Disclaimer: I do not own Prince of Tennis.

Ice

Chapter 7


"Hoy everyone…saw…ochibi with….Fuji," Kikumaru blurted out in short gasps having sprint nonstop for ten blocks after making sure that the couple were out of sight. His voice spread throughout the tennis courts, halting everyone in their tracks.

"Nani? When did you see that?" Momoshiro exclaimed, eyebrows rising. Everyone crowded around the redhead waiting for his answer.

"They were walking out of Echizen's house. Fuji was carrying him." That statement was met with shocked silence as the regulars contemplated the situation.

"Maybe Ryoma was hurt and Fuji was just helping him," Tezuka muttered concernedly, trying to think of the circumstances in a better light.

"Yeah, I mean both of them weren't at school or practice yesterday. Maybe Fuji was really just "taking care of him"." Taka added, grimacing. The words sounded forced even to his ears.

With an annoyed expression that did not fit on his face, Oishi joined the regulars.

"Eiji, I've never seen you run so fast. I wonder what Fuji and-" His words were cut off by the vigorously shaking of heads as he felt a tingling on the back of his neck.

Turning around ever so slightly, he saw the subjects of their conversation looking back at him. One was wearing his typical, alluring smile covering the frightening aura which threatened to burst free. The other was crossing his arms and glared at the ground, coming across as being quite unhappy with something.

"What about me and Ryoma-chan?" Fuji asked innocently, the effect ruined by his formidable reputation. The boy gave him a death glare while the regulars tensed up before hastily putting on their carefree masks of fake smiles.

"No-nothing." Momo answered with fat drops of sweat rolling off his forehead. Fuji took note on how quickly he answered. He studied them for one more moment, a devious plan formulating in his mind, before turning back to the boy beside him.

"Hey Ryoma. Last night was fun. Want to do it again?" He watched from the corners of his eyes as the others held their breaths.

"Sure but you have to behave this time." Ryoma, the naive boy that he is, was completely unaware of what his words sounded like. The regulars' facade shattered as Oishi broke into a lengthy speech on their irresponsible behavior while Kikumaru bent down and whispered into the freshman's ears. Everyone watched with amusement as a dark blush gradually crept onto his face.

"Fuji-senpai!" was the outraged response. The tension was cleared as everyone broke into fits of laughter. Their little prodigy wore an unpleasant pout, covering the laughter which was beginning to slip out.

As he gazed at the boy, Fuji felt the observation he had made since yesterday began to form an uneasy feeling inside of him. Why was no one taking care of Echizen? He stored in the back of his mind to dig up more information about this later when it was just the two of them.


A lone figure leaned against a tree crossing his arm as the possessive glint in his eyes as settled on the freshman.

"Did you miss me, my little Ryo?" His voice held a bitter laughter as he stressed the sentence with mock concern.


Aching all over from practice, Echizen trudged back home slowly, every step was taken with a deliberate slowness. Unbeknownst to him, a pair of dark eyes was examining his every movement as if waiting for the perfect moment to pounce.

Paying little attention to the path he was walking on, the freshmen uttered exclamations of "Baka Fuji" under his breath every so often. As an eerie silence and the sinister yet familiar presence of being watched reached him, he abruptly froze as a troubled feeling consumed his body.

A tall stature crept out from the dark shadows taking strides towards the boy who looked like a prey in the presence of a predator. Taking small, shaky steps back, Echizen struggled to make his legs move which had become numb when the other had appeared.

"My, my. Why so scared in front of me? After all, we're close acquaintances aren't we?" His smooth voice was derisive, striking the freshman to the core.

"Wh-what are you doing here?" Unable to keep his voice from trembling, Ryoma prayed that this was another one of his nightmares and that he would be able to wake up soon.


A/N: Now, we've got the plot rolling. Kudos to the one who can guess who the mystery character is. And number two, who do you want it to be? The faster you review, the faster I update.