Title: Knitting
Fandom: Prince of Tennis
Character(s) or Pairing: Sanada, Yanagi, Yukimura
Rating: PG
Warnings: Crack
Word Count: unknown
Summary: Sanada wants to learn to knit.
A/N: Inspired by a random image that popped into my head one afternoon.
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"Renji, teach me to knit."
The demand is sudden and unexpected and quite out of character coming from one Sanada Genichirou. So startling it is, that Yanagi's eyes fly open and he stares at his friend - one of the people he knows better than most and understands better than most - in some mixture of incredulous shock and horror.
"You want me to teach you what?"
"To knit." Sanada tugs down his cap, hiding behind it but refusing to look away from Yanagi, and Yanagi mentally takes a moment to record that, how Sanada can hide but still look at him directly.
"I'm sorry, Genichirou, I don't know how to knit," Yanagi answers him, after closing his eyes. He manages to say it without cracking a grin or laughing, which is quite a feat, considering Sanada's request.
What fifteen year old boy wants to learn to knit?
Sanada's shoulders droop and he glares at Yanagi, although Yanagi doesn't take it personally.
"Do you know anyone who can knit who would be willing to teach me and not mention-"
Yanagi cuts off Sanada and answers without hesitation. "My grandmother knits. I am sure she would be more than happy to share her knowledge with you."
The look of relief on Sanada's face is almost as comical as the question - but still, Yanagi manages to keep back his laughter in the face of such amusement.
Sanada returns to the Yanagi house, with his friend, and spends the evening struggling to learn how to knit. Yanagi does his homework for him, but Sanada doesn't care: he has something much bigger on his mind than something as simple and silly as homework.
By the time Sanada has to leave, he has a potholder and the instructions on how to make a handful of other things, a set of knitting needles and a skein of yarn in the brightest shade of orange that he has ever seen. He doesn't mind though, because he has one day to accomplish his goal.
The next morning sees Sanada almost asleep on his feet, but he is still in the locker room before Yanagi that morning - despite the winter season, the two of them and Yukimura, and most of the time Kirihara, meet up every morning to take advantage of the empty gym. But Sanada is not interested in tennis that morning: he's hunched over on the bench, muttering beneath his breath "under, counter-clockwise, through."
If Sanada asking to knit and looking relived that Yanagi knew someone had been amusing, then this: this is priceless and Yanagi wishes he had a camera. But he records the memory in his mind, to smile over later.
"Still busy?" Yanagi asks, finally breaking the silence in the locker room. Sanada startles and looks over his shoulder, guiltily almost.
"Is Seiichi here?" Sanada asks, although he turns back to his work right away. "I only have a little left to go."
"Not yet. You've got 10 minutes before he normally shows up, if he keeps his normal schedule and runs a few minutes late. Akaya won't be here today."
Sanada says nothing, but Yanagi didn't expect a reply - he keeps a watch out for Yukimura, moving only when he finally spots the boy they were waiting for.
"Genichirou, he's here," Yanagi says. "You might want to hurry."
"Keep him distracted, Renji," Sanada instructs. "I have one last thing to do." He's set aside the knitting needles for a regular needle, Yanagi's noticed and is trying to attach something that makes Yanagi crane his neck to see what it is and this time Yanagi can't hold back a chuckle.
He goes off to distract Yukimura before Sanada can say anything, stopping their captain at the door with a question about tennis and possibilities for the next year. It starts Yukimura off onto a spiel about things - anything tennis does, nowadays - and Yanagi ends up being the distracted one, so he doesn't notice Sanada approaching, until Sanada has already joined them and is holding out something.
"You said your ears were getting cold," Sanada says, and reaches over to tug the stocking cap he'd been working on over Yukimura's ears, taking a step back to survey his handiwork, looking proud.
Yanagi peers at it, open eyes, struggling to keep back his laughter, because the orange color clashes horribly with Yukimura's hair. Yukimura reaches up to touch the top of his head - now covered by the cap, feeling the pompom Sanada had attached to it - and isn't sure what to feel. A quick glance in the locker room mirror tells him exactly how bad it is: bright, bright orange, not even suitable for Halloween, lopsided and crooked, the pompom barely stuck on it.
Yukimura starts laughing then, throwing his arms around Sanada's neck and pressing a kiss to his lips.
They never do make it out of the locker rooms.