As far as Rei was concerned, Minako was a trouble of the past. After their last class together, the other girl would have to know she wasn't an easy target, whether for teasing, or for misguided attempts at friendship. The blonde would probably satisfy herself with Serena and the other kids in her own class, especially since the two of them would only see each other twice a week. There was just no way that Minako could continue to hound Rei, and she would be free to return to her usual routine.

And so Rei spent her three days of Minako-free time how she had always spent her time, though it had never been quite as relaxing. In school, she was a model student, listening patiently to all the lessons and answering correctly when called upon. She was polite, but distant towards the other kids in her class. She didn't participate in any clubs, as she had to return to the Hikawa Shrine, a Shinto shrine where she lived and worked with her grandfather.

It was fairly small, set at the top of a long stairway built into a steep hill. It was small enough that the two of them could run it themselves, her grandfather being a priest, a role he had inherited from his father, and she assisting him as a miko. On special occasions and holidays they performed rituals or ceremonies, but Rei handled some of the day-to-day cleaning of the shrine and its grounds, as well as most of the administrative work that needed to be done that her grandfather was, frankly, too old-fashioned to do.

Not that he was a bad priest, but in his old age her grandfather had different... priorities than her. While she carried out most of the mundane tasks around the shrine, he spent a lot of his time crafting and selling souvenirs to the people who stopped in, which in itself wasn't a bad thing. The shrine had to be financed somehow, and souvenirs and charms were a fine way to do so. However, Rei knew her grandfather spent much more of his time flirting with any and every woman he saw. They were lucky most of those women only saw him as a harmless little old man, and not as the lecher Rei knew him to be.

Still, it was a nice place to live, and Rei enjoyed the life of a miko. The physical work was simple, but gratifying, and had instilled discipline and a strong work ethic in Rei. Helping others with their spiritual needs eased her own troubles, and as each day wound down, she performed cleansing and purifying rituals that calmed her, and left her with a sense of peace. Oftentimes she'd end her days in front of the sacred fire, a symbolic flame lit in a room of the shrine, said to aid meditation and the search for one's enlightenment. Rei hadn't yet found enlightenment, but the heat from the fire, and the tranquility of the room certainly left her feeling a little bit closer to inner peace.

Inner peace that would be sorely tested as the day of her next PE class drew closer and closer.

The day began as any other, with Rei preparing for school and arriving early to settle in. After a week of the new school year, she had a routine down pat. In the mornings, before classes started, she checked over her work to make sure everything was completed. Then classes started, fairly standard ones; math, english, Japanese, or science. Then lunch, which she usually brought from home, and preferred to eat in the classroom. Afternoons were for the more fringe classes, home ec., social studies, and, of course, PE.

When it finally was time to go to the locker rooms for gym, Rei was feeling pretty good. Classes had gone well, and the end of the day was in sight. She breezed through the warm-ups, and when the teacher announced that they'd be doing something a little different with the teams that day, she didn't pay it any mind. The teacher told them they'd be having a small tournament over the next two class periods, and split the two classes up randomly into teams, so that each team would have students from both classes. Rei didn't really think anything of it. After all, gym teachers loved their tournaments, so one more wasn't anything to worry about.

That is, until she was placed on a team with Minako. Rei almost groaned when she saw the energetic blonde bounce over. She briefly hoped that Minako wouldn't make a big deal about their new team situation, but the look in the other girl's eye put Rei on edge. Although she was smiling and laughing with Serena, another new teammate, whenever she glanced at Rei, there was an unmistakable challenge, a provocation there. Rei reflected that maybe her remark at the end of the last class hadn't been her best idea. Still, she couldn't do anything about it now, so she took a deep breath and marched with the rest of the students to the field.

The teacher ordered two teams to the field. Rei's team was set to play in the third and the last of six games of the period, so Rei took the opportunity to try and settle herself down. Minako and Serena were nearby, holding an animated conversation about an idol, or something to that effect. She recognized a couple of the other kids on her team as being from her class, though no one too interesting. Except for Ami Mizuno, a short, bookish girl with short-cropped dark hair. She was consistently the highest ranked student in the school, and probably the entire country. And if the rumors were to be believed, she had an I.Q. Of 300 and spent every waking moment studying. Rei didn't buy into those rumors, but she did appreciate the other girl's intelligence and work ethic. She was someone who never caused any problems, someone who did their part quietly. Someone Rei could actually stand, unlike a certain pair of blondes, who had gone from talking about idols to joking loudly about some show they both watched. Rei grit her teeth with each peal of laughter.

Eventually their team was up, and Rei welcomed the chance to distance herself from Minako and Serena. They took the field, and when whistle blew, Rei backpedaled away from the action to take a defensive position. Ami had a similar idea, and together they watched the action unfold. Their team consisted mostly of Minako, Serena, and a couple of boys running after the ball, with a few other students waiting near the sidelines or further upfield, shouting instructions and waiting for that breakaway pass to come so they could score. However, the opposing team wasn't cooperating, and for the entirety of their first game the ball stayed around midfield, changing possession a few times, but never really going anywhere. The whistle to end their turn came and both teams trotted over to the sidelines to watch the next game.

Rei sat on the grass, apart from most of the rest of the students. She wasn't surprised when Minako plopped down next to her, Serena following behind and sitting on Minako's other side.

"Rei, I was surprised you weren't attacking with us," Minako said. Rei glanced at her and found both blondes looking at her expectantly, Serena's head bent forward to see around Minako.

"What did I say about using my name?" Rei asked threateningly.

Minako waved her hand airily. "Right, right, Hino, I was surprised you weren't up there with us," she prompted.

"Why would I be," Rei grumbled, still not used to someone brushing her brusqueness aside so easily.

"I thought you didn't like to lose." Minako said.

"I didn't put it like that," Rei said.

Minako flicked her hair over her shoulder. "That's right, you just said you don't like to be humiliated. But losing is okay?" she challenged.

"I'm not just going to let the other team score," Rei said, her irritation coming through in her voice. "That's enough for me."

"So you're okay with tying then?" Minako pressed.

Rei crossed her arms as she looked across the field. "It's a high-school gym-class game of soccer," she said haughtily. "It's not exactly important to me."

"Huh. I just thought you'd be more of a... well a winning type," Minako said.

That caught Rei's attention, and she turned fully towards Minako. Her voice rose with incredulous anger. "Are you calling me a loser?"

Serena 'eep'ed' and hid behind Minako's shoulder, and Minako held her hands up to stave off Rei's anger. "Aha, that came out wrong," she said quickly. "It just doesn't seem like you'd be satisfied with a tie. Like, winning would be more important than just not losing."

"Well it's not," Rei said hotly, turning back to face the field. "I'll leave the pointless effort to you."

Minako lowered her hands, safe for the moment. "That's too bad, I really want to win. Even if they're meaningless games, I wouldn't feel right not doing my best."

Rei didn't have anything to say to that. She considered Minako's words even as the other girl continued.

"And besides, I'm sure you'd be better attacking than Serena."

Serena squawked indignantly. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"You were pretty rough out there," Minako said with a giggle. "When you hooked your own foot when you tried to kick the ball, I couldn't breathe I was laughing so hard."

Serena frowned. "That could happen to anyone."

"Oh yeah? How about when you did hit the ball and passed it right to the other team?"

"It's a very fast paced game," Serena said defensively.

Minako laughed and bumped the other blonde with her shoulder. "And when you tripped into Makoto and took the both of you out?"

"Okay, so coordination isn't my strong point!" Serena burst out.

"See?" Minako asked turning to Rei. "She admits it. Why don't the two of you switch positions next game?"

Rei was stone-faced. As much as she didn't want to admit it to herself, she knew Minako's words were getting to her. She was a competitive person, though she tried to curb herself during school, and Minako was pushing all the right buttons to bring that competitiveness out of her. From the look on the other girl's face, Minako knew exactly what she was doing and exactly how well it was working.

When their turn to play came around again, Rei found herself at the half-line next to a smirking Minako. Minako told Serena to hang by the goal and defend, to which the other blonde responded by sticking her tongue out and huffing as she moved next to Ami. She pointedly ignored Minako and Rei, and instead started talking to the poor girl, who seemed confused by the new development. Minako giggled a little at the other girl's antics as the teacher moved away from the ball and started the game

The other team had possession first, but as soon as the whistle blew Minako threw herself at the player with the ball. Rei moved too, deciding to cover someone and wait for possession to switch. With Minako and one of the boys on their team harassing every pass the opposition made, it didn't take long for the other team to make a mistake. One errant pass and her team was off, pressing up the field.

Their attack was disorganized, a mess of sloppy footwork and a lot of yelling. There were a few times that Rei noticed someone open, or about to make a move, but no one else on the team seemed to be able to figure out what was going on. Frustrated, she fell back to see if an opening would present itself. Her attention fell to Minako, who had just received a pass. Minako paused a moment, her eyes darting around, as she planned her next move. She started forward again, but her eyes flashed to Rei before sprinting wide. Rei didn't hesitate, and moved between two defenders towards the goal. The last defender had followed Minako, who passed the ball around him right to Rei's feet. She put it in the back of the net easily.

A couple of her teammates jumped around and cheered, but Rei didn't join in their celebration. After all, it was only a game- a game that she had been manipulated into taking seriously, she reminded herself. She stalked over to the sidelines as the teacher called for the end of class, and joined the rest of the students as they filed towards the locker rooms, not stopping when she heard someone- probably a certain blonde- run up behind her.

"That was a pretty good shot," Rei heard Minako say. Sometimes she hated being right.

"If you say so," she said. Minako fell into step beside her.

"Doesn't that feel much better than a tie?" Minako asked.

"Not especially," Rei said.

"That's a shame," Minako said. "Still, I'm glad we won. Good game."

Rei was confused for a moment. For once, Minako hadn't said anything suggestive, or even a little flirty. And then, with a loud smacking noise, Minako's hand had connected with her butt, and with a giggle the other girl ran ahead. Rei's stood for a moment speechless before her brain processed what had just happened. Minako had smacked her ass!

"Aino," Rei barked out as she started after the blonde head she could see bobbing away from her. She was met with full, exuberant laughter as the other girl weaved through the other students, who glanced from the fleeing girl to Rei. Rei's face burned under the attention, and she stopped her pursuit. She squared her shoulders and schooled her features into a glare- or at least as severe a frown as she could manage with a red face- and stiffly rejoined the procession to the locker rooms.