Title: First Contact
Fandom: Prince of Tennis
Characters: Tachibana Kippei, Yukimura Seiichi, Chitose Senri
Prompt: 013 Yellow
Word Count: 834
Rating: G

A/N: Thanks once again to all of you who read (and reviewed) the first part of this. I appreciate that you are trying something different! Here's the next part.

Disclaimer: I do not own Prince of Tennis.

In the August of his second year, Tachibana Kippei returned to the Nationals. He had grown his hair long, and bleached it. Above his admittedly ugly blue and white Shishigaku jersey, he wore a fearsome scowl, warning that he was serious and would do whatever it took to win. Very few would have seen in him the dreamy, wide-eyed freshmen from the year before, for he had made his dreams reality. This year, he was recognized as one of the two best players in Kyushu, a top contender who had already helped to lead Shishigaku to the semifinals. The other was Chitose, who still gladly took any opportunity to tease him and was no more awed by him than before. The two of them were an inseparable force.

People saw them, and noticed, and talked.

Of course, they were overshadowed by the returning champion. People might mention the second-year aces of Shishigaku, but they were nothing compared to the three second-years of Rikkaidai, the ones they called demons.

"Did you hear?" someone would murmur. "It's not just those three who were the first-year regulars. The Rikkai team is made up entirely of second years, and their captain is the one they call the Child of God, Yukimura Seiichi."

"Yes," someone else might reply. "Did you know that they fired their coach? He disagreed with Yukimura and the vice-captain, Sanada Genichirou, about how the team should be run, and so he left. They say that on that team, Yukimura's power is so absolute, he might as well be a god."

Hearing this made Tachibana frown. He knew he was no leader. He fought only for himself. The team was a means to an end, to the Nationals. If Shishigaku won its semifinal game, if they made it to the finals, his dream would come true. Even imagining it made his heart race with excitement–facing Yukimura across the net, his opponent, in Singles 1 of the finals.

He looked in the mirror at night, and stared into the eyes that stared back at him, beneath the shock of yellow hair. The fire he had seen in Yukimura's eyes–was it in his own, as well? He wanted it to be.

"Yukimura Seiichi," he whispered to himself. "I will defeat you."

And then, because even he could not take himself as seriously as that, he laughed, and wondered what Chitose would say, if he heard him.

Tachibana and Chitose flipped a coin to determine who would play Singles 1 of the semifinals match against Makinofuji's captain. Chitose won the toss, and lost the match.

Tachibana, who had won his Singles 2 match, knew he had no right to be angry. Chitose's opponent was stronger than his own had been. Possibly he himself would also have lost the match, because he and Chitose were equal in strength. It was not fair to say that he thought he would have won. Chitose had hopes of his own––it was not fair for Tachibana to blame Chitose for crushing his hopes of playing in the Finals.

So he didn't, and they pretended that the friendship was the same as before.

A year ago, Tachibana had announced that he would play a game with Yukimura, and he had no intention of going home with that dream unfulfilled.

He wasn't easily frightened, but it took courage to approach Yukimura, surrounded by his teammates, and—at a respectful distance—a crowd of admirers. Tachibana told himself that Yukimura was only another tennis player, a second-year like him. He, Tachibana, had every right to walk up to Yukimura and challenge him to a match.

Yukimura turned to face him, and Tachibana's throat closed in shock. From that brief glimpse of Yukimura the year before, and other descriptions of him on the court, he had come to expect a sort of monster, terrible as he was beautiful. He had expected a fierce, haughty expression, and those eyes that blazed.

But Yukimura lookedmild, and, for lack of a better word, pretty. He gave Tachibana a gentle smile.

"May I help you?"

Tachibana felt suddenly ridiculous, standing there with his arms folded across his chest in his most aggressive pose. He took a step back.

"I'm Tachibana Kippei, from Shishigaku," he said, more politely than he usually spoke. "I was hoping to face your team in the Finals, but since that will not happen, I hope you will honor me with a match."

"Look —" a severe looking Rikkai player with a cap—Sanada, Tachibana remembered–-broke in, but Yukimura held up a hand.

"It's all right, Genichirou," he said. "I would be delighted to play a match with Tachibana-san. Do you mind if we wait until after the Finals? I don't have much time before then."

"Sure," Tachibana said. "Thanks."

"Of course, I hope you will find the time to come and watch our victory." Yukimura's eyes hardened, but in a moment the gentle smile was back in place, and Tachibana thought he must have imagined it.

A/N: I may hold off on posting the next bit until we get a new PoT chapter, and know more about how Yukimura plays! Since this is the most he has ever appeared in canon, I hope I won't write have to go back and drastically edit this to make him more IC. As it is, I don't think I'm butchering him too badly.

Please review!