"Oh, hey. I won't tell Daichi about that," Suga pointed at her foot, and she froze. "If you help out with extra practices."

"Huh?! Why do I gotta help you sneak around, I could just tell Daichi about what you're up to," she snapped back. Suga was ready for it this time, and came in with a counter attack.

"Hm? Whatever could you mean?," he grinned back at her, a rare dark look.

"I heard about him and the other idiot. Got themselves thrown out by Daichi for pissin' off Secret Baldy. Why else would you be out here and not in the gym?," she leaned toward him, and he stepped forward. He wasn't backing down, and Hinata could only watch whatever this silent warfare as it transpired.

"If you come early to morning practice, I'll buy you breakfast," Suga finally unleashed his trump card, and she gritted her teeth.

"Fine," she backed down, and Suga celebrated his little victory just as the bell rang for them to get back to class. Suga ordered Hinata to come early tomorrow as he ran off. Once out of sight, he sighed heavily and rammed his palm into his forehead. He was definitely gonna regret using his secret weapon just then, especially since he didn't have any money til the start of next week. He wasn't gonna be able to ask his mom for an advance on his allowance, either, so he was left with one choice. The worst possible one. Her eating breakfast with his family, for at least a couple days. He would have to make sure to mentally prepare for his mother's snide remarks.

…

The next morning came too soon, and this time it was Suga groaning and rolling out of bed cursing himself. He got dressed and slid his shoes on, calling to his mom that he would be back in a few minutes. He didn't wait for her to reply and rushed out the door, letting that momentum carry him all the way to Kitsuna's doorstep. He knocked softly, hoping she had overslept again with the music thumping from inside.

"Oh. Uh, 'morning?," Kitsuna answered the door this time, sliding on her shoes and stepping out with her bag in tow. She wore her tracksuit, jacket unzipped with a dark shirt underneath. Probably prepped for practice already so she wouldn't have to change twice and take up time.

"Uh, morning. Did you remember your uniform?," Suga asked. Her eyes widened and she apologized, running back inside. She left the door open, and he saw her tear around the corner, scooping something off the couch. She stuffed it all into her bag, then pulled the door closed and locked it.

"Sorry. Wait, why're you here? Could just meet up at the gym, yeah?," she asked a pretty obvious question, but one he was hoping to stall on for a while more.

"Right. Um, I'm kinda short on cash, so it's plan B for today," he answered her after a period of silence, and turned toward the door to his own house. She tilted her head, but didn't say anything else. He opened the door slowly, peeking around it and yelping when Kitsuna let out a loud sneeze behind him.

"Hey, quit lettin' the heat out Koushi!," a woman's voice rang out, and he sighed again before relenting to his fate. Kitsuna entered with him, sliding her shoes off by the door and dropping her bag where he suggested. She was weirdly quiet, and polite when greeting his mom. They sat down at the table, both stiff as boards under the weird air in the room as his mom finished cooking and set out some plates.

"So, you're on the boy's volleyball team?," his mom asked a pretty normal question, for which he was glad.

"Huh? Oh, not officially. Just helpin' out Daichi," Kitsuna answered. Her words were stiff, too, but she quickly opened up once breakfast was served. She wolfed the food down, remembering halfway through the eggs that she wasn't at home and slowing down to a somewhat more civilized pace.

"Will they not let you join, 'cause it's not the girls' team?," Mrs. Sugawara asked, smiling at the girl while locked in a silent battle of stares with her son.

"Hm? Oh, um. I haven't actually asked," Kitsuna answered through a mouthful of food. She finished eating and hugged her drink as her dishes were cleared away. She started to stand and tend to it herself, but Mrs. Sugawara was faster.

"Hm? You good?," Kitsuna glanced at her friend. He had been picking at his food, and his usual friendly demeanor was missing.

"Oh, sorry. Used to a lighter breakfast-Hey, that doesn't mean you can take it!," Suga was too slow in stopping her from stealing one of his strips of bacon, and she stuck her tongue out at him with a goofy grin. He laughed, feeling his tension wash away with that move, and finished his food in a flash. They headed to the door and got ready to head out again, but were stopped by Suga's mom on the way through the door.

"Wait, Koushi. Here," she handed over a folded bundle. It was small, but pretty easy to recognize for a part-time cashier. Suga looked at it, then at her, and repeated the motion a few times.

"Hey, you did that just to-!"

"It was nice meeting you finally, Kitsuna. And good luck with practice," his mom cut him off, ushering them both out the door and closing it behind them. They both stood there with wide eyes, like deer in headlights, for a solid two minutes.

"Right, let's go. Sorry about that, probably should have told you before putting you through her antics," Suga apologized, but Kitsuna was still not really catching the vibe. The girl started doing some stretches, finally awake and fully reinvigorated.

"Hm? 'S fine. She's a good cook, anyway," Kitsuna stood up and turned around partway through stretching her arms. Suga laughed it off, and did some quick stretches with her. She grinned, adjusting her bag, and stanced up for a dead sprint.

"Ready, go!," she yelled out, and took off just a second before Suga did. She lost a lot of speed on the hill, and they ended up tying at the gym door.

"Not you guys, too," Tanaka whined. They looked up from catching their breath, and saw the two problem children already going at it. The two of them just laughed, tossing their bags aside and finishing their warmups. They practiced with the others for a while, then rushed Hinata and Kageyama out when Kitsuna heard the crunch of footsteps on gravel outside.

"Huh? You're early, Kitsuna," Daichi noted when he entered the gym, followed by the other two new members. A tall blonde guy with glasses, and a slightly shorter one with dark hair and freckles.

"Heh, there's a girl on the team? Oh this is rich," the blonde one started off with a smug remark. The one with him apologized, and glanced at her a few times. She shrugged, ignoring them for the time being, and pulled her hair back into a low ponytail. Tanaka, Daichi, and Suga all stared at her with their jaws nearly on the floor. She asked Kiyoko for a hair tie, giving them time to recover before she caught them. For once, she brushed her hair out of her face and both of her eyes shined with a renewed determination.