Yuri Masuno had just finished her first day of high school, at her first pick for a school; Nekoma High. Her black hair just barely reached her shoulders, straight but with a wave towards the end. She had bangs that went across her gray eyes. She was small in stature; short and thin but not too petite. She wore the black skirt of the school uniform along with the black sailor-style top and the red ribbon around the neck tied like a bow, but she opted for a gray long-sleeved cardigan that had the school's symbol on the right side above the chest.

Habitually, she pushed open the doors to the gym, curiously making her way down the stairs and peering over the railing. There they were; the volleyball team.

Yuri loved volleyball. It was probably the only thing in the world that kept her attention for longer than a few minutes. She'd never seen Nekoma's team before, although she'd heard they'd been in a decline recently.

The second and third years were letting the first-years practice; probably in order to assess their skills. She watched them play, curiously. They seemed skilled for first-years. One of them was quite tall, even for a first-year, with a strong build and black, spiked up hair. He was a middle blocker. The smaller one was a libero and the third one was a wing spiker. They would make good assets for the team once they had more experience.

Yuri leaned her head to one side as she watched. After they practiced spiking, they practiced receiving. Of course, the libero was the best one at it. The wing spiker seemed to have a much more difficult time receiving.

After several failed attempts, he seemed incredibly frustrated and none of the older players seemed interested in teaching him.

"You're doing it wrong," Yuri called down to him, attracting the attention of everyone in the room. She didn't care; she was only talking to him. "You can't get it right because you're doing it wrong."

One of the second-years chuckled. "What does a little girl like you know about volleyball?"

"Let me show you," she told the wing spiker, ignoring the other player. She descended the bleacher stairs into the gym floor, feeling only slightly intimidated by all the towering boys. She was only 155 centimeters tall, compared to everyone else in the room, save for the libero, she was like a little kid.

She approached the wing spiker and held out her hands, preparing to receive.

"You want me to throw a ball at you?" the older kid who was spiking at them chuckled, "I don't want to break your arms."

Yuri furrowed her brow. "They won't break." She turned her head to the wing spiker. "Hold your arms like this and lift with your whole body."

The older kid shrugged and did as he was told. The ball impacted just where she planned and she received it almost effortlessly. All the boys around gawked at her and she heard a few chuckles in the back.

"See?" she said, "Now you try."

He nodded and did as she said when he received and he was able to do it properly. "Oh, you're amazing!" he gushed, happily, "Are you on the girls' team? Don't you have practice, too?"

Yuri shook her head quickly. "No, I'm not on a team. I've never been on a team."

They all gazed at her wide-eyed. "How did you learn how to do that?" the wing spiker asked, in awe.

She shrugged. "I went to junior high with Ushijima and I used to watch the volleyball practice every day."

"Ushijima?" the middle blocker with the spiky hair mused, "from Shiratorizawa?"

Yuri nodded. "We were friends. The boys' volleyball team at Shiratorizawa Junior High were serious but in their free time, they taught me how to play."

One of the second years stepped forward. "You went to Shiratorizawa Junior High?" he gawked, "What are you doing at Nekoma? If you're smart enough to go to a school like that, you would've gotten in anywhere in the country."

Yuri tapped her chin for a minute. "What am I doing… at Nekoma? That's a good question." She sat in silence for a moment, sensing that they were itching for an answer and it made her giggle. "Well… my family moved. There is another reason but that's a secret."

"What?" the wing spiker chuckled, "Why is it a secret?"

Yuri laughed. "If I tell you why it's a secret, then it won't be a secret anymore."

He shrugged. "I guess. Hey, if you know how Ushiwaka and the Shiratorizawa team plays, why don't you become our team manager?" he asked, excitedly, "You could help us so much. You could give us tips."

Yuri chuckled, shaking her head quickly. "Thanks for the offer, but no thanks. It's too much responsibility. I like to watch so I'll be up there," she gestured to the spot where she stood before, "Probably every day."

"Thank you for helping," he said as she walked towards the stairs.

"No problem."

Yuri could feel a pair of eyes on her even as they resumed their practice. It seemed she caught someone's attention.

At the end of practice, she left the building, stopping at the shoe lockers to change out of her school shoes when she heard a voice behind her.

"Hey, you," the voice called and she turned to see the middle blocker with the spiky hair, "What's your name?"

Yuri took her time changing shoes and closing her locker before turning towards him. "Yuri Masuno," she answered, "What's yours?"

"Tetsuro Kuroo," he answered, "You're in my class."

"Am I?" she giggled, "I'm sorry, I never pay attention."

He shook his head, dismissing her apology. "It's nice to meet you. You seemed quiet in class today so you surprised me in practice."

She shrugged. "I'm not really quiet, I just don't talk unless someone's talking to me. But watching him suffer was painful so I just wanted to help."

He nodded. "Thank you for that."

She shook her head quickly. "It's nothing."

"I'll see you tomorrow," he said before walking past her.

Yuri watched him walk away before taking a deep breath. She was used to spending so much time with the Shiratorizawa team so meeting a whole group of new people was a bit overwhelming. Although, she had a good feeling about it.

The next day, after the volleyball practice, Yuri ran into Tetsuro again on her way out. "Hey, Masuno," he greeted. Yuri nodded once in return. "I happened to notice your grade on the homework, since I sit a couple seats behind you and all," he continued, blushing a bit, "And I was wondering if you would be up for tutoring."

Yuri gazed at him for a moment. Her first instinct was to refuse; tutoring him would require effort and responsibility. Then again, this could be her chance to actually make a friend at this school. "Okay," she answered, "On one condition." He gazed at her intently, as if he was afraid of her condition. "Don't tell anyone what you're going to find out."

He seemed to be frightened by her words, cautiously approaching and walking at her side. "Um, what do you mean?"

"You'll see when we get there."

Yuri could feel his curiosity and his fear of the unknown at her words and it made her giggle.

They pushed open the doors and Yuri took a deep breath of the fresh air. It tasted nice. The sun was setting and the sky was a beautiful color, although the sky appeared much more beautiful in the country, where the air wasn't polluted or hidden away by lights. Yuri was content as long as she got to see it.

They walked in silence until they reached her home. It wasn't very far from the school and it was in a nice, quiet neighborhood. Yuri's father was an important businessman working for a corporation; she didn't care much for the details. But she did live comfortably, and she was grateful for that. It wasn't a mansion, though.

Yuri led Tetsuro inside, taking off her shoes, announcing that she'd come home. She could sense his intimidation at what she'd said before peaking and she giggled at the thought, just as her mother poked her head in.

"Oh, Yuri," she greeted, "You made a friend."

Yuri nodded. "I'm tutoring him."

Her mother gave her a shocked expression. "You? You're going out of your way to do something responsible?" She laughed. "Interesting. Is he on the volleyball team?" Yuri nodded. "Oh, Yuri. I wish you'd come home with a girl one day."

Yuri shrugged. "Kuroo, this is my mom. Mom, this is Tetsuro Kuroo."

"Nice to meet you," Tetsuro greeted nervously.

Her mother nodded. "Nice to meet you too. I'll make an extra setting for dinner."

"Thank you," Tetsuro said as she walked away.

Yuri met his gaze. "What I'm about to show you is a secret. Follow me."

She led him up the stairs to her bedroom, opening the door and leading him inside. He was almost trembling. "What is it?" he asked, "What are you hiding?"

Yuri knelt down and peered under her bed, reaching under and retrieving a fully grown, calico cat. "This is Momo."

Tetsuro gazed at her suspiciously for a moment. "Is that the secret?"

Yuri nodded. "He's the real reason I wanted to go to Nekoma so much. It was my first choice."

Tetsuro continued gazing at her, puzzlement in his eyes. "What do you mean?"

Yuri tapped her chin. "Well, to put it simply, I love cats."

There was a short silence before he burst out laughing. "That's the reason you came to Nekoma? I thought it was something scary, like drugs or weapons."

"Drugs or weapons?" Yuri mused, "Interesting. I thought cats were holy at Nekoma."

Tetsuro finally managed to calm down, kneeling down on the ground across from her. "Cats aren't holy at Nekoma," he mused, "The kanji in Nekoma doesn't mean cat. It just sounds the same."

"Oh," Yuri gasped, "I've been duped."

Tetsuro laughed again as Yuri set Momo down on the ground and opened her school bag, sliding out her notebook. He did the same once he relaxed, although the smile lingered on his face.

Yuri flipped open her notebook. "What is it that you don't understand?"