DISCAIMER: I don't own Haikyuu! or Lost Song. This fic is just for fun!
Hitoka really really wanted the fabric.
Don't get her wrong, she was fully aware of her family's situation and the fact that her father's pension wasn't enough for unrequired expenses. But still, the fabric had come from Nekoma! The best city to manufacture overcoats. She could make so many coats no one at Karasuno would need for more.
She cast a pleading eye up at her father. "Please," Hitoka said, eyes shining with determination. She was going to get that fabric. "Can't we just buy that one?"
"No," Daichi replied, walking ahead of her. "We don't have any need."
"But I do!" Hitoka yelled, stomping her foot. Then she froze.
Oh no. Nope nope. She didn't just yell at her father. Nope she definitely did it. Now he wouldn't take her around the market anymore. Or let her play with Shouyou in the evening. Or ever! And maybe he would tell Suga how bad she was and he would NEVER EVER COME TO PLAY WITH HER EVER-
"Hitoka." Two strong hands landed on her shoulder, snapping Hitoka out of her internal panic. She looked up. Daichi's usually frowning expression was replaced with concern.
"Listen," he said, "I know you want that. But we can't afford it." His face twisted into a grimace, the scar over his mouth in sudden prominence. Hitoka never liked that thin jagged red line. "We'll save some more for this."
Hitoka wanted to say this fair happens once a year. What came out of her said, "Okay."
Daichi sighed, relieved. He took her hand, while Hitoka gazed longingly at the fabrics. "Come on, I know the best shop to buy the pastries from Nekoma was just this way..."
"And you didn't buy the fabric?" Shouyou asked, munching on an apple as Hitoka recounted today's events to her best friend.
"No," she sighed, weighed down by the exhaustion of all her 15 years living. "I didn't buy the fabric."
Hinata Shouyou had been Hitoka's best friend for her entire life. He and his uncle Sugawara visited her and her father almost every week and in turn she and Daichi would visit them a few days later. Shouyou complained that they should've moved in already with Hitoka's dad to reduce the travel from their houses, much to her amusement (and Suga-san's reddening face).
Either way, one of their favourite ways to kill time was to observe Suga-san and Daichi's interactions when they thought the teenagers were busy. They had seen some amusing moments (and some romantic ones) but today, much to their chagrin, Suga-san didn't accompany Shouyou.
"Why didn't Suga-san come today?" Hitoka asked, wanting to change the subject. She didn't want to think of the beautiful soft Nekoma fabrics.
"Oh!" Shouyou sat up, finishing his apple. "Suga-san had something to do! I think he was seeing a patient when we were supposed to leave."
Sugawara was Karasuno's resident doctor. His cheerful demeanor and knowledge on medicinal plants made him the perfect person to get remedies from. Shouyou had been living with Sugawara for nearly his life, when his mother moved back in with her brother.
"Anyway," Shouyou began, looking around Hitoka's room. "Have you heard about the Star Song Festival?"
"Who hasn't?" Hitoka smiled. "I know it's going to happen in a few months!"
Hitoka loved singing. And there was only one event all singers looked forward to in the kingdom of Seijoh.
To say she wasn't excited for the festival was an understatement. The Star Song Festival, held every year in the Capital. There was a legend that if you sing your wishes to the star, they will come true. Every year the most famous songstress, Shimizu Kiyoko sings at the festival. While no one of the common populace has ever seen her, there were rumours of her beauty being compared with the loveliest flower, her voice as beautiful as a perfected melody, and her skin flawlessly fair.
When she had first heard of the festival she had immediately begged her father to let her sing there. It would be a once in a lifetime opportunity! And she might get invited to perform with the Royal Orchestra! Her dreams would come true! But he was angry at her for even suggesting the idea, and forbade her from going to the Capital.
"WIll you sing there?" Shouyou asked, snapping Hitoka out of her reverie. "You are the best singer I know!"
She sighed. "I don't know." She fiddled with her fingers, a habit when she wasn't sure about anything. "You remember what happened last time."
Shouyou's face changed into one of understanding and defeat. "Oh, yeah. I had never seen Daichi-san like that before."
"Me too," Hitoka said, now focusing her attention on the papers scattered across her desk.
She was finishing the designs of a dress. Something was still missing though. Maybe ruffled sleeves?
"Hey!" A loud voice, screeching like an owl, made Hitoka and Shouyou turn their attention to the door. "Daichi!" the newcomer cried out, and Hitoka relaxed. Suga-san was here! She banished all thoughts of her conversation before she started spiralling down the dark and ran along with Shouyou downstairs to greet Sugawara.
"You would not believe what just happened!" Sugawara said in lieu of greeting the teenagers as he set some groceries on the table. Hitoka beamed at the sight. It looked like Suga-san and Shouyou will stay for dinner tonight!
"Pray, do tell," Daichi said, leaning on the table. Hitoka and Shouyou took their seats at the table, excitedly leaning their arms over it, ready to hear whatever new gossip Suga-san heard concerning their tiny village of Karasuno.
"Right," Sugawara pushed his hair back, and grinned. Then he froze, as if remembering something. "Right! This isn't for your ears to hear, Hitoka-chan and Shouyou-chan." He added sheepishly, rubbing his neck.
"Awww!" Shouyou splayed across the table, nearly knocking the groceries off the table. "Why not!"
Daichi cracked a smile at Shouyou's antics. Wincing in pain at the movement, he brought up a hand to his mouth, gingerly touching the injury. The scar still hurt, even after years.
Suga glanced at Daichi, concerned, but quickly disguised it with glee. "You're too young for it."
"We are not too young!" Shouyou exclaimed, with Hitoka nodding in agreement.
"We're fifteen," she said, crossing her arms over her chest. She wasn't a child!
Shouyou jumped up from his seat. "Yes! I can do a handstand!" And proceeded to do a handstand, nearly knocking over a flower vase, which Hitoka barely saved from its alternate end of turning into little porcelain shards.
Daichi let out a sigh. "Shouyou-chan," he said, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Doing a handstand doesn't mean you're old enough to listen to gossip."
"I'M FIFTEEN! Others my age have already enlisted in the army!"
"Where did that come from?!"
Sugawara stifled giggles behind his hand, while Hitoka sighed.
Sugawara started rummaging through the groceries, starting to prepare dinner while Hitoka watched him intently. He bit his lip in concentration, his forehead developing wrinkles with each second passing and effortlessly tuning out Daichi's and Shouyou's voices in the background.
"Oh no!" Sugawara cried. Shouyou and Daichi stopped their bickering to look at Sugawara.
"I forgot to collect berries!" Sugawara said, shaking his head. "They're an important ingredient!" He slapped a hand to his forehead. "Must have forgotten them in a hurry to get here."
"We can make do without berries, Suga," Daichi said, making his way over to him and patting his shoulder.
"What part of they're an important ingredient did you not understand Daichi?" Suga put a hand on his hips, giving Daichi a brief heart attack, which thankfully went unnoticed by Hitoka and Shouyou.
While Daichi stuttered at this new realisation that Suga could give him chest pains just by smiling, Hitoka and Shouyou came over to help find the berries if they were in the bag and Suga had just not seen them while taking the ingredients out. It wouldn't have been the first time it happened.
Suga hummed, then snapped his fingers. "I know! Why don't you two go out to the forest?" He directed it to Shouyou and Hitoka, who immediately froze on Sugawara's attention.
"What?" Shouyou asked, who had zoned out on seeing a caterpillar on an okra.
"You and Hitoka can go out and collect berries!" Suga repeated, his smile getting wider, showing off his pearly whites. "Me and Daichi will wait for you!"
"I don't know…" Hitoka trailed off, fiddling with her fingers and lowering her head. She was content to stay in here, not go out and fight animals for berries! Oh God, what if they came across a rabid squirrel? That animal would bite without hesitation! And Hitoka would be too shocked to call for help and by then the squirrel would've finished off Shouyou, no matter how high he could jump, and they would die of infection and Suga-san and her dad would be none the wiser-
"We'll stay close to the edges!" Shouyou slapped a hand on the table, making everyone flinch. "Right, Hitoka!" He looked expectantly at her.
"I-I mean… I guess we could…?"
"PERFECT!" He grabbed her hand and they ran out of the house, ignoring Daichi's yells of "Be careful!"
"DON'T MISS US TOO MUCH!" Shouyou yelled back, not slowing down for even a moment.
"SHOUYOU SLOW DOWN!" was the last thing the men heard as the teens disappeared over the hill.
Suga and Daichi shared a look, and burst into laughter. Kids these days.
Still chuckling, Daichi turned to Suga. "So what was the thing?"
"Honestly, I didn't think I'd get this far," Suga awkwardly laughed, suddenly regretting sending the teens outside. How would he stay with Daichi, alone, in here?
Hitoka flopped down on the ground, arms splayed across the forest floor. Beside her, Shouyou imitated her and laid down. Both of them were so tired from picking berries for dinner. While they had picked enough to last them for months, they were kids, not manual labour!
Shouyou let out a huge yawn, effectively distracting Hitoka and making her yawn too. Yawning was contagious.
"I'm so tired," Hitoka said, turning to face Shouyou, using her arm as a pillow for her head. The grass tickled her skin.
"Me too," he agreed, stretching his limbs. Shouyou huffed, letting his hands fall to his sides.
Hitoka mirrored him, the sunlight making her a bit sleepy. It was still noon.
"Hey," Shouyou said softly, breaking Hitoka out of her sleepiness. She hummed to let him know she was listening. When Shouyou didn't say anything else for a while, she turned to face him.
Shouyou was fiddling with his hands, a rare show of nervousness. Huh, this was new.
"I don't - I don't really know how to ask this," he said, refusing to meet Hitoka's light brown eyes. "But - UGH, this is really hard."
"What is?" Hitoka tried keeping her tone light, hoping this wasn't too serious.
After seemingly wrestling with himself for a while, Shouyou finally asked, "Why did you stop singing?"
Oh. Singing.
What should she say? That she missed it so much? That her days were always a little dull when she would listen to the townsfolk sing but couldn't sing along with them? "You know I'm not supposed to talk about it," was what she settled for, instantly regretting it on looking at the expression on Shouyou's face.
"WHYYY?" he whined. "I already know what's so special about your songs, so why can't you sing?"
"Because they're special," she replied, sighing. "And because my dad said so."
"I don't buy it. If your songs are special enough to be their own light show, you should sing more!"
You see, Hitoka's songs were special. When she sang a particular song she healed wounds. And during her harmonisation of the song soft, warm colourful lights would surround her, warming her up inside and outside. On the last note, she would feel energised enough to run around the town 3 times.
But for some reason, he didn't want her to sing that particular song. Even more, her dad didn't want her singing anything. He wanted her to give up singing altogether.
It was safe to say that had been one of the biggest fights Hitoka had ever gotten into with her dad.
A thump snapped Hitoka's and Shouyou's attention to the forest. Realising that they may not be alone, Hitoka's heart sped up. Was someone there?
Shouyou, bless Shouyou's 15 year old teenage curious mind, started to move towards the sound. Hitoka grabbed his arm.
"What are you doing?" she whispered frantically.
"Going to check what's there, duh." Shouyou rolled his eyes. He gently pried his arm from her grasp, and went deeper into the forest, from where the sound came from. "You coming or no?"
Between dying alone and dying with Shouyou it was pretty obvious what the better option was.
"I'm coming!" Hitoka patted her skirt, flinging away the grass stuck and followed him. She didn't let go of his arm once she grabbed him.
Within minutes they came across an injured man.
Shouyou let go of Hitoka's hand and ran towards him, while Hitoka gasped. He started checking the man's breathing, temperature and heartbeat, using the skills gained from observing his uncle.
While Shouyou checked him, Hitoka decided to observe the man. He had short spiky hair, with a frowning expression, though that may be due to his injuries. He had a sword strapped to his belt, the hilt engraved with gems. The front of his armor showed a crest, with three leaves joined at base on a shield. The borders of the shield were covered with vines and leaves, the base vines flowing outwards. His cape was of light turquoise.
Hitoka took in a shuddering breath. This man was a knight of Seijoh. He must have come from the Capital. But what was he doing here, at the outskirts of the kingdom?
"Is he okay?" Hitoka asked, when the silence became too stifling.
Shouyou shook his head in response. "His heartbeat is there, but slow. His breathing is also shallow."
Oh no! That man was in a much worse condition than she originally thought!
"We should get some medicine then!" Hitoka said, waving her hands.
Shouyou's expression became grave. "We might not make it. This man is dying."
Hitoka wanted to stomp her foot, or scream. Why couldn't they help him?
An idea blossomed in her mind. She knew she would be disobeying, and potentially incurring her father's wrath if she did this but there was no other way to help him. Sorry dad. But I have to help him.
"I'll sing it."
Shouyou looked taken aback, as he blinked. "You'll sing what?"
Hitoka tried to steady her resolve. Backing down now wouldn't help. "I'll sing that song."
"Are you serious?!" Shouyou jumped up. He grabbed her hand. "You can't! Daichi-san will have our heads! We'll get medicines! We can run fast enough!"
"You yourself said it, we can't get medicines in time," Hitoka replied.
"What if someone sees us?" Shouyou said, panic seeping into his voice.
"Then would you let this man die? He is a knight of the Capital! He might give us answers!"
Shouyou grimaced, his normally sunny disposition gone. Hitoka gulped. Seconds seemed to turn into hours.
Finally Shouyou sighed. "Fine, sing that song. We can't get medicines anyway. And we should help him."
Trying not to jump at the opportunity Hitoka made her way towards the knight and knelt down beside him. Placing her hand on his arm, she took in a deep breath.
And began to sing.