For all that he was a self-sufficient first year in high school, Tobio Kageyama was still anxious to see his sister. Kiki-nee had promised to come! She might end up bringing her husband, Shouichi Imayoshi, but that was okay. Really. Tobio liked his Aniki, not the least of it being that he adored Kiki-nee like she was the only woman in the world.
Kikyou Imayoshi, on the other hand, was a confident twenty-something who was perfectly okay with panicking her husband as long as it got her what she wanted. They'd been living in Sendai because she hadn't wanted to uproot Tobio after they lost their parents, but she and Shouichi still spent a lot of time in Tokyo. Mostly so he could chat around with his friends or she could see her physician. Of course, she and all the other basketball wives were impatiently waiting for Midorima to graduate med school. Former prick he might be, but he did care about his team mates and their families.
It wasn't really a surprise that the Generation of Miracles, the Uncrowned Kings and a handful more had migrated to the States for Basketball, but since their wives had moved with them, Kikyou was kind of lonely. The only good thing about Sendai was that aside from providing Tobio with a familiar environment, Honami Mayuzumi had moved there to teach dance while Chihiro was in school.
Kikyou (and Azami Kasamatsu, and Yoshino Takao, and Mikoto Akashi, and Miya Kise) had all taught dance prior to their respective marriages. Mikoto, had, at Masaomi Akashi's request, restricted herself to ballet, while Honami and the others had taught not only ballet but freestyle, which had required knowledge of several other forms of dance.
While it had paid the bills in college- had paid for all Tobio's bills too- Shouichi didn't want her working too much since she'd gotten pregnant. For now, she was working in the same studio as Honami, who was still apparently unable to get angry at her husband.
The only- and she did mean only- girl who had yet to marry was Minami Miyamoto, though, since she'd moved to the States to work as a publicist under direct contract to Akashi, she wasn't without prospects. Stifling a sigh, Kikyou rub her still flat abdomen before sauntering into the kitchen. Imayoshi was busy poring over something at the table, so she approached carefully, putting a hand on his nape before she murmured
"Tobio's first game is in an hour, Ichi-chan. He already left, and we promised we'd be there…" He shook his head and leaned back against her, mumbling before he took off his glasses, protesting when she lifted them and grabbed the cloth he'd nearly ignored in favour of his sleeve to wipe them for him. With a sigh, her cunning husband accepted his glasses back, grabbing his keys as they strolled to the car.
Once they arrived, Kikyou was unsurprised to find Honami seated with their students. What did surprise her was that Chihiro was there. Nose in a book, yes, but he was still sitting beside his wife. Shizuha, Honami's younger cousin, sat on his other side, happily making faces at her best friend Azusa.
Disinterested in the games currently going on- and aware the younger girls had planned a Colour March for the next day- Kikyou struck up a conversation with Honami about her sisters. Azami was expecting twins- which had freaked Yukio out, and Minami had recently cooked a dinner for the Akashi's, one where they'd hosted old friends. What interested Kikyou was that, according to Honami (who'd heard it from her kouhai Mikoto) was that Shuuzou Nijimura had turned up.
Minami had apparently tried to excuse herself to finish dinner, but Nijimura (also according to Mikoto via Honami) had voiced an interest in what she was doing. Given that the youngest sister of that branch of Miyamoto's had carried an Olympic torch for Nijimura since middle school, everyone they knew was eating up the gossip.
Honami fanned herself gently before squirming elegantly, just a touch closer to Chihiro, muttering for him to plug his ears. Taking the cue, he put down the book and plugged both his ears, wincing when Nagisa Kazama, a second year dancer from Datekougyou stood up to scream as her team entered the stadium. Her elder sister Naomi smacked a hand on her back and hissed an order for her to sit. Nagisa winced, obeying her sister when Shiratorizawa's Azusa Genbu clapped politely as her school's team jogged onto another court. Ashika Genbu, her year younger cousin, wolf whistled as Kenjirou Shirabu trotted out.
When Karasuno came out, Kikyou loosed a wolf-whistle shriller than Ashika's had been, before she called
"Oi! Tobi-chan!" Honami hissed
"Kiki!" As Shouichi fiddled with his glasses. Kikyou leaned over the rail as her brother skidded to stop on the floor beneath her, grin widening when Shouichi wrapped an arm around her waist before peering down at Tobio.
He stepped into a smart salute, shrieking
"Kiki-nee!" When she ordered
"Go out there and give 'em hell! Even if you're not dancing, you won't shame the Kageyama name, I know."
Shouichi inserted smoothly
"She means we'll be proud of you either way, Tobi-otouto." With a scowl, Tobio gestured that he'd be watching his sister before he jogged back to Karasuno, snorting when asked who that was, he bit out
"My sister, Kikyou, and her husband, Shouichi Imayoshi. They've taken care of me since my parents died." Ignoring the semi-shocked looks, he continued
"Aniki knows a lot of famous athletes, and Kiki-nee's danced in international tournaments, so I feel the pressure to succeed- I mean, their pals are all rich and famous and talented, and so are they, but at the end of the day- they're still Aniki and Kiki-nee."
Before he says anything else, Shizuha hollers for him. Tanaka stared wide eyed as Tobio rolls his eyes and jogs back over to accept well wishes from no less than four Seijoh girls (three of which are third years, one a first year), three Datekou girls of consecutive years (Nagisa, Naomi and their youngest sister Natsume), two Shiratorizawa girls and his sister's sempai.
Once back with Karasuno, Tobio yawned and grumbled
"Thank lord Ryouta-san taught me how to handle fans." Of course, his composure does not last. Especially since Sakura Kagari (a jazz dancer dating his former teammate Kunimi) flags him down to tell him with a sweetly venomous air
"Puncture Oikawa's ego, would you, Tobio-kun?" He snickers at the betrayed look the more emotional members of Aobajosai sport, snorting a laugh when Sakura's older sisters Himawari and Tsubaki make droll comments about his legs. And height. Shizuha (the only sensible one) purses her lips and orders briskly
"Tobio, don't you dare give it less than your all." Himawari drawls on the heels of that statement
"Tobio-kun, we love you, honest we do, but our loyalty lies with Aobajosai." Tobio cocked a hip and retorted
"I'll see you on the floor at Colour March." Azusa leaned over the rail to interject coldly
"I'll see you for Battle." Tobio nods, and while he goes about the tournament as easily as he can, he knows the others are wondering what he meant about Colour March.
His sister had been happy to compete in her first Colour March, hadn't even been reluctant to compete in the following ones, but she'd missed Imayoshi desperately. Had bowed out of the last Colour Battle in favour of her kouhai. Of course, by that time, Kiki had competed in the Jabberwock Dance/Acolytes Colour March after the Jabberwock/Vorpal Swords basketball game.
With a sigh, Tobio studied the now-silent Acolytes of Uzume. Undoubtedly, his sisters' students were Cardinal members of the National-level dance society, and while he had tested out to Ordinal the previous fall, he hadn't kept up his dance training. Volleyball and Karasuno had been all important, although finding out that both Kiyoko and Hitoka were in classes at the same studio where Kikyou and Honami taught had been a surprise. That, he knew, was the only reason a Colour March for the Miyagi Prefecturals had been consented to.
The Kazama sisters to represent Datekou.
The Kagari sisters, captained by Shizuha Miyamoto to represent Aobajosai.
Karasuno, represented by himself and his team's managers.
Shiratorizawa would be represented by the Genbu girls.
Runa and Hana would represent Johzenji.
Fortunately, the six-school rule had been waived when it was made clear there wouldn't be enough reps otherwise.
Secretly, Kageyama is pleased to make Kunimi squirm, although it had taken a few minutes to realize that he actually was disconcerted about his girlfriend talking to him. Maybe it's petty of him, but having his former sempai and teammates girlfriends call him out to praise him feels pretty good. Especially since the girls are just as knowledgeable as he is about dance and volleyball.
He coasts through the day on an adrenal high, sniggering whenever someone asked about Colour March, outright howling on the sidelines when Hinata asked if it was about Gay Pride. Sputtering and coughing, unaware that, actually, several teams are in hearing distance, Tobio explains
"Colour March is a dance event that takes place after a tournament, dumbass. Minimum six schools, at least two reps per, will first duke it out in an interpretative dance, re-enacting certain moments from the tournament itself. That's the Colour Battle. The actual Colour March is all reps dancing the same routine, each adding something of their school's style. The final part of Colour March is when you all come down to the floor and dance as a group." He straightened, and continued
"Colour March, when you get down to it, is about camaraderie after a big tournament. We haven't had one yet because there isn't usually enough schools with reps. They had to reformat to five schools, just so we could have one this year." Pausing again, Tobio finished
"Unfortunately, we have to hold it after the tournament is finished, so the only schools that will have anyone beyond their reps on the floor will possibly be Shiratorizawa and whoever plays them." When everyone on his team gave him weird looks, Kageyama snorted and commented derisively
"Oh, come on! Would you stick around to dance with girls who their eyes on the prize after you lose?" Sighing, he huffed out
"I'm an Ordinal, headed for Cardinal status if I can keep my head together, so it's a no brainer that I'm competing. Seijoh, Shiratorizawa, Johzenji, Datekou and us all have reps gunning for Cardinal. The Cardinals are aimed at taking spots on the National team for the Winter Dance Off in Tokyo, or the international conference in San Diego next summer."
Kageyama dismissed that all with a wave of his hand. Volleyball came first.