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While he didn’t wake up outside, it was a near thing. Kohane barged through the door the second she woke up to kick him out. Akito didn’t even complain and got up to help. That was the scariest part.
“I didn’t think you were serious,” he muttered through the door as he changed.
“You should know better,” Kohane sing-songed, dragging him out of the room before he could fully open the door.
He let them physically push him outside, shoving a basket in his hand, bidding him farewell and a command to not die before they can actually celebrate. Then they slammed the door in his face. He stared at the wood, thoroughly confused. This was. Not how he expected today to go. Not that he had much reference. He was mostly sure this wasn’t normal, though. When the door stayed firmly shut, he sighed and walked to the garden to eat. As expected, there was breakfast and lunch. The others had stayed up later than normal after sending him to bed, Akito stumbling into the room nearly two hours after him. He pulled out a few slices of bread, a knife, and a small jar of raspberry jam. The bread was warm, Akito probably sticking his hand in the basket to warm it. Though the sandwich may have suffered for it. He ate thoughtlessly, listening to the muffled laughter from inside. He contemplated his position as he repacked the basket.
What did they want him to do? When was he supposed to come back? What in the (excuse his language) heck was going on?
It was mostly quiet in the house, with only the occasional bang that did not give him much confidence. That was until An came outside, running towards the closest tree and staring up into its leaves. A small thrush flitted down, landing on her outstretched hand. He couldn’t hear her, but knew she was talking to it. After a moment, it flew off toward Vivid town. An watched it disappear, then returned to the door, pausing to address him.
“Can you tell me when she returns? Thanks-bye!”
He didn’t have time to respond before she ran inside. Sighing, he sunk back into the chair to wait. The sun wasn’t quite high enough to enjoy it, still barely peeking over the treetops. So he just closed his eyes and tried to relax. This was his first birthday where he had nothing to do; or in this case, seemed to be banned from doing anything at all. He might as well take advantage of the peace before the other three inevitably shattered it.
The sun’s rays were beginning to reach him when a rustle had him prying one eye open. The bird stared back from where she was perched on the front wall. He stood and made his way to the door, stopping to peer through the window, trying to see what they were doing. Kohane noticed him immediately, running to close the curtain, but not before playfully glaring and dramatically throwing it across the glass. He was left staring at his perplexed reflection. He straightened and knocked on the door instead.
“That was cheating! What’s up?” Kohane greeted him again, stretching out her limbs to cover the door frame.
He couldn’t help but laugh at her unsuccessful attempt to block his view with her small body. “An’s bird is back?”
Kohane smiled, pushing him backwards before turning to shout into the house. “An!”
He stumbled back at the force, huffing. Kohane was stronger than she let on. “I wasn’t going to look.”
“Prior evidence says otherwise.”
An appeared a second later, covered in flour. He hastily stepped out of the way, Kohane closing the door behind her. He rolled his eyes fondly and walked back to the garden bench. An untied a note from the bird, reading it over a few times before stiffening.
“Akito!” she shouted.
A second later, the door burst open, and Akito ran towards her, nearly sending them both to the ground when he crashed into her. She put her hands on his shoulders, whispering. They glanced at him every few seconds and he simply raised an eyebrow. After a minute, they nodded in sync, Akito sprinting off into the forest. He blinked after him. What? An ignored his gaze, sticking her tongue out and telling him to go away.
“Why are you all in such a hurry?” he lamented to the air.
Considering they had given him lunch, he couldn’t expect to be let in until after noon, so there was no point staying here. He grabbed his basket and walked in a random direction. A bird would probably find him when they wanted him.
It felt a little strange to spend his birthday alone. Not that he minded. He would rather walk around a forest in anticipation of whatever his friends were scheming than sit in his room dreading a banquet dinner. And this ‘alone’ would always be better than the ‘alone’ of being surrounded by people that never really cared about him. Maids and servants buzzing around him all day. Preparing him like a prize to be shown off.
His birthday had never been about him. It was in name, but it was really just another excuse for a social gathering. To find him a bride, negotiate trade deals, or strengthen ties within the kingdom and out. Every gift was fake. A new cloak, diamonds, a horse (as if he could ever use her), something expensive and meaningless to prove someone’s loyalty to the crown. Even the gifts from his parents didn’t feel heartfelt. A new violin or pen; nothing for him. Just something for Prince Aoyagi.
The only genuine gift was the cookies his mother made. She wasn’t supposed to cook—being the queen and all—but when he was a child, she would ignore that, bringing him a tray of chocolate chip cookies every year. That stopped when he turned 15, but it was one of the few good memories he had of the castle. Though, the best presents were always from Tsukasa and Saki. Something for him, things that they knew he would like.
Thinking too deeply would only hurt—both his heart—and his body when he inevitably ran into a tree. He now had nearly four hours to kill. Surrounded by deep forest. What did most people do for fun in forests? Bird watch? He’d feel too awkward doing that, knowing they could understand him. Hunt? His butter knife wouldn’t be much help. Forage? He’d rather not die right now. Climb a tree—No.
He sighed, looking around. The area looked slightly familiar, something mentioned in passing. He scanned the trees, finally spotting something man-made. That’s right. There was a swing here. Two pieces of rope hanging from a thick branch. A flat piece of wood between them. He went to step towards it, but…
He hesitated for some reason. What kind of adult would he be, sitting on a child’s swing? He shook his head, throwing off those thoughts. It didn’t matter. He’d never done it before. So at least once would be fine? And who would tell him off?
With this justification, he walked over to it, wiping the seat of long dead leaves and sitting down. It was a little too short, his legs bent a little too much to be comfortable, and he nearly tipped backwards when it moved, but with a firm leg, it stopped. Slowly, he walked himself backwards, still sitting. Once he could walk no more, he pulled his legs up, letting gravity do its job. The small rush of air on his face was more exhilarating than it had any right to be. It stopped after a few more swings and he nearly pouted, going again and trying to figure out how to make it last.
It took several minutes and quite a lot of trial and error, but finally, he did, using his body to go with the force instead of sitting ramrod straight in the seat. He looked up, watching the leaves blur in and out of focus and thinking of nothing at all. Nearly an hour passed, simply sitting there. Sometimes fast, sometimes slow, never stopping. Though careful never to go too high or look down. His hair was a mess by the time he got off, stumbling to his feet after the constant back-and-forth movement.
He picked up the basket and continued on. Their house was far enough into the forest that they never had to deal with hunters or other people, but it also meant there were no walking tracks apart from their own, so sometimes it became difficult to traverse through thicker bushland. Slowly, his surroundings became familiar until he found himself in the training clearing. Now what? He didn’t know the first thing about swordplay—and was nowhere near good enough to practice the martial arts Akito had been teaching him on his own. And he certainly wasn’t going to be practising his magic. But…
Meditation was one of the things that was supposed to help with his control, and the only thing he could do for his magic at the moment. And it’s not like he had any other plans. He placed the basket near the edge of the clearing and sat on the large flat rock that Kohane had unearthed next to it. The stone was cold, the sun not having hit it this early in the morning, and he shivered as it leeched into his skin.
He crossed his legs and closed his eyes.
The sun was overhead when he opened them, and he was getting hungry. He stretched, sore from staying in one position for so long, and walked around the clearing to shake the fatigue off. After a lap, he sat back down next to the basket, leaning against a tree. He ate slowly, just to have something to do, and listened to the sounds of the forest. He didn’t think he’d ever get over the awe of being able to just. Do that.
Leaving the basket, he decided to go to the river to wait. It sounded pretty the few times he’d gotten close enough, but the other three had never been silent enough for him to listen. It was a few minutes’ walk, following the gradually increasing sound of water until he could see it reflecting the sun in front of him, a few metres below.
The second he stepped closer to the bank, a bird dive-bombed him, circling his head until he stumbled back, cawing smugly at him from where it had perched on a low branch at eye level.
He crossed his arms. “Please tell me they did not actually enlist you all to stop me from going to the river alone.”
The bird didn’t respond. He’d feel stupid talking to it if he didn’t know the bird knew exactly what he was saying.
“I wasn’t going to get in!”
Caw!
“I can swim! I’d be fine.” They hadn’t let him try yet considering it had been too cold.
“This is exactly why we asked them to stop you.”
He jumped at the sudden voice, whirling to find Akito leaning against a tree.
“It’s just water?”
Akito snorted. “You would sink like a stone the second you took your feet off the bottom.”
He glanced at the river. “…Sink?”
“You are literally proving my point here.” Akito buried his head in his hands.
“…Wait, do people really sink?”
“Yes!” Akito burst into laughter, doubling over. “We’re heavier than water! You gotta actually put effort in to float.”
His eyes widened. “Oh—Stop laughing!” He walked over to Akito, nudging him with his shoulder. “I’ve never seen anyone actually swim! Only in pictures and word of mouth.”
“I know! Sorry! It’s fucking sad, but. You were so insistent that you could swim and yet—” He straightened, shaking his head. “Do not drown yourself. Wait till summer.”
“Wait till summer to drown myself?”
“No!” Akito punched his arm. “I can see you grinning there. I know you’re not as airheaded as you were before.”
He turned away. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“Who is teaching you this shit?”
“An.”
“Of course she is,” Akito groaned.
“Anyway, I assume you found me for a reason?”
Akito grabbed his hand. “Yes! Birthday, let’s go.” He tugged him along, back through the training clearing to pick up the basket. Not once letting go.
The house came into view after another 20 minutes, the curtains now open. Akito ran ahead once they reached the gate, telling him to wait a moment before coming in. He had no clue what to expect and was equal parts nervous and excited.
“Happy birthday!” they cheered as he opened the door. Kohane and Akito smiled sweetly at him, and his eyes narrowed. Where was—
Something moved to his right, and he caught a blue and white blur before something suspiciously squishy slammed into his face. His eyes closed instinctively, wholly unprepared for whatever had just happened. The other three howled with laughter as whatever it was slid down, landing with a resounding slap. He wiped his eyes and blinked at his hand. Why.
“I expected a lot of things.” He stared, wide-eyed, at the mess left on the floor. “Being assaulted by…cake…was not one of them.”
“I think it’s a good look on you,” Akito wheezed.
An, still holding the plate, handed him a tissue, giggling. “That was so worth it! Your face was so—” she mimed—assumedly—his face before she had attacked him. He couldn’t really tell through the frosting.
“Please tell me this isn’t normal.” He licked the frosting. Vanilla.
“It’s not.” Kohane began picking up the cake, only to smear it down his cheek again. “It’s just something fun some people do.”
“Thanks,” he said dryly, kicking Akito away before he could also reach for more cake.
“Ok, ok.” An waved them away. “Go get changed. I promise we have a real one.”
“You made two cakes? Solely to throw one at me?”
“Yeah.” Akito shrugged. “We’re not gonna eat the one on the floor, are we?”
“I have zero frame of reference for what happens at a birthday party. You could tell me you all dance naked around a campfire and I’d probably believe you.”
“You mean no one told you about the mandatory naked campfire dance?” Kohane gasped.
He slowly turned a deadpan look on her.
She smothered a laugh. “This is less intimidating with cake running down your face.”
He sighed, shaking his head and heading for the bathroom. Quickly, he wiped away all the cake, throwing the towel and his ruined shirt into the wash basket and ducking across the hall to their room to get changed. He emerged with damp hair and new clothes, the other three waiting in the kitchen. They gestured him over, and he sat in his seat, feeling out of place with all of them standing. Akito moved behind him and covered his eyes.
Tilting his head, he tried to look up at him. “You’re going to have to tell me what’s normal or not now that you have betrayed my trust.”
“I promise this part is. We just wanted to make a fun first impression earlier.”
“I hope for both our sakes that’s true.”
“We would never lie to you!” Kohane agreed.
He hummed suspiciously.
An smacked the counter. “Are you guys done? Good.”
There was silence before they began to sing. Akito uncovered his eyes as An placed a large, dark blue cake in front of him. 18 candles burned above the words:
“Happy birthday, Touya,” they finished.
He looked between them and the cake, smiling softly. “Thank you.”
“Make a wish!” An cheered.
He nodded; he at least knew that one thanks to the Tenmas. Leaning forward he closed his eyes and blew out the candles.
To stay like this forever.
An leant forward. “And? What was it?”
“Even I know I can’t tell you or it won’t come true.”
“Damn.”
“Are you trying to sabotage his wish, you freak?” Akito shook his head.
“No! That’s not what I meant!”
“So cruel,” Kohane lamented.
“May I remind you who has the knife in this relationship?” An punctuated her point by waving said knife.
They swallowed, saluting.
Touya pushed the cake towards her to give her something better to use her knife on.
She shook her head, flipping it so he could take the handle. “You cut the first slice.”
He took it. “Are you sure?”
“You’re a big boy now. You can handle it. Probably.”
“I am filled with confidence,” Akito deadpanned.
Taking the cake back, he slowly cut into it, being careful to cut it as straight as possible. The second cut was harder, with no clue how large to cut the slice. An directed his hands to slice properly, taking the knife from him so she could slide the cake onto his plate. She then swiftly cut three more slices.
“Ah.” He lit up at the first bite. “It’s not sweet.”
“Yeah?” An grinned. “Is it good?”
“Of course it is. You made it, after all. Much better than any other cake. I swear my birthday cakes have always been half sugar. Especially with the amount of fondant and cream on them. Cloyingly sweet.”
An slammed her face into the table and took a deep breath before sitting back up. “They’re designed to look good and not much else.” Her voice was strained and cheeks red.
Akito kicked her under the table, he and Kohane snickering.
He cocked his head in confusion, only receiving a “Someone’s happy you like it.” From Kohane as an explanation.
They ate, catching him up on their mad dash to prepare for the day.
“Did you really need to kick me out of the house?” he asked.
Akito shook his head, mouth too full of cake.
“Then? Why?”
He swallowed. “It was funny.”
“There is an actual reason,” Kohane placated. “We figured you’d rather be outside than locked in your room all day. Because those were your two choices.”
“Thank you, Kohane. The only nice person in this house.”
“I will take away your cake.” An reached for his plate jokingly.
“See, if you were nice. You wouldn’t do that,” Kohane pointed out.
“I wouldn’t need to take it away if he called me not nice in the first place!”
“Get paradoxed, idiot,” Akito snorted.
An gaped until Akito shoved the rest of her cake into her mouth, leaving her choking.
They laughed as she tried to swallow it all instead of spitting it out. She was successful.
“Anyway…” she choked out, taking a sip of water. “Presents?”
“Oh.” He didn’t know why he hadn’t expected that. ‘You didn’t need to—”
“Touya.” Akito threatened him with his fork. “Shut up.”
He followed them over to the living room, stopping a few steps away as An retrieved something from the coffee table, holding it behind her.
They shared a look before An spoke.
“We didn’t really have time to get you individual presents.” She narrowed her eyes. “Since someone forgot to mention his birthday until the last minute. But!” She stepped closer. “This is from all of us. Expect more gifts later.”
An handed him a piece of paper.
“It’s not…completely legal or anything.” Akito rubbed his neck. “But it’s the closest thing we could get.”
He looked down, eyes widening. He stared at the words written as if they would change any second. They didn’t.
“This—” his voice cut out, mouth going dry.
A change of name certificate.
“We’ve had this for a while, honestly.” Kohane moved to his right as Akito did the same on the other side, boxing him in. “Just never had the chance to give it to you.”
“Happy birthday, Tenma Touya,” they chorused, leaning in and softly kissing his cheeks and forehead.
His vision blurred as he stood there. “Oh.”
“Woah!” An said. “Sorry, was that too much? You okay?”
“What?” Why couldn’t he see?
“You’re crying, Touya.” Kohane gently took the paper from him as he raised a hand to his face, fingers coming away wet.
“Oh. Aha,” he laughed.
His breath hitched, and then he was sobbing. He crumpled to the floor, burying his head in his arms. The other three followed, wavering between trying to give him space and the need to comfort him. They gave in, three pairs of arms wrapping around him as he fought to breathe through the tears.
It was too much. It was too nice. What had he done to deserve this? Deserve them?
“Sorry! We’re sorry! We can take it back if you don’t like it!” Kohane said fretfully.
“D-don’t you dare,” he stuttered. “I’ve never been ha-happier.” He was almost scared at how happy it made him, unable to handle the feeling welling in his chest. “I don’t even know why I’m crying.”
They let out a sigh of relief, hugging him tighter. “Thank the gods,” An groaned. “Don’t worry, crying is fine.”
“Thank you,” he hiccupped, “thank you thank you thank you.”
“It’s alright, Touya.” Akito nudged him to sit up.
He wiped his face once more, sitting back and ignoring the tears still running down his face. “I can’t—you guys are too—”
An shook him, dragging them all to their feet. “Nuh-uh! This is like the bottom of the barrel of stuff you deserve.”
They moved to the couch, squishing him. Kohane handed back the paper, and he held it reverently. “How did you get this?”
“We got the idea nearly right after you came here,” Akito began. “You insisted on never using your last name, so we figured this was probably something you wanted.”
An nodded. “We found a shrine that could keep a secret and asked for the form. Then we fought over which of our names you would get.”
“I wanted it to be mine because we met first and I should get partner privileges.” Akito glared half-heartedly at An. “But An wanted Shiraishi since Ken is sort of our group dad, anyway.”
“After we met Tsukasa, we asked if he’d be okay if we used Tenma. Of course, he said yes,” Kohane said. “It’s legal in the sense that it’s official. But obviously if you took it to the king, he’d deny it. But apart from that and maybe the Tenma parents? It’s recognised.”
“Well,” An interrupted, “nearly. It’s not legal until you sign it, and we take it back to the shrine.”
“You’re all…” His vision blurred again and he took a shuddering breath. “I still felt like at any moment this would shatter. That I’d be dragged back, or that this was some insane dream,” he sniffed. “I don’t know why this made me realise it’s not.”
“We’re not going anywhere.” Kohane leaned in
“And you’re never going back,” Akito finished.
An grinned. “You’re ours now. You’re stuck with us, and we’ll always be here for you.”
He shook his head. “I can’t ask that of you.” Now was enough. He could want, but there was no way this could last forever.
“I thought the whole point of this was you learning to let yourself be more selfish,” Akito said.
“But haven’t I already—” he cut himself off. They were determined to prove him wrong. “No, alright, fine. Then I want forever.”
“You already have that, silly.” Kohane poked him.
He buried his head in his knees. “Stop that!”
“It’s just the truth!”
“We also have this.” Akito nudged him with a letter.
“I know paper is a luxury for the common folk, but is that really all I’m getting?” he joked, accepting it.
“It’s not from us,” An chided. “I sent a message to dad, and you know what he said? ‘Oh yeah, there’s a letter from the Tenma’s’ like, thanks dad, couldn’t have told us earlier or anything.”
“Is that why you made Akito sprint to town like his life depended on it?”
“It did.”
Leaving Akito trying to choke An, he opened the letter.
Happy Birthday, little brother!
You made it! We’re all adults and I think Tsukasa is crying on the other side of the table, so if there’s any water on this letter, blame him!
We should organise a time to meet so we can celebrate properly! And you have to show us your magic! Please! I can’t believe we all have magic. It’s so cool! Very sibling of us. I love you, Touya. I’m so glad you’re happy. It makes me happy to know you’re in a better place now. Not to sound like you’re dead, oh gods. You know what I mean!
I hope all your dreams come true. You deserve it and so much more. But always remember Tsukasa and I are here for you! We’re family, and that will never change.
Hope your day was amazing!
Love, Saki.
Saki had always lorded those 16 days over him. He missed her. Her words hit harder after the gift, and he nearly started crying again. He flipped the letter over to find Tsukasa’s cursive. As expected, the ink had bled where Tsukasa had cried.
Happy birthday, my dear Touya!
Are you well? You gave us quite the scare earlier. I hope you are doing better!
While I never expected those words I said to you earlier would lead to this, I can’t say I regret it. If I was able to help you in any way, that’s all I need. We miss you a lot, but if the price for not seeing you as often is your freedom? I will pay it thrice over.
Sorry for bringing it up on a joyous day, however, I would recommend you send a letter to your father, clearly stating your intentions. If you don’t, I doubt he will stop trying to find you.
Anyway! I know Saki has probably mentioned it, and I agree that we should meet! Please give us any time and location, we shall cancel anything if need be! Never forget that you have us on your side, no matter what. I’m glad you have found your family. Just promise not to forget us!
We have told mother and father you’re alive and in contact with us; I hope that was okay. They send their love. I also mentioned the small matter of your ‘gift.’ I hope you’ve gotten it by now or this might sound weird! Regardless, they agree and have always considered you one of us, so don’t fret!
Love, your older brother,
Tsukasa.
They were certainly trying to kill him. He folded the letter, returning it to the envelope and placing it on the coffee table, hands shaking.
“Good?” Kohane asked.
He nodded, not trusting himself to speak just yet.
“We were planning on going to the shrine next; get your name changed and all. We also usually pray on birthdays, so there’s that,” An said.
Akito nodded. “Or we could just hang out and do it tomorrow. Your call.”
He didn’t need to think about that. “The shrine.”
“Someone’s eager.”
“Would you blame me?”
“Hell no.”
An looped an arm through his, dragging him to his feet and towards the door. He watched Kohane and Akito do the same, Kohane bowing theatrically and Akito sighing, yet grabbing her arm all the same. Kohane grabbed his other arm, catching up as An opened the door and pulled them all outside.
They probably looked a little funny, traipsing through the forest like little kids on a trip, but he wouldn’t change it for the world.