"What was with that thing at the stairs? Did you actually have to walk all the way here?," Suga asked after they split off. Kitsuna was glaring at her hands and flexing her fingers, extremely bothered by the cloth barrier and the size disparity of the gloves to her hands.

"Hm? Oh, yeah," she answered somewhat distractedly. Her face soured even harder when she thought about the reason, and hoped Suga wasn't about to ask for it.

"Really, why though? And it took you like two or three hours to get here?!," Suga did indeed ask, and was shocked by what he heard.

"Grumpy ass old fart Ukai said I couldn't get a ride. If I wasn't gonna tell him what was buggin' me I should find my own way to make things work," she grumbled out and stuffed her hands back in her pockets.

"That does sound like something he'd do, actually," Suga recalled the brief period that man coached the Karasuno team with a chill.

"I guess it wouldn't kill me to get some exercise on off days. I thought about borrowing Hinata's bike, but then I'd have to take it back and come right back down. Or worse, he'd try to get me to practice with him," Kitsuna begrudgingly admitted. It sounded almost like she was trying to convince herself that she was fine with it, but really she was still pissed off. Suga laughed at that, and they walked down the sleepy streets to his house.

"So you always get up at five?," Suga started up a conversation again, at a stop light they had to wait on.

"Yeah. I used to sleep in more when I didn't have work, but breaking that habit was always worse the next shift I had," she did some wrist stretches while they waited to keep it from stiffening up.

"No wonder you're so tired all the time," Suga laughed again. Kitsuna chuckled along with him, and they crossed the street finally. Kitsuna got lost in thought for a while, until Suga's curiosity got the better of him again.

"What's up? You've got that look again," he bumped her elbow with his and she pulled herself out of it.

"Oh, sorry. It's just weird."

"What's weird?"

"Daichi didn't ask about the break this time. I guess it has been a couple of years, but his family used to always invite me over for the holidays. Did I finally piss them off?," Kitsuna seemed genuinely worried about that possibility and Suga felt kinda bad for her. After all, it was because of Daichi's insistence that Suga actually worked up the courage to ask if she could visit for New Year's.

"Why not with your own family? U-uh, wait. Sorry!," he blurted it out before he could stop himself, and panicked after.

"Hm? Well," Kitsuna's eyes faded away again. Like she was there but not really there.

"No, it's fine. I shouldn't have asked that," Suga half bowed in apology, making her laugh. A cold laugh, but still a laugh.

"It's fine. Can't avoid it being brought up forever I guess. Mom's gone. Car accident. Dad..last track I had was still hospitalized and going through rehabilitation or something. Hope he's miserable," she answered without her tone changing at all or her mood tanking. But that was somehow more unnerving than if she had gotten really sad all of a sudden.

"O-oh. Sorry," Suga wasn't sure how to respond, especially to that last bitter jab. Kitsuna's eyes lit back up suddenly, and she smiled at him for a second before turning her eyes back to what was in front of her.

"Don't worry about it. If I didn't want to talk about it, I wouldn't," she stated factually. It was true that she would usually skirt around topics she wasn't comfortable with, or find some other way to avoid it. Suga decided to try his luck after all, and get some more lingering questions answered.

"So, how come you're with the Ukai family? Coach handles all your permission slips and stuff, too. Are you a relative of theirs or something?," he expected a harsh reaction but she just glanced at him and kept her pace.

"Nope. After stuff got bad one time with the old man, Keishin ended up being the one to get me to a hospital. Made the news and everything. Don't have any other relatives, and the remaining parent wasn't fit to handle it. So, at least on paper, Keishin stepped up. Still dunno why he chose to, I'm sure with a push Daichi or Yui's family would have," she answered his question, and a few others at the same time. It's not that she was a dishonest person, but she was being unusually open today.

"Huh. So they just sorta took you in? With no background or anything?," Suga couldn't wrap his head around that very well. Or maybe he could, and that was scarier. After all, she was about to join his family for the day, and not even really at his request. His mom and brother had gotten pretty attached to her and practically hounded him until he popped the question to her.

"Mm. Weirder stuff has happened probably. Like me actually joining a team or doing something outside of work and school," she finished off the conversation there. They had reached their destination anyway, and stepped inside.

"Hello!," Kitsuna greeted the little boy bouncing by the door, and the woman waiting on the couch. Suga and Kitsuna shed their shoes and extra layers, with Suga disappearing to his room to stash away her bag for now. Kitsuna relaxed for probably the first time that day, and spent the majority of her time entertaining Koda. She even picked him up and held him on her shoulders for a minute, just to taunt Suga about a sore spot.

"Hey look, you're taller than he is now," Kitsuna pointed over at Suga and the two of them laughed at his flustered reaction. Suga's mom laughed from the kitchen, setting him off all over again. Then it was time for dinner, and Kitsuna ate more than anyone else. They ate early, tucking away the leftovers for later, and played some board games until Koda drifted off into a nap on the couch. Kitsuna smiled at him, then stood up and stretched.

"So, did you live close to Daichi before?," Suga asked another question. He felt comfortable enough to ask, but still got a little freaked out whenever the look in her eyes would shift.

"Hm, sorta. The house is probably still there, actually. Wanna go check it out?," she asked that question like it was nothing. Suga was feeling a little restless, having not been burning energy like normal with daily practice or school work.

"Are you sure?," he asked her once more to confirm as they slid on their shoes and winter gear. She nodded her head, struggling to wrap the scarf in a way that actually kept her warm. He laughed and tied it up for her, the same way he always did his.