A/N: Multichaptered, future-sett. Generally canon excepting the femmryo part. YukiRyo :D

Disclaimer: Original names, characters and places don't belong to me. I don't own anything except the general ridiculous plot-less plot and OC(s), if any. Yadablah.

As Fate Wills It

Prologue

Cheers, yelling. Everything was forgotten the minute the score was announced. The relief was near palpable for a split second before excitement took over. It was as though everyone had lost their heads at once. She wasn't even given the formality of congratulating her opponent on a good match – which that was, after all; not as hard as playing baka oyaji, no way, but still difficult – because her teammates were too busy jumping all over her in congratulatory and relieved conversation.

From there, the events passed quickly. The only point of the whole awards ceremony she could remember was when they were presented with the trophy. The rest of it was a blur of flashing lights and cheering voices.

But amid that entire hubbub, when she glanced over at what had been their rival school and rival team, she couldn't find it in her to say the usual 'mada mada dane.' They weren't substandard. That was absurd. Every match they had was won by close margins. And hell, they even lost 2 matches. She could hardly call them substandard.

But it wasn't just that. Maybe it was that look of loss, of confusion, that caught her. The lack of purpose where when they had been playing, it had been determined with a certain light.

It was precisely that that made her slide out to the sidelines, returning Syuu-nii's curious look with one that said 'don't ask, just cover for me' as they were making a raucous racket along the walk out to the buses.

No one noticed, thanks to her anuie, when she slipped out back where the Rikkai buses were waiting. Almost all of them had boarded. Majority, she noted, looked dejected. That wasn't unexpected but would just mean that they'd make her life difficult.

She did exactly what Syuu-nii would have said were he there: asked herself if she really wanted to do this. She could have walked away. She didn't owe them anything. But something in her just made her move.

No one noticed a seaweed head glare at her, yell at her, for coming to gloat. No one noticed as she calmly stared him down until his captain ordered them all on the bus, telling the other two thirds of the Troika, the Golden Three that he'd be fine and be right there.

She didn't gloat. She just did what she would have done after the match if her teammates had not swept her away. With nothing but understanding, in a sudden act of sympathy, she reached over, gave an encouraging squeeze to his hand before departing, comprehending that he'd need it to face the team eventually even if they didn't blame him.

They thought themselves quits then.

She had done what her instinct and conscience demanded and slipped back to her team with a mouthed 'domo' to Syuu-nii.

He had accepted the loss, and understood what she said – it was helpful, really. And that little encounter helped, even if he didn't admit it consciously.

Who knew that fate would will them back together.

A/N: And that's the starting for now. Not very much but I didn't think making sparks fly just like that when she's twelve is a sane thing to do... Like I said, future setting. I won't mess with canon much :D Please review! -iirse