Disclaimer: I own very little.

A/N: The first one of my 5trueloves Eiji fics, this one pairing him with Kaidou, the prompt being Similarity. This idea has been bothering me for a while now and I was definitely relieved to finally get it out.

Meowing Matchmakers

It began with the kittens.

Of course, there might have been something there before that, but when they later were asked, both mentioned the kittens as the starting point for their relationship. It was as good a choice as any and better than most, and as they both agreed on it there was a good chance it was true, too.

Eiji was the one who found the kittens first, on one of his usual visits to one of his favourite pet shops. They were just tiny things, little balls of fluff and mewls, and Eiji instantly fell in love.

He didn't know how long he spent just looking at the kittens that one day. Finally, though, he had to go home, promising himself to come back the next day.

He did return the next day. Only, by the time he got to the pet shop, somebody else was already looking at the kittens.

Eiji didn't recognize him at first, which was in retrospect somewhat surprising, considering Kaidou was wearing his usual bandanna. The fact remained, though, that it wasn't until Eiji had made his way closer that he recognized the other boy as his kouhai.

"Kaidou?" he asked, surprised. "Nyaa, are you here to look at the kitties, too?"

Kaidou was startled as though he had been caught doing something horrible, perhaps even criminal. "E-Eiji-senpai?" he asked warily. "It's just – I just – are you here to see them?" It looked like he was trying to think of an excuse to just happen to be there and failing. Not that Eiji minded.

"Nyaa, sure I am," Eiji said, smiling as he crouched down next to Kaidou. "They are adorable, aren't they? I never thought Kaoru-chan would be interested in such things, though!"

"Fsshuuu." There was a slight flush on Kaidou's cheeks. "...Please don't tell anyone, Eiji-senpai," he muttered, sounding somewhat embarrassed.

"Tell anyone what?" Eiji asked, somewhat confused. "That you were looking at the kittens? But why not? They are so adorable, I was thinking of bringing Oishi here to see them, too! And Fujiko, nyaa."

"The idiot will have a field day if he finds out," Kaidou mumbled. "Just – please don't tell, Eiji-senpai."

"Nyaa, I'll have to think about that," Eiji said, grinning. "It'd be so nice if the rest of the team found out about Kaidou's soft side, wouldn't it?" Seeing the other's almost horrified gaze, he then laughed. "No, I wouldn't be that mean to Kaoru-chan. I promise I won't tell anyone... if you treat me to an ice cream, nyaa," he added with a wink.

Kaidou was visibly relieved. "Good," he said, still somewhat flushed. Then he added, quietly, "Thank you, Eiji-senpai."

"Oh, it's nothing." Eiji grinned. "It's almost cute, you know, how somebody as scary as Kaidou looks so nice when he's looking at the kitties, nyaa! Hey, is that why you don't want Momo-chan to find out?" he then asked. "Are you worried he'll start liking you if he knew how cute you are around little kitties?"

The blush returned even stronger than before. "That's not it!" Kaidou answered snappishly. "The idiot just would tease me about it forever. And besides –" Just then, one of the kitties mewled, distracting Kaidou enough to make him stop talking and look at her instead. Eiji was no more sure which was more fun to look at, the kittens or Kaidou.

"Do you like cats, Kaidou?" Eiji asked, then realised, "Well, obviously you do, nyaa. Do you have any of your own?"

Kaidou shook his head. "I – I'd like to have one," he admitted somewhat hesitantly. "However, my mother is allergic to them, and it's thus impossible."

"Nyaa, that must suck." Eiji pouted. "I'd like to have one of my own, too, but my mother says I'm not yet responsible enough to have a pet!" He huffed. "I'm not that unreliable, nyaa..."

"Of course you aren't, Eiji-senpai." Eiji could have sworn Kaidou almost smiled.

They amused themselves with kitten-gazing for another moment. Finally, though, Eiji stood up again. "Nyaa, I have to go home soon. But before that, you owe me an ice cream, remember?" he said.

"Of course, Eiji-senpai," Kaidou said very seriously, taking one last glance at the kittens before following Eiji. "I wouldn't forget something like that."

Eiji laughed as he stepped out of the pet store. "I guess you'll be my favourite kouhai from now on," he said with a grin. "Momo and Echizen would not only try to get out of treating me, they'd try to make me treat them instead!"

Kaidou snorted. "That's because the idiot is cheap," he said, "and Echizen is under his bad influence. Nothing associated with the idiot can be any good."

"Not even his doubles partners, eh?" The redhead stuck out his tongue at Kaidou. "Guess we're both screwed, then..."

"Fsshuuu." Kaidou gave him a mild glare. "You know that's not what I meant, Eiji-senpai."

"Of course not, nyaa," Eiji laughed. "Now, come on, Kaoru-chan! The ice cream is calling for us!"

Kaidou blinked. "It is?" he asked. "I can't hear anything..."

"Don't take everything so seriously, silly." However, Eiji was smiling. Who could have guessed? Kaidou wasn't that bad a person to be around after all.

Besides, he had a vague feeling they would meet again at the pet store.

"Okay, today we are going to try out different doubles combinations," Oishi announced. "The point is not as much to find new pairings as it is to see how well you adjust to a partner you've never played with before. Now, keeping in mind it can't have be somebody you've played with before, does anybody have any requests as to the pairings?" He looked at the rest of the regulars, smiling.

"Nyaa, me, me!" Eiji shouted, waving a hand in the air. "I want to play with Kaidou!" At this, he clung to his kouhai's arm, causing Kaidou's expression to turn to nothing less than mortified.

"I guess that's okay, if Kaidou agrees," Oishi said a bit hesitantly. "Is it all right, Kaidou?"

The bandanna-clad boy hissed a bit but nodded anyway. Eiji exclaimed with joy.

"In that case, I would like to play with Oishi," Fuji said with a smile. "We can play against the two of them, right, Oishi?"

"I guess so," the vice-captain said, scratching his head. "At least it's something that has never been tried before..."

As the match began, most of the club seemed to gather around the court. The Golden Pair playing against each other with brand new partners was definitely worth watching. Of course, neither Fuji nor Kaidou was exactly inexperienced or miserable at doubles, either.

"As you can see, they are all adjusting admirably," Inui commented to the audience, rapidly taking down data as the match started. "While perhaps not instant successes, both pairings are working together passably, definitely well enough to beat most randomly picked doubles pairings. I could see them in an actual match – unlike the Momoshiro and Echizen combination, which sadly actually made it into one."

"Yeah, yeah, rub it in, why don't you," Momo sighed. "I'd like to think my doubles playing has improved since then, I'd really like to think that!"

"Oh, that it most certainly has," Inui assured him. "The percentage of your improvement is almost miraculous. As for Echizen, though... It is fortunate he has an almost guaranteed singles slot." The smirk on Inui's face was anything but nice.

Echizen didn't say anything, simply huffing and tugging his cap down to shield his face. Apparently he did not find this worthy of a comment.

On the court, the two pairings were starting to increase their pace as they became more comfortable with their new partners. Eiji and Kaidou, however, seemed to be adjusting a bit faster than their opponents.

"Kaidou!" Eiji shouted cheerfully. "Hit it to the polar bear's hand!"

Now, everybody was confused. It couldn't have been anything related with Eiji himself, or there would have been a definite risk of Oishi figuring out what he meant. However, the vice-captain seemed just as puzzled about his opponents' plans as the rest of them.

Kaidou, it appeared, had no trouble understanding the secret message. He hit the ball to the opponent's left side, causing Eiji to grin in satisfaction even as the acrobat leapt into the air to make a point out of the poorly returned ball.

"Ah, I see," Inui said, adjusting his glasses. "Kikumaru is relying on Kaidou to be aware of the same animal-related trivia as he. Fortunately, this assumption was a success."

"Huh?" Momo was puzzled. "What was it that Mamushi knew, then?"

"Studies have proved that polar bears are, as a rule, left-handed." Inui smirked. "Only somebody like those two would be able to recall such a detail in the middle of a match."

"You mean, animal freaks?" Echizen asked. As the others stared at him, he continued, "I saw the two of them leaving a pet shop once. It's only logical to assume they would both like animals."

"Well, Mamushi did save this one puppy from drowning once, Mamushi did save him," Momo said. "But I never would have guessed him to be an actual animal lover..."

"Echizen is correct, I dare say, although I wouldn't have used that particular wording, myself," Inui said, flipping back the pages of his notebook. "Sightings have been made of the two near various pet stores almost daily for at least a week or two now, and at least once in a zoo. It would appear they have found a common interest."

"They even went to a zoo together?" Momoshiro echoed. "That sounds like a date, it really sounds like a date!"

"According to my data, it may have even been that," Inui informed him calmly. "Unless, of course, it is a standard form of behaviour for casual friends to regularly treat each other to ice cream, in which case my dating data may be somewhat outdated."

"You spied on them?" Echizen asked dryly. "That's just creepy, Inui-senpai."

"Oh, not at all!" Inui defended himself. "I am merely collecting data in order to be able to correctly analyse the social relationships within the team. Such information may prove crucial at some point."

"That, and you're a voyeur," the youngest regular countered. "You really should get a life of your own so you wouldn't have to stalk others."

"Ah, but stalking is my life." There was absolutely no hint of guilt in Inui's voice as he admitted this. "Hmm... it seems like the Kikumaru-Kaidou combination actually wouldn't need much further practice to play in a medium level official match." He nodded towards the court, where Eiji and Kaidou were in the lead.

"Animal pair, eh?" Momo asked, grinning. "Oh, just you wait, Mamushi..."

It was obvious to everyone Momoshiro wouldn't forget this topic for quite a while yet, if ever.

"Eiji-senpai... what are we?"

Eiji turned to look at Kaidou, puzzled. "What do you mean, Kaoru-chan?" he asked.

Kaidou flushed slightly, obviously uneasy with the topic. "It's just... you heard all the things the idiot said after the match, right? You must have, he was loud enough to wake the dead. And, anyway... fsshuuu... he asked if we're boyfriends."

Eiji hooked his hands behind his neck, looking up to the ceiling, serious for once as he pondered this question. Kaidou and he had been meeting almost every day for two weeks now. It had been pet stores where they met, mostly, and the zoo once, and Eiji had also taken Kaidou over to his house to see his family's pets. Spending time with Kaidou was, he had discovered, much more enjoyable than he would have expected. They could talk about a lot of things, not just kittens and other animals, and when you got Kaidou to lower his guard – for which purpose kittens or other cute things were absolutely perfect – he made for very interesting conversation. He supposed some of their meetings could be called dates, too...

"Forget it," Kaidou said. "I shouldn't have asked such a stupid question, anyway. Please just forget it, Eiji-senpai."

"It wasn't a stupid question, nyaa," Eiji said, now turning to look at Kaidou. "In fact, it was a really good question. I haven't really thought about it, but... I enjoy spending time with Kaoru-chan, nyaa." He then grinned at Kaidou. "I guess we're boyfriends if Kaidou wants us to be," he finished cheerfully, inwardly very much hoping Kaidou would want to.

Kaidou seemed to consider this very thoroughly, serious in his very own, very cute way. Kaidou's seriousness was different than Oishi's or Tezuka's, and definitely different than Inui's seriousness. There was something so absolutely solemn about a serious Kaidou that Eiji couldn't help but find it adorable.

Finally, Kaidou mumbled something inaudible, flushing. Eiji grinned again, already guessing the answer even as he said, "Sorry, Kaoru-chan, I'm afraid I didn't quite catch that."

"I said, I do want to be," Kaidou said with an embarrassed tone. "Boyfriends, that is."

Eiji smiled brightly. "Great! Now you know what to tell Momo when you next see him!"

"...I guess." Kaidou was quiet for a moment, then said, "Hey, Eiji-senpai?"

"Yes?" Eiji turned towards Kaidou again. "What is it, Kaoru-chan?"

Kaidou hesitated for another moment. Then, having apparently gathered his courage, he stepped forward and kissed Eiji.

The kiss came as a complete surprise to Eiji. Boyfriends or not, he would have never thought Kaidou the type to do such a thing. This, however, did not mean he found the other's action unpleasant, anything else. Kaidou had nice lips, cool and soft, and while he probably wasn't an expert at kissing Eiji was just as inexperienced so it was all right.

Smiling against Kaidou's lips, Eiji was very, very glad he had found the kittens.

"Oh, it's you, Kaidou-kun," Eiji's mother said cheerfully. "Eiji told me to send you to his room. He's waiting for you there."

Nodding and thanking her, Kaidou then made his way to the room Eiji was sharing with his older brother. Knocking on the door, he received a cheerful, "It's open!"

Pushing the door open, Kaidou saw that Eiji was the only person in the room. The redhead was sitting in his chair by his desk, his back to Kaidou.

"Eiji-senpai?" Kaidou asked. "You said you had something to show me?"

"Right!" The happy response was accompanied by Eiji turning the chair around. It was then that Kaidou saw what the redhead had in his lap, and his eyes widened.

It was a kitten. A small reddish kitten, with soft fur and curious eyes and a soft voice as she mewled. Not only was it one of the kittens from the pet store; it also just happened to be the one Kaidou had declared his favourite.

"She's adorable," Kaidou said quietly, carefully reaching out a hand to pet her fur. There was a somewhat wistful look in his eyes – he doubtlessly wished the cat would have been his instead of Eiji's. "So... your mother changed her mind, then?"

"Nyaa, not really." Eiji grinned. "She said I'm still not responsible enough for a pet of my own... but with somebody else's help, I might manage." He gave Kaidou a wink. "She's yours, actually. Since you can't have a cat at your house, I asked my mother if I could keep one for you here. Mum agreed, with the condition that you help me look after her."

Kaidou's eyes widened some more. "But – that is –" He was, it seemed, not yet capable of forming a comprehensible sentence. In the end, though, he just looked at Eiji. "Thank you, Eiji-senpai," he said sincerely.

"Nyaa, don't thank me!" Eiji laughed. "After all, now I get to have a cat, too, even if she's really yours. And besides," he added with an impish smile, "if you have to look after her with me, it means you'll have to come over often."

Now, Kaidou smiled. It was somewhat hesitant but a smile nevertheless. "Several times a week, at least," he said.

"Right." Eiji grinned. "Or every day."

For a moment, they were both quiet. Finally, Kaidou looked down at the kitten still lying in Eiji's lap. "Does she have a name yet?" he asked.

"Of course not, nyaa," Eiji said. "She's yours to name, after all. Now, give her one!" He took the kitten into his hands again and reached her out towards Kaidou. "We can't just call her 'her' or 'cat' for the rest of her life, you know."

Kaidou did not comment on the possible implications of the idea of them both staying close to the cat for the rest of her life. Instead, he carefully took the little feline into his hands, smiling down at her. "I think she looks like an Akane," he said then.

Eiji grinned. "That was what I was about to suggest, too," he said happily. "So, Akane she is." He smiled down at the little creature. "Hi there, Akane-chan," he said. "How do you like your new owner?"

Akane-chan mewed and batted at Kaidou's hand with one of her paws. Eiji smirked. "She's obviously saying she's jealous because you like me better," he said confidently.

"Fsshuuu," Kaidou replied. "You don't speak Cat, Eiji-senpai."

"I don't?" Eiji faked a confused expression. "That's weird. I could have sworn, nyaa..." He grinned, then. "Does that mean you're not a Parselmouth, either?

Kaidou, who was familiar enough with the world of Harry Potter, glared at him. "I hate you, Eiji-senpai," he said flatly.

"No, you don't," Eiji replied. "You love me, really."

At this, Kaidou's frown melted into a smile. "...Maybe I do," he admitted.

Eiji grinned even more brightly. Oh, yes, he was very much happy he had found Akane and her siblings.