Disclaimer: I own very little.
A/N: This is my longest one-shot ever, so I'm not really sure how well it managed. I've never before written anything this long without getting any feedback on it before finishing it all. If you want to see what the Miki twins look like, look for draconn-malfoy at LiveJournal.
Chances
Going to see the different clubs was rather exciting. Going to see the one club you were going to join was even more exciting. This was the thought shared by all the first-years who were making their way towards the tennis courts of Seishun Gakuen.
To their disappointment, no regulars were to be seen anywhere. They did, however, come across a couple of senpais called Hayashi and Ikeda who offered to play a nice game to them: If they managed to knock a can over with a tennis ball, they would get a prize!
Before they could even try, however, the game was interrupted. "What do I see here, hm?" a sharp voice asked from somewhere nearby. "Hayashi and Ikeda, don't you ever learn? That's 10 laps for tricking the first-years!"
"Momoshiro!" exclaimed Hayashi. "But – we didn't even do anything!"
"Not yet, no," said the suddenly arrived boy. He had spiky hair and a regular's uniform. "If you had, it'd be 30 laps, you know. Just be glad I got here before Kaidoh," he continued as the other two started to grumble in protest. "If he had caught you picking on the kids, you'd be still running come tomorrow. It's not a good thing to do, not a good thing at all."
Still grumbling a bit but not daring to voice their protests, the two started running around the courts. The regular, however, turned towards the first-years. "Hi there! I'm the team's vice-captain, Momoshiro Takeshi! You can just call me Momo-chan, though."
"N-nice to meet you!" the boys said, bowing in unison. Not only was he a regular, but the vice-captain, too!
"Aside from the occasional bully, this is a pretty cool club to belong to," Momoshiro continued with a grin. "If you see Kaidoh, though, watch out. He's a scary-looking guy who always wears this stupid bandana."
"Kaidoh?" asked the bravest of the freshmen. "Who is he, Mo-Momo-chan-senpai?"
"Why, he's the team captain, of course," the spiky-haired regular told them with a grin. "Plays usually singles two. He's not as bad as he looks, but if he ever catches you breaking the rules, boy, are you in trouble. He hates people picking on their kouhais – and disrespecting their senpais. So, mind your manners if you don't want to wear your shoes out within a week!"
"Speaking ill of the captain, eh, Momo-senpai?" asked somebody. "You never change, I see."
"Echizen!" Momoshiro said happily, turning to look at the other regular who had suddenly appeared. The Seigaku regulars seemed to have a habit of turning up unannounced. "Kids, this is Echizen Ryoma, our current second year miracle. He plays singles one or two, depending on the captain's mood. He's got enough skills for two players and enough of an ego for three."
"I see you've already met Momo-senpai," Echizen said dryly. "He's got enough of an appetite for five and not enough brains even for himself. The only good thing about him is that he always knows when it's going to rain so you always know whether you'll need an umbrella."
"Echizen, I'm hurt!" exclaimed the other boy. "How can you say such things!"
"They're true, though." The second year glared at the vice-captain. "Shall we ask the captain?"
"You know very well he'd agree with about anything bad you say about me," Momoshiro laughed. "Ah, well. Don't get into too much trouble before the captain appears, kids!" With this, he wandered off.
"Er… Echizen-senpai?" the first-years asked cautiously. "Don't the captain and vice-captain get along?"
"More like they are extremely good friends, not that they'll ever admit it," sighed Echizen. "Not only that, but they're also a Nationals level doubles pair. Unfortunately, they also happen to be rivals, and both seem to think that saying one good word about the other will lead to the end of the world." With a low voice, he added, "At this point, I'm inclined to believe it indeed would."
"Mamushi."
"Idiot. What do you want?"
"Oh, nothing." Momoshiro grinned as he sat down next to the other boy. "Just thought I'd ask your opinion of the new club members."
"You know what I think," Kaidoh snapped. "They're all just kids. Some do have potential -- especially those twins -- but they've still got a long ways to go."
"Well, the twins might be a solution to our lack of doubles pairings once they develope a little," Momo said cheerfully. "Oh, and I told the ickle first-years a few horror stories about our mighty and fearsome captain. Not that you need any help in scaring them, mind, but I thought it'd put them in the right mood for your hisses and glares."
Kaidoh hissed. "Idiot. It's because of that attitude that I'm the captain and you are not." He glared at the vice-captain. "Gotten into any trouble yet?"
"Not as of yet, no. We still have time, though, don't we?" Ignoring the other's still intensifying glare, Momoshiro glanced up to the sky. "How's Inui-senpai?"
Kaidoh looked away, now. "He's... well enough," he said after a moment. "Apparently he's enjoying the new school."
"Of course he does. After all, Yanagi-san goes there too." Momoshiro smirked. "Then again, that was the reason he picked it, wasn't it?"
"Fshuuu." Kaidoh shrugged. "I don't know his reasons. And, in all honesty, I don't care."
"Sure you don't." Momo resisted the childish urge to stick his tongue out at the other boy. "In any case, say hello to him the next time you meet, okay?"
"What exactly makes you think I'd meet him any sooner than you do, idiot?"
"Oh, I don't know, I don't know at all." Momo tried to look thoughtful but failed, ending up grinning instead. "The fact you still train with him every other day, perhaps?"
"...Idiot."
"Momoshiro Takeshi. Nice to meet you, Idiot-san."
"I hate you."
"Why, feelings mutual, Mamushi."
The world was about to end, the first-years decided unanimously. It was the only possible explanation to the sight before them.
During their short time in the club they had already come to notice the captain was never friendly with anyone. He tolerated the other regulars -- only barely, it often seemed -- aside from Momo-senpai, with whom he argued almost every day. The very idea of Kaidoh-senpai being friendly seemed alien to them. Polite he certainly was whenever he wasn't irritated, to a fault, even, but friendly? Never.
As he was currently talking with somebody at the edge of the courts and almost smiling, the world had to be ending.
The person who had brought on this obvious change in their captain was a complete stranger. He was awfully tall and looked much older than they were, only his school uniform identifying him as a high school student instead of an adult. His black hair was short and spiky, not pointed up like Momo-senpai's, and his eyes were hidden behind opaque glasses. Looking at the school uniform they managed to figure out he was from a different school altogether. But then what would he be doing at the Seigaku courts?
After a lot of wondering, the first-years volunteered two from their midst -- the bravest ones, Kaneda and Yuzuki -- to go and find out who the mysterious high school student was. As they weren't suicidal, they decided to forgo asking the involved people directly and instead opted for the next best option -- asking the one person who knew the captain best of all.
"Um... Momo-senpai?" asked Kaneda. "Who is that guy Kaidoh-senpai is talking with?"
"That's Inui-senpai," Momoshiro told them, grinning as he looked at the two talking boys. "Well, he's not really our senpai anymore since he goes to a different school now, but it looks like he's going to be around a lot anyway. He and the captain regularly train together – they used to be one of our two star doubles pairs before Inui-senpai graduated."
"Oh?" Yuzuki asked. "How good were they?"
"Inui-senpai and Kaidoh played Doubles Two against Rikkai last year in the Nationals finals and won." Momoshiro grinned widely. "Kaidoh and I are good enough a combination -- we won the Nationals semifinals Doubles Two last year -- but we don't come even close to those two. They gained the name Emerald Pair after the finals, and boy, did they deserve it." He then winked. "But if you ever tell the captain I said this, you're dead. Understood?"
"Y-yes!" the two boys snapped in unison. Momo-senpai had never made true of his threats yet, but they weren't about to take the chance. They'd seen more than enough of his anger around the captain and did not want to become targets to it.
"Now, shoo. I'm sure your friends are waiting for the news." Momoshiro's grin was still just as cheerful as ever. "Oh, and if Inui-senpai ever offers you something to drink? Do not accept." He winked again. "Your life may depend on it."
Though they had got the answers they had wanted fairly easily, Kaneda and Yuzuki silently agreed they wouldn't question the vice-captain any further.
"Moshi moshi, Kaidoh speaking."
"Ah, Kaidoh. This is Inui." The voice on the other end of the line sounded rather hurried. "I'm sorry to call you with such a short notice, but I'm afraid I have to skip our training today. I have a school assignment to complete, and this was the only day available for that."
"I understand, senpai." Kaidoh wasn't that surprised, really. Inui-senpai naturally had a lot of school work to do now that he was in high school, and he'd cancelled their practice sessions before for the very same reason. "Thanks for letting me know."
"No, thank you for understanding. I'll call you again later." With nothing more, Inui ended the call.
For a moment, Kaidoh looked at his cell phone. Then, he put it away with a quiet hiss.
He'd just have to train alone, then.
"Somehow, I'm not surprised."
Kaidoh turned to glare at him. "What are you talking about, idiot?" he hissed.
"Oh, nothing." Momoshiro smirked, pointing at the papers spread on the table. "I just took a look at these ranking tournament lists." His smirk broadening, he said, "I thought you said you wouldn't accept any first-years yet, hm?"
"Fshuuu." Kaidoh looked slightly uneasy and very much irritated. "It's not like they'll make it into the team anyway."
"Now, I wouldn't be so sure. I wouldn't be so sure at all." Momoshiro was, quite honestly, enjoying this. Then again, he always enjoyed teasing Kaidoh. "Looking at the blocks, there is nobody in their block who could pose an actual threat. You've placed all the good players in other blocks -- two to each. It's almost as though you want them to make it into the team."
There was another hiss, then a moment of silence. Then, just like Momo had predicted, Kaidoh spoke. "...We do need a good doubles team," he admitted grudgingly. "The two of us are needed in singles more."
"You're right, you're absolutely right! And the Miki twins just might do the trick. They are good for first-years, even you have to admit it." Momoshiro grinned. "We'll just have one problem, then." As Kaidoh gave him a half questioning, half annoyed glance, he said, "Exactly how are we going to tell them apart in the tournament?"
"We'll figure that out. Put damn ribbons in their hair or something. What does it matter, anyway, if you're so convinced they're both going to make it to the team nevertheless? Or are you comparing me to that damn Mizuki?" Now, the glance was simply annoyed.
"It's nothing, nothing at all." Momoshiro laughed. "Ryo-kun and Kyo-kun sure can be confusing at times, but I'm sure we'll manage. Ah, well!" He threw a friendly arm over Kaidoh's shoulders. "Think you can fit a hamburger or two into your training schedule today? I'm absolutely starving!"
"You're always starving, idiot."
"Am not, Mamushi. Just right now, I am." With this, Momoshiro proceeded to drag the captain outside. The ranking tournament wouldn't start just yet.
When it did, he would thoroughly enjoy crushing the rest of the A-block just to battle with Kaidoh.
"Whichever of you is Ryo-kun, put the green ribbon in your hair," the captain said sharply, glaring at the identical twins. "And Kyo-kun's red. If you take them off during the tournament, I'll take that as losing by default, got it?"
"Yes, captain!" the twins replied in unison. It wasn't like they could have said anything else. Nobody could have said anything else, not when the captain was glaring at them like that.
"So you really decided to use the ribbons, eh?" Momoshiro smirked as the twins were out of earshot. "I guess it works better than writing their names on their faces with a permanent marker or something. Nice job at scaring them, though."
"Shut up," Kaidoh growled. "Don't you have a match to play?"
"Huh? A match? Oh, that. I won it already." Momoshiro grinned. "Six games to love. Then again, you didn't expect anything else, did you?"
"Don't get too full of yourself," came the half-hissed response. "Thank your lucky star I didn't put Echizen in A-block with us two, too. Wouldn't it be nice for the vice-captain to be dropped out of the team?"
"Not as nice as for the captain to do the same," the spiky-haired boy replied, winking.
Kaidoh hissed. "20 laps, Momoshiro."
Momoshiro knew better than to complain about the unfairness of such a punishment.
"So you've now got two first-years in your team, eh?"
"Yes, Inui-senpai," Kaidoh replied, easily running beside the older boy. "A set of twins by the name of Miki. They're not National level, of course, but good enough to win about any doubles team in the District Preliminaries, perhaps aside from Fudoumine."
"You would know, wouldn't you?" Inui smiled. "I'm proud of you, Kaidoh. Your eye for the players' potential has developed quite a bit. I look forward to your team's victories in the tournament."
A slight blush rose to Kaidoh's cheeks as he merely hissed in response.
"Game, set, and match, Seigaku's Miki-Miki pair, 6 games to 2!"
Momoshiro grinned as the people all around them cheered at the victorious twins. "Those guys can really play, don't you think, Kaidoh? If I didn't know better I'd think they're using some kind of twin telepathy or something! Of course, they still wouldn't win us, but..."
Kaidoh hissed. "They're... adequate," he muttered. "I hope you haven't only been warming up your tongue, since it's your turn now."
"Grumpy as ever, eh?" Momo grinned. "Have no fear, captain, I'll win for sure! And then it'll be your turn to finish it in Singles Two."
"Those idiots should have won in Doubles Two," Kaidoh muttered. "The opponent was absolutely pitiful. By the time I'm through with them, they'll be hoping they'd never even thought of joining the club..."
"Now, don't be too harsh, Mamushi," Momoshiro said, half laughing. "Just make them regret entering the ranking tournament, okay?" He winked. "Let's not let Echizen play today, either!"
Watching the other boy head towards the courts with a self-confident grin, Kaidoh hissed. "Fshhuuu. As if I would."
"So we'll be facing Fudoumine in the District finals this year, too," Momoshiro mused. "Now, why am I not surprised?"
"Because Fudoumine went to the Nationals last year, too?" Echizen offered dryly. "With only Tachibana gone, they're practically all Nationals level players." He glanced at Kaidoh. "Do I get to play this round, either, captain?"
"Ask Arai," Kaidoh replied sharply. "He's playing Singles Three, so it's pretty much up to him this time." He glared at the Miki twins. "After all, if the first-years lose, they'll regret it."
"Huh?" Echizen adjusted his cap. "What about you and Momoshiro-senpai, captain?"
"We'll be playing Doubles One," Momoshiro said, winking. "Can't let our skills slip, now can we? It's been too long since we played doubles, it's been far too long!"
"It could be longer for all I care," hissed Kaidoh. "It's only because you're such a stubborn idiot that we're playing now."
"What'd you say, Mamushi?" snapped Momoshiro, taking a step towards the captain. "Just because you're the captain now --"
"Doesn't mean I still can't beat you," Kaidoh replied. "Do you want to fight, huh?" They were now standing right in front of each other, glaring fiercely.
"Bring it on, Mamushi," Momoshiro growled. "I'll make you regret you didn't follow Inui-senpai's example and flee to another school!"
"I'll make you respect those above you!"
"Um... Echizen-senpai?" one of the Miki twins asked hesitantly. "I know you keep telling so, but are they really that good in doubles?"
"Unbelievable though it is, yes," Echizen sighed. "Whenever nobody's around they get along well enough, but..." He glanced at the two who were now inches away from actually beating each other. "You two are fairly good for the captain to use you in the finals, and believe me, they'd beat you in a matter of minutes."
"Oi, captain, vice-captain!" Arai said hurriedly, trying to step between the two fighting boys. "If you continue like that, you won't be able to play tomorrow!"
Suddenly the glares were both directed at him. "30 laps for butting into other people's business, Arai!" they snapped in perfect unison.
"What'd I say?" asked Echizen, tugging his cap to cover his face again. "They're in perfect synch already."
The Miki twins glanced at each other. They had a very bad feeling about this...
"Stop getting in my way, Mamushi!" Momoshiro shouted, Kaidoh nowhere near him. "Can't you even watch were you're going?"
"You're the one who's getting in my way," Kaidoh hissed, hitting a snake to the other side of the court. "If we weren't in the middle of a match, you'd be running laps right now."
"That's your answer to everything, huh? Assigning laps now that you're the captain. Too scared to actually fight with me, eh, Mamushi?" The opponent's response was returned with a sharp Jack Knife, gaining them a point.
"You wish," Kaidoh said, hissing. "Want to try right now, eh?"
"Fine with me!"
The Miki twins, still exhausted from their lengthy -- but thankfully victorious, so as not to gain their captain's anger -- match as Doubles Two, glanced at their senpais. "How can they fight all the time when they're on the court?" Ryo asked. At least they assumed he was Ryo, judging by the colour of the ribbon in his dark hair -- by Kaidoh's order they were required to wear them during any matches now. "By all logic, they should have already lost!"
"Well, as they're currently leading five games to two, I don't think they're going to lose anytime soon," Arai noted dryly. "You should have just trusted your senpai's words!"
Echizen tugged his cap down, sighing. "Well, they will lose if they don't play at all," he muttered, then raised his voice. "Oi, captain, Momo-senpai! You can beat each other all you want once you've won the match!"
The two, however, didn't seem to hear. Their bickering having gotten the better of them, they were apparently just about to throw punches at each other.
"Oi, you two!" Ryuzaki-sensei shouted. "Hands off each other, now! You're in public; leave the touching to your private time!"
"Well, well," Echizen muttered as the two older boys sprang away from each other as though they had burned their hands -- their teacher definitely knew her students well. "At times like these, I wonder exactly why Kaidoh-senpai was made the captain..."
"Because he's the only one who can get every last lazy ass go through whatever training regimen we have?" somebody offered.
"You mean Momo-senpai?" suggested somebody else, followed by general laughter. It was a common joke that Momoshiro skipped practice, even though they all knew he practised exactly as hard as the captain. After all, neither of the two would let the other make even one swing more.
"Oh, just shut up and watch the match," Echizen sighed. "Besides, shouldn't you be warming up now, Arai-senpai? Or were you going to skip your match and let me play by default? Not that I'd protest, but the captain might not be happy."
Arai's murmurs of 'arrogant brats' as he walked away were almost drowned by the yelling they heard from the courts.
"Kaidoh." The familiar voice startled Kaidoh, making him spin around. "That was a good match."
Kaidoh hissed in embarrassment. "Thank you, Inui-senpai," he muttered. "It wasn't much of a challenge, though."
"Of course not." Inui smiled. "After all, you and Momoshiro make quite a great doubles team. Really, I'm almost jealous."
"Jealous of what, Inui-senpai?" Kaidoh asked.
"Your cooperation, of course -- aside from the occasional fight." Inui smiled. "I believe the two of you have surpassed you and I as a doubles combination."
"How about us, Sadaharu?" a third voice joined the conversation. Turning to look, they saw Yanagi Renji standing nearby. "Good match, captain Kaidoh."
"Thank you, Yanagi-san," Kaidoh replied, sounding even more embarrassed. "What'd you think of the first-years, Inui-senpai?"
"As to your question, Renji, I refuse to answer without sufficient data," Inui said with a slight smile. "I believe this is one question where it is quite difficult for me to be as impartial as discovering a correct answer would require. And as to yours, Kaidoh, I think you've made the right choice." Now the smile was even clearer. "They may very well be Seigaku's next Golden Pair, the two Mikis."
"I'm glad you think so, Inui-senpai." There was a definite flush on Kaidoh's cheeks now.
"Do you always value Sadaharu's opinion over your own?" asked Yanagi, sounding genuinely curious if not a bit condescending. "Of course it's none of my business, and his reserves of data certainly surpasses those of practically anybody else, but I'm finding it hard to imagine somebody trusting so completely a person with such an obviously sadistic mindset."
Kaidoh gave him an annoyed gaze and a hiss, no more flushed. "I know for a fact Inui-senpai is better at evaluating a player's potential than I am, and even if he's not always telling the truth, I trust him not to lie to me in the things that matter. Why so? Don't you trust him?"
"Now, I never said that." There was a slight smile on the former Rikkai student's face as he stepped forward, placing a hand on Inui's arm. "I trust him very much indeed."
Kaidoh looked at first at him, then at the hand resting on Inui's arm. Then he looked at Inui. Seeing the smile on his former senpai's face, he hissed again. "Fsshuu. Somehow, I'm not surprised."
"I would be surprised indeed if you were," Inui said, adjusting his glasses. "I estimate you know me 73 better than anybody else, aside from Renji."
The flush made a comeback, though much weaker now. "You think too highly of me, senpai."
"Ah, but I don't think I do, Kaidoh." Inui's smile got even broader. The few Seigaku students close enough to see it backed away, recognizing it as his sadistic smirk. The two who knew him too well to think so, though, were unaffected. "I'm looking forward to the victory of your team."
"Speaking of that," Renji spoke up, "may I ask who you have scheduled for Singles One? With you and the vice-captain playing doubles and your star player in Singles Two, I do wonder."
"Singles One?" Kaidoh raised an eyebrow. "It's Hiyoshi. Our second weakest player, aside from the reserve."
Now, both the older boys blinked in confusion. Even Inui's blink, though not visible behind his glasses, was obvious. "...Excuse me?" Renji asked softly.
"Our second weakest player," Kaidoh repeated. "With me and the idiot in Doubles One, the Miki twins in Doubles Two, and Arai and Echizen playing Singles Three and Two, there's no way we could get more than one loss at most." Now, he glanced towards the court. "Looks like we didn't have even that one. Arai has gotten better lately -- or maybe he just didn't want to let Echizen play, again. If you'd excuse me for now, I should probably join my team."
Once Kaidoh was out of earshot, Renji turned towards Inui. "Well, at least your little friend is self-confident enough," he commented. "Perhaps even too much so?"
Inui, however, shook his head. "Kaidoh is not one to take stupid risks," he said. "With this line-up, the chance of more than one loss was less than 15." He smiled. "If there had been a loss, it would have most likely been Arai's. As we both well know, Echizen is definitely the best player in the whole tournament, the Miki twins are indeed capable of becoming the new Golden Pair, and as for Kaidoh and Momoshiro, you saw it yourself. Fudoumine is good -- extremely so -- but right now, they didn't stand a chance."
"Let us hope Seigaku doesn't start slacking off, then," Renji said. "It would be a shame to see such great talent wasted."
"Seigaku, slacking off?" Now, the smile was indeed the evil one so many had come to know and fear. "With Kaidoh as the captain... they couldn't even if they wanted to."
Inui-senpai was late.
Now, this was a first. As far as Kaidoh could remember, Inui-senpai had never been late. Most of the time he arrived a little early, preferring to get a feel of the situation beforehand. According to him, it made it easier to collect data later on. Whatever effect it could have on the data, Kaidoh had no idea, but the point was, Inui-senpai was never late.
Except that now he was. Badly so.
Kaidoh had first considered calling him, but then decided it wouldn't matter. Inui-senpai would show up soon anyway, most probably equipped with a perfectly logical and acceptable explanation for his lateness that would make Kaidoh feel slightly guilty for being on time. He'd just have to wait for a bit more.
Therefore, he waited.
"You seem thoughtful, Sadaharu," Renji said. "What's the matter?"
"Oh, nothing." Inui smiled. "I just thought how strong Seigaku's team is this year. I almost wish I could be with them."
"Well, Seigaku's strength is no more a concern of yours, is it?" Renji asked, raising an eyebrow even though his eyes stayed closed as always. "The ones responsible for it now are those little friends of yours."
"Ah, yes, Kaidoh and Momoshiro." Inui chuckled. "I'd say there is a 74 chance they manage to scare at least three first-years into quitting the club with their arguing before it's the time for Nationals."
"My, you're getting quite optimistic, aren't you, Sadaharu?" Renji almost-smiled, enough for Inui to notice but almost impossible for anybody else to tell the difference. "I'm surprised they haven't managed to break the whole club apart yet, with nobody older to keep them in check."
"Now, don't underestimate them, Renji." Inui brushed his fingers against the other's lightly as he reached towards his notebook. "About 82 of their arguing is merely an act, and even the rest isn't truly as serious as they make it to look like."
Now, the corner of Renji's mouth twitched visibly. "Should I be worried that you are so interested in them?" the other data player asked.
"You --" started Inui, only to be interrupted by the other.
"'You should know me better than that,' is what you were going to say, right?"
Inui smiled. "There was a 93 chance you would predict my words correctly."
Kaidoh was getting worried.
He had finally given in and called Inui-senpai. However, he'd gotten no response. A call to the senpai's house had given him the information that Inui had left in the morning and not shown up since. This he had followed with several more calls to the other boy, all of which had been left unanswered.
Now, the battery of his cell phone was dead, so he couldn't call anymore. All he could do was wait for Inui to show up.
He wasn't exactly sure what he would do if Inui did not show up after all.
"What do you think of our next opponents, Sadaharu?"
Inui smiled. "They will be a piece of cake, unless they have some surprises up their sleeve," he said. "But then again, we aren't exactly unprepared either, are we? And we are good enough of a doubles pair that our strength will be multiplied. We certainly know each other well enough."
"Isn't that the basis of any doubles pairing?" Renji asked, arching an eyebrow. Then, he chuckled a bit. "Aside from Momoshiro and Echizen, perhaps..."
"You've heard of it, too?" Inui arched an eyebrow in turn.
"Sadaharu, everybody who knows either of those two has heard of it. Genichiroh used the story as a warning example of how not to play doubles."
"Which is the only thing it is good for," Inui said with a slightly wolfish grin.
Hit by a car? No, Inui-senpai was always careful to look both ways before he crossed the road. Attacked by rival school players? No, while Inui-senpai was definitely good, he wasn't quite that remarkable yet. Attacked by a rabid dog? Much though he liked animals, Kaidoh knew they could sometimes be dangerous, but... no, that couldn't be it. Stabbed by a random psycopathic killer? Now, even without any data he knew the chances for that were awfully low. But then again, the chances of Inui-senpai being this late without even calling were awfully low, too...
Sometimes Kaidoh wished he hadn't had such a vivid imagination -- not something he liked others to know, but true nonetheless. It provided him with so many reasons as to why Inui-senpai could be late -- and very few of them were pleasant.
...Abducted by aliens, perhaps?
Momoshiro had to admit to a certain curiousness being a part of his basic character. This curiousness was especially strong in any matters concerning Kaidoh. As most matters concerning Kaidoh concerned Inui-senpai, too, it was only natural that Momoshiro had managed to find out Kaidoh's training schedule with their former senpai. Of course, this was only done out of pure curiosity, and because as the vice-captain he had to be aware of anything that might potentially affect the team. He had no other reason to obtain such information, none at all.
Anyway, due to this information, he knew very well Kaidoh was supposed to be have a practice session with Inui-senpai that day. As they had parted after the club practice that day Kaidoh had said nothing about the plans having been changed -- he often chose to train with Momoshiro instead whenever Inui-senpai cancelled, which was getting fairly usual lately. According to these facts and their usual schedule, the two should have been excercising at the park at the moment.
Then why, if it was so, was Inui-senpai currently sitting at a cafe with Yanagi-san?
Perhaps they had cut their practice short, which Momoshiro very much doubted. Neither of the two was known to give up without finishing whatever they had started. Kaidoh stuck to his training schedule so strictly it sometimes made Momoshiro wonder whether the captain thought somebody would die if he skipped even one set of swings. However, no other explanation could be given as to why Inui-senpai was currently at the cafe.
For a moment Momoshiro considered simply walking up to Inui-senpai and asking what was going on. Then, however, he decided it might be the wisest not to. Of course he couldn't be sure, but based on the two high school students' position his instinct told him there was a very good chance they were currently holding hands beneath the table, and they were also looking at each other in a Certain Way. He'd be damned if he intruded on somebody else's date -- openly, anyway.
For now, he'd try to find Kaidoh to figure out what exactly had happened.
"Ah, excuse me, Renji. It seems there are quite a lot of received calls on my cell phone. Kaidoh and Momoshiro -- it must be something serious for them to call so many times." Inui's mind was already racing through the possibilities as to what might have happened. Most of them weren't very pleasant.
"Then call them and ask what it is," Renji replied calmly. "That's what you were going to do, am I right?"
"Of course." Inui smiled a bit. "Can't let a kouhai in need of my aid wait for too long, can I?"
"Momoshiro, this is Inui. You had called me."
"Inui-senpai." Momoshiro's voice was much sharper than usual. "Yes, I had called you. So had Kaidoh. Would you have any idea as to why?"
"Well..." Inui thought for a moment. Then, however, it struck him. "Oh, no," he gasped. "The practice... How could I have forgotten?"
"I wonder about that, too, I really wonder. Considering I saw you chatting with Yanagi-san, though, I can make a pretty decent guess as to why."
"Why do you sound so hostile, Momoshiro?" Inui asked, puzzled. This was not characteristic of the usually so cheerful boy. "Was Kaidoh very upset?"
"Upset? You bet. The idiot waited for you for over two hours until I found him," Momoshiro's voice told coolly. "At that point he was convinced something horrible had happened to you. If you weren't going to show up, would it really have been such a hard thing to at least call him -- or, at the very least, answer when he called you?"
"I'm sorry about that." Inui could feel Renji's eyes on him, questioning, but he silently mouthed, 'Later'. At the moment, it was more important to solve this situation than update Renji -- not that the other boy couldn't guess most of it based on what he could hear Inui saying. "I simply didn't notice the calls. My cell phone was on silent mode and --"
"And you always have an excuse ready, of course," Momoshiro interrupted him. "As you always do. I've observed your little game for a while, Inui-senpai, and I don't like it. I don't like it at all. You're using Mamushi as little more than training equipment -- you practise with him whenever it suits you and expect him to simply live with it. He's not just something nice to fiddle with whenever Yanagi-san is busy, you know."
"I'll -- I'll call and apologize --" Inui started, only to be interrupted by the other boy again.
"Don't bother." The younger boy's voice was even colder than before, if at all possible. "When I told him I'd seen you with Yanagi, he asked me to tell you to forget about the practice. Kaidoh doesn't want to see you anymore."
"...I see." In the back of his mind, Inui wondered, then voiced his thoughts. "Was that what Kaidoh actually said or how you interpret it?" After all, it didn't sound characteristic at all. According to all his data there was only a 5 chance Kaidoh would ever utter the words.
"It hardly matters at this point, Inui-senpai. Either way I'm going to make sure you don't bother him again. I'm the vice-captain, and as such it's my responsibility to look after the captain, too. Your treatment is affecting his mood and thus the whole team. I can't let that happen. I just can't."
"Kaidoh is old enough to decide about such things by himself." Inui would have preferred to sound steady. As it was, these words said with his slightly trembling voice sounded like a weak excuse even in his own ears.
"Perhaps. In that case, you should respect his opinion and leave him alone."
"Not before I hear it from Kaidoh himself." He wasn't about to let it go this easily. Kaidoh was his friend, right? The only true friend he had besides Renji, the one who knew him best. Inui wouldn't let go of him just because Momoshiro was feeling petty.
"Good luck with that. I doubt he'll talk to you any time soon." Without anything else, Momoshiro ended the call, leaving Inui replaying the last words over and over in his head.
It felt almost as bad as hearing that Renji had moved away.
"Kaidoh."
Inui said it fairly softly, not demanding or commanding, knowing Kaidoh would hear him perfectly well despite his relatively quiet tone and the general chatter and noise on the courts. It was his best listen-to-me voice. It had never failed to work on Renji yet -- not that the other usually refused to listen to him.
Kaidoh, apparently, was of another mind, not looking at him at all. After a moment of futile waiting for a response, Inui tried again, louder this time, "Kaidoh."
The other boy tensed and turned around, looking at him. Kaidoh walked closer -- but not very close. "What do you want?" he asked sharply. No greetings, no polite phrases. Very unlike Kaidoh -- and very frightening, in Inui's opinion, at least in his current situation.
"I want to explain," he said. "I never meant to upset you. Kaidoh, you must let me explain; I'd never do something like that on purpose!" He gave his friend his best pleading gaze now, too. Though his glasses hid it, he was sure Kaidoh could see it nevertheless. "Please?" he asked then softly.
Kaidoh looked at him for a second, then turned abruptly away. "We're in the middle of practice," he said. "Please remove yourself from the courts."
Inui's eyes widened behind his glasses. "Kaidoh," he started again, reaching out a hand to touch the younger boy. However, before he could reach Kaidoh, another hand grasped on his wrist, squeezing it so tightly it was almost painful.
"You heard what the captain said," Momoshiro said, his voice colder than Inui had ever heard it. "Please leave before I make you."
Momoshiro was, judging by his grip and the tension in his muscles, definitely much stronger now than he had been just a year ago. Under any other circumstances Inui might have been glad to discover this, knowing it was partly due to his instructions. Right now, however, he couldn't bring himself to take delight at such things -- especially when that gained strength was about to be used against him.
"...I'll leave," he said softly, waiting for the younger boy to release his wrist. As soon as Momoshiro did, he turned around, walking slowly away. He half hoped that Kaidoh would change his mind and call out after him, but knew very well there was only a 22 chance of that happening. The feeling that had flashed on Kaidoh's face before it had been crafted emotionless -- since when had Kaidoh been so good at acting, anyway? -- had been genuine hurt.
He had hurt his closest friend, aside from Renji, and had no idea how to fix the situation -- or even if he could. Given all his data on Kaidoh, it was quite likely he couldn't.
One of the best things about his glasses was that they quite effectively hid from the others whether he was blinking tears away.
"...I'm proud of you, Mamushi."
"Fshuuu." Kaidoh closed his eyes, looking rather uncomfortable. "Why so? I did nothing worth of that. I was merely rude to a senpai."
"Now, don't be an idiot. He's not your senpai anymore, and after forgetting you like that, he deserved it, he really deserved it. If you had now forgiven him, he'd probably have done it again next week."
Kaidoh didn't say anything. He did, however, look slightly more relaxed.
Momoshiro counted this as an achievement.
From then on the tennis club worked even harder than ever before. It was as though the captain was trying to make up for the loss of his usual training partner by training them all twice as hard. It had its benefits, of course -- they evolved fast, at least the regulars. Fast enough that, Momoshiro thought triumphantly, whatever data Inui may have had on them all would soon be outdated.
The bad thing was, Kaidoh's mood didn't seem to be improving at all, not even when they easily cleared the Tokyo Prefecturals, even beating Fudoumine again. If anything, each passing day made him even more moody and frightening. Being rather used to the other's constant irritation -- and often being the primary cause of it -- Momoshiro didn't really realize the extent of Kaidoh's bad mood until he heard it from an outsider.
Though Fudoumine had turned out to be their worst rival now -- most of the other top schools had suffered quite a bit at the loss of their star players -- Momoshiro never hesitated to play with or against Kamio whenever they met on the street tennis courts. They were something of friends, after all; if they were on the opposite sides of the net, they were against each other, otherwise they could get along. Not even the possible involvement of Ann-chan could get them too riled up, nowadays.
"I heard a rumour the other day, you know," Kamio said after yet another game. "Is it true your captain loses his temper all the time?"
Momoshiro laughed. "You bet," he replied. "He yells at least three times every practice, and at least one of those times is at me. We're always fighting, even more so than before now that there are no senpais to stop us." He winked. "Stupid Mamushi just can't admit he likes having friends, you see."
"Oh... so is the other part of the rumour true, then?" Kamio looked a bit wary now. "Did he really beat a first-year just for missing a shot?"
"What?" Momoshiro blinked. "Where the hell did you hear that? The only one Kaidoh's hit that I know of is myself, and I give back as good as I get. He'd never do that to a first-year, or anybody else for that matter! Sure, he yells at them and some -- or most -- of them are afraid of him, but he never actually hurts anyone!"
"Well, it's just a rumour," Kamio said, seeming even more uneasy. "It's just... is it true nobody's ever seen him smile?"
"I have," Momoshiro replied readily. "Well... I think I have. It might have been a trick of the light, but I'm pretty sure he did." He grinned. "Either way, Kaidoh's not really as bad as he looks like. I don't think anybody could be as bad as he looks like!"
"That's not what everybody's thinking," Kamio told him. "Not only your first-years, even people in other schools are afraid of him. Now, I didn't really think he'd be that bad, but... A lot of people believe whatever they hear. You Seigaku guys do train hard; some say he's forcing you into it."
"He forces us into training all right," Momoshiro said. "However, he only ever assigns lap as punishment. That and ball-picking, sometimes. And lots and lots of yelling." He scratched the back of his neck. "Is that really what everybody thinks of him? Wow. I know for a fact he'd risk his own life to save a puppy from drowning -- though if you tell anybody about that, he just might make those rumours true."
"Shouldn't you try to do something about those rumours, anyway?" Kamio asked. "He's never going to be respected like Tezuka was if everybody fears him."
"Kaidoh is not Tezuka," Momoshiro replied calmly, "and Tezuka, too, was far from the friendliest guy I've met. Anyway, I think Kaidoh'd rather be respected for his skills than for being Mr. Nice Guy with everyone. Fear doesn't exclude respect. Being the popular icon just wouldn't be like Mamushi, it wouldn't be like him at all!"
Afterwards, though, Momoshiro thought about these rumours. Kaidoh had never been a popular person, what with his antisocial behaviour and rather frightening appearance. Everybody in the Seigaku tennis club knew he was a good player and a good person, too -- even though they joked about him eating puppies for breakfast whenever he was out of earshot. Harsh he was, certainly, and very strict, but not cruel. Even his violence was reserved for Momoshiro, and then it was hardly ever serious. Everybody knew this, and they did respect their captain. Maybe it was not to the same extent as they had respected Tezuka, but he was getting there. Respect had to be earned, and Kaidoh wouldn't have it any other way.
Did anybody outside Seigaku know any of this, however?
In the end he decided it didn't matter. Kaidoh would probably not care either way. As long as he got respect, he didn't care if he was feared.
Surely everybody would respect him after they won the Nationals?
"Good news, Echizen," Kaidoh said the day before the Kantou finals. "You'll get to play tomorrow."
"Huh?" Echizen raised an eyebrow. "You're putting me in Singles Three?"
"Well, we can't very well let our best player get out of shape entirely. We can't do that," Momoshiro said cheerfully. "That, or the captain wants to make sure he won't have to play this time."
"Idiot," Kaidoh hissed. "I'm Singles Two, so I know I'll have to play." He glared at Momoshiro. "After all, there's no way you and Arai will do anything but lose in Doubles Two."
"Oh, yeah?" Momoshiro raised an eyebrow. "We'll see about that, you stupid Mamushi."
Echizen blinked. "...I've never seen such a spectacular loss," he muttered, tugging his cap down as though to shield himself from the horrifying sight. "It was almost worse than my doubles with Momo-senpai."
"At least those two knew what they were doing, now," snorted Kaidoh. "Though not well enough, it seems."
"It just doesn't work," Echizen muttered. "Arai-senpai doesn't have the doubles experience to pull it off with Momo-senpai like Eiji-senpai did, and those two don't know each other even half as well as Momo-senpai and you, captain."
"Indeed." Kaidoh hissed. "I knew those two would lose. It seems that whenever it isn't Hiyoshi on the court with him, Arai completely forgets how to play doubles."
"Why didn't you put Hiyoshi in Singles Three, anyway?" Echizen asked then. "He'd most probably have lost and then the both of us would have got to play anyway."
Now, Kaidoh actually smirked. "Because I enjoy making you play Singles Three for once," he replied.
Echizen snorted. "You've spent far too much time with Inui-senpai. The sadism is rubbing off," he muttered. Then he realized that he perhaps hadn't said the best possible thing -- Kaidoh's angry hiss was something of a hint.
"Woah," one of the Miki twins said, thankfully diverting the captain's attention from Echizen. "Momo-senpai's just no good with anybody but the captain, eh?"
Echizen could have sworn the following hiss was much less annoyed.
The text message, once it arrived, was short and simple. "Congratulations on making it to the Nationals, captain Kaidoh."
For a moment, Kaidoh stared at the screen of his phone. Then, he pressed a couple of buttons.
"Message deleted," the phone told him.
After their victory at the Kantou Tournament -- no thanks to Doubles Two, as Kaidoh made very clear --, the Seigaku regulars came to see that their training wasn't getting any easier, at the very least. Then again, the Nationals were the next stop. There was no time for slacking, now.
Kaidoh made a point of having them all practise singles. Having three passable doubles teams would not help, he said, if they couldn't even use one of them without losing any chances in Singles Three and Two. He also played more doubles with Momoshiro than before, often even going to the street tennis courts with the vice-captain.
Echizen assumed he was doing his best to prove to Inui he would do perfectly fine even without the older boy. As far as he could see, it was working. The captain's mood was slowly improving; the number of first-years he scared to tears had dropped as low as three a week.
There was, he thought, still a lot of work to do, though. Hopefully Momoshiro was up to it.
"Are you absolutely sure about this?" Momoshiro asked, eyeing the line-up. "This is the finals, after all. To use us in doubles..."
"Yes, I am sure." Kaidoh looked at him seriously. "We have all developed a lot during this summer, but so has Fudoumine, too. The Miki kids couldn't win Doubles One, however good they are -- neither one of them has the strength to face Ishida. Echizen's still good as ever, and Arai and Hiyoshi have both gotten good enough to handle the singles. You and I, we are the only combination who can withstand Fudoumine's Doubles One."
"Ishida?" Momoshiro echoed. "I thought he and Sakurai played Doubles Two?"
"Nothing good lasts, it seems," Kaidoh replied. "Lately Fudoumine has used them in Doubles One more and more. Considering their latest achievements, they're the most likely choice for finals, too."
"I see, I see," Momo said. "I have power, though, and you can outlast anyone. The Miki kids are too smart to be tricked if Uchimura and Mori try that trick of theirs again that fooled Oishi-senpai two years ago."
"Indeed." Kaidoh hissed. "If you mess this up, Momoshiro, I'll kill you."
"Don't worry, Mamushi," Momoshiro replied with perfect seriouness. "I want to win this just as badly as you do. We can't lose this time. We just can't."
"Wow, as if we didn't have enough pressure already," sighed Momoshiro. "See, Mamushi? We've got audience." He pointed towards a certain spot at the stands.
"Considering it's the Nationals finals, that's only news to you, idiot," hissed Kaidoh, but looked to the direction his vice-captain was pointing at anyway. As he saw what was being indicated, his eyes widened. "Fsshuu. What are they doing here?"
"Cheering for us, most likely," Echizen said, actually lifting his cap for once so as to see better. "Seems like everybody from last year is there -- aside from us, of course."
Indeed. The rest of the previous Seigaku team was gathered in the stands. Tezuka looked stern as ever, Fuji smiling next to him. Eiji started waving when he noticed them looking their way, Oishi looking a bit embarrassed by his side. Taka-san was there, too, smiling brilliantly at them.
"Not everybody," Momoshiro noted. "Inui-senpai isn't there." He turned towards the captain. "Kaidoh?"
"About seven metres to the left from the rest, on the fourth row, with a red shirt," Kaidoh replied briefly. "Yanagi's right next to him."
"Hm." Echizen tugged his cap back down. "Seems like Kaidoh-senpai's Inui Radar is still functional despite everything."
"Kaidoh! Momo! Ochibi!" Apparently Eiji had got enough of just waving and was running towards them now. "Wow, I can't believe it you made it to the finals! Absolutely awesome, kids! Now, try your best ot make your former senpais proud, nyaa!"
Kaidoh hissed, secretly relieved for the chance to escape the topic of Inui. "Fsshuuu. Do you really think we made it this far only to lose? We've already won Fudoumine twice this year, besides."
"It's been harder each time, though," Momoshiro said. "They've no doubt evolved even more since the last time we faced them, too. But no worries!" he then said. "We'll be sure to beat them despite our captain!"
"Nya, captain Kaidoh probably isn't too happy about that statement," Eiji giggled. "It's the same way as last year, right? Starting with Singles Three?"
"Yes, it is," Kaidoh replied, sending a death glare to Momo's direction. "I rather hope this lasts until Doubles One at least, since if I can't get rid of any energy, I'll use it all to beat that idiot."
"Wow, domestic violence in public." Eiji winked. "You should just leave him, Momo, nya!" With this and an evil giggle, the redhead bounced away to where Oishi waited for him.
The half angry, half embarrassed flush on Kaidoh's face rivalled that of any self-respecting tomato, Momo's cackles providing a suitable audio track.
"Game, set, and match, Seigaku's Kaidoh-Momoshiro pair. 6 games to 4!"
Momoshiro grinned. Their line-up had worked perfectly. Despite Hiyoshi's rather humiliating loss in Singles Three, the Miki twins and Arai had brought two spectacular wins, followed by his and Kaidoh's piece-of-art performance at Doubles One. Echizen hadn't even got a chance to play at all, something he seemed rather sulky about.
Ah, well. The next year it would be his turn to lead Seigaku to victory once again. For now, however, Kaidoh was the captain who had guided his team to the Nationals Championship.
And, well, as the vice-captain who'd aided Kaidoh in doing that he was entitled to a little gloating of his own, wasn't he?
There was no more Kawamura sushi for the Seigaku regulars as a frequent place of celebration, now -- not that Taka-san's father would have protested -- but this didn't mean they had to be hungry after such a tremendous victory. Ryuzaki-sensei had promised to treat them -- with the reservation that absolutely no eating contests were allowed. This meant, of course, that the night found all eight boys busy eating and chattering, congratulating each other for the victory.
"Nyah, poor Echizen didn't even get to play, so he doesn't get to gloat at all," Momoshiro said with a grin. "Aren't you so very disappointed now, eh, Echizen? Too bad for you Mamushi and I played too well!"
"You should continue the tradition, Momo-senpai, Kaidoh-senpai," Echizen said with a smirk, apparently not too saddened at the other's words. If there was something Echizen had learnt from Fuji, it was that revenge often worked better than getting upset. "After all, you are our victorious Doubles One team this year."
"Huh?" Momo blinked. "What tradition? What do you mean?"
"Oh, don't play innocent, Momo-senpai." The smirk was definitely sadistic now. Yes, Echizen had had far too much exposure to Fuji indeed. "Don't tell me you've forgotten the Golden Pair's celebration last year."
A flush rising to Kaidoh's cheeks and a semi-annoyed hiss revealed he definitely remembered it. Momo groaned a bit. Of all the things to remember about their victory the year before, Echizen simply had to pick that one, hadn't he? Then again, it had been rather hard to forget. Spontaneous acts of public display of affection were something to be expected from Eiji-senpai, but for Oishi-senpai to actually do something like that in public...
"Huh? What do you mean, senpai?" The Miki twins seemed puzzled, while all the other regulars were amused. Then again, nobody who had been attending Seigaku the year before could have not known what Echizen was talking about. For a few days the news had been a more popular topic than the National Championship itself.
"Ah, well," Momoshiro said, flushing as well, doing his best not to look at either Kaidoh or Echizen. "You see, after winning the championship, Oishi-senpai -- he was our vice-captain back then -- well, he got so happy that -- that is --"
"Oh, for fuck's sake," Kaidoh spat, still blushing. "What the idiot is trying to say is, Oishi-senpai simply went to Eiji-senpai -- his doubles partner -- and did, approximately, this." Without any other warning, he grasped on Momo's shoulders, pulling him closer.
For a moment Momoshiro was sure Kaidoh wouldn't go through with it. It would be absolutely against the other boy's character. There was no way it was going to happen, just no, it wouldn't --
And then, he felt Kaidoh's lips on his own and stopped thinking.
Kaidoh's lips were, Momoshiro noticed, warmer than he had ever imagined. Of course, realizing this also meant admitting to himself that yes, he had indeed often wondered just what the captain's lips would feel like should he ever gather the courage to go and kiss his bandana-clad friend. That Kaidoh might be the one to take the first step had never even crossed his mind. The other boy was, well, fairly naive when it came to things such as that -- either that or incredibly stupid and stubborn.
Momoshiro had been convinced Kaidoh wouldn't notice anyone's genuine interest on him even if he'd been hit on the head with a sign that read, "I've got a crush on you, idiot Mamushi." (Why, no, he had never imagined this scene in his mind. Not even when Kaidoh was feeling particularly thick-headed. Well, not very often, at least.) Now he had to admit that either he had been grievously wrong or Kaidoh had simply gone crazy with joy at their victory.
As Kaidoh finally released him, they stared at each other, both rather flushed -- mostly with embarrassment. The rest of the regulars stared at them as though wondering how to react to this scene. Echizen simply drew his cap down to cover his face, while Arai, who had also witnessed Oishi's act of insane courage the year before, was apparently trying to claw his eyes out.
For a moment, there was simply silence as everybody processed the incident. Finally, the silence was broken by a rather shaken Kyo Miki.
"Ryo," he said seriously to his brother, "we'd damn better make sure we're not Doubles One in the finals next year."
"Kyo," his brother replied, watching semi-calmly as the captain fled the scene, closely followed by the vice-captain, "I very much agree."
"Mamushi."
Kaidoh didn't respond. Even the hiss he produced was only barely audible.
"Oi, Mamushi." Momoshiro walked closer to the captain of the team. "Look at me."
"Like hell I will," Kaidoh muttered, not turning to face him. Momoshiro wasn't sure whether he sounded more embarrassed or enraged.
"What are you so mad at me about, anyway?" snapped the spiky-haired boy. "I'd understand this if I'd been the one to kiss you, but sorry Mamushi, it was you all along. Now explain what I did to you anyway. It's not fair to just sulk at me like this, it's not fair at all."
There was still no response aside from another hiss. Now, this was getting too much. "What the hell's your problem anyway?" Momoshiro snapped. "If anybody should be mad here it's me!"
"Then why aren't you, idiot?"
Kaidoh's question took Momoshiro entirely by surprise. For a moment he couldn't do anything but stare at the other boy's back, blinking. Then, he snapped, "Why'd I be? I'm not childish enough to get mad over a simple joke! If anything I'm mad at Echizen for bringing it up like that."
"A joke?" echoed Kaidoh.
"Yeah, a joke!" Momoshiro yelled. "If it's not a joke to you, then what is it? Why'd you kiss me, Mamushi?"
"...I don't know."
"Like hell you don't," Momoshiro growled, stepping closer to the other boy. "You don't kiss people like that for no reason, Mamushi! So why'd you do that?"
"I don't know!" Finally, Kaidoh spun around, his eyes blazing. "Do you think I enjoy making a fool of myself in front of the whole team, you idiot?"
"Oh?" Momoshiro raised an eyebrow. "Do you think of Oishi-senpai as a fool, then?"
"Don't be an idiot," Kaidoh growled. "Of course not."
"Then why'd anybody think of you as that?" questioned Momo further. He wasn't about to let it go this easily.
"Idiot. Unlike you and I, Oishi-senpai and Eiji-senpai were together."
"So it'd be okay if we were together, then?" Momoshiro raised an eyebrow. He couldn't believe he was having this conversation with Kaidoh of all people. Then again, if he had to have it with anybody, Kaidoh would be his first choice. "Is that it?"
"Of course!" Kaidoh spat. "It's completely different for people who are dating!" There was a slight flush on his cheeks now. "Because it's you, though, I've just made a fool of myself and I'm not even sure why!"
"I think Echizen's a big part of the reason," Momo pointed out. "It's not like you, though, it's not like you at all. So tell me, was it a joke? A moment of insanity? A sudden realization you liked me, too?"
For a moment Kaidoh simply watched him. Then he echoed, very slowly, "'Too?'"
Momoshiro's eyes widened. Shit. That was something he hadn't meant to say aloud, but apparently he had. Trying to look as dignified as he could with a blush on his face, he said, "Yeah, 'too'. I like you, idiot, though I'll be damned if I know why. I'm probably clinically insane or something."
"You... like me?" Apparently this piece of news was not going to be easily absorbed into Kaidoh's mind. "You? Me?" As Momoshiro nodded again, Kaidoh actually managed to form a complete sentence. "Is that why you weren't mad for that kiss?"
"Partly, yeah." Momo rubbed his neck in embarrassment. "I'd wondered what it'd be like to kiss you, but was worried you'd just punch me or something. Kick me out of the club, definitely. Never thought you'd be the one to take the first step, even if it was just a random act of insanity." He shrugged. "You and me, we're both kind of crazy, I guess."
"Fsshuu." Now, that was more like the Kaidoh he knew. "Like I'd kick you out of the club before the Nationals were over. Punch you, maybe, but your stupid ass is not worth weakening the team."
"Well, the Nationals are over now." Momo smiled even though he didn't really feel like doing it. "So it's okay if you kick me out now, right?"
For a moment Kaidoh just stared at him. Finally, unusually softly, the other boy hissed, "Idiot."
Then there were again hands grasping on his shirt, and lips on his own. 'Okay,' Momoshiro thought inwardly, for what little conscious thought he was currently capable of in his surprise, 'definitely not a joke this time.'
This time it took longer for them to break the kiss. As they did, they stared at each other for a moment, faces flushed. Kaidoh was the first one to break the silence.
"80 laps the first thing tomorrow, all of you," he hissed. "This is not a damned soap opera!"
"Oh, really?" Echizen smirked a bit as he stepped into the sight, followed by the rest of the team, all looking either sheepish or shocked -- whether at the laps or the scene remained uncertain. "It sure sounded like that to me."
"Um... are you together now, then, captain, vice-captain?" one of the Mikis asked hesitantly.
Momoshiro looked at Kaidoh, smirking. "Well? Do you want to be a fool or not?"
Kaidoh hissed. "The only fool here are you." Then he added, "And for Echizen, it's 100 laps."
"Doesn't surprise me." With this and a final adjustment of his cap, Echizen turned away. "...Oh, and congratulations for finally coming to your senses," he added.
"What the hell did you say?" Kaidoh yelled, taking a threatening step closer to Momoshiro. "Say that again and I'll kill you!"
"I said you're an idiot, Mamushi!" Momoshiro replied, stepping closer too. Apparently he had no reservations about arguing in front of the whole tennis club and a few curious passers-by.
"Stop calling me Mamushi!" Another step closer.
"Mamushi, Mamushi, Mamushi!" Yet again, a step. "I'm going to call you a damn Mamushi until the day you die!"
"Feel free to try!" Kaidoh growled. "You won't manage, though, because I'm going to kill you long before that!"
"Now, really," Echizen commented with a sigh. "You'd think they'd at least try to set a better example to the younger students now that they're a captain and vice-captain, but they are even worse than a year ago."
"I don't understand," Miki Ryo complained. "Weren't they supposed to like each other?" As Echizen nodded in confirmation, he asked, "Then why are they fighting?"
"It's just the way they do things." Echizen smirked a bit. "Now, note that they hardly ever mean their threats, and delete those from their conversation a moment ago. What will be left?" As the twins looked puzzled, awaiting an explanation, he said with an even broader smirk, "Momo-senpai basically said he's going to stick with Kaidoh-senpai until the day he dies and Kaidoh-senpai said it's fine with him."
"Wow," Kyo breathed. "It's just like a soap opera." Then, however, he frowned. "Do they even realize they are saying those things?" he then asked doubtfully. Apparently he didn't have much faith in his senpais' skills in the area of romance.
"Probably not." Echizen nodded towards the two older regulars who were currently once again grasping on each other's shirts. "Most likely they only fight to get an excuse to get close to each other. It's amusing to wonder just how much of the things they say is due to their subconsciousness being at work, though, isn't it?"
The twins glanced at each other. Then, they nodded simultaneously. "Indeed," they said as one. "The Seigaku Soap Opera."
Being at high school wasn't that bad, Kaidoh had come to notice. It was a bit more work than junior high, naturally, but nothing unbearable. He was used to working hard, anyway -- whenever his idiot of a boyfriend wasn't doing his very best to distract him. Sometimes Kaidoh suspected the bastard wanted them both to fail.
At the moment, however, he was not concentrating on school work. Well, in a way he was -- tennis club was, after all, an after-school activity like anything else. However, he wouldn't go as far as to call the document currently in front of him home work. For one thing, nobody had assigned it to him, and for another, he wasn't required to do anything about it, nor could he.
It was, like far too many things in life, inavoidable.
"What are you doing?" asked Momo, looking over Kaidoh's shoulder. "Oh. That's the team listing of our opponent tomorrow, right?"
"Yes, it is." Kaidoh looked at the list. After he stopped talking to Inui-senpai, he'd come to develope a little habit of data-collecting of his own. Of course, he was nowhere as obsessed as Inui was -- and nowhere as good at calculating -- but he liked knowing as much as possible about whoever he was going to face. He'd gotten used to it, in a way. "And it is... interesting."
After one glance, Momoshiro's eyebrow's shot high. "It is, it is indeed," he said, whistling a bit. "Any guesses on the line-up?"
"Considering their past line-ups and what our captain decided," Kaidoh said, "there's a pretty high chance of us facing those two."
For a moment, Momoshiro was uncharacteristically silent. Then, he wound his arms around Kaidoh's neck, his cheek against that of the other boy. "We'll beat those bastards, you know."
Kaidoh hissed, sounding much more annoyed than he was. "Idiot, of course we will. There's no way I would lose to them."
"That's the spirit." Momoshiro grinned. "We shouldn't probably do anything too strenuous tonight so as to be prepared for tomorrow, right? Or would you rather warm up well in advance?" With this, he placed a kiss on the other's neck.
Kaidoh snorted. "Don't you ever think of anything else, you horny bastard?"
"No?" Momo offered, grinning. "It's hard to think of anything else with such a sexy boyfriend, you know."
This earned him another hiss. This one, however, wasn't annoyed at all. Well, maybe just a tiny bit. But that would be corrected so easily, right?
The list of the other school's tennis team members lay on the table, forgotten for now. Two of the names were underlined.
When Kaidoh looked at the list the next time, one of them was crossed out, Momoshiro's handwriting announcing "Bastard" next to it.
Of course, they should have expected this. All four of them were accomplished tennis players, likely to end up in their respective school teams at high school. In fact, they had already known this for the other two, who had entered both high school and a new tennis club a year ago. However, once Kaidoh and Momoshiro had easily cleared the ranking tournament, the fate had been sealed.
With both pairs again at the same school level, the chances of them facing each other in a school tournament sooner or later were very high.
Here they were now, facing each other on the opposite sides of the net. Momoshiro and Kaidoh were still in the colours of Seigaku, loyal as they were to their school. The uniforms of Inui and Yanagi were unfamiliar to the younger boys, neither Seigaku nor Rikkai, a school well known for its tennis in the high school world but rarely heard of while they still had been at junior high. Nevertheless, these uniforms marked them as opponents.
"Kaidoh," Inui said, adjusting his glasses a bit. "Long time no see."
"Fsshuuu," Kaidoh replied. "Indeed it is, Inui-san."
The other boy flinched almost visibly at the form of address. Then, however, he seemed to recover, turning to look at Momoshiro instead. "You seem well, Momoshiro. You've been taking good care of Kaidoh, I presume?"
"Mamushi's perfectly capable of taking care of himself," Momoshiro replied sharply. "Not that it's any business of yours, anyway."
"Ah," Inui replied with a slightly sad smile, "I suppose it isn't."
The match started with nothing remarkable happening. They fought evenly, Momoshiro's power and Kaidoh's various snakes fighting against the older boys' data. Inui seemed to predict Kaidoh particularly well, which wasn't much of a surprise, considering all the time they had used to spend together. On the other hand, Kaidoh actually managed to break Inui's serve, something nobody in the tournament had managed to do until then. Improved though it may have been since their junior high days, it was still the Waterfall serve, and Kaidoh still knew it better than anybody aside from Inui himself -- and probably Yanagi. This did, however, seem to impress Inui -- apparently he had been of the opinion that even knowing it well wouldn't enable Kaidoh to return it.
He would see, though. He would definitely see.
Momoshiro waited as patiently as he could, not getting a chance to use his specialties aside from a few Jack Knifes. The opponents knew him too well and paid too much attention to their data to allow him to use his Dunk Smash. He was almost beginning to think he wouldn't get to show off his new trick until, suddenly, there was a lob. A perfect, nice lob.
Now, this was a chance ball if anything. Of course, the two data players would have predicted it and were prepared to return his Dunk Smash -- although he much doubted they could do it. Even Kaidoh had trouble with doing that, and they practised together every day. However, whether they could do it didn't matter. After all, he wasn't going to do as they predicted.
Letting the ball pass his racquet, Momoshiro grinned a bit, knowing that behind him another figure had just come to sight, pushing up from his shoulder as he fell. And then, with a yell, Kaidoh hit the ball with a perfect smash.
Except that it wasn't. With hard work, trial and error, and a little bit of something only Kaidoh seemed to be capable of doing, they had managed to accomplish something that was sure to surprise even these two.
"Chance of Kaidoh taking the ball instead -- 65", Inui said confidently, hurrying to meet the ball. Imagine his surprise, then, when the sharp smash suddenly changed its direction, neatly curving to the side so fast that neither of their opponents could react.
It wasn't until the ball had already almost stopped on the ground that everybody seemed to realize just what had happened.
"A -- a snake dunk?" Inui stammered. "But -- that is --"
"Remarkable," Yanagi said calmly, though he, too, sounded rather shaken. "For them to have developed this much..."
"You haven't seen anything yet," Momoshiro said self-confidently, smirking at the older boys. "We will beat you, you'll see. You will definitely see."
"Fsshuu," Kaidoh hissed, glaring at Inui. "It's time to rewrite your data, Inui-san."
"Indeed," Inui said, adjusting his glasses. "You never fail to surprise me time and time again, Kaidoh."
The only response he got was an annoyed hiss.
The next one to surprise anyone, however, was Momo. His Dunk Snake didn't curve quite as much, and Yanagi actually managed to get his racquet below it, but with Momo's strength, it couldn't be returned. He couldn't remember ever feeling such triumph before as he did now. Perhaps he couldn't do the Snakes as well as Kaidoh -- although well enough to pass for the other boy during an actual match, like he had proven -- but at least he could do something. And, well, the Dunk Smash was his specialty, not Kaidoh's. It would have been quite unfair if that aspect of their shared shot hadn't been better when he executed the move, wouldn't it?
After this, they pretty much seized the flow of the match. With their new moves, Kaidoh and Momo had managed to make the data inaccurate, and while the older boys could still predict most of their moves, the new variables kept messing up the calculations. Though they fought rather evenly, in the end nothing could beat the advantage the Seigaku players had managed to gain over the data-using pair.
Sweat soaked Momo's face as he stood, grinning at Inui. Kaidoh, at his side, let out a low hiss as the referee finally spoke.
"Game, set and match, Seigaku's Kaidoh-Momoshiro pair, 7 games to 5!"
Even after such a long time, Inui still was fairly confident he knew Kaidoh's training schedule. After all, he had been keeping an eye on the other boy even after they had stopped keeping in contact. Still, he had been hesitant to use this information on his advantage to approach his former doubles partner. What if Kaidoh really didn't want anything to do with him anymore?
Renji had finally been able to convince him to do it. After all, his boyfriend had reminded him, the worst that could happen was a rejection, and he was already not talking with Kaidoh. Therefore, it couldn't get any worse, now could it? Inui would have liked to disagree, pointing out that Momoshiro's word of Kaidoh's unwillingness to stay in touch wasn't the same as hearing the actual words from Kaidoh. However, like Renji had reminded, the last year might have brought some change.
This was why he was currently in the park, leaning against a tree, knowing very well the boy running towards him couldn't see him. At least, he couldn't yet. A moment later, however, Kaidoh had reached the place where he was hiding.
"Kaidoh," Inui said, stepping into the younger boy's sight. "Mind if I join you?"
Kaidoh considered this for a moment, his eyes sharp as he looked at the other boy. Inui was starting to feel very uncomfortable, convinced the answer would be negative.
At last, Kaidoh spoke. "...Do as you like."
It wouldn't be fixed that easily, Inui knew. Kaidoh didn't trust just anybody, and if you lost his trust once, it was nigh impossible to regain. Still, Inui was feeling hopeful enough to try, at least.
There was, based on Kaidoh's response just then, a 67 chance he would succeed, given time.