Author's Note: Woot! Another chapter done. Actually, I have all of them done. Review fast and I'll release the chapters fast. hint hint. Anywho, this was my favorite chapter to write. Please don't kill me Tezuka/Fuji fans for this chapter. I didn't do anything horrible really. I'm a good girl I am. Thanks to all my reviewers. I appreciate all the lovely, wonderful reviews. They keep me alive. –breathes reviews in oxygen tank- See. Now I hope you all enjoy this fic.

Ryoma's Plan

Chapter 6

The day was warm as usual. Days in California were usually hot. Fuji sat on the bench while he watched Momo work out with someone else on the court. They'd gone to a couple of courts that Echizen had recommended them to go to on the map. Fuji hadn't picked up a racket yet. No matter how much Momo muttered that no one was good enough to beat him, Fuji wouldn't pick up the damned racket.

Fuji's right hand began to spasm. He grabbed onto it with his left hand in hopes of stopping the spasms, but to no avail. With a hand like this, there was no way he was going to be able to hold a racket. A single tear glistened in his eyes; he could feel it. He wiped it away before Momo could see it.

"Ah, it's so hot out here!" Momo complained, appearing out of nowhere.

He dropped onto the bench and grabbed the water bottle. He quickly opened the container and poured the entire contents over his head. He tossed the bottle into his bag and vigorously shook his head like a dog just getting out of a bath. He hadn't bothered to spike his hair like usual today, so it was a mess of wild hair. He glared up at the sun and threw an arm over his eyes to get some shade.

"Yes, it is," Fuji replied, amused by Momo's antics.

"Why don't you play me? That would be a whole heck of a lot better," he remarked, his arm still shading his eyes.

Fuji had been so entranced by Momo's antics that his hand had stopped shaking. But, now that Momo mentioned playing, his hand had starting shaking again. Carefully, so as not to catch his attention, Fuji hid his hand behind his back.

"I don't think I want to play today. Sorry, Momo." It was the same reply as it had been every day Momo had asked him to play.

Momo sighed. "You've said that for the past month. When will you be ready if not today?" he said seriously.

Fuji froze. This was unlike the Momo he knew. The Momo he knew would have already given up, but this one kept at him. It was almost like this Momo was stronger and more able than the Momo in the past. It made Fuji's heart ache. Was this Momo totally different than the one he knew? Was the difference bad?

"I just don't want to," he said lamely. There was no fighting this new Momo.

Momo sighed again. "You know, I heard from a recent friend that you and Tezuka dropped out of the Pro Tournament a few years ago. He said that you two were near hits for becoming pros. What happened?"

At the mention of that event, the spasms in his hand got even worse. It was shaking his entire arm. He remembered that day as clearly as if it were this day. He remembered the rain and the thunder and the lightning. He remembered the sweet tennis courts and the wins he'd already earned for himself. Oh, he remembered quite well. As he remembered, his body started reacting. He knew it was getting very bad. He knew he had to leave.

He stood up abruptly. "I'm leaving." He managed to get up and then ran off the court.

He cared nothing for the looks people gave to him as he left. He cared even less for the bewildered look Momo gave him. He just needed to get out of there and in a hurry. He ran to the street and lifted his good hand to call for a ride. A cab pulled over. He opened the door and rushed in, not caring what the person even looked like.

He reached into his wallet and pulled out a fifty. "Drive anywhere. I don't care. I want no one else to be picked up. If I'm satisfied with your driving, I'll tip you well afterwards."

"Okay…" the driver said.

By the voice, it was a female. He didn't care. He didn't care about anything or anyone right now. His memories kept haunting him. It made the impeccable sunny sky seem dark and dangerous, like that day. He curled up into a ball to keep from shaking. He didn't want to feel. He didn't want to remember anymore. He wished more than anything that he could forget. But God wouldn't grant him even that much peace.

Half an hour probably passed before he was remotely alright. He didn't know because he wasn't keeping track of the time, but the driver was keeping her promise and drove around, not picking anyone else up. He felt a little bit better. Then she spoke up.

"So, you play tennis like your friend?"

"Huh?" he asked, clearly confused.

She laughed. "You have a racket beside you, so I thought you played tennis like your friend."

Fuji hyperventilated. Did he? He looked beside him and, sure enough, there was a racket. He had probably picked it up in his haste to get out. He didn't remember picking it up, but that wasn't the point. He'd done things before when he was in that type of mood that he never remembered.

With a shaking hand, he fingered the handle. It was his old racket. Momo had been so adamant about him bringing a racket that he hadn't made a fuss and just brought one to make him happy. The grip tape was starting to peel off. That's how long he hadn't touched it. Years.

"I played. A long time ago."

"Really?" she asked confused. "Being 'his' friend, I would have expected you to be some famous tennis player or something."

He smiled ruefully. "You keep saying 'him,' and I don't know who you mean," he informed his driver.

She smiled; he could see it in the rearview mirror. "Ryoma Echizen. I was the cab driver that took you and your three friends to his house."

Then he remembered. "Yes, I remember now." He mustered a smile. "I thought you looked familiar." She hadn't, but he was good at lying.

"Well, I hate to inform you about this, but my shift is nearly over." He was truly disappointed. "But, if you like, you can come with me," she told him softly.

He cocked his head. "How do you know I have nowhere to go?"

She laughed and smirked. "I don't. I just guessed, but you confirmed that guess just now."

She was gutsy; he had to give her that. "Saa, I guess I'll have to concede that point to you. Sure, I'll go. Where are we going?"

She laughed again. "You should first check to see where I'm going, before you agree to go someplace with a stranger," she educated him.

He smiled, this time for real. "Saa, you're not a stranger. I know you. I don't think you'll take me someplace horrible."

She grinned. "You're right. But I'm still keeping the place I'm going a secret." Her grin turned into a mischievous smile.

"You sure know how to get your own way, don't you?" he told her.

"In this city, you'd better know how to get your way or you don't survive," she said matter-of-factly.

He nodded his head to show he conceded the point to her again. There was no more talk, but the driving seemed to have a clear destination to it now instead of a confused wandering. They stopped at an old building and she stepped out of her car, clearly waiting for him to get out.

He got out and scanned the sky. It was still beautiful, nearly midday. A small wind wafted its way through the trees, creating a pleasant breeze. He stretched, and his back popped once. That was from the abnormal way he had been sitting.

"Bring your racket." The girl appeared beside him and pointed to the back seat.

He grabbed the racket without thinking about it. It wasn't until he was at the old building that he remembered that he had it. He blinked and tested the weight on his own racket. It was as perfect as it used to be. The only thing wrong with it was the tape peeling off. That was easily fixable. His hand shook a little.

"Come on," she yelled at him, already way ahead of him.

His feet took off before he told them to. What was happening? He went to the back of the building and saw a bunch of tennis courts. These were some of the ones on the map Echizen had given them, if his memory was right.

"You… play tennis," he said in disbelief.

She smiled secretively. "Yeah. It's been my dream to reach the pros." She hooked a strand of long brown hair behind her ear. "Now," she said, shaken from her reverie. "Let's go play. I want to see how good you are."

He began to shake uncontrollably. "I… can't," he stammered.

She gave him a leveled glare. "Yes, you can. Now get over here."

Someone laughed off in the near distance. "Look, Mica dragged another person here to beat the hell outta. Wish I could watch this match."

Mica glared at whoever said that. "I don't care about your reason for not playing, but you do play. I know you do and that you can. I can sense people's strengths, and you're strong. I want to play you." She stamped an impatient foot. "Now come on!"

Again, Fuji's feet started moving without him giving them orders. It was like his body was following her commands. Weird. He found himself standing in a court. It brought back memories, good and bad. His body shook even more violently then before.

"Smooth or rough?" she asked, positioning her racket on the ground.

"I don't care. I don't even want to be here."

She sniffed. "And I don't care that you don't care, so we're even." She twirled the racket. "Smooth." It landed right side up. "I get to serve."

She went to her line and arched her back when she saw that he was ready. Then, she hit the ball with a force that Taka-san would have been amazed at. His eyes couldn't even keep track of the ball as it shot past him, a no touch serve.

"Love, 15," someone said.

Again and again the ball was a no touch serve. He was shaking so badly watching her serve that he couldn't keep his mind on the game. That powerful swing made him remember…

"Game for Mica," the same person said.

Fuji looked at the person, only to see Momo keeping score. Fuji looked at him wildly. He halted the game and ran over to him.

"You can get me out of this, can't you?" he asked the tall tennis player.

Momo smiled ruefully. "You accepted the game, so you can't quit until she says so."

"I… I can't keep… keep doing this." His voice shook with fear. "I… I'm about to break," he whispered.

"I'm sorry," Momo said patiently. "Just lose and then everything will be okay."

Fuji walked dejectedly back to the court. Momo was right about just losing, but he thought he might break even if he did. He shook and readied himself. Then the ball was thrown at him, and he winced as he caught the ball.

"It's your turn. Oh, and don't think about losing on purpose. I won't let you off this court until you score at least one game from me," she told him.

He shook harder, dropping the racket and ball and falling onto his knees. He wrapped his arms around his legs to keep from shaking so bad. He'd forgotten that he had to serve. He had to… swing the racket. He had to… play.

Someone was gently rubbing his back and whispering, "It's okay. Fuji, what the hell happened to you?"

Fuji looked at Momo wildly and grabbed onto his sweat-soaked shirt. "I didn't do it on purpose!" he yelled.

Momo winced but took the yell. "What didn't you do on purpose?"

Fuji gulped. He didn't want to remember. He really didn't… But he would have to if he was to get out of this stupid game.

"I didn't mean to kill him," he croaked.

"Kill who?" Momo soothingly asked.

"It was the third day of the Pro tournament. Both Tezuka and I had won all of our matches. It was said that we were definitely going to become pros. Tezuka had one more match that day, but I had completed mine. I told him I'd go home early and cook him something." He had to stop because his mouth was parched. He swallowed. "It was raining that day in part of the town. I took a back ally to get home faster…"

Fuji could see it all in his mind. The cloudless sky was suddenly filled with dark, foreboding clouds that thundered.

"A man roughly stopped me and took out a knife. He was about to rape me when I remembered that I had my racket in my hand. I… retaliated and hit him hard with the racket. Faster and faster I hit him, harder and harder. I used serve after serve against him. I didn't even notice when he'd dropped his knife and dropped unconscious onto the ground. All I knew was that I had to keep hitting him. And I did.

"The police found me there, hacking away at the body. They had to forcibly pull me off the guy because I wouldn't stop. The blood… oh God, the blood!" He stared at his hands and saw imaginary blood dripping down them. "The medics later said that he'd died of many wounds. The one to his skull was busted in and pieces of bone had been imbedded into his brain, and his ribcage had collapsed onto his heart. A rib bone punctured his lungs. Those are the awful wounds I did to him!"

He could see those injuries again as if it were yesterday. The blood was all over his hands and all over the ground and splashed onto the walls. It was a horrible vision and made him want to puke. The guys' legs were broken and his shirt was severely torn up.

"The police threw me in jail, which I have to admit was the right decision. I wasn't well. But, the next day, during the hearing, after many hours of arguing, I was deemed innocent and sentenced to spend years in therapy. I was said to have been defending myself. But I can't forget. I can't forget the way things actually went. I'm a murderer." He looked at Mica and Momo wildly. "Now do you see why I can't play!"

"No, I don't," Mica said a bit hurriedly. "You have a match with me. I don't care if you hacked away the President of the United States. I want this match."

Momo gently threw Fuji onto the ground and pinned him. "Listen to me. They were right. You were acting in your self defense. It wasn't your fault. Nothing you did was your fault. I'm just sorry you had to quite tennis because of that jackass. He had no right to live if he was going to rape you. You listening to me?"

Fuji was wide eyed and seemed to not be listening. Momo shook him hard and slapped him. Fuji blinked and finally seemed to be looking at Momo instead of the past.

"Do you hear me?" he asked again.

Fuji nodded. "But these memories won't leave me," he whispered.

"They never will," Momo said soothingly. "You just have to know how to deal with them."

He picked up the shaken older man and brought him to his chest. Lovingly, he rubbed the back of Fuji's neck.

"There, there. It's okay. Things will be alright. You will be alright. It wasn't your fault," he chanted in a sort of mantra.

Slowly, Fuji's shaking subsided and he felt better than he had in a long time. Equally slowly, he lifted his head and glanced into Momo's startling purple eyes. He decided this new Momo was amazing. He rose toward Momo and gently planted a kiss on those warm lips. Shock flew through him when he felt the softness of another person's lips on his. They weren't Tezuka's. They weren't commanding and they weren't submitting. They were equal.

He deepened the kiss and was thrilled when Momo didn't resist. Wonderful, beautiful Momoshiro deepened the kiss even more and Fuji flew. He forgot about pasts, he forgot about Tezuka and Echizen. There was only the now and him and Momo. Nothing else mattered.

Gently, Momo pulled back and stroked Fuji's head. It was the most exhilarating feeling Fuji had ever experienced. They were both breathing hard from the kiss.

"Feel better now?" Momo asked when he enough breath.

Fuji nodded. "I do. Thank you." He meant it for a great many reasons.

Momo unwound his arms from Fuji and stood up. It was then that Fuji remembered that girl.

"Mica!"

"Well, you two finally remember that I'm here," a far off voice said. "Is it safe to come back?" she asked.

"Yes, it's fine to come back," Fuji said.

She walked around the building and grinned at the two guys. "You two are lucky that this court is hidden from everyone's eyes." She pointed to the trees that hid the court from view.

Fuji appreciated that fact. "Saa, I see what you mean."

She laughed. "You should also be glad that I like you two. I had to scare off a couple of tennis players just because you two wanted to kiss here. Female and male would have been fine, but most people would be angry to find a male kissing another male."

Both men had the grace to blush. They'd both forgotten she was there. Momo rubbed the back of his neck ruefully.

"Sorry. We didn't mean to…" He trailed off.

She smiled. "Don't worry. I like you two, so I don't mind."

Momo smiled his most charming smile. "My boyfriend has been gone for a long time, and Fuji was just so beautiful… and he needed me." He grinned.

Fuji just smiled. He knew. They both had lovers to go back to. This was just a one time thing. He didn't mind. It sort of hurt, but he felt something within him healing as well.

"Ahhh, I see. So you want me to keep quiet." She laughed. "I will, only 'cuz I like ya. But I think it's a waste for you two to be gay." She winked at them.

Momo held his heart. "Oh, how I wither from the hurt." He grinned at her. "Back in school, the team was the school heartthrobs. We never really wanted for female company, if we wanted it. But our males were much more interesting. Especially Echizen." His smile was like the sun coming out from behind the clouds.

She gasped. "Oh, you're Echizen's boyfriend!" she squealed.

He rubbed the back of his next ruefully. "Guilty."

Fuji just shook his head. Momo had a way with the girls. In fact, Momo had his way with males too. Fuji grinned at that thought. Maybe he'd get out of that match.

"YOU!" She pointed at Fuji. "Don't you be thinking that our match is over!" She eyed him fiercely. "I will play you and I don't care if you did just kiss a guy. Your match is still on until you get one game from me."

Fuji started. Damn. Oh well. He gently walked over and picked up the racket. He waited for the shaking, but it never came. He was surprised. He glanced over at Momo and saw that he was already off the court and that Mica was on her side waiting for her serve.

He walked to his line and threw the ball into the air. He arched his back and sprang forth to hit the ball. It was perfect. It whizzed by her, and she couldn't even blink because it went too fast. He smiled.

"As Echizen would say, mada mada dane."

Everyone seemed to be smiling. He served again when the ball was tossed back. It was another no touch serve. Faster and faster he hit, and surprisingly, it didn't bring up unwanted memories. It felt good. The bending back and releasing of all of his muscles felt natural. He remembered why he loved the game so much.

He ended up winning against Mica. It was tense in some parts, but otherwise he was back to normal. He walked over to his bag that Momo brought with him and took out the towel to dry his soaked face.

A piece of paper fluttered to the ground. He put the towel around his neck and bent down to pick it up. It was the letter Momo had given him from Echizen. He sat down on the bench and picked it up. He then carefully opened the letter and took out the contents. One was a letter, and the other was wrapped in it. He opened the letter and freed the other piece. The letter was simple:

Fuji-senpai,

Don't let the past eat you alive. Let it heal you instead. Our past is meant to be a cradle, not a prison. Set that prisoner, set you free.

Ryoma Echizen

Inside the paper was a snapshot taken when they were at Atobe's Christmas party. They were all smiling, laughing and having fun. They were so young. He didn't even know he was crying until a drop dripped onto the photo. He wiped it off and then did the same to his eyes. Echizen was amazing too.

He looked at the letter and saw it had a P.S. on it:

P.S.

Mica is my revenge on you making me dress as a female. I thought she was fitting revenge.

Fuji laughed. For the first time in who knows how many years, Fuji laughed. It scared the nearby birds out of their trees, but Fuji didn't care about them.

"Hey Fuji!" Mica called. She rushed over when she saw he was ready. "I have this friend who wants to play you. Her name is Rebecca. Would it be okay?"

Fuji smiled. "Saa, I don't know," he said playfully.

Mica grinned. "Okay, I'll call her over. Rebecca!"

A beautiful woman walked over in short stylish blue shorts and a white tank top shirt. She wore her shoulder length black hair back in a pony tail, and clips held the stray ends up.

"Hi, I'm Rebecca." She had a lilting voice, like English wasn't her first language.

His eyes opened. "I'm Fuji. Pleased to meet you." Something about her…

"Let's get started," was the brisk reply.

Fuji got up and stood on his line. Momo gave him a thumbs up. Then the battle began. This chick was good, was Fuji's first impression. Actually, this girl was damned good. Fuji could tell that she was holding back a lot of her power. Fuji was using all of his triple counters, but they seemed to not work. It was like the person he was playing knew about his triple counters and knew how to counter those. Then, the person did a Twist Serve, and Fuji had his answer. He smiled and went all out against this 'girl'.

"You must be having fun, Echizen," Fuji said off-handedly.

"Mada mada dane, Fuji-senpai." Ryoma grinned.

"RYO!" Momo screamed from the sidelines.

Fuji grinned. "Beat me so you can go greet your lover," he said.

Ryoma smirked and did just that. He walked over gracefully and gave his overjoyed boyfriend a hug. They walked arm-in-arm over to Fuji.

"So," Ryoma said as he sat down. "You better now? I can tell with your form. You haven't lost a lot of it."

"No, no I haven't. I think I gained a lot more today," he remarked. "Why'd you dress in drag?" he asked.

Echizen grinned. Damn! For a girl he was pretty hot, Fuji had to admit. Then he remembered that Eiji said that Echizen would be the perfect model for his paintings and photos. He'd have to start badgering Echizen again for the pose. He'd been doing everything so half-heartedly these past years, but now he could really concentrate on him. This was going to be fun.

"I needed to see that you were better. If I played as me, then you would have already lost in your mind, and I would never see what you were capable of. Now I can see your strengths and weaknesses."

"Already thinking about the game I will play you when I'm fully trained, are you?" Fuji asked playfully. He felt good.

Echizen tossed back his head and reached for the imaginary cap that was supposed to be on his head. Fuji laughed mentally.

Echizen swore. "Yes, I am," he sighed. "You will probably be the furthest one along, actually." He checked his watch.

"What do you mean by that?" Fuji asked

Echizen sighed. "I just got word from Taka that Kaidoh is receiving treatment for his legs." Both Fuji and Momo paid more attention. "The doctors say that he won't be walking for another year. We're going to have to go slowly with his training. So for one year, everyone will be gone. I will call the others and tell them they have a year to complete their personal training."

Fuji panicked for a second. A whole year without Tezuka? That would be hard. Then he looked at Momo and resumed smiling. It would be alright. He had his friends here.

"What about you, Echizen?" he asked the younger man.

Echizen's golden eyes flickered with some hidden emotion. "I'm going to make rounds throughout the year. I'll check in secretly on everyone while I do my tours. That's another reason I chose those places. I'll be having tournaments at those cities at one point or another this year."

"I see. How long will you stay here?" Fuji asked because he knew Momo was dying to ask that.

"For another few hours. I have to leave soon. I have to be in another city by tomorrow." His golden eyes seemed to flash as they looked at Fuji. "Why?"

Fuji knew that Momo was going to kill him if he didn't get some time alone with Echizen. He looked over at Mica and grinned.

"Mica? Would you do me a favor?" he asked the girl.

"Sure. Anything. What is it?"

"Can you take Echizen and Momo back to the house while I stay here? I want to play a couple more games with you."

She made an 'o' with her mouth to show that she caught on. Smart girl. "Okay. Sure. I'll agree. I'll even do it for free."

Echizen laughed, which surprised Fuji. That laugh sounded like bells tinkling. It was rich and beautiful. When had Echizen started laughing so much? It was a shame that Fuji had to miss all the other times. Made him want to make Echizen laugh more.

"Actually, I was thinking of something while I watched you two play," Echizen said with dancing eyes. "I want to train you. I want to make you the female star in the world of tennis. Would you like that?"

Her eyes widened and her mouth dropped in a gape. "R-really?" she asked.

"Yes, really. I want to train my eight friends so it wouldn't be anything at all to train you. Besides, I'd been meaning to get into the female world somehow. Maybe I should dress in drag more often and just show up in the female tennis world."

She looked horrified. Fuji hid his grin. He knew Echizen wouldn't do that. From what he could see, Echizen had more on his plate by being the male tennis star then he could handle. He didn't need to be the star of the female world either.

"No, no. That's fine. I'll just have you train me and it'll be like you playing. How's that sound?"

Fuji stifled his laugh. She actually thought Echizen was serious. Poor girl. He could see it in Echizen's dancing eyes that he wasn't serious. Echizen snorted.

"Like I'd do that. Really." He confirmed Fuji's thoughts. "I'll just train you. In fact, I'll house you as well. You won't have to do this job anymore. You'll be so busy with training that you won't have time to think about a job. How's that sound?"

He left her gaping again. "Like a dream." She pinched herself. "OW! Nope, it's not a dream." She gave him a brilliant smile and said, "I'll drive you anywhere you want, 'cuz today's my last day as a cab driver, Echizen-sama." She stressed the 'sama'.

Everyone winced, even Mica. Her Japanese was horrible. Everyone laughed. This was turning out to be the best day in Fuji's life. He quickly said good-bye to everyone and then sat down on the bench to think.

He was a little worried what the future would bring, but he knew he had friends to back him up. It sounded like Kaidoh was making a full recovery. Good for him. Momo would need their rivalry again to take training seriously.

He thought about Tezuka and what he was doing. He hoped his lover was alright. He wished he could call Tezuka and tell him that he was okay, but he knew he couldn't. That could hurt whatever healing was going on with Oishi. So he'd be patient and believe. That's what made him come all the way to California. He believed that Echizen could heal them. This was his way.

He bent down to pick up a ball. Time to start practicing. Who knows what type of heavy training Echizen had in mind. Better to be prepared then not. He arched backward and let loose his muscle in the serve. He was grinning from ear to ear for hours after that. People who came to the courts could see that this man really loved tennis. Things were finally looking up.