"Blah" - speaking
'Blah' - thinking
The Devil's Advocate
Chapter One
Fuji Syusuke waited patiently by his Literature teacher's desk as the other students quickly filed out of the classroom at the sound of the bell. As the chattering slowly faded, the young woman sitting at the desk glanced up from her papers.
"Oh, Fuji, I'm sorry to keep you waiting. Was there something you wanted to discuss with me?"
"I didn't mind the wait, Takeshi-sensei," Fuji replied, smiling as he always did. The tensai paused for a moment before continuing. "I was wondering if I could contribute something to the school newspaper."
Yumi Takeshi, besides being the third year Literature and Composition teacher, was the advisor for the Seigaku Scoop, a weekly school newspaper that was quite popular among the students. Though she was always looking for new volunteers for the paper, the teacher was surprised that Fuji wanted to help. Fuji was by far the brightest student that she had encountered in her four years of teaching but he rarely spoke or participated in class.
"I would be delighted if you wanted to help out with the paper. Did you want to provide some photos for the front cover?" the teacher inquired, curious. She knew that Fuji was rumored to be an amazing photographer and that he had been a member of the Photo Club before joining the Tennis team.
"No. Actually, I want to write a weekly advice column. Would that be alright with you, sensei?"
"An advice column….that's a wonderful idea!" Yumi was surprised at the idea, but she had to admit it sounded quite promising. "Do you have time to go over the details now?"
"Tennis practice starts in 15 minutes, so would ten minutes be enough time?" Fuji asked, glancing outside at the tennis courts, where some students were already gathering.
"That should be more than sufficient," Takeshi-sensei replied distractedly, rummaging around her desk for a notepad. "Ah ha!" she exclaimed after several seconds, holding it up triumphantly. She then glanced sheepishly at Fuji, who had let out a rare chuckle at witnessing the un-teacher-like behavior.
"Are you planning to write under a penname?" she inquired, steering the conversation back to its original course.
Fuji's ever-present smile widened a fraction as he replied affirmatively. "I think being anonymous would be best, since it makes things so much more interesting." The tensai's smile widened even further as he thought of the many students -especially the Regulars - who would most definitely not write to the column if they knew that he would be the one replying.
"What penname do you have in mind?"
Peering outside at the tennis courts again, Fuji's vibrant blue eyes opened slightly before resuming their normal upturned position and Fuji turned back to face his teacher.
"The Devil's Advocate."
A lingering silence filled the room for several seconds after Fuji's answer. The teacher looked flustered at the strange choice but quickly regained her cool.
"That's quite an interesting moniker to assume but it is your choice to make," she said, knowing that once Fuji had made a decision, he rarely changed it.
After discussing several more minor details, Takeshi-sensei told Fuji that the column would be able to begin publication in next issue of the Seigaku Scoop.
"If you don't mind, I think we should advertise your column so that the students know where to send their questions to. I can put it on the announcements and make some posters" she commented.
Fuji only nodded in response, his attention focused mostly on the tennis courts where the players had all gathered.
Glancing at the black-rimmed clock above the door, Yumi noticed that over twenty minutes had passed. "Oh, I'm sorry to have kept you from practice" she exclaimed. The discussion had taken much longer than she had anticipated.
Scribbling something on a blank scrap of paper, she then handed it to Fuji. "Here's a pass to give to your coach. I'll talk to you in class tomorrow, OK."
"Thank you, Takeshi-sensei."
Fuji stuffed the pass in his pocket and swiftly headed to the tennis courts. His stride slowed as he approached the area where all the Regulars had assembled. All of them, except Tezuka Kunimitsu, captain of the tennis team, were already practicing against each other. The tensai stepped in front of the buchou, who had been watching his arrival.
Tezuka glared coldly at him. "You're late, Fuji" he stated and then waited for an excuse.
"Saa, I'm sorry" Fuji apologized, giving no hint as to why he was late. His beaming smile somewhat negated the effect of his apology.
Tezuka's face hardened imperceptibly for a second before he pointed towards the track. "Fifteen laps" he barked at the unrepentant tensai. Fuji's grin widened at hearing the order and he jogged off to begin the laps.
oOoOoOoOoOo
"Nya, Fuji, why were you late?" Kikumaru Eiji whispered curiously, after his friend had finished the assigned laps.
"I was talking to Takeshi-sensei," Fuji replied, knowing that Eiji would continue to pester him if his curiosity wasn't satisfied.
Eiji frowned. "Why didn't you get a pass from her?" he asked, wondering why Fuji had apparently decided to waltz into practice late without an excuse when he could have gotten a pass from a teacher.
"I have one" was the tensai's response, as he dug out the white slip of paper from his pocket.
"Then why didn't you show it to buchou? You didn't have to get in trouble!" the acrobatic tennis player wailed, afraid for his friend's mental health.
"Ssh, Eiji, you don't want to get in trouble now, do you? Anyways, it's much more fun to see Tezuka with an expression on his face." With that, Fuji walked away to challenge Kawamura to a practice match.
oOoOoOoOoOo
Oishi Syuichirou, part of the Golden Pair, made his way concernedly to his partner's side. Eiji seemed to be in shock after his conversation with Fuji.
"Eiji, are you alright?" Oishi asked worriedly.
"Nya, Fuji can be scary at times," Eiji whimpered. "He was grinning throughout our whole conversation!"
"But Fuji always smiles. What's so strange about that?" Oishi asked, confused.
"But it…-it was different this time." Eiji seemed unable to find words to describe the strangeness of Fuji.
Inui Sadaharu, data collector for the Seigaku team, strolled up to the conversing Golden Pair. His glasses glinted as he heard the last parts of the discussion. He jotted some notes in his ever-present notebook and then cleared his throat, interrupting the two.
"According to my calculations," he announced, "there is a 98 chance that Fuji is plotting something that will affect the whole tennis team."
Inui didn't know that his prediction would turn out to be eerily true, in more ways than expected.
To Be Continued
Next chapter: Fuji's first column is published. What surprises lie in wait for the unsuspecting tennis team?
I haven't seen the anime and I've only read the first several volumes of the manga, so I hope I haven't messed up the characterizations that badly.
Comments and constructive criticism are greatly appreciated (in other words, please review!)
The second chapter may not be up for a while since my midterms are coming up and I'm a notoriously slow writer. I'll try to have it posted soon, so keep your fingers crossed!