A Prince of Tennis fanfic.
Alpha Pair a.k.a. SanaYuki

Story: I Am Cupid - Chapter 8

Rating: T

Disclaimer: Prince of Tennis belongs to Konomi Takeshi.

Author's note: After such a long hiatus (must be been years!), it's certainly nice to be back. So hope you like it and please leave feedback for me (it has been a long while since I've written something un-academic.) Enjoy.

Enjoy and... please review!

8. Kidnapping

The team huddled in the locker room, all eyes focused on the straws Niou was holding. His voice almost trembling, Niou repeated again, "Who ever draws the short straw will be in charge of telling Sanada that Yukimura is kidnapped."

"Short straw usually means bad," Yagyuu muttered, "not good…" One by one, each member of the team drew their straws. Sighs of disappointment – and fear – followed each draw. Kirihara had finally drawn the short straw. He pouted, immediately complaining, "But I wanted to help kidnap Yukimura-buchou!"

Niou raised his eyebrows. Perhaps his dear kouhai did not understand that whoever helped kidnap Yukimura would probably be killed by Sanada… But of course, he wasn't complaining. "I, Niou Masaharu, will take on that difficult task then!"

"No way!" Marui objected immediately, snatching Kirihara's short straw from him.

Niou took a punch at Marui, who dodged, leaving Jackal in the path of Niou's fist. Marui grinned and waved the short straw in the air, laughing at Niou. "Stop," Yukimura's voice cut through the madness, "Jackal can have the short straw." He took it from Marui and handed it to Jackal. Niou and Marui glared at each other, mouthing insults and blasphemy.

"So now," Yukimura spoke again, though his face began blushing this time, "what do I say when he comes to… rescue me?"

"Ohhhh, save meeeee," Niou swooned.

Yukimura raised his eyebrows. His lips twitching, he repeated after Niou, "Oh… save me."

"A robot could do better," Niou rolled his eyes. "Ok, how about this: OH SAVE ME, you strong, sexy, muscular ape!"

Kirihara shivered, the image of a hairy ape wearing a black cap springing into his mind. Yukimura blinked blankly at Niou, resisting the temptation to issue him laps right away.

Marui added in his contribution, unaware of Yukimura's internal struggle. "Save me, o strong, muscular knight in shining armour-"

Niou continued, "-I am the princess who has been waiting for you-"

"-I'm in my tall, lonely, dark tower-"

"-surrounded by handsome, muscular, brilliant – and awesome – dragons, which, by the way, are us." Marui and Niou fist-bumped and grinned at Yukimura, whose face was almost redder than a tomato. He glared at Niou and Marui, his eyes sharp as daggers. It was almost amazing how Yukimura managed to look terrifying even when he was embarrassed. Though, of course, he was Yukimura.

"Fine," Niou sighed, heaving his shoulders, "you can stick with 'save me'."

They were sweating beneath their balaclavas as they stood among the long grass that tickled their legs. The team had kidnappedYukimura to a fenced-off "developing grounds". Niou figured that they wouldn't get caught there – considering the area had been "developing" for the past five years.

Jackal had been gone for almost half an hour. The team stood in a bored silence, awaken only by the occasional sounds of Kirihara slapping the mosquitoes on his arms and legs. Marui stifled a laugh as his kouhai's arm swelled to twice its normal size.

Suddenly, a war-cry cut through the solemn silence.

The grass parted and there he was! Sanada Genichirou was charging through the field, parting the wild grass with his wooden sword. Wait, Niou suddenly realised, the sword is reflecting light… it's not wooden… it's a real sword…

Marui whispered urgently into Yukimura's ear, "Say it!"

Yukimura blushed. He squeezed his eyes shut – rather in embarrassment instead of fear as Sanada incorrectly assumed – and whimpered, "Save… me…"

What Yukimura had expressed was extreme embarrassment. The team all rolled their eyes at their buchou's pathetic attempt – what happened to that I-will-crush-everything-in-my-way Child of God? But somehow, what Sanada heard was extreme fear.

"YUKIMURAAAAAA!" Sanada rose his sword and knocked down one of the kidnappers (Marui). A slightly taller kidnapper (Niou, this time) launched at him and Sanada rose his fist, delivering that infamous Tarundoru-slap. Yagyuu and Yanagi thought it wise to run away, but before they could leap across the fence, Sanada had already landed his punches.

"Sanada! Untie me!" Yukimura cried out before his team mates became pulmerised. Sanada's care for Yukimura overpowered his rage and he rushed to Yukimura's side. The "kidnappers" took this chance and escaped (Jackal too, wisely, disappeared).

Despite Yukimura being free of injuries, Sanada insisted on piggy-backing him home. "Thank you," Yukimura muttered, his head leaning against Sanada's broad shoulders.

"It is my honour and duty to protect you, Yukimura."

"But… why? Why do you protect me?"

Sanada stopped in his tracks. Then, in an utmost serious tone, he replied, "I am taller than you. And I am a man."

"I'm a man too!" Yukimura feigned anger and gave Sanada's shoulder a light slap.

Sanada nodded briefly. "Well, a shorter man."

Sanada examined his teammates' injuries, his scrutinising eyes full of questions. "Why is Jackal the only one without bruises?" He asked, completely oblivious to Marui's constant exasperating sighs. The team rolled their eyes, suppressing the desire to reveal to Sanada the irony of the situation.

"JACKAL!" Sanada suddenly pointed to the only team member without bruises. "How could you let them roam around doing dangerous things and associating with dangerous people?" A Tarundoru-slap followed this reprimand, almost knocking Jackal to the ground.

"Well," Marui sighed yet again as he saw the bruise on Jackal's face, "at least now you look part of the team."

Please review!

(I shall also be starting new multi-chapter fics very soon, so look out for them!)