A/N: Ok, so this fic is kind of an experiment. I haven't written anything in a couple years, and I've been on a Gokusen high, so I decided to take the plunge and write a completely off-the-wall fic. Anyways, explanation time:

My take on Shin: I love him in the manga and J-drama, so I'm molding them together. The subtle sneakyness of his j-drama self, and mindset that made him The Red Lion in the manga. Ergo, his hair is red in her daydream, with black streaks like his dramaself. No, Shin didn't go to Africa. To tell you the truth, I'd rather kill that bit of information. I mean, really! If he goes to africa, does he really have a chance to get closer to Yankumi?!
Kumiko: She's a bit hard to write, so I hope I didn't make her too girly or something. Sorry Shino-fans, but he'll probably not show up. Not much love for that guy.
Kuma: Er... I'm not sure about the time spacing, so I think I'll probably end up messing up somewhere. I watch the J-drama a lot, and keep checking up on the third season, so if you don't know about Kuma in it, I suggest you watch the four episodes of the third season on Veoh dot com before reading this. Either that, or read this spoiler: Kuma is married to a girl named Ami, his first love.
Noda: I'm keeping his image from the drama, just because he's so cute. Actually, I'll probably keep everybody's image from the drama... Anyways, I'm sending him to New York for Fashion and Beauty and Design and blahityblah.
The plot: Yes, the plot is set right now, and it probably won't change. Honorable mention and dedication chapter to whoever cracks my plotnut, and can tell me the main pairing of the whole story. Now on with the prologue show!

Yamagichi Kumiko stared into space, once again daydreaming about that promise seven years ago. She could remember the tears pricking her eyes as her very first class graduated, every last student accepted their diplomas from a reluctant Goro-chan. Kumiko giggled, Goro-chan, what a funny nickname for the disgruntled head-teacher-slash-vice principal.

"Yamag..."

A head of black and red hair flashed across her eyes, and Kumiko sighed. What was Shin up to? They had written on and off for a year, and then suddenly he vanished from her mail box. At the reunion five years after they all graduated, he had been absent too, and not even Kuma could tell her what happened to him.

"Yamaguchi...?"

Or wouldn't. Like Noda, who played the "I've been out of the country studying in New York for a couple years now, I don't know where he went." Oh well, she got back at them later. Noda's hair had been turned bright red from the punch, and Kuma- well, Ami actually probably got the pink stains out of his work robes now...

"Yamaguchi-sensei...?!"

Kumiko snapped out of it to see a man in a suit and sunglasses in front of her. She blinked and straightened behind her desk, "Ah, I'm so sorry, what can I do for you?" She could have sworn he rolled his eyes behind his glasses, "My name is Tsukarea, I'm from the Education Association. The President would like to have a meeting with you at four o'clock." Kumiko gluped. The President of the E.A.? What had she done now? What had her students done now?! "Uh... Sure, Tsukarea-san." The man bowed polietly, and stepped out of the room.

The science teacher, Maero Reina leaned over and bumped her left shoulder with Kumiko's right, "What happened this time? I thought Kurae-kun stopped slashing the President's tires." Kumiko rubbed at her temples. Kurae Exitora was the boss of her new class, and a hard nut to crack with an affection for slashing tires, specifically the ones of high standing peoples in the education business. AKA, the head people in the E.A. , making her a target for red cards and warnings about her job. Sighing, Kumiko mumbled "I had a talk with him two days ago, and I could have sworn I had gotten him to stop."

More like, Kumiko thought, Exitora had stumbled upon one of her meetings with Tetsu and Minoru at the Temple and had caught them calling her Ojou, leading to him finding out her family's status and then promising not to slash any more tires as long as Kyou-san taught him how to fight. Don't ask her how, but that kid was freakishly smart, although she was wary on agreeing to letting Kyou-san teach him. Of course, it also could have been her remembering a certain former student of hers that was also Kyou-san's former pupil. Now that she thought about it, Exitora and Shin were a bit alike. Both were tall and lanky, with messily in-place hair and bad attitues towards teachers. Exitora had dyed his hair electric blue on the left side though, and dusty red on the right, while Shin's had been red most of his high school days. Up until graduation, when he had added a couple black stripes here and there.

The bell rang, signalling that lunch was over, and Kumiko sighed, getting up. "Back to the lions now, Kumiko-san?" The gym teacher, Rikita Jou, asked. Even though Baba-san had ben nice enough once he realized finally that Kumiko didn't like him, she was glad to have been assigned a different school this year, and Rikita-san was very nice. Kumiko laughed lightly, "Yes, back into the cage Rikita-sensei."

Kumiko rubbed at her temples again, where she sat in the back of a very posh-looking black car. They had sent a mini-limo for her! If this wasn't a reason for the impending doom-feeling she had, Kumiko didn't know what would. The car stopped, and she waited for the driver to come 'round before stepping out almost reluctantly. "Sawada-kouchou is on floor twenty, the second door down the right hand hallway." He stated, rounded the car again and drove off before Kumiko could say anything. "S-sawada?!" she gasped, finally making the connection in her frazzled state of mind. She thought for a moment, and then shook her head. "That's not possible." She stated, and trekked into the building.

The elevator dinged at the twentieth floor, and by now Kumiko was chewing on her lip nervously. Every step towards the door labled "President" made her stomach ache, and she kept thinking Exitora had slashed his tires again and her job was coming to a close at Hairo High School. She cursed her hand for automatically coming up and the door for echoing her almost-timid knock. "Come in." Kumiko blinked, wondering if her mind had superimposed the tone of Sawada Shin's voice in her frazzled and nervous state. She opened the door and stepped in quickly, shutting it behind her.

Deciding that her job was probably over, she dove right in before the president could say anything first, "Kouchou, I am so sorry about your car I really thought Kurae-kun would keep to his promise that he would stop and-" Her teeth clicked shut once the chair she had been speaking to turned, and a tall man with black and red hair gazed back at her. Kumiko stared in awe at his face, eyes searching his until a large toothy smile spead across his face.

"It's been a while, Kumiko." Her mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water, until Shin chuckled at her state of shock. Snapping out of it, she responded, "It's Yamaguchi-sensei." She griped, snapping her mouth shut again when Shin tapped his name plate, declaring him the President of the Education Associaction. Kumiko couldn't find the file in her brain to make her mouth work anymore, and settled for staring at Shin in awe. Said boy- well, man now- got up from behind his desk and sauntered 'round it to lean against the front, and motioned for Kumiko to take a seat in one of the plush chairs in the middle of the spacious office. "Ne, Kumiko, about your student, Kurae-kun was it? I'd appriciate it if you'd knock him around and get him to stop tearing up my secretaries tires? It's annoying to have to drive her home everyday." He said offhandedly.

Kumiko blinked out of her daze, finding herself in one of the plush chairs and Shin grinning at her in his secretive way. "Sawada!" She cried, jumping up and stalking across the office to lay a solid 'whack!' on his crown. "Do you have any idea how worried I've been about you?! And why did you stop mailing me? And Kyou-san said you better hope you didn't loose any of the skills he beat into you or he'd beat them into you five times over! And-and-and-and-" Her lip quivered while Shin waited for more of her rant before she stepped back into a chair. "Do you know you scared the shit out of me? Just sending some guy to tell me THE PRESIDENT wanted to speak with me? For God's Sake Sawada!" she fell over the back of the chair with her legs sticking straight up, and held her breath. Seeing Shin again made her feel like a child that had been reunited with an old old friend.

As soon as he started laughing, all the air wooshed out of her lungs. What a wonderful sound that she had been deprived of for so long. Kumiko slipped down the chair, and then clambered back into it, peering over the side at the New Young President. Mirth danced in his eyes as he answered all her questions, "Of course I knew, I haden't left Japan and I checked in with your grandfather every wouple months. I stopped mailing you because you moved out of town and a certain father figure of yours confessed a couple days ago of forgetting to give you my letters. You can tell Kyou-san that I don't appreciate that he forgot, nor have I forgotten how to defend people. And I'm sorry I scared you, but you were surprised. That's what I was going for." Kumiko nodded vigorously, the fire had returned to her eyes. "Damn that Kyou-san! I asked him every week to forward all my letters to me and every time I looked through them hoping there'd be a letter from you but-" She stopped abruptly, and a blush crept up her neck.

"I mean... uh..." Shin snickered lightly, sauntering to her chair and leaning over the back of it. Kumiko shrunk down into the chair away from his prying eyes. "I missed you too, Ku-mi-ko." She shuddered visably, an action Shin enjoyed very much. The hot breath on her ear made Kumiko remember Sawada Shin was no longer her 17 year old student, but a 24 year old man now. As well as her boss's boss. "S-sawada, I think I should-" The thirty year old woman squeaked loudly as soon as Shin's tounge came in contact with the shell of her ear, and his arms curled around her waist. Lost in a sudden thought she had completely missed Shin circling the chair and trapping her against the dark gray material and padding.

"Kumiko, talk to me like we used to. Please?" She swallowed at the tone in his voice. Completely unguarded. After he had graduated, Shin had lived at the Oeda compound. Kumiko had caught him sitting on the roof once stargazing and they had met up there every since. Gradually they had dropped their honorifics and even started calling each other by their first names, and even went as far as bantering into the early morning until the sun rose. His chest against her back warmed the skin under her clothing, and she revled in the feeling of his arms around her waist. She let herself be washed away in the feeling, let herself turn back to the feelings she had locked up six summers ago. "I've missed you... So much, Shin."

"So... Much..."

So, shortly little chapter for you guys, big planning on chapters for me. This is just a little taste tester, and sorry folks, but this'll only be one third ShinKumi, two thirds mystery pairing. Make sure to read my profile and first A/N!

M.Ame