FSE

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One late Saturday morning, Kouya and Shun were inside the Kazenari dojo watching Ten and Juuichi have a practice match. Seeing the bear perform an inner reap and the wolf countering with a shoulder throw, Shun marvelled at the two fighters and commented about them to Kouya, him backing it up with a word of praise for the husky. Not long after, they saw the two fighters bowing to each other, signalling the end of their practice.

With the dojo silent, Kouya and Shun remained in their seats, waiting for the other two to finish changing in the back hall. Grinning, the husky leaned closer to the little wolf and whispered in his ear a plan that he had for today. As they were talking, Ten came out from the back hall entrance wearing a dark blue polo shirt and black pants while carrying his bag. Needless to say, Kouya and Shun were surprised that he would even consider wearing Western attire. Approaching the husky, Ten gave a puzzled look.

"You don't have band practice today?" Ten asked.

Kouya turned his head down. "Sorry, no."

"I see. Please wait for a while." Ten said, turning back.

Shun stood up and tried to stop him. "Wait, Ten-san!"

"What is it, Shun-sama?"

Feeling a bit hesitant, Shun asked the wolf if he was free for the rest of the day. Ten nodded and asked for the reason, to which the little wolf pointed to the husky. Letting out a sigh, Kouya said that he was planning to treat the two to Raimon today for lunch. The gray wolf thought about it and, with Shun's persuasion, agreed to go with them. With the matter settled, the three picked up their things and headed back to Minasato.

Now in front of Raimon, Kouya slid the entrance door open as the three of them entered. The staff gave them the usual shouts of "Welcome!" for all their customers, him returning the courtesy. The old manager looked and noticed Ten standing near Kouya and Shun, the man intrigued by the newcomer.

"Brought a new friend along?" The manager asked.

"Yeah," Kouya said.

"Well, go on then. Your friends are waiting at the back."

Kouya raised a brow. "Friends?"

"Yeah. They're having a party for the young lion you guys hang around with."

That moment, Kouya and Shun's eyes widened as they recalled what was supposed to happen today there: some days ago, Kyouji and the rest had a plan to throw a birthday party for little Soutarou, them agreeing to have it on the coming Saturday at Raimon as all of them were free that day. Shun panicked as he asked Kouya on what they should do.

"Calm down," Kouya said. "It's alright. Nothing much we can do. Is it alright with you though, Ten?"

"I don't mind," Ten said.

When they entered the back area, there they say Kyouji and Soutarou looking at the birthday cake set on their table, it having signs of being made by Shin as evidenced by the black cat's proud smile while looked at it. Then there was Torahiko, holding a clipboard as he was put in charge of the planning for the party. Seeing Kouya and the other two, he went and gave the husky a greeting.

"Well, took you long enough! What happened?" Torahiko asked.

"Shut it."

As the two had their usual childish bickering, Shun ran to the seats and gave the young lion a birthday greeting, followed by an apology for not being able to bring a gift. Going back, the two were discussing the status of the party when Ten went towards the husky's back.

"Ah, almost forgot," Kouya said. "This is-"

Right then and there, Ten stopped the husky as he went and bade Torahiko a "Good afternoon", the two seeming to know each other. When the tiger asked about Juuichi, he said that the bear will be there after a short while before heading to the table and sitting next to Shun. Surprised by all this, Kouya went close to Torahiko and talked in whispers.

"You know each other!?" Kouya asked.

"Yeah," Torahiko said with a grin. "We go to the same school, you know?"

"And the rest?"

"Them too."

"Even Tatsu-nii?"

"Was Tatsu-nii's junior."

"So, I'm the only one left out?"

"Pretty much," Torahiko said as he patted Kouya's shoulder. "Don't feel bad though. We barely see him around."

"Bah, whatever!" the husky said in exasperation, heading to the tables and sitting in front of Ten's place.

The rest of the gang arrived to the party one by one, each having a space of a few minutes. Much to Torahiko's disbelief, Kounosuke was was the first who arrived after the husky, the tanuki taking a picture of Ten upon seeing the wolf seated among them, only to stop when said wolf shot a glare at him.

Following Kounosuke was Tatsuki who carried a bottle of sake while greeting everyone. When Torahiko told him about Kouya inviting someone, he looked at the people inside and saw the gray wolf standing up and bowing at his direction.

"Midoriya-senpai, a pleasure to see you again," Ten said.

Tatsuki went near and gave the wolf a slap on the back. "Still as old-fashioned as back then, huh?"

After a bit of small talk, the dragon went and took his seat next to Kounosuke. A moment after he did, he called for the waiter to bring his usual glass filled with ice. The tanuki sighed at his impatience while Shin swirled his glass of iced tea, expecting this kind of thing from him.

When Juuichi arrived at the party and asked if it had started, Torahiko gave a brief summary of what happened so far: Tatsuki already had a glass, Kouya invited someone, and Kounosuke arrived earlier than him, that last one followed by the tiger's boisterous laugh. In annoyance, Juuichi tugged on Torahiko's tail and gave Ten a greeting upon seeing him there. Now that everyone had arrived, the tiger raised a toast for the birthday celebrant.

Preparing the food, Torahiko took charge of the yakiniku while Shin put the cake in front of the young lion. After everyone sang "Happy Birthday", Soutarou blew the candles out with only one wish in mind: the soccer team's victory in the next game. Juuichi, taking out a bottle of honey, was preparing his own yakiniku sauce when Ten looking back at him.

"Just make sure you make it to regulation weight next tournament," Ten said.

"Yes. Got it," Juuichi said, pouring the honey.

As everyone ate, each of them shared a bit of what was going on with their days. Torahiko told received a letter from Hiroyuki some days ago that included pictures of the city for Kounosuke. Tatsuki told about finishing some renovations for the Minasato Shrine while working further on his plane. Shin invited them to come to his house tomorrow, the cat wanting them to try out the blancmange he made with Amaki's help. Just them, Tatsuki stood up on front of the tables, his cheeks red from all the alcohol.

"All right! First off, another 'Happy birthday' to little Sou over there." the dragon said, pointing to Soutarou. "Now, Kodori-kun, come over here."

Ten got up and excused himself from Shun, going near Tatsuki. "Yes?"

Tatsuki put an arm around Ten's neck and pulled him closer. "Greet Sou for us, why don't you?"

"Ah, there's no need!" Soutarou said, flustered.

Complying to his upperclassman, Ten bowed and gave the young lion a formal birthday greeting followed by a wish for long life and prosperity. Raising his head, he was the rest of the people in the seats giving little Soutarou a round of applause followed by some cheering. Not long after, Tatsuki pulled the wolf closer to him again.

"Kodori-kun," Tatsuki said in a drunken daze.

"Yes?" the wolf said, starting to worry.

"You've gotten really cute lately, you know?"

The wolf raised his eyes in surprise. When everyone else heard what was happening, their attention became focused towards the two. Torahiko and Juuichi got themselves ready for the situation and called for the stuff they needed from the old manager.

Tatsuki started nuzzling on the wolf's cheeks. "So fluffy..." Unable to control his embarrassment, Ten grabbed the dragon's arm and did a shoulder throw, the scene being a bit reminiscent of Torahiko and Juuichi's interactions. Apologizing, Ten bowed in front of the dragon.

An hour later, the party ended and everyone parted ways as the sky turned a bright orange that late afternoon. Walking on Minasato's dirt roads, Kouya carried a sleeping Shun on his back while Ten walked along with them. Hearing the little wolf mumble, the husky made a remark.

"Looks like he had fun," Kouya said.

Ten stood in front of him. "I'll carry him. Our homes aren't far from each other."

Agreeing to it. Kouya handed Shun over to him. For the rest of the walk, the two kept silent as they enjoyed the view of the sunset followed by the cold breeze. Some minutes later, Kouya said something to the wolf.

"Hey, Ten..."

"What is it?" Ten asked.

"Did you enjoy the party?"

"Why?"

"Well, this is the first time I've seen you out in something like this. And also, that incident with Tatsu-nii..."

Ten stopped and looked at him. "I enjoyed it."

"... Eh?"

"I enjoyed the party," Ten said as he turned to the sky. "What happened with Midoriya-senpai was uncomfortable, but gatherings are something I've gotten used to, seeing as the Kodori clan can hold large ones."

Kouya smiled. "I see."

Later on in their walk, the two reached a fork in the road, the way to each other's house being in different sides. Saying their goodbyes before splitting, Kouya was about to head to his side when Ten called his attention once more.

"Hmm? What?" Kouya asked.

In that moment, the wolf gave a small yet warm smile to the husky. "Thank you for inviting me today."

Pleased with Ten's appearance, Kouya smiled back. "My pleasure."