Lords of Aorangi Pavillion
By Ovis
Prologue
If I had known you'd take the world by storm in ten years, perhaps I would've altered my decisions this day. But seemingly, like everything and everyone else around you, I was drawn into your world. Ensnared, captivated. Unable to resist the one inevitable whirlwind that swept me away.
The frigid air was sweet with moisture, and though stinging to my cheeks and ears, smelled wonderful as I inhaled deeply. Darkness quickly descended the streets as thunder rumbled off in the distance.
Pulling off my gloves, I tucked them into my heavy coat pocket before grabbing a large fistful of snow from the front steps. My reddened hands carefully took the letter out of it's envelop and replaced it with the dumpling-like snowball.
Yumiko gave me a quizzical look as I shut the front door and made a beeline towards the refrigerator.
"Syusuke, you know that's unsanitary."
I grinned. "Aa, but it's going to rain soon. I've waited quite a while to taste this snowfall." Tucking my prized delicacy behind a bag of fish, I rearranged the mess of frozen items until I found it satisfactory.
Yumiko gave me a whimsical smile as she pulled my coat off. "You have something against Hyoutei?" she whispered mischievously. Ah, the insignia on the envelop.
"Saa, maybe a smidgen." A soft laugh was her only response.
I watched carefully as she used a foot to scoot my discarded shoes into place on her way to the foyer closet. I took her refrain as a blessing to do as I wished.
It's one of the reasons why I love her.
"Thank you, nee-san" I called pleasantly, before climbing the stairs.
Closing the door quietly behind me, I sat down and flopped backwards onto my bed, the impact winding me slightly.
Dessert would be exciting today.
Memorizing the phone number at the bottom, I started folding the letter and calculated the yearly savings for my family.
It's a lot of yen for unenthusiastic tennis and middling entrance exam scores.
I am not a tennis machine that will play for anyone who pushes the button.
I sailed the paper airplane towards my laptop. It landed soundly on the desk. Lulled into a drifting half-slumber as I thought, my eyes simply closed on their own accord. The thunder was getting closer.
Hyoutei is an elevator school. What's the fun if you can't rebuild your reputation?
Offhand images of Sasaki-sensei and the junior selection camp wavered through. I carved out the improvements to Atobe's tennis during Nationals, and then my mind wandered to the clubroom, Eiji, and our classroom. My lungs caved inward then, just a little.
Graduation is in four months, my time is up.
I will miss the convenience of lollygagging. But Idecided two terms ago to avoid approaching the end looking backwards. I'm resigned to accept that this will probably be the last time I see the regulars, the courts… that I may never feel-
Ah, tsk. How childish of me.
Topping selections are far less depressing.
Ginger with prune juice sounds good. I've had my eye on that bottle in the supermarket for a while. Or should I try the alfalfa with lemon again? Mn… what to do?
Five minutes passed as I vegetated and listened to the rain.
Piercing russet eyes and a disheveled mane eventually seduced and wormed a way into my thought process. I sat up then, mind suddenly clear.
What can they possibly offer someone like you, who is double in my talent and worth?
I think… I will be irritated if it's also a full scholarship. There is no such thing as paying a student the going rate to attend a school after all.
Winter break was in two hours.
"One more exam to go and that prune juice will be mine, Eiji."
The look on Eiji's face could only be described as incurable seasickness. Visibly wilting in his seat, the redhead clutched his stomach in a groaning sob.
"Uhhuhuh, Fujiii, I'm gunna fail this test if you keep saying things like that! How can you drink prunes? You know, you'll get wrinkly if-"
"Kikumaru-kun, if you have something to say, do so in English!" came the bark as Toshinari-sensei passed his row. "Otherwise, be quiet while the test is in place."
"Y-yes, ma'am!" he yelped, straightening.
A few classmates in front shot us sidelong glances before passing back the packets of exams. Eiji grinned sheepishly and ducked his head, wrinkling his nose.
"Sorry," I whispered, laughing.
Things before winter vacation were always a bit shaky. Everything that needed to be done from morning to the final bell would always be done just a little louder and a share hastier.
Eiji and I parted ways after-school, promising to meet up after he came back from his family skiing trip.
"I'll be going ahead then!" he called, waving back as he ran towards the gates. I watched his retreating figure until I could no longer see the red in his hair.
Four months.
With a smile, I turned back to my locker. Students passed me on their way outside, chatting excitedly about their plans over break. Others debated term final questions, or exchanged parting words.
I wonder how things will change when we come back.
"Fujiko!" I looked up to see Kawamura's friendly grin as he started changing shoes beside me.
"Ah, Taka-san, your class got out late."
"Mn, that math final was really hard!" he sighed, rubbing the back of his head in frustration. "Oh, is Eiji still here?" he asked, looking for his locker.
"He went ahead. His family's leaving today for the slopes."
Taka-san laughed. "Wah, that sounds like fun. I was supposed to relay a message from Tezuka to you guys, but I'm sure he'll get the e-mail when he comes back."
I sat upright at the sound of our ex-captain's name.
"Saa, how rare of Tezuka."
Kawamura nodded. "I was surprised myself. There's going to be an after-school meeting for the retired regulars, second of January."
I started buttoning my coat. "It'll be good to see everyone again. I'll make sure Eiji knows." I turned to him. "What's the topic?"
Taka-san grimaced with embarrassment. "Ah… I was a little too afraid to ask…"
I smiled. "I can do it for you."
"Nh, F-Fuji… well, you see, Tezuka had to wrap up student council-"
I patted his arm. "I'm just kidding, Taka-san."
It was close to five o'clock when I left the supermarket, my costly 858.88 yen prune juice bagged and tucked under my arm. I wound the scarf twice around my neck as the wintry air hit my face, and started a trot towards the direction of my house. It would be completely dark soon.
"Fuji."
I turned to see Tezuka standing a little ways behind. School bag still slung over his shoulder, temperate eyes focused evenly on me.
I stared back a good two seconds before remembering to smile, greeting him.
"Saa, looks like you caught me with my guard down, captain. I didn't know grocery shopping could be so perilous."
Tezuka quirked the side of his mouth slightly, his eyes stormy with partial amusement and a degree of irritation. Ignoring my underhanded prod at him, he walked past me and fixed his glasses.
"Where are you going?" he asked quietly, expecting me to follow. He slowed down when I did, accommodating our difference in height.
"Home, to enjoy prune juice, ginger, and dirty frozen water," I articulated readily.
If Tezuka thought it strange, his face gave none of it away. Auburn eyes wandered to my paper bag curiously, but said nothing. "Did you just leave student-council?"
"Aa," he nodded. I smiled, idly staring at the pavement as we walked in cordial silence. Tezuka didn't ask if I was informed about our meeting after break, so I didn't bring it up.
As the darkness descended, I could feel my emotions drumming lightly over my stomach. Like with Eiji, I decided it would be better if I repressed any misgivings over the next term or feelings of finality. I needed to detach myself from the relationships I had built.
How many more times would I walk with Tezuka like this?
I steered clear of the topic.
Though I do have a burning curiosity for the future endeavors of our class president - needless to say that the majority of the graduating student body does as well - I didn't want to ask him just now. He and I really were the only two I knew of who hadn't chosen a school or voiced intentions to yet.
Oishi and Eiji had gotten into Tohei nearby. About one-fourth of Seigaku's graduates usually ended up there. Taka-san would be attending public school over financial troubles at home. He would resign from tennis to work for his father. Inui was offered a lump sum to attend a well known all-boys boarding school in Osaka.
And I?
My mind wandered to the paper airplane sitting in plain sight on my desk. The one that had simply found its way into my mailbox. I turned to watch my ex-captain for a moment, gauging if these unanswered questions swimming in my brain were the right ones to ask. Something in his body language told me that he was fatigued, but not noticeably so.
"You're not allergic to anything are you, Tezuka?"
"Hm?" he voiced, startled out of his thoughts. "No food allergies I should know about? Not octopus, right?"
Staring at me in a rare instance of boyish simplicity, he finally answered no very slowly.
"Good. Stay right here for a minute. I'll be right back, promise!" I trotted across the street, leaving a mystified Tezuka standing on the corner.
"Ah, this hits the spot." I joyfully applied another glob of hot sauce on the taroyaki before popping it into my mouth. So good!
Leaning against the stone railing next to me, Tezuka waited as I finished the last one, an empty styrofoam container between us. I grinned as he emptied our trash nearby, thanking me politely in the process.
"Is there a reason why you chose taroyaki?"
"I don't know. You seem like someone who enjoys tentacles, Tezuka." The boy shot me a disapproving look. "And, when you have too many things weighing you down, a little food can go a long way," I added mildly, opening my eyes.
The other boy met my intent gaze steadily. Bathed in the dim city lights, an uncharacteristic gentleness crossed his expression.
"Aa, I understand."
He returned to sit next to me, staring resignedly ahead at everything, and nothing in particular.
Heavy, was what I thought.
Listening to him breathe, I observed the mellow wisps of condensation drifting from his face. After a minute, Tezuka spoke.
"I'm leaving for England."
I reacted quickly.
"Saa, how wonderful. I've always wanted to visit London."
"… Do you mean that?" he asked quietly, composed eyes watching me intently.
"Mm," I smiled, nodding. "Don't worry, Tezuka. Playing on grass isn't as hard as they make it sound. You will adjust in no time."
The other boy produced a brief, lifeless smile on his lips. In the fleeting second that it had appeared, it was already gone. He infixed a steely gaze on the asphalt. "Is that so?"
"Aa, it is so."
Tezuka got up, burying his hands into his coat pockets. "Let's go home."
"Okay." I stood, folding my arms around the heavy paper bag.
"Would you like some prune juice?"
"… No thanks."
Tezuka stayed as we entered my section of the neighborhood, silently offering to walk me home. I repressed the hastened drumming against my stomach. Two more blocks and I can unwind.
Offered to attend the All England Club Tennis Academy in London, it was a ticket into the junior professional world for him. They asked that he visit the campus over vacation. Tezuka's family would be leaving first thing tomorrow.
We stopped in front of my house and exchanged farewells. I turned to open the gate.
"Fuji." In the dark, I could barely discern the tone in his voice.
"Meet with Sakujii-kouchou and Sasaki-sensei."
I only stared. Bingo.
Exactly forty-eight hours after I had initially received the offer, and I was, ironically, still in the same position. Pondering the idiosyncrasies of the future whilst partly lying, partly dangling off my bed. Only now with twice the depression and half the assuredness.
"Meet with Sakujii-kouchou and Sasaki-sensei."
It wasn't a question, or a demand. Tezuka had known all along what my reaction would probably be. Which was exactly what I was doing this very second. I sluggishly rolled to the side, peering at my abandoned laptop. Hyoutei's website glared on the screen.
A turn down like that changes the entire course of Hyoutei's championship career, but it was too predictable. You've opened my chances. It's almost as if you want me to use your decline as leverage against the academy.
To the minimum, their tennis players have reached the quarter-finals or more in almost every major tournament they've participated it. Just how far will they bend for a Nationals-Title Seigaku player on their high school team? I'm almost tempted to find out, because whichever way you look at it, the outcome is likely to be very interesting.
I checked my inbox to find two e-mails, one from Oishi, the other from an encrypted sender. I clicked on Oishi's first, dated yesterday.
Retired regulars, please be ready to meet after-school in the clubroom on January 2nd. We will discuss the agenda for an overnight trip later next month. A senior dinner will also be held by Kaidoh-buchou and our kouhai to honor-
I skimmed the rest of the e-mail. The former vice captain went on to wish everyone a happy Christmas and good luck for the New Year.
I immediately knew who the sender of the second e-mail was. The tail of the English web address was from a hotel.
There is an independent student exchange program every second trimester.
We will be climbing the mountains together this winter.