Chapter 7: If intentions can kill, then tricks can cure
In the infirmary, with Rin still unconscious, the school nurse assured the students she's fine and had only minor case of dehydration then left.
"This girl had the guts to finish the match even when subjected to thirst?" Niou incredulously looked at the sleeping figure.
"She's always been like that, stubborn, getting what she wants whatever it takes." Niou grew curious between the relationship of the two. "What are you to her anyway?"
Rika frowned. "Are you asking because you really don't know?" Only Niou's confused eyes told her otherwise.
"She is competitive in nature so nearly a year back when she challenged me into a card duel, which is a mind game, I always win. The following meetings eventually involved her challenging me again and again until she discovered a means to beat me. And that is by tricking, she even self-proclaimed about being the Card Master. Even after submitting to her tricks, I continued enjoying playing against her because her victorious reactions are always priceless to see back then and until now.."
The white-haired guy couldn't help but smile. 'So that's why she does all means to get the Trickster title..'
oOoOo
She felt like she woke up on the wrong side of the bed when a seething pain shot right through her head. Niou saw the reaction. "Hey kiddo! What's wrong?" And Rin almost died of heart attack. "Senpai? What the-" Her reaction didn't help him know her condition at all. "Hush now, I'm going to call the attendant immediately."
"N-no-" But before she could protest that she was okay, he was already out. 'What's up with him?' She sat up and got out of bed, after all her bladder and stomach can't be trusted.
"Miss, she was really hurt!" Niou pointed to the bed and he went pale when no presence was distinguishable. "Rin?" Rin's head shot up. 'Did someone just call me?' Maybe the nature did, "Eeeek, come out!"
The school nurse knocked on the toilet door. "Akiyama-san, are you there?"
"C-come out!" She sounded awfully like a mother giving birth. The two stared at each other in shock. Niou's face went paler. "Miss.. what if.."
The attendant eventually calmed him down so she went up to the key holder in a hurry.
"Rin! Just hang in there, okay?" But Rin was in a whole new world, a new BOOMbastic point of view.
"Here." Niou hurriedly pushed the key into the hole, opening the door. "Rin!"
Wide-eyed stare.
Confused Blink.
A really wide-eyed stare and realization!
"W-What the hell are you moron looking at! Get lost!" She threw all possible things within her reach while still on a water closet.
Niou closed the door immediately in embarrassment and shouted on the other side, "You could have said something about your poo issues in the first place! Here we are assuming something worse actually happened!"
"Well forgive my gastrointestinal leakage then for making me invalid!" Rin was so flushed she was ready to be united with her poo!
The nurse good-naturedly chuckled at the exchange. "I don't think there's a need for you to worry now."
"That pipsqueak.. I shouldn't have worried at all."
oOoOo
She still looked flushed when she came out of the toilet room. However, Niou take her usual raging face as a natural self-embodiment. Rin caught a glance of the white-haired guy. "Why are you still here senpai?"
"Can't ya tell?" 'Duh! Would I ask despite knowing?' "No!" She was ready for the door when Niou pointed behind him. It was her school and tennis bag. "W-What time is it anyway?"
"Late enough to go home by yourself. I'm bringing you there, so be grateful." She was going to protest when he was already out. 'There's a lot of dejavu happening recently, huh?'
She admits having short-term memory so she didn't know what happened before she collapsed. "Senpai, what happened to our match?"
Niou raised his brows by the innocent question. So innocent-looking she was, he wanted to puke. 'So all this time she doesn't actually know?' "I'll tell you but first tell me why you challenged me?" Knowing her simple-mindedness, he knew what it all was.
"That's unfair! I asked first."
"But let's keep the sequence of events. It's better that way."
"Better your face! Come on!"
"Piyo."
"What? You gonna tell me or-"
"Or what?"
"Senpai, damnit! Gimme my bag! I'm walking home by myself!"
"No. And don't swear. It's my job."
"I don't care! One, two.. if this reaches five-"
"I'm gonna die?" But her insistence came in an act of glomp to her bag trying to detach it from Niou. But Niou was still stronger and much taller than her.
"Nye nye nye nye nye!" Niou mimicked her in a way he'd seen it done to the latecomers. Rin's boiling point hit its max yet she stayed still not at her best to outdo him in anyway. "Tch."
"Tell me now." They continued walking like that. After a long time of pondering, she decided to speak up, fidgeting her nose. "Well.. I just can't believe Kaichou.. you know.. chose you.."
Niou's reaction didn't change much so when nothing more was said after that, he continued for her, "And?" Rin side glanced at him and her expression told, 'Isn't that enough already?' The trickster must have telepathy as he replied. "Look. Don't think too much of that. Kaichou said your brother's kinda strict with time and stuffs. Let me handle him, ok?"
Rin raised her brows. "Whoa, you're really something senpai! So you can transform into Kaichou?" Niou blinked. He didn't give a hint of having to change into someone to reason to his brother, did he? "Not-"
"Amazing! But don't worry senpai~ I'm good at reasoning myself!" She bragged putting her chin up.
"O-okay.."
"Anyway senpai, we're almost home. Tell me about the match." Niou chuckled lightly at the request. He waited for them to stop just in front of her house so when they reached it, albeit Rin's scorching patience, he went on. "If it's really that important to you then, before you collapsed, you actually beat me, 6 games to 3." He can see disbelief in those big puppy eyes of hers. "Happy now? You can treat your Almighty senpai some other time, ok?" He gave all her belongings and waved goodbye at the still stunned girl.
Rin shook her head out of trance, put her things down and moved outside the gate. Her senpai was still visible from where she stood. "Niou-senpai!" He turned around and saw the raven-haired girl dashing to his direction. "You forgot something?"
"Yeah." She smiled childishly. "Thank you very much senpai!" That was unexpected. At least for Niou but odd as her sudden approach, he ruffles her hair. "You're one strange of a brat."
Rin savored the pat and smiled wickedly. "Got ya!" She was holding some lace he recognized as his rat-tail and went home sprinting. Niou touched where his previous kouhai touched him and smiled. He took out another rat-tail from his pocket and tied his hanging hair with it. "Puri.."
oOoOo
When Rin got back home, she kept smiling goofily. The rat-tail Niou wore laid out on her palm not at all worn-out. She imagined him having a collection of those and laughed like an idiot.
A/N: I'm amazed that not only me thinks Niou is GOD. Just to clear things- Niou's trick play is a way to counter Rin's power and speed play that doubled when she released the gauntlets. I basically don't know how to counter that since Niou isn't a power player himself and only using Rin's Illusion. So Closed Eyes + Rin's two-handed stance = Niou's pawange. It wasn't a joke how he does it but it indirectly tells that he's dominating the rallies but let her win instead because something stirred in him.
Hope the explanation cleared things! Anyway thanks for the reviews and more to come~
