Disclaimer: I don't own anything but myself and my computer.

Summary: who knew her parents? None… who knew that her father left a testament before he died, and this piece of paper…can turn her fate upside down.

Chapter one: The letter.

"Sakuno!i'll be home late…take your breakfast before leaving, and lock the doors" Ryuzaki Sumire ordered her grand daughter, as he hooked her sports bag on her shoulders and went out of the house, not so long after, footsteps can be heard on the stairs.

"hai! Obaa-chan!" She answered back, though knowing that she won't be able to hear her at all, she went to the kitchen and saw her breakfast laid down on the table with a note under the plate.

'Don't be late for school'

The usual note she always left for her, she just smiled, her grand mother, always thoughtful as she was, she tugged her school uniform as she turned on the T.V as usual, switching to the sports channel, hoping she would catch him in there, ever since he left for the U.S open, she always tried in vain to watch tennis matches, and pushed herself to try harder at playing tennis, though she knew very well that she's hopeless, her brows furrowed at the thought, who knows? Her Obaachan was a great tennis coach, probably she's a late bloomer, and that's that, there's always room for progress…right?

The door bell rang as a voice followed it.

"Mail!"

It took her seconds before it registered in her mind.

'Mail'

She took a glance at the clock, her eyes widened.

"Im late!" without anymore ado she ran and wore her shoes and locked the door and left for school.

---

The Phone on her table rang a few times that it woke her up from her trance…She rubbed her eyes a bit as she lifted the phone and answered.

"Ryuuzaki Sumir-"

"I want to speak to her, Ryuuzaki-san, I want to speak to her." The voice on the phone said, it's less friendly than it should be, it's more like commanding, and cold, its like the suffix –san was just an act of display, just to be labeled as polite caller, from the sound of it, she knew exactly who this man is, and she wouldn't forget how this event was the one in her nightmares.

"And what if I refuse to let you?" she answered as her eyes sharpened and turned into a serious one.

"I don't need your permission, she's my Grand daughter too."

---

The bell rang loud as it echoed throughout the campus, signaling the students lunch time,

And teachers break time, the sound that everyone has been waiting for the whole day , lunch time! As war started inside the cafeteria, students busted in like animals ready to devour everything that lies in front of them, as some felt relief conquer them that they could hibernate from all the works at Seishun Gakuen.

She took a glance at the window only to see the tennis courts, its quite empty only freshmen spending sometime cleaning it, as a frown crept in her lips, its been a year, now she's a sophomore student, Tezuka-bochou graduated last year before Ryoma left, and now Oishi-sempai's the one who's handling the Seishun Gakuen tennis club, with some help from Tezuka sempai, as he pay the club some visit sometime, nothing much has changed.

"daijobu? Sakuno-chan?" a voice broke her from her trance.

She looked from behind and smiled at her bestfriend…

"Hai…Tomo-chan, why don't we take some lunch?"she suggested as she stood up, and snatched her bento from her bag, as she glanced at Tomoka as she grinned and gave her a two-thumbs-up.

"ne…ne…Sakuno-chan? Will you help me in that English homework later?" she paused as she chewed on her kani (crab stick).

Sakuno almost choked of what she heard, was that a request or an insult? Tomoka was warned about her English! And now was she asking her for help?

"i-uh… are you alright tomo-chan? You know im not good in English-.." before she could finish her sentence Tomoka interrupted again.

"oh shut up…then what does THIS mean? DUMB LUCK?" she said as she snatched a test paper from her back, apparently sakuno's English test paper.

"this is 94/100…no one got a perfect score, and the last six wrong answers where from true or false, you wrote T and F instead of the words itself, that was supposed to be a perfect score" she continued as she raised her eyebrows, as she munched on her bento again.

Sakuno's eyes widened at the sight, really? The test papers were not yet released how come Tomoka got her paper, tsk tsk, anyhow, she never thought she'll get that of a score at English, though she really studied for that test, she still didn't expect to have a good score for that, she groaned as she suddenly forced a smile on her face.

"no excuses for you now, but still you can refuse if you don't want to.." said Tomoka as she diverted her stare at her food.

"of course not tomo-chan! I will!" with a small hint of doubt in her voice she agreed, she's always got that softie part when it comes to friends that always pulls her not to say no.

Tomoka's face brightened as she heard sakuno's decision, as she continued munching on her bento.

Sakuno just smiled at the sight, yes, maybe this is one stepping stone to her goal, to be a better Sakuno at Seigaku.

---

He tugged on his hat as he looked around the airport for some media or paparazzi, as he hid himself slowly in his jacket, as he sighed, seems like his poor disguise worked, since he told Rinko and Nanako don't spill the news that he'll be back in Japan, or else he'll kill every single media men or even paparazzi blocking his way.

---

She sighed as she walked home, so she sighed most of the day, still, teaching Tomoka English was something really tiring, she's having a hard time with the letter C and Z and a little bit of spelling and sentence construction, she finally arrived at the doorstep and rang the doorbell, she raised her eyebrows,

'probably obaa-chan isn't home yet' she noticed the mailbox.

'oh yeah, the mail this morning'

She was staring at it for 20 minutes now, as she took a sip at her hot chocolate, she turned the envelope back like it was something that could bite her hands off, she saw her name on it.

"its for me…" she muttered.

But who would send her mail? One person popped in her mind.

"Ryoma-kun"

The mail was for her so she's fully permitted to open it, excitement rushed to her like wild fire spreading over her body as she grasped the envelope and opened it.

---

Sumire's glorified walk home was too short for her, time flies when you're having fun as they say, but she's not having fun, and she doesn't want for time to fly, for now, all her fears came rushing back to her this morning.

"She's my grand daughter too." The voice on the phone commanded.

"I know"she answered as her voice turned to a serious tone.

"and you know you cannot change that fact Sumire, I'll take her from you even if I need to take her by force" it continued.

"still harsh as you were back then."Sumire fired back as her brows furrowed.

"I know, and that means nobody, I mean nobody can stop from doing so."

Those words scares her, that she didn't even notice that she's already home, she looked at the door, like a monster threatening to wobble her out, like she's facing the greatest depression ever in her life, that even her palms won't even dare to touch it.

'how…how would I tell her'

Suddenly the door flew open as tension filled the two.

Sumire innocently smiled at Sakuno, sakuno just lowered her head, as Sumire made her way inside the house, she looked back at the girl at the door frame, as something pulled her head to look at the table, her eyes widened at the sight, that emblem, as she glanced back at Sakuno, who's snow nowhere in sight, she suddenly felt her heart stop beating for a millisecond as she ran to the table and looked at the envelope with her hand shaking, her eyes weren't all that pleased with all the things she saw.

'damn you, jiroubu!'

She turned her back to ran the door, with only one thing on her mind, Sakuno, she lifted her gaze up on the sky, it seems to bear the same emotions as hers, troubled.

---

And Ryoma mentally wants to slap himself for going here, the last lace he would want to visit on his first-things-to-do-and-first-place-to-go-list.

"seigaku"

"kuso…"he muttered as he heard thunder roar, its gonna rain hard, he could tell, with the clouds covering the sky, and obviously the troubling colour that surrounds the area, such a nuisance.

---

Her feet doesn't know where to go right this second of this minute of this hour of this day, she's more than confused that her eyes were abruptly shut and won't open up, butterflies are everywhere in her stomach, she doesn't know where to go, but one thing's for sure, she's in the middle of a battlefield in a lose-lose-situation, what she needs now? She doesn't know, suddenly she stopped when she felt cold droplets of water pats over her skin, she paused as she opened her eyes, rain poured down harshly on her, and to her surprise.

'Seishun Gakuen'

---

TBC.

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