A/N: Sooo, I drew Minena and some others. I've posted it on my newly-made Livejournal account because they're just pencil sketches and not worthy of dA, haha. Link is in my profile. I'm going to posting some other stuff related to the story there, too, like short profiles, maybe extras and previews. Please check it out if you have the time. I'm still in the process of building it up, so don't expect too much yet. Just use the tags to filter out whatever other obsessions/life stories I post there that you might not be interested in reading.

Anyway, Chapters 1 & 2 have been edited and updated. In general, I'll be cleaning out the chapters as I edit them, so any stuff not too important or directly related to the story will go to lj instead of here. Including rants, my thoughts about chapters, maybe sneak previews for upcoming arcs, or other possible projects.

Also, I've changed my username to enkasai.

As always, thanks for all the reviews, faves and follows! Happy Father's Day!

chapter six
Sides of a Coin

One lazy Saturday afternoon, Minena narrowed her eyes at the message obnoxiously staring at her from the screen of her cellphone.

Subject: Do you have any of the following

Message:

A Boomerang
Pearl jewelry
A Jizo figure

These are the lucky items for next week that I am missing.
If you have any, please drop them off at my house.
If you are missing any, please help me find them. Practice ends at 5:30.
The boomerang is top priority. It is Monday's lucky item.

Minena rolled over in her bed.

"Miiinato!"

"Whaaat?!"

"Do you have a boomerang?"

" .. . Nagasaki-san from the CD shop went to Australia once! Tell Shin-nii to ask him!"

"'Kay! Thanks!"

Midorima placed his hands on his knees, breathing heavily after the running exercises. Distance was not the problem, as one would initially expect—they were simply running around the court. Rather, it was the pace that really had his heart pumping. The oxygen build-up in the muscles of his calves had him wincing in pain, and he wanted nothing other than to sit down and massage them until the throbbing went away, but he knew that if he did, he wouldn't be able to stand back up again until the end of practice. The older regulars were still going, but he and the other first years—even that show-off, Aomine, had collapsed spread-eagle on the floor—were already out of gas.

"Midorima-kun."

"Hah?" Midorima glanced to his left, where Akashi stood, breathing deeply and covered in sweat but still standing straight, arms crossed over his chest and looking as regal as ever.

"Up there."

Midorima looked up and saw two people on the second landing—one of them easily recognizable with hair styled in a neat bun with decorative chopsticks pushed through.

Midorima stood up straight, taking off his glasses and wiping them on the hem of his sweat-drenched shirt before putting them back on.

"Why is Minena—?"

Then he recognized the other, taller figure in the smart suit, who seemed to be cheerfully conversing with his childhood friend.

"—talking to the head coach? They are laughing. She will give him ideas. This is bad. Very bad. We're going to die."

Akashi's lips quirked up into a faint smirk, and Murasakibara stared at him with lazy eyes, the nozzle of his water bottle hanging between his teeth. Aomine was apparently already too dead to care.

"I'm sure she'll take it easy on us," Akashi said lightly, his voice betraying only the slightest bit of breathlessness.

"Oi, first years! If you're rested up enough that you're just chit-chatting over there, get back to running!" the captain, Nijimura, barked as he and the rest of the senpai ran past them. Stopping and jogging in place in front of them, he jerked a finger towards the boy spread-eagle on the floor, harshly shouting, "And go wake the bastard up! I'll kill him if his muscles get stiff! There's still three hours of practice to go!"

As Nijimura ran off to follow the others, Akashi sighed heavily, turning to the purple-haired giant, "Murasakibara-kun, come help me wake Aomine-kun."

Murasakibara placed his water bottle on the bench with a hum, walking towards where Aomine lay.

"Not sure dead people can wake up again though~"

There was something in Akashi's smirk that Midorima couldn't quite place.

"It's easy. Here, let me show you."

"Here you go. Boomerang. Monday's lucky item. Nagasaki-san from the CD shop Minato likes had one."

Minena held out the boomerang with both hands, head tilting and her bangs bouncing softly from the movement. The head coach had left earlier, but gave her permission to observe from the benches. She didn't interfere with practice, patiently watching with the managers. She seemed well-acquainted with one them in particular—the pink-haired girl who was supposed to be Aomine's childhood friend, Momoi.

Midorima sighed, adjusting the strap of his bag on his shoulder. "There's only been four days of classes. You can't be that behind on science already."

"What's with that accusation? I'm not that hopeless. And to think I went all the way to town and back here after I got home from classes . . . Where's my thanks?"

Midorima crossed his arms, ignoring the stares of the other members as they came out of the locker room. They'd been curious about her ever since the head coach brought her down and told them to treat her as a guest. The training kept them from actually approaching her, but they'd been whispering amongst themselves for quite a while now.

"Is that so? Fine, then. Thank you."

"I might need to borrow a couple of notes though . . . "

And there it was.

Minena generally did well academically without much effort. In fact, one could argue that she did too well for not bothering to study much at all. However, she was surprisingly weak in the sciences. It wasn't because she had trouble grasping the concepts, though. Her learning speed was almost frightening when he tutored her, to be honest. Her only problem was that the terminology used was different. She could understand it well enough if explained using English terms, but her grasp on science-related kanji and vocabulary was below par for an institution like Teikou.

Midorima sighed. While he couldn't quite be fully put at ease since she didn't do everything she could, he at least acknowledged that she somewhat tried. This was good enough for now. She was definitely trying more than she did during elementary.

Besides, she did properly study for Teikou's entrance exam, so he assumed she actually wanted a good education, instead of just settling for a no-name school she could pass without putting in too much effort.

"Fine. Now, let's go home. I'm tired from practice."

"Roger."

Midorima flinched. "Stop that. You sound like your brother."

She simply smiled at him.

"Ah—wait," she stopped, grabbing onto the sleeve of his shirt. "At least say good-bye to Akashi-kun and Momoi-san."

One end of Midorima's lips slanted down. "How do you even know Momoi-san?"

"Hm? She's my classmate," Minena replied, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Come on, we were sitting together when you asked for a replacement for that Mercury handkerchief you ripped to pieces. Didn't you notice?"

"Tch," Midorima turned his head, remembering his most unlucky day of the week. "How do you expect me to notice something that pointless?"

Minena crossed her arms and gave him a look. "How rude. She's a manager for the basketball team. She'll be taking care of you guys from now on, so at least be kind to her."

"Ahh! Ryuugamine-san! Are you heading home already?"

Momoi walked out from the locker room, dragging a worn-out Aomine by his arm behind her.

"Yeah. Where are you headed? We can all walk back home together," Minena offered.

"Don't decide things like that by yourself," Midorima scolded, not really wanting to walk home with Aomine.

Unsurprisingly, he was ignored.

Aomine, who had been freed from Momoi's grasp, leaned over to him, harshly whispering, "You bastard, where'd you get a girl as hot as that?"

"She's not my girlfriend," Midorima deadpanned.

"Ah, really?" Aomine's eyes gave the green-haired girl talking to Momoi a once-over. "She looks foreign, but there's not much in the chest department. Huh, weird. Not really my type though."

"Wha—? Where the hell are you looking?" Midorima spluttered out, a bit of pink tinting his cheeks.

Aomine waved a hand in front of his face. "Relax. I ain't planning on stealing her from you."

"I told you: she's not my—"

"It looks like everyone's going the in the same direction, so let's all walk back home together, okay?" Momoi announced happily.

"I never agreed—" Midorima started, but was rudely interrupted.

"Then, let's go!" Minena said enthusiastically, clapping her hands together. "Ah—but we haven't said good-bye to Akashi-kun yet."

"He was still in the locker room when I went to get Aomine-kun," Momoi said. "He should be out in a bit, though. Are you acquainted with him, Ryuugamine-san?"

"Oh, really? Then, let's wait for a bit longer, then. He can come with us, too, if he's going in the same direction. He's Shin-chan's classmate after all."

"That's right! Midorima-kun's from class 1-A, too," Momoi said as Aomine mockingly whispered to Midorima.

"Shin-chan? Pft."

Momoi had picked up on it, however.

"Is something the matter, Dai-chan?"

"Geh." Aomine looked away as Midorima sent him a smirk.

"Well, anyway . . . " Minena started, changing the topic. "Is it just me or is that one guy by the locker room trying to burn a hole in me with his eyes?"

The three of them looked over to where she indicated, seeing Murasakibara crouched down with a thumb on his lower lip and a wishful look in his eyes.

"That," Midorima gestured to the plastic bag Minena held in her right hand.

"This?" She brought it up, the crinkling of the foil packaging of potato chips resounding. "There was a time sale at the supermarket when I passed through, so I thought I'd buy some for Minato . . . "

"Well, can't really blame the big guy for being hungry after that practice, I s'ppose" Aomine said, scratching the back of his head.

"Ah—Akashi-kun's out."

Akashi quickly noticed their group, and Minena waved him over. He said a few words to the crouching Murasakibara, who loyally followed after him like a giant puppy.

"It's nice to see you again, Ryuugamine-san," Akashi greeted with a calm smile. Gesturing to the tallest one in their group, "This is Murasakibara Atsushi. He's one of the first years who made it into the first string, too. I see you're already acquainted with Aomine-kun and Momoi-san."

"We were all just about to head home. Do the two of you want to walk back with us?" Minena asked.

"Then, you'll be heading in the same way as Midorima-kun? Unfortunately, I live in the opposite direction. Murasakibara-kun as well."

"Ah, that's too bad," Minena said. Her eyes shifted to the purple-haired giant who was fiercely staring at the plastic bag in her hands.

Blinking, she reached into it and took out one of the packages.

Midorima cringed—it was Minato's usual wasabi-flavored ones. So that's why she wasn't looking hassled at all after a time sale. They were pretty much the only people in the world Midorima knew who actually bought that flavor.

"It's all wasabi-flavored, but if you don't mind, you can have one," she said, offering him the green package.

"Eh? Wasabi?" Momoi repeated, the strap of her bag sliding down just the tiniest bit from her shoulder.

"Ah—I really like that flavor, too," Murasakibara said, not wasting another second as he took the pack of chips and ripped it open.

"You like it?!" Aomine exclaimed in disbelief, staring at Murasakibara as he threw chips in his mouth, one after another.

"It's actually not that bad," Minena said, shrugging. "Though the aftertaste does leave much to be desired . . . "

Sighing, Midorima pinched the bridge of his nose. Turning on his heel, he said, "Minena, if you're going to waste time here, I'm going ahead."

"Ehhh? Shin-chan, wait up!"

She bit the insides of her cheeks, looking at Midorima's retreating back.

"That guy, really . . . " She sighed, taking a step back. "Well, I guess we'll be going ahead. Sorry about this, Momoi-san, Aomine-kun. Maybe next time. I'll see you at school then, Akashi-kun. And it was nice meeting you, Murasakibara-kun."

Akashi returned her farewells with his usual smile.

"Bye-bye, Nena-chin. Thanks for the chips."

She faltered in her step, "Eh? 'Nena-chin' . . . ? Aaah—" Minena looked over her shoulder, seeing Midorima almost at the gates. She shook her head, shrugging off the matter. "Well, bye, then! Hey, Shin-chan, wait up!"

"They're quite upbeat, aren't they?" Akashi commented as Minena ran to catch up to Midorima, who had stopped by the gates to wait for her.

"I know, right?" Momoi said, a bubbly tone to her voice.

"Ah, no—sorry. I'm not particularly interested."

Minena remembered the person in front of her as one of the girls from Kise's class—Shiratori Masaki, if memory served her right.

"No way! Impossible! I heard that your little brother, Minato-kun, was chosen as the youngest representative for the Japanese Youth Team! With that kind of amazing little brother, the older sister definitely has to play, too!"

"Um, no, that's why—well . . . I haven't really played in nearly three years," Minena replied tiredly.

"A blank doesn't matter! With the right training, you'll be back in top form! Tanaka-kun told me all about your last PE class!" Shiratori said enthusiastically, eyes shining with determination and hands balled into eager fists in front of her. "The girls' soccer team here is mostly third years right now, so we need all the fresh faces we can get!"

"I'm really sorry, but I have other priorities."

Shiratori slumped her shoulders, pouting exaggeratedly. "Don't say that! The soccer club really needs you!"

"Ah, I'm really sorry, but—" Minena paused for a bit, trying to think up an excuse, "Right now, I have some family matters to resolve, so . . . "

Shiratori blinked and backed off at the mention of 'family.' Minena heaved an internal sigh of relief and mustered up the most dejected face she could.

"Well, if that's the case, then I suppose there's no helping it," Shiratori said, honestly seeming apologetic. "I'm sorry for having troubled you so much. I hope things with your family get settled quickly."

Shiratori bowed and walked away, and Minena turned to head back to her classroom.

"That was definitely an Oscar-winning performance."

Haizaki was crouched in front of the vending machine, picking up two packets of juice. Standing back up with a smirk, he handed one to her.

She closed her eyes, sighing deeply. Taking the one he didn't offer, she told him, "I don't really like strawberry."

As soon as she pushed the straw in, Haizaki wrapped an arm around her shoulders and brought his face down, drinking from the packet in her hands.

"Well, neither do I, so you're gonna have to deal," he said, taking away the packet of mango juice from her hands and replacing it with the unopened strawberry one. Haizaki clinked together their juice packets, and Minena sighed again as he proceeded to steer her through the hallways back to their classroom, his arm still splayed over her shoulders.

"Do you need something?"

"Just going back to my classroom with my classmate," he said, grinning. "Anything wrong with that?"

". . . Do you want me to make a list?"

"Come on, the playing hard-to-get thing got old over the weekend," he said, throwing the empty packet of mango juice into a trash can five feet away. "Let's go to an arcade after classes, yeah?"

"It's Monday," Minena deadpanned. Really though, how many times did she have to reject people for them to get the message today? She should've taken those sunglasses Shintarou offered her this morning; apparently, Libras had the worst luck today. And it wasn't even seven days from the first day of school—the last day when Libras had the worst luck. Had her ruling planet gone off-course or something?

They passed by 1-A's classroom, and when Minena noticed that there was no teacher inside, she quickly pulled away from under Haizaki's arm. A quick look inside confirmed the lack of adult supervision, so Minena opened the door and called out.

"Shin-chan! Sunglasses!"

Shintarou looked up from his notebook with an annoyed look on his face, but let a smirk decorate his features when he finally got what she meant. Akashi, who was nearby, had that amused gleam in his eyes again.

Reaching into the bag that hung from the hook on his desk, Shintarou pulled out a case for sunglasses and walked over to her.

"If you're going to take them eventually, just accept them in the first place," he said with an air of haughtiness around him.

"Yeah, yeah," the green-haired girl mumbled, opening the case and placing the sunglasses on her head.

She felt a weight on her shoulders as she brought her hands down, and Haizaki's face neared hers.

"Oi, oi. I wondered where you'd disappeared to. Huh?" Haizaki glanced up to Midorima, whose lips had slanted down into a frown. "Onii-san?"

"Wrong," Minena corrected. "This is Midorima Shintarou. He lives in the house next to mine. Shin-chan, this is my classmate, Haizaki-kun."

Haizaki pulled his arm away from her, straightening up and standing at his full height, which rivaled even Shintarou's.

"Yo, Shin-chan. Nice to meet'cha," Haizaki greeted in a drawl, a lazy grin on his face.

Midorima didn't say anything in reply, simply standing there with the light glinting off his glasses.

The tension between the two was thick enough to cut with a knife, and Minena faltered a bit in front of them.

This really was a bad day for Libras.

Luckily, Akashi came to save the day.

"Oh? So you're the Haizaki-kun from those rumors?"

The redhead's presence blew away the built-up tension like it was nothing. Turning to green-haired boy, he said, "Midorima-kun, why don't you walk Ryuugamine-san back to her class? I'd like to have a few words with Haizaki-kun."

Shintarou's lips pressed into a thin line, and without another word he grabbed Minena by the wrist and dragged her away. Her ears just barely picked up Haizaki's lazy drawl of, "Hah? What do you want?"

Shintarou dropped her wrist and slowed their pace when they were far enough.

Minena looked back, mumbling, "Why . . . do I suddenly feel something like pity towards Haizaki-kun?"

"Don't think too much about it," Shintarou replied stiffly. He stopped when they reached the front of her classroom.

" . . . Is he going to be okay?" she asked, referring to Haizaki.

Shintarou didn't reply to her question, instead sternly telling her to keep the sunglasses on hand at all times until the end of the day and that she could just give it back tomorrow, before sharply turning on his heel and walking back down the corridor.

"Lovers' quarrel?" Kohaku asked as the green-haired girl stepped inside the classroom.

Minena answered with a rise of her shoulders, "Something like that, I suppose . . . "

Notes:

Jizo is a bodhisattva and protector of children and travelers. Figures of him can be can be found on roadsides.

Most schools in Japan have Saturday classes, especially private schools (which Teikou is). They only last half a day though, and the students go home at around one. The afternoon is usually for club practice/meetings, and they take clubs very seriously in Japanese schools, as most of you guys may have seen in anime and manga already. (My source on this might be a little outdated though, so don't put too much faith in it.)

Science in Japan is frickin' complicated because they have different terms for nearly everything. And in kanji. If you're used to the English terms, like "protons," "combustion," and even the names of the elements, you're going to have to re-learn them all in Japanese. One of my Japanese teachers said a student of hers had gotten into a special science program at a university in Japan—he was an honor student here at my uni, but he nearly dropped out of the program because he found it difficult to adjust to using the new terms.

Time sales in Japan are an extreme equivalent of limited time sales in the western world. It depends, but there it's usually 10/30-minutes to 1-hour things, when certain items are put on sale. Maybe you've seen it in other anime or manga, but people make a big deal out of it and it's basically a war to get one of the on-sale items. Imagine something like the fight for Seirin's special Iberian pork sandwich. :D

Question of the Chapter: How do you like how I'm characterizing the canon characters (particularly the GoM)?

Well, as of this chapter, Minena has been officially introduced to all the GoM. Some of them have been more fleshed out than the others at this point, but what do you think so far? I have certain traits that I attach to the characters from the get-go, and they really affect how I characterize them. I'm not planning on completely fleshing out them all out in this story though, since there are a couple of people I don't think Minena would be able to get close to. They might get some more screen time in the sequel, buuut . . . Anyway, for their first year, I'll be focusing more on the four who are in the basketball club (plus Haizaki, eventually). Kuroko and Kise make quite a few appearances, too, though, so no worries! :) They'll be more prominent when they reach their second year.

(Not really relevant: "Nena-chin" because Aomine called dibs on "Mine-chin." :D)
(Irrelevant: fffffff Akashi and Momoi are such shippers. /rolleyes I didn't mean to, I swear. They just ended up like that.)
(Completely irrelevant: Aomine, pft. Just. Pfft. /snorts)