Prologue: Second Best

"Ayu-nee." The plumette girl jumped, having been day dreaming when a hand came to rest on her shoulder. She turned to see her bluenette friend and cousin, Rizusa Ryugazaki, standing there. "Ayu, what are you doing day dreaming?" she sighed. "Come on. We're going."

"Sorry sorry, Rizu-nee~" she smiled. She got up from her seat, moving to follow Rizusa out of the building. "So…" she poked at Rizusa as they walked. "They gave you permissions, right?" she smiled. "To live outside of the conglomerate and on our own?"

"They did." She sighed. "But…" she looked at her hand which was gloved at the moment. "… Can we do it…?" Ayumi pouted, her sister-figure always having this one problem. She was not at all confident in herself as far as being able to take on the task given to her by her only close family. "Grandfather said we had to branch out but…"

"It'll be okay~" Ayumi smiled, Rizusa glancing over her shoulder at the girl. "Rizu-nee can do anything when she tries!" she thrust her fist into the air, grinning. "We'll make the conglomerate so much better! I know it!" Rizusa smiled, closing her eyes and taking a breath.

"You're always worrying about me, aren't you?" Ayumi wanted to say something, but she knew she couldn't… It would make Rizusa sad. She wasn't really worrying so much as falling into her place. Her place as the second pillar of the Four Dragons Conglomerate. The second best… always behind Rizusa. And though much of that was not intentional, some of it had to be. She was taught not to outshine the leader of their organization. She was taught that Rizusa came first. She was always coming up second to the leader. She wasn't resentful about it, she loved Rizusa and doing her best to make her shine since she didn't seem to have much interest in that herself.

"Rizu-nee is the best. So be confident!" Ayumi cheered.

"Yes yes…" they walked home together, but the whole way home Ayumi had it on her mind. It was never Rizusa that she resented. It was her family. They always had this mentality to keep up appearances, always to put themselves as the best but not in an overly showy way… Show them we're the best support pillar. Show them why the Aihara are the best… But that wasn't what Ayumi wanted. Ayumi never wanted to be "the best", she would always rather fall back and let others be the best. She only wanted to be the best at one thing. Being a person that someone would one day be proud to call theirs… she wanted to be the best at showing someone how much she loved them. She did it in a way with Rizusa, but that was different. Rizusa was like family, it was so easy for Ayumi… "So, Ayumi."

"Uwaah!?" she jumped, Rizusa grabbing her arm and pulling her back as she almost walked into the cross walk while the light was red.

"Stop zoning." She sighed. "Are you still looking for a boyfriend?" she asked, Ayumi looking a little apologetic. That wasn't it, but Rizusa was always good at getting at the root of the issue so… maybe this was what she was doing.

"I am~ But all the boys in class are bothersome. They hit on me but I think all they want is to try sex." She pouted. "We're only kids… we have no place doing things like that."

"You're saving yourself for marriage, right?" Rizusa asked, Ayumi blushing a little and nodding. "You're so pure." She ruffled Ayumi's hair.

"Hehe, Rizu-nee are you saying you're not?"

"N-no of course that's not what I'm saying… it's just… that's something I admire about you, Ayumi." Rizusa pouted, avoiding looking at Ayumi. "I mean… you're always so patient…" they walked again as the light changed. "I'm always charging in head first and not taking other things into account…"

"Hehe, that just means you're honest." Ayumi grinned.

"… Does that mean you're not?"

"Hehe. Maybe?" Ayumi and Rizusa continued to talk all the way home. "I like to think of it as I'm able to not be… when necessary."

"Not honest, huh…?" Ayumi sighed, hugging onto the rabbit plush that she had brought with her to UA, sitting alone in her room in the dark. "I mean… I guess I'm not… I can't be serious when I talk to him, after all… right, Bunny?" she nuzzled the plush. "I… I wanna be serious and tell him exactly what I want but…" she gripped the bunny tighter. "I don't wanna scare him either… he's not exactly brave about this stuff so if I scare him… he might hate me…"

"Ayumi." The girl jumped, looking up at the door. "Ayumi, wake up." Rizusa stood on the other side of the door. "We gotta go see the third years, remember?"

"Oh, coming!" she exclaimed, jumping out of bed to get dressed. She put on her "hero outfit", so she liked to call it. A simple black dress and leggings made of tear-proof material, tall white boots and a white jacket lined with fur and imprinted with the Four Dragons Conglomerate insignia on the back. She heard the door open as she was tying her hair up, Rizusa wearing her "business wear" hero outfit. Black skinny jeans, ankle boots, and turtle neck without sleeves. She had her jacket over her arm, and her hair tied up in that messy up-do that Ayumi loved on her. She was even wearing her dragon earrings. "Waah, Rizu-nee you're all dolled up~"

"It's hardly that…" she grumbled, pulling on her jacket as Ayumi closed her door. "Come on… Minako and Emiko are waiting downstairs already."

"Okay~"

"Ne ne, did you hear?" Nejire asked, grinning. Today they were having an actual "class session", this being a meeting with the Four Dragons Conglomerate as a way to talk about being a small group in a huge hero society, as a method of teaching people how difficult putting up your own agency would be in the current environment. "We get to see Rizusa-san and the others today~ They're teaching class, right?"

"They are." Mirio gave her a thumbs up, Nejire cooing about it as the blonde turned to Tamaki. "Are you prepared?"

"I don't know." He said, face planted on the desk. "I don't know if I can handle class with her…"

"She's the teacher though!" Mirio laughed, some of the other students asking the blonde and Nejire about it. Tamaki felt his heart tightening and his anxiety building up since he could hear them talking about him.

"Oh, so Amajiki likes one of the Four Dragons? Which one?"

"She's the one from the sports festival!" another exclaimed.

"Oh, wait, the upper classman right? Ayumi-senpai?"

"That's the one! The Princess of the Four Dragons!"

"That's enough talking." Midnight cracked her whip, leading the Four Dragons in to the room. "Listen up! This is no walk in the park! This class entails a lot of work and team work involved in forming an agency, got it?!"

"Midnight-sensei…" Rizusa sighed. "It's alright… if they kept talking I have methods to make them stop." She motioned to the little dragon doll sitting on her shoulder.

"Oh, right~ Well, please~" Midnight grinned, taking a seat on the side and leaving Rizusa at the front. Tamaki did look up and watch the speech, but he also knew that a certain second pillar of the conglomerate was staring straight at him.

"And with that…" Rizusa turned to her other members, the girls smiling. "Most of you are probably wondering why Ayumi is my second pillar rather than another family." She stated. "The answer is simple."

"We get along the best~" Ayumi grinned. "We've known each other the longest and thus our team play is the best! Put us on the field together and we can't be beat!"

"Oooh, can we test that?!" one student exclaimed, Ayumi grinning.

"If you're ready to go down, then that's fine!" she pointed towards the student, the rest of the class cheering. Tamaki didn't want to, but he was always entranced with Ayumi… she always made things sound fun, despite the anxiety he felt. But it was less anxiety now as nervousness… he felt a nudge, Mirio winking at him.

"Go ask her for a fight."

"Wh-wha…?"

"With a date as stakes."

"D-d-d-daaate…?" Tamaki almost passed out at the thought, face turning bright red. "I-i-I couldn't possibly…" he covered his face, embarrassed beyond reason.

"You totally can, I'm sure senpai would be more than happy to!"

"More than happy to?" They both jumped, turning to see Rizusa as the others lead the rest of the class to the training area. "Tama, I do hope you're not letting another opportunity to spend time with Ayu slip by." She stated, the boy suddenly realizing something.

"I… No, Rizusa-senpai…" he bowed his head.

"Good boy." She pet his head. "Come on… I've given you my permission already to date her… just take every chance you get and make her fall more in love with you already." She added, smiling as steam practically exploded out of his elf-like ears.

"You heard her, let's go!" Mirio exclaimed, Tamaki being dragged along by the boy.

((I've been writing so much for Tamaki and Ayumi I had to put it in here. Along the same time line as my Four Dragons- Rising (Shoto Route) Story, but from Ayumi's side rather than Rizusa's.

I hope you're ready for the fluffiest fic yet, since Tama is way closer to legal than Shoto is...
Stay tuned!

-Winter Cheshire))