(Mountain Out Of A Molehill)

The Marugame Senior League was in turmoil. For the first time in a long time, they had a real shot at the nationals, but the one and only pitcher their team had was in the hospital. It wasn't that the pitcher was that talented, but Chris could lead anyone if they knew how to throw. With only a week before the final game, the coach had no idea what to do? Did they forfeit? A knock sounded on the door and he glanced up to see a young boy walking in.

He looked around thirteen, but his eyes… They didn't look at him like a young child, but someone that had been to hell and back. Handing him the league's application form, he stepped back and waited. "We normally don't take recruits during an active season."

"You need a pitcher… I need a team… I think it works out."

"I can't just take anyone that says he can throw a ball, kid."

"The application says anyone can sign up… I don't go to a public school, nor am I on an active baseball team. Your recruitment requirements are different from a school club and your roster still has room to add one or two more players."

"Yeah, but…"

"Until you make the nationals, you're aren't violating the federation baseball rules. Before you tell me no, can you at least see what I have to offer?"

It wasn't like he had a lot of options. Finding a pitcher this late in the season was next to impossible, so turning his nose up at one that was trying to apply was the same as putting a loaded gun to his head. Chris was the issue… He may agree to work with this boy if he ordered him to, but he didn't want it to come down to that.

"Fine…"

Eijun had never been on a real baseball team prior to high school and he had to admit… the way he had trained his former teammates had been nothing short of disgraceful. It was amazing that Takashima had ever wanted to recruit him in the first place. She was more resistant to the idea now than she had been when he had come out of the country, but he didn't give a damn about her. Kataoka already told her that if he proved himself in the nationals, he'd have a spot at Seidou and there was nothing she could say or do about his decision.

The team was trying to figure out who they were going to let pitch for the upcoming game when Eijun walked up, hands in his pockets and the coach looking as if he was walking towards the galos. "Takigawa-kun; do you mind catching a few for this kid?"

Chris didn't say yes or no; he simply regarded Eijun with that same gaze he had used when they had originally met at Seidou. There was a no nonsense demeanor about him and if Eijun had been more alert then, he would have realized that he had been treading on dangerous ground from the start.

Chris's father was standing on the sidelines, waiting for their training to end. More than likely he was going to throw a fit about this, but there was still time before training ended. "Let's go," he said.

Eijun didn't say a word, but followed. In the locker room, he put on a fresh jersey. It was like Sediou all over again and Eijun had to pause, covering his face to calm himself down. He had done this… only it had been Kazuya and it was killing him. Kazuya wasn't his to have, so why couldn't he just get over how he felt already?!

"Are you okay?" Eijun's face looked like his entire world had come to an end, but as soon as Chris said something, the mask was back in place and he finished getting ready.

"I have my moments," he answered. Eijun offered no other explanation and followed Chris back to the field. The boy had good flexibility and as he went through his stretching moments. Chris could see that he didn't waste his movements like a lot of pitchers did. It took a good ten minutes for a pitcher's shoulders and wrists to warm up and thankfully he didn't have to say anything to him about it.

"Pitch whatever you want," the coach said. Eijun's eyes flashed with anger, but when he blinked, the emotion was gone. Chris sensed a storm of emotions behind Eijun's mask, but he wouldn't get a full idea of how strong they were until he caught this kid's pitch. While he thought the coach should have asked what the kid could throw, it wasn't often for kids to know anything aside from a four-seam, two-seam, or change-up. Anything else was usually for kids that were going to move on to high school, but the boy didn't try to educate them about what he could or couldn't do.

Eijun probably should have kept it safe… Chris was healthy enough at the moment, so anything he threw wouldn't kill or destroy him, but he hated people assuming that all he knew was a standard fast-ball. It's not like anyone ever worked with him, letting him figure every pitch and grip out on his own. Yeah, he had started out as an idiot, and while that was his fault, letting him learn baseball on his own… that wasn't his fault and the rage took over.

That single month of running around the north field at Seidou… of being laughed at… mocked… told that he wasn't a member of the team… humiliated over and over again. Eijun's eyes were blazing now and Chris had to hold his breath. He had never seen anything like it and when Eijun started to deliver the first pitch, nothing… and when he said nothing, he meant nothing had ever prepared him for the screwball that came firing across the plate. It was an impossible pitch for a middle schooler and yet it landed directly in his glove, just on the outside of where the batters bat would have been.

Everything came to an abrupt halt… batting simulation… fielding exercises… reporters whispering in the bleachers… all eyes had shifted to the kid standing on the mound, his arms crossed and his gaze on the coach. "Was that good enough? Maybe you'll want to actually take me seriously now. Do you have another pitcher for next week's finals, or maybe you're wanting to forfeit and let the Edogawa Dragons have the win?"

Eijun was pissed and Chris couldn't blame him at this point. They had all underestimated him and he was close to walking away on them. "What's your name?" Chris asked.

"Eijun."

"You're wanting us to use your first name?"

"I don't care about first and last names. If I decide to play baseball with someone, you can use my first. In fact… if you want to learn my last name, you have to win the next game first; that's if I decide to stick around that long."

"I'm afraid we owe you an apology, Eijun." The boy gave him a hard look, but he gradually calmed down and waited for Chris to continue. "If we had properly introduced ourselves, I should have asked what pitches you can throw and how you liked them called."

"You think?" Chris sighed… They had rubbed this kid the wrong way, but he also understood why. No one had asked him what his abilities were and the coach had been treating him as if he were an annoyance rather than a potential asset. That had all changed with that screwball.

"Do you have a list, or do I have to start guessing?"

Eijun finally relaxed, giving him a tentative smile before fishing out a piece of paper and handing it to him. Chris had no idea what to say… "I don't want to call you a liar… I mean…"

"All you have to do is call the number you want and I'll throw the pitch. Either I can pitch them or I can't. The question I want to know is can you handle them or not?" There was a challenge in his voice and Chris's gaze narrowed. He felt the rise of anger overwhelming him and now he understood how Eijun must have felt when the coach had told him to pick any pitch he wanted.

Their gazes locked and for a long moment neither one looked away. No one tried to interfere and after several precious minutes, Chris gave in and ruffled the boy's hair. "If you can throw even half of these, I'll let you stay at my house for the rest of the week."

Eijun's expression abruptly changed and he glanced away… "You don't have to go that far… I just wanted to play baseball… If this is where you practice, then I'll show up."

"It's not that easy, Eijun. We have two weeks before the finals… That's barely enough time to form a proper battery and I need to know more about how these pitches work, where you can throw them, or whether I should just ignore them entirely. Just because a pitcher knows something, doesn't mean I can use it in a game."

Eijun knew that better than anyone… Kazuya had been the same way, but could he really risk putting Chris in danger? He glanced at the reporters and decided that he couldn't and wouldn't do it. If Chris wanted to work with him, it would have to be on the field.

"Eijun, take his offer." It was the chief. Eijun didn't look towards the parking lot, but he knew he was there, listening to every word. "We can promise that nothing will happen to him."

He didn't have a choice. The chief had agreed to let him play for this team on the condition that he'd obey every order given to him. "Are you sure it's okay?" Eijun finally asked.

"I don't think my father will have an issue with it…" Eijun nodded and for the next hour, Chris worked through the numbers, almost all of them spot on. The kid had unbelievable stamina, going through pitch after pitch without complaint.

"Who taught you how to pitch?" Chris asked.

"I'm self-taught." Eijun said nothing else and as training ended, he went back to the locker room and changed into his t-shirt and jeans.

Was he really going to do this? It wasn't that he didn't like Chris… far from it. He wasn't Kazuya and Eijun wondered if the pain of getting his heart broken would ever go away? The coach was debriefing everyone and he looked to Eijun when he came walking back. "Training starts at 1500. Can you make it?"

"Yes sir."

"How are you grades?"

"I start high school after the fall."

The coach froze… Pulling out the kid's application, it stated that he was only thirteen, so how…

"I skipped two grades already." He said it as if it was perfectly normal, and Eijun said nothing else about his education. The thing about his online school was that it was self-paced and because he had nothing but time on his hands, he did as much as he could at one of the public libraries. There were no distractions, he didn't have to take lunch breaks and he didn't have any friends to hang out with… Eijun was, in every sense of the word, alone right now. He didn't really like the idea of hanging out with Chris, but he didn't have much say in the matter. If Chris got hurt, he would break all ties with the police department and finish this hunt on his own.

After everyone broke up, Eijun followed Chris over to his father. The one and only time he had met this man, it hadn't been good. He had been making a fool of himself and Eijun flushed at how humiliating that incident had been. "Dad," Chris greeted. "Do you mind if Eijun stays over for the week? I'd like to work with him outside of practice."

Animal was interested in the boy… It wasn't every day that he ran across a kid with his kind of talent, a lot of it still unknown. "You were holding back today." It was a fact, not a question and Chris looked at Eijun in surprise. The boy was struggling not to smile, his lips twitching in irritated amusement.

"I don't always believe what the newspapers say about someone."

Eijun was probably the first to dismiss all the hype about him and Chris found himself grateful about it. He wanted to learn more about this strange kid, but as they exited the field, they were suddenly surrounded, cameras flashing in Eijun's face. "Chris… who's the new pitcher? Do you think he'll make a difference in next week's game?"

The boy didn't answer, nor did he stop to look at them or the cameras. Again they were asking the wrong questions and the fact that they had gone to Chris instead of himself… They had just made an enemy out of the boy and Chris sighed. A limo driver was waiting for them and with the reporters still snapping their cameras, Eijun slid into the back of the vehicle, Chris following close behind.

His first greeting had been so rude and embarrassing that Eijun didn't know what to say. He opted for silence and sank down, trying to hide his face from the reporters gawking at him from outside. This was what he had wanted, but that didn't mean he had to like it. "You get used to it," Chris tried to assure him.

"They're annoying," he snapped. "Sometimes I wish I can go back to everyone thinking I was stupid… No one liked me then." Chris didn't understand what that comment meant, but Eijun didn't say anything else for the rest of the ride home.

Erin was in the middle of making dinner when the news started talking about the upcoming game with Marugame and Edogawa Senior League teams. From what Kazuya had told her, the team might have to forfeit, but apparently they had found a pitcher at the last minute. Life was almost peaceful, despite the police cars sitting outside. She would almost guarantee there were bodyguards in random locations, but she wouldn't know who they were.

She recognized Chris, but what she hadn't expected was to see her brother walking beside him. He looked irritated as the cameras continued to take photos of him, but he didn't try to hide. Considering how much he hated media attention, she thought it was strange. What was Eijun doing? He hadn't said a word to her in almost three months… Was he still trying to hunt Ochiai down?

Eijun didn't answer any of their questions, and the last thing she saw before the reporters started trying to figure out what the team's intentions were, was of her brother sliding into a limo with Chris. Kazuya walked out of the bathroom, drying his hair when he saw Erin and then what she was watching. "What's up?"

Eijun…

She was always thinking about her brother and without him linked to her any longer, she felt strangely disconnected. Kazuya wrapped his arms around her, holding her as the reporters continued to interview the coach. "They found another pitcher? Wait… Are you telling me that they recruited Eijun?!"

She nodded. Kazuya thought it was a random decision, but Erin didn't think so. This was the last game before the summer nationals, one that would ultimately get Chris and Kazuya recruited for Seidou. Not only would the media have a lot of coverage on it… Suddenly she knew what he was after. Eijun wanted the attention…

That idiot! She wrote. He's trying to get Ochiai to come after him…

"It's just a middle school game… How…"

You don't understand… Eijun will do anything to get his attention… Before he was shot, Eijun was practicing a new pitch… something that's a hybrid of a crossfire and a cutter. That pitch was special to him, something he created with a friend and because of Ochiai, a dream he had wanted more than anything was stolen from him.

"Erin, I've been meaning to ask… are you allowed to tell me about him now? You said before that you couldn't, but… He's not in danger anymore, so can you please tell me why he's different than you? Why does he know seventeen pitches, while you're acting as if you never touched a ball before?"

Eijun had written on the note he had left that she could answer any of Kazuya's questions, but would he believe her? I wasn't telling you the entire truth about Eijun. When I said he liked you… it's a bit stronger than like. He fell in love with you… from the first time you two crossed paths.

"I don't even know him… how…"

Eijun and I aren't from this timeline. The gunshot wound that you saw on my side… that was from his injury, not mine. To save his life, I gave him a vial to drink and it merged us together, sending us back to when we both turned twelve. At the time, his only task was to find Ochiai and to stop him from going to Seidou. I'm guessing he's done that. Ochiai is on the run so we were released from the current restrictions that kept us from talking about where we came from and how.

In the original timeline, after the summer training camp, Ochiai hit me on the back of the head with a rock. With me out of the way, he proceeded to grab Eijun, but the two of them fought. After he managed to break free, he jumped in the river, but he never found me, not until my body washed up at the base of the mountain several days later.

Eijun was devastated and everything he knew… everything we did… he forgot it. He stopped caring about school, reading, baseball… I don't even know why or how he continued pitching, but I think there was a small part of him that couldn't let it go. He hated going to games and he hated reading about it… all of it would trigger a memory and it would drive him into a fit of rage or depression.

Eventually he was scouted for Seidou High School and god was it a disaster. In a single day, he had caught your interest, but by the end of it you had decided that he was the last player Seidou needed on their team and tried to have him kicked out when he arrived in the spring. It didn't end there… The entire team turned their back on him… It was heartbreaking and for the life of me, I have no idea why he stayed. He ran around a field for a month before he was allowed to try out again.

Even then he wasn't fully accepted... You didn't want anything to do with him and he was forced to learn how to play the game, to pitch… all of it was on his own. I don't think he started to understand the concept of teamwork until after his first summer season… Without having ever played in a major game before, with everyone relying on him to get them out of an impossible situation, he failed and he's always regretted it. The team didn't go to Koshien, the head coach was almost fired and in his fall season, he developed the 'yips.' He was so alone and it was at about this point that you tried to reach out to him, but because of how distant he was to you at that point, only one person could get him to snap out of his depression. The two of you slowly became friends and just before you were about to retire, the two of you finally became a battery. Eijun became the ACE and that's when…

Kazuya saw the tears spilling over and he wiped them away, letting her take a moment. That's when Ochiai kidnapped and dragged him to the Tokyo Bay Bridge. The two of them were fighting and it took all of Eijun's strength to keep his hand. With no other option, he jumped and that's when Ochiai shot him. Sinking beneath the water, dying… he wanted nothing more than to stop Ochiai from going back to Seidou. He had promised to destroy the people he cared about… you were one of those people.

"Who was his coach in middle school? Originally?"

Eijun was the coach.

Kazuya felt a terrible pain in his chest… He didn't love Eijun, but what if he had developed feelings for her brother in the other timeline? To come back and to see him falling for his sister instead… He couldn't think of anything more fucked up and yet Eijun had never tried to stop them. Eijun had left to protect her and now he was placing himself in more danger than he's ever been in.

"Why did I hate him so much?"

I'm not sure if you hated him, but the way you were when we first met… You were like that, but a lot worse. The death of your mother was never solved, you remained at odds with your father, and your teammates were constantly beating you up.

Kazuya knew she had changed him. The person she was describing had been savagely cruel and he could only tighten his hold on her. He wanted to say he was sorry, but that wasn't going to make Eijun feel any better. Kazuya loved Erin and to go to Eijun now would be about as bad as shooting him with a gun. I think he'll be okay… there were other people that he had crushes on… but that summer game ended the season before he could figure out how he felt about them.

"Do you think Ochiai will go after him?"

If he does what I think he's going to… without a doubt.

Kazuya called his dad and was surprised when he picked up after only a single ring. "Are you aware that Eijun might be trying to flush Ochiai out?"

"He has a full bodyguard team keeping an eye on him." Kazuya relaxed, reaching for and playing with Erin's hair. He couldn't imagine not having her around and several times he had to stop himself from doing anything beyond kissing or hugging. She was still too young and he wasn't going to break the promises he had made to their fathers about keeping it PG until she was at minimum, sixteen. "That being said… you need to keep a careful watch over Erin. If he can't get to Eijun, he could try going after her. She is not to go to the bathroom without an escort. If she's hungry, go with her… Kazuya, resources are stretched and a lot of it's being shifted around Eijun and Takigawa."

"I won't let anything happen to her. Besides, we still have the watches you gave us."

"Good." His father hung up and Erin curled up beside him. When he kissed her, he couldn't stop himself from flipping her over to her back, his knee rising to press up against her. He might have agreed to not sleep with her, but that didn't mean he couldn't do other stuff.

Chris's house wasn't a house… How could two people live in something that looked like it took up an entire city block? The drive to the house was over a mile long and there were trees everywhere. When they finished driving through the gate, he saw dogs roaming about, and then armed security guards taking their posts on the inside and outside.

"My dad had a lot of crazy fans for awhile…" Chris explained.

"Doesn't it freak you out a little… living like you're in a cage all your life?"

Chris chuckled… "I do not live in a cage… In fact I feel at ease here… We don't let many people visit, so please… relax and enjoy the little bit of freedom you can. The moment you step out of this limo tomorrow, those reporters will descend upon you like a pack of wild dogs."

"Too bad you can't send them to the pound like one," he sulked. Chris and his dad roared with laughter. Pulling up to the main door, Chris and Eijun stepped out and all Eijun could do was stare. This was not the place for a country idiot like himself. He knew he was different now and while he was taking everything seriously, he still felt as if he didn't belong.

Chris had always been like an older brother to him. Eijun backed away, suddenly afraid that he was going to mess this up. He didn't want to do this anymore. Eijun took another step… a third… The catcher turned and froze. Eijun was bleach white, shaking, terror in his eyes and just as he was about to turn and run, Chris grabbed and gathered him close.

"No… I can't do this…" he whimpered. "I'm just an idiot that has no business being here…"

"Eijun…" The boy was frantic and desperate to get away. "You can't just go running around the estate… Our dogs don't know you and we can't just call them in."

"I'd rather face the dogs… I'm just an idiot… all I ever do is fail the people that rely on me… Please, I shouldn't have…"

"Eijun, stop!" Chris shouted. Eijun stopped talking, his entire body shaking. This kid… what the hell was going on with him? He had seemed so certain of himself when they first met, but now he was a complete wreck. "I want you to take this one step at a time. Just because I live in a big house, doesn't mean that I'm any different from the kids that you go to school with."

"I don't go to school with anyone."

"What about friends that you hang out with?"

"Don't have any."

"Family."

"I have a sister and we can't see each other."

His dad frowned… the kid had no one and everything about his try out earlier started to make sense. "Eijun… we're not social elites," Chris's dad told him.

"Then why do you try so hard to impress the media or your fans?" Eijun demanded.

"I thought you didn't listen to everything the media wrote about?" Chris asked him.

"I try not to, but as much attention as you get… that could put a lot of unnecessary pressure on someone."

"I'm not worried about them."

"So if you had a shoulder injury… would you keep quiet about it? Or would you actually see a doctor and get it taken care of?" Chris's eyes flashed… Eijun didn't fail to pick up on it either and yanked himself away from the catcher. "That was just a hypothetical question… Are you hurt?"

Chris looked away, but there was no evading the watchful gaze of his father or this strange kid that had asked him a random question. "It's just a muscle strain… I get them all the time."

"You know better than that!" Eijun snapped. "Pitchers and catchers are more prone than any other player to shoulder and arm injuries. Are you a doctor? How long has that strain been happening? How long does the pain last and are you just ignoring it because you don't want the media to find out? Is your baseball career worth keeping your mouth shut? Look, I need to go. There's no way I can knowingly pitch to your glove if you're hurt."

"Eijun… wait."

"No! I need to trust the person I'm throwing to and I can't do that if you're refusing to admit when you're hurt or need a break to recover!"

"Why are you making such a big deal out of this?"

"Do you love baseball?" Eijun demanded.

"Yes."

"Then why would you risk throwing it away?! That muscle strain… on it's own, yes it would and could recover. But we're different and with the summer nationals coming up, you're going to continue using that arm and shoulder, not resting, not healing… Look, I met someone just like you… He was under so much pressure to appease his fans and the media that he never told a single person about the pain he was in. The game he loved… his fans… his teammates… he lost it all. I'm sorry… I'd rather that we never become friends than to watch you destroy yourself."

Chris was stunned… this kid didn't even know him and yet he was standing defiant in defense of what he thought was nothing. "Eijun, if I promise to take him to the doctor in the morning, will you relent and come inside," his father asked. Eijun hesitated, looking from Chris to his father.

"You're not just saying that are you?"

"No… I don't think it's anything serious, but as you said, I'd rather make a mountain out of a molehill than find out it's something that could get in his way later."

Eijun was hesitant, looking towards the gates and debating on whether to stay or leave. He liked living on the streets, better than some big house with a roof over his head. There were so many ways to die in a place like this and his terror of Ochiai was a constant reminder that he could never stop looking over his shoulder for him. "Just for today, I'll stay, but I won't promise tomorrow."

The following morning, he had no idea how he found himself in yet another hospital, waiting with Chris's dad while the doctors ran their tests. An hour later, Chris came out with a sling on his shoulder, his expression filled with a mixture of frustration and fear. "Eijun… I…"

"So much for a molehill," Eijun growled. He started to walk away when Chris grabbed his arm and stopped him.

"Do you want nothing to do with me now that I'm useless?"

"Give me a break… You're not useless and I'll kick your ass if you say it again. Did they say you were useless?"

"No, but…"

"Then shut up and get better. Your game isn't for another two weeks… will you recover before then?"

"I think so, but only if I don't do anything to strain my shoulder."

Eijun crossed his arms and gave him a hard look. "You know what… I think I will stick around."

"What for?"

"I have more than one way that I practice and most of my methods don't require a catcher."

"Eijun… Why do I get the feeling that you trained on your own a lot?"

"Does it matter if I did?"

He wanted to say yes, but before he could, Chris's father came out of the doctor's office, his expression pale. Without warning, he placed a large hand on Eijun's hand and gave him a strained smile. "I owe you a lot, Eijun. Thank you."

"You're not mad…" Eijun asked. Chris and his dad looked at him in stunned silence.

"Why would you think that?"

"I know how much he loves baseball and I thought…"

"Eijun, I'm grateful," Chris whispered. "You could have kept your mouth shut last night… I would have continued playing and while I might have lasted for another six months… This wasn't a normal muscle strain. It was already working its way into my shoulder, ribcage and wrist. I can finish the season, but I have to take the fall off to recover."

"I don't want you using that shoulder more than you have to."

"It's not that easy, Eijun."

"It is if I pitch to contact. I will save your arm and future in baseball. No one will hit off of me. That means you need to learn every pitch that I can throw, how I throw it and while you need to trust my arm, I need to trust what you call. Do we have a deal?"

Chris nodded. It wasn't like he had much of a choice. With the finals at the end of next week, he had to do everything he could not to use his shoulder. How did he hide from the media though?