A/N: My second story! I know that I should have updated Kaen Megami, but I had to write this before I forgot it. *smile sheepishly* Anyway, enjoy!

Summary: Hoshino Gakuen, a prestigious school located in Tokyo. Its students are rich, and most of them hate commoners. Echizen Ryoma, the heiress of Echizen Corporation, entered the school as Meino Ryoma, a nerdy scholar, and found herself slowly falling in love.

Warning: OOC-ness, spelling mistakes, grammar errors

Disclaimer: I do not own Prince of Tennis as I can't draw to save my life! xD

"Don't worry son" - conversations

'Thanks' - thoughts, lyrics

"Kei-chan" - phone mail, SMS


Ring ring! Ring ring!

Atobe Keigo took out his mobile phone from his pocket and glanced at the screen. 'A new mail,' it read.

Click.

"Kei-chan, it's me! You know, in two days I'll come back from America to Japan. I miss you so much! I can't wait to see you again. :D"

The rich diva smiled softly at the message. 'So, she's coming back, huh?'


Prelude: Meet the Princess of Tennis

Two days later…

'Why hasn't that brat called me yet? Ore-sama has been waiting for two damn hours!' Keigo screamed on his mind as he was frenetically pacing back and forth on the Atobe family's mansion, waiting for his childhood friend (and secretly, crush), Echizen Ryoma, to inform him of her arrival at the airport. Apparently, Ryoma's father, Echizen Nanjirou, had forgotten to send a car (read: limousine) to Japan along with a chauffeur to escort his only daughter to Atobe's house (read: mansion) to live in there for several months, possibly half a year. Echizen 'Takeuchi' Rinko, Ryoma's mother, didn't allow Ryoma to live at Echizen's personal mansion because the maids hired by the Echizen family only came to the mansion once a month to clean it. Echizen Ryoga, Ryoma's older brother, was in college in America so he couldn't go to Japan until he finished his college matters, which were about in six months.

Keigo's father, Atobe Keisuke, looked up from the newspaper he was reading and stared at Keigo amusedly. "Don't worry son, the love of your life will definitely call you. You don't have to be so frantic."

Keigo blushed and looked at his father incredulously, "W-what do you mean, otou-san?"

"Oh, you know what I mean, Keigo," Keisuke replied, his eyebrows rose as he grinned playfully.

Atobe Akane, wife of Atobe Keisuke and mother of Atobe Keigo, put her tea cup down and looked at her husband and son while chuckling at Keigo's blushing face. "Dear, stop teasing Keigo. You're making him as red as a tomato. It could become permanent, and Keigo can't impress our little goddaughter anymore if it happens, can he?" she said. Keigo blushed even redder at that statement.

Keisuke laughed softly. "Whatever you say, my love."

Keigo glared at his parents. 'Why can't they stop teasing Ore-sama?' he thought, sighing tiredly. His mobile phone suddenly vibrated and a Japanese song could be heard.

'Sakimidarete karei ni mae, PURAIDO wa nugisutero—'

Keigo answered the call. "Hello?"

"Kei-chan? Can you pick me up? I'm already in the airport right now."

"Okay, I'll arrive in ten minutes." (A/N: Keigo doesn't use Ore-sama in front of his parents)

"Thanks. I'll wait by the entrance."

With that, Keigo hang up. "Is it Ryoma?" Akane asked.

Keigo faced her mother and nodded in affirmative. "Okaa-san, Otou-san, I have to go to the airport now to pick Ryo-chan up."

"Go now. Don't make her wait too long. She isn't a really patient girl," Akane said and smiled at him.

Keigo nodded once again and walked to the mansion's gates. He entered the limousine and told the chauffeur to head to the airport and went away.

At the airport...

A 15-year-old teenager and a glasses-wearing woman were standing at the airport's entrance. The teenager had heart-shaped face, healthy skin along with long black hair with greenish-tints and hazel golden eyes which seemed like they were sparkling due to the sunlight. The woman had long blonde hair which was tied in a ponytail and blueish-black eyes. Many people were staring at them, mainly boys, but the teenager was too focused to search for a certain limousine on the road to notice their stares, not to mention that she was dense, while the woman was helping the teenager to search for the limousine.

"Ryoma-ojou-sama, there's a black limousine coming to our direction," the woman, Marie, who turned out to be the teenager's maid, informed her.

Ryoma's eyes sparkled even more and the girl smiled brightly, which made many to pass out after seeing the particular smile, when she saw the black limousine stopped near them. Its door was opened and one Atobe Keigo went out from the limo and walked towards them.

"Kei-chan!" Ryoma exclaimed happily as she hugged the said Kei-chan.

Keigo blushed slightly and hugged Ryoma back. He broke the embrace and smiled his true smile, not his usual arrogant smirks. "Welcome back to Japan, Ryo-chan."

Ryoma smiled back at him before scowling at Keigo furiously. "Why did you make us wait for so long, Keigo?"

Keigo blushed slightly at Ryoma's pout-like scowl. It was so cute, too cute to be ignored. Keigo took a deep breath to calm himself down. Then, he smirked arrogantly, "You should be honored at Ore-sama's generosity. Ore-sama only offers his rides to a few people, brat. Be awed by Ore-sama's awesomeness!"

Ryoma sweat dropped. "How big of an ego has he developed when I was in America?" Ryoma muttered under her breath before smiling sadistically. Her sadistic smile was in par with Fuji's! "Don't ever use Ore-sama when you talk to me or I'll call you Monkey King, Kei-chan!" she chirped innocently as if she'd done nothing wrong, but the smile on her face told Keigo the otherwise, which made him shivered at the sight. 'Who the hell taught Ryoma that smile? Ore-sama will kill that person once Ore-sama finds out who he is!' He was busy to think ways to torture the said person, not noticing the hand in front of him swaying up and down continuously.

"Down on Earth, Kei-chan!" Ryoma said. "Keigo!" She tried again, but obviously she failed. She sighed exasperatedly before an idea popped out on her head. She tiptoed to Keigo's right ear and said rather loudly, but not loud enough to make his ear to hurt, "Monkey King! Stop daydreaming!" Then, she did something to his sensitive ear.

"Huh?" Keigo snapped out from his thoughts and glanced down at the angry teenager who was sending death glares at him. If glares could kill, Keigo would already be dead more than a thousand times. Unfortunately for Ryoma, the diva was unaffected since her glares were not scary at all. In fact, they were cute, as cute as her scowls and pouts. His face became beet red when he realized that Ryoma had just licked his ear to gain his attention. Lick!

"Do you know how long it took to stop you from daydreaming just now?" Ryoma said, sending glares at Keigo again before continuing, "It took ten freaking minutes! I'm still tired from jet lag and yet you're making me to stand here for a long time!"

Keigo face palmed. 'So impatient! Must be her time of the month' he thought. "I'm sorry, Ryo-chan. Now, let's go home, shall we?" Ryoma nodded and with that, he dragged her into the limousine as Marie and the chauffeur took her luggages inside the limousine and went away.


Back at Atobe's Mansion...

"Here it is, Ryoma," Keigo said after they stepped off the limousine and walked towards the entrance of the mansion. Marie took Ryoma's luggages with the help of some of Keigo's maids and butlers to Ryoma's room with the teenager's confirmation.

Ryoma stared at the mansion for a few seconds. "It isn't too big, Kei-chan. Its size is as small as my family's cottage in California."

Keigo sweat dropped at the statement. "Of course it isn't! Your family is the richest in the world while my family is the second richest in this month. Despite the rank my family's gotten, the gap in wealth and fortune between my family and yours is still big."

Ryoma was confused. "What do you mean by this month, Kei?" she asked as she opened the door of the mansion. The maids and butlers halted their works and made two lines beside the door. They bowed, "Welcome back, Keigo-obocchama, Echizen-sama." Ryoma and Keigo nodded aknowledgingly at them.

"Every month, the school I'm in, Hoshino Gakuen, publishes a magazine for the students, and inside there's always a list of the fifty richest Japanese families," Keigo explained while walking towards the living room, where his family were inside. "Your family, which is the Echizen family, unsurprisingly always stays the first. My family's rank differs each time, but remains in the top five nonetheless. This month, luckily, my family gets the second place."

"Huh? What a weird school," Ryoma commented.

Keigo just shrugged, "I know, but you can't help it. Hoshino Gakuen is full of rich students."

The two then entered the living room together so that Ryoma could greet Keigo's parents. As they walked inside, Ryoma was taken by surprise by Keigo's mother, Akane, who suddenly embraced her tightly, but not tight enough to cut off her air supply.

"Oh, Ryoma-chan, I miss you! I haven't seen you since you were practically five!" She said excitedly as she loosened her hug to take a good look at her, stroking her left cheek in a soothing way. "And my, you have turned into a beautiful young lady. But you're still very cute, even cuter than the last time I'd seen you."

"Thanks, Akane-san," Ryoma said cheerfully as she continued, "I'll be staying in this house for a while. I'm sorry if I've become a burden to you, but please take care of me." Ryoma smiled apologetically.

"Don't say that, Ryoma!" Keigo scowled. "You are not a burden to us, and never will be!"

"Please call me Akane-oba-san, Ryoma dear. And I agree with Kei-chan," Akane said, smiling sincerely. "It's my pleasure to take care of you, and it's pretty obvious that you're not a burden, you think?"

"Okay then, Akane-oba-san," Ryoma said as she smiled back at Akane and faced Keigo, smiling gratefully at him too, making Keigo to smile back to her.

"Oh my!" Akane squealed slightly, hugging Ryoma again, this time tighter than before. "You're just too cute! No wonder Keigo likes you," Akane said, her eyes glinted sadistically after seeing Keigo's flustered face.

"Okaa-san!" shouted Keigo, embarrassed.

"Oh sorry, dear," Akane said as she broke the hug. Ryoma, being the dense and oblivious person she was, asked innocently, "What do you mean by Keigo likes me?"

Keigo flushed beet red at the question. "Um, well you see-" Keigo said in low voice as he tried to explain, but got cut off by Ryoma. "Of course he likes me. We're childhood friends after all." Keigo was a bit disappointed at what she had said, but another person found it extremely amusing.

"You are still the same old Ryoma I've come to adore, you know, Ryoma-chan?" The speaker was, nonetheless, the one and only Atobe Keisuke who was sitting on the couch, chuckling at the commotion.

"Keisuke-san," Ryoma bowed politely.

Keisuke smiled, "You've grown so pretty, Ryoma. So pretty I might have not recognized you at all."

"Thank you for the compliment, Keisuke-san," Ryoma smiled back gratefully.

"No need to be so polite to me, Ryoma-chan," Keisuke commented with a small frown on his face. "After all, I actually consider you as my own daughter."

Ryoma grinned playfully, "Alright, Keisuke-oji-san!"

"Now that's more like it," Keisuke smirked slightly at Ryoma, who in return smirked back.

Akane and Keigo watched them, amusement clearly written on their face. Akane noticed that Ryoma was a bit pale. 'She must be tired from jet lag,' she thought.

"You must be tired, Ryoma-chan," Akane said tenderly, her eyes softening. "A butler will accompany you to your room along with your things. Then, rest for a while, Ryoma. Keigo will wake you up when dinner is ready since your maid also needs rest."

Ryoma smiled, albeit a bit tiredly. "Thank you, Akane-oba-san. That would be much appreciated."

A butler suddenly came and said, "Echizen-sama, please follow me to your room."

"Okay then. I'll see you later, Keigo, Akane-san and Keisuke-san," Ryoma said as she left the room to follow the butler.

The butler led Ryoma through empty halls of the mansion and walked through many turns until they found themselves in front of a lift, and went to the second floor using it. The halls of the second floor were as big as the first, making Ryoma to sweat drop.

Surely Ryoma's mansions were bigger, but she couldn't help but to think that she could get lost in here as she was unfamiliar with the mansion.

After a few minutes of walking, the butler suddenly stopped, causing Ryoma, who was right behind him, to bump into him and fell down.

"Oof," she grunted, taking the butler's offering hand to get up.

"I'm sorry milady, are you alright?" The butler asked politely.

"Yes, I'm alright, no harm done," Ryoma replied reassuringly.

"Good then. We have reached to your room." He said and opened the door of the room.

There was a small living room inside of it, complete with a black leather sofa, a plasma TV and a small coffee table in between. The floor was marble with dark lime walls. There were also three doors made out of maple wood. On the left corner of the room there was also a small kitchen with a stove and microwave oven. Complete with a small minibar. If anyone else saw the room, they would think of it as an expensive one-room service apartment, but not to Ryoma. She expected no less from her childhood friend's mansion.

"The entry of your room, milady, is the door on the right. The middle door is you own personal bathroom and the last one is your own noise-proof music room. All the instruments are already placed inside, along with the ones you've brought with you. The keys to these rooms are hung in your bedroom. There is also a walk-in closet connected to the bedroom and bathroom. Your luggage has also been unpacked by the maids and put to their rightful places. If you need me, please do not hesitate to call us. The butler station is number one on the phone, room service is number 2, and as for the maids, number 3," the butler explained. "Do you need anything else, milady?"

"Well, are there towels inside the bathroom?" Ryoma asked.

"Of course, milady. All fluffed, soft and dark lime green. If you need extra towels, there is more inside the closet," he replied.

"Great, then. You can go now. I'll call if I need anything."

"I will take my leave then, milady." The butler closed the door and left.

As the footsteps fade, Ryoma went to check out the other rooms. The bedroom, the bathroom, the walk-in closet and the music room all had similar dark lime green walls and bone white marble floors, but their components were different.

The bedroom had a queen sized bed and bedside tables with drawers on each side. It had soft feather pillows and was covered in rich green silk blanket, and a telephone along with a small lime green lamp was placed on the tables. There were also two big windows which were half covered by creamy white curtains and a door beside the windows.

Ryoma walked to the window and gasped. The view from the room was marvelous. She could see the backyard of the mansion, full of various flowers and trees and even unknown species of plants that were unique in her eyes. A mini waterfall only magnified the beauty of the view.

Finished watching the view, Ryoma opened the door to the walk-in closet and found herself being surrounded by herds of various types of clothes, from pajamas to Lolita dresses. She sweat dropped. 'So many clothes! Akane-oba-san sure likes to shop,' she thought, shuddering. 'Note to self, don't ever go shopping with her ever!'

She noticed that there's another door at the end of the closet and opened it. The first thing she noticed about the room was the big Jacuzzi, enough for five people to bath in. There was also a shower, which sparkled as it was made of high-quality glass, a toilet and a sink complete with a trash bin and a mirror. All her necessities to take a bath were put tidily near the Jacuzzi.

Ryoma, then, went to the music room. Inside, there was a pearl white Baby Grand Piano along with a teak-made cello beside it. There was also a shelve full of music books and two violin cases near the book shelve. A small yet elegant table could be seen near the cello and a traditional flute was placed on it.

Yawning slightly, Ryoma exited the music room and took a pink rabbit-modeled pajamas as she entered the bathroom, having a comfortable and warm bath for half an hour before wearing the pajamas and plopped herself to her bed, slowly lulling to darkness as she fell asleep.


Knock knock.

"Ryoma?" Keigo asked as he knocked the door again, but no one answered him.

Shrugging, Keigo opened the door and saw Ryoma in the bed, still sleeping. He walked towards the bed and tried to wake her up.

"Ryoma?" Keigo shook Ryoma's body in an attempt to wake her up but failed, obviously, since Ryoma was a heavy sleeper. Keigo, then, in his second attempt pulled Ryoma's blanket off the bed and found himself staring at Ryoma's peaceful expression, smiling without a care to the world.

'Ka-kawaii!' Keigo thought as he blushed beet red at the sight.

"Keigo," Keigo heard Ryoma muttered in her sleep, making him to blush even more. He sat beside Ryoma at the bed and stared at her for a few seconds before he was kicked off the bed by Ryoma herself.

"Why are you so late, you baka?" Ryoma muttered again, a bit louder than before as she groaned, slowly waking up from her sleep. She looked around her surroundings and saw Keigo sprawling on the ground.

Ryoma tilted her head. "Why are you sitting on the floor, Kei-chan?" she asked.

A vein popped on Keigo's forehead as he stood up, glaring at Ryoma, "You're the one who kicked me when I tried to wake you up!"

"Oh, sorry, Kei-chan," Ryoma apologized, smiling sheepishly.

Keigo's temper instantly calmed down as he couldn't stay mad at Ryoma for a long time. "Apology accepted. Now, change your clothes and go to the dining hall, Ryoma. Dinner is ready," Keigo informed her and went out of Ryoma's room to go downstairs.

Ryoma went to her walk-in closet and picked up a sleeveless blouse with white and cerulean stripes as the pattern and mid-thigh jeans to wear. She combed her hair and wore a lime green headband. Thinking that she was presentable enough, she went to the dining hall for quite a long time as she was lost for God knows how many times. Keisuke, Akane and Keigo were already there, waiting for Ryoma to arrive as they began to eat while chatting between themselves.

"By the way, Ryoma, which school will you be in?" Keigo asked.

"Oh, about that," Ryoma's golden eyes suddenly glinted. "I will enter Hoshino Gakuen, Kei-chan. Happy?"

Keigo's eyes brightened and a huge smile broke on his face. "Extremely."

Ryoma chuckled at her childhood friend's antics as she continued, "As a nerdy scholar."

Keigo, along with Akane and Keisuke, stared at Ryoma for a few minutes in disbelief. Then, they shouted to the whole world:

"NAAANNIII!"

-tsuzuku-


A/N: So how's the prelude? A bit confusing, I admit. I have trouble, as usual, on describing the rooms etc.. I appreciate it if you find mistakes in the chapter, spelling, grammar or others, and tell me about them in your reviews. Also, I'll be happy to take constructive criticsm as it can make me to improve. But, flames will be ignored.

Thank you for reading the prelude and an especial thanks will be directed to MyMysteriousSoul, who helped me making this prelude. Anyway, review please.. :)