Hey-o! It's been a while huh? I've been dealing with things or whatnot and working on other stories that will probably never see the light of day but I'm back now. School's starting back up and what's more perfect than procrastinating all your work with stories?

I have a list of stories I wanna do and I'm going down the line and finally decided on this one. Also started reading PoT fics again so that should help. Still open for ideas if you have any.

I dun own Prince of Tennis.

Well here's chapter one. Enjoy!

The terms 'prodigy, winner, and champion' were some that Echizen heard often and seeing that he was the young tennis prodigy they weren't that new to him but then there were words like 'selfish, rich boy, cheater, and fake' that weren't new to him either. No one believed that someone that young could win so many championships without someone pulling the strings in the shadows or to say 'pay off' opponents to throw the matches and the one with the money to do so being his own father.

Nanjiro was the owner of one of the largest and most successful tennis corporations in Japan. After retiring- or more so the birth of his son- he decided to put his knowledge to good use. For sixteen years his company has grown and flourished and in that time Echizen had too. He took after his father with a love for tennis and soon became known worldwide being the youngest person to win the championship.

Rumors began to spread that his father had paid off the competition in order to keep his image alive. Whenever asked about the matter he shrugged it off saying Echizen just took after him with natural talent. The public had a hard time believe it; never having any knowledge of who or where Echizen goes to practice. No one could get that far without a coach or someone to help them. Nanjiro always insisted it was the truth; of course he'd never pay someone to throw a match and he joked that even if he did Echizen would probably forfeit because what's the point of playing if your opponent isn't serious about it? Of course he would always get defensive when someone negative was said about his son; no parent likes hearing that.

Echizen was hoping his life would start changing for the better. He wanted to finally be able to live like a normal kid. Ever since his father became successful he hasn't really left the house, mainly for safety reasons. There had been several attempts of kidnapping whenever he was out with his mother, usually to use as leeway against his father into making him surrender the company. It never succeeded though; the kidnappers usually went easy on him seeing as he was still a kid and he managed to get away. There had even been times where he just walked back to the house and announced he was home after being missing for a day or so.

For Echizen it was a great time in his life: he was permitted to enter a public school. Up to that point his life had consisted of tutors coming and going all the time. Many left because they couldn't take his smug attitude. He figured that's where the rumors originated, the teachers that had left in a huff because he was never paying attention or he was constantly sleeping. He always tried not to let their words get to him but they always lingered in the back of his mind.

All in all he was glad he had a reason to leave the house even if he had to get up early for it. Nanako told him what to expect at school, the groups and whatnot and how classes worked but she also told him about how he would be treated. Being the son of a very wealthy and well known retired tennis player would certainly attract attention, not to mention that he would have to be careful about how he worded things when he spoke to people which he didn't understand because he thought his speech was just like anyone else's.

His father insisted that- not because he was worried about him-he should go everyday with the police for that they had but Echizen explained that doing that would defeat the purpose of trying to lead a normal life. All he wanted to do was go to school and play tennis but in reality he just wanted to play tennis but school was a place he could get that done and maybe have the rumors of them paying off rivals finally be closed.

When the day came, his mother and father insisted that he ride in the car because it would be safer but Echizen thoroughly declined. He didn't want to be the spoiled rich boy everyone though he was. He walked out of the house and started down the street annoyingly glancing over his shoulder at the security that was doing a horrible job of being incognito while following him. He yelled at them to go back and threatened to lower their pay if they didn't. They reluctantly hung their heads and walked back to the house and Echizen let out a sigh.

It was pretty much the first time he'd ever been outside alone. It was always too dangerous because of the rival companies that needed him to get to his father. The most recent kidnapping was a few months back. He didn't know how it even happened but he was missing for days before anyone had managed to find a trace of him. It was getting more difficult for him to escape from his captors but seeing as he was much older now he could guess that there would be more security options and personnel to keep him from getting away. Initially it wasn't challenging to actually get away from them but he was in an unfamiliar area with people looking for him and that hindered his escape. After wondering around for a bit he finally found people from their line of police and was able to get home safely.

The streets he was walking on now were a bit foreign to him too. Seeing as he pushed his parents into letting him attend public school came with a few side notes but the biggest one being a house that was actually close to school. The regular one was pretty much a standard mansion with several unused rooms and enough security to where he couldn't even go to the bathroom alone.

The house they're in now is just a normal house much to his father's displeasure. He keeps complaining about how small it is but he seems to be the only one with a problem. Echizen's mother finds it adorable and has taken the roll of an ordinary house wife along with Nanako helping with the food and chores. Echizen was amused by how his family reacted. It wasn't like it was their first time being in that house. He doesn't remember it too well but they used to stay there quite often seeing how there was still plenty of his things in his room all in layers of dust. His father actually had several houses scattered across Japan if they ever needed or wanted to travel. He chose this one because it was the farthest from where his father worked. He really didn't want any interference in school from rival companies or anyone for that matter.

He sighed as he walked to school. He wasn't necessarily nervous about it but he was sure there were already rumors going around about who he was and what he was like. He wasn't going to put on an act. He didn't think he was a spoiled rich boy; he had to work for everything he had. He pushed the thought to the back of his mind and walked. He kept looking around every so often since he knew he was being followed by a few securities from the house even though he told them not to. More than not, his father or mother ordered them to follow him.

He was annoyed to the point of wanting to scream at them to leave until he heard a voice on the side of him. "Haven't seen you before." He turned to see a young man in the same school uniform he had with short, spiked black hair and purple eyes. "You're going to Seigaku right? If you don't hurry you're gonna be late. Wanna lift?" He gave Echizen a cheeky smile and gestured to the back of the bike to which he responded with skeptical eyebrow raise. "Ah, my name's Momoshiro Takashi. I'm a regular on the tennis team. How about you?"

Echizen's gaze softened after discovering that the person he was talking to was going to be one of his teammates. "Echizen Ryoma." He watched Momo's gaze shift from a happy smile to a dumbfounded look.

"Ah! You're the one Ryuuzaki-sensei told us about!" Momo frowned a bit. "I didn't think you'd be such a shrimp." Echizen glared and Momo smiled once again and threw his arm around his shoulders. "I'm joking. Anyways hop on. You won't make a good impression if you're late on your first day, also-" His voice dropped to a whisper. "You'd like to get away from the people trailing you right?"

Echizen's eyes widened slightly as Momo pointed behind them the slanted into an annoyed glare as he saw the securities all on guard and ready to pounce if Momo tried anything. "For the last time stop following me and go back home." He yelled and gladly hopped on the back of Momo's bike. He smirked as they all came out of their hiding spots and tried to keep up with Momo but to no avail.

"So important you need people following you everywhere." The tone Momo used was one Echizen knew all too well, a mixture of irritation, accusation, and jealousy but there was something else he heard that he wasn't familiar with and it sounded a bit like Momo understood what that kind of life was like. "You may not believe it but I know the feeling." That was what made Echizen confused but before he could ask about it Momo changed the subject. "So what made you wanna come to Seigaku? I thought someone of your status would wanna go to a rich, private school."

"My parents wanted to send me to one because they wouldn't have to worry as much." Echizen was surprised at how easily he could talk to this strange boy he'd just met. "But then I'd be surrounded by rich snobs who think they're better than everyone and should be worshipped like gods."

"So people like you?" Hearing that made Echizen's stomach drop and a scowl appear on his face. It wasn't like he's never been called something like that but hearing it hurt. "I'm joking! Joking!"

"I hate that kind of life. I don't want to be worshipped. I don't want special treatment from anyone just because of my social status. I just want to be- normal."

"Believe me when I say I and the others know what it feels like. You'll get stares and rumors will go around for a while but they'll fade when people see who you really are." Momo glanced at him and offered a smile. "You won't get any special treatment from us just because your father's rich."

Echizen met Momo's smile with a small one of his own. "Keep your eyes forward."

"Why? It's not like-" Momo cut himself off when he looked forward and quickly swerved out of the way of a cat in the street which almost sent Echizen tumbling off the back of the bike which in turn made him latch onto Momo to keep from falling which made Momo end up swerving even more. They were at the school and ended up crashing just outside the courts.

"Baka! That's why you keep your eyes forward!" Echizen shouted from his uncomfortable position atop Momo.

"You're saying it was my fault?" Momo yelled from an awkward angle below Echizen. "You grabbed me!"

"Only because you suddenly swerved."

"Because I had to avoid the cat when you told me to look forward."

"You're supposed to look forward!" Echizen got off of Momo and dusted himself off.

Momo also got up and dusted himself. "Hmph. Last time I try to cheer you up." He pouted under his breath.

"Momoshiro." Momo tensed at his name being called. "You're lucky Tezuka called to say he was going to be running late otherwise you'd be running laps. Go get changed with the others." Momo put his bike away then went to change in the club room. "As for you-" Echizen knew the older woman in front of him, not that well but he knew. She had come by a few times to talk about tennis with this father and was in several pictures. She smiled. "It's been a while since I saw you last Ryoma."

"Yeah, it's nice to see you Ryuuzaki-san." He smiled back.

"Sensei, Ryoma. I'm not just a family friend anymore. I'll be taking care of you while you're here." She looked at the courts and frowned slightly. "I was planning to introduce you to everyone but seeing Tezuka isn't here it can wait until afternoon practice. Until then go find your class and introduce yourself to the teachers. You may be Nanjiro's son but if you don't keeps your grades up you're not going to be playing on these courts."

"Hai~." With that Echizen ventured away from the courts and to the school. He deduced that the 'Tezuka' was probably the captain and silently cursed him for making him get up early then not even being there to see him.

He went inside and found all his teachers and introduced himself. He had a long conversation with his English teacher about his life in America before he came to Japan which basically took up all the time before the first bell rang. When class began he was introduced to everyone and seated next to a rather loud boy named Horio. In between classes he kept going on about his tennis expertise and told Echizen to talk to him if he had any questions whether they are about tennis or the school in general.

The other students in call also go to know him; asking where he was born, if he had siblings, why he came to Seigaku but when the questions about how much he was worth, how much money he got per day, how many people he'd paid off to throw matches, he got defensive. The mere fact that someone asked him how much money he got per day let him know what people thought of him. He tried to shake it off and answered them as best he could.

At lunch Horio took it upon himself to be Echizen's official guide and showed him round the school. Generally Echizen knew where everything was and asked questions about things he didn't know or understand. He heard the standard "rich boy" talk from people they passed and when Horio tried to tell them off Echizen just shrugged and told him not to bother. It's not like it was new to him.

When lunch ended the two of them went back to the classroom and continued on with the day but everything was pretty much a blur for Echizen. He didn't pay attention that much to his classes but instead thought about all the things he's heard about himself while walking around the school. Nanako told him what to expect with everything and it was spot on. It was one thing to be the new kid but another to be the rich new kid.

He was glad to hear the bell at the end of class. He walked with Horio and two others named Mizuno Katsuo and Kachirou Katou which he found out were also on the tennis team. Thinking he was going to be able to play tennis set his mind at ease although he knew he would still most likely be the center of attention and even more so now because he's actually on a tennis court.

Awkward place to end. Meh. If I don't end it here then I'll keep going and it'll be like 5000 words. Well it's a start. How'd you like it so far? This one was much easier to start than my last one.

I'm gonna say it now, everyone might be just a tiny bit out of character but then it's a fan fic with a different story line and everything so go figure.

Please forgive grammar and spelling and corniness and laziness and other things.

Hope ya like it. See ya later!