Catcher Catcher

Disclaimer: I do NOT own either Inuyasha or Ace of Diamond

Summary: With her journey over, Kagome re-assimilates herself and continues her original life in the modern era. To keep her mind off the sudden end of her adventures, she re-immerses in her life-long passion of baseball. Now if only her family would let her be and the Japanese High School Baseball Federation would stop discriminating against her.

"Speech"

'Thoughts'

"Foreign Language"

"Are these all of the new recruits?" Oota Kazuyoshi, the president of Seidou High School's baseball club, asked.

"Not quite," Takashima Rei, the club's vice-president, spoke. "We're currently missing the player Kataoka-kantoku personally scouted, but altogether we have thirty new members and a few manager candidates."

"Kantoku personally scouted someone?!" the burly man exclaimed.

"Ah, a Higurashi-Hoshikawa Kagome, if I recall correctly," the club scout stated as she pushed up her glasses. "Kataoka-kantoku, are you sure it's wise to keep a player that doesn't attend the first day of practice?"

"Ah, her mother contacted me recently, and due to an injury, she won't be participating practice until May at the earliest."

"She?!" Oota sputtered as he attempted to wrap his mind around the fact.

"Eh? A girl? Is that even allowed?" the club's official scout gasped. Having never kept up with news about female baseball players, the English teacher was just as surprised as the club's president.

"It is."

"I'm sorry if I'm stepping out of line, Kataoka-kantoku, but don't you think it's a mistake to let a girl join the team as a player? As a girl she'll be weaker and slower than the boys. And with our practices, it's unlikely she'll be able to keep up," President Oota stated once he snapped out of his shock. "Not to mention, she'll be starting a month later than everyone else."

"That won't be a problem. Having personally seen her train and play, I can confidently say that she won't have any problems keeping up. But with that way of thinking, you and the players ought to prepare yourselves. Girl or not, Kagome isn't the type of player that should be taken lightly of," the head coach warned with a hard stare at his fellow teachers.

"I-I suppose," the stoutly man stuttered.

"That is also why I would like to request the both of you to only call her Hoshikawa while she is in uniform and Higurashi during lessons. Despite being a talented player, the other members would only hold themselves back during practices if they learn of Kagome's gender before she is able to prove herself," the Soul Ace requested.

"Of course, Kataoka-kantoku," Takashima agreed, her glasses glaring from the light of the afternoon sun. "But what is Higurashi-san going to do over the next month if she's not going to be at practice?"

"During her recovery period, Kagome will be undergoing strict physical therapy with a private trainer. And although she cannot actively participate in practice, I've instructed her to come and act as one of the club's managers for the time being so she could get a feel for her teammates," the head coach informed.

"I see…" the busty woman muttered before re-directing the club faculty meeting. "And what do you think of the other new members, Kataoka-kantoku, Oota-buchou? Particularly Miyuki Kazuya-kun and Kuramochi Yoichi-kun."

"Oh! Your favorites from this year's crop," the history teacher recognized. "The catcher and shortstop you scouted from Edogawa Senior and Chiba prefecture."

"Eh," Takashima confirmed. "Miyuki-kun's a talented catcher with a strong shoulder and skills that could rival Chris-kun's, and Kuramochi-kun has the speed and talent to be Seidou's next leadoff man."

With the discussion off the controversial addition, the three teachers went on with their daily club review as the vice-president gave a more in depth profile of each new club member.

Closing the door to the staff room, President Oota couldn't help but sigh. Even after the long discussion the three faculty members had about the team and the first-years, he still couldn't get his mind off the team's only female member. "Just what was the head coach thinking?"

"I'm not sure myself, but let's trust the coach's judgement. Hoshikawa-kun must be an incredible player if Kataoka-kantoku went and recruited them himself," Takashima suggested as she adapted to the name and pronoun usage. It was best build the habit early on less she slip in front club members later.

"I guess… but still! There's no way a girl could keep up with our practices," Oota, ever the pessimist, persisted as he and Takashima made their way downstairs. "Even if she's an amazing player, there's absolutely no way an injured players is ever going to be able to catch up on a month of missed practices," he complained loudly.

"Oota-buchou," the bespectacled woman hissed in warning.

It was already late, nearing midnight, and a majority of the residents at Seidou Spirit Dorms were already asleep or prepping for bed.

"Oh right… Sorry," the club's president apologized sheepishly. "I wasn't really thinking…"

"Please be careful. I realize you're upset about the head coach's decision, but don't let your own bias interfere with the team," the English teacher admonished. "The other players are trying to rest for tomorrow's morning practice."

"Of course," the stout man conceded as the pair descended the dormitory's stairwell. "At least we might be getting a good pitcher, if she can keep up," he grumbled as he tried to look on the bright side.

Unbeknownst to the two departing instructors, two players had overheard parts of their conversation.

As soon as the teachers were out of earshot, the door to door 210 cracked open as a male with a Kansai dialect spoke. "So one of our rumored genius first-years is going to be a late comer, eh? And a girl at that." Although the player's face couldn't be seen, the smirk on his face and the interest in his voice was unmistakable. "This is going to be an interesting year," the player cackled before re-closing his room's door.

From downstairs a similar scene played out as a first-year stepped out of the restroom.

"Eh? A new pitcher, huh?" The catcher's excitement was almost palpable, peaking as the fifteen-year-old went over his good fortune. "A genius pitcher in my year and a catcher like Chris-senpai to learn from. What more could I ask for?"

He grinned in unrestrained glee at the thought of forming a battery with the new pitcher, completely ignorant of the rumored player's gender. "I hope he joins practice soon," he said with an eager smile as he practically skipped upstairs to his room.

It had been a while since he had formed a good battery with a talented pitcher. Narumiya Mei had of course been a great partner when they had been on the Samurai Japan U-15 team (U-15 National Baseball Team), and he had greatly appreciated the invitation to join Inashiro Jitsugyou with him, but he would much rather face Mei's dream team than be on it. It'd be even better if he could do it with a strong team of his own with hopefully an even better pitcher.

AN: So I started a new story when I should be finishing the revision for The Duel Champion's Daughter. Anyways I hope you enjoy the first chapter, and like in Tennis Revolution I will be listing some fun facts about baseball. Particularly baseball in Japan.

Dugout: The only people allowed in the dugout are the 18-20 official players, their coaches, their managers, and their bat person and ball person.

Bat girl/boy: they're not official members on the team, but they are among the few people allowed in the dugout during games. They collect the batter's bat once the batter starts running for first base.