The fact was, Yamato Hotsuin had never celebrated someone else's birthday before; isolated as he was, in his ivory tower of books and tutors as a child, he regarded the passing of another year of his own life as a formality. His parents had been too busy to celebrate them, and Alcor had regarded them with curiosity, and nothing more; if Alcor himself marked his date of birth (unlikely, Yamato had always thought), he kept it quiet. But then again, the younger Yamato had decided, what difference did this day of life make when compared to that immediately before or after? Nothing. You went to bed regarded as one age, and woke up regarded as another. That said, he didn't mind other employees marking their own birthdays, merely took no part in celebrating them himself.
Well, he thought, staring out of the window of the car, as it cut through the traffic of a busy Tokyo morning towards JP's headquarters, there's a first time for everything.

It had been Hibiki who suggested it, one cold February morning. After all, since their birthdays were less than a week apart, why didn't they celebrate both of them? Initially, Yamato had balked at the idea, making excuses that his birthday wasn't worth celebrating…but then Hibiki was his trusted subordinate, and, though he'd never admit it to other members of JP's…Yamato had always been curious as to how civilians celebrated their birthdays.
So, for the last few days, when he'd had a spare moment in his office, Yamato had pored through websites and forums on birthdays, asked Makoto what little she knew about birthdays, and even wandered around a few shops close to the JPs headquarters. So far, so good. The main problem, he'd realised, was getting Hibiki something he wanted; Hibiki had never really talked much about his taste in music or books, so Yamato had decided to steer clear of those. Yamato hardly regarded himself as an expert in video games, and had decided to leave this to another year, when he knew HIbiki better.
And then, on one of his breaks, he'd stumbled across a clothing website, and he'd found it. He just hoped his second in command liked it…

The car pulled up in the underground car-park. Yamato sighed, patting the parcel that sat in the seat next to him. For the first time in his life, Yamato, ever the self-confident leader, realised he was nervous. He took a breath, and got out, putting the parcel under one arm. The short walk felt like forever. And there, suddenly, was Hibiki, smiling softly, a cup of coffee in one hand, a slightly overladen clipboard in the other…
"Yamato! Morning!"
Cheery as ever. Trying to keep as straight a face as possible, Yamato shyly handed the parcel to the surprised Hibiki, and then busied himself in staring at his phone.
What…if Hibiki didn't like it? What if it was the wrong size, what…
"Yamato…you ok?"
A deep breath. He looked up.
HIbiki, jacket slung over one shoulder, stood before him, wrapping paper tucked under one arm with the files, wearing the hoodie, the long rabbit ears falling over his shoulders. A soft blush covers the black-haired young man's cheeks.
"How...did you know I wanted…?"
Yamato allowed himself a rare smile, breathing a sigh of inward relief. He'd been right. Hibiki's present was perfect. He shrugged, adjusting his tie a little.
"Just a hunch."