"Where is that supposed tutor of mine?" Ino growled under her breath. Just because physics was the most historically BORING thing in the whole wide world and that idiot they called a teacher loved to hear himself speak so much to the point here he droned on and on and on so EVERYBODY fell asleep didn't mean he had to single HER out.

"Arg!" She stormed out of the library, disrupting the silence and had many people look at her oddly. Sighing, she tossed her long black braid over her shoulder as she smoothed down her plaid vest that sat over an off-white shirt. Her jeans were rumpled and messy, reflecting her completely chaotic life style as a black pen was stuck haphazardly behind her ear. She was the complete opposite of that very neat and organized guy walking straight towards her. Wait, straight towards her?

"Hello, Benkyo-san," Inui Sadahara waved politely. He looked completely immaculate with his smoothed down brown shirt and straight khakis. The Data tennis player had all his books in one arm and a neatly organized pencil case in the other. Ino wasn't even sure if it was possible to look as neat as he did.

"Why are you here, Inui-san?" She asked curiously, catching up with his long strides.

"I'm here to tutor some one and I'm afraid I'm running horribly late so if you'll excuse me…" He tried to walk by her but she stopped him with a rather silly look on her face.

"In Physics?" She grinned.

"Y- how do you know?" He stopped, astonished.

"Because I'M the one you're supposed to be tutoring," She giggled. Inui blinked (not that you could tell, Ino could just read his eyebrows) and started laughing with her.

"Shall we go?" He said, finally stopping his laughter.

"Of course," Ino was still laughing as she stepped into the library but she was immediately shushed by the librarians who frowned at her. She was still laughing but she bit her lip to stifle it.

"What's so funny?" He asked, still puzzled as he set down his books beside the mess of her things.

"I-It's just ironic, that's all," She grinned. She started shuffling her papers around, making some more space for him.

"Ok, so what do you need help with," He asked, getting down to business.

"Just explain chapters 1-9 to me and everything will be great," She pulled out her humongous green text book and plopped it onto the desk.

"You haven't learned anything all year?" Inui raised his eyebrows questioningly.

"Our teacher's pathetic," She explained simply. She rested her head on her fist and stared out the window to the bright blue sky. "Go on," Ino noticed Inui staring at her, "That's how I learn,"

"Your last name doesn't suit you," He shook his head. (Ino's last name means to study)

"I know. I'm the black sheep of the family. My room is a danger zone, I'm lazy, and I go to Seigaku," She ticked her "problems" off her fingers.

"Where does the rest of your family go?" Inui asked.

"Cousins all go to Jyousei. Annoying little brats who think they're works of art or something," She snorted, "I don't like being called by my last name but meh, what can I do?"

"I see… Your first name doesn't suit you either," He reasoned.

"How do you think I managed to keep being me with a completely organized and over achiever family like mine?" She retorted, "I'd much rather be watching the girls play volleyball and torture them with my, er, toothsome goodies than being stuck in library."

"Speaking of the girls, where are they?" Inui couldn't help but ask.

"They're out doing something," Ino shrugged. "Though I feel sorry for whomever meets up with Hana-chan today. She probably is running on her humongous weekend supply of candy. I hope Yuki-chan locked the door. The sooner we have this done the sooner I can go to sleep so let's hurry up."

"Hai," Inui rolled his eyes, "Ino-san."

Speaking of Hana, Ino was right to fear for things. She was running on sugar; pop in fact. Hana was drinking her favourite soft drink, swinging her hot pink purse of the other arm as she walked towards a small pet shop to buy herself a pet. She got a lot of queer stares, but she supposed she made a sight. She was wearing a bright magenta jacket, a red leather skirt and high white boots, topping off the whole ensemble with a plaid baseball cap and wide mirror sunglasses. She didn't care what other people thought; she just wanted a pet, even if she was going a little shabby pet shop.

"Hello?" She called out tentatively.

"Hello miss, what would you like to buy today?" The shop owner greeted her cheerfully.

"I want a friendly pet who I can talk to but not take too much time to take care of because I'm away from home a lot," She explained to the shop keeper.

"Can I suggest a turtle? They're not very high maintenance and they're very smart," The shop keeper suggested.

"Of course! Where are your turtles?" She asked excitedly, "It's perfect!"

"Down there," He laughed as she bounced off. That girl reminds me of someone… speak of the devil! Here he is!

"Hi Oyaji! I'm here to see John again!" The acrobatic tennis player of Seigaku, Kikumaru Eiji, bounced in.

"You know where he is. Just be careful, I have a paying customer looking for a pet," He laughed again when Eiji bounced off, not hearing a word he said.

"Oh they're so cute!" Hana squealed to herself. She was crouching in front of a tank, looking at the two turtles moving around inside.

"Hoi, Hinagaku-chan!" Eiji called in surprise, "What are you doing here?"

"I want to buy a pet," She explained, "It's kinda lonely at our place without our parents."

"Our?"

"Yuki-chan and I live together," She explained off-handedly.

"What! Where are your parents?" Eiji was rather taken aback.

"We both wanted to come to Japan but our parents wanted to stay in Europe. In the end, the two of us ended up moving here with Yuki's grandmother as a guardian," She was still looking at turtles, "We do a fair bit of traveling ourselves and Yuki's often away dealing with her parents that it gets kinda lonely. I just want a pet to keep me company."

"I see. Do you miss your parents?" He asked. He couldn't imagine what it would be like to live so far away from home, away from his Nee-san and his naggy but nice parents.

"Yeah, a lot, but we keep in touch and we're. Mom's going to have a new baby," She smiled a little, "To be perfectly honest, My parents give me a lot of freedom unlike Yuki's parents. I can do a lot since I've proved myself responsible but Yuki's parent's keep her under their thumb as best they can. We've been best friends forever and I've always helped her sneak out. She was always the one to keep in line in return and tell me I was too hyper, too passionate about things and I tend to run on like I am right now. Sorry If I bored you," She grinned as she turned her attention back onto the turtles.

"No, no. At least you don't rant like that annoying Atobe from Hyotei," Eiji returned her grin.

"Keigo Atobe? Oh I know him! He's the guy who broke Your Captain's arm! I still remember the moaning of the fan girls," She grumbled as she imitated them in a high-pitched squeaky voice, "Tezuka-kun's arm was broken, he died during a tennis match! He LOST!" Oh cry me a river, build me a bridge and get over it."

"You're funny, Hinagaku-san," He laughed.

"Ya think? You know, my name must be a mouthful. No matter how hard they try, my family can't pronounce my Japanese name. It's always Marguerite Lafleur, Daisy Flower, GänseblümchencBlume, and Flor De la Margarita," She mimicked in a posh voice, "Every Language in my family tree except Japanese!"

"Wha?" Eiji had little question marks popping up.

"That's Hinagaku Hana in French, English, German and Spanish. My family's got roots all over the place," She explained, "Hana is really my last name but I'd much rather it as my first. My family is French but I know quite a few other languages."

"Sugoi!" Eiji was astonished.

"When you're in Europe and in Influential and rich families like mine, it's not uncommon," She blushed a little.

"I see. But it's still cool!" Eiji exclaimed, "Look, John's fighting again! Go, John! You can win!"

"Who's John?" Hana asked, puzzled as Eiji was yelling to the turtles.

"Look at the little turtle right there who's grabbing onto the other turtle's neck. You see the small one? That's John." Eiji pointed, "Hoi, Come on John!"

"Where?" Hana craned her neck a little, "Him?" She pointed.

"Yep!"

"Aww, He's so Kawaii!" She squealed. "I think I'll buy him, but after his fight. Go John!" she cheered for the diminutive turtle right besides Eiji's ear.

"Ow! I pity Shiroi-san," He winced.

The very self same "Shiroi-san" (A.K.A. Yukino) was wandering through the exhibit in the local aquarium, taking a break from said partner. She was almost the exact opposite of Hana, wearing a simple white Chinese styled shirt with her silvery blond hair spilling and cuffed black jeans. She looked very relaxed and tourist-like wearing a grey page boy hat and holding a yellow pamphlet, the only colored thing on her. Yuki had always loved Tropical fish but she was never around enough to take good care of it so she contented herself to come the exhibit weekly. Usually, she dragged Hana along but the latter was buying a pet today so Aomi had come along. Aomi was probably with the whales, however, but she had better have her cell phone on. Omph!

"Are you ok, miss?" Someone had knocked her down as she was looking at the Fish. It was Oishi from the Tennis team, "Oh hello, Shiroi-san," He offered her his hand.

"Arigato, Oishi-san," She took his offered hand gingerly and brushed herself off. "What are you doing here?"

"A project on Marine life in Biology. Fuji and I are working together but he's in the whale section so we can cover more ground," He explained.

"I see… He might meet up with Aomi-chan… Now that would be interesting. Two sadistic little photographers. Or at least one… I swear I'm going to make her eat Ino's cooking for a month!" She fumed. She was still embarrassed about that photo back in the sushi shop but hey, someone had to be composed out of the team.

"Ah… but Aomi-chan seems so innocent," Oishi reflected.

"That's why she's sadistic. I've never heard Aomi lie before but she can leave just the right details out and she always takes the worst pictures. The Macarena was after a beach tournament," She explained, "Some one's gotta keep those girls in line and I'M always stuck doing it because Haruko's a bit… childish."

"She did strike me as that type of person. Why is she your captain?" He asked.

"Because she's the best one for the job. She built our team from scratch and pushed us all together to really become a team. Vice Captains are for chasing people around and getting them to do things right but the Captains do the real work of making a team out of individuals," Yukino pressed her cheek on the cool glass, still looking at the fish, "the girls are the family I never had."

"What about your parents?" Oishi was puzzled.

"I don't even live with them. They're both some where in England, probably sipping tea with the queen or something, pretending they know everything about their wayward daughter, Felicia White," She snorted bitterly, "No, all my parents did was worry about their image. It was crushing to their image that their daughter just decided to move off to Japan for some unfathomable reason. You should have seen the tabloids."

"Your family is rich and English?" Oishi blinked, completely confused. This girl was mysterious.

"Aa. Felicia White is my English name. It translates loosely into Yukino Shiroi. Hana's real name is Marguerite Lafleur. She and I met at one of those boring business parties when I was four. We've been best friends ever since. All those stupid affairs and balls… if I never see another poofy dress again, I'll die happy. Knowing Aomi-chan, though, it's not gonna happen." She sighed again, "But I must be boring you with all this talk about me. You've got a project to do."

"No, no, Shiroi-san, it's fine. Besides you seem to know quite a bit about the fish, you can help me," He smiled gently.

"Why not?" She shrugged, "But would you mind not calling me by my last name? It's reminds me too much of my parents, now you know my story."

"Alright, Yukino-san. Now what do you know about the fish?" He asked her.

"Well, that one over there with the shiny white scales? That's a diamond tetra and it's one of my favorites. They always looked like little stars in water," Yukino stopped for a second as she remembered something. "I should have asked Aomi-chan to take a picture!" She bonked herself on the head.

Aomi was currently feeding fish to the Orca she was playing with, tossing it fish to feed it. She kneeled at the side of the Pool, holding out a hand. The orca shook it playfully, getting her yellow rain jacket wet.

"You silly whale, you got me all wet!" She laughed, "Hold still now, and I'll give you a fish," She ran over to the camera sitting at the side of the pool. After fiddling around with the buttons to get just the right settings, she peered through the camera lens to find no whale. "Where are you? Come out now! Arg, no fish for you!" She stormed as she set down her camera again to lure out the orca, "Come out now, little orca! That's a good girl!" she hugged he orca as he came out of the water.

"Smile!" Aomi looked up as a camera flashed and she fell backwards into the pool, "Ah, Sorry about that!"

"S'ok," She smiled as she realized who took the picture, "Ohayo, Fuji-sempai,"

"Ohayo Chizu-chan. Are you alright?" He asked.

"Aa. Where's the nearest bathroom? I have a change of clothes in my bag," She explained as she shook her hair dry.

"Aomi-chan, not again," A young women came out of a door, looking distressed.

"Sorry, Yura, but I brought a change of clothes," She reassured her.

"And a friend, I see. Is he your Boyfriend?" The women nudged Aomi slightly.

"NO! This is Fuji Sysuuke from school. It was a chance meeting, Yura!" Aomi protested.

"A chance meeting from lovers. I'm Yura, by the way, an orca trainer. I'll go get some tea since there aren't any shows for quite some time. Make yourself comfortable, Fuji-san." She smiled cheerily.

"Fuji-senpai, meet me outside in the turtle exhibit if you want to keep your ears intact. Yura is a romantic and some one who loves to hear herself talk," Aomi whispered to him.

"I think I'll stay. Oishi's counting on me to get some good pictures," Fuji said contemplating.

"I have some. Now let's go!" Aomi, still dripping water, dragged Fuji and her camera out of the whale pool. Not until they were in the Café on the other side of the aquarium did she let him go.

"Whew! That was close," She wiped her brow, only to find it still wet, "How come- Achoo!"

"You're still wet, Chizu-san. Why don't you go change and them give me a crash course on the whales?" He suggested.

"A-alright, Fuji-san," She agreed. She pulled out some clothes from the drawstring bag from underneath the rain jacket and ran into the girl's washroom. Fuji ordered some hot chocolate as he waited.

"I'm back! Is that hot chocolate?" She sniffed. Aomi had changed into a belly baring blue halter top and jean Capri's. He big brown eyes were looking eagerly for the source of the aroma and her unbound blue hair spilled over her shoulders, framing her eyes.

"Aa. I thought you'd be cold so I ordered something to warm you up," He smiled at her.

"Arigato, Fuji-senpai! I'll pay you back," She promised as she took the hot cup, "Ouch!"

"No need, it's a senpai's responsibility to look out for a kouhai," He smiled.

"That's what all senpais say. Yuki-senpai, Hana-senpai, Haruko-senpai, Nice Tsuchi-senpai, and those boys who stopped me in the hall," She ticked them off her fingers, holding the cup in one hand.

"Those boys?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yep. They told me my shirt was buttoned too high," She nodded.

"What! They were trying to make a move on you?" He exclaimed.

"No, they were just trying to help me out. Isn't there a rule against shirts being buttoned too high?" Aomi mused, puzzled.

"I don't think so. I think they were just trying to take advantage of you, Chizu-chan," He relaxed a little.

"That's what senpai-tachi always say, that people like to take advantage of me. Even Yamiko-chan says that. She also says I'm naïve," She nodded, "I know that Yamiko-chan always seem so tough but she's a big softie when it comes to kids."

"Really? I never would have guessed," Fuji's smile grew bigger.

"Yep. Of course, she'd never want me to tell you this or she'd explode. Anyways, what happened to the whales? I have them in my bag," Aomi reached into the blue drawstring bag from which she extracted her clothes from. She pulled out a cute pink photo album with sparkly white volleyballs and a bunch of other girly thing posted on the cover and started laughing.

"Oops! I brought the wrong album!" Aomi grinned, "This is the one is the volleyball album!"

"Really? Let me see," Fuji turned the photo album towards himself and started flipping through them. He could get some pretty good blackmail on them, maybe to get them to be quiet for once. Oh yes, all the possibilities… Inner Fuji chuckled.

"I'll bring you the whale photo on Monday, but I guess you might as well see these pictures now just to see how well I photographer," She smiled charmingly.

"Of course. Just to see how well you take pictures," Aomi drew her chair over to Fuji's side of the small coffee table they shared, "See, that's when Yamiko first joined our team and Ino became a benchwarmer. We had a huge celebration at a candy store and since Yukino was a bit, er, incapacitated… Tsuchi had to take over and calm every one else."

"Is that Shiroi-san?" He asked, pointing to a colorless blur on the picture.

"Aa. She had too much candy so Tsuchi-senpai is hiding. Yuki-senpai doesn't get sugar high very often, but when she does, she's a million times worse than Hana-senpai, who is pretty bad," Aomi laughed. The rest of the shop was looking oddly at the two but neither cared as they swapped stories and pictures about their teammates.

The temporary caretaker and second most sane person on the Volleyball team was standing outside Kawamura sushi, looking at the sign curiously.

"Hello Mizuyuri-san, what are you doing?" Taka was surprised to the schizophrenic Volleyball player outside their family store.

"I-I saw the help wanted sign here as I passed and I was thinking of working here," She explained, "I need a bit of an extra cash flow." Tsuchi ducked her head a little, fingering her second hand jacket.

"I see… Well come on! Pops will love you," He smiled as he opened the curtain and let her in.

"A-arigato!" She followed him in shyly.

"Dad! We have an applicant for the help!" he called. The older Kawamura appeared through the door way, wiping his hands on a towel.

"Hello! Welcome to Kawamura sushi! I understand you want to apply for the job?" He asked her kindly.

"Hai! I can cook some sushi types and I learn very quickly," She bowed, "Just I'd appreciate it if you don't let stay around pepper. I tend to change personalities when I sneeze."

"Well, You're hired! We'll discuss your pay later and we only need you three days a week so that should be pretty fair, ne?" He smiled at her, "go change into this in the back, and Taka here will give you a hand,"

"H-Hai! Arigato gozaimasu!" She exclaimed as she grabbed the uniform. She came out wearing the white robe and tied her short brown hair back with a length of rope like Taka and his father, "So where do I start?"

"How about just for today, Taka shows you the ropes and we'll see what you can do, ok?"

"Hai!" Tsuchi smiled.

"Why don't you help me move the carp from the truck and then we'll experiment," Taka smiled at her. She nodded in response and followed him out to the back where he passed her a box of fish.

"Omph," She exclaimed not expecting the weight.

"Is it too heavy?" He exclaimed, worried.

"Of course not!" she reassured him cheerfully, "Haruko would be so ashamed of me if I wasn't able to handle the weight. You couldn't imagine the amount of weight lifting Yuki made us go through."

"Is Yamashima-san hard on you?" He asked as he handed her another box.

"Exact opposite. It's Hana and Yuki-chan who actually train us, but Haruko made us a real team. There's a humongous difference. Yuki-chan makes able to cover for each other but Haruko-chan makes us use out potential to the maximum. That's why Ino's on bench so not to get in our way but she can advise us from the bench and Haruko always carries a packet of pepper, just in case we need to be more aggressive." She laughed a little, "My dark side always seemed to scare people away from me… My own father left me because of that."

"I don't think your other side is dark… it seems more like er, the opposite of what you are right now. Whoever thinks otherwise is narrow minded and cruel," Taka reassured her.

"Thank you very much, Kawamura-san. It helps to know other people think like that," Tsuchi smiled through her tears, "It's hard to know that some one you love will turn on you for reasons like that… Okaa-san never got over it."

"It's alright," Taka patted her shoulder reassuringly, "there will always be someone there for you."

"Arigato, Kawamura-san," She smiled, her grin a little watery.

"Hey are you two going to stand around all day?" Kawamura's father called.

"Hai, Kawamura-san!" Tsuchi exclaimed.

"Good…" He waved as he walked back into the store.

"Um, Mizuyuri-san, were you talking about me or my father? It was kind of confusing," Taka scratched his head sheepishly.

"Your father. I can see why," She laughed.

"I see. Why don't you just call me Taka? It's easier," He suggested.

"Alright. But only if you call me Tsuchi, Taka-san," She responded childishly, "and I'd like to apologize in advance for anything my alter ego says, I don't mean it. She usually says something that could come out of Yamiko-chan's mouth"

"It's alright, I know." He waved it off. From that point on, they worked in a comfortable silence, talking and laughing when they were creating sushi and creating a deep bond of friendship as they worked.

The gothic Volleyball player was enjoying her own little run down the street to improve her lack of stamina. She wore a black t-shirt and black jogging pants as she bopped her head to the heavy metal rock coming from the ear phones hanging around her head. She was running with out a destination in mind, she just wanted to run far enough to appease Yukino-senpai who made sure she ran.

"Watch where you're going!" She bumped into another person who was running at the same speed as her.

"Whatever," She replied carelessly, not even looking down. She was already making her way down the street, continuing to listen to her music.

"Hey! Get back here! I want an apology!" whomever she ha knocked down was a persistent jerk, because he continued to follow her. She growled and sped up her pace. This guy was annoying! She made a rude sign over her shoulder.

"Why you-!" Even though she had her ear phones on, she could still hear that guy roaring. He caught up with her, running shoulder to shoulder with her. Yamiko rudely shoved the guy with her elbow and sped up once again but still he ran on par with her.

"Screw off!" She swore at him. She finally got a good look at the person who was following her. It was that snake person from the tennis team, Kaido! "Why are you here?"

"You knocked me over, brain dead!" He growled.

"Can't hear you, girly man!" She sing-songed as she ran past him.

"Arg! Damn Onna!" He roared as she sped up. He followed her for three miles across town until she was worn out. She didn't want to bring him to her house so she could relax or her older sisters would freak so she started jogging to the Volleyball court. By then, she was completely immersed in the rock CDs Yukino had brought back from England. She was just mindlessly listening to the foreign words and not noticing anything but her two feet and where they were leading her.

"Hello Abunai-san!" The rental person waved as she entered and made her way the courts. Everyone seemed to know her and two little twin girls ran up to her.

"Yamiko-nee!" They cried simutaionously.

"Sora-chan, Seiko-chan!" She looked surprised and happy at the same time. "I didn't expect to see you two squirts here!"

"An-chan is here! She and another really nice girl came, along with some two scary boys," They nodded cutely.

"Really? That's neat! Can you tell them I'm here?" She asked them.

"Sure!" They stopped for a second when they saw Kaido, "Who's he, Nee-chan?"

"I'm Kaido, Kaoru Kaido, nice to meet you," He squatted down eye level with them and tried to smile. They just looked at him for a second before glomping him.

"I'm Sora!"

"I'm Seiko!"

"N-Nice to meet you too," He was choking under their pressure but he tried to hug them anyways.

"You know, you look a lot like Yamiko-nee. You both look very mean but you're very nice on the inside. We'll see you, Kaoru-nii!" They waved as they ran off. He waved back and he came face to face with a laughing Yamiko.

"You are such a softie, Girly-man," She laughed.

"Urusai," He growled.

"Anyways, since you came all the way here, why don't you come and play with us? It'll be… interesting as we completely annihilate you," She grinned sadistically.

"I don't want to be stuck with those two, I'm leaving," He growled.

"Do you even know where you are?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

"…Fine I'll stay," He sighed, "But don't expect me to go easy on you."

"Look who's talking, you're playing on my turf now!" She growled.

"Hey! I'm no newbie at this!" He protested as he followed her into the gym.

"Whatev, girly-man," She grinned.

"Yamiko-chan!" An waved to her from across the gym.

"Ohayo Yamiko-senpai," Sakuno smiled.

"Hi An, hi squirt," She greeted them nonchalantly, "Where's your stuff? I need to put my CD player down."

"Listening to the CDs Yuki-chan got from England again? Do you understand a word of what they scream?" An laughed.

"Nope. But neither can Yuki-senpai or Hana-senpai can so who cares?" She shrugged. As she set down her CD player, she remembered something "Oh right, girly-man is also here. Him from the tennis club."

"Who's girly-man?" Momoshiro asked, overhearing the odd conversation.

"Him," Yamiko pointed over her shoulder to a seething Kaido.

"Urusai!" He growled, blushing, "Don't call me that!"

"Whatever you say, girly-man," She grinned as she flexed her shoulder and elbows, "You guys wanna go girls Vs. Guys?"

"Mada Mada Dane, Yamiko-senpai," Ryoma yawned.

"Ryoma-kun, why did you drag Momochan-senpai down here if you aren't going to play?" Sakuno asked blankly.

"Yeah, Echizen, why?" Momoshiro grinned, "Or is it just you can't play?"

"You know very well I can. Even Ryuuzaki seen me," Ryoma scoffed.

"Ah, I remember! You and Kaido-senpai beat the golden retriever person and his son!" Sakuno exclaimed as she tapped her chin thoughtfully.

"No way, not him! They are such perverts!" An growled.

"You know them?" Momoshiro asked, puzzled.

"If I'm not very much mistaken, those two were the ones who tried to feel Yuki-senpai and Hana-senpai up. They're also the ones who passed out from blood loss against them," An explained.

"And if they're all you can brag about is that, you've got no chance against us," Yamiko Yawned.

"Ano, senpai, is it possible to play three on three?" Sakuno asked shyly.

"Of course it is, Squirt," Yamiko scoffed, "The officials just like even numbers better,"

"Are we playing or not?" Kaido growled.

"Yeah, yeah girly-man. Get on the court!" She waved her hand at him.

"Momo-chan-senpai, if you-" Ryoma started threatening his senpai but Yamiko cut in.

"If you don't play Echizen, I'll tell them all about your daddy dearest. He has quite a rep with my Onee-chans," Yamiko cut in briskly.

"Fine," He sighed as he positioned himself on the court along with Momoshiro and Kaido.

"You guys take the front, I got the back covered," An and Sakuno nodded.

"This is self-judge, right?" Momoshiro asked.

"Yep!" An exclaimed brightly. "We'll give you the serve."

"You'll regret it," Momoshiro warned, confident of his strength.

"Get on with it!" Yamiko snorted as she readied herself. Sakuno smiled to herself as the match commenced. The guys were putting up a good fight and managed to score a few points against the girls but Sakuno could tell the girls weren't serious at all.

"Squirt!" Sakuno shrieked as she realized Ryoma was sending a spike at her. She put her hands into the upwards dig position and reflected it too far backwards.

"That's all you've been learning?" Ryoma aid boredly as he set himself up to serve.

"Nice try, squirt, but no cigar," Yamiko grinned, "Show him your move."

Sakuno bit her lip as she considered it. Since the senpais had realized her specialty was blocking and spiking, they had been helping her create her own move. However, it wasn't very accurate.

"You can't let Echizen-kun get away with a remark like that, no matter how much you like him," An whispered her ear. Sakuno blushed at that remark but her resolve hardened.

"Bet you Ten to one he's going to use twist, squirt," Yamiko remarked off-handedly as Ryoma hit his serve, which was a twist, "Tennis players are so predictable." She smirked as she bumped it and moved out of the way so her face wouldn't be hit.

"I'm setting you up, Sakuno-chan," An called as she set it.

"Hai!" Sakuno jumped up and spiked it. This spike was different though because she did a mid-air twist and hit the ball with her right hand, sending it right into the left corner.

"Good thing it went in, it usually doesn't," Yamiko smirked with a trace of pride.

"Your roulette actually worked! Everyone will be so proud!" An glomped her happily.

"A-Arigato," Sakuno was dazed.

"Good move, Ryuuzaki-chan," Momoshiro complimented her from the net.

"Are you going to be standing there all day or what?" Ryoma snorted, "Just give us the serve if you're going to take that long."

"Oh shut up Echizen and let the girl celebrate a little. Besides, your twist serve is completely useless in Volleyball," Kaido snorted.

"I can't believe girly-man picked up on that but he's completely right. You're just making it easier to return," Yamiko grinned.

"What?" Ryoma agreed with what Momoshiro said.

"What Yamiko-senpai means is that the twist serve in Tennis will go bounce and go straight up towards the opponents face. However, that won't work in Volleyball against a person with more than mediocre control and reflexes because all the digger has to do is bump it and it will also be a perfect set for a spiker. In Volleyball, the ball isn't supposed to touch the ground like tennis," Sakuno explained shyly.

"Well done, squirt, you actually listened to Yukino-senpai's long lectures on strategy," Yamiko grinned, "Now let's crush some male butt!" Yamiko stood ramrod straight as she spread her arms perpendicular to her body. She also lifted one foot as she grinned maniacally.

"You're serious? Well, this should be interesting," An tossed the ball in the air and hit a serve right at center, Momoshiro dug it, Ryoma set it up for him and Kaido spiked into a corner where no one was since the three girls were grouped at the front.

"Score!" Momoshiro danced around in little circles.

"NOT!" An exclaimed as she spiked it onto his head.

"What?" Kaido looked at the girls, confused. There was no way any of them could have gotten it yet Yamiko was standing in the corner where the ball should be.

"I'm a speed demon, girly-man," She smirked at him.

"I see… Yamiko-senpai's stance allowed her to move faster but she's still has to have miraculous speed to have caught that," Ryoma observed.

"That's Yamiko-chan for you there," An laughed.

"Whatever. I believe that was match point anyways," Yamiko picked up her CD player and turned it back on. She waved as she strolled out the door.

"Dammit! I still haven't got an apology!" Kaido cursed as he left. An awkward silence fell upon them that Momoshiro broke with a laugh.

"That Mamushi. If I didn't know better, I'd say he likes her," He chuckled.

"If I didn't know better, I'd say that Yamiko-chan likes him back," An laughed along with him.

"Um, do either of you know what time it is?" Sakuno asked.

"Fifteen minutes to twelve," Ryoma responded in a monotone, ignoring his senpais.

"Oh no! We've got to go, An-chan or we'll be late to meet Tomo-chan!" Sakuno exclaimed, worried.

"Ah, I forgot! Bye, Momoshiro-kun, bye Echizen!" With that, the two girls slung their stuff over their shoulder and ran for the door, waving as they left.

"That was odd," Momoshiro blinked.

"Uh huh," Ryoma agreed.

The two newer members of Seigaku's Volleyball team ran out the Gym door at the same time their captain set up a picnic on top of the mountain.

"It's so cool out here," said captain, Yamashima Haruko, sighed to herself as she plopped down onto the pink blanket. She pulled her pink cardigan tighter around her to protect herself from the light breeze that was blowing. Her yellow Tank top was no help, anyways. Mom had been right; she should have worn her jeans instead of this jean skirt. Oh well, it was so pretty up here! She could see the whole city.

"Are you cold, miss?" A cool, slightly accented voice drew her out of her thoughts. She turned around to see some one offering her a jacket that read Seigaku.

"Thank you very much," she smiled as she accepted the jacket gratefully, "Are you a tennis regular at Seigaku?" She asked.

"Aa," He nodded.

"So you must be… Tezuka! Tezuka Kiminitsu!" She exclaimed.

"How do you know?" He asked her.

"It's written on your Jacket," She laughed sheepishly, "You're the actual Captain that went to Germany, right?"

"Aa," Tezuka nodded slightly.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Yamashima Haruko, the Captain of the girl's volleyball team," She grinned exuberantly.

"The noisy girls who just moved in? I see," He muttered.

"Well, Volleyball is a very oral sport. Sushi?" She offered him a bento.

"I've eaten already."

"Suit yourself," She shrugged as she dug in. Tezuka winced at the sight of her eating her bento like a child, getting it all over her face as well.

"You might want this," He tossed her a napkin.

"Ah, thanks, Tezuka-san," She smiled at him. "Why don't you sit down?"

"Aa," He took her up on offer. They sat in silence, comfortable silence; not the awkward type Tezuka was used to.

"Isn't that pretty?" Haruko broke the silence by pointing with her chopsticks to the city before them.

"Aa."

"This is one of my favorite places in all of Japan. I like it best in the summer time. It feels like I'm reading a book: I can see so much life before yet I'm watching it all from afar."

"Me too."

"Sorry, I guess I'm rambling," She laughed sheepishly, embarrassed by his lack of conversation.

"Not really. Especially after I've known Kikumaru so long," He shrugged.

"Kikumaru-kun is a very energetic individual who likes his toothpaste," Haruko laughed as she remembered her meeting, "You must be very proud of your team."

"Aa. I'm glad they never gave up. They did their best," Tezuka replied with a hint of print in his voice.

"I hope the girls and I can make it that far. Our finals are in a few weeks," She looked a little worried.

"The Kantou aren't that hard," he stated.

"I believe it was for your team. You left in the first match," She laughed.

"Seigaku won, didn't they?" He responded.

"I guess. But so did we!" She stuck out her tongue childishly, "Hear that, Japan? Seigaku's "Worthless" girls just kicked Kantou butt and we're at the Nationals so IN YOUR FACE!"

"What are you doing?" Tezuka asked, surprised.

"Sorry about that. I've had that bottled up in me for a very long time," She laughed sheepishly, "it just infuriates me on how that stupid Principal has no faith in us and believes we got this far with cheating! Can you believe that good for nothing sh-shoelace!" She exclaimed heatedly.

Tezuka looked at her oddly. "Why would Yoroshime-sensei be bias against you? He's loved all sports."

"Oh, I guess you didn't hear that he was replaced right after you left, about the time of the Kantou finals against Rikkaidai. The new principal, Masato, is a real sexist! He picks on any of the female teams especially the ones with really high scoring male counterparts. Our guys lost in the semi-finals in Kantou so we get treated like dirt even though we've made the Finals!" She ranted.

"You sound like a child," He remarked sternly.

"And I look like one too! No one can ever believe I'm fifteen," She scowled.

"I'm surprised your team obeys you."

"I've got my Vice to order them around. The girls know I want them to go out there, have a good time and win, so they know I let Yuki boss them around for a reason," She shrugged indifferently. "Oh, look at the Daisies!"

"They're pretty…" Tezuka shrugged.

"Want to go to the flower garden nearby? It's really nice," She asked.

"N-" Tezuka couldn't say anything else since she was dragging him by the arm, not waiting for an answer. This girl was odd.

"Look at the roses!" She exclaimed, dipping her nose in sweet scent.

"I'm not here to baby-sit, Yamashima-san," He said stiffly.

"Yeah, I know, but you look like the type that could stop and smell the roses more often," Haruko smiled at him softly. Tezuka was taken aback by the words. What did she mean by that?

A/N: And that is all for this chapter! Whew! 6500 words. –thunk- me feel dead ..

This chapter was an incredibly LONG and pointless thing, but hey, you get to know the girls better here. One of my reviewers told me to work on more character development before anything spontaneous and lovey-dovey happens and well, here it is! This chapter is where they become friends and all that junk.

The next chapter will be a stage setter and that's where my plot really gets started. You'll notice it has been extremely slow up since I've begun.

Thankies to all my reviewers! That many reviews made my day.

Lub, Nyte