Okay, first thing I want to say is go easy on me! I'm new here and I'm trying to write good stories, so please, please, go easy on me! Reviews are appreciated :) Now on to the story!

A Happy Birthday

Part 1: What day is it?

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"Happy Birthday, Toshiki!" his parents said, each holding a present.

"Thanks Mom, Dad," said a boy with brown hair and striking green eyes.

"This one's from me," his dad said, presenting a present wrapped in blue wrapping. Toshiki took it from his dad with a smile and ripped open his present. He looked at it with wonder. It was a black deck holder, and it had cards inside!

"Well, go on," his mom beckoned him with her warm smile. "Take it out."

Toshiki took out the cards and looked at them. They're Vanguard cards! he thought with excitement. He already had his own, they were Royal Paladins. But this one was different. The top card was not a knight, but a dragon.

"Kagero?" Toshiki looked at the clan's name.

"Do you like it?" his dad asked. "I know it's not the clan you use, but I remembered how much you loved dragons."

"Thanks Daddy. I love them," Toshiki said with a smile as he held the deck closer.

"Your welcome," his dad said, relieved that his son liked it.

"Toshiki, could you close your eyes for a moment?" his mom asked. Toshiki, slightly confused, closed his eyes. He felt his mom place something around his neck.

Toshiki opened his eyes and looked at his chest. There was a red diamond hanging from a gold string around his neck. Toshiki blinked. "Is this real!?"

His mother smiled. "I wanted to give you that when you would turn thirteen, but I felt something special about today. Yes sweetie, it's real."

Toshiki had never been happier. He ran to his mom and gave her a hug. "Thanks so much, Mom! I'll keep it forever!" Kai said, hugging his mom tighter. His mom hugged him back.

"Hey, how come the dad doesn't get a hug?" his dad said folding his arms in false anger.

Toshiki jumped on his dad, wrapping his hands around his neck. "I was taught that women must always come first!" Toshiki joked, making all of them laugh.

"Oh, I can't believe you're already ten!" his mom exclaimed, joining the hug. She was close to tears.

"Mooom!" Toshiki whined, clearly embarrassed. But he hugged her back.

"Now," his dad said after the hug was over, "how about you open your other presents?"

"There's more?!" Toshiki could hardly believing it.

"Why, of course! You know how your mom is when she is shopping," his dad said with a smile.

"There were on sale!" his mom protested, making him laugh. "You won't be joking when you see what we got for you," she said, reaching for another present. Toshiki smiled, I have the best parents in the whole world, he thought.

"Kai."

"A skateboard?!"

"Kai?"

"Now, you better wear your helmet or your mom may take it away!"

"Hey, Kai?"

"Men!"

"Hehe, what's wrong with men, Mom?"

"Wake up, Kai!"

"Everything!" They all laughed.

"KAI! WAKE UP!"

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"KAI! WAKE UP!" Kai jumped awake. He turned to the person who screamed his name. It was Miwa.

"KAI! WHAT IS THE MATTER WITH YOU?! Miwa yelled, his hands grasping Kai's shoulders. Kai didn't know what was going on. He was sitting on his bench in the park. W-was that a dream? thought Kai, trying to comprehend what happened.

"ANSWER ME!" Miwa roughly shook Kai's shoulders.

"I-I... I'm not... I don't... " Kai trailed off stuttering. He was confused and startled by Miwa's screaming. Miwa noticed this and calmed down. He let go of Kai's shoulders and sat beside him.

"Sorry about that," Miwa said with an apologetic smile, "but you scared me. You weren't waking up." Kai could only nod. I must have really startled him, Miwa thought grimly.

"So, what happened?" Miwa asked in a lighter tone.

"N-nothing!" Kai answered a little too quickly and sounded scared even to himself. He just didn't want to talk about his parents. Kai unconsciously took off his necklace and played with the diamond. It was a dream, Kai thought, barely aware that Miwa was watching him.

"Something is obviously wrong," Miwa insisted. He knew there was. Kai's hands were shaking and, was it just Miwa's imagination, or did his eyes look watery? Miwa had never seen Kai cry, so he dismissed the thought.

"Why are you here, Miwa?" Kai quickly changed the subject.

"Kai, you didn't-"

"I'm fine, Miwa. It's nothing," Kai interrupted him. He appreciated Miwa's concern but he wasn't ready to talk just yet. Kai needed time to cool down.

Miwa frowned worriedly, but he eventually sighed. "Alright, but if you ever want to talk, I'm here." Kai nodded, grateful that Miwa dropped it.

"So, why are you here?" Kai repeated his question.

"Oh, I was going to ask if you wanted to go to CardCapital?" Miwa asked, sporting his usual, carefree smile.

Kai thought for a moment. "Sure, I'll come."

"Alright then! Come on!" Miwa said, happy that Kai agreed. He grabbed Kai's arm, startling him, and practically dragged him to CardCapital.

{At CardCapital}

"Misaki-san? Have you seen Miwa-kun?" Aichi asked Misaki, stopping in the middle of their battle. Miwa said he'd hang out with them, but he wasn't there.

"No, I haven't seen him," Misaki answered, also curious where he was.

"Maybe he forgot?" Izaki suggested. Before they could say anything else, the door opened.

"Hey, guys!" Miwa greeted them. After dragging Kai in the store, he finally let go of his arm. Kai gave Miwa an annoyed look. He preferred to walk slowly, rather than being shoved and dragged for about ten minutes! Miwa patted Kai on the back with a grin, completely ignoring his best friend's annoyance.

"Miwa-kun, Kai-kun, it's good to see you," Aichi said.

"Where have you been, Miwa-senpai?" Kamui asked.

"Well, you could probably guess how hard it was to get Kai to come here," Miwa joked as he and Kai came up to the others and sat by the table.

"I didn't even think it was possible," Kamui laughed. Kai rolled his eyes.

"Oi, guys! Let's play Truth or Dare!" Morikawa announced.

"Eh! Morikawa-kun?" Aichi asked confused.

"Why not?" Izaki asked.

"I'm in," Miwa said. "What about you, Kai?"

Everyone turned to Kai, waiting for his answer. Kai sighed, "Fine."

Morikawa asked Aichi if he thinks Grade 3s are the best. Aichi stuttered, saying they were powerful. Kamui dared Izaki to convince Morikawa that Grade 3s aren't the best. Now, it was Misaki's turn. "Miwa? Truth or Dare?"

"Truth."

"How did you and Kai become friends?" Misaki asked. That got Kai's attention. He inwardly groaned, This is going to be embarrassing.

"Hey, that's a good one!" Morikawa said, wondering how on earth Miwa is friends with Kai.

"Well, it's a kind of a long story," Miwa said.

"We've got the time," said Kamui. "Besides, you can't back out."

"Alright," Miwa said. "We met at school, at around the age of eight. Now, let's just say that our school wasn't the best. I used to get bullied all the time, until Kai came."

{Flashback in Miwa's POV}

"Listen up, pipsqueak! Give us your money, and we'll leave you alone!"

I was being ganged up on by a bunch of bullies from the fourth grade class. They wanted me to give them money, but...

"I-I don't have any money!" I said, extremely scared.

"Well, then you better get some money, and you better have it by lunch!" a boy called Naki said. He was around the same age as me, though his height and attitude made him seem like a teenager. Whenever he beats someone up, he always left a carving of a skull where he did it. When people saw this, they never stayed in a place that had a marking of a skull. Naki not only led every bully gang in the school, but he also was popular with the girls.

Finally, they all left, after they beat me up. I was on the ground, hurt and my cheek stung. I curled up into a ball and begun to cry. I stayed like that, until someone came up to me and asked gently...

"Hey, are you alright?" I looked up to see a boy about my age. He was referring to my swelling cheek. I quickly stood up and rubbed my tears away, embarrassed.

"I'm fine," I mumbled sadly.

The boy smiled, as he reached into his backpack. "Hang on. I've got something that may help." I just stood there, wondering why someone I don't even know was helping me. The boy pulled out a water bottle and a cloth. He poured the water on the cloth. After he squeezed out the water, he handed me the wet cloth.

"Here," the boy said with a smile. "This should slow down the swelling." I hesitantly took it and held it to my cheek.

"Thank you," I said, still slightly confused. I was about to ask him what his name was, when the school bell rang. I'm going to be late! I thought.

"I have to get to class," I told him as I ran to my classroom, not even waiting for a response. When I got there, the teacher and all my other classmates were already there. My teacher began questioning me why I was late. I wasn't sure what to say.

"Um, I-"

"Sorry I'm late!" A voice called from behind me, interrupting me, though I was grateful. I was shocked to find the boy from before, with a sheepish smile. He then noticed me too.

"Oh, hey again!" the boy's face lit up. "Are you in my class? That's great!"

"Are you the new student?" the teacher asked with a hint of distaste. When the boy nodded, the teacher said stoically, "Please introduce yourself."

The boy turned toward the class and spoke, "It's nice to meet you all. My name is Toshiki Kai." No one said anything. The teacher then told Kai to take a seat behind mine. As we took our seats, Kai asked me, "Hey, why is everyone so gloomy and serious?" Our class started, so I couldn't answer him. Not that I knew what to say. I couldn't just go and say- "Our teachers are mean, and boring. There rules are strict and unfair. And they don't care if someone gets bullied. Oh, did I mention they don't allow us to do ANYTHING except have lunch and work?"-because if I did, I'd get in trouble.

Throughout the day, everyone watched Kai, wondering when he'd stop smiling and realize that there was nothing to be happy about. So far, Kai hadn't changed.

Our school had only one cafeteria, but it was huge. And had plenty of room for all the kids in the school. I usually always chose an unoccupied table in a corner. As I sat down and placed my lunch box on the table, I was hit with a shocking realization that I had forgotten all about my encounter with the bullies.

"I don't have any money!" I exclaimed in horror. I began to look around, hoping to spot the bullies before they spotted me. Unfortunately, I saw them coming this way! I got up from my seat, and began to run. I heard the bullies' yells and looked behind me to see them following! I dodged past tables and students, trying to reach the exit. I was just about to escape when someone tackled me to the ground. We both rolled away from the door. I stood up and discovered that the person who tackled me was Naki! I felt a shiver run down my spine. I heard the rest of the bullies behind me. I knew I was in for it now.

Naki stood up and dusted himself off. He strode towards me. Naki stopped a few inches away from me. I gulped, frozen to the spot. It didn't help that the entire cafeteria silenced themselves and turned their attention towards us.

"Don't even think about doing that again," Naki said with a dangerous smirk. "Now, I believe you have something to give me."

"I-I f-forgot!" I shook as I spoke. Naki stopped smirking and looked ready to explode. He lifted me up by my shirt and was about to punch me. I shut my eyes, waiting for it.

SPLAT!

My eyes shot open, only to find Naki hadn't done anything. He wasn't even looking at me. I followed his eyes and saw a boy sitting by a table. His face was covered with white cream and there were pieces of pie on his head.

"Who did that?!" he yelled in aggravation as he wiped the cream from his face. No one answered. The cafeteria was silent. Then it came again.

SPLAT!

This time it was a girl. She was sitting with a bunch of other girls. Her hair was covered with spaghetti and her clothes were stained with red sauce. The girl turned to a girl on her left and screamed, "SHINA! Why did you do that?!" Shina looked offended.

"I didn't do it, Akiye!" she insisted. Akiye didn't listen. She grabbed her bowl of ramen and threw it at Shina. Shina managed to duck, but the ramen hit a girl behind her. The girl yelped in surprise. Noodles were all over her pink dress.

"I'm sorry, Hachi!"

"This was a brand new dress!" Hachi grabbed her own plate and threw it at Akiye. Her aim was off though, and it hit another girl. The girl shrieked. One after another, girls began to throw food at each other, screaming.

"I used my whole allowance on that dress!"

"You ruined my hair, Chise!"

"This is all your fault, Shina!"

"I told you I didn't do it, Akiye!"

"That hurt, Eriko!"

"Eww! What is this?!"

"Ow! Watch it!"

We all watched, not knowing what to do. Naki even let go of me, but I was too preoccupied to notice. Then, there was a shriek from another table. Everyone saw a girl dripping with red liquid, which I assumed was juice. Even the girls stopped fighting. What is going on? I asked myself. That's when I spotted Kai sneaking around the tables unnoticed. He couldn't be the one who-

"I know one of you boys did this!" the girl covered in juice yelled, pulling me away from my thoughts. All the other girls glared at the boys. The boys protested, but it only angered the girl.

"If you won't fess up, I'll just throw food at all of you!" she grabbed her plate and threw it at one of the boys.

"You're asking for it!" the boy yelled as he threw a food back at her. Two other girls from her table started throwing food back at the boy. The boy's friends jumped in and started throwing their food at the girls. Others started to get interested. Even some of the bullies left me and joined in.

Suddenly, Kai jumped on one of the tables, getting everyone's attention. He had a plate of food in each hand. His smile was so big, that I knew it was him who did all this. He threw the plate in his left hand at the girl with the pink dress causing her to scream. Kai then took a huge breath and yelled at the top of his lungs...

"FOOD FIGHT!"

He threw his other plate at Naki, which started an on-going chain of flying food. Naki, smirking, grabbed a huge piece of cake from a nearby table and hurled it at Kai, hitting him square in the face. But to my surprise, Kai didn't look affected at all. In fact, he licked the icing from his face, and grabbed a two-liter soda bottle and smirked right back at Naki. He shook the bottle, then turned it towards Naki, and opened it. Soda sprayed all over Naki, ruining his look.

I couldn't believe it. Did Kai even know that Naki was two times bigger than him? He seemed to have noticed it because once the bottle was empty, he ran passed Naki, dodging flying food. Naki looked shocked. He must not be use to people fighting back, I thought, but then noted that this wasn't the time to be thinking. The fight started moving toward me. I had to start ducking and running, but I still got hit by cupcakes, ramen, juice, and just about everything else.

I spotted the table where I was sitting before and hid behind it. I thought that I didn't want to be in this fight, so I just watched. Everyone was scattered all over, throwing food from behind tables. I saw Shina, Akiye, and Hachi throwing food at some boys. I saw some of the bullies helping the fourth grade class throw food at the older kids. But what I was really looking for was Kai. I wondered why he did this.

"For fun maybe," I mumbled to myself. I spotted Kai running towards the table where Akiye, Shina, and Hachi were. I couldn't hear what he was saying but it looked like he was apologizing to them. They seemed to accept his apology. Then Kai began to whisper to them about something, the girls smiled and nodded their. Then Akiye stood up and called the other girls.

"Chise, Eriko!" Akiye called getting the other girls attention. They were each behind their own table with a bunch of other girls from grades second to eighth.

"Want to team up?" Akiye asked. "Girls against boys?"

The girls seemed to like the idea and the boys had no complaints. I saw Naki and the rest of the boys team up.

"Hey!" Naki called to Kai. "Get your classmates and let's fight already!" Kai nodded and ran over to me. Oh no! I thought.

"Hey, are you coming or what?" Kai held out his hand. "By the way, I never found out your name." I didn't think I could get out of this. Everyone was waiting and it started to look like fun. So I took Kai's hand.

"My name's Miwa," I said, smiling as Kai and I ran over to the boys table. We all grabbed a plate of food and got ready.

"FOOD FIGHT!" everyone yelled. It was more chaotic than before. Food was flying everywhere, kids were screaming, and I actually enjoyed it. It went on for what seemed like forever until we heard a whistle. It was our teachers. All of them.

"Who started this?!" one of them yelled. No one answered. We all knew it was Kai but no one wanted to get him in trouble. Not even Naki, he stayed silent like everyone else.

"CLEAN UP THIS MESS! ALL OF YOU!" our teachers yelled. Everyone groaned. We began picking up food from the ground and scrubbing the tables. Even though it was a lot of work, everyone chatted about the food fight. I saw Naki walking up to Kai and me.

"Pretty cool idea, kid," Naki said with his usual smirk. "Got a name?"

"Toshiki Kai."

"Naki Kimura." they shook hands. Then Naki looked at me. I gulped, thinking he was going to beat me up.

"Is this kid your friend?" Naki asked Kai. Kai nodded.

"Alright. If you guys can convince the teachers to let us have more fun, I'll let you go," Naki told us. He then left. I looked at Kai.

"So, we're friends?" I asked him.

"Want to be?" Kai offered. I smiled and nodded.

"How are going to convince our teachers to let us have fun?" I asked.

"Don't worry, we'll do it," Kai said with a reassuring smile. And that's just what we did. Kai spoke up to the teachers, saying they should be more nice and let us have fun. He was backed up by all the other kids as well. Soon, all the teachers were nice and actually fun! Eventually, everyone started liking Kai, even the teachers.

{End of Flashback}

"So that's what happened," Miwa said with a smile. Everyone gaped at Kai. They just couldn't believe Kai used to be like that. Kai was avoiding their stares. I'm going to kill him! he thought as he felt himself blush.

"S-so, Kai really did all that?" Misaki asked, not able to believe it. Everyone else felt the same way. Miwa nodded. Everyone stared at Kai. Kai couldn't take it anymore.

"It happened a long time ago, alright?" Kai said with a hint of annoyance. Miwa snickered. He could tell Kai was embarrassed.

"O-okay. Miwa-kun, it's your turn," Aichi said, still shocked by the story. Miwa nodded.

"Kai. Truth or Dare?" Miwa asked, still smiling. Kai thought about it. He didn't want to say Truth after what just happened. Then again, if he said Dare, Miwa would probably make him do something unbearable.

"Truth," Kai chose.

"Tell me where you got that," Miwa pointed to Kai's necklace.

Kai touched his necklace. He had forgotten to tuck it in his shirt. No harm in telling them, I guess, Kai thought as his hand unconsciously played with the diamond on his necklace. It was a habit that he usually did when he's uncomfortable. And at the moment he was. Kai didn't like telling people anything about himself. It bothered him.

"I got it on my birthday," Kai reluctantly answered.

"You got it on your birth-"

Miwa stopped mid-sentence as he realized something. He looked a little upset. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Kai looked confused. "I didn't think a necklace would-"

"You know what I'm talking about, and it's not your necklace!" Miwa interrupted him.

"Miwa, I really don't know what you're talking about," Kai said, honestly confused. Miwa blinked.

"You know today is Thursday, right?" Miwa asked slowly.

"Yes?"

"Kai, it's-"

"I don't mean to kick you out," Shin interrupted him, "but the store is about to close." Everyone looked outside and saw the sun had nearly set.

"What?!" Kamui yelled, "It's that late already?!"

"Guess that was a long story," Izaki said.

Kai stood up and turned to Miwa. "You can tell me some other time," Kai said and then left. Everyone was about to leave too when Miwa stopped them.

"Hey, guys?" Miwa called, with a sneaky smile. "Can you help me with something?"

{At Kai's House}

"I'm home!" Kai said as he shut the door. He was barely able to take two steps before being knocked to the ground. His eyes met two black, excited ones. It was a brown dog.

"Hey, Blitz," Kai said before his face got covered with his dog's slobbery licks. He had found him starving in an alley years ago with his parents and begged to have him. Kai's parents agreed to let him keep Blitz until he got better. But the dog grew on all of them, so they decided to keep him for good. Blitz is a pretty smart dog. He knows how to find his way home and can understand exactly what Kai would tell him. Kai could actually let Blitz walk around town all by himself, but people would always get scared. Blitz is actually half wolf. In fact, some people have mistaken him to be a wolf, unless he's with someone. So, Kai let's him play in his backyard until he comes home.

Kai wiped away the slobber and patted Blitz before standing up and dusting himself off. He walked into the kitchen with Blitz tailing him. Blitz ran to his dog-dish and began barking. Kai smiled as he opened a cabinet and grabbed a bag of dog food. He poured it in the dish and watched Blitz scarf down his food.

"I guess it is past your dinner time," Kai said in amusement. He sat on a chair beside Blitz and spaced out.

{Kai's POV}

This has been a strange day. First off was that dream. I barely ever dream about my parents unless I get sick, I feel sad or I see something that reminds me of them. Maybe Blitz, I thought as I looked at him. That can't be it. I feel fine around him. So, what is it?

I just remembered how strange Miwa was acting. Why was he acting like that? He mentioned what today was, so maybe I forgot about something special today. No, he would've stopped me if it was today. Could it be tomorrow?

My thoughts were interrupted by Blitz. He had finished his food and began to rub against my leg. I reached down and scratched him behind his ear. I suddenly realized how late it was. I stood up and left the kitchen with Blitz following me. I went upstairs, grabbed a T-shirt and pants, and took a shower.

I came back into his room and saw Blitz asleep on my bed. I smiled and laid down on the other side of the bed. I gently brushed my hand against Blitz's fur.

"Night, Blitz," I said quietly.

I folded my hands behind my head and wondered what was so special about tomorrow. Miwa freaked when I told him that I got my necklace for my birthday. Then he started talking about what day it was. My eyes widened and I shot straight up, startling Blitz awake. I hardly noticed Blitz inched closer to me, and barked, questioning what's wrong. I was too busy mentally berating myself for being so ignorant. It made sense. It was why I had that dream. It was the same day my parents died.

"How could I forget tomorrow is my birthday?"

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So, how was it? Tell me what you think!

Disclaimer: I do not own Cardfight! Vanguard. (Totally wish I do!)