Interrogation #2
I meant to keep "Interrogation" as a one-shot, but I couldn't resist adding just this one part to it. And I think I'll keep it this way as a two-shot. Don't want to overdo the theme.
Remember that part in the manga where Deimon met Ojou in that restaurant? (Volume 13, I think.) Inspiration was from there. ;)
Three girls sat around the table, talking and laughing merrily. Anyone knowledgeable about the area's American football teams would have recognised them fairly easily. Bouncy Taki Suzuna, unofficial head cheerleader of the Deimon Devil Bats, was animatedly gesturing while she talked. Anezaki Mamori, the Devil Bats' manager and resident angel guardian, sat on the opposite side, with her winning gentle smile on her face. And then there was Wakana Koharu, the pretty manager of the Ojou White Knights.
That the three would meet up as often as they did was rather unexpected in the beginning, since they were on opposing sides that boasted two of the best running backs around in Eyeshield 21 and Shin Seijurou. But after Deimon and Ojou coincidentally met at a restaurant some time earlier, the girls hit it off with each other so well they maintained the friendship by getting together every few weeks or so when they could just for a chat and lunch or dinner.
Suzuna leapt out of her seat, demonstrating Monta's favourite "max!!" pose to Koharu in the middle of a hilarious anecdote about the Devil Bats' recent practice.
Koharu, slightly embarrassed by the looks the other people were giving them thanks to Suzuna's Monta act, laughed a little and whispered to Mamori, "I suppose she's like this even at practice, Mamo-nee?"
"Pretty much as hyper as she is now," acquiesced Mamori. "But the guys are generally better entertainment. You understand, I'm sure," she added, with a knowing look at her Ojou counterpart.
Both managers started laughing, to Suzuna's surprise, as her story hadn't yet reached the really funny part.
"What's so funny?" she asked.
"Er, we were just thinking about how funny the boys can be during practices," explained Koharu. "I imagine your team would be especially funny..."
"Why? Isn't Ojou any fun?"
"It can be. I – I'm not saying they're boring," said Koharu. "But the Ojou boys are generally more serious than Deimon's. They're great, but… Um, I mean… Well, you won't catch Shin or Ichiro-kun cracking many jokes. Even Sakuraba-kun doesn't joke around much. But in Deimon you have crazy people like Monta-kun or Taki-kun that provide the laughs and –"
Suzuna interrupted her with a cough. "Ichiro-kun?" Her big eyes gazed mischievously at Koharu.
Koharu stared at her and instantly, Suzuna latched onto the opportunity to dig out more interesting gossip.
"The last time I asked you, you said you weren't dating anyone on the team…"
"I'm not!" protested Koharu.
"Oh really?" Suzuna blinked meaningfully. "But since when do you call Takami 'Ichiro-kun', hmm?"
"We're just friends," began Koharu, going ever-so-slightly slightly pink.
Mamori decided to intercede before Suzuna started harrassing the poor girl too much. Wakana Koharu was of a more introverted personality – not well-equipped to handle Suzuna's persistent line of questioning, especially not in this matter. Suzuna already had a preconceived notion that Koharu was dating Ojou's Takami or that she had a crush on the tall quarterback. And Suzuna was not easily deterred.
"Suzuna, let it go. I believe Koharu-chan. Don't disturb her so," said Mamori, trying to be gentle yet firm in turning Suzuna's mind from the topic of Koharu and Takami Ichiro.
She found that she succeeded better than she wanted to, for the next moment, Suzuna swung round to her and said, "I think you're a bit suspicious yourself, Mamo-nee."
Uh oh, she thought. That line sounds a bit too familiar…
"I –"
"What about you and Hiruma?" asked Suzuna, the mischievous inquiring eyes now turned on Mamori.
"Hiruma?!" exclaimed Mamori in surprise.
Koharu looked at Suzuna, then at Mamori. She looked as surprised as Mamori at the suggestion.
"Are you suuuuure there's nothing going on between you two?"
"What? No!" said the Deimon manager, emphatically. "What on earth gives you that idea?"
"It's the classic story setup! Good and bad, opposites attract and all that. And there's the captain-manager thing as well." Suzuna cast a sly look back at Koharu after that last sentence. "Though I'm not sure I see just what there is to like about Hiruma-senpai. He's just so mean and scary sometimes…"
"He's not – " Mamori stopped short, feeling surprised at herself. Had she just been about to defend Hiruma? No, it was a normal reaction for her… She could still remember how Hiruma was on the Death March – she'd seen the side of him that wasn't quite as frightening as everyone else thought. So it was natural that she'd think otherwise of him (not that she had been much afraid of him to begin with). Yes… It was a natural reaction, she reasoned.
"You were saying something, Mamo-nee?" said Suzuna.
Mamori shook her head slightly, as if to clear her mind. "I was just saying that Hiruma's not all bad. There may be people out there who are cruel through and through, but there's no one in the Devil Bats who's like that. Not Juumonji-kun and his friends, not Hiruma. Don't you think so, Koharu-chan?"
"I agree," said Koharu. "Even in Ojou, there's that Ikari who's so violent Otawara-san has to put him in chains half the time; but I don't think even he is a hundred percent bad."
Suzuna was not to be thus sidetracked. "Perhaps," she said with a shrug. "But Mamo-nee, you can't deny that you're in a particularly good setup. You're the manager, he's the captain," – another sly glance at Koharu – "you're both in the same class, you're both really smart, and I guess in a weird way your personalities balance each other out. That's probably the only really strange part, but that seems to work fine anyway…"
She's making this sound like some love story, thought Mamori. She sighed, thinking that Suzuna's internal 'love antenna' was on hyperdrive along with the rest of her.
"Suzuna."
"… and you're like a saint and he's the devil in disguise…"
"Er, Suzuna," said Koharu, seeing that Mamori was trying to end Suzuna's overactive imagination.
Suzuna didn't seem to hear either of them.
"… Then there's the whole sign language thing. You said he tore up the list. Why did he? Sounds like he wanted to keep it just between you and him…"
Mamori was slowly and gradually getting irritated, sweet-tempered though she was. Then Koharu's phone suddenly rang, proving enough of an interruption to halt Suzuna's train of thought in its tracks. Mamori sent Koharu a grateful look.
Later, after saying goodbye to the other two, Mamori found herself thinking, Why did he tear up that list?
Author's note: Hm... I didn't like this as much as the first part. Suzuna even irritated me as I wrote this. Man. Hahahah... Maybe the first part was easier to write since guys talk less than us girls, and Musashi's less annoying than Suzuna. XD But still, I think this was satisfactory. Hope it's satisfactory to the rest of you as well ;