RAINDROPS
A Prince of Tennis Fanfic
By: weirdcoffeeholic
Disclaimer: I do not own Prince of Tennis.
Author's Note: The first chapter's up! I hope you guys are enjoying this. :) There's a bit of RyoSaku fluff at the end of this one. Well, if you can call 'that' fluff. Most of this chapter's just talking. Kind of a long chapter. And it's still completely AU. Thanks for the great reviews. :D
CHAPTER ONE
Trapped
"What do you mean 'You couldn't find a picture'?" Saori Shiba raised an eyebrow at the young columnist in front of her cluttered desk, as if refusing to believe it. "In case you don't know, you could've Googled that, Sakuno," she added with a shard of tired frustration. There were dark, half-circles under her light brown eyes and her short brown hair was in messy clumps on her head.
Sakuno let out an equally tired smile. She twiddled her fingers uncomfortably in front of her. "I'm sorry, Miss Shiba," she apologized, noticing the hint of slight anger in her boss' tone. "I was up all night looking for a decent one, but all I got were of him with his back to the camera, his hand covering his face—obviously, he's doesn't like pictures very much—"
"That doesn't matter, Sakuno," Saori shot back, standing up from her seat. She rested her palms on her desk and surveyed her office as if debating something in her mind. Letting out a sigh, she then gazed at Sakuno with pure and genuine concern. "I know you want this position, Miss Ryuuzaki. And frankly, I don't see a problem with that since you're the best writer I've got."
Beaming a little, Sakuno tried to look humbled. "Thank you, Miss Shiba." But she didn't like where this conversation was going.
"But if you don't show me a little more determination, I might consider giving this newspaper and all its hard work to someone else."
Sakuno's stomach dropped a couple of notches. A lump was forming in her throat. No, she thought helplessly, gripping the hems of her fleece jacket for any support. I can't lose this. I'm this close—
"But I don't think we'd like that, would we?" she asked, serious.
Something inside her lit up, sending her hopes flying again. "No, Miss Shiba," she replied courteously.
The older woman grinned. "I like your spirit, Miss Ryuuzaki," she said, sitting down behind her desk. There was an authoritarian ring to her voice now. It made Sakuno shiver a little. "That's why I'm giving you another chance."
Sakuno's eyes widened with surprise as she clasped her hands together in a prayer position. "Thank you, Miss Shiba," she said cheerfully, jumping up and down like a little girl being praised for a crayon drawing. "I swear you won't regret this," she added, standing up and smiling proudly. "I'll get on with looking for that picture right away."
Miss Shiba chuckled softly. "Actually, there's no need," she said.
"What?"
"I already asked Tomoka Osakada to fill you in," she replied calmly. "That missing-heir story is old, and I want you to work on a fresh story."
Face brightening with enthusiasm, Sakuno swallowed. "And what story is that?" she asked with a mixture of anxiety and excitement.
"I hope you've heard of the mugging incidents downtown," Saori asked Sakuno as if testing if her knowledge of recent events was editor-in-chief material. She stood up again and walked towards Sakuno, putting an arm around her shoulders.
It ringed a bell. "Yeah, I've heard of it," she replied without uncertainty. It was a crucial mistake to show that now. "I think everyone has," she said.
Saori beamed. "Good," she said, pleased. "I want you to get the scoop on everything regarding that bastard. Interview victims if possible or witnesses if there are any."
Surprised, Sakuno gave a soft gasp. She shivered again. "M-me?" she asked, her brows knitted across her forehead. "Why, me?" she repeated, unsure.
"Because this is a hand-in-hand case with the Police, that's why," she replied sternly. "You do know that Takashi Kawamura works for the cops, and I believe you know him."
Sakuno was amazed that the editor knew this much. Yeah, Taka, I remember him. "Yeah, we went to the same high school together," she confirmed, lacing her fingers together.
"Well, then," she said in a tone that indicated that their conversation was closed. "It's settled; Leave the missing-heir story to Tomo, she can handle that. You'll start working on this one. Got it?" she asked, though she knew that Sakuno couldn't afford to refuse.
The younger woman spread her lips into a smile. "Yes, ma'am," she replied. "I'll get started on it right away." She gave Saori one last look before pacing towards the door.
"Oh, and Sakuno," she called just as she was about to disappear into the busy cubicle-rooms.
Sakuno turned around. "Yes?"
"I'm counting on you. You've got three days."
"Yes, ma'am."
Tomoka was her usually, lively self that morning, Sakuno had mentally noted. She was buzzing around, bossing her subordinates as if there was no tomorrow. Her high, feminine voice was reverberating across the room and out into the open hallways. A few people had veins throbbing on their foreheads already, and it was just barely noon. The real nitty-gritty stuff hasn't even begun yet.
"Hey, Kachiro! What the hell are you doing?" she yelled at the man working in number 54. "I told you, the 'in' papers go in this shelf while the 'out' ones go here! You're doing it all wrong!"
Sakuno spared a couple of seconds to look away from her computer screen towards the red hair of Tomoka's protruding on top of a cubicle wall. There was an abrupt burst of paper in the hair.
"That's it, I quit!" Kachiro yelled, causing much distraction and amusement to his fellow workers. "I can't take this anymore!" he yelled again as he stomped outside his stall, carrying a cardboard box apparently containing all his important belongings. He had planned this beforehand.
Tomoka looked outraged as she pointed a threatening finger at the man leaving the office. "And where do you think you're going?" she demanded, following Kachiro. "Don't think that you can come running back here if you can't find another decent job!"
"Don't worry, I won't!" he yelled back. There were snickers of laughter quietly spreading across the room. A small woman at the back was holding up a banner that said 'Go, Kachiro! I'm next in line!'
Shaking her head, Sakuno focused her eyes and mind back to her work. Her brows furrowed against the light radiating from her screen, her eyes quickly skimming the page she had come across in their very own newspaper's website.
One of our regular contributors was a victim of this guy, she concluded, scribbling the name on a Post-It. Good. I've got second-hand information—
"Hey, Sakuno!" a familiar voice broke her train of thoughts, making her jerk a little.
Sakuno rolled her eyes. "Damn it, Tomoka, I was on a roll here!" she said with slight agitation.
She grinned. "I heard you've been assigned to a new issue," Tomoka said, looking eager.
"Yeah, I was," Sakuno said while sticking her pencil behind her ear. She then began tying her hair in a messy ponytail.
"So..." Tomoka began, obviously interested. "How's it going? Got any leads?" she asked, edging a little closer to Sakuno's monitor.
"No. I've just started working on it today," she replied defensively. "I'm not the LAPD here," she added, eyeing her desk littered with paperwork. "Hey, Tomoka?"
"Yeah?"
"I was wondering if you knew this girl," she asked Tomoka, turning the flat-screen monitor slightly to the left so that it faced the other woman.
Taking a step closer, Tomoka put a finger to her chin thoughtfully. She scowled a little. "Ann Tachibana... Hmm..." she said, straightening up. "Yeah, I know her. She was a contributor to the Sports department."
Sakuno frowned. "What do you mean 'was'?" she asked.
Shrugging, Tomoka replied, "She just filed her resignation papers this morning," she said casually. "I think her son died last night or something. Why'd you ask?"
"Apparently, she was the mugger's most recent victim," Sakuno said, adjusting the monitor towards her again. "Do you know how I can get a hold of her? Maybe just do an interview?" she asked the head copyreader.
Tomoka's brows crumpled a little more. "I don't think that'll be easy," she answered slowly, as though uncertain. "She just moved back to Japan with her husband. Apparently, she couldn't stand living here anymore since it reminded her of her son."
Shit, Sakuno thought, chewing the eraser end of her pencil. This guy's an asshole. She cursed again.
A soft, female voice on the P.A. spoke. "Miss Tomoka Osakada, please proceed to the third floor. The Editor-in-Chief would like to have a word with you." The announced repeated the message twice before the room fell silent again. There was a quiet murmur arousing from the cubicles. A few heads poked out to get a better view of Tomoka.
"Tch." Giving Sakuno a last look, Tomoka gracefully exited the large office room, her pigtails swinging behind her head.
Sakuno's lips pressed into a small, hidden smile. You still haven't changed a bit, Tomoka.
It was around nine o'clock in the evening when rain began pouring again. The streets were still busy with passersby and small, lit-up restaurants like it always was in drier nights. Sakuno Ryuuzaki stepped out of the taxi and went up the concrete steps of the number 2376 precinct.
The building looked classic, like it was taken out of a Hollywood movie, Sakuno thought with a hint of awe under the rain. The yellow glow from the lamp post reflecting on its façade. She wondered why she didn't notice this building before.
Sakuno wrapped her leather jacket tighter around her body. It was her first time to enter a precinct and the weather wasn't helping at all with easing the tension she felt. Taka, please be here, she prayed as she disappeared into the wooden double doors.
The air was considerably warmer when she was finally inside. It felt good and smellef of coffee and freshly baked donuts. I guess Hollywood got that detail right, Sakuno told herself, watching the navy blue-clad men walking past her giving her a critical look. A couple of female officers were staring at her, chattering away behind their hands.
Turning pink, Sakuno placed her freezing hands in her pockets and lowered her head a little.
"BURNING!"
She whirled around to find Takashi Kawamura's face with a mischievous grip on his lips. "Oh, good, Takashi, you're here," she said, suspiciously eyeing the black police baton in his hand. "How're you?"
"I AM GREAT!" he yelled on top of his voice. Several officers rolled their eyes. A criminal-looking man in handcuffs scoffed. Takashi raised his fist into the air as Sakuno cowered.
She forced a smile. "Takashi—"
"I'll take that," a man behind the energetic cop said. His voice was without a doubt very familiar. He smoothly plucked the baton out of Takashi's hand, making his oomph ebb away considerably.
Sakuno recognized him immediately. "Detective Inui!"
Takashi chuckled, clearly embarrassed, scratching the back of his head. The tense line on his face disappeared completely. "I'm sorry about that," he apologized, blushing. "What's it that you came all the way here for Miss Ryuuzaki?"
The detective pushed his black, square glasses up the bridge of his nose. "I believe you came for an inside look on the mugger," he assumed, gazing at Sakuno inquiringly.
Nodding, Sakuno replied, "Yeah, I did." She was impressed. That's so like Sadaharu Inui to know everything beforehand. "I need first-class information on everything you guys here know. It's kind of an order," she explained.
Takashi scratched his head again before looking away. "To tell you honestly," he began, "we only know this so-called mugger as much you guys at the press do," he said truthfully.
"What?" Sakuno crossed her eyebrows.
Detective Inui cleared out his throat and took out his ever-so-famous notebook. He flipped to a certain page. "Actually, this is the only worthy information we have," he said as he gestured Sakuno to take out a pen and notebook as well.
She complied with a nod, pausing the tip of her pen on a page. "Right, I'm ready."
"According to my data, there's a 97.5-percent chance that he will attack when it's dark, specifically after sundown till 3:30 in the morning," he stated with a serious expression, flipping to the next page.
Sakuno was jotting down non-stop. Takashi was listening intently to every word. It was kind of strange to see him like this without his hand holding a baton.
"All-in-all, there are 14 reported cases at very random points around the city so we can't really tell where he'll show up next," Inui continued. "The victims are always women, within the age bracket of 18 to 29 years old..."
Sakuno swallowed, still scribbling away.
"...And although there are no killings or sexual harassments involved, he has been reported to have used brute force to get what he wants from his victims," Inui said in a low, clear voice that only the three of them could hear.
"The funny thing is," Takashi interjected, making the two look at him intently, "none of the victims were able to give us even a rough description on what he looks like."
"Because… he always strikes at night?" Sakuno continued uncertainly, tapping on her notebook.
Inui gave a nod. "And there's always a 77.2-percent chance that he will strike when it's raining so it's really kind of hard to tell," he said, closing his notebook and slipping it back into his coat. "Even our top cartographer tells us that."
Like tonight, Sakuno thought to herself, her anxiety growing at the pit of her stomach.
"It's also been reported that he carries a gun around, probably a 9mm," Takashi added, putting a finger to his chin thoughtfully. "So be careful, Miss Ryuuzaki," he said with concern to Sakuno.
The woman smiled at the officer. "Thank you," she said, pocketing her pen and notes. "I was just wondering, Detective Inui—"
Static broke from the receiver clamped onto Takashi's belt. A voice spoke, though barely incomprehensible. "C-code Red! We n-need back-up, NOW! I think we've found him! Over!" the voice yelled. Everyone in the precinct paused to listen. A couple poised, getting ready to leave the station.
Takashi grabbed his receiver and spoke through it. "Roger! Please state your location! Over!"
Sakuno's heart was sinking. She had a bad and, at the same time, glad feeling about this. This is it, the break I've been waiting for! she thought.
"Roger! We're sending back up ASAP!" Takashi replied, turning to Sakuno. "Miss Ryuuzaki, please go home," he said, his hand poising to grab the baton protruding from Inui's pocket.
She felt outraged. She wasn't about to loose this shot at being the Editor-in-Chief, no. "What? I don't think so!" she yelled back amidst the blur of navy blue suit and the sound of ongoing sirens outside. "I need this story—"
"We know, but it's just not safe for a reporter on the scene," he tried explaining as calmly as possible. "There's a gunfight going on, and your grandmother won't be able to forgive me if anything happened to you."
Sakuno was on the verge of tears. She blinked it back, thinking of her overprotective grandmother. I can't believe I'm letting this go. This is unfair. "F-fine," she replied, trying to convince herself that it was 'fine.'
"I'll fill you in if ever we get new info about this guy," Inui said, in an attempt to make the disappointed columnist feel a little better.
"Good, now then, I'll need this..." said Takashi, grabbing his black, police baton. Inui's left eye twitch nervously. Well, actually, his glasses did.
Sakuno swallowed, preparing for impact. She held her arms in front of her face for protection.
"BURNING!" Takashi grabbed the sleeve of Inui's coat and was outside the double doors in an instant, leaving dust clouds and very bewildered officers behind them.
Letting out a defeated sigh, Sakuno hung her head to look at the ceiling, as though looking for answers that might be written there. Fine, she thought, frustrated. This will have to wait till tomorrow then. Miss Shiba's going to kill me…
With that last thought, she stepped out of police station number 2376 and into the heavy rain outside.
"What?" Sakuno couldn't believe her luck. She thought she should call it anything else other than luck.
The old taxi driver took off his cap and ran a wrinkled hand through his gray hair. "My engine broke down," he repeated apologetically as he popped the car door open and stepped out to check the problem.
Sakuno cursed mentally. First I lose the scoop, and now this? she asked the gods, not expecting a reply while she seated at the back and looked out the window glazed with water. This was such a bad neighborhood to have a car break down.
"This might take a while, miss," the old man called to her over the sound of the rain. "It's been like this for the past days now," he said with a smile as he propped the car hood up and started fumbling with whatever was inside it.
She suddenly felt bad for the old man. "It's okay, mister," Sakuno called back, grabbing a couple of tens from her bag and stepping out of the vehicle. The old man was taken aback when she handed her the bills.
His brows furrowed. "You only owe me five bucks so far—" he began.
Sakuno gave him a small, warm smile. "No, it's okay," she said, thrusting the tens into the old man's oiled hands. "Will this be enough for the engine to get fixed?"
The man was shocked. "But how will you get home, miss?" he asked with genuine concern. "I can still drive you—"
"No, it's okay, mister," said Sakuno, pulling the hood of her jacket up to cover her head, her long hair bunching up at the back of her neck. "I'll just walk; my place is just a couple of blocks from here, anyway."
Looking at the bills, the man said, "Thank you, miss."
"Don't worry about it," she called back with her back turned away from him. Miss Charitable-Institution just kicked in again, she scolded herself, suddenly remembering that she still had to pay the rent next week. Sakuno shrugged mentally. He needs it more than I do. What the heck.
The street lamps were on, but the entire strip, usually-busy strip of fast food chains, fancy restaurants and people, was empty. The sight of it gave her the chills. She scolded herself for not bringing an umbrella. Her sweater was soaked with rainwater, her mind soaked with letdown.
"Just forget about it," Sakuno muttered softly to herself, mist bursting from her lips with every shallow breath. She tried shrugging it off as she rounded the next corner towards her street.
But she couldn't suppress the feeling that there was definitely something wrong. It wasn't just because of the taxi's engine break-down.
Oh, God, she thought, stopping dead in her tracks. This is bad. Sakuno's heart throbbed harder and faster like the rain. Damn, Detective Inui should've come with me. She was scared beyond belief. Sakuno wanted to run, but she couldn't. This is a perfect giveaway. And she had half a mind to turn around and ask the old taxi driver to—
Just then a sharp object was jabbed into her back.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you."
Author's note
: A very long chapter, I must say. I hope it didn't bore you out. It's kind of Sakuno-centric. I wrote it just to give you guys a feel of what happened to the Tennis no Ojisama characters. :D I told you the ending was hard to call a 'fluff.' Thank you for the kind reviews. I appreciate it. :) Please forgive me for the typos. I have horrible eyesight and have been wearing glasses/contacts since first grade. :) Coming up: Chapter Two – Anonymous.