Disclaimer: I don't own Hikaru no Go. Um…I just don't.

Touya Hikaru

Chapter 10

The Weak Break

Torajirou has logged off

Waya stared at the glowing screen, the text box glaring back to his confused brown eyes. He would just have to wait for a few minutes, and…

Sai

The name appeared on the active list. The same as always.

He stared, analyzing the screen again for the fourth time that week. Every time Torajirou logged off, Sai would almost instantly log on and vice versa. Granted, there had been a few exceptions, and occasionally one would log off suddenly, but after watching both names for the past few months, Waya was sure there was a connection.

Student and teacher?

Parent and child?

One and the same?

Although Waya had all but ruled out the last, there was always the chance. Theoretically it was impossible for a person to play two hands that were so vastly different, but both players had a similar style of play.

'Sai is a god. A monster. But what does that make Torajirou? I could beat him, but still, people are flocking to his username.' Was it because he was possibly a door to finding out who Sai was? Unfortunately he was just as tight-lipped as his supposed teacher.

Waya turned when he heard his phone ring. "Hello?"

"You were right, Waya. Sai did get on right after Torajirou got off."

"Yeah," Waya breathed. He clicked to join the game Sai started to play against Ling_84. As his username, Zelda, appeared on the Watch list, so did the name ISGo. "Couldn't have picked a dorker name, huh Isumi?"

"Waya, I just made up the first thing that came to mind. Don't be so mean."

Zelda chuckled in response. "Uh-huh." He watched as the board slowly filled with stones. Black played slowly while white responded immediately. "You still in your rut?"

After a moment, Isumi responded with a hesitant, 'yeah.' "I don't know what's wrong I just…I feel like I've hit a wall. I barely became a 2-dan last month, and that was luck more than anything. I'm hoping if I just watch some games and become inspired I'll get back on my feet."

Waya's nose crinkled. "I'm sure you'll be fine. Just watch some Igo games. Some of them are pretty pathetic, but there are some decent players online. It helped me get out of my rut last year."

"Yeah, I remember that. You were losing horribly to Ochi, and couldn't even dent Honda's defense. I won't even mention Fuku."

"Hey! You know I don't do well against him. I just can't seem to beat him…"

Isumi laughed on the other end of the line. "Right. And who's ranked higher? He shouldn't be so difficult for you. You know that, right?" Waya merely grunted in response. After a silence, both absorbed in the game, Isumi brought them back. "So, do you think Hikaru will actually take the Pro Test?"

"Who?"

Isumi sighed. "The blonde-banged boy we saw at the Go Association with Fuku."

"Oh, right, him!" Waya exclaimed, remembering the boy in the overly large sweatshirt. The curry color hadn't suited him at all, much less the grey hat. "I'm sure he'll take it, but I'm more worried about him getting past the prelims. He didn't look like a serious Go player."

"Don't judge a book by its cover. By the way, don't the prelims start tomorrow?"

"Yeah, but I got to skip them this year. I'm the fourth in A-league this time around." Waya leaned back in his chair, enjoying the game and thinking about the Test the previous year.

He had barely missed the cut-off. Isumi had made the cut with three losses, with Mashiba at two losses and Ochi with a perfect score. Waya had nearly clobbered Mashiba for taking his spot, but he had fairly gotten his four losses, so it wasn't technically Mashiba's fault.

Not that Waya would stop blaming him with only that as defense. The bright side had been when he had creamed Mashiba in the Young Lion's Tournament that April. The tournament where young pros played the top sixteen Insei.

"Good job. Still, should we go and cheer Fuku on? We could meet him for lunch."

Waya sighed. "I'll stop by for lunch, but I don't want to stay."

"That's fine. We can invite Hikaru to join us."

"Yeah." The two remained silent as the game before reached Yosei – End Game. There was no doubt that Sai would win, but it was still entrancing. The perfect game. He was impossible to break. The only person alive who would have a chance would be…

"Touya Meijin."

"What was that?"

Waya blinked. He hadn't realized he had spoken aloud. "Nothing. Anyway, what did you think of the game?"

"It was brilliant," Isumi replied, enthusiasm evident in his voice. "You're right, Sai's a great player."

"Yeah. It really makes me remember why I started playing in the first place. He manages to make Go fun again. I've played him before." Waya paused, staring at the glowing screen. His game over a year ago, in the spring, was the only thing that had saved him from being destroyed. He had played Sai just before the Young Lion's Tournament and he had managed to save his game. Sadly, it wasn't enough and now he was still an Insei.

"I should try playing him…Anyway, I've got to go. Dinner and all."

"Yeah. See ya tomorrow. 11:45 in front of the Go Association."

"Sounds good."

Waya hung up at the sound of the dial tone, and settled back down into his chair. After a moment, Sai began a new game, and Waya saw one of dozens watching in an instant. However, once the second game ended, Sai logged off. Confused, Waya glanced at the clock. '8:32…He's usually up all night playing.' He frowned, but logged off as well, turning in earlier than he had originally suspected.

Hikaru had turned in early so he wouldn't be late for the Pro Test, but somehow he still managed to barely make it on time.

Hikaru, I told you to leave earlier! Sai, burst, running alongside Hikaru as the rushed to the Go Association.

The concerned ghost only got a pink tongue in response. "I know, I know! Don't worry, I'm fine," he gasped between breaths, sliding through the front doors of the Go Association. He froze at the sight of so many people. "T-t-there's so many people…"

Wow…there are. Even Sai was astonished.

"Are all these people here to take the Pro Test?" Hikaru asked more to himself than Sai, but he was heard by another.

"No, there's more," Fuku said, appearing behind Hikaru without a word.

"Geezus! Don't do that!" Hikaru yelped, jumping away from the small, black haired boy.

"Sorry. Anyways, we'd better head in. They're going to start drawing names for match-ups."

Hikaru followed Fuku in with furrowed brows. "Match-ups?" Even Sai shook his head in confusion.

"Yeah." Fuku bounded in front of Hikaru, entering the elevator and directing the elevator to go up to the sixth floor where the matches would be played. "The match-ups determine who you will play every day. You'll play five games, and have to win at least three of them to pass.

"Win three games…well, sounds easy enough, I guess," Hikaru murmured, following Fuku blindly as butterflies danced in his stomach. It would be just like playing at the Heart of Stone, right?

As the clock tolled, participates slowly entered the game room. Glancing around at his surroundings, Hikaru saw cushions surrounding the perimeter. Following Fuku's lead, Hikaru took one of the cushions, waiting for the rest of the people to finish filtering in.

The butterflies were still fluttering about his stomach, when Hikaru saw Akira enter the room. His first reaction was to wave when he remembered where he was. Instead, he gulped and attempted to hide himself behind Fuku. He failed miserably, but Akira seemed too focused on ignoring his nerves to notice Hikaru fidgeting in the corner.

Sighing in relief, Hikaru glanced back up to the front table, where the man from the front desk and two other men Hikaru didn't recognize, sat at.

"That's Shinoda-sensei," Fuku supplied, pointing to the older of the two men. "He's the Insei teacher."

"Oh."

Before the blonde could say more, the man from the front desk began calling out names. "Katagiri-kun. Hatanaka-kun. Murayama-kun," and so on.

As Hikaru waited, he started fidgeting even more. Finally, he heard the inevitable call of his name.

"Touya-kun."

Hikaru could swear that everyone in the room froze; waiting to see which one was Touya. He ducked his head before Akira's eyes fell upon him, and he rose with red flushed upon his cheeks. Fuku's eyebrows jumped up his forehead in surprise, but Hikaru ignored him and drew his slip of paper before scuffling back to his seat. It was too late now. Everyone knew.

He sat beside Fuku and expected him to bombard him with questions instantly. He wasn't disappointed.

"So, are you the son of Touya Meijin?"

Hikaru nodded mutely, hiding behind his bangs.

"Cool."

When silence followed, Hikaru peaked out from behind his bangs only to find Fuku had begun humming and was busy staring as the rest of the participants picked pieces of paper from the bowl.

Silently, Hikaru thanked Fuku for not pressing the matter. He really didn't want to explain why he hadn't bothered tell the three of them he was the son of the Meijin when they had first met. But Fuku was extremely understanding. Of course, when Waya found out…Well, that was another milestone. All Hikaru could hope for now was that Akira wouldn't kill him at lunchtime for not telling the Go prodigy he was taking the test in the first place.

Sai tried to force a smile from behind Hikaru. I'm sure he'll understand, Hikaru.

'Yeah, coming from you, that's not very reassuring.' Hikaru thought sourly. Still, Sai had a point. Akira was a nice kid, and much like Koyou. Hopefully he would keep his cool just as Koyou would, and would try and understand. Besides, he hadn't been that angry when he had found out Hikaru was the son of his idol, so this should be fine, right?

Once the numbers had been drawn, the participants were directed to the game hall where there were dozens of boards set up across the room. Following the instructions of the proctors, Hikaru managed to find his seat and wait anxiously for his opponent to show.

Fate must hate him as he was joined by a large, hairy, burly, and obnoxiously loud bearded man. He introduced himself as Tsubaki, and – should his memory serve – Hikaru remembered seeing him arrive on a motorcycle.

Despite the man's scary exterior, Hikaru had spent the last few months playing constantly against Kawai and the other patrons and had seen some oddballs enter the Touya Salon. Yet, the butterflies wouldn't go away. Nonetheless, Hikaru ignored his nerves and slapped the first stone down with confidence, instantly slapping the clock and glancing up with determination in his eyes.

Tsubaki glanced down at the board in concentration, and after a few minutes of thought, rose to his feet and left the room. Blinking, Hikaru stared after the man with confusion on his face. 'What did he…Can he do that, Sai?' he asked frantically as pancakes joined the butterflies.

Sai flustered, also confused by the man's behavior. W-well…none of the proctors said anything, so…I can only assume it's all right… Despite what he said, he also seemed perturbed by the turn of events.

As thirty minutes passed, Hikaru nearly fell over dead with waves of nervousness and anxiety when Tsubaki finally returned. The man sat down nonchalantly as if he hadn't just been gone for half an hour. He grabbed a stone and placed it on the board with gruffness, pressed down the button to stop the clock, and settled down in his seat.

Gulping, Hikaru hesitantly picked up his stone and slapped it against the board. As the game continued, he could feel his heart beating in his throat with every hand. Despite the rough beginning, by the time they reached thirty hands, Hikaru felt himself slipping back into a more comfortable pace, and falling back on his old style of playing. Tsubaki had riled him up, but he was finally getting back into the swing off-

"All right. It's time for lunch."

Hikaru's head whipped around to stare at the Insei teacher in confusion. He was in the middle of a game. He had to finish, not eat lunch.

"C'mon, Hikaru!" Fuku called, waving the blonde towards the exit.

Hikaru consented and padded off behind Fuku. "What's going on?"

"Lunch. There's a break during the game so we can eat. In the prelims we only get two hours, but in the main test we'll get three hours."

"Ah, that makes sense." Hikaru watched as Fuku ran off to greet Isumi and Waya. He was about to follow when he saw Akira out of the corner of his eye. He snuck off and met Akira's stare with a half smile. "Hey, what's up?"

Without a word, Akira turned and walked out to the hall, merely turning his head when Hikaru didn't follow. Recognizing the gesture, Hikaru followed the other teen into the empty hall and leaned up against the wall, awkwardly. Obviously, Akira wasn't pleased with him. "So…what's up, Akira?"

Akira turned back and glared at Hikaru. "Why didn't you tell me you were playing Go? Did you think I wouldn't realize it?"

"Well…uh, that is-"

"You should have told me you were taking the Pro Test!"

Hikaru squirmed under the icy stare. "Look, I just…it was sudden."

Akira glared in disbelief. "How long have you been playing seriously?"

The blonde bounced on his feet slightly, buying time as he calculated the days. "A-about a year…" he admitted in a whisper.

The teal eyes flashed as Akira calculated the time period. "A year. You call that sudden?" Hikaru winced at the sharpness in the other's voice. "That was right around the time we met, and you decided to leave me out? I thought we were friends!"

"Hey! We are, I just-"

"First you lied about your name and now I find out you've been lying about playing Go, too. Is there anything else you'd like to tell me?"

"Hey, I never said I wasn't the Meijin's son, you just didn't ask!"

"Of course not!" Akira replied in a heated whisper, trying to avoid attracting attention. "I assumed something had happened like your father had walked out on the family so you didn't want to take his name, or something. How was I suppose to know you just didn't trust me with the information? Are you lying about other things, too? Are you a delinquent, knifing people in your free time?"

In a vain attempt to settle Akira down, Hikaru burst. "Look, you're not the only one I didn't tell! Father and Ogata don't know either!"

Akira froze, a look of 'are you serious?' written all across his face. "Does that make it any better, Touya?"

Hikaru froze; his breath hitched. "H-hey…don't call me that. C'mon, it's Hikaru, Akira."

"Call me Shindou."

Hikaru's throat tightened as Aki-Shindou stalked off. He couldn't get those teal eyes, flashing with anger, to leave his mind. The image just kept replaying in his mind as his heart pounded. This wasn't suppose to happen. Akira was suppose to get anger, possibly sock him in the cheek, and then they would make up and be closer for it, but…

Too many straws on a camel's back.

'Yeah…' Hikaru agreed, trying not to break down in the middle of the hall. After quitting soccer, he had lost all of his friends. It was awkward to be around them, but he had found a new friend in Akira. He had continued playing Go in hopes that he would have more common ground with both Akira and his father, but now Akira hated him. And with Akira had gone his confidence.

He had been planning to tell his father and Ogata about his new found interest in Go, but if Akira had taken it so poorly, how would they take it? Yeah, his father was his father and would have to put up with him no matter what, but Ogata was a friend of the family.

"Hey, Hikaru!"

He turned his eyes still stinging, but not yet flowing. "Hey Waya! Isumi-san!"

Waya strutted over. "We're getting burgers. Wanna come?" Hikaru bit his lip, but nodded. Waya frowned and led the way. "You okay, Hikaru? Your opponent isn't giving you too many problems, are they?"

Hikaru shrugged, barely listening to the Insei. "He left for the first thirty minutes to do who knows what. Is that even legal, by the way?" Waya nodded hesitantly and Hikaru continued. "I was shaken up when he came back, but I managed…"

There was a silence as the three waited for Hikaru to continue, but his eyes had gone glassy as thought of Akira sidetracked him. "Um…Hikaru, are you all right?"

"Eh?" Hikaru's eyes instantly brightened and his eyes landed on Isumi. "What was that?"

Isumi smiled, slightly. "You said that you were shaken up, but you never finished."

"Oh," Hikaru blushed. "Sorry. I was starting to get back into the grove of the game, but then they called lunch. I'm just hoping I can refocus in two hours."

Waya smirked from the front of the group and pushed the doors of WacDonald's open. "I'm sure you'll be fine."

Hikaru smirked back. "Yeah, you're right."

They enjoyed their burgers over some light conversation, drinks, and fries, but Hikaru couldn't seem to get in the mood to listen to them and follow the conversation. Instead he merely chewed his burger at an incredibly slow rate as it slowly lost its flavor.

Isumi glanced over at Hikaru, worried about their new friend. "Are you sure you're okay?" he asked as Hikaru wrapped up his half-eaten burger. "You can't let the stress get to you."

"I know. I'm not, it's just…" All three glanced at their newest addition in concern. Hikaru saw this and smiled sadly. "Don't worry, I'll be fine." He threw the rest of his food in its bag and waved to his three new acquaintances. "I'm going back to the game hall. It was fun. I'll see you around." He dumped the food and walked out of the building, headed for the Go Association.

Halfway to the building he found his knees buckling, and he rushed over to the nearest bench, collapsing immediately. He dug his elbows into his knees and covered his eyes with his hands as the tears he'd bottled up finally flowed out.

Sai found tears welling up in his own eyes and circled an arm around Hikaru's shoulders while rubbing circles on his back. It's all right, Hikaru. Just give him time to calm down and everything will go back to normal. Don't lose hope, Hikaru. Don't lose hope.

Hikaru blubbered in Sai's arms, letting out his sorrow until his tears had run dry. He wiped his face on his sleeve, leaving his cheeks puffy and tear-streaked. 'Thanks, Sai…' he whispered, attempting to hug the ghost, despite the odd looks he got from onlookers. Right now, he didn't care.

He rose, wiped his face a few more times, and ran to the Go Association, praying he wasn't late. He had lost all track of time while he had been crying. When he arrived at his destination, he found he still had twenty minutes until the exam restarted. He walked slowly to the stairs, hoping to avoid making eye contact with anyone.

He grabbed the handle to the doors to the stairs. He thrust the door open, and the energy spun his limp body around, forcing him to face the front doors of the Go Association as a white suit walked through them. Hikaru's eyes widen at the familiar suit and life danced in them once again as he threw himself around the door and up the stairs.

Without bothering to check and see if he was actually being followed, Hikaru raced up the stairs, his eyes glazing and blinding him. He tripped multiple times, and was nearly on all fours by the time he reached the exit door for the sixth floor. He dashed out and made a bee line for the bathroom before anyone could get a clear image of him.

Only when he was sure he was alone in the bathroom did Hikaru's knees give out. His hands clutched the sides of the sink, trying to keep him aloft as he took in shaky breaths. His heart pounded, his airway tightened, and his eyes dilated.

Hikaru! Hikaru, breath! Sai shouted, afraid his host would forget such a simple function.

'Sai…Sai, I'm going insane…' He nearly started crying again. Ogata hadn't even seen him. The pro had been too absorbed with lighting his cigarette to be bothered with paying attention to a brat, but he had run anyway. It was an instinctual habit, now.

Hikaru spent five minutes to catch his breath and calm himself down before splashing his face repeatedly with water and slapping his cheeks to get them to go back to normal. He heard Shinoda gathering people back into the game hall and he gave his cheeks one last splash. His eyes were still bloodshot, but otherwise he looked normal.

"Great…it's time for my game…"

Sai's eyes softened at the strained voice. Hikaru was completely devoid of enthusiasm. As he sat down for the end of his game, Sai could already predict the outcome.

Akiko glanced up as the front door slid open. "Oh, Hikaru! How did the first day of the Pro Test go?"

Hikaru glanced up with his almost dead emerald eyes. "I lost."

Akiko's eyes softened. "I'm sorry to hear that. I'm sure you'll do better tomorrow." Hikaru only grunted in response. His mother's eyes softened and he patted his head. "Hey, Megumi called. She said she wanted to talk to you. Call her back, okay?" She handed him the kitchen phone.

Hikaru's eyes brightened. Once summer had started, he and Megumi had reverted to their former boyfriend-girlfriend relationship, and talking to her right now could make him feel better. "Yeah, I will. Thanks, Mom." He took the phone and gave her a half-hearted hug before dragging himself to his room.

Once in his humble abode, Hikaru collapsed on his bed and dialed the familiar number.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Megumi? My mom said you called earlier. How ya doing?"

There was a slight pause before Megumi responded. "I'm doing all right. Where were you earlier?"

Hikaru groaned. "Remember the Pro Test I was telling you about? It started today, but I let my nerves get the better of me. Currently I'm 0-1."

"Pro Test…So you're serious about becoming a professional Go player?"

"Yeah." Hikaru blinked at the mouthpiece of the phone in confusion. "I thought I already told you that."

"Yes. Yes, you did. I'm sorry."

Hikaru's body tensed. Megumi was so quiet on the other end of the line. He could tell something was wrong. "What is it, Megumi? Are you worried about my schedule? Once this week is over, I've got almost another month until the second part of the exam. We can go on a date next week, okay? Don't worry about it."

"No, Hikaru. That's not it. It's just…"

"Yeah?" Hikaru coaxed, not entirely sure he wanted to hear the end of that train of thought. "What's going on?"

"Hikaru, I was offered a scholarship to that dance school I told you about...You know, the one in Kyoto."

"What?" Hikaru felt his throat hitching again.

"Look, I'm moving to the dorms next week. I'll be busy with dance, and you'll be busy with Go, not to mention the distance, so…"

Hikaru gulped. "So…what?"

"It's nothing against you personally, but I think we should break up. It's just not going to work out. I'd love to stay friends and all, but long distance relationships aren't healthy and don't work out. Do you still want to be friends? I would still love to be friends, Hikaru, but I can understand if you don't…"

Hikaru bit the inside of his mouth and forced a smile. "No, I'd like to stay friends too. I understand; you're right. Besides, once I become a Pro my schedule will be full. I've seen my dad's. It's okay. Good luck at your dance school!"

"Hikaru, I'm really sorry."

"No, it's fine. Really." He knew his voice must have sounded strained, but he couldn't just hang up. "Look, I've got to get prepared for my game tomorrow. They're really mentally stressful. Anyways, good luck, 'kay?"

"Y-yeah. I'm sorry I broke up over the phone, but-"

"No, seriously, it's okay." At this point, Hikaru was trying to do anything he could to get Megumi off the other line. His voice was about to crack. "Look, I've really got to go, okay?"

"Yeah. Goodbye."

"Bye." Rather than even wait to see if Megumi had hung up, Hikaru ended the call and thrust the phone to the floor, falling into the comfort of his bed sheets.

Hikaru, are you going to be all right? Sai asked climbing above Hikaru's head and peering down.

The blonde's dead eyes glanced up at the upside-down ghost, his lips set in a downward position that didn't even twitch. 'Emotional overload. I can't stand it. I can't even think about crying or feeling sad. I can't.'

The door clicked open, but Hikaru remained stationary, staring up at his white plaster ceiling. "I heard something thrown. Is everything okay?" Akiko asked from the doorway.

Rather than open his mouth, Hikaru merely grunted.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Another grunt. 'Negative, ghost rider.'

Judging by her voice, Akiko didn't want to leave, but she did excuse herself. "I'm here if you need me.

Grunt. 'Yeah, right.'

Day two of the Prelims was no better than the first. Hikaru arrived, met by Fuku, and rode the elevator up to the sixth floor with little enthusiasm. "So, did you win yesterday?" Hikaru asked on the ride. He had left immediately after his game with Tsubaki. It had been a slaughter, after all.

"I won. I take it you didn't since you left so early."

Hikaru force a sheepish grin. "Yeah, I guess I let my nerves get to me." Fuku nodded, but Hikaru had a feeling the younger boy didn't believe him.

They walked into the waiting room and exchanged their shoes for slippers before dropping their bags off in the storage room. After that, Fuku introduced Hikaru to some of the other Insei who were in the prelims. The only two names that stuck were Nase and Iijima. Apparently both had won the previous day.

"So, how did you start Go?" Nase asked.

Hikaru glanced up, and instantly averted his gaze. She reminded him of Megumi, and he couldn't think about her now. "I just…I was watching Igo and really got into it."

"Igo, huh?" Nase drew a finger to her bottom lip. "I've never really gotten into it, but Waya's a big fan. You should talk to him about it. He's always going on about different players on there that are suppose to be really strong."

"Huh. I'll talk to him, then," Hikaru muttered, tucking away the information. After that, he just fell silent, not even pretending to listen to the conversation. He crossed his arms on the table, and slid them forward until his chin was resting on his long sleeve shirt. He stared off at the elevator as people exited and met their groups of friends.

When Akira walked through the doors, he stared directly at Hikaru with a glare, and Hikaru stuffed his face into his arms. 'Figures. He's still angry, Sai. He's the kinda guy who holds a grudge.'

Sai pouted and glared back at Akira. I may agree with him that you should have told him these things, but he still should have been kinder about the whole ordeal, he muttered, still glaring murderously back at the teenager. I respect his talent, but still.

'Don't Sai. It's really my fault. I've screwed everything up.' He slammed his head against the table with a 'Dammit,' before suddenly standing and heading off to the bathroom. He needed to be alone. Until the games started, Hikaru was sitting in the corner of the bathroom, his knees drawn up to his chest as he stared blankly at the wall.

When he heard Shinoda's voice resonate "Please begin your games," Hikaru rose and washed his hands. He ran a hand through his hair, and then dried his hands and walked into the game room. Shinoda glanced at him and seemed to be reprimanding him for being late, but Hikaru couldn't hear the words.

He found his seat across another unfamiliar face, and nonchalantly slapped down the white stone, barely caring where it landed. His opponent retaliated immediately with a snap of his wrist and a large slap against the board. Hikaru replied, never thinking about his move, and set the stone down lazily.

The game moved along at a steady pace with Hikaru's opponent thinking carefully about each and every move, while Hikaru merely slapped down a stone in response. His heart wasn't in it in the least.

Five minutes before Shinoda would call lunch, Hikaru deemed it a lost cause. He was getting no where and he didn't have the heart to try and find a way to worm out of his predicament. "I resign," he muttered, bowing his head and clearing the board before his opponent could react.

He made quick work of the stones and they found their respective bowls before the other boy had even finished marking their game. He ignored Shinoda's curious stare as he blew out of the room, recovered his bag and shoes, and made for the elevator, ignoring the stairs.

He no longer cared if his father saw him. He no longer cared if Ogata found out he had been at the Go convention, or the Children's Tournament. He just wanted a carton of ice cream – spoon optional – and a lock for his door. Unfortunately, when he got home, it appeared his mother's physic powers were on low.

"Honey, I can't believe you're done so early today," she muttered. With a glance at the clock, her eyebrows furrowed deeper. She had only been confirmed. "Did something happen yesterday?"

"I don't want to talk about it," Hikaru murmured as he left his shoes by the door, straight and ordinary. He held onto his backpack and walked slowly and quietly to his room.

Akiko didn't buy a word of it, and in five minutes, Hikaru's room was intruded by his mother. With an ice cream bowl in hand, Hikaru decided that the mother's physic ability hadn't been wasted on her. It wasn't a carton, but he wouldn't complain.

As she eyed his bag, correctly placed in the closet, she relinquished the bowl to her drooling son, and took the seat beside him as he began meticulously licking away at his dessert. "Are you ready to tell me what happened yet?" she asked when he had eaten a third of the bowl.

Hikaru gulped down the ice cream and felt his somewhat happy exterior melt away. Suddenly he no longer felt like eating ice cream. He let the spoon fall to the bowl before leaning on his mother's shoulder. "I made some big mistakes, mom. Some really big ones."

He quickly explained how he had met Akira and conveniently left out the fact that he was Touya Meijin's son and how he had believed that Akira had forgiven him. Then came the episode of Akira finding out Hikaru had also been playing Go behind his back, his father's back, and Ogata's back, and how Akira had shoved them back onto a last name basis.

The Akira escapades were quickly followed by the Megumi escapades and a slathering interpretation of his games so far in the Pro Test.

He knew his mom could never fully understand Go – hell, he'd been the same way nearly a year ago – but she listened and nodded along, nonetheless, and Hikaru appreciated it. He found the more he told her about his problems, the better he felt. He was still feeling the ripped open and bleeding heart thing going on, but a mother's advice always seemed to help even with worst emotional cases.

When Hikaru had finally finished, Akiko remained silent for a moment, thinking of the best overarching way to solve her son's problems. "For Akira-kun, I would suggest letting him calm down, and waiting until after the Pro Exam is over and the stress is off. I'm sure if he had found out at a less critical time, he wouldn't have snapped at you. Nonetheless, you really shouldn't keep secrets from your friends, Hikaru."

The young boy nodded glumly. He knew that, but had done it anyway. At least the advice was good. He hadn't thought about it before because of Akira's generally cool exterior, but the other boy had probably been just as nervous as Hikaru had been. Finding out Hikaru had been lying to him for so long had probably just absorbed his mind and thrown him off his game. So, Hikaru would wait until the Exam was over.

"As for Megumi-chan. Well, you must realize you're both just kids anyway. I know it hurts, but you will go through a lot of make-ups and break-ups, especially as a teenager."

"But-"

Akiko silenced Hikaru. "I know. The first is always the worst, but trust me it's not worth worrying yourself over so much. You will find that life goes on, and that you and Megumi-chan can still be friends, even after she's moved. Trust me."

Hikaru nodded mutely. It still hurt, but somehow Akiko had managed to numb his pain. "Thanks, Mom. You're a big help."

"Anytime, honey."

I want to dedicate this chapter to Psychedelic Sunshine. I'm really sorry, my intention was to get this chapter up a week ago, but complications occurred, arose, ensued...what have you. It's also unbeta-ed, so I apologize for grammer mistakes.

The bright side, is I've already started the next chapter, so let's cross our fingers and hope it's up this weekend. Also, this is a decently long chapter to make up for the last few chapters being kinda short. I hope you enjoyed!

Reviews:

_: As you can see, yeah, Akira's taking the test. As for if Hikaru will join Morishita's study group...you'll just have to wait and see, neh?

sandcat: Trust me, I'm just as excited to see how everyone's going to react when they find out Hikaru's playing Go/Touya Meijin's son.

Fayah: I love my Hikaru, too. He's really fun to write.^^

Anon: Well, here's the update!

Again, I apologize this took so long. I'm really disappointed, too. I was so proud I got the chapter done so quickly, but then fate spat upon my face, and now I look like Ron after a run-in with Fluffy. It's no one's fault, but it's still sad...

Well, I'm off to watch the end of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving!