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I called Torahiko last night when I got home and asked how he was doing after I left. He still had that lively energy in his voice when he spoke, but I noticed a bit of disappointment from the way he said his words. Well I can't blame him after leaving so abruptly when it was the third time he had seen me since my return. Still, I wanted to make it up to him and told him that I would be there the following morning. He could barely contain his excitement when I said that and he got scolded by his mom for being so loud at so late a night.

And this morning, like I promised, I was on my way to Tora's house. He said on the phone that he had a surprise waiting, so I headed there with great anticipation. To cool myself from the heat, I made a quick stop to the candy store and bought some vanilla ice cream. Well, it wasn't too hot today since the air was a bit more humid, but hot nonetheless. Around the time I passed by the shops, I bumped into a running Kounosuke. Judging by the sweaty white undershirt, I would say he was out here for quite a while.

"That ice cream... looks good..." he said, panting. "Can I.. have a bite?"

I look at my half-eaten ice cream. "Here, it's yours."

"Ah, thanks-"

"But that counts as part of our deal."

The tanuki groaned. "Tightwad. Anyway, perfect timing. I was about to head to your place."

"What for?"

The tanuki finished the ice cream. "Can we meet in front of the old elementary school around 7 or 8 in the evening? I wanna have a little test of courage."

"Test of... courage?"

"What better way to cool ourselves than with bone-chilling experiences?" He raised his camera. "Plus I could get some good photos for the album."

Now how would one get a nostalgic photo from creepy imagery was beyond me, but it was a while since I went into the old school. I agreed to go on the condition that we invite other people along with us, not that I was scared but it was more out of concern for our safety. Then he grabbed my hand and with full force, shook it up and down. Telling me to not forget about it, he ran off to the opposite direction of where he came from. I had a thought that it might be a scheme of his, but dropped it since I still needed to get to Tora's for my surprise.

Arriving at the inn, I went to the back since Tora told me to meet him at the balcony. And there he was sitting on one end of the hallway, looking at their small koi pond. Even though they were running an inn, they still had a separate part of the place that would be considered their home. And like any Japanese home it had a balcony, even though it was small. Our eyes met and the tiger stood up, beckoning me to come inside the house as he did so. Taking my shoes off the stepping stone, I went in, grabbed a pillow, and sat by the dining table.

"So what's the surprise?" I asked.

Tora poured me a cup of tea. "Tatsu-nii's coming too, so wait a bit."

"Tatsu-nii? What's going on?"

The tiger winked and ruffled my hair. "Don't be in a rush! I'll tell you later."

And like the old proverb, the big dragon arrived as soon as we spoke about him. That was when Tora told us what was the plan. He called us here to test a dish he wanted to make for a long while. Remembering what he said last night, it was a good thing he called me. I had nothing to fear since I already tasted something the tiger made, although experiments did have a tendency to go awry.

"But I ran out of ingredients," Tora said. "So today, we have gathered here to help me buy some."

"What brought this up?" Tatsu-nii asked, sitting down.

"If you watched Pururun Stay yesterday, they had a special on someone doing a homestay out of the country. The destination was a pasta maker's house. Seeing all that good pasta just gave me an itch make it myself."

Tatsu-nii yawned as he listened, picking his nose.

Torahiko continued. "So Tatsu-nii will buy the ingredients and Hiroyuki will help. I'll stay since I need to set up."

"You know, it would be pointless if you won't be shopping with us," the dragon said, standing up. "I'm getting the truck ready."

Tora handed a piece of paper to me, his hand shaking slightly. "H-Here's the list. I'm counting on you for this."

"Why don't you want to come?" I asked. "I thought you wanted some bonding time?"

He came close and whispered. "Are you kidding? With how Tatsu-nii drives? I have a better chance of surviving Mount Fuji's eruption than riding along with him."

I pulled his ear. "You wanted to do this, right? You're joining. No excuses."

And before Tora could say anything, Tatsu-nii came back and told us to get in the truck. The dragon had to pick him up and take him there, the tiger still protesting. For someone who believed in "letting nature take its course", he was trying real hard to not let it happen. But since he was already there, he resigned himself and sat on the passenger's seat as Tatsu-nii got on the driver's.

When it was my turn to get in, I saw that they were already cramped up in there. Now while it was a fantasy of mine to be sandwiched in between two buff guys, this was not the scenario I had in mind. But I had no choice, and had to squeeze myself in. It took a while and me getting into inappropriate positions, but all three of us managed to fit in the truck. With that, we were off.

The store we headed to was in Kazenari's outskirts. Sure we arrived there quick, but not without screaming for our lives as Tatsu-nii was driving the truck as if we he was racing against someone. Shigure-jiisan must have pulled some huge-ass bureaucratic miracle for Tatsu-nii to get his driver's license, probably with Tappei-san's involvement. But for now I'll be satisfied with the fact that we made it to the store alive.

The place was World 21, an imports shop that was famous in the two areas. If anyone in the village wanted something foreign, this was where they would usually head. From end to end they were stocked with foreign toys, candies and chocolates, grocery items, cosmetics and hygiene items, and even some small furniture. Last time I went here was back in second grade, when Dad was itching to buy some foreign perfume. And like the kid I was back then, I went for the candies.

"Hey, look at this!" Tatsu-nii said, holding a mini-car. "They even make toys of the expensive models."

Tora went to another shelf. "They even have portable stoves!"

"Leave me alone here and I won't be bored all day," I said. "But it seemed like the store got bigger though."

"They just finished renovating recently," Tora said. "When I heard they had specialty ingredients here, I just had to go."

And like kids let loose into the playground, we went around the place and looked at their wares. Passing by the frozen meat section, I noticed some packed birds that I haven't seen before. Tora explained about it being called squab and how it was used in French cuisine. I had to admit, it was impressive of him to know that much. He turned into a blushing mess when I said and which I found rather cute. Going through each aisle, we grabbed what Tora needed for the dish along with some things we fancied that fit within our budget. Now came the second ordeal: enduring Tatsu-nii's murderous driving on the way back.

We made it back, with all our limbs still intact thankfully. At least Tatsu-nii wasn't driving while drunk or we'd probably end up on tomorrow's town bulletin. Bringing the stuff inside, we placed it on the kitchen counters and Tora got straight to cooking. With all my energy spent on going around and worrying, I couldn't wait for lunch. While waiting, Tatsu-nii entertained himself by watching TV with a can of beer. Hopefully that one can wasn't strong enough to give him a hit. On the other hand, I watched Tora cook as there was something I wanted to discuss.

"So, Kounosuke invited me to a test of courage tonight," I said. "Wanna join me?"

Torahiko dropped the wooden spoon he was holding, turning to my direction. "Test of... courage? W-W-Where?"

"The old elementary school. He said to meet around 7 or 8 in the evening."

"I'll pass!" Tora said with a quick turn, tending to the almost burned onions he was sauteing. "That tanuki's up to something. I know it!"

I frowned. "Just think of it as another opportunity to catch up. Besides, our old things might still be in there."

"Nope, nope, and nope."

Trying my best, I imitated Shun-kun's trademark "puppy-wolf-eyes" look. "Come on Tora, please?"

Tora burst into laughter. "It just doesn't suit you, Hiroyuki! Fine then, I'm in. But you're tagging along with me, got that?"

"Got it!"

Thirty minutes later, the food was done cooking. I offered to help Tora as he was preparing the dishes, but he told me to go back and set the table instead. I did that was asked and got the utensils and napkins, cleaned the table and told Tatsu-nii to get ready. The grin on Tatsu-nii's face suggested that he was as excited as I was to taste it.

Moments later he arrived, laying the plates of food in front of me and Tatsu-nii before going back to the kitchen for his. It was spaghetti with a tomato-based sauce and weiner bits, topped with grated Parmesan and bits of oregano. The scent of the tomato sauce was the first thing I could smell, but there was also a slight sweetness to it, probably because of the butter he used. Everything was centered and there was no stray noodle or drop of sauce on the edges. He got my point for presentation, that's for sure.

"Looks good," Tatsu-nii said.

"Hurry up before it gets cold!" Tora said,grabbing a fork.

With me taking the lead, all three of us said "Thanks for the meal!" in unison before taking our first taste.

"It's great!" Tatsu-nii commented, his mouth full.

"You always say that!" Tora replied. "But I have to admit, this might be my greatest work yet."

Wiping my mouth, I said my comment. "The noodles were just right. Sauce wasn't too sour thanks to the butter and sugar. The weiners seemed an odd thing to add though. Why?"

The tiger grinned. "As much as I wanted to stay true to Italian style, I wanted to make something that kids can like too. You know how kids like things a little sweeter right?"

"Ah. But then, you'd need to make the noodles softer then if that's what you want."

"I knew I missed something!" Tora said. "But aside that is it good?"

I gave him a thumbs-up while going for another forkful. Tatsu-nii did the same. Those reactions should suffice to express our appreciation.

"Well there's more where that came from! Want another?"

"Can I have it with beer this time?" Tatsu-nii asked.

"One is enough," I said. "And you're still gonna drive."

"Haha! Come on, eat more!" Tora said, raising a fist. "It's a triumph in pasta-making!"

The dragon groaned and made a tantrum. "But I want beer..."

If this would be the typical interactions when Torahiko gets his own restaurant, then I wouldn't mind stopping there every day. Well, aside from the good food of course. But most of all, imagine: a big buff tiger in a chef's uniform ready to make whatsoever you request - he would be a hit to so many single high school girls in this village!

Come to think of it, has there been anyone in Torahiko's class who had a crush on him? I mean, he wasn't exactly the cool type like Kouya or Kyouji-san, but he had enough charm to catch anyone's eye in my opinion. Better question: has Tora ever had a crush on anyone? I couldn't recall any time he ever told me of anyone he liked that way back before I left, but there was this time when I...

Ah, but that's something for another day!