Hey, thanks for checking back and continuing my story. Hopefully the first chapter incited some sense of curiosity in you to return. Anyways, a couple quick notes first:

- um, this story is AU but it closely resembles the series and doesn't stray too far from natural characters, some OOC-ness, sorry I will try to keep everyone in line.

- Things are progressing a little slower than I thought they would, but bear with me please. Couples will be developing thru-out the story so things are just beginning. Sorry if I tend to focus on one pair for a while before remembering the other – this stuff is hard to write! I got ideas all over, but putting it to paper is another story.

Disclaimer: I do not own Prince of Tennis or any of its characters, though I wish I could have my own sadistic Fuji and stoic Tezuka all to myself.

So, that's about it, I think. Enjoy the next chapter …

"blah" = spoken dialogue between characters

blah = unspoken thoughts, also used for emphasis on words or phrases

CHAPTER 2: Mysterious New Students

As Eiji bounded down the stairs into the kitchen the next morning, he saw Fuji already there, waiting for him.

"Good morning, Eiji." Fuji said, pouring some cereal into two bowls.

"Morning, Fuji! You're here early." he replied, sitting down at the table.

"Yeah, I wanted to stop by that park on our way to see if there were any tennis courts before we got to school."

"Oh, yeah. I had forgotten."

"That's alright." he said, setting the bowls and milk on the table. Grabbing spoons, they both began to eat. "I was thinking we could play a bit after school today. Do you have your bag and everything?"

"Of course, Fuji. I'm just gonna use my tennis bag as a backpack, too, so I don't have to carry both around. Mom thinks it's better that way, too – so we don't 'strain ourselves.' Sheesh, as if we can't do anything." Eiji complained.

Fuji just smiled lightly.

Finishing up, they set their bowls in the sink and grabbed their bags.

"Okay, let's go."

Heading out the door, they both called "bye" and received faint calls of "have a good day, boys" and "be careful" in response. Rolling their eyes, they set off to school.

.................................................

Fuji and Eiji walked from the main offices, down the halls, and back outside. They had just picked up their schedules and locker information and were on their way to the library to pick up their books. Wading through the crowds of students, Eiji sighed.

"Mou, Fuji, there are a lot of people here already and classes haven't even begun yet."

"Umhmm."

"Hey, can we check out the tennis courts yet, Fuji? Can we, can we?" Eiji asked, turning to his friend with his famous 'puppy eyes' that got him whatever he wanted. Everyone succumbed when he pulled out this look . . . everyone except Fuji, that is.

"Not yet, Eiji."

"What?! Fuji, you're so mean!"

"We need to get our books, but if we still have time before our first class begins, we can check them out. I want to see them, too, you know." he replied with a smile.

"Yes! Let's go!" Eiji replied, grabbing Fuji's hand and rushing through the crowds to the library up ahead. Fuji could only be thankful they didn't know anyone yet and that the library was nearby.

.................................................

"Swoosh . . . twang . . . . . . swoosh . . . twang . . . . . . swoosh . . . twang . . . ."

The tennis club was hard at practice when Tezuka and Oishi stepped onto the court.

"Attention!" Oishi called out. "Everyone gather over here."

Standing in front of the Ryuzaki-sensei and the two captains, Seigaku's tennis club waited for instructions.

"The Inter-high Tournament is coming up soon so everyone needs to train hard." Ryuzaki-sensei said.

"Hai." they all responded.

"I won't tolerate laziness."

"Hai."

"Tezuka." she called, passing their attention over to him as she left the courts.

Stepping forward, Tezuka called out orders: "All second and third years practice serves and returns on the three lower courts."

"Hai." they replied, gathering their things and heading off.

"Freshman, prepare to collect balls and clean the courts."

"Hai." they said, following the other boys to the lower courts. Once they had left, only the regulars were left on the main courts.

"Inui." Tezuka called, stepping aside as the taller boy came forward.

"Okay, today we will just be having a couple one-on-one practice matches. We don't want to strain anything with the tournament coming up." Hearing relieved sighs and laughter among the boys, he quickly said, "But, don't think this will be easy. Be prepared for whatever your opponent throws at you. I expect you all to play your best."

Receiving nods and calls of "Of course" from them, Inui started to name off the matches: "The first three matches will be Tezuka vs Arai on court A, Ryoma and Momoshiro on court B, and finally, Oishi and Keisuke in court C. The rest of us will rotate once their matches have finished."

"Okay . . ." they said, beginning to move off.

"Oh, one more thing . . ." Inui chuckled quietly at their expectant, yet slightly scared, expressions. Pulling a pitcher from behind his back, he said, "The loser will get to try my newest creation, I call it my Super Hyper Remix Inui Juice, grape flavor." A trick of the sunlight made his glasses glint like a mad scientist, mwuahahaha. The said 'juice' was indeed purple-colored, but glints of green could be seen within its bubbling depths.

Blanching, each member silently vowed, "I will not lose! Never!"

With determined expressions on their faces, they grabbed their racquets, a couple balls, and began to play.

Oishi and Tezuka's matches were quickly over, both Arai and Keisuke, the substitutes, easily losing to the captains' strength. Leaning against the fence together, Tezuka and Oishi studied the other games still being played.

They didn't even turn when they heard two thumps to their left. It looked like Arai and Keisuke had not lasted long against Inui's drink, either. Grimacing lightly, they heard a faint "hmmm… good data. . ." as well.

As Kaido began a match with Kawamura on court A, Oishi asked, "So, Tezuka, what did you think?"

Not pulling his eyes away from the two games, Tezuka replied, "He still needs work."

"Let me guess, his backhand is weak and needs more practice on ball control."

"Ah."

"Keisuke has the same problems. Those two need to work harder if they ever plan on getting any game time."

"Talk to Inui."

"Okay, I'll see him about it later. He probably already knows what those two need to do to improve and has a program fixed for them, anyways."

"Probably." Tezuka agreed.

Turning back to the games before him, Oishi followed Tezuka's eyes which were focused on Ryoma and Momoshiro's match. It was 4-2, Ryoma's lead, so far. Oishi smiled, thinking, That freshman is truly amazing at tennis despite his young age and height. It was currently Ryoma's serve. Ah, he's using his right hand. That means . . . Tossing the ball into the air and jumping up, Ryoma displayed perfect form as he served his now-famous Twist Serve. Momoshiro, squawked in protest, but ran forward to catch the ball before it hit his face. Lobbing it over the net, he was unprepared when Ryoma suddenly appeared and smashed the ball to the opposite side of the court.

"Aaaahhh, Echiiizennnn!" Momo cried.

"15-Love," Ryoma responded, smugly.

Oishi chuckled at the freshman's arrogance. Even Tezuka smirked lightly as they watched Momo throw a fit before the game managed to continue.

"Aaahhh, finally!! Look Fuji, look, look! There they are, the tennis courts!"

Turning at the high-pitched cry, both Oishi and Tezuka saw a slim, red-haired boy bounce up to the fence, dragging his friend with him. Both were carrying tennis bags over their shoulders.

Intrigued, the two captains studied the boys. The one who had cried out was about average height with dark, red hair and sparkling blue eyes. His slim frame seemed filled with energy as he literally bounced and chatted excitedly to his friend while pointing at the matches being played.

The other boy, 'Fuji,' was slightly shorter and had shaggy, light brown hair that fell past his ears. A small smile graced his face, giving the impression of innocence and kindness. Both Oishi and Tezuka were surprised to see his eyes closed. Despite this fact though, he seemed able to follow the games while listening to his friend's bubbly chatter.

"Wow, Fuji, look! That tall guy is playing the little one, but it seems that the little one is winning! Go, ochibi!"

"Eiji, quiet down. Don't disturb their game."

"Sorry, sorry. I'm just so excited!!" Eiji replied, grinning and waving his hands.

Fuji's normal light smile brightened a bit at his friend's exuberance.

"I, as well, Eiji." he said.

"B-U-R-N-I-N-G! I'm going to W-I-N!!"

"Wow, Fuji, look at that guy, he's scary! You can almost see the flames surrounding him." Eiji said, latching onto Fuji's arm.

"Aah."

Oishi and Tezuka turned from the two mysterious boys to see Kawamura powerfully hitting the ball to Kaido. Kaido quickly ran into position and prepared to do his signature move. Bringing his arm around in a smooth stroke, he launched his famous Snake shot. Seeing it, Kawamura scrambled to reach the ball. Unsuccessful, he cried out, "Ooohhhh, N-Oooo!!"

"Buggy-Whip-Shot… Impressive."

Turning at the soft voice, the captains looked to the two boys again. This time, however, the smaller boy, Fuji's, eyes were open, revealing piercing blue eyes. Tezuka was taken back for a minute as those eyes glanced at him and Oishi before closing once again.

"That's a great move, isn't it, Fuji?"

"Aah."

"Seigaku's tennis team seems strong." Eiji said, turning to his friend.

"Yes. Well, let's go. We should be getting to class soon." Fuji reminded him.

"Ah, alright, but let's play later, maybe after school, at that park we passed this morning, okay?"

"Sure." Fuji replied, smiling.

Oishi and Tezuka watched the two boys shoulder their tennis bags once more and walk off.

"Hmm… I wonder who they are?" Ryoma said, suddenly.

Turning back around, Tezuka looked down at the freshman. Behind him, Oishi could see Momo sprawled out on the ground, clutching his throat, Kaido at his side.

Frowning, Tezuka didn't reply, though he wondered as well. Those two boys obviously play tennis, but who are they? And, especially the smaller boy with the beautiful blue eyes. Fuji, was it? Tezuka definitely wanted to know more about him. He was able to call Kaido's Snake shot just by seeing it once. When he opened his eyes for that second, he revealed a sharp and clever mind hiding behind that benign smile. Hmm…

"We don't know who they are," Oishi replied to Ryoma's question. "But, they obviously play tennis, judging by the bags they carried."

"Spies?" Momoshiro asked, a glint in his eyes. He had recovered enough to join the conversation. The others gathered around as well.

"But, from what school? The Inter-high Tournament is coming up, but they weren't wearing anything to indicate what school they belong to." Oishi said, thinking out loud.

"A mystery, huh?" Ryoma inserted with a smirk.

"Sssshhhhhh. . ." Kaido hissed.

"Baka mamushi! What's with that hissing? Are you trying to start something!?" Momo yelled.

"10 laps! Now!" Tezuka ordered before the fight could escalate.

"But. . ."

"20 laps!"

"Okay . ." Both boys set off before angering their captain further, bickering quietly.

"Inui." Tezuka called.

Looking up from his notebook, Inui said, "What is it?"

"Do you know those two boys?"

Everyone quieted down to hear what Inui, the club's data manager, had to say. He kept records of information about everyone. He seemed to know everything about everyone from their blood type and physical information to their tennis moves and favorite ice cream flavors. No one knew how he did it, but what Inui said was always worth listening to.

"Hmm… I have not seen them before. Do you know their names?"

"Well, from what Tezuka and I heard of their conversation, the red-haired, energetic one's name is Eiji and the smaller boy who had his eyes closed is Fuji. Right, Tezuka?"

"Aah."

"Hmm… hmmm . . ." Inui began flipping through his notebook. "Maybe ..no, I need more data first, at least their last names. . . before I can tell you any more . . . hmmm . . . yes, good data . . it just might be them . . . hmm …"

Inui began mumbling to himself as silence reigned among the regulars. Everyone was surprised that these two were unknown, even to Inui.

Just then, Tezuka looked at his watch.

"Okay, let's call it a day. We need to clean up and change before first period starts. Dismissed!"

Packing up their things and switching clothes in the locker room, Oishi remarked, "Maybe we'll see them around. I think I heard them say they would be playing tennis later at a park nearby. Maybe it's the one down the street. We should check it out."

"Hmm… Good data. . " Inui popped up, his notebook out and his hand furiously scribbling into it. Oishi yelped at his sudden appearance, before turning back to Tezuka.

Tezuka didn't reply, though, still thinking about the boy, Fuji. They would meet again, he was sure of it.

Gathering his bag and books, Tezuka closed his locker and headed out the door with Oishi.

.................................................

Best friends on and off the courts, Tezuka and Oishi were in most of the same classes this year, much to their shared delight.

Walking into their first class, math, still thinking about the two mysterious boys, Oishi and Tezuka didn't notice the stares they received from their classmates. Sitting near the back by a window, the pair set their tennis bags down and pulled out their books.

The class was set up so students sat in pairs, one to a table. Though girls stared starry-eyed at the two tennis captains and several guys watched them enviously, the table in front of them remained empty. Both boys were very popular among the girls in the school, though they had showed no response to the attention. They generally preferred to keep to themselves.

Pulling out last night's homework, the two began double-checking their answers with each other. Finally satisfied with their work, they set it aside and talked quietly while waiting for the teacher to arrive.

Hearing the class quiet down several minutes later, they followed suit and respectfully turned toward the teacher who had just walked in.

An aging lady, Mrs. Jacobs was a very kind, spunky teacher, known for her teasing and jokes. She also tended to use odd and creative ways to demonstrate complicated math theorems and problems. Everyone enjoyed her unique teaching style.

"Okay, class, quiet down, quiet down." she said, setting her bag down. Pulling out her roll book and some papers, she set them on the low podium and turned to face her students. With a wide smile on her face, she announced, "We will be having two new students transfer into our school today."

Immediately, whispers started around the classroom. Speculations on who the new students were, whether boys or girls, and what they were like ran through the room. Girls giggled and guys chuckled behind their hands.

"Okay, okay, calm down." Mrs. Jacobs called out, trying to regain control of her class. "They will be arriving shortly, so treat them well, okay?"

"Hai." The class dutifully replied.

Just then, the door opened. All eyes turned and focused on the opening as two boys entered. Walking in front of the class and handing two sets of papers to the teacher, they then turned and faced the class, side by side.

"Tezuka. . they . . ." Oishi whispered, shocked.

"I know . . ." Tezuka replied, just as surprised. He hadn't thought he'd see them again so soon. The red-haired one stood tall and confident in front of the class while the smaller boy remained close to his friend, head slightly down, eyes closed, a hesitant smile on his face. Hmm…Tezuka thought. Seems he's a bit shy in front of all of us. Well, anyone would be… On second thought, his friend is as happy and excited as ever. Fuji seems almost dwarfed by Eiji's exuberance. He looks kinda. . . cute.. . That thought stopped Tezuka in his tracks. Grimacing lightly, he thought,

What the hell am I thinking!?

"Class, this is Eiji Kikumaru," the teacher said as Eiji stepped forward and bowed slightly, "and, Fuji Syusuke," he stepped forward upon his name, bowed, then returned to Eiji's side. "They just moved here together from out of town, so be nice to them. Okay, so does anyone have any questions for them before we get started?"

Surprised, both boys turned to the teacher and gave her looks as if to say, Can't we just sit down? Why must you torture us!? Mrs. Jacobs just smiled lightly and watched them squirm as she sat at her desk, hearing the students whispering to each other.

Finally, the questions started and both boys turned to face the class once again.

"Fuji-kun, why are your eyes closed? Is something wrong?" a perplexed girl asked.

"No, I'm fine."

Eiji chuckled at Fuji's reply which didn't really answer the girl's questions. He quickly shut up though as Fuji elbowed his side. With a cry of protest, Eiji turned to Fuji, "Wah! Fuji, you're so mean!" he said, with a cute pout on his face. Fuji, however, just smiled serenely. Facing the class again, they realized that everyone was staring at their antics. Both blushed lightly.

"You two obviously know each other," remarked one of the girls. "What is your relationship?"

Both boys had slightly startled expressions on their faces as they caught the implication behind her words. Unflustered by it, Fuji replied, "We're best friends."

"Yep, yep!" Eiji commented. "We grew up together."

Excited squeals and giggling came from the girls. They got even louder when one bold girl asked, "Do either of you have a girlfriend?"

Both boys blushed lightly, again, and in unison, replied "No."

Ignoring the even louder whispering and giggles coming from a group of girls, Fuji and Eiji just hoped this interrogation would end soon. Glancing at the teacher, they saw she had fallen asleep at her desk.

Sick of the girls chatter, one boy finally called out, "Do you play any sports?"

Quieting down at this question, the class all looked expectantly at the two new boys. Tezuka and Oishi, also, perked up, eager to hear their reply.

Glancing at each other once, the boys shouldered their bags a bit higher and said together,

"Tennis."

At this, the class's attention seemed to shift to Tezuka and Oishi who had been quiet the whole time. Noticing the change, Eiji and Fuji glanced at the pair.

Fuji opened his eyes briefly in surprise. It's him... the guy from this morning... Tezuka's cold stare made a shiver run down Fuji's spine; he had never seen anyone quite so sharp and sexy, before. The boy's golden brown hair was a windblown mess, but it framed his elegant face well, as did the silver glasses he wore. Closing his eyes again quickly, but not in time for Tezuka to miss those bright blue orbs, Fuji nudged Eiji. Leaning over, Fuji whispered, "Those two were at the tennis courts this morning."

"Really?"

"Aah."

Surprised, Eiji looked over at the two boys again. The first one was all golden and refined, seeming to radiate an air of authority and isolation. He didn't really interest Eiji. The second one, however, had Eiji pausing. Hmm… He looks so kind. The boy's short hair was two-toned shades of dark brown and he had soft, green eyes. A friendly smile on his face, Eiji immediately liked him. Unlike the boy next to him, this one seemed to exude caring and friendliness.

"Oh, so we have two more boys for the tennis club. That's great!" one girl remarked. Turning to Fuji and Eiji, she explained. "These two are also in tennis, regular members on the team, in fact." Pointing at the golden-haired boy with glasses, she said, "That is Tezuka Kunimitsu, the captain of Seigaku's tennis team. Next to him" pointing at the kind-looking boy "is Oishi Syuichiro, the vice-captain. Both are great players, quite famous around here."

"Eeehhh..? Really?" Eiji asked, excitedly. Bouncing over to the two sitting boys, dragging Fuji behind him, he smiled brightly. "Nice to meet you! I'm Eiji, and this is Fuji. He may seem a bit shy, but don't let that fool you."

"Eiji. . ." Fuji warned, behind him.

"Nice to meet you," Oishi responded, shaking their hands, noting the calluses they both had.

Tezuka nodded to both, remaining silent.

"Don't mind Tezuka," Oishi said, "He can be a bit quiet, but you get used to it."

Eiji giggled while Fuji just smiled sweetly, eyes firmly shut.

"Oh, good. Looks like you boys have found your seats. Please sit down and we can get this class started, okay?" the teacher's voice startled them as she had been sleeping moments before.

Sitting down in the pair-table located in front of Tezuka and Oishi, Eiji and Fuji sweatdropped. It seems like this teacher is a bit odd, they both thought. Taking out their books and supplies, they prepared for her lecture.

Behind them, Oishi whispered to Tezuka, "Tezuka, those two have played tennis before and are probably pretty good. When I shook their hands, they had strong grips and calluses from obvious hard work with a racquet."

Tezuka nodded, letting Oishi know he was listening.

"We should find out more about them."

"Aah." Tezuka replied. He definitely wanted to find out more about the two mysterious boys in front of him, one taking haphazard notes, the other – the one he found most interesting – staring off into space, or as best as you could stare with one's eyes closed, not paying attention at all.

Despite what they had revealed to the class, both Oishi and Tezuka wondered on what the two boys had not said. They were still a mystery to them. A mystery the two captains intended to explore and solve.

To Be Continued

Coming Up Soon: Chapter 3 – Lunch Meetings and Tennis Greetings: Eiji and Fuji join Tezuka, Oishi, and the rest of the tennis team for lunch where they get to know each other. However, the mystery only deepens as Tezuka and Oishi become more confused about these two handsome boys.

So, what did you think? Please submit a review and tell me what you think of the story so far. I plan on continuing it, so don't worry about scaring me away with harsh comments. I welcome compliments and criticism. So, click the button below and see you next chapter. Jaa ne!