A/N: All right, third chapter is ready! Time for the team to meet Mika-chan.

In no time at all Saturday rolled around and Masaharu couldn't wait for that evening. He loved cooking, and had wanted to share this with his team for some time. Of course, under any other circumstance, the rest of the Rikkai regulars probably wouldn't even dare touch anything Masaharu cooked, but tonight he would be able to show off for them. Smiling at the sound of laughter coming from the front yard through the open window, Masaharu looked up at the clock before deciding that he should probably head to the kitchen and get started on the curry for dinner so that they could be eating by about six.

"So you're sure it's ok for me to come along tonight?" Kamio asked his boyfriend as they walked to the corner where they were going to be meeting the rest of the Rikkai regulars.

Squeezing the red head's hand, Akaya bumped shoulders with Kamio as he answered with a bit of a laugh. "Yes I'm sure. Nioh-senpai wouldn't have invited you if it wasn't ok for you to come along. My senpai will not bite or kill you so relax ok? I'm nervous about this too, especially with how Buchou and Fukubuchou treat me like a little kid. It's time for them to see that I'm growing up and can stand on my own without them there to hold my hand all the time."

Kamio smiled and did his best to let the tension out of his shoulders. "So does that mean that you don't need me to hold your hand either?"

Akaya quickly switched from holding Kamio's hand to having his arm wrapped around the red head's waist. "You aren't going anywhere pal. I'm not letting go of you that easily."

Kamio laughed and leaned into Akaya's side as the rest of the group came into sight. "Good, I don't want you to."

"Oi, slowpokes, it's about damn time you got here. With how fast Kamio-kun is supposed to be I thought you two would beat the rest of us here." Marui teased with a smile as he saw the two younger boys join the group.

"We would have been here sooner Marui-senpai, but I know how slow you are so I didn't want to make you feel bad for being the last one here." Akaya jeered at the red haired tensai with the cake in his hands.

Kamio looked at the sheet cake that Marui was holding for a moment before deciding to join in on the banter. "So, Marui-san, what are the rest of us having for dessert?"

Marui gaped at Kamio in shock as the whole group fell silent for a moment. Kamio had on the most innocent expression he was capable of, and after a short moment, Jackal and Yukimura started snickering. This proved to be the catalyst for the rest, because in no time at all Akaya, Yanagi, Inui, and even Sanada began to laugh as well. Marui scowled at his fellow red head in an attempt to quell the laughs around him, but that plan only served to make Kamio start laughing along with everyone else. Sniffing haughtily as he tried his hardest to keep from busting up as well, Marui gave Kamio a look of mock contempt as he spoke. "If you don't want any chocolate cake after dinner, you could have just said so."

Fighting off yet another round of hysterics, Yukimura tried to regain his composure and take control of the situation. "Now, now you two, you can fight over the cake later, for now we should be on our way or we'll be late."

As the group of teens began heading toward the address that Masaharu and Hiroshi had given their teammates, Kamio heard Inui and Yanagi talking from behind him. "Well, now I know why Momo no longer has Kamio-kun as competition for Tachibana-chan's attention."

"Indeed. I admit, I was rather surprised to hear that Akaya was in a relationship with anyone, let alone someone who I had thought was straight. Either my data is failing me or my observational skills are getting rusty." Yanagi sounded a bit disappointed in himself.

Looking over his shoulder, Akaya did his best to reassure his senpai. "Did you ever consider the fact that I'm just getting really good at keeping things secret when I don't want you to know them senpai? I did have a whole year without you around to learn how to hide things from you when I don't want you to know them."

As the group of eight approached their destination, they saw something that made Sanada and Yukimura smile. There behind the little fence around the front yard was Hiroshi and Mika, and it appeared that Mika was learning to play tennis. Naturally, the racket that Mika was using was very nearly the same size that she was so she wasn't exactly doing a lot. Hiroshi was very patient though, and tossed tennis ball after tennis ball to Mika so that she could practice returning them. Yukimura liked that scene very much, it was only right for their next generation to be interested in tennis after all.

Unlocking the gate and stepping into the yard, Sanada walked over to crouch next to Mika. Smiling gently at the little girl next to him, Sanada asked her if he could show her something. When Mika nodded, Sanada placed his hands on her shoulders and motioned for Hiroshi to throw another ball. As the tennis ball came toward the pair, Sanada gently guided Mika's return so that the little girl hit the ball directly back to Hiroshi with just a bit more force than she had been showing previously. As her papa nearly fell backward in surprise while catching the ball, Mika dropped the racket she had been holding and spun to give Sanada a hug as she cheered in delight. "I did it! I hit the ball back to Papa! Thank you for helping me."

Sanada hugged Mika back as he smiled gently, really the little girl was just too cute to resist. Behind him, he could hear his teammates snickering about how soft he was getting. Sanada wanted to come up with some sort of witty retort, but in truth they weren't entirely wrong, Sanada did most certainly have a soft spot for the little girl in his arms and he had only just met her. Pulling back to look down at Mika, Sanada gently patted her on the head as he spoke to her. "You're welcome, I was happy to help you. What's your name?" Obviously Sanada already knew it, but he figured that asking Mika directly would be best.

Bowing cheerfully just like her teacher had taught her, Mika introduced herself. "My name is Yagyuu Mika, what's your name?"

"My name is Sanada Genichirou, but you can just call me Uncle Gen ok?"

Mika blinked up at him in disbelief. "Really?"

Sanada chuckled softly as he ruffled her hair gently. "Yes really."

Yagyuu smiled slightly as he started to gather up the tennis balls from the grass. "Mika, can you do something for me?"

Spinning to face one of her fathers, Mika titled her head to the side slightly as she answered. "What is it Papa?"

"Can you take your Uncle Bunta inside and show him where the kitchen is so he can put up the cake he brought us for dessert?"

Turning to look at the group of people she didn't know, Mika zeroed in on Marui at the site of the cake carrier in his hands. Walking up to the red head, Mika titled her head back to look up at the shortest of the boys. "Are you my Uncle Bunta?"

Marui smiled. "Yep, that's me alright."

Mika frowned in concentration. "Well, I can't hold your hand since you have to hold the cake, so just stay close ok? I don't want you to get lost."

Marui bit back a laugh as he agreed and followed the little girl into the house. As he slipped off his shoes in the entryway, Marui saw that Mika had pulled out a pair of slippers for him to wear while visiting. Thanking the little girl with another smile, Marui followed Mika to the kitchen where he was greeted by the sight of Masaharu wearing a white apron while staring at a bowl of fruits and vegetables. "Hey Nioh, where should I put the cake?"

Reaching out to pull a few things from the bowl of produce, Masaharu answered his friend without looking up. "I made some space in the fridge for it, hopefully it'll be enough. Could you grab the steak while you're in there? I'll need to get that started soon. I already have the potatoes and carrots going, but I think I'll add some chopped red peppers too."

Mika cheered as she climbed onto the stool next to the island in the center of the massive kitchen. "Yay! Red peppers are yummy. Guess what Daddy? I hit the ball back to Papa today! Uncle Gen helped me do it but I still did it. Can I have a piece of pepper since I did a good job learning tennis today?"

Masaharu smiled at his daughter. "That's great princess, I'm very proud of you. If you want some red pepper though you have to go wash your hands. Go on and use the sink in the bathroom since your step stool is already in there and I'll have a piece waiting for you when you're done."

"Okay!" Mika chirped as she climbed down before dashing out of the kitchen.

"She's adorable, and very well behaved. Though with Yagyuu as her papa I can't say that the manners surprise me that much." Marui hopped up onto a space on the counter that was as far as he could get from anywhere that Masaharu would need to be.

Masaharu scowled playfully at Marui as he chopped up the three red peppers he had picked from the bowl. "I'll have you know that I am perfectly capable of teaching my little girl to behave herself. Just because I don't follow the rules most of the time doesn't mean I can't teach her to do it. And for the record, I never prank anyone or do anything that could be considered bad when Mika is with me because I want to be a good role model for her."

Marui smiled at his friend as he nodded. It wasn't so hard to believe that Masaharu could behave himself if he so chose, how else could he imitate Hiroshi so well off the tennis court? Setting aside a small piece of red pepper for Mika, Masaharu reached for the steaks that Marui had pulled out so that he could get them started in the skillet sitting on the stove. Placing the raw meat down with his bare hands, Masaharu moved to throw out the wrapping and wash his hands. His quest for the sink was nearly stopped short when Hiroshi and the rest of the boys entered the kitchen with Mika close at their heels. Looking at the group of boys, Masaharu motioned for them to let him through to the sink as he spoke to Hiroshi. "I would love to give you a hug right now but I just touched raw meat. And are those grass stains on your knees Hiroshi?"

Looking down at the knees of his pants, Hiroshi saw that they had indeed turned green. "Yes those are grass stains. I'll go change into clean pants."

Smirking lightly as the gentleman turned to go put different pants on, Masaharu called out a thank you to his lover as well as the location of the stain pre-treater in the laundry room. Looking over his shoulder as he washed his hands, Masaharu saw that most of his teammates were trying very hard not to laugh, and surprisingly Yukimura looked like he would be the first to lose that battle. Turning to face the blue haired youth as he dried his hands, Masaharu cocked one eyebrow as he spoke to his captain. "Something funny Yukimura?"

Smiling genially at his teammate, Yukimura took a seat at the island next to Mika as he spoke. "You make an excellent housewife Nioh-kun."

Masaharu stuck his tongue out at Yukimura as he returned to the stove and opened up the spice cabinet above the appliance. "Just because I do the cooking and the laundry does not make me a housewife. Yes I wash the dishes too, but Hiroshi does the rest of the cleaning. I don't touch a dust rag or a vacuum unless I'm forced to."

Marui snorted in amusement from his perch on the counter. "I don't doubt that. I remember what your room at your mom's house looked like. You sure that Yagyuu doesn't mind cleaning up after you?"

Returning to the kitchen just in time to hear his name be mentioned, Hiroshi took the opportunity to answer Marui. "I don't mind at all, Masaharu keeps me very well fed, so cleaning the house is hardly unfair for me to do."

Turning to look at his boyfriend, Masaharu's hand stilled above the curry pot that he had been about to add cinnamon to. "Hiroshi, are those my jeans?"

Hiroshi smirked slightly as he began to pull dishes out of a cabinet on the other side of the kitchen. "Yes they are, but they fit me and they were the first pair I grabbed."

Before Masaharu could respond to that, Mika piped up from her seat. "Daddy, Papa looks good in your clothes doesn't he?"

Biting his tongue in an effort to refrain from making a dirty comment in front of his little girl, Masaharu simply nodded in agreement as he turned his focus back to the pot of curry in front of him. From the corner of his eye, Masaharu saw Akaya and Marui both trying to hold back their own snickers of amusement.