Bolt from the Blue
is a Self-Insert Fic by Umei no Mai, from Black Sky fame. Not only does the Author Avatar find herself in the world of Reborn! (2004), she's also in the past, de-aged to a thirteen years old, and Xanxus of all people picks her as his friend, to Don Nono's utter disapproval. Canon proceeds to go gloriously off the rails.The story can also be read in AO3.
Tropes found in this fanwork:
- Abusive Parents: Timoteo Vongola is genuinely good-intentioned towards Xanxus, but he just can't register the fact his adoptive son can and does have opinions and desires of his own. He's also legally guardian to Xanna and constantly dismisses her worth as Xanxus' friend and Guardian, so much she's afraid of being murdered in her sleep on his order.
- Iemitsu Sawada. After learning he sealed his Flame, Tsunayoshi refuses to consider him his father and later considers changing his name.
- The Estraneo, nuff said.
- Adaptational Heroism/Adaptational Personality Change: Lussuria and Belphegor, while still assassins, are much calmer and less likely to kill people for fun or a minor offense than in canon.
- Ambiguous Gender: Lussuria is genderfluid, while Naomi Vittore is non-binary.
- Author Avatar: Xanna, as a self-insert, is one for the author.
- Babies Ever After: In the ultimate chapter, Xanxus and Xanna are the proud parents of six biological kids and countless adopted ones.
- Badass Adorable: The Vittore children. Over half of them are flame active and they lived with and were doted on by Varia Quality for two years. Which included learning enough tricks to turn assassins into bloody smears on the wall.
- Bastard Bastard: Don Nono. Timoteo Vongola is one due to his mother being a False Widow.
- Believing Their Own Lies: Don Nono, much to Xanna's irritation.
- Bodyguarding a Badass: Guardians are typically perceived as bodyguards of their Sky. The average Sky can easily trounce any other type of Flame user.
- But We Used a Condom!: Active Storm and Wraith Flames make condoms unreliable at best. Since Xanna cannot use normal anticonception pills, hers and Xanxus' children were mostly suprises.
- Calling the Old Man Out: Defied. Xanna doesn't do this to Don Vongola because she actually likes living and she's perfectly aware that he would kill her if she becomes inconvenient. Instead, she settles for privately deconstructing for Xanxus his words and behaviour.
- Control Freak: Timoteo Vongola is a classic example.
- Cool Old Lady: Daniela Vongola. You wish your grandmother would be that badass.
- Death by Adaptation: Leviathan. Iemitsu. Don Nono. Nana Sawada. The Estraneo. Daemon Spade.
- Defusing The Tykebomb: Xanna's specialty. Starting with Xanxus and following with Squalo and Belphegor. Culminating it with Byakuran Gesso.
- Differing Priorities Breakup: Xanna and Pantera. They were madly in love, they could be great together but their different loyalties and aspirations made an actual marriage impossible.
- Even Evil Has Standards: The Varia don't have much in terms of morals but even they think that the Estraneo went too far.
- Mafia also doesn't tolerate rape, especially on minors.
- Fairy Tale Motifs: Xanna is frequently called "pixie" and "sprite". At one point, she introduces herself to Belphegor as the fairy who came to the christening without an invitation to bestow a blessing the parents very much disapproved.
- False Widow: In order to become Ottava, Daniela Vongola needed a Sky Heir, but could not have one out of wedlock. So she and her Guardians masterminded an elaborate charade of her being courted and marrying a young man from a nice family. Said young man had been dead for years prior to Daniela's 'marriage'.
- Family Theme Naming:
- All Superbi have animal names, with specific branches sticking to a specific type of an animal.
- Xanxus birth name is Xanthus, after a mythological character. He and Xanna then name their biological children Antiope, Melianippe, Myrina, Astyanax, Helenus and Clymene.
- First Girl Wins: Xanna is the first girl Xanxus truly interacts with - since he was basically isolated in the Iron Fort before - and later becomes his wife. Note they both dated other people before that.
- Fix Fic: The canon Vongola Alliance is fucked. This story is about solving any problem which popped in canon before their slated apparition or preventing them to ever become a problem.
- Friend to All Children: Xanna finds herself responsible for more than thirty children and all of them adore her.
- Gender-Blender Name: Naomi. Their name is written with kanji for "truth" despite it sounding feminine and, technically, they are biologically male.
- Happily Adopted: The Vittore children flourish under Xanna's care, and Tsuna later joins them.
- Happily Married: Xanxus and Xanna. Federico and Aria.
- Heir Club for Men: During Xanna's first pregnancy, everyone except close friends and family kept expecting a boy.
- Hero of Another Story:
- Federico Vongola is the one to put an end to the Arcobaleno Curse after learning it would lead Aria Giglio Nero - the woman he fell in love with - to a premature death.
- Xanxus sending Mainomai and Pyr on a mission to find the Kosato family's stalker means the Varia assassins are the ones to put Daemon Spade's wraith to rest.
- In Spite of a Nail: Natsuki Vittore is nicknamed "Mukuro" (Japanese for "corpse") after psychically mutilating himself in the name of training.
- Irony:
- Xanxus' mother deluded herself into believing her son was the offspring of Don Vongola, while her father was actually a cousin to the Eighth.
- Timoteo was implied to dismiss Xanxus for being a bastard. His mother never actually married, only conducting an elaborate charade of courting and marriage to gain independence, so Nono was illegitimate too.
- Jerkass: Nono and several of his guardians, particularly Coyote, who barged in Xanna's bathroom while she was showering and even broke the door lock to do so.
- Ladykiller in Love: Federico with Aria Giglio Nero.
- Living Lie Detector: Xanna. Don Nono particularly irks her because of this.
- Mama Bear: Xanna tortures the assassin sent after her adopted children.
- Maybe Ever After: Bolt!Byakuran sending a vision to Canon!Byakuran pushes Canon!Xanxus to seek Xanna's alternate self in his world, ostensibly to recruit her as a Varia assassin. Still, he was quite thoughtful before, and many readers agreed it meant he wants to meet the girl whom Bolt!Xanxus loved so much he married her.
- Meaningful Rename: Within Alliance it is perfectly normal to change your name or surname to better reflect your allegiance or if you want to strike on your own.
- Xanna was given her name by Xanxus to signify her pledge. We have no idea what was her original name.
- The Estraneo children decide to take the name Vittore, because they won against their torturers.
- Xanna officially has no last name, signifying Don Nono's efforts to keep her marginalized. Once he is removed from position and she gains the trust and love of the Vittore children she is given the last name Vittore.
- Camillo Bianchi decides to go by "Falco" as it is closer to the name his biological mother gave him - Hayato.
- The Mind Is a Plaything of the Body: Active Flames tend to alter priorities and way of thinking. Xanna notes that she much more prone to drastic or violent measures after her Activation.
- A Mother to Her Men: Xanna to the Varia Lightning Division. They even cuddle with her!
- Mythology Gag: Some of the original characters in the Varia had made their appearance as well in the author's Harrry Potter and Katekyo Hitman Reborn! Crossover fic, Black Sky.
- Never the Selves Shall Meet: When Xanna is established as native to an Alternate Universe, Squalo briefly wonders if another her is currently running around. Byakuran shoots down the hypothesis by revealing you only can visit another universe if your alternate self isn't here anymore, leading Xanna to conclude the other her is dead and left a vacuum for her to fill.
- Nom de Mom: Yuni takes the Giglio Nero name despite her father being a Vongola Sky and she herself being a Sky.
- Xanna's triplets all have Vittore as their surname.
- Only Known by Their Nickname: All we know about Xanna's original name is that it ends in "annah".
- Only Mostly Dead: Said word-for-word about Daemon Spade.
- Only Sane Man: Xanna finds herself in position to point how crazy and ridiculous many things are.
- Parental Abandonment: Squalo and Delfina's parents completely ignore their children unless it becomes relevant to pay attention to them.
- Polyamory: The relationships between various character get rather complicated by the end:
- Xanna and Xanxus are Happily Married.
- They also both date and have sex with Squalo.
- Xanxus is dating Pantera, though this relationship is mostly non-sexual. Xanna sometimes joins them.
- And Pantera recently got engaged to Immacolata Lanza.
- Real Men Wear Pink: Thanks to Xanna smashing gender preconceptions, Xanxus shamelessly indulges in feminine hobbies - such as clothes and make-up.
- Very literally with Pantera who owns several pink shirts and a pink suit, too.
- Related in the Adaptation: Here, Xanxus' red eyes are a result of Shimon blood. He also is a Vongola by his grandfather Giotto Molinaro, a cousin to Daniela Vongola.
- He is also Dino's second cousin.
- Squalo and Falco/Hayato are cousins in this story.
- Running Gag: Squalo has school.
- "Nobody lost a hand."
- Xanna's priorities.
- Selective Obliviousness: Sawada Nana, who is officially diagnosed to be delusional.
- Spared by the Adaptation: Massimo and Federico Vongola. Also many of the Estraneo children. The Shimon Family. Aria Giglio Nero.
- Straight Gay: Lussuria. Falena Superbi. Massimo Vongola.
- Technical Virgin: Due to hormonal birth control being worse than useless for active female Lightnings, Xanna avoids having actual intercourse until a few months prior to her wedding to Xanxus.
- The 'Verse: Actually a Alternate Universe, but it shares many similarities with Black Sky, such as Squalo having a younger sister and Federico having a torch for Aria Giglio Nero.
- Troubling Unchildlike Behaviour: Squalo willingness to move out at 13-years-old, and the fact he cut off his hand on a whim.
- Takeshi's determination to not let go of Tsuna - Activating his Flame at seven years old to do so - is noticed as concerning by Xanna, who decides to take him as a ward to mitigate the problem.
- What the Hell, Hero?:
- Xanna was less than impressed when Squalo cut off his hand.
- When Xanxus decides to cook up the infamous "Cradle affair", Xanna decides to literally punch him back to his senses. She ends up bedridden for a month afterwards but it works.
- Again Xanna, towards Natsuki who just nearly killed himself experimenting with his Flames.
- Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds: Byakuran, until Xanna talks him down.
