#jariten

The mention of food did get Rei's attention, but so did Ten's eagerness as the little boy tugged at Rei's shirt, begging with wide eyes. Lum was already out with Ataru, and going after them always turned into a disaster anyway.

And Ten seemed really lonely.

And there was food.

-

An hour later, Rei was walking down the decorated and brightly lit main street of Tomobiki with Ten in his arms. Both of them were dressed up in some of Ataru's winter clothes– scarves, earmuffs, hat– Mrs. Moroboshi had insisted. A gentle snow was still falling, reflecting the colors of the twinkling lights that were hung.

Ten eagerly told him everything he knew about Christmas– things he seemed to have learned as much from TV and commercials as from the Moroboshi family– and as he rambled they made various stops along the way. They walked around a department store where a man dressed as Santa was yelling 'hohohos'. 

Later they bought a bucket of fried chicken from a restaurant with another man in a white beard. Rei had thought that he, too, was dressed as Santa, but Rei had explained that he was some kind of retired earth military commander who now sold Christmas chicken. After that they stopped in a little cafe that was packed full of couples, and Rei devoured most of a large white cake covered in strawberries. Ten explained about the cake, too, while picking away at his slice, but admittedly, Rei missed most of that explanation in his sheer joy for cake.

"Is there anything else to do on Christmas?" Rei asked as he stepped out into the snow, belly full of white frosting and strawberries.

"There's presents," Ten said, looking up at him with his big, sparkling eyes.

-

There were fireworks lighting up the sky when Rei brought Ten home, and the two of them sat on the roof for a few minutes watching them shimmer and crackle. 

Afterward, Rei tucked Ten into bed with a plush tiger that was almost the size that he was. The kid was asleep almost the instant his head hit the pillow.

When Lum came home, whenever that would be, she'd find hidden in the closet with her futon a plushie that matched Ten's– a large, fluffy cow with big eyes and an orange tiger striped ribbon.