a/n: I couldn't help writing this. Thanks to Virgo for inspiration – I got to thinking quite a bit about exactly what the characters are doing as they're speaking. Hope you like the results.

Part 4: Pins and Needles

"You've been studying the Shusaku kifu again." The opening had seemed a little traditional, and these joseki were indicative. They were playing at Shindou's house this afternoon. Akari was working and Kinume was on some sort of club outing, so they had the place to themselves. The board was set up in the small room that served as a sort of office to the family. A desk with a monitor and keyboard situated atop it stood along one wall, beside a small, western-style table cluttered with school papers and reference books. The facing wall was bare to accommodate the goban and two cushions. Where other families might have adorned the space on the wall with a sumiie work or other traditional art, the Shindous had opted for vibrantly colorful abstracts in oil and collage. Anywhere else, the two large paintings would have seemed garish, but here they seemed perfectly in keeping with the sensibilities of their owners.

At the moment, one of those owners was staring absently at the right-hand painting. Shindou and Touya had been playing for almost six hours without a break, and it was clear that Hikaru's attention span was waning, dedication to the game notwithstanding. He'd long since given up on formal seating, and was instead slouched with one leg twisted under the other and one knee up, supporting his wrist, which in turn supported his head. The 1.5 liter water bottle by his foot was almost empty. The seat cushion was squashed and turned askew of its original alignment with the board. Shindou was a formidable go player, but he'd never managed to truly look the part.

Across from him, Touya was the epitome of good form, for all that he wore jeans and an oxford shirt instead of a suit. The last time he'd worn a suit for one of their practice sessions, Shindou had harassed him so mercilessly that he'd promised not to do it again. Even so, sweat pants and a T-shirt were, in Touya's opinion, a little too casual for a respected professional, so jeans and a button down all the concession to "normal" that Shindou would be getting. Of course, jeans weren't really the most comfortable attire in which to kneel for extended periods. Touya was beginning to understand his father's fondness for traditional attire.

"Huh?" Shindou looked back from the painting to the game, returning to the "present" as he did.

"Those old Shusaku games. You've been studying them again recently, haven't you?" Touya looked up from the board, and watched a chagrined smile cross his opponent's face.

"Maybe." His grin widened and Touya snorted, shaking his head.

"Well, it is May, I suppose." At that, the smile disappeared from Shindou's face as something akin to shock suffused his expression. Touya almost laughed at how easy his opponent could be to read. It was curious how touchy the man got about the month of May, though.

"What's that supposed to mean?" The propped knee hit the floor, and Shindou leaned almost threateningly over the board. Touya was a little surprised, but Shindou's tone and posture were becoming annoying. The dark-haired player brought himself into a more proper posture, looking down his nose at his rival.

"Your play always becomes a little old-fashioned in May. You've been doing it for years. Did you think I wouldn't notice?"

"Are you saying I'm predictable?!" Shindou's eyebrows had disappeared beneath his bangs.

"Are you saying you're not?" Touya knew he was goading his friend. He knew it was childish. Some part of his mind even knew it was patently untrue; Shindou's unexpected moves on the goban were one of his greatest strengths and the thing that made playing him a constant fascination. Even so, some patterns of their relationship remained firmly entrenched in twelve-year-old thinking, and fighting when they'd spent too long playing without a pause was one of them.

"If you know everything about me, why don't you finish this game by yourself?" Shindou shouted, shoving his go ke at his opponent.

"Well your next three moves were pretty obvious," Touya snarled. A detached portion of his mind was slightly disgusted that a thirty-year-old professional could still be provoked this way. That part was not in control at the moment. As his rival watched in disbelief and barely restrained fury, he calmly played the next three hands alone. Shindou's darkening face told him plainer than words that he'd guessed correctly. What he did not anticipate was Shindou lunging across the board to shove him over backwards.

"You arrogant prick!" Stones scattered, and Shindou stumbled backward to his feet. "You were the one who wanted me to help you practice!" he yelled, snatching his water bottle from the floor and turning away as he fumbled angrily with the cap. It didn't seem to be cooperating, and he finally threw it across the room to bounce harmlessly against his daughter's dictionaries. "You came to me, but if you really think you're so damn smart then why did you lose the Kisei title to me last month, huh?!" He refocused his gaze on Touya, only to discover that his rival was still lying on the ground, clutching his still-bent knees and sporting an agonized grimace. Anger left him like air from a punctured balloon, and he was immediately kneeling at his friend's side. "Are you okay? Touya?" He reached a tentative hand to shake his rival's shoulder, but Touya shoved it aside.

"Pins and needles," he gasped weakly, as he carefully began an attempt to straighten his legs. Shindou's expression flowed from worry to barely stifled mirth, with the mercurial ease that had saved their friendship a thousand times. He sat back on his heels to enjoy the show. Touya glared at him around the excruciating sensation of feeling returning to somnolent limbs, but Shindou only gave in to laugh outright.

"Well, I bet you didn't see that coming," he taunted, grinning. Then he dragged the protesting Touya to his feet, and lead him painstakingly to the entryway. "Let's take a break and go get some lunch."

"Ramen?" Touya murmured, cautiously easing his left foot into a suddenly-uncomfortable penny-loafer. Shindou froze where he sat tying his sneakers, before turning to smile at the tottering young man.

"Good guess."