Note: Originally written after Lang's Yu Yu Hakusho crossover snippet, where it made me feel things that needed to be rectified. If Lang and Os bring drama, I bring fluff. With RWBY's Gold to boot. So there.

I'd like to think this takes place a little before Sparkle 44. Inspired by the opening of Magia Record's anime adaptation, being Gomakashi by TrySail. if you want to listen.

I don't regret staying up late to write this. You know what I'm going to say, Lang, Os.

Workaholics prosper with friends to care for. At least, that's how it goes for me.

Sparkle 45: Leaning On Each Other

There are many worlds, but they share the same sky.

The words circled around my brain as my fingers grazed the top of a new sugar cookie. The silence wasn't foreign per say, but considering Kei's usual home environment with Hayate and Wataru-jichan and Miyako-bachan, it definitely felt…lonelier, if that was one way to put it.

Thankfully, the rest of our friends were around. The silence wasn't helping anything, though.

I stepped out of the kitchen to peek into the living room, and sure enough, Obito and Rin were discussing something in a corner, Kakashi was standing guard doing…well, Kakashi-things, and Kei was on the couch, reading a book.

Sure, there's just one world right now, Kairi, but…

I clamped down on my chakra to hide my concern, walking over to quietly take the nearest seat at Kei's right side. She didn't look up from her book, simply humming in acknowledgement.

There's still friends that I live with under the same sky. Friends that deserve a lot more.

I went with my gut feeling and gently rested my head against her shoulder, reaching out with my chakra to lightly ping hers.

Kei didn't move, the slightest jolt through her figure the only indication I had that she noticed me. Then her chakra pinged mine back. "What's up, Tomo?" she said quietly.

I couldn't help myself. "Nothing else but the ceiling."

There was a pause. Obito nearby choked and without having to look up, I knew I caught Kakashi's attention thanks to the sound of his clothes rustling.

Kei shuffled in what seemed like surprise before laughing out loud. "I-I didn't take you to use puns, Tomo," she managed around the obvious chuckle.

"Muu." A frustrated pout came up on my lips before I could stop myself. Then again, I had no clue if I could at this point. Instead, I swiveled on my neck to rest my forehead against the shoulder of her shirt sleeve. "It got your attention, even if it's a horrible one. So I'll try to be punny more often."

"Tomo-chan!" Obito snapped.

"Muu. I don't regret it. Fight me."

Rin giggled in her usual good-natured way.

Meanwhile, there was no mistaking the snicker in Kei's voice as an arm reached past my back to hold my shoulders. "You need to work on your delivery, Tomo," Kei chided. "That landed pretty flat."

"And the Earth is round and rotating on a crooked axis, sue me," I said childishly in return, refusing to raise my head from my newest friend burrow. "I'm trying and I don't wanna move."

"Stubborn as always," Kei mused, the fond exasperation echoing in the words as her hand squeezed my shoulders gently.

I paused, thinking on it for a second. "…Would you have me any other way?"

The answer was immediate. "Nope."

"Good." A smile replaced the pout and I released the air stored in my cheeks. "What's up with you?"

"Not much." There was a crinkle signaling the turning of a page. "The protagonist in the novel is in the middle of trying to woo the male lead. They're not doing a good job."

Interesting, sure, but that's not what you wanted to ask, right, Tomoko-chan?

Uuuu.

I swiveled my head to look up at Kei from what little vantage point I could get. "You know I was asking about you, not the protagonist of the book, right?"

Kei blinked, inclining her head to meet my eyes, her cowlicks brushing the top of my head with the motion. Then she smiled. "Yeah," she said quietly. "I know."

Muu. I raised my head to bring it back down onto her shoulder in a bonk gesture, using some force to constitute some kind of hit. As expected, Kei startled, at least a little. "You're my best friend in the whole wide world, y'know."

"I know."

Another bonk. "Nagareboshi Café will always be open for you, y'know."

"I know, Tomo."

It took all I had to keep my voice level. And to not wince at the sting starting to get through my skull at all the bonks. "So then, Kei?"

"Hm?"

Bonk. "Whenever you need help, whenever you're down, you can call me up, y'know. I don't know how well I can fix things, but I'll try. I'll always try."

There was a small sigh. "Tomo, you know I'm not good at asking for—"

Bonk. Kei went silent at that.

It was the least I could do. Even if I was starting up a small bit by bonking my forehead into her shoulder. How many was it now? Four? Sure, it was still a bit of Ow, but eh. I had a point to make. This was my promise of a lifetime.

Bonk.

"Just listen, okay?" Bonk. "No matter what happens, no matter what you end up doing, I'll stay with you. To the end of our days."

Bonk.

"I care about you, y'know. So when you need it, let me help you like you help me. Just get that memorized."

Bonk.

Yep. That hurt. All the bonks hurt. But I meant every single bit of it.

No sky is worth it if you're not there to see it too.

The hand on my shoulders tensed. Then it reached upwards, gently patting the top of my head and smoothing back my bangs. "…I know," Kei said finally, a hint of something raw, something grateful in the phrase this time. "Thanks, Tomo."

"Aye."

Bonk.

"Really?"

I closed my eyes, taking a breath and deciding not to justify my head pain with an answer.

Fwump.

The weight on my lap was not expected in the slightest.

I blinked my eyes open after a moment, and once the weight shifted, there was a chuckle at my side. Kei must've noticed it first. Huh. "Obito, what are you doing?"

I blinked again, rubbing my eyes as my vision focused on a dark mane of spiky black hair. The orange collar gave the rest of it away. "Obi?"

Obito grumbled, his ear pressed into the middle of the space between my legs on the couch and his face pointed towards my stomach. His legs were left sprawled out on the nearby couch cushions. "You two better not be in a world all by yourselves," he said simply, a clear frown stretching his cheeks. "You're horrible at communicating if you start with puns."

Ah. "It was my first try, Obi," I soothed, reaching over with my right hand to rest against the side of his scalp. "I can try a different joke."

"Can you?" Obito swiveled his head up to glower at me, one eyebrow quirked. "I don't want Kei influencing you more, Tomo-chan."

"Hey," Kei interjected. "I'll have you know puns are great."

"You suck," Obito shot back, turning back to face my stomach and raising an arm to hug my waist. Uh. "Tomo-chan is still pure. Don't corrupt her."

"This coming from the ninja?" I offered plainly, still leaning against Kei's shoulder while petting Obito's hair. "Because I could've sworn bad puns are how eye roll considering the family-friend thing."

I had no clue where I got it, but the pun slipped off my tongue like a cat caught it.

Pft. Hisako covered her mouth first. Kei then jolted with a surprised laugh.

Obito proceeded to wail a loud "Nooooo!" into my shirt as he hugged me tighter. "Kei, you had one job!"

"Swing and a miss, Obito," Kei added cheerily, her cheek bumping the top of my head. "At least your aim is starting to improve!"

"ARGH, STOP STOP STOP."

A nervous giggle left my lips as I pet Obito's hair. "Aye aye, Cap'n."

Obito grumbled something unintelligible.

Hm. "I'll hold off on the puns and you can have a batch of cupcakes later, will that be better?"

This time, there was a hum of approval. Obito closed his eyes and leaned into my hand to let me brush his hair, and that seemed to be the end of the discussion.

Someone else was sitting down on the couch near Kei's other side and I swiveled my head to see a hint of purple stripes as Ricchan smiled. "Can I join in?" she said, a medical textbook in her lap. "This looks like fun."

"There's cookies near the stove if you want to grab those first, Ricchan," I said, feeling my heart flutter in that happy content way. "Just to help with the studying you have there." Because if I didn't know any better, her book looked way too much like a certain gigantic General Chemistry textbook Vy had way back when. Food was necessary with textbooks. "The cookies are sugar and snickerdoodle."

Ricchan's smile widened. "Maybe later?" She still absently opened the front cover of her book, glancing at it before leaning against Kei's other shoulder. "This feels nice right now."

"Team pillow status confirmed," Kei droned, but there was no mistaking the small smile tugging at her lips. She shuffled to handle both mine and Ricchan's weights before considering. "What about you, Kakashi?"

"Hn." The couch on my end proceeded to dip anyways with a new weight and then I could see my housemate absently leaning back against a pillow as he cleaned a kunai. His legs were barely in the reach of Obito's legs. "There's not enough space for a huddle." A plate was then there on top of Obito's hair and I tried not to squeak. "But I brought the cookies."

"Th-Thanks?"

"Oi, why on my head?" Obito demanded from under the cookie plate, alerting everyone that he was not happy again. "I'm not a table!"

"There's no other place to put it."

"Why you—"

I smiled and hummed instead, taking the plate off of Obito's head with one hand and grabbing a cookie with the other. It did not take long to gently dangle the cookie in front of the ninja still laying in my lap, and Obito blinked at it. "Just eat and relax?" I offered, easily balancing the plate with my other hand. "We don't have anything going on today, so let's pass the time like this."

Obito looked at the sweet and considered. Then he raised his head, just slightly, to take the cookie into his mouth to chew and a giggle left my lips.

This was worth it.

I closed my eyes, leaned back against Kei while holding the cookie plate, and hummed the notes.

"Dream of anything;

I'll make it all come true.

Everything you need

Is all I have for you.

I'm forever

Always by your side.

Whenever you need a friend,

I'm never far behind."

"Hm." Obito shifted and I tried not to jolt once he reached over to grab the cookie plate from my hand, crumbs already getting onto his cheeks with the gesture. "Could you sing that a bit louder, Tomo-chan? I want to hear."

"Eh?" A little bit of heat climbed up to my cheeks. "You sure?"

"We've all heard you sing before, Tomo," Kei added in suddenly, and her elbow gently nudged my side. "You're fine."

Ricchan peered past the newest page in her textbook to smile. "You were the one to say we should relax, right?"

Feeling a bit embarrassed, I glanced at Kakashi. He didn't look up from his kunai, merely shooting me a single glance before concentrating again.

Obito mumbled, "You're not going to complain now, are you, Bakashi?" into my stomach.

Give him a minute, Hisako chided as her form of input.

It took a moment to formulate an answer. "No," Kakashi said finally, his shoulders slumping. "Go ahead."

I smiled, pet Obito's head, and raised the volume just a little.

"If the stars all fall,

When there's no more light,

And the moon should crumble,

It will be alright."

Konoha wouldn't be safe all the time. The war was still ongoing and there was no guarantee that what I was doing was the right thing. But everyone was here, and that felt like enough for now.

"Don't you worry about the dark,

I will light up the night with the love in my heart.

I will burn like the sun,

I will keep you safe and warm.

Like the smell of a rose on a summer's day,

I will be there to take all your fears away.

With a touch of my hand,

I will turn your life to gold."

We could lean on each other like this, on a single couch, and call it home. It was something worth remembering.

Under the same sky, indeed.