Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to these characters.
Thursday finally arrived and Kagome was glad that her committee duties were completed so she could focus her attention onto the team. The morning practice went smoothly with the first and second years, and she was getting more of a feel of where their weaknesses currently are. She may not have the technical skill and ability to really help them grow, but she did have knowledge of conditioning and movement.
Sesshoumaru was a brutal teacher that didn't believe in holding back regardless of your current skill level, and those lessons were pivotal in her improvement and ability to survive. When he wasn't torturing her with training, she watched his and Sango's movements closely as they went through their own training. Their styles were vastly different but the overall principle of how they moved, where they placed their feet for balance, and weight distribution as they moved came from the same root ideology.
To really move and to complete amazing feats safely, you must have a sense of awareness of your body and those around you. And with that you must have the strength and energy to move as you wish. Now she had no intention of being as cruel as Sesshoumaru was with the boys' conditioning, especially since they don't have the benefit of her healing abilities. However, they certainly were not going to really enjoy what she would put them through.
Kagome narrowed her eyes in thought. 'They'll thank me for it later. But I'll have to keep a close eye on a few of them, they may try to run away once they realize the misery that's coming.' She was starting to pull the pieces of the puzzle together, but there was more that she needed to accomplish first.
"Kagome? Are you ok?" Blinking back into focus, she turned in her seat to look at Kenma and gave him a nod. "Yes, just a lot on my mind at the moment."
Before he could say anything more, the chime signaling that it was time for lunch cut through the air and as the two collected their lunches the door to the classroom slid open revealing a familiar towering form. "Kago-chan, Kenma, let's go."
The three headed outside to take advantage of the beautiful day and found a spot to eat their food. As part of their new routine, Kagome had to spend some of her time defending her lunch from Kuroo's thieving attempts and Kenma just shook his head at the duo. He knew Kagome would have shared with Kuroo if he just asked instead of trying to steal it, he also knew that Kuroo enjoyed the game too much to take the easy route. Eventually Kagome would give in and share, but likewise she wasn't going to make things easy for the thief. It had to be one of the oddest forms of flirting that he's observed, yet it seemed to just make sense for the two.
Once the food had vanished and there was still time left during the break, Kenma played a game on his phone while Kuroo stretched out on the grass with his head in Kagome's lap. She made a face down at him for the arrangement, to which Kuroo merely smirked and closed his eyes. Shaking her head, she began to gently run her fingers through his messy hair. Then leaning back against the tree, she closed her eyes enjoying the peace that surrounded them, oblivious to the various broken hearts that witnessed the scene.
The rest of the day flew by and as the last class finished. Kagome waved to Kenma telling him that she would meet everyone in the gym after her meeting with the Vice Principle. Kenma nodded to her as she left, and took a moment to gather up his schoolwork in his bag and headed to the gym.
Kagome checked the time as she left the teachers staff room and saw that she'd missed the first ten minutes of practice. Hustling down the hall while balancing the box in her arms, she entered the girls changing room and then booked it to the gym. She nudged the door open with her hip and saw the boys were working on various drills. The boys greeted her as Kuroo jogged over to help her with the box, earning himself a grateful smile as he turned to set the item down against the wall.
After taking a quick look around the gym, Kagome was confused when she didn't see any new additions. "Ano, where are the third years?"
Kuroo heaved an exasperated sigh, "Running late today, I guess."
Rolling her eyes, Kagome gathered up the water bottles after setting a stack of papers on top of the box. "Perfect. Well I'll go ahead and get your water bottles filled." Standing up she addressed the other team members. "Everyone! I have permission slips for all of you for next weekend's training trip to Ubugawa High. Be sure to come and pick one up before you leave tonight. I'll need the forms returned by Tuesday."
The boys chorused their agreement as she went off to fulfil her task. Once all the needed water bottles were filled, she placed them in the carriers and took them back out to the courts. Setting them down out of the way, she turned back to the boys and saw that they were ready to begin their receiving drills.
The team waved her over to practice with them as she did the mornings, and she quickly climbed up on the table. For once this week, she went without Kuroo's teasing about her height, she figured that either he was finally learning or he didn't want another ball to the back of his head today. As she got into position to start hitting the ball for Yamamoto to start receiving, the loud creaking sound of the doors to the gym swinging open behind her caused her to pause. Judging by the looks on the faces of the boys in front of her, she could only assume that the infamous third years had finally made an appearance.
"What's this? You have a girl helping you practice? You all must be slacking."
Kagome twitched at the snide comment, but was struck by the familiarity of the voice. She turned her head to look at the newcomers over her shoulder, and tried to place where she had heard that voice before. There were five young men and they appeared to be fairly tall, not quite Kuroo's height but close, and she observed as they looked her over. Suddenly the four that were standing behind who she could only assume was the captain started pointing at her and elbowing each other while snickering.
The captain suddenly straightened up taller and looked at her with a smarmy grin. "Well, well, well cutie! I take it that you're here to beg me to take you on a date now?"
That's when it finally clicked as to where she recognized him from. She turned to fully face him as her face fell into a deadpanned expression and her eyes shone with annoyance. "Oh, it's you. I see that you still think you are kami-sama's gift to girls." Rolling her eyes at the older teen that had attempted to flirt with her last week. "Tetsu-kun. If I had known this idiot was on the team, I would have argued more about becoming the team manager."
The captain's face began to flush a bright red as the other members all began to snicker at his expense. He cleared his throat and attempted to reclaim his arrogant visage. "There's no need to be embarrassed about your desires for me. It's incredibly common. Though I'm impressed that you applied to become the team manager to get closer to me"
Kagome raised a brow at his poor attempt to save face. "Embarrassed? The only one who should be embarrassed here is you for thinking that those 'pickup lines' would actually get you a date. If they've worked in the past then it must have been out of pity. I mean honestly! Who goes up to someone and demands a date while bragging about their own looks and how attractive they supposedly are? Besides, pretty boys don't interest me, and if they did—" She gave him a quick scrutinizing look, "I've seen prettier."
Kuroo and the others were stunned at the byplay that was occurring before them. Kagome was the girl that turned down the captain last week? Once the shock wore off, the group struggled to contain their amusement as their new manager ripped into their number one bully. "Kago-chan you wound me! Are you saying I'm not pretty?"
She glanced over at Kuroo with a look that screamed that he was being stupid. "That crazy bedhead of yours makes it hard to judge for certain Rooster Head. Besides, you know you're attractive, so stop fishing for compliments."
At that, what little control Yamamoto had left was lost. He released a loud snort and fell to his knees cackling. In turn this caused a chain reaction and the rest of the underclassmen let loose of the hilarity that they were holding back. Kenma hid his grin and watched as Kuroo stood tall with his arms crossed and a satisfied grin.
Turning back to the third years, Kagome ignored the mayhem that was occurring behind her. She decided that giving the others a chance to regroup themselves before wrangling them back in line was best at the moment. The tension in the gym was still present but not as oppressive as it once was, and with that in mind she addressed the five late players. "Hurry up and go through your stretches." Shifting her expression and tone to mirror the look that Sesshoumaru would give to those who were late. "Also, if any of you are ever late again without a valid excuse. You will be penalized."
The sudden chill that descended upon the gym caused all the teens to freeze with a flinch. The captain shook off the shock and showed his outrage at her supposed audacity. "Who are you to make such a declaration? I am the captain of this team, and since there is no coach, I am the one who makes such decisions!"
Kagome looked down at him, using the height that she gained from standing on the table to her advantage. "Yes, you have had a lot of responsibilities without a coach or a manager. However, you failed to fulfill those responsibilities. You do know that there is paperwork involved with running this club, right? You must not, because I've had to work my way through a chunk of the supplies list and scheduling since I joined. I sat down with the Vice Principle and we were shocked at the state that the club was in. We agreed that since the workload was far too much for you to handle, that I would be responsible for the teams conditioning and paperwork until the new coach arrives next week." She paused to allow that bit of information to sink in. "Now, kindly get your stretches and warm up done, then get in line."
Kuroo felt like his eyes were going to pop out of his head. He had hopes that a manager would help improve things in the club, but this was far beyond his hopes and dreams. Sharing a look with the other second years to see the shock mirrored on their faces along with the first years. They felt hope begin to build within them as they witnessed the very powershift that they desperately needed.
Falling back into line they continued their practice for the day. If they thought that the surprises were over and done with, they we wrong. At the end of practice, Kagome left the gym to clean the water bottles for the next day and then the captain once again tried to reclaim his authority amongst the underclassmen. They tried to push back some, but then he threw out a threat that once more made the members, especially the rookies, feel helpless.
"You know that you rookies aren't considered full club members, right? Don't think for one second that just because we have a hellcat for a manager that your positions are safe! So, you will do as you're told or—"
"Oh, that little paperwork hiccup?" Everyone turned to see Kagome standing at the entrance with smile that slowly morphed into razors. "I was certain that you were just unfamiliar with how to properly fill out the paperwork. So, the Vice Principle and I took care of that little issue on Monday" And with that, Kagome solidified her hold in the power struggle. "Now all of you, start cleaning. We are done for the day."
As the team ran off to perform their tasks, she saw that the third years walk off to the side to observe and heckle the rookies. "Oi, either you can grab a mop or I can give you a rag and you can clean the floor the old-fashioned way. You choose."
The boys glanced at their captain, unsure as to where they should stand. The captain snarled and approached Kagome from behind and gripped one of her shoulders. She looked back at him and a chilling aura began to surround them. "Watanabe-san, you have 5 seconds to remove your hand."
"You don't get to waltz in here and start barking orders. This is my club and what I say go—"
Across the gym Kuroo was not happy to see what was unfolding and with Yamamoto, Yaku, and Kai following, he began to cross over to put a stop whatever the captain had planned. They only made it about halfway to the two before they stopped and their jaws dropped. Kagome had grabbed the hand on her shoulder and in a move that was too fast to follow, she had Watanabe flipped onto his back on the floor.
She stood there for a moment looking down at the taller boy before turning her gaze to the other third years. "Why aren't you cleaning?" With that they scrambled to lend a hand to the rest of the members. Watching them for a moment, she nodded and continued over to the box that she had brought in earlier. After the cleaning was complete, she handed out the permission forms and revealed that the box contained the team's red track suits for the first years. The boys thanked her with wide grins and then dispersed from the gym to get changed and go home for the night.
After he got changed, Kuroo met Kagome and Kenma outside at the gate. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders from behind and placed a quick kiss on her temple before they all began their journey home.