Sakuno at Rikkai Dai

Author's note: This story was inspired by a fanfic called Place of My Heart, written by Eien no Kaze. Said author has kindly allowed me to borrow her idea of Sakuno's memory loss due to Ryoma and Tomoka's betrayal and later, the car accident, as well as her changing schools to Rikkai Dai. The setting is her first year in senior high and she is sixteen years old.

Disclaimer: I do not The Prince of Tennis and apart from the idea started by Eien no Kaze, the story is totally my own, including the teachers at Rikkai Dai and Yukimura Miyu, please enjoy.

Chapter One: A Brand New Day

It was a bright sunny morning when Ryuzaki Sakuno stepped outside the door to make her way to her new high school.

Given her extremely bad sense of direction, she had walked to Rikkai Dai everyday for the past week and now, she was confident of not losing her way. Fifteen minutes later, she was outside the gates of Rikkai Dai.

"This must be my lucky day! I haven't gotten lost… No, I couldn't have gotten lost. I went over the route so many times. Still, it's a nice feeling to arrive at my new school without having to ask anyone for directions." Sakuno thought to herself as she made her way to the teachers' office, as she was told when she received a pack of instructions for new students from the school.

When she was outside the teachers' office, she knocked politely, in her quiet manner, and went in.

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The bell rang. Yukimura Miyu dashed inside the classroom and sat down, breathing heavily for she woke up late and had to rush to school in a hurry. Usually her brother woke her but today he had to go to school early for practice, hence she overslept.

Their homeroom teacher, Sano-sensei, had not arrived yet and she was grateful because he was a strict teacher and had said that he would give her detention if she was late once more.

Miyu was putting out her pencil case when she heard the girls behind her talk of a new student. They were hoping that this new student would be a good-looking guy.

"I would rather it's a girl. Hopefully someone who likes to play tennis." Miyu thought wistfully.

She did not care too much for boys due to the fact that she had a brother who had lots of friends and they would always meet up at their house. It was not that she dislike them, it was only because she was around them all the time that she longed for a female confidante.

Miyu did not lack for friends at school. She got along with everyone but somehow was unable to make any close friends. It was probably due to the fact that she disliked most of the topics the girls in her class usually talked about, i.e. fashion, gossip and of course, guys.

The door slide open and Sano-sensei stepped inside. The class immediately became silent.

Sano-sensei turned to them and said, "As you all must have heard by now, we have a new student with us today." With that, he said to someone outside the door, "Come in."

Sakuno took a deep breath and stepped into the classroom.

She hated being in the center of attention because she was shy and timid by nature. She clutched her school bag tightly, hoping that no one would notice that her hands were shaking ever so slightly.

She stopped next to Sano-sensei and waited for him to tell her where to sit.

"This is Ryuzaki Sakuno. Would you like to introduce yourself, Ryuzaki?" Sano-sensei asked.

Sakuno gave a small nervous smile and said, "I am Ryuzaki Sakuno. Yoroshiku-onegaishimasu." She then bowed politely.

Sano-sensei looked around the classroom for an empty desk. He found one next to Miyu, by the window. "Ryuzaki, you can sit next to Yukimura Miyu in that empty seat. Yukimura, it would be nice if you can help Ryuzaki settle in since you have been in this school since junior high."

Miyu stood up and smiled, "Hai, sensei. Yuroshiku ne, Ryuzaki-san."

Sakuno was relieved to see that she would be sitting next to a girl because she was shy of boys. She sat down and hung her bag from the side of her desk.

Miyu said, "I'm Yukimura Miyu. You can just call me Miyu." Sakuno smiled in response to Miyu's friendly attitude and replied, "Then you must call me Sakuno."

The two girls smiled at each other, both feeling they had made a new friend.

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At lunchtime, Miyu took Sakuno to a sunny spot outside on the grass to eat their bento. She liked the shy and hesitant but gentle girl.

She said, "By the way, Sakuno, will you be joining any clubs? There are a lot of choices in Rikkai Dai. I am in the girls' tennis club myself, though it is rather small compared to the boys' tennis club."

Sakuno brightened at the mention of tennis. She said, "Really? You are in the girls' tennis club? That's great because I want to join." Sakuno liked tennis due to the influence of… something that she had forgotten.

She was not a very good player but she enjoyed practicing. Anyhow she was not competitive so it did not bother her very much.

Miyu laughed, "Yosh, after school I will take you to join our club. There's no activity today so after we find buchou, if you like I will show you more of the school grounds. This place is so big we can't possibly cover it in one lunch time."

Sakuno agreed.

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After school, Miyu ran and got Sakuno a club-joining form.

Sakuno wrote her name and class on the form. She then signed it carefully, biting her lip in concentration. "Yosh! Miyu-chan, where do I hand this in now?"

Miyu checked the form over and nodded. "Come on, I'll take you to our buchou. She's called Yamamoto Reika and she's really nice. Not like my brother…" The last bit was muttered under her breath but Sakuno heard her.

She asked as they walked along the corridor. "Is your brother is a really horrible person? You said he's not like our buchou. Ah! Gomen! I shouldn't have asked such a personal question! Honto ni gomen-nasai! Miyu-chan!"

Miyu chuckled, "No, don't say that. It's fine. No, my brother is a gentle person normally but he is also the buchou of the boys' tennis club and then, he's really strict! I suppose I understand because they have a reputation to keep and if not for my brother and his friends, the boys' tennis club would not have won the senior high school nationals two years running.

Rikkai Dai has always been really strong in tennis. In fact, we are one of the best in the country but ever since my brother and his lot came up from Rikkai's junior high, they have reigned supreme in the boys' tennis club."

Sakuno gasped, "Wow… That is incredible! I didn't know that."

Miyu looked at her. "That's strange, so you didn't come into Rikkai because of our tennis reputation? I thought you like tennis?"

Sakuno blushed, "Well, I do like tennis but I had a car accident when the school year began and lost part of my memory. Obaa-chan decided that after I recovered that a new environment might be better for me. I think that before the accident, I was under some emotional stress and I try not to think about it because it gives me really bad headaches. I don't remember a lot of things about tennis but I do remember the basics and I know I really like it."

Sakuno had stopped walking when she started talking about her accident and memory loss. She had a slightly sad smile on her face and Miyu knew that although her tone was light, her heart was not.

She thought carefully before saying anything because she did not want to upset this sweet girl who brought out her strong protective streak. "So that's why you didn't start at the beginning of the term. Never mind! You can still learn about tennis now! Besides I would love telling you all that I know. I get a lot of tennis gossip from my brother and his lot."

Sakuno was easily distracted from her pensive mood and she smiled, her eyes twinkling, "That's true. Thank you Miyu-chan!"

Miyu winked at her good-naturedly and they continued walking in search of Yamamoto Reika.