10. I'll take her...

"I've decided, you'll be safer with… Zee... I want you to move in with Zee."

Shock or surprise was not even word enough to explain the expression on Zeno's face, his heart literally leaped in his chest at the mention of his name. He looked from the man who spoke, to the girl he was to watch over, and she looked rather surprised too.

"P_Papa, I mean, you know that I…"

"Zeno my boy, if anyone can take care of her as much as I can, and also watch over her closely, then it's you. I thought of sending her abroad for some time, but then what if they go after her there too. She's safest here with us, but being around me is quite dangerous now, so let her move in with you for now. You do understand what I'm saying right." Lords help him, but he really didn't understand what the man was saying. Why would he want him to watch over her?

"Papa, I think we should first find out who it was. I'd look into it, and then handle it, so she won't need to move in with me. As long as we find out who was behind the attack, I'll deal with them personally, so you won't have anything to worry about anymore." He tries reasoning with the man.

"Papa, I don't want to stay with him. Just get me more bodyguards instead, I swear I will not ditch them again. I'll take them with me wherever I go. Anything but living with him." she cried, like he was some kind of demon that she didn't want to be locked up with.

"I gave birth to you, and raised you. I know you can be a chronic liar. I can't risk it, and Zee, we already tried tracking down those men, but we got nothing. We could not find a single trace of them anywhere." The man stated the plain truth. She never listened to anyone. The only person who had always been able to keep her in check a bit was the man sitting in front of them. Zeno. No matter how much he thought about it, he was the best for the job.

" But papa, I don't need him on my case every millisecond. I'm not going with him!" she defiantly says. And Zee could only wonder if she thought he even wanted her in his house. She was a little pest, she'd just be a pain in his neck if he took her in.

"Luna, I let you do whatever you like, but I've made up my mind on this one. You'll be moving in with Zee. Maria will go with you if you want."

"But papa, staying with me is as dangerous as staying with you. Maybe even worse. Being with me doesn't guarantee her safety at all." He knew this fact well, Dan-a was with him, and look what happened. In fact, living with him was not good at all. If she came and lived with him, he was scared she'd discover how wrecked he really was. He'd tried not to show it to her every time he was around her. He'd tried his best to pretend he was always okay and happy around her, but if she lived with him… he was scared she would see his wasted life.

"That's right, it doesn't. But which is better? Staying with an old man, or an able-bodied man who I know can effectively watch over her. Look Zee," he stands from his seat and walks over to the man, sitting himself on the wooden table in front of Zee, and taking his hands in his.

"I'm not saying you should keep her with you forever. Nobody would want to keep such a vicious thing in their house for too long." At that moment, all Luna wished to do was throw some kind of object at her father for talking bad of her, right in her presence.

"But just till the elections are over. Or just till we find out who it is that's targeting her. Then she can return home. Till then, keep her at your home with you. Watch over her for me. She's your Piccola, so watch over her for me for now. Take care of her like your little sister."

"I am not his sister!" she thundered. "Shut up!!" her father retorted. But Zeno just sat there with nothing to say. He didn't want her in his house for a lot of reasons, and yet he could never refuse the man for a thousand more reasons. But what if… what if history repeats itself, and… and something happens to her when he wasn't watching, what then? He'd really kill himself if anything were to happen to her too. But not before destroying whoever dared to lay a hand on her just like he did to those who killed his Dan-a.

"But what if it is me they are actually after, and not you? I think we should first figure out who is behind this attack before doing anything" he tries to reason. He just needed something to dissuade the man from his decision. "We don't know that yet, and even if that were the case, then it's still the same thing. They'd still continue to target her if she's with me, but with you watching over her every move, she'd be safe. I don't even care if you take her with you to work everyday, or tie her by your waist, just watch over her."

"It's not like I'm a gun that he'd carry with him everywhere he goes." she grimaced.

Zeno pinched his forehead with his fingers, he knew there was no way to coax this man, he was as stubborn as his child. He rarely made serious decisions when it came down to Luna, or Zeno, but whenever he decided that he wanted to act on his right as father and guardian, his word was definite, there was no arguing about it. But how in the world was he even supposed to handle this girl on a daily basis.

"Nanny Maria," he croaked, gritting his teeth as he spoke. "Yes Master Zeno" the woman turns to him, and he looks from Edoardo who sat in front of him, then to that crazy girl on the bed, biting down on his lips, thinking in his head, I'm definitely going to regret this… "h_h_help Piccola pack up, I'll take her with me"