Notes: My version of Someoka's arrival to Hakuren Middle School. Not necessarily Outer Code 1 compliant. Probably gonna be retconned to hell and back (in fact definitely, since I forgot Nae existed until I finished this) once the actual Ares anime comes out, but that's life!

This was also a 2016 Secret Santa gift for northernimpact on Tumblr despite the fact that it is set in summer. Oops, consider it a reflection of my Aussie surroundings!

Finally, thank you mada and Laine for reading this over before I submitted it!

Genghis Khan

When Raimon had been told that they would all be sent to various schools around Japan to serve on their reinforcement committee, Someoka had been over the moon. Finally, some real responsibility. Then they had told him that he was assigned to the boondocks.

Still, he had tried to stay positive. Hokkaido was famous for food. Sweet, creamy sea urchin; refreshing cantaloupe melons, and of course, mountains of big, juicy crab legs stacked so high that tackling them was like an awesome game of Jenga. Someoka had seen the famous Hokkaido crab buffets on TV shows (usually featuring tiny idols who squealed that they were 'sooooo full' after just one leg and who frankly didn't deserve the feast). After straightening these Hakuren punks out, it was the first thing on his Hokkaido bucket list.

"A crab buffet?" the boy in front of him sputtered, then looked around at the rest of Hakuren's team. "Did you hear that? This Tokyo city boy thinks he can find crab around here!"

The rest of the team didn't react to the barb, not even giving the boy a smile to acknowledge the joke, but to Someoka the damage was done. Well, excuse him for not being from around here! Sure, he had been on the bus as it went deeper and deeper into the mountains. Yeah, it had been a half-day journey. And yeah, he had eyes. But, again, he wasn't from around here!

Someoka glared at the kid, his arms crossed and brows furrowed. His first hour with the team and already nothing was going right. The wool of the Hakuren jumper, that he'd put on in an attempt to establish their common ground, tickled at the nape of his neck, and he could feel his cheeks burning up with indignation. As if he didn't feel foolish enough already!

Smirking, the kid hopped down from his perch on the indoor bleachers and sauntered up to Someoka.

"Weeell, Raimon's Someoka-sempai," he said, pairing the honorific with an arrogant smile that made Someoka want to punch his lights out, "if crab's all you wanted out of your trip to Hokkaido, you can just hop on the next bus to Sapporo. We don't need you here. We don't need any 'reinforcement', do we, nii-san?"

He turned to look at someone sitting smack in the middle of the team huddle, half in the background. Someoka followed and immediately thought that he was looking at an opposite clone of the idiot in front of him. This guy was blue to the idiot's red, with a contrasting maturity to his facial features and a blithe smile that was almost c– actually, nope, it was equally irritating. Though the guy was sitting in a dim corner of the room, Someoka noticed the captain's armband, and then the arm it was on.

That was hastily snaking behind his back. Crumpled confectionery packaging lay in a haphazard pile on the table behind him.

"Atsuya," the guy said, ignoring with all his might Someoka turning even redder with anger. His tone was reproachful enough to reprimand and yet light enough that 'Atsuya' wouldn't have to do a thing.

Someoka took a deep breath in. Counted to three with a slow exhale.

"So, you're the captain?" he said in a low voice, ignoring the annoying things for now. (So, basically, everything.) "Fubuki Shirou?"

An enigmatic smile ghosted over Fubuki's features, before disappearing into the shadows as he stood. Fubuki stepped towards Someoka, into the harsh glare of the clubroom light bulb. As he moved towards him his aloofness and cheek slipped off and he stood up straighter and taller and with more determination, until the transformation was complete and his resemblance to his brother became only superficial.

"That's me," Captain Fubuki said, stopping at the edge of Someoka's personal space and regarding him calmly. For some reason, Someoka's nose itched and he felt the urge to sneeze, but he stifled it with a grimace.

"Please excuse my younger brother's rudeness, Someoka-san," Fubuki said, his tone as warm and steady as steel. "Welcome to Hakuren Middle School's football team."

They gave him a room on the fourth floor, overlooking the snowboarding hills. That was cool.

There were no elevators. That was much less cool. In fact, it was downright cold. Especially in the mornings, when they had to assemble at the clubroom by 7 and the only bathrooms were on the first floor.

Although Someoka was up before 5 on his second day in Hakuren. The sun rose so early here and streamed through his window so fiercely that he would be fully closing the curtains from now on, that was for sure.

Then he actually pulled them shut. The curtains were old, in a floral pattern that he was sure was from his grandma's time, and smelled weird. But more importantly, they glowed a bright white. Even when fully drawn, they weren't enough to shield him from the sun in the early morning.

Someoka opened his door, intending to spend his morning somewhere less bright. The door hinges creaked loudly.

This was not guest treatment. This was bullying.

Still, he sucked it up. He had been through much worse when Raimon was first getting started. If these Hakuren punks thought they could scare him off this way, they had another thought coming. Atsuya had been wrong: there was plenty he could do here.

Objectively speaking, Hakuren were not a bad team. The twins were obscenely skilled and complemented each other so well that they left their opponents – and teammates – in the dust. The rest of the team were no slouches, either, although – understandably – they were a little reluctant to participate. Hakuren's teamwork had much to work on, and the way Someoka saw it, much of their problems lay at the hands of one member. One particularly antagonistic, annoying, self-important member.

"You're still here?" said member crowed one morning a few days later. "Even you must've figured out there's no crab around here by now!"

"Atsuya," Fubuki chided, and though it was significantly less indulgent than on the day of their first meeting, it still wasn't stern enough for Someoka's tastes.

Someoka had needed to get a full idea of Hakuren's abilities, and so he had spent the past few days sitting out of practice and observing. But enough was enough.

"You got a problem with me, Atsuya?" he demanded. "Think I shouldn't be here?"

"No, not at all, Someoka-san," his teammates started to say. Then Atsuya took a step towards him and they clammed up. Atsuya had on a gloating grin and a cocky swagger and Someoka felt his hackles rise further.

"Tell you what," he said, not caring any longer how he sounded. "I'll play you here and now. We're both strikers; the one who scores more wins and the loser has to shut up."

Atsuya's grin widened. "No thanks," he said flippantly. "I've done some research on your Raimon. There's a better striker on that team, isn't there? We got your slim pickings. The second-rate striker. Come back with Gouenji Shuuya and maybe we'll talk."

Anger shot through Someoka and his vision pulsed for a second, narrowing to only Atsuya. He had expected Atsuya to take him up and for them to face off. Someoka had seen the kid play – he knew he would've won easily. He had expected to gain Atsuya's respect and silence. But – instead – the kid came up with –

"Why you!"

When he came back to his senses, Someoka was hoisting Atsuya up by his collar. Atsuya's lips were clamped tightly together and his gaze was furious, darting down along Someoka's arms and then straight up at him. The rest of the team were frozen to the spot and Someoka could only hear the faint whirr of the mountain wind.

"Someoka!" Both the break in the silence and the lack of honorific from this particular voice gave Someoka pause, and he looked over at Fubuki. The cold fury on the team captain's face almost made Someoka drop Atsuya immediately. Radiating from Fubuki was an oppressive aura that would have shrivelled the heart of a lesser man.

"Get your hands off my brother," Fubuki said levelly, and a chill ran down Someoka's back like icicles dripping water. "Or you'll wish you never came to Hakuren."

Someoka's mouth fell open. While he didn't fancy himself to be in the right, even as caught up as he was in his own anger, he knew in his bones that this was not what Endou would have done in this situation. Brother or not, this was not what any captain in his right mind would have done.

"You know what?" he growled, letting go of Atsuya and noting with no satisfaction as the kid scurried off to a side. "I already wish I never did."

A few hours later, Someoka was still stewing in his room. In the mountains of Hakuren it was cold wherever there wasn't any sun, and while the sun shone brightly into his room in the mornings it was long gone by the afternoon.

So, even though it was summer, it was cold. But after his outburst that morning, the last thing Someoka wanted to see was any member of the Hakuren football team.

There was a knock on the door. Someoka ignored it.

Another set of knocks followed after a few moments, softer and more hesitant. Someoka sighed.

He had been sent here with a job to do. Getting up and padding towards the door, he opened it slowly to minimise the creaking of the hinges.

It was Fubuki, back to his serene, doe-eyed self. He looked unfazed by Someoka's scowl and smiled at him like this morning had never happened.

"Can I come in?" he asked.

Someoka sighed again and stepped aside. Fubuki took one step in.

"I want to apologise for this morning," he said. "I overreacted."

"It's fine," Someoka said, then grudgingly added, "I shouldn't have grabbed your brother like that too."

Fubuki's shoulders quirked in a half-shrug, half-slump, like he couldn't decide which. "Yeah," he said, "can I talk to you about him?"

Someoka took a good hard look at Fubuki. The slant to his smile had slackened, and around his eyes were faintly dark circles.

He headed back inside. "Well? Take a seat."

When they were both seated cross-legged on the floor at Someoka's coffee table, Fubuki spoke.

"I talked to Atsuya," he said. "He likes you, you know. Though it probably isn't that obvious."

Someoka snorted. Not that obvious? Try the kid freaking hated him for no reason at all. Oh, wait. Because he wasn't Gouenji Shuuya, right?

Someoka's thoughts must have been clearly printed on his face, because Fubuki hastened to say, "He does! He thinks you're strong. He respects you."

"Funny way of showing it," Someoka said shortly, and Fubuki's smile turned pained. At least he conceded his point.

"He's just proud," Fubuki said. "Of us, and of Hakuren. He wants to tackle you and the rest of Raimon on our own terms. All that stuff he said was just to rile you up and to get you to leave. Atsuya's weirdly competitive like that."

Someoka grunted, not convinced.

"Also," Fubuki added, "he probably thought it was funny. You have to admit, it kinda was, a little."

"Seriously?" Someoka growled. He'd invited him in for this? Fubuki was skating on thin ice here.

Fubuki laughed nervously. "Okay, maybe it wasn't funny." Anyone with a brain could tell that he didn't truly believe that, but Someoka let it slide. "I'm sorry he was so rude to you."

"It's not you I want that apology from," Someoka said. "His words were way outta line." Now that they were talking about Atsuya, Fubuki had on the same annoyingly complacent smile he always had when it came to him. "You're too soft on him," Someoka said bluntly. "You spoil him. And it shows."

Fubuki's smile faltered.

"I know."

Someoka blinked. "'Scuse me?"

"I indulge him. I know," Fubuki said, his voice softer than ever before. He looked away from Someoka, eyes fixed resolutely on the surface of the coffee table. "I know I need to stop, that it's not good for him. But it's become a habit, I think. I've always taken care of him." Fubuki paused, then continued, "Ever since our parents died."'

Someoka's throat suddenly dried up. "Whoa. I'm sorry," he said. "I didn't know."

Fubuki waved a hand. "Don't be. It was a long time ago. I was seven and he was six. After the avalanche, Hakuren took us in. But believe me, I know that Atsuya is… undisciplined. And that I should set him straight."

"Well, then," Someoka said, "why don't you?"

Fubuki took a deep breath. He seemed to be struggling to get the words out. Someoka waited with a patience that he had just learned he had.

"This is going to sound strange," Fubuki finally said. "And know that you're the first and only person I'm telling this to. And I don't want it to be an excuse. It's just an explanation. Like a mental block. Something I have to work on."

Someoka nodded.

"Recently," Fubuki said, "I've been having dreams… that my brother is dead. That he died along with my parents in the avalanche. I don't see a body or anything, but in the dream, I just know. And it's throwing me off."

Someoka didn't respond. How could he? The kid was annoying, but no way in hell did he want him dead.

"Lately," said Fubuki, "whenever I see Atsuya, I freeze up and remember my dream. And then he moves and I'm reminded that it isn't real."

His eyes found Someoka's then. "That's what happened this morning too. I panicked. Again, I'm sorry."

Someoka finally found his voice. "That's rough," was all he could say.

"I know Atsuya can be unreasonable at times," Fubuki said. "But I promise I'll try to set him right. He's got real talent. So… could you give him and Hakuren another chance?"

He fell silent. For a few minutes, all they could hear was the sound of their own breathing.

Someoka was the first to act. "Look," he ventured, "I gotta tell you something."

He took a deep breath. "Atsuya was right. Gouenji is the best striker in the Raimon Eleven. And, well, it struck a nerve. But now that I think about it, we're kind of similar, him and me. The way Atsuya's acting is the way I used to act when Gouenji first joined the team. Don't you tell anyone I said this," he hastened to add.

"So," Someoka continued, "I get it. And I get him. So I will give him another chance. But just one, you hear me? Just one."

Fubuki nodded, his expression solemn. "Thank you, Someoka-kun. Is there anything at all I can do for you in return?"

"Well, if you're asking," Someoka said, "about my room…"

"Is there something wrong with it?" Fubuki asked, alarm creeping into his tone. "We made sure to give you the best room."

If that was what Fubuki called the best room, Someoka shuddered to think of how the other rooms must be. "No, the room's fine," he said, lying through his teeth. "Just, how about some actual light-blocking curtains…"

The next afternoon, Someoka was reading the newest issue of Monthly Soccer Magazine when there was a knock on his door. A short cacophony of squeaking immediately followed as Atsuya let himself in. He looked at Someoka expectantly.

"What is it?" Someoka grunted after a short period of silence. He may have agreed to give Atsuya another chance, but he wasn't up for another one of his pranks.

"Umm, nothing," Atsuya said, looking around. "Nice room. You don't have much stuff, do you?"

Someoka rubbed the bridge of his nose to ease the tension already forming at his browline. Atsuya wasn't being antagonistic on purpose, right? Fubuki had talked to him. They had reached an understanding.

"What do you want, Atsuya?"

"Nothing!" Atsuya said. "I heard you don't like your room? I don't see why. It's great. Nii-san wanted to give you the best room, you know. This used to be his room. We didn't realise you had different preferences though."

"Atsuya," Someoka gritted out. "What. Do. You. Want?"

"Nothing," Atsuya said for the third time, making it three times that he had not fooled Someoka. "Was just wondering, if you hate it this much, why don't you switch rooms with me? I'm on the first floor. Close to the bathroom and everything."

Someoka sighed. So this was what he had been building up to.

To be honest, he was tempted to take the offer. But, if what Atsuya was saying was true and Fubuki had really given up his room for him…

"I don't hate this room," he said. "It's good of you to offer, but I'll pass, thanks."

Atsuya groaned and planted himself further into Someoka's floor. Weren't normal people supposed to take their leave once things got awkward? Then again, Atsuya was hardly normal.

"Seriously?" Atsuya mumbled. "I thought I'd be nice and make up for my rudeness by offering you a room swap. How can you like this stupid room? If I had to see those curtains every morning I'd puke."

"Well, then, it's probably for the better that we don't switch then," Someoka shot back. His annoyance was half-hearted. As much as he tried not to admit it, it was possible that deep in his heart, Someoka was… touched?

"Look," Atsuya said after a pause, and the smile that appeared on his face extinguished that fuzzy feeling in a heartbeat. It was the smile that meant Atsuya was going to make fun of Someoka's so-called crab obsession again. He had got over that after the first day, dammit! "We don't have crab here. But let me show you what we do have."

Atsuya's grin was so smarmy that Someoka wanted to literally kick him out of the room. He looked at the younger boy's eager face, and asked, "What is it?"

Atsuya's sly grin stretched out wider. Someoka was sure his teeth had to be about to pop out.

"Your city boy brain ever heard of jingisukan?"

Jingisukan, or Genghis Khan, was basically communal grilled lamb and veggies in a hotpot. That was all Hakuren told Someoka before they got to work.

Someone had managed to dig out an old gas burner from storage somewhere, and Araya and Matoro immediately got to work sourcing a gas canister and cleaning it up. Hakoda and Hyoujou appointed themselves in charge of the ingredients, immediately repurposing Someoka's desk to act as the ingredient preparation station. It was decided that the hotpot would happen on and around Someoka's coffee table and cushions were brought in to furnish the space. And, while this had nothing to do with the food, Sorano and Yukino holed up in Yukino's room to work on something they refused to tell Someoka anything about.

Bemused, Someoka watched Hakuren troop in and out of his room. He waited for any one of Hakuren's seventeen team members to point out that having an open flame burning inside a small, cramped room on the top level of a building might not be such a great idea. But preparations proceeded so smoothly and with such vigour that eventually he realised nobody cared.

Fubuki kept him company while the others worked, not that it was for long. After what seemed like barely half an hour of his jokes and snowboarding stories, Someoka was rushed out of his own room without explanation for the final preparations. When he thought about it, it was actually kind of unreasonable, but Hakuren were so enthusiastic that he just couldn't protest.

Atsuya arrived to fetch them when everything was ready. Someoka still wanted to knock the cocky grin off his face, but he supposed some things would never change. Atsuya led the two of them to Someoka's room and threw the door open to darkness.

The hinges screeched. Someoka winced. The doorknob headed at top speed towards the wall. But before it could slam against it, the light went on, party poppers went off, and Someoka came face to face with a huge banner that read "WELCOME TO HAKUREN, SOMEOKA-SAN!" in very cute lettering. Wait, this was what Yukino and Sorano had been doing, right? Not the girls. Wait, what?

"Welcome to Hakuren, Someoka-san!" Yukino beamed at him. "We shoulda thrown this party last week, but y'know what, what matters is that we're having it now!"

"Welcome, Someoka-san!" the rest of the team chorused.

"We're gonna conquer the Football Frontier!" Atsuya added with stars in his eyes.

Someoka took in the huge pot of food sitting on top of the gas burner on the coffee table, beautifully layered and arranged. A pile of sliced lamb as big as Someoka's head lay on a bed of sprouts and cabbage. Around the table sat the members of the Hakuren Middle School football club with huge smiles on their faces. Fubuki had already moved in to take his seat, and the largest cushion in the middle of the room lay empty for him.

A lump suddenly formed in Someoka's throat. He swallowed, and when he spoke, his voice was gruff.

"Wow," he said. "Thanks, guys."

"Don't sweat it!" Atsuya chirped and Someoka was too overwhelmed to point out that Atsuya had kind of been a little asshole to him all week, so this was the least he could do. "Let's eat!"

Araya fired up the flame, and soon the room was filled with the smoky, hearty aroma of roast lamb. Chopsticks clashed, jokes were told, and Atsuya boasted at length about the snowboarding tricks he could do. For once, the rest of the team indulged him.

When the room got too smoky, they opened Someoka's new light-blocking curtains, which had remained fully drawn since he had received them, and the window to provide some ventilation. The crisp mountain air flooded into the room and provided some much needed relief.

Fubuki slipped out of the room and came back with a box of snow bunny daifukumochi. He handed the first one to Someoka before getting absorbed in a conversation with Hyoujou about the best way to fake out an attacker.

Someoka, for his part, had been in a heated conversation with Hakoda about Machine Truck Gyrozetter for the better part of an hour. He had been excited when he'd discovered that they both had watched the show obsessively when they were children. Then it transpired that Hakoda both had no taste and no brains. After insisting that the name of the main character's special move was Spin Zetter Drill and not stupid Cross Zetter Punch for what felt like the hundredth time, Someoka went to refill his glass of juice and cool his head.

When he returned, Hakoda was slumped into the corner of two cushions and snoring away. The quiet of the room and the time of night suddenly became very apparent. Nonplussed, and still with the glass of juice in his hand, Someoka looked around. All around him lay the snoozing members of the Hakuren Middle School football team. They had taken up all the available space in the room, and he was left wondering what space remained for him.

Something at the corner of his eye stirred, and Someoka turned.

It was Fubuki, yawning and rubbing his eyes. He caught Someoka's eye and turned to survey the room.

"Whoa," he said, having the gall to sound surprised. Didn't he know how many people were in his own team? Some captain he was! "Fell asleep. Great party. I'll see myself to my room now, Someoka-kun."

Then he turned towards the window, and his lips curved up into a grin. "But first, oh man, would you look at that."

Someoka looked at the window. Come to think of it, this was the first time since he moved in that the curtains were open in the morning. The first cracks of dawn glow were just starting to creep in.

"We're gonna win the Football Frontier, you know," Atsuya piped up sleepily from somewhere below and to the left of him. "With you on the team, we're gonna beat everyone into the dust…"

Someoka bit back his words. Hakuren was still learning and had barely scraped the surface of middle school football in Japan. But they were undoubtedly strong and had mountains of untapped potential.

He turned, and startled when he made eye contact with a now alert Fubuki. At some point, the captain must have stopped looking out at the sunrise and instead transferred his studying gaze onto him.

"I'm glad you came here to Hakuren, Someoka-kun," he murmured, and damn if Someoka's heart didn't start racing at that. This was getting weird, dammit. He averted his eyes, but Fubuki's gaze stayed on him, gentle and probing. Someoka could feel himself getting flustered, and he probably would have blurted out something stupid if Fubuki hadn't started speaking again.

"Someoka-kun." Fubuki extended his hand out to him, his gaze unwavering and his calm, confident smile aimed directly at him. "Let's take the Football Frontier together."

Someoka swallowed, and took Fubuki's hand. He met his gaze squarely and they shook hands, and Fubuki broke out into a grin. A thrill rushed through Someoka and he found himself returning the grin as the colours of the breaking dawn splashed both of their complexions.

"Oh," Someoka said, "you bet your ass we will."