Before long, Fuki Habarida had the participants of the All-Japan Boys training camp sweating, having them run around the gym, making them do endless squats and jumping exercises. The boys' brows were heavy with sweat and he could notice the starting of the cramping in some of the participants' legs. As he walked the gym to inspect that his pupils were doing the exercises correctly, he noticed just how physically strong some of his players were. His prized players, Sakusa Kiyoomi and Tobio Kageyama seemed a little out of steam, their bangs sticking to their foreheads but remained stoic and focused. The others looked like they could use a break, some of them ready to crumble to the ground. Fuki Habarida blew his whistle, signaling to the volleyball players to stop what they were doing immediately.
'Alright, that's enough! I wouldn't want you to tire yourself so- what?' he mumbled. He couldn't finish his sentence. Fuki Habarida sighed and blinked. His gaze had been averted towards the girls from the North American Women Youth's volleyball team and although their faces were red and sweaty and their buns and ponytails messy, they seemed only riled up for more, their sharp gazes directly looking at him like they wanted, no, like they needed more. These were Olympic grade exercises, not some middle school warm ups. How the hell can they still want more after this?
He saw the fire in their eyes. The same fire that spread to the entire team's core, from the tallest of girls to the smaller libero player who sported a grin on her face as she brushed the sweat off her brow. They all shared the same look of hunger to play, to win and to prove themselves. Fuki Habarida smiled. He had to remind himself that these girls were Olympic hopes in their own countries and that they were perhaps used to these drills, unlike many of the camp's boys who had crumbled to the ground on their knees, utterly exhausted. Sounds of wheezing and sharp intakes of breath were heard throughout the gymnasium.
'I think a break is in order. Didn't I tell you this camp would be rough?' said the coach as he rubbed the back of his head. Laughing heartily. 'You have fifteen minutes to compose yourselves and get some water. After the break, the real training begins.' he said as he left the gym himself to go smoke.
Katharine looked at Maria as she bent over to wrap her right knee with sports tape. Maria was very fit physically and was their team's backbone when it came to defense. She needed to take extra precautions to prevent her joints from hurting during and after practices and matches. 'Is your knee alright, Maria?' she asked. Her smaller libero teammate shook her head and replied with a large exuberant grin.
'Yeah, it's fine. I'll make sure to ice it when we get back, don't worry.' Katharine nodded inhaled deeply, wiped the sweat off her forehead and quickly stretched her legs before they cramped up from the dozens of squats she had just done. 'I'll go refill our water bottles, ladies. Hand them over- hey! No throwing of the bottles, Arissa! Stop it!' she said as she was attacked with her teammates' water gourds while they laughed at her expense.
'Come on, ball girl. Fetch my drink immediately.' said Maria in between chuckles. Katharine's eyes narrowed. Soon followed Zofia's voice in the near distance as she rose from the ground, also stretching her legs.
'And bring me a fresh towel, servant woman.' she said as the whole team laughed amusedly. Katharine's eyes narrowed and gave her teammates a seemingly innocent smile that gave Maria chills. The smaller Mexican libero knew this curve on her captain's lips.
'Hey, guys, maybe you should stop-' But Katharine's voice cut her dryly.
'The next person who mocks my genuine Canadian kindness will run another twenty laps plus I will eat their share of sushi tonight.' she said, her threat freezing the blood in her teammates' veins. A heavy and regretful silence fell within the group and Katharine laughed deeply.
'Oh, how the mighty have fallen.' she said in between low giggles. She soon left the gymnasium and headed towards the water fountain, hands full with towels and water bottles. She was about to turn the corner to make it to the bathroom area when she bumped into a tall and strong figure, dropping what she held in her arms to the ground. She quickly bent to pick her team's belongings when she noticed that the tall boy she had run into also bent down to help her.
'It's ok, you don't have to-'
'Please, let me help. You seem to have your hands full already.' he said as they both rose up to finally face each other. Katherine's grey eyes met Tobio Kageyama's steely blue ones. He stood silent before her for a moment but soon cleared his throat and bowed to her.
'I'm sorry for not introducing myself to you sooner and I would like to apologize for my peer's disrespect. I'm Tobio Kageyama, first year at Karasuno High School and our volleyball team's main setter.' he said. Katharine gave him a small smile and bowed her head in return.
'Ayamaru hitsuyō wa arimasen (you don't have to apologize).' she said very slowly as if she was unsure of her pronunciation. Kageyama smiled. Even though her Japanese was somewhat too formal and shaky, she managed to make herself understood.
'My name is Katharine. It's nice to meet you, Tobio Kageyama.' she said as she looked at him from below. That boy is something else she thought. So intense. Katharine had to bend her neck backward to be able to meet his eye. Silence lingered between both volleyball players before Kageyama managed to say what he thought was proper English grammar.
'Would you like help with filling your water bottles?' he simply asked. He expected her to refuse, of course. It's not like he or any of his other camp peers had been very welcoming to the girls' team and most of the boys had completely ignored them during the warm-ups. She probably did not expect kindness from him. Hell, he didn't expect kindness from his own damn self. This was just another instance where his mouth was not listening to his brain. I caught Hinata's virus, he thought. I'm slowly becoming stupid. He could see the foreign captain's face suddenly glow up with appreciation.
'That sounds wonderful. Dōmo arigatōgozaimashita, Tobio. Looks like I'm the captain and the water girl now.' she said with a tone of annoyance in her voice. Kageyama looked puzzled as they walked towards the fountain.
'Why do you get their water? You're the captain of your team. They should get yours, not the other way around.' he said to her with the utmost confusion. If we asked Daichi to do that for us, he would make us run suicide sprints until we puked our guts out and ask Suga to film the whole thing, thought Kageyama as a feeling of uneasiness crept down his spine. He heard the captain giggle and she shrugged off his apparent confusion.
'Yes, it's true. I'm their captain. But they are my team. They are my responsibility. They work hard so I can perform at my best and they cover my shortcomings when I make a mistake on the court. That deserves a little refill in my opinion.' she replied as she started to fill up the water gourds.
Kageyama looked at her as if she came straight from another dimension, from another world. Never did he expect his upperclassmen to do him any such favors. Is this how things were done where they came from? He stood there silently as he held out empty water bottles to her in utter silence, shocked. She treats them like they are her family, thought Kageyama. Yeah, Daichi would definitely kick my ass. Soon, the duo was walking back to the gymnasium and he heard the quiet voice of Katharine directed towards him.
'So, Tobio. Anyone in particular we should watch out for?' she asked. Kageyama grunted.
'I don't really know anyone here... But I wouldn't mess with Sakusa Kiyoomi. He's in the top three in the country.' he said to her, his voice low and calm. He heard the foreign captain chuckle.
'Oh yeah, him.' she started, a mysterious grin growing on her lips. 'I know how to handle people like him. He'll get what he wants from us, just keep your eyes open for what comes next.' she said. Tobio took a closer look at the women's team as he walked next to their captain. He frowned, realizing that the North American Women Youth's volleyball team was short of a player.
'How are you going to be able to play? You're missing a player.' he stated. Katharine shrugged.
'I know. Our coaches have not picked the other candidates for our team yet. We're it for now. I guess we'll just have to make friends and let someone join us, though I doubt your little friends will want to share the court with us from the looks we got earlier.' she said as she sighed. The North American Women Youth's volleyball team was a relatively new team that had been formed especially in preparation for the World Tournament and the rest of the candidates had either not yet been chosen. She expected the team's coaches to have selected a full roster of players before long. As she headed back to her waving team, Katharine turned around to face him again and smiled.
'If you want to toss some good sets for us in practice matches later, you know where to find us.' she said as she ran to her team. Tobio Kageyama stood there, on the sidelines of the gymnasium, surprised at his own excitement at the prospect of tossing for complete strangers, girls nonetheless. Tanaka and Nishinoya are going to flip, he thought. Sakusa was right. It was going to be an interesting week after all.
A few minutes later, Fuki Habarida had asked the participants to line up in front of him and the players executed themselves quickly. The North American Women Youth's volleyball team had assembled again, their gaze deeply focused on the Japanese Olympic coach.
'Alright boys-' he cleared his throat. 'And girls.' he continued with a chuckle. 'You survived the warmups. Congratulations, now it's time to play. We'll go easy at first, I want to see what makes you guys so special. I want you to form teams. The people you choose to be by your side on this court will be the team you'll be playing with this week, so choose your teammates carefully. No time to waste now and don't be picky.' he said. Already, the cracking noise of laughter could be heard from some of the participants as they boyishly and loudly formed teams.
Tobio Kageyama placed his Pocari Sweat water bottle on the ground and suddenly felt a creeping presence next to him. He turned his head around and he saw Sakusa Kiyoomi looming over his bent body. Tobio Kageyama was a polite young man, but there was one thing he hated more than losing a volleyball game and that was empty arrogance. Sakusa's self-important expression was already irritating him and his blue eyes quickly met Sakusa's dark ones.
'Don't tell me you're tired, Kageyama.' he smugly said to the Karasuno setter. Tobio Kageyama clenched his teeth.
'Not at all. How about you? Got tired of picking on girls yet?' asked Kageyama, his voice betraying his growing annoyance with the Itachiyama spiker. Sakusa rewarded his comment with a haughty smirk.
'Whatever. I was going to ask you to join my team but your kingly attitude made me change my mind. I doubt anyone will want to play with the King of the Court, even here. Have fun playing alone this week, Kageyama.' he replied to him, walking away with a competitive grin. Tobio Kageyama looked around him and groaned. It was at that moment that he somewhat missed the Karasuno High volleyball team. He missed their exuberance and their warmth. When he came back to reality, the teams were already forming around him and he suddenly felt very angry with himself for not being able to bite his tongue and accept Sakusa Kiyoomi's proposal. He suddenly felt anxious about being by himself and all alone again, like he had been alone on that day, during that game…
His thoughts were cut short when he saw the pristine black uniforms of the North American Women Youth's volleyball team in the corner of his eye. A growing smile appeared on his face. He was not alone. He had them, whoever these girls were. He knew nothing of their gameplay and he knew nothing of these players on a personal level. But he was adaptable. To win and prove himself, he would push himself out of his comfort zone, even if it meant playing with these loud, long-legged, bodycon-shorts-wearing foreign athletes. He didn't know if they were any good, but he trusted their passion for the sport. He heard another boy's voice call out to him. It was Sakusa's teammate, Komori Motoya. Kageyama was tempted to roll his eyes when he saw the stupid look on his opponent's face.
'Looks like poor Tobio-kun has no team. How sad. The King has no subjects to antagonize.' he teased. Kageyama looked at him with a smirk on his face and pointed in the direction of the North American Women Youth's volleyball team, his expression stoic and unchanged.
'I do have a team. Sorry to disappoint you.' he said, enjoying the shocked faces of the rest of Sakusa's team before he slowly made his way to the other end of the court towards the North American Women Youth's volleyball team. He knew the other boys were mocking him, he could see their smug faces and hear their sneers and jests. He knew that he had earned a reputation because of his less-than-glamorous past on the middle-school court but he had to push all of this unresolved turmoil inside of him aside. He could not let this affect his game. Not now, not ever.
Katharine sighed and winked at the girls that formed her own team. Maria looked anxious. She knew they were short of a player and the thought of playing with a tall male stranger irked her nerves. Katharine could see the other participants quickly forming teams. She could feel someone looking straight at her and when she turned her head around, Sakusa Yoomi's gaze was upon her. He wore his signature arrogant smirk on his face as he pretentiously waved at her. What a prick, she thought. He's trying to push my buttons. But Maria's voice brought her back out of her thoughts.
'I hate playing with guys, y'all. This brings me back to middle school gym practice. They can be so dumb and immature. I swear if we wind up playing with a complete noobtard-'
But before Maria had even the chance to finish her sentence, she felt the presence of an unknown someone close to her, Zofia pointing at the person that stood behind Maria as she cracked a chuckle. When she saw who it was that approached her, Maria shyly scratched the back of her head and nervously giggled.
'Hi.' she voiced slowly, her deep brown eyes meeting with Tobio Kageyama's steely blues.
'Hi.' He simply replied, looking down at her. He was so much taller and wider than the short freckled-faced libero that awkwardly stood before him, uncharacteristically shy and silent. Zofia couldn't help but crack a mocking giggle when she saw the red flush that decorated Maria's face when she realized just how imposing and curiously handsome the teenager that rendered her silent really was.
'Wow, you're big-' she stuttered nervously. 'I mean, you're tall, not that I would call you big- it's muscles, big strong shoulders and legs are what I meant- not that I noticed right away- I'm just going to go hide now.' was all she said before going mute and looking at the ground, her cheeks flushed multiple shades of red. Goddamn it! Me and my big mouth, she thought to herself, cursing herself into oblivion as she shakily took a step back, quickly walking away from the steely blue-eyed stranger.
Arissa and Elia barely managed to keep their laughter to themselves, although the expression on their faces could read the desperation to laugh at the awkwardness of their libero teammate. 'Ouhhh, Maria likes a boy- Maria likes a boy!' they teased, earning themselves a furious look from their libero.
'Stop that!' she angrily whispered back to them. Mortified was the term Katharine would have chosen to describe Maria's state of mind at that moment. Tobio Kageyama stood there, in complete confusion and silence and he finally cleared his throat uncomfortably and looked at Katharine. She smiled at him in return, knowing exactly why he had come to them.
'I see you did think about what I said to you earlier. Glad you accepted my offer.' She said to him as she clapped her hands together, satisfied. He simply nodded in response. Maria took this opportunity to hide her face with her towel and walked back to the rest of the girls, Zofia still mockingly giggling to her face. It earned her a strong arm nudge from the Mexican libero.
'Shut up, Zofia.' she said to her, still visibly embarrassed.
'You are pure entertainment, Maria. Pure entertainment.' she replied in between dying chuckles.
'Alright! Ladies, this is Tobio Kageyama. He's a setter. He'll play with us this week. Elizabeth?' Katharine called out to her green-eyed setter. Elizabeth had stayed silent this whole time but when Katharine had called out her name, her gaze connecting with her captain's.
'Would you terribly mind if Tobio tossed for us today? It'll be easier for us to adjust to him this week that way.' she asked. Elizabeth agreed and gave Katharine a small approving nod. Katharine knew that Elizabeth would gladly play a more defensive position in order to accommodate their new teammate.
'Awesome.' replied Katharine as she got nods of approval from the rest of her team.
Kageyama blinked, surprised. He expected the girls to move him to the back of the rotation seeing as they already were used to their setter's gameplay. He wouldn't mind playing another position than his usual one and he would have been understanding of their resistance to him setting for them… But for them to willingly let him set for them right out of the gate? Would they be able to adapt to him fast enough for them to gain sufficient momentum to win against some of the best players in the country? Why were they so quick to trust in his abilities?
'Really, I don't mind playing another position-' he started, but he heard the small voice of the shy green-eyed girl call out to him.
'It's ok. You can set.' Was all she said before going silent again, evading his eye. Before anyone else could speak up, Zofia's voice called to Kageyama, her icy blue eyes staring straight at him.
'I like high tosses. No ballooning, just straight and high tosses. And keep it out of the blocker's reach. I don't like breaking through the wall, that's her thing.' she said, pointing at Katharine, who grinned back to him. Kageyama blinked again, confused as to why she had said that. He looked back at the captain of the all-girls team and swallowed hard, his brows forming a frown. Is she the ace of their team? But she's the shortest spiker here… he thought. What kind of hitting power was she hiding behind her poised expression?
'Yeah, I'm mostly into closer-to-the-net-tosses since I'm not as tall as she is. I'll adjust to your position Tobio, don't worry. Today is all about getting to know you and how you play. We'll follow your momentum as best as we can. Arissa and Elia will meet the other teams' challenge just as hard when it comes to blocking. Elizabeth and Zofia will cover for us too. You're in good hands.' Katharine calmly said to Tobio. He was still nervous and felt out of place.
'I wouldn't want you to exhaust yourselves for my sake since we don't have a full roster to play with-' he said, his words earning him a sharp look from the captain of the girls' team. Her grey eyes pierced his entire being.
'You're with us now. We have each other's' backs. We move as one.' Kageyama could only nod at her statement. He sighed, letting the pressure of the upcoming matches roll off his shoulders.
'Trust us, Tobio.' Katharine told, no, commanded him, her body not showing a single drop of anxiety as she winked at her teammates, who offered their fists to one another and placed them together for a rallying cry. Tobio Kageyama was used to playing with men, that was a known fact. Men were boisterous and arrogant (images of Tanaka and Nishinoya roaring proudly before a match crossed his mind). But these girls... they were confident. Confident in their team, in their skills and in each other... Even the tallest and strongest of his team, Asahi Azumane was a nervous wreck before a match- not to mention that his coping mechanisms to curb the pre-match jitters were highly questionable. But these girls… he'd never seen such game-ready players. No one drop of fear or nervousness flowed in their veins. He heard Arissa, the tall Nigerian-American blocker clear her throat loudly and noticed that they were all looking at him, waiting for him to place his fist against theirs.
'Let's go, setter boy. We don't have all day.' she said to him, her intense dark eyes narrowing with a sudden impatience. With a certain reticence and clear embarrassment, Tobio Kageyama groaned and finally bumped the girls' fists with his own, his large hand connecting with theirs. When Kageyama raised his gaze to meet theirs again and when he did, he was taken aback by the sudden ferocity he found in these strangers' colorful eyes. A sharp focus. A growing hunger. These were not the eyes of ordinary girls, thought Kageyama. These were the eyes of predators, of a pack that was coming together as one to hunt and go for the kill. What the hell did I get myself into?
He then heard Katharine's voice loud and clear as a prideful cry escaped her mouth. '
As one!'
Without hesitation, the girls of the North American Women's Youth volleyball team voiced together their motto, like wild howls in the night. '
AS ONE!'
Kageyama stood there, fist against theirs, speechless. He heard it. He felt it deep within him. It was their warning to other players, their cry of war. Is this what it means to be a real team?
He heard the coach's whistleblowing as they were instructed to move to the left court to dispute their first practice match. As the girls placed themselves into positions, Kageyama felt a surge of energy run through him. As he planted his feet firmly on the right side of the court in front of the net, he felt the warmth of their presence reassure him. Even Sakusa Kiyoomi's arrogant smug face across the net seemed unimportant to him at that moment. He could feel Maria, his team's libero, inhale deeply as she placed herself in a low, almost crouch-like defensive position at the back row alongside the tall and intimidating Arissa, followed by Elizabeth, who was first up to serve. He saw Zofia and Katharine at his side, joining him in the vanguard as they stood immobile and focused before the high net. He could hear his heart pounding in his ears, his palms sweaty with anticipation.
This was a new experience for him. He was about to play against the creme of the crop, the best of his country in his respective category with complete strangers, and yet all his thoughts were monopolized on the steel in his teammates' eyes and the bedeviled grins of all-consuming anticipation that decorated their faces. Kageyama chuckled to himself at the sheer unlikelihood of his current situation, as he stood there, incredulous.
After all, what could be more improbable than a crow flying amongst a pack of she-wolves?