Disclaimer: Here's a random fact: Jessamine is a type of jasmine. Here's another random fact: I don't own Prince of Tennis, or any of the characters. :)
Rating: PG
Warnings: Hints of Tango Pair, and probably some fluff towards the end.
Summary: Birthday fic for Sanada Genichiroh, baby! Yes, I know it's a little late… And short… But totally worth a read, yes?
Author's notes: Another Rikkai Drabblething. You don't have to have read the ones that come before this, but it might help a bit. The drabblething list goes:
Times of Stress
Passing the Time
How to ask out Marui Bunta
Four Days Later
October Ice
Because I Love You
Evil
Further Nonsense
Dear Diary
Kind of… the same
100 Word Challenges
Driver in a Hurry, Child in a Coma
Doctor, doctor!
The Woes of Solomon Grundy
I'm Not Going
The Little Things
I Had To
He WHAT?!
Operation: Christmas Party
Being Fukubuchou
Once Upon a Time
My Brother Bunta
Dear Diary: Living with Niou-senpai
A Morning at the Pool
This is Love
SFRR
And So It Begins
Most Unexpected
This Is March 5th
No Small Wonder
The Last Day Of A Stage in Life
Back to Basics
Blame it On the Damn Vodka
Papercuts
The Stuff of Myths
Finally Understood
Dear Diary: Beginning the Third Year
Operation: Disbelief
May 21st
This Drabblething is specially dedicated to Batool and Javert for their fantasmic, fantastical reviews which I unfortunately couldn't reply to since they don't have an account. x( LOL Anyways, this is specially dedicated to you, so I hope you enjoy, despite the incredibly unoriginal name!
Also, many, many thanks to everyone who reviewed 'Operation: Disbelief' and kindly wished me luck for my exams. You're all lubbly. :D
And finally, please assume that October Ice 7 hasn't taken place yet. n.n;; Sorry 'bout the confusion…
-------------------------------
Yukimura tapped his pen thoughtfully against the side of his cheek. The blank, pristine white card lay in front of him, staring accusingly at him – it was damn distracting.
"What're you gonna write?" Marui asked, sitting opposite him at the small table; the two were in the library, at their mutually favourite place next to the window.
"I don't know. I can't really think of anything."
Popping a bubble noisily, ignoring the scowl the librarian sent his way, Marui flicked at the edge of the card and said, "You know, I'm sure he won't mind if you just wrote something like 'happy birthday, yay for you being sixteen'."
"Yes, but I want to be original. You know how hard I try to avoid clichés."
Marui gave a shrug and held his hand out. "Fair enough. Gimme the pen – I know what I'm gonna write." Yukimura reluctantly relinquished the biro and Marui turned the card around, starting to write in his compressed handwriting.
When he'd finished, he gave Yukimura a grin and picked up the card, folding it neatly and picking up his bag. "I'll go find the rest of the guys to put something in here, 'k? Then you can read them and you'll know what to write. Probably."
"Alright," Yukimura nodded. "Thanks, Bunta."
"Sure thing. See you later!" With that, Marui left, leaving Yukimura sitting pensively at the table and wondering absently why the most gruelling of tennis matches was a summer breeze compared to thinking of something original to put in your best friend's birthday card.
-------------------------------
For his part, Sanada Genichiroh was rather enjoying his sixteenth birthday. Both his parents had made a special effort to be home for today, and he'd finally gotten that laptop he'd wanted. New tennis shoes and spare racquet too – his old spare racquet had gotten on the wrong end of a science experiment from someone (Sanada knew it was Niou, knew it, but gods take it if the Trickster hadn't someone created a foolproof alibi).
He'd been a bit late for school thanks to the bus and so he hadn't had the chance to see Yanagi or Yukimura or any of the lucky few he considered his friends, but he knew that he'd see them at lunchtime.
The morning rolled by quickly – well, apart from Art, which always did drag on well past the normal boundaries of the time-space continuum – and the lunchtime buzzer sounded at last to the school-wide relief of the students and teachers.
When Sanada reached the first-year dining hall at long last, he was a little surprised to see only Yukimura sitting at the table they usually sat at, munching on a biscuit (he always liked to eat the sweet before the savoury; a quirk that Sanada had never been able to understand). He made his way over and sat down next to him, getting out his own lunch from his backpack.
"Ah, Genichiroh," Yukimura said, smiling at him. "Happy birthday."
Bowing his head in thanks, Sanada glanced around him briefly before asking, "Where are Yanagi and Jackal?"
"Their history class is being held back. I'm not sure why. They should be coming along soon." Yagyuu, Niou and Marui only ate with them on Tuesdays and Fridays or when it was raining, because on every other day their lesson right before lunch took place in the other building where it was so much easier to eat lunch outside on the edges of the playing field.
"Oh, that reminds me." Yukimura pulled his backpack into his lap and rummaged around in it, pulling out a large card and handing it to Sanada. The front was plain white, with a single red origami crane glued to the middle. Sanada smiled, just a bit, and Yukimura nodded at the card. "Open it, then."
"Yukimura Seiichi, please report to Hidaka-sensei's music classroom. Yukimura Seiichi, please report to Hidaka-sensei's music classroom. Thank you."
Yukimura sighed and stood up, packing away his lunch. "I'm sorry," he apologised. "I probably won't be long."
"That's alright. What does he want you for?"
"No idea. I'll see you later, ok?"
"Ok." Sanada watched him leave, and then opened his card. To his surprise, there were several different-coloured messages scrawled inside. The very first words were in Marui's very distinctive handwriting, and Sanada started there, working his way gradually down the rest of the card.
Hey there, fukubuchou! Happy sixteenth birthday. Don't take up smoking just 'cos you're old enough to now, ok? ;p Oh, yeah, and just to warn you, Atobe got in touch with Mura's cell phone and they're planning something, so watch out for that. It'll probably be nice though, since 'Haru isn't involved. Anyway, see you at practice later! – Marui Bunta
Happy birthday, Genichiroh. Strange to think that you're sixteen now… Remember the summer of our first year of junior high? You know, three years on, I still remember that peanut incident. Ah, happy days. – Yanagi Renji
You know what the sugar freak said before about me not being involved in Mura and Atobe's plans? He's wrong. I may not know what they're planning, but I'll find out and make myself part of it. Just so you know. So enjoy your day while you can, fukubuchou… -- Niou Masaharu
Hello, Sanada. I hope you've had a good day. Best wishes on your birthday from myself and Ohtani-chan, who is insisting on reading over my shoulder. Ohtani-chan is the friend of a classmate of mine, and I don't think you've met before, but she's still wishing you the kindest of felicitations. – Yagyuu Hiroshi
Happy sixteenth birthday! Did you get some nice presents? I hope you weren't eaten by the paintings in the Art classroom; I know how they disturb you. Still, at least next year you'll be allowed to drop it if you like, right? See you at practice, hope you have a good day until then. – Kuwahara Jackal
Fukubuchou! You're sixteen today!! I know you already know that… just in case you'd forgotten I thought I'd remind you. :) I drew you a birthday elephant, but I'm writing this while trying not to get caught sneaking into the high-school grounds and I accidentally left the drawing in the clubhouse, so I'll give it to Maru-chan later and he'll give it to you. He's saying that he's got to get back to lessons now, so bye. Oh, oh, and happy birthday! And you can't give me laps to run anymore, cos you're not really the fukubuchou anymore, so I'll just say that yesitwasmewhokilledyourspareracquetbutNiou-senpaimademesoit'snotreallymyfaultyoushouldblamethescienceteacher. –Kirihara Akaya
I have no idea what to write here, to be honest, Genichiroh. We've known each other more than three years, and been friends for exactly three. Remember? On your thirteenth birthday how you tripped and accidentally pushed me down the stairs of the Languages department and I was knocked unconscious. And you felt so bad about it that you insisted on staying in the nurse's office until I woke up.
Remember kendo club? You were really exceptional. Only a couple of the third years could beat you, and even then that was just down to the height advantage. I was pretty good, but you beat me completely when we had that practice fight. And I admitted that kendo wasn't really my passion – tennis was my real battlefield. I was so pleased when you said that you used to play for fun with your grandfather, and I asked you to play a match with me. Did I ever tell you how delighted I was to find that I actually had to try hard to win against you? Probably not.
That was the most fun I'd had in a long time, you know. That match finally made me determined enough to want to be Rikkai's number one, because before that I'd kind of taken it as granted that I would be. An arrogance that I was more than glad to be rid of after meeting you, I can tell you now.
Oops, I'm running out of room to write. I didn't mean to ramble on for so long; sorry about that. Happy birthday, Genichiroh.
May I forever be part of the Three Demons with you and Renji -- Yukimura Seiichi
-------------------------------
Sandy: There ya go. :) Shortish but sweetish.
Anyone got any ideas for the 40th Drabblething? It's traditional to have angsty reflectyness, damnit, but I'm out of ideas. Any suggestions?
Please take the time to leave a review! I lobe them muchly. And as you know, lobe is better than love in every possible way. ;p Again, how often I update from here to the end of June really does depend largely on your reviews, so please feed my writer's soul:3
Oh, and TheNewKid25? The 41st Drabblething is reserved for you, darl, so don't think I've forgotten you ;)
Until next time!