Prince Of Tennis Fan Fiction ❯ Reflections of Myself - Rikkaidai AU - Niouyagyuu ❯ Chapter 5

Reflection of Myself

A Prince of Tennis Rikkaidai AU Fic

By Andrea Readwolf [andrea_readwolf @hotmail.com]

Chapter: 5

 

Miss something? Take a look at the <a href=" http://www.livejournal.com/tools/memories.bml?user=readwolflair&keyword =%22Reflections+of+Myself%22&filter=all">Previous Chapters</a>

 

Date Started: May 2005

Word Count: 3358

Notes: 'aniki' ~ older brother

 

"Reflections of Myself" Chapter 5

 

 

Masaharu practically flew into the apartment on wings gifted from cloud nine.

 

"You're in a good mood," his mom noted amusedly as she swung her legs off the back of the couch and sat up. "Good news?"

 

"I'm on the tennis team," he told her proudly.

 

"I know."

 

"No, no, I mean, I'm a Regular player."

 

His mother's face transformed from sardonic amusement to ecstatic enthusiasm. "That's great! Oh, Haru! I'm so proud of you! When's your first game? What about your mysterious partner? Did Hiroshi get in, too? I'll finally get to meet him and your friends!"

 

Masaharu's joy dimmed a little, but luckily his mother didn't seem to notice right away.

 

"Ah, I guess you will. I think you'll really like the guys, Mom. They're really interesting, and--"

 

"Haru? Do you... do you not want me to meet your friends?" she asked, the atmosphere dampening drastically.

 

"It's not that, Mom, it's just, well, I mean, I really like these guys, and--"

 

"And they all come from rich, affluent families, right? None of their moms work at a convenience story or service tables, right?"

 

"Yeah, but that ain't--"

 

"I could still come and watch you, though, right?" she continued with forced enthusiasm that didn't really hide her hurt. "I mean, I don't have to talk to anyone to watch you play, right? Unless, I mean, you don't want me to--"

 

"Our first game is next Saturday," Masaharu broke in quickly. "We're playing a practice match with a sister school. Games begin at 9 o'clock. Hiroshi and me are playing D2."

 

She smiled, but it still looked a little dark to his eyes. "That's great. Can't wait to see you kick their asses, baby."

 

~~~~*****~~~~

 

"You're home late."

 

Hiroshi looked up at the older man, his face betraying none of his surprise.

 

"You're home early," he returned.

 

His father frowned but didn't correct him.

 

"I heard you made first string on the tennis team."

 

He wanted to asked him how. It wasn't as if his mother knew, after all, but dismissed it as unimportant.

 

"Second," he corrected, "Until the third years retire next month, but, yes."

 

"Just be careful, Hiroshi. You're still a first year and many people can get jealous of those who are more skillful and talented than them." His father leveled him with a look. "I don't want to see you hurt."

 

"Thank you for your concern, but I have good, supportive sempai, and, as you know, college entrance exams will begin in January. Besides, most of the games we'll be playing between now and June are practice matches only."

 

"Yes, some things don't change, no matter how many years pass," his father smiled a little nostalgically.

 

It annoyed him enough so that he felt compelled to add, "Some things can never be regained or be the same every again," before heading up to his room.

 

~~~~*****~~~~

 

They were at Marui's house because, as the redhead had reminded everyone, his house was loaded with 'the good stuff'. Marui's little brothers were bouncing around, having consumed a fare amount of sugar before the 'big boys' arrived to celebrate Niou's and Yagyuu's first match the next day. They hung off of Jackal's arms like a pair of monkeys off a tree limb, and they climbed all over Sanada before curling up like a couple of puppies against and in Yukimura's lap.

 

"So why didn't you guys compete, too? The Seniors will be retiring in another month. I mean, it's not like there're anymore *official* games to worry about," Niou added.

 

Yukimura continued to smile. "We're not loosing our edge by withholding ourselves from the team, Niou, don't worry." A look passed between him, Sanada, and Yanagi, and Niou suddenly wondered about Yanagi's purpose and place in their relationship.

 

"In addition to practicing amongst ourselves," Yanagi added, "We occasionally meet with others from different schools. Friends and rivals we've made along the way."

 

Niou's face wrinkled into a comical frown. "But isn't that like handing your enemies you attack plans?"

 

"Rival is not a synonym for enemy," Hiroshi spoke up, watching his partner carefully.

 

"Besides," Bunta added, gesturing with a slice of lemon cake as he spoke, "Isn't it even more interesting, playing against someone who knows you, knows your moves, against someone who you know, too? Trying to one up each other, be better, surprise him?"

 

"The pair you and Yagyuu will be playing tomorrow, for instance," Yukimura continued. "Usuki Naoe is known as Hakone's Fox. He likes to play games with his opponents."

 

Yanagi went on. "Although he is an aggressive net player, his skills are at an adequate all-rounder. He has been playing tennis since elementary school."

 

"His regular partner is Hatori Yusuke," Sanada broke in suddenly. "He attended Rikkai Chu his freshman year before dropping out. He's not an exceptional player, but his style balances Usuki's well, and thus they are a pair not to be underestimated."

 

Niou looked back over his shoulder to where Jackal was sitting. "Got anything to add?" he asked cheekily.

 

The dark-skinned teen grinned, big, bright, blindingly. "I'm just looking forward to seeing how Rikkai's Trickster will handle the Hakone Fox."

 

Niou looked to him then, and something twittered in his chest--excitement? Yes, but something more--and Hiroshi was suddenly looking forward to tomorrow a great deal more than he already had been.

 

~~~~*****~~~~~

 

Satomi glanced at her watch nervously.

 

She'd had to open the store that morning, and Eri had been late arriving to cover her shift. Thankfully, the bus stop was right out on the corner, but it had meant she didn't have a chance to change out of her uniform. She was lucky the games weren't being held at either school or she would have never been able to make it there in time. Still, it was a close call, the bus dropping her off in front of the sports park only a handful of minutes shy of nine o'clock.

She had just enough time to change her shirt and find a seat up in one of the bleachers. Looking down at the crowd surrounding the Rikkaidai tennis players, her son's unmistakable crop of wild stripped hair stuck out like a beacon. She had disapproved when he'd first bleached and died his hair almost a year ago, but now it amused her a little. And she had to admit--she would always be able to find him in a crowd.

 

Now that crowd consisted of many teenaged boys all wearing Rikkaidai's colors, laughing and teasing each other. She wondered which one was the mysterious "Hiroshi", recalling snippets and details she'd managed to wrangle from her son over the past few months.

 

"Niou-chan, it's a surprise to see you here."

 

She looked up, a scowl already tugging at her face. "My *son* is playing today," Satomi replied sharply. "What's your excuse?"

 

The older man frowned and took the seat next to her. "My son is playing, as well."

 

"Oh, really?" Satomi returned with polite graciousness, repeating to herself that she would not cause a scene here. She would not give her son another reason to be embarrassed by his mother.

 

"I didn't know your other son played tennis," she continued smoothly. "For which school?"

 

"Rikkaidai."

 

Her heart skipped, and she could feel the blood draining from her face as her eyes quickly scanned the faces in those questionable mustard yellow jerseys. She found her son again easily, grinning manically and tipping his head towards another boy wearing reflective glasses.

 

"Oh... Masaharu... is that why...."

 

The man sitting beside her shifted, uncomfortable probably in his suit. Served him right. "What school is Masaharu in now?"

 

"Rikkaidai," she answered, her attention still focused on the boys stretching with their rackets.

 

"What!"

 

She glared at him sharply. "Don't shout--people will look."

 

"What do you mean, Masaharu's attending Rikkaidai," he hissed, lowering his voice. "That's a private academy with a very high academic rate."

 

"Yes, well, in case you weren't aware, Masaharu happens to be a very intelligent boy," Satomi growled defensively.

 

"You don't say," he responded, somewhat amused. "Well, obviously, if he was able to enter. Still, the tuition for Rikkaidai is not cheap."

 

"What are you getting at?"

 

"Just pointing out fact, Niou-chan."

 

She couldn't stop her glare from intensifying. "You're a good fourteen years late to try using that tone of voice with me, Yagyuu. I'm not sixteen anymore."

 

"No. You definitely aren't, are you?"

 

"Shut up. My son's getting ready to play.

 

"Your--oh, sweet ancestors! What is that boy thinking?"

"What's you're problem now?"

 

"Did Masaharu happen to mention who his doubles partner was?"

 

"Not by full name, no, why? What do you know about him?"

 

"Quite a lot, actually. That's Hiroshi. Yagyuu Hiroshi."

 

~~~~*****~~~~

 

They were waiting after the games for when the two young men came striding out into the park.

 

"Hiroshi, wait in the car," Yagyuu spoke first, capturing both boys' attention immediately.

 

Hiroshi and Masaharu shared a surprised and almost worried look before Satomi stepped in.

 

"It's alright, Yagyuu-kun," she said warmly. "Nice to finally meet you. I'm Masaharu's mother." She shot a look over her shoulder at her son--one that promised a nice long talk--as she led the younger Yagyuu away.

 

"Masaharu."

 

"Yagyuu-san," the teen returned with the tiniest hint of mockery.

 

"How do you like Rikkaidai High School?"

 

"I'm finding it much to my liking, thanks for asking."

 

Yagyuu-san's eyes narrowed. "Are you mocking me, boy? Just what exactly are your intentions with Hiroshi?"

 

"Well, I was planning on seducing him and then cutting him up into little pieces before--"

 

"Masaharu! That's enough!" his father boomed. "Your mother and I were discussing it. Rikkaidai is a very elite school, Masaharu. Remember you can afford to go there because of my money. Something that can easily be withheld."

 

Niou's eyes narrowed. "Excuse me?"

 

"I want you to stay away from Hiroshi."

 

"He's my double's partner," the boy began to protest.

 

"You are not to have contact with him, at all."

 

"Why the hell not?"

 

"I would have thought that would be plenty obvious," the older man growled, mopping at the sweat beading his forehead. "They don't know about you, Masaharu, and I--"

 

"Oiya! 'Roshi! You left your sports bottle down on the benches," Bunta called out, waving said bottle mockingly as he approached the two men. "Oh, hi, Yagyuu-san."

 

"Ah, thank you," the teen replied, slipping the bottle into his bag.

 

"Hey, we're all gonna go grab something to eat. You wanna join us?" Bunta asked, accenting the question with a pop and crack of his gum.

 

'Masaharu' finger-combed his hair into a more reserved style and suddenly became 'Hiroshi'.

 

"I don't think that's a good idea, Marui," Hiroshi replied, tilting his head the slightest in his father's direction. "But, thank you."

 

"OH! Um, yeah, right. Sorry, didn't mean to interrupt or anything. I'll just--um, do you know where Masaharu's gone off to?"

 

Hiroshi looked off towards the park entrance. "I believe he already left with his mother."

 

"Oh. Okay, then, um, I guess we'll see you guys at school, ne? Later!" the redhead called, darting off.

 

Hiroshi turned back to his father. "We were just discussing why you don't want Masaharu and myself to associate?" he reminded the man coolly.

 

~

 

"So, Yagyuu-kun, how long have you and Masaharu known each other?" Satomi asked pleasantly as they walked away from the other two.

 

"Since the first week of school, Niou-san," the teen answered respectfully. "Excuse me for asking, but is there a problem I should know about? Concerning my father and Masaharu?"

 

"No, of course not," Satomi began to say, and then her eyes narrowed as she looked more closely at the boy in front of her. "Oh, my stars.... Masaharu?"

 

"Ma'am?"

 

"Don't you 'ma'am' me, young man," she growled, pinching his arm.

 

"Ow! That hurts!" Masaharu whined, grabbing his arms and readjusting his glasses. "Geez, Mom..."

 

"Just what did you think you were doing?" Satomi growled, leading him away more forcibly. "Were you *purposefully* trying to cause your father trouble?"

 

"No, of course, not, but--"

 

"But what?"

Masaharu made a face and then huffed. "Remember last year? When I managed to get those tickets to the Nationals' games?"

 

Satomi nodded; of course she remembered. "You were so excited; you talked about it for weeks before and afterwards. Rikkaidai won. I thought that was why you wanted to go to school there so badly."

 

"Yeah, that was part of it," he agreed.

 

"But Masaharu..."

 

"But the other part... Mom... I saw him, watched him play... He's... well you saw him today. Hiroshi's a fantastic player."

 

"Almost as good as you," she allowed, but Masaharu shook his head.

 

"No. Hiroshi's a better player than I am right now. He's easily one of the best players in all of Japan."

 

"A doubles player is nothing without his partner, Masaharu."

 

"That's why I came here, Mom. I wanted to play tennis with him... and I wanted to... to get to know him and bit, and..."

 

"And?" she pressed gently.

 

"He has two sisters," Masaharu confessed with a half-laugh. "An older and younger sister, did you know? They both are in Rikkaidai."

 

"Oh... Masaharu...."

 

"I... I had to know, you know? To see them," he went on. "I wasn't going to tell him, but... I was... curious."

 

"Baby," she whispered, pulling him into a hug. "I love you so much."

 

"I know. I'm sorry."

 

"Don't be sorry, baby. You didn't do anything wrong. If anything, I'm sorry. You have a half brother and sisters out there. It's only naturally that you'd be interested in them. I--I should have pressed your father more. You should have been allowed to meet them without having to sneak around. I'm sorry."

 

She pulled back, staring up at him and smiling. And then she ruffled his darkened hair so the boy in front of her looked more like her crazy, wild son. "Come on," she said, pulling on his arm. "Let's go home and--"

 

"But, Hiroshi and--"

 

"Hiroshi's not my main concern, Masaharu. You are. And right now I want to take you home and baby you and congratulate you on a most excellently played match and--"

 

"But, what if he says something to Hiroshi--"

 

Satomi paused and frowned.

 

"Well, frankly, if the man can't tell his own sons apart," she began and then reached up to finger a bit of darkened hair. "But you two *do* look exceptionally similar... almost like twins... or mirror images..."

 

"Mom, Hiroshi's my doubles partner," Masaharu protested. "I don't want Him to do or say anything to jeopardize that."

 

~*~

 

Satomi would have taken her time returning, but Masaharu was hurrying back to the stands, back to his partner and his father. He came to a halt near a picnic pavilion; several meters away, the two Yagyuu's stood staring, glaring at each other.

 

Something told him the act was up, but Masaharu hesitated going over there and discovering just how badly things were screwed up.

 

Then Hiroshi looked up, directly at Masaharu, and his chest tightened, and his stomach dropped at the look in his partner's eyes. His father turned to see what Hiroshi was looking at, saw Masaharu and Satomi, and his face turned a more furious shade of red.

 

Masaharu purposefully reached up and finished messing up Hiroshi's hairstyle, running his fingers through the slicked smooth pelt and fluffing.

 

“Hiroshi,” he started, but didn't know what else to say.

 

“We need to talk,” the other boy continued with out a pause.

 

He bit back a defeated sigh. “Now?”

 

“No. I—" His partner frowned, looking away for a moment before staring at him again. "I need to get something first.”

 

“Okay. When?” An hour. A day. He wasn't sure it really mattered much. Now.

 

Hiroshi looked over to a nearby clock post. It was already past three. “Five thirty?”

 

“Ah.” Masaharu nodded, swallowed. “I'll see you then.”

 

Hiroshi nodded, also, reaching for his bag and then walking away, past Masaharu and Niou-san, ignoring his father's sudden sputtering.

 

“Wait a minute!” Yagyuu-san called out, but Hiroshi didn't listen. It was Masaharu who stopped the old man from following his partner, stepping into his path and looking out from under his mused bangs.

 

“What did you say to him?” he asked, his voice as deadly as a wraith's.

 

“Just what the hell do you think you're doing, Masaharu?” his father turned on him, face purpling. “Are you purposefully trying to cause problems?”

 

“There wasn't a problem until you showed up today.”

 

 

~~~~*****~~~~

 

 

On one level he knew it was pretty crappy of him to just leave Niou and his father like that, but then, Hiroshi reasoned, it wasn't like they were strangers, was it?

 

"Yagyuu! Hiroshi, wait," a voice broke through his haze, and he stop on instinct, staring at his former captain, waiting.

 

"I heard," Yukimura said softly, eyes never leaving Hiroshi's.

 

"Did you?" he replied, not really caring at the moment.

 

"Hiroshi." Yukimura stepped closer, and now they stood side-by-side, each facing away. "You and Masaharu make a strong doubles team, and I would hate to lose that strength. But... I will continue to support you no matter what you decide."

 

And then he walked off, leaving Hiroshi standing alone at the top of the steps.

He closed his eyes, and released a tensed breath he hadn't been away he was holding. "Thank you," he answered softly, and then he exited the park.

 

What he wanted was in his room, but he didn't go to the house immediately. In fact, he didn't want to go back at all, and instead, he phoned his sister and asked her to bring in to him. He had to bribe Momoko out of the house with food, but he didn't mind so much. It was a small price to pay, after all, watching his little sister munch happily on her hamburgers

 

"What would you do if you found out dad'd had an affair and you had another brother--or sister--somewhere?" he asked, curious, watching as she frowned prettily in puzzled thought.

 

"That's a bit of a weird question to ask a girl, aniki," she replied, quiet for a long moment as she placed her hamburger down and meticulously wiped her fingers. "I guess, if I knew I had another brother or sister out there, well, I'd want to know about them, you know? Who they are, what are they like? What do they like? Dislike? Where do they live? What school do they go to? I'd want to know."

Hiroshi nodded, a small smile playing along his lips as he fingered the thick folder Momoko had brought him. "Me, too."

 

"Hiroshi, aniki," Momoko frowned across the table at him. "You'll tell me what all this about eventually, right?"

 

He smiled-- a smirk that would not have looked out of place on Niou's face. "I tell you everything eventually, don't I?"

 

"You never told me you and Jin were screwing around," she retorted, wrapping her tongue around her milkshake's straw and sucked slowly, all the while eyeing the boys in the next booth.

 

Hiroshi's face froze over. "We weren't screwing," he answered coolly, reading up to adjust his glasses, and frowning when he realized he was still wearing the contacts.

 

"Yeah, whatever. Hey, you going to see Masaharu some time tonight? Send him my love, will ya? And tell him to stop pussy footing around and jump your scrawny ass."

 

"Momo, I'm appalled at the language you've acquired since starting junior high school," he announced mildly, but his lips were twitching just slightly.

 

"Yeah, you love me," she grinned back cheekily at him as she stood. "Thanks for the food, aniki, but I've got a date to get ready for."

 

She kissed him on the cheek quickly before dashing out of the fast food restaurant.

 

"A date? At her age?" he mused aloud, wondering what Masaharu would say about that.

 

And then he grinned, knowing exactly what his doubles partner would say to that. *And* do.

 

~~~****~~~

 

TBC