gun and knelt down before Hans.

“Do you still want what I brought for you Don Hans?” he asked gently. The boy nodded nervously, too scared to say anything. Basil reached back into his pocket with one hand and took one of Hans’s hands in the other. He placed something in the boy’s hand and closed it, holding the hand shut so that the boy would look him in the eyes.

“Never lose this,” he said. “This is now your life. Follow in the footsteps of all who came before you, including your father, and you shall not fail.” Basil let go of Hans’s hand and allowed the boy to look at the item he was now holding.

A ring. A Vongola Ring.