Hail Friendship!

Better to Hunt

Amazing work by thejunestone on deviantART.

Take a moment to look around you, and appreciate the moment you're in. Things can be hard at times, but things do get better; and if things are going well for you please take this moment to appreciate it.

Beta: emplatinum

Triple update 'cause it's my birthday :D Special birthday wishes for all my fellow July babies and Cancer buddies.

Big beautiful fanart by niasweet71 on deviantART! Please check it out when you get the chance. :)

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"You're gonna intern at your dad's?" I asked, genuinely surprised by Shōto's choice.

Shōto gave a small shrug, sitting at my kitchen table and looking steadily at the glass of lemonade in front of him. Baba was humming something about first love while she mixed the batter for sugar cookies. She occasionally burst into full blown song, doing a little twirl around the kitchen and drawing a smile out of Shōto as he watched her dance without a care in the world.

Shōto took a sip from the lemonade after another heartbeat of silence. "I decided to learn what I can from him. I'm going to surpass him eventually, and I need—I need to learn how to better control my left side."

I rested my cheek in my hand, still staring at my friend with blatant worry. "I won't stop you if you think this is best, but I'm still worried about you."

"I know. You worry more than there are stars in the sky," Shōto told me.

"Doesn't she?" Baba chimed in, "Oh, darling, won't you save the last dance for me?"

Shōto and I smiled as Baba broke into a completely different song halfway through her humming. She started scooping out the sugar cookies from the batter and placing them on a sheet.

The door to our patio opened up and Papa and a couple other men stepped into the quaint kitchen. Papa gave a small cheerful wave to Shōto and me. "Sho-chan, are you here for breakfast?"

"Yes, sir," Shōto said. "And cookies."

"No one can resist Mimi-chan's cookies," Uncle Tashi said, slapping Papa over the shoulder. "Kiyo-chan, Sho-chan, would you two mind helping us?"

Shōto and I immediately stood up from our table, ready to do whatever was needed.

"That old hag has a hole in her roof, but we've got to head over to Sakura's place to fix up their walls and fencing," Tashi said.

"Stop calling your sister an old hag," Baba scolded Tashi, waving her cookie-dough covered spoon at him.

"I call her an old hag because she is an old hag," Uncle retorted.

"You're older than she is!"

"But I have the heart of a twenty-year-old," Uncle Tashi declared, pounding his chest.

"We'll take care of Auntie Hanako," I said quickly before Tashi and Baba could get into another singing contest.

"Thanks, Kiyo-chan. Use the wood in our shed, since Lord knows that hag doesn't have any on hand," Papa said. Baba promptly swatted him on the shoulder the moment he said hag, which made Papa laugh and head back out. Uncle Tashi and Naru followed him out shortly, both grinning cheekily at the huffing grandmother who looked more than ready to paddle them.

Shōto followed me out towards our back shed, accepting the extra straw hat we kept inside, and doing a quick spray over with the sunscreen. I slipped on my work boots, tucking in my jeans. I used my bubbles to grab an abundance of wood while Shōto carried one of our sets of tool boxes (we had collected almost twenty over the years since that seemed to be a go-to Christmas gift for Papa for some of our neighbors).