A/N: I know that "Mrs." in Japanese is -san, but I'm using some English honorifics to ease the reading. I hope it's not jarring for you.

By the time Kageyama returned to the lounge, almost everyone was there. Takeda-sensei saw him first, jumping up from where he'd been sitting next to Coach Ukai. He was still holding a milk box. Kageyama knew it would be barely cool anymore, but he accepted it when Takeda held it out.

The others noticed the movement and looked up, some more quickly than others. Nishinoya jumped to his feet, abandoning his seat between Asahi and Suga, and stepped forward with his fists clenched and his chin jutting out. Tanaka just lifted his head wearily and looked at him from where he sat in the corner, bent over onto himself. His sister Saeko sat next to him, rubbing his back in big, firm circles. Daichi and Coach Ukai both opened their mouths, but Kageyama already knew what they were going to ask.

He shook his head, answering the unvoiced questions. "We don't know yet."

Everyone slumped or sat back in disappointment. Takeda stood still, watching Kageyama's face without wavering. "Any change?"

Kageyama rubbed a hand over his face. "Toward the end his memory seemed better." He glanced at Suga, who looked back at him with some version of calm, though his jaw was tight. "He stopped needing us to remind him that he'd had an accident. I think he still doesn't know what really happened, but he knows that we're all worried about him. He remembers that we were all upset and that Suga-san stayed with him for a while. He feels bad for making us unhappy, even though I told him not to."

Takeda shook his head and patted Kageyama's shoulder, guiding him to sit down next to Yachi and Shimizu. This time Kageyama obeyed. YachI leaned into his side, sniffling, and Shimizu caressed her head. Kageyama fumbled with his milk box for a moment, though his stomach churned and he wasn't sure he wanted to drink it.

"What's going on now?" Ukai asked.

"They're getting tests done. His mom and little sister are with him, so he's not alone." They had practically forced him out to "take a break for a while, Kageyama-kun," saying that he looked like he was about to fall over. He believed them-he certainly felt like he was about to fall over.

"Yeah, we saw them come in," Nishinoya said. He slouched down on the padded bench, elbows akimbo. Asahi and Suga endured his jutting angles with a wrinkled forehead and a tolerant look, respectively. "Mrs. Hinata seems really kind."

Kageyama nodded. "She is." Hinata's mother had been a bit of a surprise. He'd always suspected that Hinata's parents had to be just as crazy and full of energy as he was, but Mrs. Hinata turned out to be beautiful and calm, one of the most dignified women Kageyama had ever met. Her smile was swift and sweet and always showed in her eyes, and her voice was soothing and steady. Hinata had settled down a great deal as soon as she came in the room.

It must be nice having a mother like that, Kageyama thought, hesitantly sipping his drink. He could see how that would be important for someone like Hinata, a strong and sturdy foundation that he could always depend on. Hinata needed stability, a firm surface for him to perform his ridiculous leaps off of. Mrs. Hinata provided that in the best possible way.

"Hinata's sister was so cute," Yachi said. With half her face pressed against his upper arm, Kageyama could feel the watery smile struggling to emerge on her face. "They must be amazingly adorable together."

Kageyama nodded. He had, in fact, been unable to stop staring at the tiny girl for what had seemed like minutes on end when Mrs. Hinata first entered the room with the little one in her arms and talked to the nurses for a bit. The girl just looked so exactly like a miniature version of her big brother that he hadn't been able to belIeve that there wasn't magic or time travel involved somehow. "Her name is Natsu."

"Natsu-chan." Yachi sighed. "That's perfect."

Natsu had not appreciated Kageyama staring at her. When Mrs. Hinata stepped toward the bed to touch her son's cheek, still carrying her, Natsu had taken the opportunity to smack Kageyama on the arm just as hard as she could. Kageyama barely felt it through the sleeve of his jacket, but he still gaped at her in baffled shock.

For a moment the alcove was utterly silent as the nurses, Hinatas, and Kageyama all tried to figure out how to respond to this development. Then Hinata Shouyou's clear giggle pealed like a bell, and he held out his arms to his sister, letting go of Kageyama's sleeve for the first time since the nurse brought him in.

"Natsu! You can't hurt Kageyama-san! Who will I play volleyball with if you kill him?"

"Me!" she declared fiercely. She reached back to Hinata, wiggling her fingers in frustration when he remained just out of reach and leaning so far over in her mother's arms that she almost toppled onto the bed.

At the nod from a nurse, Mrs. Hinata let Natsu down onto the bed next to her brother. Natsu immediately snuggled into Hinata's side and wrapped an arm around him as far as it would go, glaring at Kageyama all the while. She couldn't have screamed MINE! more loudly if she'd done it in words.

Kageyama held her gaze for a moment, then abruptly looked away to a corner of the ceiling. He worked very hard to convince himself that he hadn't been about to get into an intimidation contest with a little girl who might not even be in school yet. Mrs. Hinata hid a smile behind her hand, but it sparkled in her eyes, and Hinata just grinned, weary but content.

For the rest of the time Kageyama was in the room, Hinata called him san, which was weird until Kageyama figured out that he was trying to influence Natsu to see him in a better light. It might have even worked eventually, but right now, in a strange place surrounded by strange people with her beloved nii-chan not quite himself, Natsu was having none of it. Her narrowed eyes and pinched expression followed Kageyama wherever he went.

It was almost a relief to be kicked out, honestly. Almost.

"Kageyama, you're smiling." Tanaka Saeko's warm voice chased him out of his reverie, and Kageyama blinked, momentarily disoriented. She smirked at him from across the room, but this smirk was nothing like the ones on the punks at school. It was teasing and affectionate, sharp-edged with a bite but not in the least malicious. "Care to share what caused this unique occasion?"

Kageyama huffed and leaned over to put his milk box on the floor, careful not to dislodge Yachi's head from his arm. "Natsu is cute."

"We knew that." Even Suga's expression was lighter now. "What exactly did she do to make you smile like that?"

Kageyama slumped back in his chair. They were all looking at him so hopefully. He'd never felt attention quite like this focused on him.

They all needed a moment a levity, he realized. His team had all been worrying and hurting and struggling, just as Kageyama and Hinata had been. He'd felt alone and terribly scared the entire time, fighting with every tool he had available to him to keep Hinata awake, alert, focused on something besides the suffering in his body and mind. And all that time, everyone else in the Karasuno volleyball club had been pulling for him, wishing and hoping for a positive outcome. It was just like in a game when they all strained together for a common goal, only this time they had been separate, unable to see each other. Their unity had been no less powerful for all that.

The least he could do was give them a moment of relief, even at his own expense. Slowly, in halting words, Kageyama told them about Hinata's little sister and her instant animosity toward him. He wasn't good at telling stories, but he did his best. And his team laughed, and the mood of the room lifted immeasurably, and it was worth it.

"It's too bad she never came to a match," said Nishinoya. "Can you imagine if she met Aone? How would that even work?"

Daichi folded his arms across his chest. "It's still weird that that guy made friends with Hinata. It's like a wolf making friends with a chipmunk."

Shimizu giggled behind her hand, which made Nishinoya and Tanaka perk up. And they were off, talking about Hinata and the weird things that happened to him at matches. There were a lot of them, actually.

"He really does always run into scary dudes in the bathrooms," Tanaka mused. "Maybe we should do something about that."

Kageyama scowled. "I'm not going with him to the toilet."

"Who said anything about it being you?" Nishinoya said. "We could take turns. I'll look out for Shouyou-chan." He puffed out his chest and pointed his thumb at it.

"At least take Asahi along as backup, then," Tanaka said.

Asahi waved his hands. "Hey, hey, leave me out of this!"

"You're such a wimp!" Nishinoya punched him in the side. Asahi winced and rubbed the spot where he'd been hit.

Kageyama grunted. "It's not that big a deal. They're just other volleyball players. None of them really mean any harm."

A moment of silence fell, the mood shifting from lighthearted to serious again. Kageyama stared at the floor. It was true. Some of their opponents in volleyball could be annoying or intimidating, but they were all basically decent guys who loved the same sport the Karasuno team did-they just happened to be from other schools, other regions. When they said, "We'll smash you to pieces" or "I'll crush you completely," they meant on the court, in a game.

The guy who did this to Hinata... He wasn't the same at all. He wasn't decent. There was nothing redeeming about him. He had meant harm to Hinata, and he'd done it.

Kageyama looked up, catching Daichi's eye. "What happened with the vice-principal?" Did they still have a gym? Were they still even a club?

Daichi groaned and covered his face with his hands. Suga patted his back, grimacing sympathetically.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Kageyama demanded.

"It didn't go well," Coach Ukai said, bending his head back to look at Kageyama around the people between them. "Tanaka is suspended for a week."

"And Coach Ukai almost got banned from the school grounds," Tanaka said, giving the coach a hurt look at being outed so bluntly.

"I didn't, though." Ukai gave him a wolfish grin.

"Now, now, don't fight. Neither of you are any better than the other." Takeda patted the air between them. Tanaka and Ukai looked smug. "Because you were both terrible." Their faces fell. "Sugawara saved the day, as usual."

Suga smiled painfully. "I only told the truth."

"But you told it well. That counts for a lot." Takeda looked at Kageyama. "There won't be any consequences for the volleyball club besides Tanaka's suspension. He's not even banned from club activities for a month like Nishinoya was."

Tanaka's hand clenched into a fist. "I didn't even deserve that, though."

"You punched another student in the nose," Saeko said, smacking him lightly on the shoulder. "I'm not saying you shouldn't have done it, but of course there's a consequence for that. Wear it proudly as a badge of honor for defending your kouhai."

Tanaka sat up straighter, nodding firmly.

"But what about the guy who did this?" Kageyama asked. "That punk bastard..."

Several members of the team shifted uneasily. Kageyama scowled at them, not sure what to make of that.

"There's a meeting going on about that right now," Daichi explained. "The rest of the team is there to represent us. Ennoshita will speak for our wishes."

"Ennoshita?" Kageyama blinked. The second-year was steady and dependable, but he wouldn't have picked him for such a role. "But shouldn't you..."

Daichi shook his head. "I would not be able to speak well on this matter. I held it together in the hall because I had to, but in front of a group of people, trying to speak calmly about this... I wouldn't be able to do it."

Suga nodded. "None of us who are here would be able to. We must rely on Ennoshita."

There were several nods. Kageyama looked around, taking it in. His team. Hinata's team. They were all here together, waiting for news about their teammate and friend.

If he couldn't stay with Hinata for the moment, there was nowhere else Kageyama would rather be.