In the backyard of the Tobion house in Country U, a couple was in the midst of a heated barbeque session.
"Hey, go play with Leah. I'll do the cooking." Gray said to Sato who was busy barbequing beside him.
"You just came back home. Why not you spend some time with your daughter? Shoo shoo." Sato shoved his butt into Gray as he tried to push the muscular man away from the grill.
"Master Sato, master Gray. May I help with the cooking? There is no need for the both of you to do such a small job." The helper, Beth interjected awkwardly.
"No!" The couple shouted out together. It seemed that both of them wanted to cook the meat and allow for their significant other to rest on the side.
"I want to cook with Papa and Daddy!" Just then, Leah pulled on the pants of Gray and Sato. She wanted to join in on the fun.
"Alright, hup!" Gray lifted the little girl easily into his arm. His face was joyful as he laughed warmly, "Oh? Did my little girl grow heavier in the one month that I have not seen you?"
"Hmph! I did not, Papa!" Leah puffed her cheeks angrily.
"Okay, Papa believes you. You want to help flip the chicken wings?" Gray asked sweetly.
"Yes!" Leah took the tongs from Gray's hand. Reaching forward, she flips the furthest piece of chicken wing from the fire.
"Good job. Now do this one." Gray pointed to the other chicken wing and allowed Leah to flip another.
"Hot hot!" Leah felt the heat and backed off a little.
"Be careful. It is very hot in the middle." Sato smiled as he continued to put more meat on the grill. The heat did not get to him one bit, which made Leah open her mouth in awe.
"Daddy, be careful. The fire is very strong."
"It's okay. Daddy can take the heat." Sato said proudly.
"Yeah, your daddy is like the fire queen in Glow. He is not scared of the fire." Gray referenced the latest cartoon movie they had watched together online. (Authors Note: Its like Frozen, but the fire rendition)
"Yeah!"
The small family of three were blissful and happy in their own world. Even though they had helpers that would help to cook for them, Sato and Gray enjoyed cooking in their off days. Seeing them, Leah would want to help the couple cook too. It was a favorite pastime for the family.
Within a week after Leah was adopted into Sato and Gray's household, the little girl had quickly adjusted to the family dynamic. Gray was extremely receptive and warm when it came to interacting with Leah. Sato was just being the same as he was before Leah was adopted. In the end, rather than just being a guardian in name for her, Leah had decided that she wanted to address the both of them as parent figures. The little girl decided for the both of them that Sato would be Daddy and Gray would be Papa. It was an extremely sweet moment for both of the guys. Sato even teared up and it was a sweet emotional mess.
In the first year of their parenthood, Sato was primarily always there for Leah as Gray would have to go back for work every month. Sometimes, he would have to stay in Country Z for extended periods of time and it couldn't be helped. However, Gray would always video call and interact with Leah. One of their most favorite things to do together was watch movies, which was what Leah liked from the beginning. Most of the time, at night, they would stream a movie over the internet and watch it together before bed. Sato would join in if he did not have work to finish. If not, it was a Papa and daughter moment in the Tobion household.
The main aspect Sato focused on other than work was on keeping Leah up to date with her education in different subject matters. Due to her earlier upbringings, Sato decided that it was best if he could find a good tutor that would help guide her in all aspects. He did not want to send the little girl into a public or private school at the moment as he was afraid that she would not be able to fit in. And so, through recommendations, he managed to hire a world-renowned tutor that would come down and home-school Leah in the weekdays. Now, after close to a year of teaching, Leah could be said to have caught up and was ahead of the normal school streaming.
The little girl wasn't bad at studying at any point and was actually very happy to pick up learning. She was a bright one and her personality had become bubblier over time. As such, a month ago, Sato asked whether Leah would like to go to school with other children her age and she had accepted it right away. On Monday, the little girl would be starting school in a private academy that was specially built for children that came from affluent backgrounds.
Especially Gray, the General was very detailed when it came to where they would be sending his child for education. He did not want anything to happen to the little girl and had even sent over a butler for Leah too. The female butler, Alexa, had worked under the Tobion family for five years as one of the Horsemen's soldiers and had recently been transferred out due to a permanent injury on her ankle. With the butler, Gray felt more at ease as both of his sweethearts had someone by their side wherever they went.