Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or Prince of Tennis!
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"Tezuka Kunimitsu, Captain of the Seigaku Tennis Club," Inoue was saying and Hari glanced to where he was standing to their left. "Play style: All-rounder. He has a perfect win record in both official and practice matches. For some reason, he refused an invitation to the All-star Junior selection camp. But he still possesses a talent that high school tennis clubs have their eye on."
Hari noticed that the others around her also paid attention to what Inoue was saying and she saw the impressed looks on Ron and the twins' faces. She already knew most of that, though, but it was still impressive to hear. Tezuka really was great.
"Atobe Keigo, Captain of the Hyotei Tennis Club," Inoue continued. "Play style: All-rounder. He participated in the Junior selection camp. He is the man that stands atop the 200-member Hyotei Tennis Club. Even the coach has strong confidence in him."
"Seriously," Hari muttered as she watched Keigo being all calm as the Hyotei side of the court cheered him on by calling his name and then start to direct them as if they had practised this. "Keigo is getting a big head."
Seiichi smiled slightly but didn't say anything and Hari felt something drop inside her. She really had no idea what made Seiichi suddenly feel so distant… Had she done something wrong? She turned back to the court trying to ignore the way her stomach clenched.
...
"The singles 1 match between Hyotei Middle School and Seigaku Middle School will now begin!" The referee called out. "One-set match. Hyotei's Atobe to serve!"
"Have they played each other before?" Hari suddenly asked realising that she didn't know.
"No," Fuji said turning to look at her. "This is their first time."
"Ah, I see," Hari said.
She watched Keigo serve and Tezuka return it. It almost looked like he just appeared where the ball went. They rallied the ball back and forth a few times before Keigo's ball hit the net and forced Tezuka to approach the net to return it. He tried to just lob it over the net but Keigo was prepared and already there, and while Tezuka managed to get his racket up in order to return it but he wasn't fast enough and he dropped the racket.
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0-15: Hyotei
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Keigo's pose afterwards and statement of watching his beautiful prowess or something made Hari roll her eyes but she had to admit that it was well done. She heard the people around her talk about Keigo's arrogance and narcissistic behaviour but didn't say anything even as she felt slightly annoyed.
Keigo served again and Tezuka returned it. The ball went back and forth, again and again, Tezuka tried to do the same thing Keigo had done before by hitting a ball close to the net forcing Keigo to the net and use a volley to set Keigo out of play, but Keigo managed to return the ball with a jack-knife. Tezuka managed to return the ball again and once more the ball went back and forth.
"Oh," Hari blinked before she smiled.
"Eh?" Kirihara said leaning forward.
"You've noticed?" Sanada asked.
"What?" Ron asked confused.
"Tezuka hasn't moved from his spot," Sanada said.
"How does that work…" Ron frowned.
"Tezuka-zone," Hari said. "Awesome."
She heard someone explain what it meant for Ron and the others but she didn't pay attention to it as she watched Keigo realise what had happened and frown slightly as he returned yet another ball and it went to where Tezuka was standing. Watching Tezuka like this really reminded her of Nanjiro. This was something he too was really good at.
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15-15: Seigaku
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Hari smiled while the rest of her team cheered for the point. Tezuka looked as stoic as ever, though.
Keigo started to laugh and Hari glanced over at him. He was watching Tezuka with one hand to his eyes and she frowned.
"Pretty good, aren't you Tezuka? With that arm of yours…" Keigo said.
"Eh? What does that mean?" Kikumaru asked.
Hari looked back at Tezuka who didn't move or make any indication to say anything.
"It hurts, doesn't it? Tezuka?" Keigo asked.
"Hurts?" Hermione asked.
Seiichi was frowning slightly beside her as he watched Tezuka as well.
Oishi suddenly burst, "no way! Tezuka's elbow is completely healed!"
Hari glanced from Oishi to Tezuka before frowning in worry. She couldn't say that she was surprised because she did have a sense of something being wrong before this, but she could tell that the rest of her team was surprised and worried as they stared at Oishi who seemed to realise that he had said something he shouldn't.
"Tezuka's elbow was hurting until recently. He told me not to tell anyone. In order to get to the Nationals," Oishi said. "He didn't want us all to worry about him."
Hari looked back at Tezuka and the game that had started again as Oishi explained how Tezuka had gotten hurt in the first place two years earlier. How he had been really good even as a freshman and that he had easily won against the seniors. Oishi told them how he had cared about his seniors' feelings and had been playing with his right hand instead of his left and when that had been found out one of the seniors hadn't handled that very well. He had used his racket and hit Tezuka's left elbow. Tezuka had then said something about not using the racket to hurt people and asked the senior how long he had been playing tennis for.
Hari sighed sadly as she watched Tezuka play. She could only imagine what he must have been thinking at that time. How the sport he loved suddenly was the reason for why he was hurt.
"I can't believe something like that happened!" Horio exclaimed.
"Me neither," Hermione mumbled beside Hari and she glanced at her.
"Hari?" Ron asked with a frown when he saw her sad look.
Seiichi also glanced at her and frowned slightly when he saw the look on her face like she was remembering something painful.
"It's not that hard to believe that a team can turn on you," she said quietly with a knowing look that seemed to darken slightly as sadness clouded them. She knew Ron and Hermione knew what she was referring to her first year and her Quidditch team that stopped talking to her after they lost 150 points for Gryffindor. She did notice Seiichi and Sanada give her a searching look but she didn't say anything more.
"Hari," Hermione frowned but she shook her head.
Oishi continued to say that Tezuka didn't feel much to the injury at first but that it became more of a problem last year. The daily training that Tezuka did as well as his zero-shiki drop shot combined with the hit to the elbow resulted in damage to the elbow muscles.
"It was almost to the point of not being able to play tennis anymore," Oishi said.
Hari was frowning slightly as she looked at Tezuka play like he didn't have any pains, but…but there was something off. She couldn't help but feel like the injury wasn't as healed as Oishi and the others wanted to believe.
She heard them say that Keigo must have been bluffing, but she knew he hadn't been.
"Keigo wouldn't bluff like that," Hari said making them look at her. "If he said that…then it must be true."
"But the young Tezuka sure reminds me of someone," Kikumaru said and Momoshiro blinked before he made a face as he agreed. Both of them looked at Ryoma's back who turned around frowning at them.
"Who?" he scowled.
...
1-0: Game Seigaku's Tezuka
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"Wow!"
"That was amazing!"
That was a well performed Zero-shiki drop shot, Hari thought as she watched the Captain of their team. She wondered if it was done purposely because he knew what they had been talking about and wanted to show that there was nothing to worry about.
"What move was that?" George asked.
"Zero-shiki drop shot," Hari said. "It's a special spin on the original drop shot."
"But what does drop shot mean?" Fred asked.
"It's normally done when the player is near the net and the ball is rather delicately hit so that the ball lands on the other side of the net, often rather close to the net," Hari explained trying to make it simple. "Tezuka's Zero-shiki drop shot is because of the backspin Tezuka-Captain puts in the ball. Did you notice how the ball rolled back toward the net when it hit the ground?"
"Yeah," they both nodded.
"Normally the ball would bounce and it will be possible for your opponent to return the ball, but because of that backspin that is now impossible," Fuji added.
"Awesome!" The twins said awed.
...
The match had until now distracted her from her thoughts and worries about Seiichi, she glanced over at him and saw him watching the match. He was frowning slightly and it looked like he was thinking about something else but she had no idea what and for the first time since she'd met him, she wasn't sure how to ask.
She absentmindedly answered questions when asked something but she could not say later what she had been asked or what she had answered as she forced her eyes to focus on the match again and tried to ignore the nagging feeling she got from Seiichi's silence.
She noticed that Seiichi glanced at her and that he got a worried look on his face but she wasn't sure why he would feel worried now…and why didn't he just tell her what was wrong? What had she done?!
She didn't look at him and didn't take his hand when she had let go to accept a drink from Bill. She was not going to be the one seeking him out when he was the one who had suddenly gone distant with her.
Had her sudden sickness, or whatever it was, freaked him out that much? He had seemed genuinely concerned and wanting to help, though. Maybe he was upset that she hadn't told him exactly what had happened? But she couldn't… for several reasons. But was that what was wrong? Did her magic already push him away?
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3-2: Game Seigaku's Tezuka!
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Tezuka was in the lead and Hari was barely aware of the cheering going on around her and the shocked silence from Hyotei's side of the court. Had she been paying attention she would have noticed the way they looked surprised and shocked by the fact that Keigo was losing.
"Something is wrong here," Yanagi said.
"Are you talking about what happened last fall?" Sanada asked.
"Yes," Yanagi nodded. "Atobe hasn't used the thing he showed at last year's All-Japan Junior Tournament."
"Hm, you mean that unbelievable smash?" Sanada asked.
Hari shook her thoughts away and did her best to focus on what was going on around her as she heard Sanada and Yanagi talk. She glanced over at Keigo and suddenly wished that she knew more about his tennis as well. She should have shown more interest in it, she supposed. But they had always talked about other stuff when they met for dinners.
"Oh no! It's a high lob!" Kikumaru exclaimed.
Hari watched as Keigo ran toward the ball but he didn't smash it like everyone was expecting him too. She blinked when he just returned it normally and Tezuka hit the ball back leaving them to rally back and forth some more.
She heard the relief from most of her team, but she noticed Fuji watching the court with his eyes opened for once and looked pensive.
"Oh," Sanada said as he arched a brow,
Hari also felt apprehensive as Keigo had purposely missed the opportunity to smash it. She watched the match and noticed Keigo sudden smirk like something was going exactly as he wanted it to.
"This match is going to be bad," Fuji suddenly said.
"Fuji, you think so too?" Inui asked.
"What do you mean?" Oishi asked worriedly.
Hari sighed and rubbed her temples as she felt the faint throbbing again.
"You okay?" Seiichi asked right away having noticed her small show of pain.
"Fine," she muttered but felt a flash of hope though also confusion.
He frowned but didn't say anything else.
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0-15: Hyotei
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Tezuka's racket was on the ground and Keigo was smirking as he watched Tezuka. Seiichi knew what Keigo tried to do and would admit that it was a good plan, but it was a plan that would be bad for Tezuka and probably would make his injuries worse.
Seiichi glanced at Hari who was looked worriedly at the court as well, so he was sure she too was aware of what was going on. He had to smile at that, she showed great insight into the game.
But he was worried about her. She had looked really pale and like she was going to be sick earlier, and he knew something had upset her when she was in the bathroom. He just had no idea what it was or how to help. She wasn't talking to him. He hated that. All of a sudden there was this wall between them and he had no idea how to get past it.
And…why did she greet Saeki like that? She had let go of him in order to hug the other boy. It looked so natural for her, the warmth and familiarity was not just a normal friendship. He couldn't help but feel childish and stupid for allowing these thoughts to enter his mind, but it was like he couldn't stop. The way she had smiled and the way she had talked to him played over and over in his mind, taunting him.
He had been unaware that Hari had known Saeki. She hadn't talked about him before, had she? How well did she know him? She had even given him a nickname… She only did that to those she was close to.
He was forced to accept it when it came to her team because no matter how much he disliked it, it was more expected when it came to them. She was on their team after all and it wasn't that surprising that she became close to them. So, he had gotten used to hearing her talk about 'Shu-chan' and 'Ka-chan', and it didn't bother him that much…but to suddenly hear her refer to someone as 'Jiro-kun', and that it was Saeki from Rokkaku Middle School… He had heard the reputation that Saeki had; he had even heard some of the girls on his school talk about how handsome and perfect he was. And Hari knew him.
Why hadn't she talked about him? Why did she know him? Why did it look like she had spent time with him and his team? It was clear that it was Saeki she knew best from that team, so it was logical to presume that it was Saeki who had introduced them.
And now she hadn't taken his hand again after getting the drink from Bill. She had barely looked at him and it made him uneasy. He wanted to hold her hand and he would admit, he wanted to show Saeki that she was his. But that was stupid, childish and wrong. Hari was her own person and he wasn't going to be that possessive boyfriend that couldn't handle her being friends with other boys… but did one of those other boys have to be Saeki?
He sighed inaudibly as he glanced over at her and saw her following the match with focused eyes. She looked pensive and he wanted to ask what she was thinking, but something held him back. Why was it suddenly so difficult to talk to her?
How had a good day turned out to become so bad? He couldn't help but wonder to himself.
...
"Atobe is making this a long game on purpose," Fuji said.
"What?" Oishi demanded. "Why would he do that?"
"He wants to destroy Tezuka's arm in the match," Fuji said darkly.
"Eh?"
Hari fisted her hands as she heard what Fuji said and looked over at Keigo. She wished she could say that Fuji was wrong, but she couldn't. She had a feeling that this was Keigo's goal, and she hated it. She felt angry and upset because Keigo was someone she had started to care about and she didn't want to see him do this to someone on her team (or anyone really). And Tezuka was her friend even if he wasn't one of the ones she spent the most time with on the team. He was still a friend and he had helped her a lot with her tennis when she first joined the team.
The game continued and Hari did her best to push everything out of her mind again and she focused on the game. She had to focus; she owed it to her team and her friends. So, thoughts of Voldemort and what had happened earlier was more firmly pushed back and this time it seemed to work.
"Seriously?" Seiichi asked quietly from beside her.
"What?" Hari asked and noticed him glancing over at her almost surprised before he smiled slightly.
"Tezuka was the one looking for a long game," Seiichi said.
Hari blinked and looked back at Tezuka again and she couldn't help but wonder how she had missed that.
"Why would he do that?" Charlie asked.
"Probably wanted to prove something," Hari frowned.
"That is my thought," Seiichi agreed and looked back at the court.
Hari glanced at him and saw the focused look in his eyes and wondered if he could understand this about Tezuka with his own injury and therefore might be able to understand the need to prove himself. She just hoped that he wouldn't push himself this far to do so because she didn't want to see Seiichi getting injured again.
"He wants to accomplish something," Inoue said.
"Accomplish something?" Sakuno repeated.
"If Atobe is right about Tezuka's arm then only a strong will to accomplish something can make him do this," Inoue said. "Those eyes are the eyes of wanting to attain something."
Hari frowned slightly hearing that. She had thought he wanted to prove something, but he wanted to attain something? Watching him she had to admit that it looked like that.
...
6-5: Game Seigaku's Tezuka
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"But doesn't that mean that he won?" Hermione asked confused.
Hari glanced at her, "normally yes, but since Keigo has 5 games they have to play another one. If Tezuka wins this one then he wins. If Keigo wins they go into a tie-break."
"What's tiebreak?" Fred asked.
"It's a set played to determine the winner of the game," Hari said simply and smiled slightly when she saw their pointed looks. "Well, the winner of the tiebreak has to have scored at least seven points and at least two points more than his opponents. So, it can last a long time if the game is close."
"Strange," Ron said shaking his head.
"But it is awesome!" George said. "We can get to watch them even more! They're both so good!"
Hari smiled slightly but still the worry for Tezuka and his elbow and shoulder was there underlying everything. But it was impossible to not enjoy this match. It was a great one.
"It's a great game," Yoshida spoke up having been quiet for a long time.
"Yes," Hari agreed.
"I wish to play a match like this sometime," Yoshida said sadly. "But…"
"You still can, you know," Hari interrupted her. "It's not like you can't play tennis in High School. Or start again now, you can do it."
Yoshida looked at her and Hari saw the hope in her eyes.
"You think so?" she asked.
"Of course," Hari said. "We'll practice together sometime, okay?"
"Okay," Yoshida smiled and nodded.
Hari noticed Seiichi as he watched and gave him a curious yet wary look and he frowned slightly and she looked away feeling disappointed.
...
Tezuka managed to return Keigo's smash that was designed to make him loosen his grip on the racket without doing so, and Hari could see the shock on Keigo's face as he realised the same. She even saw the impressed look on Keigo's coach as he had turned to watch Tezuka.
"He even managed to get him into the Tezuka-zone," Hari said impressed.
"Wow," George and Fred said with wide eyes.
They watched as every ball Keigo returned over the net went to Tezuka no matter what and Hari blinked when Tezuka performed his Zero-shiki drop shot and watched as the ball hit the ground on Keigo's half of the court before spinning back toward the net and away from Keigo.
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40-0: Seigaku
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Only one more shot, Hari thought as she felt the excitement build around her. They were one more shot and point away from the victory!
"Come on," Kikumaru and Momoshiro were whispering.
"One more," the first years said.
Hari felt her eyes widen in horror as she watched Tezuka start to raise his arm to take the last shot and his arm seemed to freeze and racket dropped from his hand in what seemed like slow motion before the racket hit the ground echoing as it did. But that was not what had her attention, but it was the fact that Tezuka was holding his shoulder and dropped to his knees.
"No…" Hari whispered.
Everyone seemed to be frozen in shock or horror as they stared at Tezuka. Hari was vaguely aware of Sanada actually showing his shock on his face as his mouth opened and he leaned forward. Seiichi was frowning and had one hand fisted against his thigh.
"TEZUKA!" Oishi was yelling as his worry for his friend took over and he looked close to actually running out on the court and so did the rest. Hari sat still beside Seiichi as she held a hand over her mouth and fisted her hands as she stared at Tezuka.
The rest of the team all as one jumped the low wall and ran toward Tezuka their worry winning over their logic. Hari remained seated unable to move but also knowing that it would do no good. And she was right.
"Don't come!" Tezuka called out making them stop. "The game isn't over yet!"
Hari inhaled shakenly as she closed her eyes. She knew Tezuka wouldn't give up, but right now she almost wished he would. She heard Inoue talk about how it would be best for him to resign and that too many players pushed themselves and got injured so badly that they had to resign.
Hari blinked when she felt her hand being grabbed and worked open enough to accept another hand in hers, she glanced down at the now connected hands before looking back at Seiichi who gave her an encouraging smile and squeezed her hand.
Confused about why he suddenly sought out the contact again when he had been content to not hold her hand for most of the match and confused at the way she relaxed and suddenly felt better and lighter by just the hand holding hers.
She squeezed his hand back as she watched as Tezuka sat down on the bench. She watched as the others tried to talk Tezuka out of playing and Tezuka ignored them as he just worked with his arm for a moment before grabbing his racket.
She could understand his determination and will, and she couldn't help but admire it as well. He must be in great pain but he refused to give up. Oishi seemed to see it too because he agreed after a short conversation with Tezuka.
"Seigaku! Seigaku!" A familiar voice called and Hari turned in her seat and smiled when she saw Kawamura standing at the top waving the flag.
"Kawamura-senpai!"
The relief seeing him lifted the spirit some and more of them looked relieved now and actually smiled.
"Victory! Se-i-ga-ku! Yeah! Yeah!" Kawamura chanted as he waved the flag back and forth ignoring Ryuzaki's scolding in the background about how he should calm down because he had just been at the hospital!
Hari noticed Ryoma stand and walk a few steps before he paused.
"Just like with me, don't lose," Ryoma said.
"I won't lose," Tezuka promised and Ryoma nodded and before he walked off the court and grabbed his bag before walking up the stairs.
Hari watched as Ryoma walked past Ryuzaki who thanked him for being the bench coach. She then sighed as she looked back at Tezuka.
"Geez," she sighed. "How come we only have stubborn guys in our club?"
Hari snorted slightly as she heard the question from the coach. Her eyes went back to Ryoma who walked away now looking determined. She wondered if he was going to go and warm up…so did that mean that he did believe that Tezuka would lose? She briefly considered going with him. She kind of wanted to and that way she would be away from Seiichi and the distance between them, but she glanced down at the hand still holding her hand and she didn't want to let go of it. Even if he was only holding it because he wanted to comfort her or offer her strength as she watched Tezuka and his obvious pain. So, she stayed in her seat but she noticed Momoshiro running up the steps with his racket joining Ryoma who glanced at him before he nodded at something the older boy said.
...
"Sorry to keep you waiting, Atobe!" Tezuka called out as he stepped out onto the court again. "Let's finish this fight!"
Keigo looked pensive as he watched Tezuka before he glanced over at Hari who looked worried but also calm. He wanted to win this match. He wanted to prove to Hari that he was better, that he could have taught her a lot about tennis as well. He knew Tezuka had trained Hari, and it bugged him. He would admit that. At least to himself.
The ball was in motion again and Keigo noticed that Tezuka struggled to keep up as he attacked. He knew that only one point to Tezuka meant that he had lost the match and he couldn't lose. So, Keigo focused and put his all into the match, like he had done from the start but there was no intention of prolonging the match any more. He still couldn't believe that Tezuka had purposely gone for a long match; he had thought he was the one to push it but the other boy had turned it around on him.
The cheering from his team rose as he took the first points.
...
15-40: Hyotei
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The match continued and Keigo took point after point until he finally won the game making them tie on 6 games each.
...
6-6: Game Hyotei's Atobe!
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Hari didn't know what to think as she watched the tie-break go on and on and on. It was never-ending. She had believed it would be over faster, especially when Tezuka had failed to take control at first but he had never given up. He fought to get back and never allowed Keigo to get the two points lead he needed to win when they passed the 7 points mark.
"Woah." Bunta said awed.
"I can't believe they still are playing, Pyo!" Niou said blinking.
"Awesome!" Kirihara bounced in his seat. "You're Captain is awesome, Hari-chan!"
"I know," Hari smiled.
...
35-34: Tezuka lead!
...
"How can he play with that shoulder of his?" Hermione asked worriedly. "Didn't he injure it?"
"Determination and will," Hari said. "I'm sure he's just refusing to lose and that's why he is ignoring his pain."
Seiichi nodded in agreement. "They're both exhausted by this point. It's not about their techniques anymore, but their will and mental ability. They both refuse to lose."
"Crazy," Ron muttered but he sounded awed.
They watched and everyone had gotten quiet and almost sombre as they did so, taking in the will they both showed as they took turns in taking the lead of the game.
Hari glanced to the first years when they started to shift on their feet a little and she saw Kachiro frown and look almost scared. She furrowed her brows a little as she watched them, and knew they probably were worried about Tezuka.
"One moment," she said to Seiichi before she got up and walked down toward the first year trio.
"Are you alright?" Hari asked them.
"Why aren't they stopped?" Kachiro asked looking up at her. "If…If Tezuka-Captain's shoulder is that bad, why don't you stop him, Hari-chan-senpai?"
Hari glanced at the ongoing game and the expression on Tezuka's face before she looked over at Keigo who also showed determination and exhaustion on his face.
"What do you see when you look at them, Kachiro?" Hari asked gently.
"Eh?" Kachiro blinked.
Hari smiled slightly down at him, "take a look. Look closely at both of them. What do you see?"
Kachiro looked and so did Horio and Mizuno. They all looked to be focusing really hard.
"Um…I…" Kachiro said.
"They both are near exhaustion," Hari said. "Keigo as well. But they refuse to give up. This is a battle of will now, and no one can stop it. Do you not see what Tezuka-Captain is putting into this match? Do you not see his will, his determination, his passion for the game? His wish for Seigaku to win is greater than the pain he feels."
"But…" Horio was the one to speak up now. "But his shoulder…"
Hari nodded gravely. "Yes, his shoulder is injured and he'll have to deal with the consequences of it later, but right now…we can't help him. He will not listen if we tell him to stop, so we should just support him the best we can from the sidelines. He is fighting like that for us, Kachiro, Horio, Mizuno. Can you believe in him? Can you give him your support?"
They stared at her for a long moment before they looked back at the court. They nodded.
"Good," Hari said with a small smile. "You should never forget this match."
Hari walked over to the rest of her team now deciding to watch the end of the match with them. She stood beside Fuji who was watching with opened eyes and a serious look on his face. All of them was serious.
"A Zero-shiki drop shot?" Hari mumbled surprised.
She watched as Tezuka hit the ball over the net and while the ball had a slight backspin it didn't turn back but bounced, showing that Tezuka was tried and that it was very late in the match. Keigo who had decided to give his all to get the ball had thrown himself forward and managed to hit the ball back over the net.
"Tezuka-zone?!" Someone exclaimed when the ball returned to Tezuka like it had been summoned.
Hari felt her breath catch in her throat as she saw the ball hit Tezuka's racket and fly back toward the net in almost slow motion…she fisted her hands as she wished for the ball to go over the net…if it only would go over then Tezuka would have won because Keigo hadn't gotten back up to his feet yet…
The ball hit the net and dropped back to Tezuka's side of the court.
A stunned silence followed where everyone seemed to stare at the ball and didn't quite believe that the game was over. It was finally over…
...
7-6: Game and match, Hyotei's Atobe!
...
Silence. Hari never thought the result of the match would be met with silence like this. No one seemed to know what to say or do. Even the winning side didn't start their usual cheer for the win. It was like everyone felt like silence was the best response…
Hari saw Tezuka let out a sigh and seemed to let go of something as he closed his eyes and just stood there for a moment before he somehow managed to walk over to the net and shake hands with an equally tired Keigo.
"That was the best match," Keigo said as he lifted Tezuka's hand in the air.
Hari smiled slightly as the cheers suddenly burst through and overtook the silence.
"Amazing game, both of you!"
...
"What now?" Hermione asked.
Seiichi glanced over at Hari's friends and back to Hari who was standing with her team, he couldn't exactly fault her for that but he wished she would come back up to them.
"They now have 2 wins each," Seiichi explained. "And a no-game when Kawamura and Kabaji got hurt and couldn't finish their match. So, they need to play another match in order to determine the winner."
"Oh," Hermione said. "But who'll play?"
"My bet is Echizen," Seiichi said.
"So, we'll…"
"…get to…"
"…see Hari's…"
"…little brother play," The twins finished together.
Seiichi felt his head hurt as he tried to keep up with them and wondered if Hari had to do so all the time if so he felt sorry for her. This could get tiresome very quickly.
"Most likely," Seiichi said.
Hari turned and looked at him and he saw the hesitation in her eyes and he felt something inside of him clench but then her closeness to Saeki came back and his inside felt hot all of the sudden and he looked away.
Sanada looked at him with a frown but Seiichi didn't acknowledge him right then, his mind was still fighting with itself as he knew he was being unreasonable and childish, but…but he couldn't help it.
...
The match between Ryoma and Hiyoshi Wakashi was over rather quick compared to Tezuka and Keigo's match. It was fun for Hari to watch how Ryoma shocked everyone who wasn't a part of Seigaku (who knew most of Ryoma's moves by now). Though, when Ryoma performed the Zero-shiki drop shot a gasp went through even some of the Seigaku players while Hari grinned. And it was always fun to watch the shock on the other people faces when they realised that Ryoma wasn't right-handed but left-handed, and had been playing with his 'weak' hand for some time. Ryoma really liked that trick.
"He's good," Sanada said.
"That's high praise from Genichiro," Seiichi smiled slightly before he nodded. "But he is right. Echizen is good."
"Of course," Hari said confidently. "Ryo-chan is the best."
"What a proud big sister you are," Fuji turned to look at her.
"Says you," Hari gave him a look before glancing over at Yuta who blinked at them.
Fuji chuckled and nodded.
In the end, Ryoma won and secured that their hope to reach the Nationals still lived. They were ready for the next round of the Kanto Tournament.
...
"Good match, Keigo," Hari said smiling slightly even though she still felt annoyed at him for his strategy for the game, though it helped to know that Tezuka had purposely gone for a long match as well.
"Yeah," Keigo said pushing his hair away from his face as he glanced over at Tezuka. "It was a tough one."
"You played well," Hari said. "I was impressed."
"Of course," Keigo smirked tiredly. "Who am I?"
Hari snorted. "A big-headed boy."
Keigo sighed but smiled as he looked at her.
"Your brother is good as well," Keigo said. "I was surprised."
"Ryo-chan is great," Hari nodded. "He loved the chance to get to play and show off."
Keigo huffed and shook his head, "I'll crush him when I play him."
Hari rolled her eyes. "We'll see."
"Yes, we will," Keigo said quietly as he watched her leave and join her team again. He sighed as he turned to return to his own team. It hurt to lose, and he would need to work to get over it.
...
Hari slammed the door to her room not caring that it was loud. She flung herself to the bed and hid her face in her pillow. The day had been a roller-coaster of emotions making her feel exhausted. She wasn't sure what she had done that was so wrong… she had intended to talk to Seiichi when the matches were over, but Seiichi had left right away. He had said goodbye and even pushed her hair out of her face like he used to but there was something sad in his beautiful eyes. Like he was expecting something, but she had no idea what he was expecting.
"Argh, boys are so complicated," she moaned into her pillow.
She had gone home feeling upset and just tired. She knew she had not been as invested in the conversation between Ron and Hermione and the rest of the Weasley's. She knew Hermione had given her some looks, but right now she just didn't have the energy to care.
Hedwig cooed and flew over to her landing on the bed beside her and Hari turned her head so she could look at her owl (who somehow managed to keep her balance on the floppy duvet).
"What did I do, Hed?" Hari whispered. "I don't know what I did…"
Hedwig made a comforting sound.
Should she call him? She should, right? But if he had wanted to talk then he would have stayed after the match and talked.
...
Hermione knew Hari was upset about something, and she didn't think it was because of what had happened in the bathroom. Though, it might. She glanced at Ron who sulked because Hari had gone home instead of spending the rest of the day with them.
"I'll go and talk to her," Hermione said getting up from her seat in the apartment they borrowed.
"I'll come," Ron said immediately.
"I think maybe I should go alone," Hermione said. "She's upset…"
"So? I can help," Ron frowned.
"I know you can," Hermione said. "But she looked like she wanted to be alone, so crowding her isn't right. But she needs to talk to someone and…"
"Just let Hermione go, Ron," Bill said patiently. "Sometimes girls just need some girl-talk."
"It's the downside of having girls' as your best friend, little brother," Charlie teased. "We'll go out and find something to do."
Ron sighed but nodded making Hermione sigh slightly in relief knowing that she couldn't actually deny Ron from coming if he had wanted to.
She left and found her way to Hari's new home easily enough and stopped as she looked up at the house. It looked really nice and lived in, and she saw the tennis balls laying spread around the yard.
"Oh, isn't it Granger-san?" a voice said from behind her and she turned to see Ryoga coming up behind her. He was dressed in what looked like training clothes and had a bag thrown over his shoulder.
"Ah, Echizen-san," Hermione said.
"Call me Ryoga," he said waving a hand. "What are you doing here?"
"I…I came to see Hari," Hermione said.
He arched a brow and looked toward the house. "She's home? I thought she would be out with her team or her boyfriend…"
Hermione didn't say anything making him frown at her before he sighed and nodded.
"Come on, then," he said. "I'll see if she's home."
"Where have you been?" Hermione asked before she could stop herself. She opened her mouth to apologize but he answered before she could.
"I was at my work," he said.
"Work?"
"I am a private tennis instructor at the club downtown," Ryoga said. "It's only part-time, though."
"You don't attend school?" Hermione asked.
He glanced at her before he shrugged, "I'm in the process of transferring over from my school in New York."
Hermione wanted to ask more but he opened the door now and she took it as a sign that the conversation was over.
"Ah, Ryoga," Rinko said when she entered the hallway and blinked when she saw Hermione before she smiled in welcome. "Hermione-chan."
"Hey," Hermione said. "Hope I'm not intruding."
"No, not at all," Rinko said. "You're here to see Hari-chan, right?"
Rinko glanced up the stairs and had a worried look on her face.
"Something wrong?" Ryoga asked noticing the look as well.
"I don't know," Rinko said. "She got home and went directly to her room without saying a word. I knocked but she didn't answer."
Ryoga looked over at Hermione. "Did something happen at the matches today?"
Hermione wasn't sure what to say.
"I think she's upset about something," Hermione said vaguely. "That's why I thought I'd come and see her."
"They didn't lose, did they?" Ryoga asked.
"No, they won," Hermione said.
"Good," Ryoga said. "Well, if you're going to talk to her, then I'll wait, I guess."
It looked like he didn't like it and she could see the worry in his eyes as he glanced up the stairs again.
...
Hermione walked up the stairs after being told to do so by Rinko and Ryoga disappearing deeper into the house (probably going to take a shower or find his room). She paused outside Hari's room for a moment before she knocked.
There was no answer so Hermione decided to just open the door. She did so slowly and looked around until she saw Hari laying on her stomach on the bed with Hedwig beside her.
"Hari?" Hermione spoke softly.
Hari didn't answer but she saw her tense slightly on the bed so she was awake. Since she didn't tell her to go away Hermione stepped further into the room and closed the door behind her. She walked over to the bed and looked down at Hari.
"Hari?" she said again. "Are you scared?"
Hari turned her head slightly so she could look at Hermione showing the confusion in her eyes.
"Scared?" Hari asked. "Why?"
"Well, Voldemort…" Hermione said.
Hari blinked before she sighed and pushed herself up so she could sit up.
"I hadn't thought about him," Hari admitted.
Hermione looked closer at her and saw the red-rimmed eyes and her green eyes were darker behind her glasses that looked a little askew seeing that she had been lying on her stomach with her face down.
"Then what are wrong?" Hermione asked. "You have been upset since before the match between Tezuka and Atobe."
Hari looked away and smiled slightly when Hedwig jumped (in the way owls jumped) from the bed and over at Hari's arm. Hari lifted a hand and gently stroked Hedwig's feathers making Hedwig coo.
Hari looked like she was debating something and Hermione could tell that she was holding back. She didn't like it. She wished, oh how she wished, that they were back at Hogwarts and Hermione would know how to reach Hari, but now…now she worried that whatever she said would only push Hari even farther away.
"Don't you trust me anymore, Hari?" Hermione asked sadly.
Hari's head snapped around to look at Hermione with wide eyes.
"Eh? What makes you ask that?" Hari asked.
"You would normally talk with me," Hermione said. "Back at Hogwarts…we told each other everything. At least I thought we did."
Hari stared at her and for a moment before she sighed and looked down.
"I…It's not that I don't trust you, Hermione," Hari said quietly. "I just…I have changed since I left Hogwarts."
"I know," Hermione whispered and Hari looked at her and then patted the bed beside her and Hermione took the few reminding steps and sat down beside Hari and stretched her legs out on the bed.
"I am not the same girl that left the school in March," Hari said almost firmly. "I…am not sure you and Ron can handle that."
"You believe us that fickle?" Hermione asked hurt.
Hari glanced at her and sighed again.
"I don't know," Hari admitted. "You're both used to me being the Girl-Who-Lived. If…if I'm not that…would you still want to be my friend?"
The last part was whispered.
"Hari," Hermione blinked feeling tears in her eyes.
"I know Ron befriended me mostly because I was Hari Potter," Hari said not looking at Hermione. "He heard his brothers talk about me at the station and came to my compartment because of that. He wanted to be friends with the famous Girl-Who-Lived. I was just so happy to have a friend again that I didn't care."
"That's…" Hermione had no idea what to say.
"I don't know why you wanted to be my friend," Hari continued. "You're a good student and I know I only brought trouble for you, I pushed you into situations you never would have gotten into on your own… I only brought you danger, and you would be better without me."
Hermione gaped as she looked at Hari. Did Hari really believe that?
"That's not true!" Hermione denied. "You saved me from the troll! You were my first friend, Hari!"
Hari frowned but shook her head.
"If I had stood up for you when Ron said what he said then you wouldn't have been in danger," Hari said. "I should have said something then, and I should have gone to look for you before that."
"I understand why you didn't say anything," Hermione said. "I know I came off very strong at first and I understand why you and Ron didn't like me at first. I was too concerned about the rules and everything. You showed me that there were more to life than just rules and books, and without you, I wouldn't have been able to see that."
Hermione couldn't believe that Hari had actually believed that they wouldn't be her friends if she hadn't been the Girl-Who-Lived, or that Hermione shouldn't be her friend…
"Hari, you are my best friend," Hermione said firmly. "No matter what."
Hari looked over at her.
"Even if I'm never going to go back to Hogwarts?" Hari challenged.
Hermione swallowed. She had known that there was a chance that Hari would say exactly that, and while she wished that Hari would come back to Hogwarts with her and Ron she could see that it was not likely. Having watched Hari with her new family and friends and seen the way she interacted with them and how much more relaxed she'd seemed Hermione could say that she understood why Hari wished to stay. She never had found the same at Hogwarts where she was constantly in danger.
"I won't lie and say that I don't want you to come back," Hermione said slowly, "because I really can't imagine Hogwarts without you, Hari. But, I do understand why you would want to stay here and I will support you."
Hari blinked and Hermione could see the disbelief in her eyes before a smile crossed her face and Hari almost threw her arms around Hermione. Hermione hugged her back feeling lighter than before and knowing that she still had her best friend.
...
"So, why are you upset?" Hermione asked.
Hari had calmed down and pulled back from Hermione again and dried the few tears that had escaped. She hadn't known or intended to have this talk with Hermione now, but it felt good to have talked to her.
"I…I think Sei-chan is upset with me," Hari said.
"What?" Hermione blinked and Hari could tell it was not what she had expected to hear. "Why do you think that?"
"He was distant with me all through the last two matches and he left right away when the matches were done," Hari said glumly. "I don't know what I did!"
Hermione stared at her.
"When did he start to act like that?" Hermione asked confused.
"When we got back for Tezuka and Keigo's match," Hari said. "You and Ron were talking so I don't think you paid attention to when we met my friend Jiro-kun."
"The boy with the silver hair?" Hermione said trying to remember.
"Yeah," Hari nodded.
"He's handsome," Hermione said blushing lightly.
"Suppose so," Hari said shrugging. "Well, we met him and his team…"
She told Hermione what had happened and how Seiichi suddenly seemed tense and distant with her. Hermione was looking at Hari with a look that clearly said that she thought Hari should know something; it was a look she recognized from their study sessions.
"Hari," Hermione sighed. "You really are dense."
"What?" Hari scowled.
"He's jealous," Hermione said trying not to sound amused.
"What?" Hari blinked. "That's…but…really?"
"Yes, really," Hermione said. "Hari, you greeted another boy with a hug and clear closeness in front of your boyfriend. Of course, he's jealous."
"But, I don't like Jiro-kun anymore," Hari said. "Not like that."
"Anymore?" Hermione arched a brow.
"I liked him when I first met him," Hari admitted. "Or I thought I did…But I think I might just have admired him because when I met Sei-chan I couldn't help but think more about him and I started to like him before I even knew it."
"And did Yukimura know you liked someone before him?" Hermione asked.
"I…he might," Hari frowned.
"Maybe he has connected it to this Jiro-kun?" Hermione asked. "He feels threatened, Hari."
Hari thought back to Seiichi's behaviour and she felt stupid for not seeing it. But jealous? Really? Didn't he know that she liked him? And only him? Was he really jealous?
"I…hurt him," Hari whispered. "I'm an idiot."
"Hari," Hermione protested. "You didn't know and didn't mean to. He should have said something if he was upset."
Hari shook her head. "I should have asked him more about what was wrong."
Hermione patted her hand and Hari sighed.
"You should talk to him," Hermione said. "Call him."
Hari shook her head, "I need to see him."
Hermione blinked.
"Now?" She asked surprised.
"Yeah," Hari said. "I can't wait. I can't let him think that I like someone else…"
...
Hari frowned as she looked at the house in front of her. That was not the right house. She sighed as she turned around and wondered just where she had gone wrong now. She felt frustrated and impatient as she looked for the house to Seiichi's aunt and uncle. She knew he was staying with them during the tournament. The entire team was actually because they had the room and Seiichi said his aunt had insisted on it.
Hari had never been there before but she knew where it was, or she had thought she knew but the street number was wrong.
20 minutes later she finally found the right house number and knowing that she had found the right house finally. How it had hidden itself so well was another question.
She glanced down at the flowers in her hands. She hoped she had gotten the bouquet right, she had tried to learn more about Japanese flower meanings and had found the flowers that said what she wanted to say. She just hoped that he would like it.
Swallowing the nerves she felt bubbling right underneath the surface she rang the doorbell. All too soon she heard the quick footsteps coming toward the door.
"Hello?" A woman with dark hair and blue eyes smiled at her. "May I help you?"
"I…um, is Seiichi here?" Hari asked nervously.
The woman arched a brow but before she could answer a voice called out; "Hari-chan!"
The eager boy came rushing forward and stopped right in front of her.
"Hey, Minoru-chan," Hari smiled slightly.
"What are you doing here?" Minoru asked.
"I…I wanted to see if Sei-chan is here," Hari said, proud that her voice was steady.
"You know our Seiichi?" the woman interrupted.
"Yes, ma'am," Hari said. "I'm Echizen Hari."
"Ah, the girlfriend," the woman smiled. "I'm Yukimura Kasumi, Seiichi's aunt."
Hari blushed.
"I'll call him down," she said. "Come in, Echizen-san."
Hari did and felt her heart beat harder as she waited for Seiichi to come…if he wanted to see her, she thought. Minoru was talking and she tried to pay attention to the younger boy but her nerves were threatening to overtake her. Maybe she should have waited until the next day, or maybe she should have called…
"Hari-chan?" the soft, familiar voice had her turn slightly and saw Seiichi coming down the stairs with his aunt right behind him.
"Sei-chan," Hari tried to smile and she saw him glance at the flowers in her hands.
"Minoru," Kasumi said. "Let's give your cousin and his girlfriend some privacy to talk. Don't go without saying goodbye, Hari-chan."
Hari blinked before she nodded and watched as Seiichi's aunt and cousin left.
...
"Are you okay?" Seiichi asked concerned.
Hari bit down on her lower lip before she almost pushed the flowers over at him and he was forced to take them in order to stop them from being crushed against his chest. He blinked as he looked down at them.
She saw him look at the flowers and waited for him to say something.
"Why are you sorry?" Seiichi asked quietly as he gently touched the purple Hyacinth.
"Because I am dense and an idiot," Hari said.
He looked at her, "what?"
"I don't like Jiro-kun, not like that, and I shouldn't have given you a reason to think that I might," Hari said. "I'm sorry for just acting without thinking and not understanding what it might look like for you."
Seiichi looked at her.
"You didn't do anything wrong," he sighed. "I overreacted."
Hari looked at him and smiled slightly, "I know that if it was the other way around I wouldn't have liked seeing you suddenly hug another girl…"
She had thought about it on the way here and she could see that it had been insensitive and she hadn't really thought what it would look like and that if he had done that she wouldn't have liked it.
"I know you're close with other boys, Hari-chan," Seiichi said. "And I don't want to be possessive and jealous, but…I guess I was just surprised today. I didn't know you knew him and I know he is popular with girls."
Hari looked at him for a long moment before she stepped closer to him and knew she was blushing but she needed him to know. She could practically hear her heart beating in her ears as she looked at him.
"I like you, Sei-chan," Hari said. "I have since the first time you took my hand and kissed it."
He smiled and reached out to and with a hand to her waist pulled her closer and leaned down to press his lips to hers in a soft and lingering kiss.
...
...
AN: What do you think? XD A very long chapter for you! I think I can safely say that this is the longest chapter I've written, at least for this fic. :) I just didn't want to stop it before I got things right between Hari and Seiichi again XD
Hope you liked it. Though, I am sorry if the match didn't make any sense. I really like the match between Tezuka and Atobe but it was not easy to write. And it was difficult to find the right balance between the tennis and other parts like the discussion of the game, explanations and personal troubles... So, I decided that this is as good as it gets and just to post it before I decided to just delete everything and start over...something I really didn't want to do. :)
Thank you for your support as always! :D
