Author's Notes: This is the first time the three of us are writing together. So please be kind enough to leave some comments. Hope you would enjoy reading this!

Disclaimer: Tenipuri does not belong to us. Tennis no Oujisama belongs to Konomi-san who has the excellent idea of creating it.

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When All The Snow Had Melted

Chapter One - Announcements

This was exactly what Tezuka Kunimitsu thought of a perfect day.

Peace and quiet.

Until.

He felt a pair of slim arms reached out and twine around his neck.

He closed his eyes.

"Fuji."

"Saa. How do you know it is me?"

"People are staring."

"Let them stare as much as they want."

"Fuji."

"...ne?"

"What do you want?"

Fuji Syusuke chuckled.

"A small favor."

Tezuka stiffened. He tried to pry Fuji's arms from his neck. However, the tensai's grip was harder than he thought. Or perhaps, he was too gentle to pull away roughly.

"Trying to escape, buchou? Daijou. It's a really small favor," Fuji whispered.

Unable to move, Tezuka had no choice but to listen.

But knowing Fuji, that favor would probably be not as small as he said.

--- --- ---

"Dismissed."

"Hai."

"Regulars, please stay back at the locker room for a short meeting."

"I wonder what's the meeting about," remarked Echizen as he changed into his uniform, "Momo-sempai, any ideas?"

"Hmm...maybe he wants to give us a treat?" Momoshiro said with sparkles in his eyes. Images of his favourite food flow through his minds in bubbles.

"Fsshhh...baka Momo."

The bubbles burst.

"Who are you calling baka, baka Mamushi?!"

"Fsshhh..."

Before either can jump on the other, they were both pulled back by the Golden Pair who had just walked in.

"Nya Momo. Buchou's on his way, so you better not fight," Eiji said, restraining the struggling Momo.

"You too, Kaidoh," Oishi said, trying his best to hold on to Kaidoh.

"Iie data. I wonder how long can both of them stay apart."

Inui suddenly appeared with a sadistic glint in his eyes. Or could it be his spectacles?

In his hands was his trusty notebook.

Who knows what he really wrote in there.

The four of them shuddered at that thought. No one really wanted to know.

Momo glared at Kaidoh, who glared back, and calmed down.

Oishi and Eiji both looked genuinely relieved.

However, peace was short.

"BURNING!! NO ONE GETS IN MY WAY!! GREAT-O!!"

Taken by surprise, Inui fell and dropped his precious notebook...

...which fell into the hands of a certain tensai.

"Saa. What's this?" Fuji flipped through the pages, looking amused.

"Tsk tsk. I never knew you were this thorough, Inui. You even have Kaidoh's boxer sizes."

At this remark, Kaidoh turned tomato red.

"I-Inui-se-sempai..."

"Don't believe him, Kaidoh," Inui said, flailing his hands frantically.

"Ne Inui. You have too much information about Kaidoh for your own good. This is certainly not healthy," Fuji smirked, and added, "Definitely not for delicate ears such as yours, Echizen."

Their innocent first-year had an eyebrow arched.

"Oh well. Best to let Kaidoh know who's his mysterious stalker," Fuji walked over to Kaidoh, and placed the book in his hands.

"I'll leave this in your care then."

"My precious data..." Inui walked over to the blushing second-year.

"I-Inui-se-sempai...how did you get all my measurements?"

While Inui struggled to give a satisfactory answer, everyone else started talking.

No one heard a certain someone's footsteps.

Tezuka Kunimitsu sighed. This was going to take very long.

"Everyone run ten laps. NOW!"

In an instant, the locker room was empty again.

Peace was restored.

--- --- ---

After a few minutes, everyone was back, panting.

And definitely much more subdued.

Tezuka cleared his throat.

"I have an announcement to make. We will be having a New Year party on the first of January."

Silence.

No one knew how to react.

"As Fuji has been the one who had kindly made the arrangements, he will give more details about it."

Fuji smiled happily, as everyone's attention was diverted to him.

"I have made individual invitation cards for everyone," Fuji handed out a couple of envelopes and continued, "There are names written on the envelope, so please do not take someone else's. The party will be held at my house, as my parents and nee-san will be overseas. The rest of the details are in the card."

On the card was simply:

"The venue of the New Year party is at Fuji Syusuke's house. Arrive promptly at 2pm. Food and drinks will be provided by the host." Everyone gulped nervously. "Please bring a gift as there would be a gift exchange. Decline all other invitations without hesitation."

"Important: Please remember to bring extra clothings."

Everyone looked puzzled over the last sentence.

But that was not all.

At the bottom of each card was a personal handwritten message.

"Please arrive at the noted time, and not at any time earlier." Oishi wondered what it meant.

"Do not bring any extra baggage such as a certain bear plushie." "Is it refering to higuma, Oishi-chan?" Eiji thought of his one-metre bear, sitting at the foot of his bed.

"Enough food will be provided. Do come with an empty stomach." Momo was licking his lips, until he remembered it was Fuji's house he was going. His tongue stopped mid-air.

"No tennis rackets are allowed." "Mada mada dane," thought Echizen, who merely shrugged.

"Do not bring pets." Kaidoh's wishful thinking was dashed.

"Enough drinks will be provided. Spills and accidents are best avoided." Inui's spectacles dropped just one centimetre.

"Be yourself." Kawamura looked very confused.

However, Tezuka had a particularly long and interesting message.

"You are to come at 7 in the morning to help me prepare. Should you be late or not turn up at all, punishment will be issued the following night." Tezuka twitched visibly. "It's with your interests at heart that I advise you to be early. Rewards come earlier than punishments."

Seeing the mixed reactions in his teammates, Fuji's smile grew wider. He could easily visualise the results of his perfect plans.

"Any questions?"

Everyone looked reasonably normal.

Tezuka cleared his throat again.

"Dismissed."

"Nya Ochibi!" Eiji hugged the short boy from the back, "Is anything written at the bottom of your card?"

"...nothing."

"Sou...what about you Momo?"

"...nothing at all..."

Upon Eiji's accusatory look, he immediately added, "Really."

Eiji decided to let it pass. Maybe his was an exception.

"Nya. Let's go for burgers, Momo, Echizen."

"Only if you treat, Eiji-sempai."

"I treated just the other day. Shouldn't you be treating me today? Eating off your sempai again eh, Momo?"

They left the locker room noisily, dragging Echizen along.

"May I have my notebook back?"

"Fsshhh...anything. I don't care," Kaidoh handed back the notebook.

"Don't worry. I'm not stalking you or anything," Inui tried to placate the second-year.

That only earned him a disbelieving look.

"Ja." Kaidoh walked out of the locker room with Inui following behind, begging to be heard and believed.

"Bye." Kawamura left alone.

There were only Oishi, Tezuka and Fuji left.

"Can you lock up the room when you leave? I'm in a hurry..." Oishi approached Tezuka with the keys, "Arigato. See you, Tezuka and Fuji."

With that, Oishi left as well.

"Well, well. I told you it was a good idea," Fuji said.

"..."

"What do you think?"

"It's...okay."

"Did you like my message to you?"

"..."

"Silence means consent. I take it that you liked it then."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"Do you have anything to say to me, Tezuka?"

"..."

"I just kissed you."

"...I need to go now."

"Is that all?"

"Hai. Ja ne."

Oh well, it clearly shows that it takes more than a kiss to soften a stoic captain.

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Eneko: Hey minna! Hopefully, everyone had enjoyed this chapter and would continue reading on. Next chapter will be done by ForbiddenLover. Anyway, thanks to everyone who had taken time off to read this!