Gah! Finally over this damn sickness! I've been knocked on my ass for about a month and a half now. So between killing myself at my job and trying to get better, I've been so worn out that I can only get a little done at a time. Sorry about the long wait everyone don't kill me!
~*Reconciliation*~
"Oi, Ichinose-chan. What's up with those two?" Hayawaka asked as he leaned over the seat he was in. Glancing from Mira who had her earbuds in jamming away to music, to Kise who was sulking in the back.
"Honestly Captain…I don't know myself." Kanika replied softly.
Even the others on the team could sense it. There was something off with their two star players. The most obvious clue that the two were fighting? Mira hadn't been chastising Kise for his antics with his fans lately. Just leaving him to do as he pleased until the coach or Hayawaka got him in line. The two could still work together on the court, but the chemistry just wasn't there. Mira refused to acknowledge Kise if the two weren't on the court, and Kise was getting increasingly more pissed off about it. Hayawaka shared a look with Nakamura, wondering if the team would be okay as he put a hand on his captain's shoulder.
"Hopefully this training camp will do those two some good." Nakamura prayed his words would ring true as the bus rolled on.
Due to an unexpected issue with water lines inside the gyms that would be used for the Inter-High finals, the start of the finals had been pushed back a week. Kaijo would use this time to get some last minute work in. And hopefully figure out why Mira and Kise were fighting.
Wordlessly, Kanika trailed behind Mira. Having been told to keep an eye on her since she was the only one who could really get close to Mira. The girl hung her head as she wished that there was something she could do in order to help the two. It was times like this Kanika felt the most helpless. If she was strong like the others she could maybe force an answer out of Mira. Or at least play her and maybe find something out that way. Kanika had heard that when two players clashed, they could understand each other perfectly on the court without a word having been said.
"Damnit Sakurai how many times have I told you to not let Aomine bully you?" Wakamatsu hollered. Glaring at Touou's ace who was unaffected by him.
"It's okay. I really don't mind." Sakurai said in that mousey way of his.
It was as Momoi was lecturing Aomine that an idea came to Kanika. If she couldn't play Mira, why couldn't she have a stand in do it? Aomine had yet to face Mira in a one on one. If anyone could get the girl to spill her guts it was that forceful guy. Kanika glanced over towards the inn to see Mira disappear inside. Clearly just wanting to get to her room and get away from the others. Kanika swallowed hard, knowing that she would have to face her fear if she had any hope of setting this all into motion. She took a deep breath before heading over to where Touou was at. Already feeling her face turn bright red as she stared at Aomine's back. It was then the others saw the girl. The chatter slowly dying out as Kanika stopped a few feet from Aomine.
"Oi, what's with the stares?" Aomine asked as someone pointed to him. The boy looked down at his clothes before turning around and spying a very shy Kanika. "Aren't you the Kaijo manager?"
"I humbly request your assistance Aomine-san!" Kanika managed to spit out as she bowed her head. Making the others wonder just what was going on.
_._._
Mira wiped her face off as she hung back in the gym. It'd been a couple of days since they'd come to the inn. The coach had upped their latest training menu to help push their bodies in the short time. For the boys it was a good work out. For her, it was merely a warm up compared to what she had to do on her own time in order to keep her body in shape. Mira had gone back to her old training regime she'd used in the states. Something that was much harder than anything their coach could think up. She had to be back in her top form before Alexander came for her. The fact that she was still sucking wind after pulling double practices told her she still had a ways to go.
"Mira!" The red stopped what she was doing. Spying Kanika near the entrance.
"If it's about Kise, I'm not talking. We've been through this already Kanika." Mira called back. Ignoring her friend as Kanika stepped into the gym.
"What if I made you a bet?" Kanika challenged as Mira turned to face the normally quiet girl.
"I'm not playing card games with you. I learned my lesson the hard way." Mira muttered. Recalling just how many times Kanika kicked her ass during lunch break in class. And how much money she'd lost in the process.
"No, the game will be basketball. If you win I'll stand on your side. I'll convince our senpais to leave you be and drop the subject of you and Kise-senpai. But if I win, I want you to tell me exactly what Kise-senpai did to make you so mad." Kanika said, keeping her eyes firm as Mira couldn't help but giggle.
"And how exactly do you plan on playing me?" Mira asked. Wondering just what Kanika had come up with. It wasn't often Kanika challenged Mira. But when she did, things had a way of getting interesting.
"I have a stand in." Kanika grinned. Stepping aside as Aomine walked in.
"Let's get one thing straight. I'm only playing you because I haven't gotten the chance yet. I could care less about your side bet going on got it?" Aomine drawled as Mira rolled her neck out.
"So you allow yourself to become a pawn just to get your wish?" Mira asked. A smirk sliding on to her face. "Very well. I've been wanting to try out a new technique anyways. And you'd make the perfect guinea pig."
Kanika clasped her hands together, praying that Aomine could pull out a win against Mira. Since joining the basketball world she'd heard about how Aomine was the top scorer in high school basketball. While Kanika knew better than to underestimate Mira, she knew that if anyone stood a chance at beating the red head it was him. Especially since Aomine was also a street baller and could play on an even field with Mira.
"Let's make this interesting. Street ball rules. First to 20 wins. Let's see how long you can keep up." Mira sneered as she tossed the ball to Aomine. Opting for defense first.
"Heh, I was about to say the same thing." Aomine smirked. Charging straight into things as the game began.
Meanwhile…
Kise was wandering around town, away from the inn at the moment. He needed time to think and clear his head. The fight him and Mira had gotten into still played over and over again in his mind. Constantly haunting the boy, growing worse since he had to face the girl every day. What really irritated him though was how unaffected Mira seemed by it all. The girl had started acting just like when they'd first met. She only acknowledged him on the court and that was it. But she was just going through the motions of it all. She never got mad, she never smiled, she barely even bothered to respond to anything he had to say unless it pertained to a particular play they had to work together on.
"Oi Kasamatsu over here!" Kise froze upon hearing that name. Wondering if it was the same Kasamatsu he was thinking of.
Curious, and a bit hopeful, Kise headed towards the voices. Unable to extinguish that little bit of hope he had as he rushed towards the growing voices. He finally broke through the trees to find a small street ball court. A bunch of older guys all playing together. None of them acting too serious, just playing for fun. And sure enough there was Kasamatsu with Kobori and Moriyama. Breaking a little sweat as they chatted with their classmates about something as Kise wandered closer.
"Is that Kise?" Kobori asked, being the first one to spot him.
"Oi! Kise!" Moriyama hollered. Rushing towards his kohai who could only manage a weak smile.
"Kise? What's wrong?" Kasamatsu asked. Sensing that something was wrong with the usually jovial boy.
Kise just shook his head as the others just stared at the poor boy. Knowing that he could use counseling, the three grabbed their gear and headed to a nearby diner. The three waited patiently for Kise to talk to them. Unsure of how to handle the situation since they'd never really seen a broken down Kise. Moriyama started to reach out to the boy, but stopped short. Looking to the others to see what should be said or done. Finally Kasamatsu worked up the courage and lightly flicked Kise in the forehead to get his attention.
"You look like shit. Care to tell us what's been going on?" Kasamatsu asked as Kise stared down into his drink. Gathering his thoughts before he spoke.
"It's West-chan…" He began.
Kise told them everything from the night he'd last seen his senpais, to the night him and Mira had gotten into a fight. The three just listened in silence. Wanting to hear the full story before they made any kind of comments about what they thought could be going on. Only once Kise was finished did he look up at his senpais. Hoping they could offer him some kind of advice as to why he felt so conflicted right now. The three all shared a knowing look with each other before Moriyama decided to clue him in.
"You clearly like this girl." He deadpanned as Kise face planted on to the table.
"That's what you got from all that?" Kise hissed as Kobori chuckled.
"She's the first girl I've ever heard you talk about so much. Cleary she's put you on an emotional rollercoaster. I'd say it's safe to assume you like her." Kobori summed up.
"Whether you like her as a good friend or potential love interest is none of our concern." Kasamatsu held a hand up to silence Kise's protests. The blonde going into full pout mode, finally acting like himself. "A girl like her you can't push. I could tell when I first met her there was a reason West-chan was guarded. Now it makes sense. If she can't even speak about what happened to her before she came here, then it was something traumatic that she is struggling to cope with. Even now. It sounds like this Alexander guy was someone really close to her. Someone special. If he hurt her, that damage can last for a long time and can take years to get over, if she ever does. Not that his taunting her will help with the healing process. And you pushing her like you did only made things worse. Everything that had formed between you two is now gone."
"Kise, this girl is wounded in a way none of us can understand. Someone like her, you have to let them open up on their own. You can't force them to talk. It'll only backfire on you. I would suggest you go and try to patch this situation up. If you're lucky she may consider trying work it out. Just remember don't push too hard with her. You've already hurt her once, even if it was miniscule. She'll really be hesitant to try and get close to you again. Let alone consider trusting you. Show her how sincere you are and that should she need someone you'll be there. She may not take the offer, but making it will be a start. Patience will be the key in getting things back to how they were." Kobori smiled. Ruffling his kohai's hair playfully.
"Just do what you do best. Be your usual idiotic self. She'll open up eventually." Moriyama assured the blond as well. Watching as the boy fought back tears of happiness from how kind his senpais were.
"I think understand….Thank you senpais!" Kise stood up and bowed to all three of them. Finally snapping back to his old self.
Kise rushed back to the resort. Barely stopping for anything as he knew he needed to talk to Mira then and now. Kise just hoped that Mira would talk to him. He ducked around the side entrance, skirting past the gym. A cry of pain caught his attention though, causing him to slide to a stop just outside the entrance. Another cry of pain reached his ears. One that he recognized. Kise peeked his head inside the gym to see Aomine gritting his teeth in pain while Kanika tended to him. He had a nasty floor burn on his thigh and a cut just above his eye. Bruises could be seen covering his body as Kise wondered just who had done this to Aomine.
"What happened?" Kise asked. Alerting the two to his presence.
"Mira did this." Kanika said softly. Not taking her eyes off the wound she was tending to. "I asked Aomine-san to play against Mira. I wanted her to lose and tell us what has been wrong lately. It's all my fault." The girl sniffled as she let her head fall. Tears began forming at the edges of her eyes as Aomine awkwardly patted her. Unsure as to how comfort girls.
"Aominecchi?" Kise turned his attention to his friend, hoping to get a clear explanation of what was going on.
"The girl wasn't herself. She seemed different….We played by street ball rules. Things got a bit rough and once she beat me she left. Didn't even bother to look back. On her last play is when she did this to me." Aomine pointed to the cut on his lip.
"Shit. She's lost control again. She's going back to her old self." Kise grunted as he turned to go look for the girl.
"No, West-chan was in control. That's why this happened. That girl timed her hits perfectly on me. She played like a demon." Aomine said. Recalling it all as he looked up to his friend. "She could've done a lot worse if she'd wanted to. I think that's why she left like she did. She still had left over energy she needed to get rid of."
Kise didn't need to hear anymore as he took off. Hoping to find Mira before she hurt anyone else or herself. If there was one thing Kise had learned from all his beatings from the fiery red head, it was that if she didn't expel all her energy she would take off for a run. Which is what he was hoping for as he headed out back to the mountain path they'd been running for the past few days as a warmup. He spied a footprint, recognizing the tread as he hurried down the path.
Luck was with him as he topped the hill. Spying Mira just staring out into the sunset. Kise struggled to catch his breath as he inched his way towards her. It was then Mira decided to pick up her jog once more. Not wanting to lose her, Kise gave one last push to catch up to Mira. This resulted in him catching his foot on a rock and sending him tumbling down the slope. Screaming the entire way as Mira watched a yellow blur roll past her and into the tree.
"Ow…" Kise whined, remaining upside down as Mira slowly approached him.
"Nice tuck and roll." She deadpanned as Kise righted himself.
"I had to catch up to you somehow." He laughed. A sharp pain shot through his ankle though, causing the boy to wince.
Without saying a word, Mira knelt down. She gently touched Kise's ankle as she probed along the injury. It was warm to the touch, and she'd be willing to bet he was starting to swell up. Without saying a word Mira gently untied Kise's shoe and loosened it enough to where she could slide it off his foot. She tore the bottom of her shirt and wrapped it around Kise's ankle to keep some kind of compression on it for now.
"Dumbass." Mira muttered as Kise watched her work. Wincing every so often until she was done.
A drop of water caused Kise to flinch. He looked up to see that the sky had grown dark and it was starting to rain. Mira cursed under her breath as she helped Kise up. The two limped to the nearest rest area on the trail. Taking shelter underneath the covering as the rain continued to come down. Stranding the two there for the time being until it cleared up. Figuring he wouldn't get another chance like this, Kise cleared his voice. Getting Mira's attention as she spared a glance in his direction.
"West-chan—I'm sorry." Kise finally spoke up. Showing just how sincere he was as Mira moved to sit down.
"For what specifically?" She asked. Wondering if this was just another ploy to get her to be nice to him again.
"I pushed you too hard too soon. I realize that now. I don't want you to revert back to how you used to be around us though! I promise this time I'll back off and let you set the pace. I won't pry and I won't ask unnecessary things until you're ready to tell me. So please, keep smiling with everyone on the team. Don't go back to your old self just because we're fighting." Kise pleaded as he reached out and grabbed one of her hands.
"Why do you care so much?" Mira hissed. Attempting to rip her hand away, only to have Kise tighten his grip on it. "What makes you think that I need your help? We have no other ties than basketball. We barely get along. You don't owe me anything. So why do you insist on trying so hard for me?"
"I told you already, you're my friend." Kise smiled softly. Sparing a look at the girl. "Whether you see me as one or not. I'm the reason you're even on the team. That makes me responsible for you."
Mira had a hard time believing anything Kise said. It'd been the first time someone had put in so much effort for her since she'd come here. That's why Mira had snapped at Kise that night. The idea of ever having hope that she could go back to what had once been was scary. Too scary. So she'd pushed him away. Tried to cut Kise off from her. But the boy was persistent. Doing his best to prove that Mira could believe his words and rely on him. Even if it was only temporarily, Mira would allow herself to indulge in the idea that she could regain a little of what Alexander had stolen from her. She could allow Kise this much for all that he'd done. She tilted her head back. Laughing softly to herself as she listened to the rain fall.
'How did things get so screwed up? Why does he have to be so damn caring?' Mira thought to herself as she lowered her gaze.
"What makes you think I'm going back to my old self?" Mira tilted her head towards Kise. Deciding to change the subject as she looked at the boy who was staring out at the pouring rain. Still holding on to Mira's hand.
"I saw the marks you left on Aomine. It looked like what you'd first done to me." He said softly.
"Oh, that." She huffed as she shifted her weight. Placing her back against Kise's arm as she drew a leg up to her chest. "Yeah, I guess I can see why Kanika would think that I'm going back to that."
"Huh?" Kise asked. Looking over as Mira scratched her head.
"Shit. Guess I need to tell you a little about what's been going on. Before you really make things worse for me." Mira sighed as she thought of where to begin. Shifting once more as she leaned on to her knee. "As you know my former captain tried to destroy me. He caused me to suffer an elbow injury that required minor surgery to repair. It's part of the reason I learned how to shoot with both hands. That injury set me back quite a bit. Before I got hurt, I was close to developing another style of play. Something that would let me be stronger than Zone."
"Stronger than Zone?" Kise couldn't believe there was something other than Zone II that could defeat someone once they'd reached that state of mind.
"Yeah. But more dangerous. I guess the best way to put it is that this play makes me seem like a demon on the court." Mira shrugged her shoulders as Kise tried to picture it.
"If it's more dangerous than Zone why do it?" Kise asked as Mira let out a weak giggle.
"Because I need something that will allow me to fight on a level playing field with the monster seeking me out." Mira finally said. Deciding to give Kise this hint since he'd gone so far for her.
Kise may be dense, but he wasn't a complete moron. In that short sentence he knew what Mira had tried to say. The one who'd hurt her was coming back. The one who'd caused the girl to become so shut off from those around her was hunting her down. Kise felt his own blood boil at seeing the look in Mira's eyes. She believed she had no other options other than to fight. Kise couldn't help what he did next as he reached out and drew the girl towards him. Anger radiating off him in waves as he pressed his cheek into Mira's hair.
"I know you don't trust me. I know I'm not your first option to go to with stuff like this. But don't shut me out. I'll keep my word. I won't push you or pry into your life anymore. I'm here for you West-chan. Any time you need me. You can rely on me." Kise finally released her head. Giving her that million watt smile as Mira felt a small bit of warmth in her chest.
She turned away from him, needing to avert her attention from Kise temporarily. Mira didn't want to believe in him fully. Not yet at least. She couldn't help the small smile that appeared on her lips though as she pulled her feet up on to the bench. Drawing her knees to her chest as a single tear slid down her face.
"If you break your promise you'll be on the receiving end of my next trial run for that new mode." Mira warned as she relaxed back into Kise. Closing her eyes as she listened to the rain beating down on the tin covering above them.
"Deal." He smiled. Wrapping an arm around the girl once more as the two sat there. Waiting for the rain to die out so that they could return to the inn.
_._._
Kanika looked towards the clock once again. Nerves racking her body as Aomine put a hand on her head. Having seen from past experience when Mira had done it that it helped to calm the girl down. The shy girl stared down at her hands. Desperately fighting a nose bleed as Aomine ruffled her hair a bit before letting his hand fall. The awkward tension only grew between the two as they together.n
"Don't worry. Those two will be fine." Aomine assured Kanika as the girl nodded weakly. Wanting to desperately believe his words.
Aomine wished that the girl would take off to go look for her friends. But she stayed by his side diligently. Too worried that he may have a concussion and wanted to look out for the injured one first. While it was annoying, Aomine couldn't help but feel flattered that Kanika was doing this for him. Most time girls only got close to him to say that they got to get laid by a famous high school player. It was new to have a girl that wasn't Momoi actually care about his well being. Maybe that's why he put up with her presence. Even though the girl refused to look at him for longer than a few seconds now that he seemed to be doing better.
"Are you sure you're okay?" A familiar voice called out in the distance.
"Ask me that one more time and I'm dropping you." Mira's icey tone replied.
Upon hearing the two voices together, Kanika bolted from her seat. Rushing down the path to see a worn out Mira and Kise slowly making their way towards her. Tears sprung forth from Kanika's eyes as relief washed over her. They were okay. Aomine griped under his breath about the two being pains in the asses as he got up and made his way over. Taking Kise from Mira to give the girl a break.
"You'll need to look at Kise's ankle Kanika. He sprained it pretty good." Mira rolled her shoulders out as Kise made a sign of apology towards Kanika.
"You two made up?" Aomine asked as he got Kise on his back and carried him the rest of the way.
"You could say that." The two said together. Sharing a temporarily laugh as Kanika wiped away the rest of her tears.
'I'm glad they were able to work things out. Those two need each other.' She thought to herself as she caught up to the group. A smile plastered firmly on her face, glad to have things back to normal.
So yay! Kise and Mira are buddy buddy again. And we get another little peek into why Mira is doing what she's doing. And yes before I hear it from all the raging fans, it would normally be impossible for anyone to be stronger than Aomine. Thing is...Mira wasn't technically playing fair against our favorite street baller. Keep that little bit in mind folks. Not gonna ramble for long since I'm so far behind on the story. Can't wait to hear from everyone!
