And we're back with another chapter. The last chapter got a little too long, so I had to cut it into two parts. I hope you like the story so far. Hope everyone is staying safe in quarantine. Thanks again to the Fat King Pig for editing.
ooo
It seemed that none of them were aware just who she could become, the power that she held in her hands. It was for that reason that she set herself a limit, a line that she would never cross. But it seemed that people liked to test her patience more than she liked.
ooo
"Kenma, hurry up. We're going to miss it otherwise." Bokuto yelled out to the younger setter as they walked down the hallway. Having received an email from Hinata that they were playing Shiratorizawa in the finals the next day, Kenma had told Kuroo of the news. Unfortunately, that probably was a mistake seeing as Kuroo got Bokuto on the line and decided to go watch the Miyagi Prefecture Finals, meaning that Kenma and Akaashi had to tag along.
"Calm down Bokuto. They're going to be playing five sets, so we won't really miss anything." Akaashi told the elder as they headed up the stairs to the bleachers. The four of them made their way to the last row of the bleachers and took their seats.
"That's my boy!" Bokuto yelled, spotting Hinata flying in the air as he spiked Kageyama's set straight down. The cheering squad for Karasuno went wild as Hinata and Kageyama slapped hands.
"They've gotten better. Especially their receiving." Kuroo commented as the two teams continued to play against each other.
"Doing all those diving punishments worked out in the end." Akaashi said, watching Hinata as the boy went to spike down, only to be blocked by a boy double his height.
"What on earth was that?" Kenma asked, sitting up in his seat as he stared down at the scene below. One by one, Shiratorizawa's number 5 kept blocking all the spikes.
"Kageyama's getting irritated." Akaashi said, giving Kuroo and Kenma a look from the corner of his eyes. Kenma usually didn't have any interest towards the way something was done as long as the end result was possible, but for him to be actually watching this intensely was a surprise. The four of them continued to watch the game as Tsukishima tried to coincide with Shiratorizawa's players to effectively block their spikes when a voice called out to them from behind.
"What are you doing here?" Kuroo turned around and made a face at the newcomer.
"You!" The rest of the group turned around to see Oikawa standing behind them. The third year had a navy coat on and glasses, so he looked very different to the captain they saw on the court.
"More importantly, what are you doing here?" Kuroo asked as Oikawa jumped over the seats and took a seat next to Kuroo.
"I'm hiding from someone. They would never expect me to come sit with you people, hence the reason I'm here. That doesn't explain why two Tokyo teams are here though." Oikawa said, brushing his hair out of his eyes.
"You're the Grand King!" Bokuto finally realized who Oikawa was. Oikawa tilted his head at the name before the recognition hit him.
"Grand King? You must know Chibi-chan." Oikawa said as he looked down at the match that was ongoing.
"I practically raised him." Bokuto said, getting a weird look from Oikawa.
"Look at Shiratorizawa's setter." Kenma said at one point during the game and Akaashi looked over at the player. The two could tell that setter for Shiratorizawa was starting to feel the pressure of the game and set the ball too low for Ushijima.
"It's low." Akaashi said as he sat forwards, watching as Ushijima slammed his hand down and spiked the ball, only for it to rebound off of Tsukishima's hands.
"He… he was waiting for that wasn't he?" Kuroo asked with wide eyes as the crowd went wild. Kenma nodded and Oikawa bit back a curse. He noticed that the blond glasses from Karasuno was playing differently compared to when Aoba Josai played them.
"Don't act as if you don't do this kind of stuff yourself Kuroo." Akaashi bluntly pointed out.
"I've always had pure intentions. I don't go doing sneaky stuff like that." Kuroo retorted, gesturing at Tsukishima. He went to continue was cut off by Akaashi, who saved the rest of the group from a long speech.
"They're tied now." Akaashi said.
"Shiratorizawa doesn't look happy." Bokuto said, grinning as he saw his friends having a team meeting before the third set started.
"Of course they wouldn't. Unlike other teams, Shiratorizawa values individual talents and buildings a team based on that. So, the fact that Megane-kun blocked their spear would be a little annoying." Oikawa replied only to get kicked in the head from behind.
"Answer your phone you idiot!" A boy's voice snapped at Oikawa and the group sitting with Oikawa turned around to see his childhood friends. While Iwaizumi was dressed in normal wear, Kagome was wearing her volleyball uniform and jersey with her volleyball bag slung on her shoulder.
"Iwa-chan that hurts." Oikawa whined as he rubbed the back of his head.
"I didn't think you were going to watch." Oikawa asked as Iwaizumi hopped over the seats and sat one away from Oikawa.
"Don't mind him, Tooru. He's just mad that Oba-san woke him up on his day off." Kagome told Oikawa.
"Iwa-chan, why can't you be more like Tsuki-chan?" Oikawa replied, gaining another slap from the boy.
"You two are such idiots. Just date each other and leave me in peace." Kagome muttered under her breath so neither boy could hear. She sat down in between them, setting her bag on the ground, and turned her gaze to the match below.
"You said that you weren't going to come because it'd piss you off, no matter who won." Iwaizumi finally said.
"No matter which side wins, I'm gonna be able to see the other team's faces when they lose." Oikawa said.
"Are you always this annoying?" Kuroo finally asked Oikawa, causing the boy to snap back at him.
"Stop baiting him Kuroo." Akaashi said.
"I don't have time to sit around feeling sorry for myself. Entrance exams are coming up after all." Oikawa replied.
"It's already that time huh?" Kagome sighed out, slipping her volleyball jacket off and laid it in her lap. With that, their conversation came to halt as they watched the game progress.
"Isn't that Karasuno's 3rd year setter?" Iwaizumi asked as the start of the next set was called out.
"Tobio-chan isn't starting?" Oikawa was a little confused.
"He's been moving around the most in the game, hence his energy level has dropped." Kagome told them.
"This might be a little too much for Refreshing-kun, don't you think?" Oikawa said aloud.
"Oi. That's rude you know." Bokuto told Oikawa, but Akaashi agreed with Oikawa. They were well into the match and to switch the setters all of a sudden could disrupt the flow of the game, for better or for worse.
"That toss was too low." Kagome said aloud, and Kenma had to agree with the girl. It was low. Not only that, but the game felt entirely different now that Sugawara was the setter.
"Huh? Why is he receiving it first?" Bokuto asked, and it was then that they saw Karasuno's libero jump from the center line and perform a set.
"From a libero setting to a synchronized attack with everyone but the libero?" Iwaizumi said aloud with shock as he watched the play below.
"I'm impressed." Kagome was genuinely shocked. Maybe now they had a chance.
"I think we need to rethink some of our strategies before we play against Karasuno next." Kuroo said to Kenma, and the smaller boy nodded.
"The only way you're playing Karasuno is if you beat us, ya know." Bokuto said with a wide grin on his face.
"Are you challenging me Bo?" Kuroo asked.
"We have a month before we have our qualifiers so stop riling each other." Akaashi told them.
"Tsuki-chan, don't you have your own game soon?" Oikawa asked Kagome as they continued to watch Karasuno play Shiratorizawa.
"Mm. You're coming to watch right?" Oikawa and Iwaizumi both nodded.
"Oh, you're in the finals too?" Bokuto asked Kagome, who nodded in return.
"We should go watch them too. Hinata said they wrecked our girls' team when they had a practice match." Bokuto said to Akaashi.
"What happened? Did Tsukishima get hurt?" Kuroo finally asked, drawing the attention back to the game. They watched as the tall blonde left with their manager out the doors and another player was subbed in.
"This isn't going to end well." Kagome said.
"Their moral has gone down." Iwaizumi added on as they watched Shiratorizawa rise up again and gain points at a rapid pace.
"Karasuno needs Megane-kun to win." Oikawa said in a serious tone, causing Kuroo to mumble some choice words under his breath. Kenma was glad they had never played against Aoba Josai at the moment. Having Kuroo in the same room as Oikawa didn't seem to end well.
"Yes!" Bokuto yelled as he stood up from his seat and cheered. Akaashi looked up at his captain in surprise, though he should be used to it. He had been wondering why the older boy was cheering when Karasuno was one point away from losing when he saw Tsukishima running out of the doors back onto the court. Tsukishima was immediately subbed back in and Karasuno began their slow and steady retake.
"What happened to Megane-kun? At the first practice match, I thought he was just a tall guy that was slightly intelligent. I guess it's no surprise that Shiratorizawa took a timeout." Oikawa said, looking down as Shiratorizawa team huddled together near their coach.
"Karasuno really is versatile. I've never seen Megane-kun do a slide hit. Even if he was just a decoy." Iwaizumi said, crossing his arms. The game continued on as the last set kept going. The rallies got longer and both teams were running low on endurance.
"I have to admit though. Kageyama does do good work." Kagome said aloud as she watched her old kouhai performing sets here and there.
"Did you notice it too? Apparently, when Megane-kun came back, he gave them some kind of directions on blocking." Oikawa told his friends as Tsukishima blocks another spike from Shiratorizawa's side.
"He's gotten better. I wonder what made him change." Iwaizumi replied.
"We won't easily abandon a near perfect time difference attack and Shiratorizawa will change their style of strengthening individual strengths. That's why we're called powerhouse schools now." Oikawa said. The players from Nekoma and Fukurodani were listening as Kagome began to talk.
"That's true. Karasuno on the other hand probably doesn't have a style they need to protect. They may have had one when they were a powerhouse school. That's why they don't hesitate to try new things." Kagome told them, pausing before looking down at Kageyama and Hinata.
"Either one of them winning is going to piss me off, so they should both lose." Oikawa said, leaning forward.
"You really are a crappy guy." Bokuto and Kuroo started laughing at the nickname
"Could you stop calling me a 'crappy guy'?" Oikawa replied.
"Pick between that or a 'shitty guy'." Iwaizumi said.
"Well, then I guess I choose 'crappy'!" Oikawa snapped back.
"Stop arguing and pay attention." Kagome told them, jabbing both boys in the sides.
"Their quick has gotten faster. It probably would make it hard for me to receive now." Oikawa gave Kagome a scandalous look.
"You helped them?" Kagome sighed, knowing this was bound to come up.
"Kageyama asked me to watch his quick. And I did, but I also received it for them." Kagome replied.
"Stop flirting with the enemy Tsuki-chan." Oikawa grumbled.
"Huh? Flirting? Tooru, get a grip. Besides, it looks like he's thrown his crown away." Kagome told Oikawa.
"That's not the point." Oikawa pouted, as Iwaizumi turned to her.
"So, does Shirabu know you're here?" Kagome nodded.
"We talked things out a week ago, though it will probably take some time before things go back to usual." Kagome replied. The crowd was silent as Hinata synchronized with the rest of the team and jumped. As he went flying, Kageyama set a toss to him and Hinata spiked it down, ending the match. Bokuto and Kuroo jumped to their feet and began cheering as the match was called.
"Your student isn't that bad." Iwaizumi said.
"He's not my student!" Oikawa grumbled back.
"It seems I won't be able to talk to my brother. Warm up will be starting soon." Kagome said, getting up to her feet. Swinging her jacket on, she picked up her bag and put that over her shoulder.
"Damn it, why doesn't that bastard Ushiwaka look more upset?" Oikawa grumbled as he stood up from his seat, watching Shiratorizawa walk to the base line to bow. Iwaizumi stood up as well, and Kagome sighed. She probably shouldn't tell Oikawa that Ushijima was planning on going to Tokyo as well. The three of them stepped back over the seats into the back aisle, and Oikawa began to usher Iwaizumi towards the exit.
"You really are a crappy guy." Iwaizumi told him. Kagome looked back down just in time to see the Shiratorizawa team greet their audience. She smiled and waved a hand when she saw her brother finally spot her in the crowd. He gave her a nod before turning his attention to his teammates.
"Ja ne. Good luck making it to Nationals." Kuroo bit back as snarl as he recognized the fake smile Kagome put on her face.
"Let me know if you need anything." Kagome told Kenma before she walked off in the direction of Oikawa and Iwaizumi.
"Kenma, what was that?" Kuroo asked his friend, but the setter wasn't keen on talking and pulled out his game console.
"Oi! Kenma? Kenma!" Kuroo began to whine as his childhood friend ignored him.
"I'll be right back." Akaashi said, getting up from his seat.
"Oi Akaashi, where are you going?" Bokuto yelled at his teammate.
"Bathroom."
ooo
"Do you two even know where you're going?" Kagome asked, having caught up with Oikawa and Iwaizumi.
"Of course we do Tsuki-chan. Maki and Mattsun are there already." Oikawa replied as they walked down the hallway to the second gymnasium when Kagome's name was called out.
"Go ahead and find seats. I'll see you guys after the game." Kagome said, waving her friends off. Then, Kagome turned around to see Fukurodani's setter, Akaashi, standing in front of her.
"I'm sorry to keep you from going to your game, but you said the last time I had no right to tell you such things. Can I ask for clarification on that?" Akaashi asked the girl.
"Akaashi-san, have you figured out what you're going to do after you graduate?" Kagome asked. Akaashi shook his head, still deciding between two options.
"Let's say you want to become a professional athlete, but your parents want you to go into business. What would you do?" Kagome questioned.
"Business. If it were my parents, I'd want to impress them and want to make them proud." Akaashi replied.
"Even if you despise their choice of career?" Akaashi nodded.
"Why?" Kagome was genuinely confused. The boy in front of her would throw his dreams away in order to please his parents.
"Let's say I go pro and am not scouted or injure myself. What would I do then? I would have to go back to school just to get my degree to go into another career path." Akaashi told Kagome. Kagome could see where he was going with this.
"On the other hand, let's say my parents are in the upper echelons of the business world. It would mean my family has a history in business. If you were the child of such parents, would you really throw away everything your family has built up just for your own personal whim?" Akaashi asked.
"Even if you are forced into something you don't want?" Kagome asked.
"Family is important. They are the people that are always on your side, no matter what. They look out for you. They raised you. I would want to pay them back for all they've done."
ooo
"Where are they?" Hanamaki asked, noticing that the Seijou girls' team was in the middle of warming up.
"The champions always come in late." Matsukawa said. The doors to the gymnasium swung open and the crowd roared with excitement as the Shiratorizawa team took the court, following behind their captain as she lead them.
"Always one for theatrics." Iwaizumi grinned as the girls finally huddled around their coach as she gave them a few words of advice before they headed to warm up.
"What's Karasuno doing here?" Oikawa and Iwaizumi looked up to see what Hanamaki had been talking about to see Karasuno's team sitting in the middle of the audience along with the players from Fukurodani and Nekoma.
"Beats me." Oikawa replied and returned his attention to the girls. Once the warmup was called, the teams stood in the middle of the court, one on each side of the net as the announcers began their speech. One by one, they introduced the Seijou's girls' team and their coach before moving on to the Shiratorizawa team.
"Number 1, Captain Shirabu Kagome!" Kagome heard the screams as she jogged up to her coach and manager, clapping their hands before returning to the lineup. Following her, the rest of her teammates were called. When that had finished, the referee called for the captains of both teams to come forward to shake hands and decide who would start with the ball.
"This is just like any other game we've played before. There's no going back." Kagome told her teammates as they stood in a circle. Shiratorizawa was going to be receiving first.
"This is the last tournament for us third years. So, all stakes on this match." Kagome said as the girls their hands in the middle before breaking apart. The starting members headed onto the courts and took their places. With the whistle, Seijou's player served the ball across the net and Shiratorizawa's setter set it towards Kagome.
"Let's start this with a bang, shall we?" Kagome said, running up to where the ball was headed and jumped. The girls on the other team were ready for her to set the ball to another member only for her to spike the ball down onto the ground, gaining Shiratorizawa their first point. The crowd descended into cheers as the marker for Shiratorizawa's team changed from zero to one.
ooo
In the audience, the Karasuno team felt a sense of deja vu as they flashed back to when they had their first official match against Oikawa and Aoba Josai. It was then that the team actually realized that they knew nothing about the captain of the Shiratorizawa girls' team, despite their reoccurring run-ins with her.
"Ne, Kageyama-kun, who exactly is Shirabu Kagome?" Daichi asked. Around him, heads turned towards Kageyama, who had been watching Kagome play.
"Kagome-senpai… she, along with Oikawa-san and Iwaizumi-san, are childhood friends. She's a setter like Oikawa but focuses more on speed. Her name came up a lot during my second year. Despite being the captain of the team, she never ended up playing in the Spring Tournament." Kageyama said, thinking about his next words before continuing.
"If I'm correct, I believe this is her first Spring High at Shiratorizawa." Kageyama told his teammates.
"Isn't she a third year though? You're saying she hasn't played in a tournament since her second year of junior high?" Sugawara asked, and Kageyama nodded.
"If she's a setter, how was she able to receive your quick? Even Nishinoya wasn't able to do that at the time." Sugawara told him.
"She played as libero." Kageyama raised an eyebrow. He wasn't expecting Kuroo to know the answer to that.
"I cornered Lev after he was practicing one day. She switched to libero for some time before going back to setter." Kuroo explained.
"Ah! I forgot completely about it after that night. Kageyama, she's the one that ambushed me in the Fukurodani locker room. " All eyes turned to Hinata as he confessed how she had spoken the same words from before causing him to remember.
"Fukurodani too? Did they break into every school or something?" Kuroo grumbled.
"Wait, so she's the one who wrote Akaashi a love letter?" Bokuto asked. Hinata shrugged his shoulders, not really sure whether the letter was real or not. Akaashi pondered on the claim. While Hinata wasn't one to lie, he couldn't imagine Shiratorizawa's captain sneaking into their locker room to deliver a love letter to him, especially after their latest encounter. It wasn't as if the two were on friendly terms.
"That would be impossible. We have only met in passing." Akaashi replied. The topic was dropped momentarily as their attention was turned back to the game. Shiratorizawa had easily taken the first set from Seijou and were in the middle of the second set when a time out was called from Seijou's side. Both teams headed to their coaches, where they were given time to grab a drink of water and get advice from their coach.
"What happened?" Nishinoya was confused. Nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary on the court or with the plays so he, along with his teammates, didn't understand why Seijou had taken the time out when they heard some boys in front of them talking.
"It's her. It's actually her."
"Who?"
"Huh? You don't recognize her?"
"Explain so a social recluse like me can understand please."
"That's Shirabu Kagome. She was hailed as one of the best female setters of the league during junior high, placing high in the overall setter ranking in the country."
"How come no one knows her?"
"She vanished from the courts during her third year at Kitagawa Daichi."
"Ok. So, what's got the other team afraid? If she hasn't played since then, haven't her skills gone down?"
"No, the exact opposite actually. She's the true manipulator of the court. It's fact that you don't know that you're caught in her trap until it's over. Rumor has it that her style gained her a nickname during her time at Kitagawa Daichi. She was known as Kitagawa Daichi's Siren."
"I see they've finally figured it out." Kagome looked ahead to see Sango grinning at her.
"It took them too long. They didn't figure it out during Inter High." Mirai replied.
"It changes nothing." Kagome told them and they nodded. The timeout had ended, and it was Shiratorizawa's turn to serve. Kagome stood on the back line, ball in hand as she stared across the court. She bounced the ball a few times before gripping it in her hands once again.
"Trial one" Kagome tossed the ball and began to run. As the ball came back down, she jumped up and slammed her hand on the ball. The court was silent as the ball touched the ground on the other side before roaring as Shiratorizawa gained a point.
"Was it just me, or did that look like Oikawa's serve?" Daichi pointed out.
"You're not the only one."
ooo
"Congrats Tsuki!" Oikawa jumped her once she had left the changing room, giving her a big hug. The rest of the girls had gone ahead to meet up with their coach.
"Thanks Tooru. How did I do?" Kagome asked the four 3rd years. Matsukawa gave her a small smile, ruffling Kagome's hair to which she slapped his hand away.
"You were amazing." Iwaizumi told her while Hanamaki gave her a fist bump.
"I have to go now, but I'll see you guys next weekend." Kagome waved her hand before heading to her bus. She could hear their cheers and laughter from far away as she got closer to the bus.
"Kagome!" Kagome heard Sango shout her name as she boarded the bus. Giving Sango a small smile, she headed to the back of the bus where Sango was sitting with Rin and Mirai.
"We did it. We're going to Nationals!" Sango cheered, inciting cheers from the other girls as they all began to talk about their game and the upcoming tournament.
"Ladies, I hate to cut into your excitement. Give me a few minutes." The Coach said, grabbing out a clipboard.
"You girls played very well today. I was impressed. However, there is a lot we still need to work on. Passes need to be cleaner and there needs to be more power behind your spikes. Play as if you are playing in the male league. Shiratorizawa has no needs for those without strength unless you can back up your skill in another way. Tomorrow, we will start training for Nationals. We have 2 months to perfect everything before we head to Tokyo." The Coach told her players as she flipped through her clipboard of notes from their game.
"That being said, I was contacted by Nekoma and Fukurodani. They are looking to have us join their training camp in a few weeks." Confusion spread throughout the team.
"Um, Coach, I hate to brag like this, but we thrashed Nekoma and Fukurodani when we had a practice match during summer." One of the second years stated.
"Oh, I know that. They, however, will not be the ones you will be playing against." Another player made a comment, but quickly muffled her voice so their coach wouldn't hear the complaint.
"You will be playing against the boy's teams. So be ready for practice."
"Why did they approach you Coach? It's odd that a boys' team would want to practice with a girls' team." Mirai asked.
"Indeed. I had the same question. Apparently, there has been some rule-breaking while we have been out of town. Expect due punishment when we get there." And with that remark, the bus exploded with noise. Most of the girls were still partying about their success in the Miyagi Prefecture Playoffs while some were praying for their captain and vice-captain's survival.
"How did she figure it out?" Mirai wondered. Kagome sighed, feeling another headache coming in the future. As usual, dealing with Sango always had its consequences. She wondered if this is how Iwaizumi felt about Oikawa all the time.
"They must have ratted us out. That stupid captain of theirs." Sango said, puffing out her cheeks at the thought of Kuroo (is there supposed to be a comma here)and Rin snorted.
"No, you don't. You like their captain." Rin leered back, causing a fight to breakout between the two. Kagome, having no energy to deal with them, slid closer to Mirai and the two began to chat quietly about the following spring.
"What did your counselor say for your career meeting?" Mirai asked Kagome.
"She told me that I could go into medicine or law if I chose since my grades are top notch. But it's been decided that I'll be taking over the company instead." Kagome told Mirai.
"What? I thought you wanted to go with medicine before. What happened?" Mirai pondered, confused as to why Kagome switched her career choice.
"I don't want to force my brother to take over just because I'm stepping down. If anything, I feel like I am desecrating my parent's final wishes by not accepting heirship." Kagome replied, telling Mirai not to tell anyone about her choice.
"What about you?"
"I know that anything relating to math or science isn't a good idea. I'm not very good with those concepts. As you know, I've been dabbling in fashion designing a lot and brought that up. My counselor suggested going into art or design." Mirai explained how her meeting had went.
"I can see that. It would suit you." Mirai grinned, her cheeks turning pink as she began to show Kagome some of her newer designs she had done on her phone.
"What university are you going to go to? Have you decided?" Kagome asked Mirai. Mirai shook her head.
"I'm stuck between Tohoku and Kyoto. They both have really good design departments. Or I can always go to a design-centered university." Mirai replied.
"Both universities will be lucky to have you as a student." Kagome told Mirai.
"Speak for yourself, Kagome. Aren't you the one that got an offer from an American university?"
ooo
Kagome just wanted to die on the spot. She already regretted having her permission slips signed and turned in. The last 3 weeks were spent in agony as she pushed her body to the limits during practice. Every day, many of the girls would drop to the ground with exhaustion, some sporting bruises from playing.
"Come on, it's not that bad." Their libero said, poking Kagome in the side as Kagome looked up at Nekoma's campus with a look of disdain.
"It is. I think I'm going to die here." Kagome replied, letting out a sigh. Sango walked up from behind, patting Kagome on the arm with sympathy as their team headed towards the school's gymnasium. The Tokyo teams had just had their playoffs with both Nekoma and Fukurodani claiming spots in Nationals.
"As long as they don't come near us, I'm good." Sango replied.
"We're going to be playing them. So, unless you have a disease of being near them, I think you're gonna have to compromise. Besides, Coach still hasn't said what the punishment is going to be." Mirai told Sango. The girls entered the gym to see the boys' teams on the floor with their coaches. Hearing their entrance, the boys turned and watched as the girls made their way towards them.
"Thank you for inviting us to your training camp. And congratulations for both teams making it to Nationals." Shiratorizawa's coach said, shaking hands with Nekoma's and Fukurodani's coaches.
"We're delighted to have you. Congratulations on being Miyagi's Representative." Nekoma's coach, Coach Nekomata, told the girls where the changing rooms were, and the team headed to get ready for practice.
"Remember to take cold showers for tonight." Kagome told the girls as they began to change into their practice outfits, slipping their jackets on top.
"Huh? Why?" One of their first years asked.
"No doubt we'll be getting bruises today from playing them. Hot water is bad for bruises on the first day, so make sure to ice as well." Sango told her kouhais. The girls started to head back to the gym, leaving Sango and Kagome in the changing room. Sango finished tying her shoes before checking to make sure that their teammates took what they needed before heading with Kagome out of the changing room.
"Has the doctor said anything about the wrist?" Sango asked. Kagome shook her head. It had been a while since her last visit, and she was due for another one before Nationals started.
"Let's hope Coach goes easy on the punishment. And don't think of even daring to escape." Kagome said, leveling a glare in Sango's direction. Hearing Sango's whine, she continued until she was standing with their coach.
"You will be playing a bout of 4 matches straight. Losing team will have to do 4 laps around the outer perimeter of the gym." Nekoma's coach began to split the teams up and sent them off onto the courts. It just so happened that the main players on Nekoma's team were on the same court as Shiratorizawa's starters.
"Kagome-senpai! How have you been?" Lev waved his arm as he greeted the girl. Kagome nodded back, giving him a small smile. Her teammates huddled into a small circle and began to plan against the Nekoma team.
"They're known for their defense. Our goal is to come out stronger, so make sure to get power behind your spikes. Their setter on the other hand, will be difficult to deal with. He can make false plays and create distractions, so keep your eyes peeled. Just get the ball in the air and I'll get it to you guys." Kagome told them.
"Don't get pulled into their attacks. It's win or die, literally." Sango said. She could feel her coach's murderous glare behind her and shivered. The teams broke from their huddle and began walking on the court. Kagome quickly taped her wrist before tossing her jacket aside and joining her team on the court. She smoothed out the tape, unaware that her actions were caught by Nekoma's captain and brain.
Nekoma started off with the ball. Yamamoto served the ball across to Shiratorizawa's side where their libero picked it up. Kagome ran under the ball and began to watch her teammates as they ran up the court towards the net. Once the ball fell into her hands, Kagome set the ball towards Sango, who grinned at the high ball. Kuroo and Lev had jumped up for a block, but Sango spiked the ball at the side of Lev's arms. The ball hit the Russian's arm before falling to the ground with a thud. Once Sango had landed back on the floor, she grinned and poked her tongue out at Nekoma's captain before getting into position. She was unaware of the dark grin Kuroo sprouted as her back turned.
ooo
"No more." Rin grumbled as she iced a large volleyball shaped bruise on her arms. She shouldn't have tried to react to Bokuto's spike. Kagome had managed to get Bokuto into his emo-mode very soon into the game with the help of pressuring him into certain plays. Unfortunately, Rin had to take the brunt of these attacks.
"Good job today. Make sure to stretch and cool down before heading out for the night." Coach Nekomata told the teams. He had briefed Shiratorizawa's coach on where they would be spending the night along with their policy of having free-practice after training was over for the day.
"Ladies. Good work today. Make sure to go to bed at a decent time. Take cold showers and ice those bruises. And you will not leave the campus." The Coach said, turning to Kagome and Sango with a dark look. The two girls flinched as their coach approached them.
"Care to give an explanation?" Sango opened her mouth ready to tell them about the truth or dare, but Kagome's sharp jab to her side stopped her. The Coach realized that the girls were not going to spill, a large tick mark growing on her forehead.
"Apologies Coach." Kagome said with her head slightly bowed.
"Huh. Honestly, we have been over this before. You are not to leave the campus and wander off to another school." The Coach states.
"That time wasn't our fault. If that bitch had just kept her mouth shut…" Kagome slapped her hand over Sango's mouth. The Coach raised her eyebrow at the motion.
"Seeing as you disobeyed my rules, we will be dealing out punishment. Follow me." The coach said, dismissing the rest of the team for the night as she headed over to Nekoma's coach.
"Ah, so you must be Shirabu-san and Takahashi-san. I've heard lots about you." Coach Nekomata said, greeting the girls with a smile.
"Coach Nekomata, I would like to apologize on behalf of these two. We've discussed their punishment, and for the weekend, they will be at your disposal outside of training periods." Kagome felt her heart drop. Sango gave the coach a glare as she gave them a cheerful wave before leaving for the night.
"Truth or dare?" Kagome's eyes widened at Coach Nekomata's remark.
"How did you know?" Sango asked the elderly coach.
"I think it's a tradition passed on during training camps. I played long ago, and I know my current players have played the game. Except the are awful at sneaking around so they get caught immediately." Kagome cracked a smile at that note.
"I'm surprised you girls lasted this long. How did you do it?" The two girls were very confused. They were not expecting Nekoma's coach to be this understanding or even want to know what happened.
"It's a long story. And it happened twice as well." Sango told the coach. Coach Nekomata gave the two girls a grin and sat down on the bench, gesturing for the two girls to sit. They didn't want to be rude to the other coach, seeing as they were currently dealing their punishment out, so they sat on the floor of the gym.
"Well, it started off when we were at our training camp at Itachiyama. I swear it wasn't planned or anything. And they only reason Kagome is doing this with me is because none of the girls trusted me to go alone." Sango told the coach, and with that, Sango told him about the two incidents.
"Seems like you have had your share of fun. I must admit, I am surprised you were able to get that letter into Akaashi-kun's locker." Coach Nekomata told Kagome. Kagome huffed, crossing her arms.
"It wasn't easy. Especially since we didn't know who the setter was. The both of us apologize for breaking into your schools." Kagome told the coach. Coach Nekomata could tell that the two girls were being honest, so he accepted their apology.
"I won't tell the boys a word. It's more fun that way, right?" Sango grinned. Coach Nekomata got up from his seat, Kagome and Sango following right after him.
"As for your punishment, I have a few players that would enjoy having you here." Coach Nekomata said. He told Sango to go to the adjoining gym to find Kuroo and Bokuto, to which she gagged before going off.
"Now, I've heard the rumors about you from some of my players." Kagome looked at Coach Nekomata with a curious look on her face.
"Lev's brought you up frequently. I've heard you played libero at one point. Can you help him with his receiving?" Coach Nekomata asked Kagome. The girl nodded and Coach Nekomata led her to sub-gyms that the campus housed where a few of the Nekoma regulars were practicing on their own. Lev was currently face-planted on the floor with Yaku yelling at him. Coach Nekomata coughed, getting his players attention. All of them got to their feet and came to greet their coach.
"This is Shirabu-san. She will be helping Lev with his receiving along with anything else you have troubles with." Coach Nekomata said, letting Kagome to introduce herself to his players and left the gym.
"You're going to help me right, Kagome-senpai? I wanna spike your toss again." Lev said, bouncing up to Kagome's side. The girl nodded, before turning to their libero.
"Congrats on getting into Nationals. Looks like we'll be seeing you there." Kagome said, holding out a hand. Yaku grasped her hand and shook it.
"You too." Yaku replied.
"I apologize as well, for our last meeting. It would seem you weren't the only party involved in the excursion." Yaku said, bowing slightly to Kagome before sending a sharp glare at Lev.
"No worries. I'm at fault too for not asking first. Anyways, shall we get to it?" Yaku nodded before dragging Lev with him to the center of the court. Kagome grabbed a ball from the basket before giving Lev instructions.
"Lev, I'm going to serve, and Yaku-san will receive it. You need to watch what he's doing, from moving his hands and arms, to his feet." Lev nodded, looking glum at having to still practice receiving.
"Or do you not want me to toss to you?" Lev immediately brightened and shook his head at Kagome before listening to any instructions Yaku was giving him.
ooo
Time flew by fast and the sun had long set. Lev had slightly improved, though his receiving was still not up to Yaku and Kagome's standards. With some of the regulars of the Nekoma team, the boys played a little bit of 3 vs 3 with Kagome helping Lev with pointers on his playing. As requested, she gave Lev a couple of sets, which attracted the attention of the other spikers on the team. Soon she had been setting for all of them, giving them advice on how to improve. They were very unlike the Shiratorizawa team. Here, the boys were able to express their passion for volleyball and train how they wanted to for the sake of their playing. Shiratorizawa only wanted a player with the lust for victory and certain talents that would be trained to perfection.
"What's your play style?" Inuoka asked, catching Kagome's attention as she had finished telling Lev what he shouldn't be doing. It was their set break and the boys were catching up on water and toweling off.
"In regard to libero or setting?" Kagome asked.
"Wouldn't they be similar?" Inuoka asked. Kagome thought about it for a moment. When she had first gotten surgery and was told that she wouldn't be able to use her wrists for setting, she had to find another place on the team so her skills wouldn't deteriorate. With the approval of her doctor and coach, she began training as a libero. During her time practicing, it had come rather natural to her, so she didn't really question it until now.
"It depends on the person. Before switching to libero, I was a setter. Having been a setter for years, I honed my instincts on reading people. From their breathing patterns to the hand-eye coordination and footwork, I studied how their bodies were functioning. When I had to switch to libero, most of that trained instinct carried over." Kagome told Inuoka.
"What made you switch to libero? It seems like you were an amazing setter before that." Inuoka asked, and Kagome felt a stab of pain in her wrist. Granted it wasn't actual pain, the mere memory made her wrist throb.
"I'd rather not talk about that, if that's alright." Kagome said, giving Inuoka a blank look. Yamamoto seemed to read the mood and dragged Inuoka and Lev over to the other members so they could give the younger boys pointers on their playing.
"I'm sorry if he got too nosy." Kagome looked to her side to see Yaku standing there with a towel around his neck and water bottle in hand.
"It's alright. I'd ask that kind of question too if I were in his place." Kagome told Yaku. Yaku looked at Kagome in the eye for a good minute before breaching the silence.
"Why did you go back to setting? Even I can tell you are a really good libero." Yaku asked. Kagome's eyes widened slightly, not having expected the question.
"Most people ask why I switched in the first place, as you just witnessed." Kagome replied.
"I'm not most people." Yaku replied, crossing his arms. Kagome let out a small laugh and nodded.
"You have that right, Mr. Demon-senpai." Yaku felt his eyebrow twitch at the nickname Lev had taken to calling him lately. Damn that Kuroo for making it in the first place.
"Someone told me that I had changed, that I wasn't as lively as before and decided to hide. They cut into me with all the things that I was trying to deny. I took a couple days off practice to wrap my head around it before sitting down with my coach to switch my position." Kagome said, staring off with a distant look before turning back to him. Yaku saw the look in her eye and didn't question it. He nodded, telling her that they were probably done for the night so she could go ahead. Kagome nodded to Yaku before leaving the gym in silence.
Walking down the paved sidewalk, she began to walk alongside the other gyms that Nekoma had on her way to the room her team was staying in. Looking down at her wrist, she noticed the tape was still on it and ripped it off, letting it fall to the ground. She instantly regretted doing so, having remembered what she forgot to do this morning, as she looked down. The jagged scar took up the entire width of her wrist, the newly formed skin paler than her complexion. Surrounding the large scar were smaller healed lines that were just as pale. Her vision began to blur as memories of that day came flashing back, and as they did, it felt like every cut was reopening again. She didn't even notice that her body was trembling until she heard Akaashi's deep voice pull her out of trance.
"Shirabu-senpai?" Akaashi called out, and Kagome's head snapped up, making eye contact with a pair of piercing gunmetal blue eyes. Akaashi had come out of the gym to get some fresh air when he saw Kagome standing still in the middle of the sidewalk. He called out to her to see if she was lost but got no response. He was going to leave the issue until he noticed that her body was trembling, so Akaashi decided to approach her and ask if she was okay.
"Akaashi?" Kagome's voice came out in a hoarse whisper, a lone tear trailing down her cheek. Akaashi nodded his head in response, and Kagome felt her knees give out underneath her. She started to fall down when Akaashi caught her, bringing both of them to the ground. He had an arm wrapped around her back to support her while she had her hands fisted on his shirt.
Akaashi wasn't really sure what to do. He'd never been in this position before and didn't know how to approach her without causing her to have another panic attack. He thought back to what his mother would do for him when he got upset as a child.
"It's me." Akaashi said, bring his hand up to her cheek, cupping her face as he wiped away her tear with his thumb.
"Just let me go. I'm not worth it." Kagome's voice cracked, her body shaking in fear. She tried to push away from Akaashi, but he kept a strong grip on her.
"I'm not letting go." Akaashi murmured loud enough for her to hear. Kagome felt tears welling up in her eyes as they threatened to fall down. Kagome fisted one hand in his shirt, the other reaching up to hold Akaashi's hand.
"Why?" Kagome asked. Akaashi didn't reply, only pulling her closer into his larger frame. Telling her to follow his breathing, he began to inhale and exhale slowly. Kagome copied his actions and began to take deep breaths. Kagome kept staring into his eyes, lulled by the safety that they seemed to hold. Eventually Kagome managed to slow her breathing. Her grip loosened on Akaashi's shirt, but she kept a hand on him, letting the feel of his heartbeat calm her down. Akaashi monitored her progress, making sure that she wasn't relapsing. Once he was certain that she was okay, he helped her up from the ground. He kept one arm around Kagome to make sure she was stable on her feet.
"Are you alright?" Akaashi asked, looking down at Kagome. Kagome let go of Akaashi's shirt and brushed her cheeks, erasing any evidence of tears. Noticing that she was good on her feet, he pulled his arm away from her waist and stepped back a little to give her some space.
"Arigato Akaashi-san." Kagome said in a small voice, giving Akaashi a bittersweet smile.
"It's alright Shirabu-senpai. I hope you are feeling better." Akaashi told her, and she nodded in response.
"Could you keep quiet about this?" Kagome asked, referring to what had just happened. Akaashi nodded, realizing that this sort of panic attack wasn't something others knew about.
"I'm looking for Kuroo. My vice-captain should be playing with him, and it's time I collected her for the night." Kagome replied. Akaashi gestured to the open gym behind him, telling her that her friend was there. The two walked in silence towards the gym, moving the net out of the way so they could enter the gym. Sango was currently pelting volleyballs at Kuroo and Bokuto, the two boys running around the gym to avoid her wrath.
"Sango!" Sango dropped the ball in her hand and turned to see Kagome standing in the entrance of the gym. Looking behind her, she noticed that Akaashi was standing a little behind Kagome as if shadowing her.
"Kagome, how did it go?" Sango asked, walking up to the girl. Kuroo and Bokuto saw that Sango was distracted and headed over to Akaashi.
"It was alright. Lev hasn't changed a bit. His receives still suck." Kagome replied bluntly, causing Kuroo to laugh.
"It's late out. We should close the gym and head out." Akaashi told Bokuto and Kuroo as they went off to collect the volleyballs and take down the net.
"Are you okay, Kagome?" Sango asked, noticing that Kagome wasn't acting her usual self.
"I forgot my makeup today." Kagome told Sango. The younger was confused at first but then her eyes widened a split second later, and she looked at Kagome with a worried look.
"I'm alright now." Sango gave Kagome a good look, checking her head down to see if she was truly okay before leaving the subject. Once the boys had cleaned up the gym, the five of them left, heading towards the school building.
"How did your training go? Manage to hit Kuroo in the head yet?" Kagome asked. Sango nodded, getting an annoyed yelp from Kuroo.
"I was the best though, hey hey hey. Right Sango?" Bokuto asked Sango. Seeing as she didn't want Kuroo to win, she nodded her head, letting Bokuto rant about his amazing playing. Kuroo started to tease Bokuto about his playing, causing him to look at Sango for backup. The three began to snipe at each other back and forth, leaving Kagome and Akaashi trailing behind them.
"I'm sorry about before." Akaashi looked down at Kagome.
"At the hanabi festival. It was rude of me to assume an opinion for you. I want to apologize for that." Kagome told Akaashi.
"If you're apologizing, I have to as well. We both said things that weren't necessary. I'm sorry about that as well." Akaashi replied. Kagome gave him a small smile before looking ahead to see that they had made it to the building.
"We best be heading off. Coach will have our heads if we're not back." Kagome nodded at Sango's words. Giving Akaashi a small bow, Kagome turned and began to walk ahead when she heard his voice call out to her.
"Good night Shirabu-senpai. You as well, Sango-san." Akaashi told the two girls, with Bokuto and Kuroo chiming in after. Sango replied with a goodbye to Bokuto and Kuroo while Kagome turned to face Akaashi.
"I highly doubt there's a need for honorifics Akaashi-san." Kagome told him, giving him a knowing look. Waving her hand, she said her goodbyes before heading with Sango to their room to get ready for a shower.
"Oya… oya…." Kuroo said, wrapping his arm around Akaashi's neck.
"What was that all about?" Kuroo said, gesturing to what Kagome had parted with.
"Nothing. We talked over our situation and decided to apologize to each other." Kuroo didn't believe Akaashi for a second, despite the amazing poker face the younger boy had. Akaashi was sticking to his word and didn't utter a word about what had transpired between him and Kagome. Though, it did make him wonder what caused her to become so unhinged.
"Uh huh. I'm sure that's exactly what she meant." Kuroo replied. Bokuto was silent for once, causing Akaashi to look over at him.
"Is something wrong, Bokuto-san?" Bokuto hummed for a moment, trying to process what he was trying to say.
"Is it normal for people to have lines on their arms?" Bokuto asked, causing Akaashi and Kuroo to pause and look at Bokuto.
"What do you mean Bo?" Kuroo asked.
"I'm not exactly sure what it was, but I definitely saw a large line on Kagome-san's wrist. Not ones that were drawn in, more like something cut it. It was all jagged-looking." Akaashi and Kuroo felt a large weight hit them. It looked like Bokuto didn't know what it was, but Akaashi and Kuroo knew better.
"Bokuto, don't tell anyone about that okay? This needs to stay quiet." Kuroo told Bokuto, shocking the owl-haired boy with his serious tone.
"Why? What happened? What do you know?" Bokuto asked and Kuroo shushed him, telling Bokuto to keep his voice down.
"Bokuto-san, what you saw probably wasn't a regular cut. If you saw a healed cut on her wrist, it is probable that she did it herself." Akaashi told Bokuto.
"Cutting herself…" Then it hit Bokuto. He understood why the air was so serious around them now.
"There's no way." Bokuto replied with an incredulous tone.
"We don't know Bokuto-san. We can't be 100% sure, but that doesn't mean we can't rule that out either. Everyone has their pasts." Akaashi told his captain.
"Before she plays a game or even practices, I see her taping her wrist with medical tape. It could be nothing, but it could also be something." Kuroo pointed out.
"Should we tell someone?" Bokuto asked. Kuroo hummed, not really sure what to do.
"Technically, we should, but in this case, we don't even know if she did it or not. What do you think Akaashi?" Kuroo asked the setter.
"We need to tell someone, maybe a doctor, or ask one of the coaches for advice. It's better if we told someone, even if we're wrong. Because if we don't tell someone, it could get worse." Akaashi replied.
"And what are we supposed to say? Sorry to bother you, but we think Shiratorizawa's captain is suicidal."
ooo
