Disclaimer: I do not own PoT.

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Chapter 4

"The First Saturday"

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To get the work done easier, Sumire had asked Ayashi to pair off Seigaku with Daigaku. One was to do the main job, and the other to help. When Sumire offered to have Inui give some information, Ayashi refused, saying that they have their own data bank.

Emiko gave three possible lists of pairings for the job. But it wasn't only her who made the decision of the pairings; in Ayashi's opinion, the final one was a little too… shabby, having her and Tezuka together for her was awful. She even commented of how it will be such a bore to have a too serious person as a partner.

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JOB PARTNERS

Tezuka Kunimitsu and Natsume Ayashi –Planning and scripts

Oishi Shuichirou and Hanami Mariko – Master and Mistress of ceremony

Fuji Syusuke and Sanyu Jun – Cinematography and photography

Inui Sadaharu and Hide Emiko – Data collection and editing

Kawamura Takashi and Nozomi Atsuyo – Personnel managers

Kikumaru Eiji and Sachimi Mai – Choreographers

SPECIAL GROUP:

Kitami Tatsue

Momoshiro Takeshi

Kaidoh Kaoru

Echizen Ryoma

Ryuzaki Sakuno

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Tatsue passed the note to Sakuno, who passed it to Ryoma. It won't take a genius that this special group was going to have internal fights.

"Special group?" Momoshiro read out loud, "And I'm with Mamushi?"

The nickname made Kaidoh glare at the fellow second year and hissed in pure spite.

"Oi, oi, no fighting here, please." Said the Daigaku fukubuchou, "If you've got the strength to fight, why not just use it in the program?"

Kaidoh hissed angrily at Mariko, who responded with an arched brow.

"Eh, where did they get this guy… he's scary." Muttered Emiko, staring at the angry second year, "Oi, Kaidoh-san, she's still your senpai, that's disrespect to a person who's a year older than you are."

Kaidoh then turned his anger at the glassed senpai, who received shivers down the spine when he glared at her. Tatsue watched him from the corner of her eyes and shook her head.

"Kaidoh!" an angry shout from Tezuka stopped the hissing viper, and gave a stern look at the kohai, "You don't want to do 20 laps here, would you?"

"No, Tezuka-buchou."

"Let's not get careless here." The authoritative voice of the Seigaku captain left no room for reason or pleading.

Ayashi stared boringly at Tezuka and cursed under her breath.

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It was the start of their preparation for the Daigaku Winter Festival, and according to plan, every Saturday of the month prior to the festival; Seigaku will help the girls in making the presentation of their coach to the Daigaku students as a model alumna who was able to succeed in her preferred path.

The special group was used mostly when the other pairs need help, such as when the planning pair needed lots and lots of papers, when the data collecting duo needed someone to ask other people questions.

In short, they were the errand boys and girls… though it was actually the boys who do the work.

Lunch break came and each pair broke off, Sakuno joined Tatsue who insisted that she join her because Tatsue didn't have any close classmates who were with them.

"I CAN'T STAND HIM!!!!" complained the Daigaku captain, almost pulling her own hair by her own hands.

Mariko looked at the distressed Ayashi, "Who? Tezuka-san?"

"Who else?!" Ayashi replied before finishing a plate full of fried rice, then ordered another plate, "He's… too darned serious…" she took a swig from her glass filled with cool water, "… with his life! I'm going crazy if I stay partners with him!!"

Emiko waved her green pen, "But Ayashi, you're the best planner in our group, it is practical that we pair you with a person with equal mindset."

"We don't have an equal mindset! He's all about seriousness! And me?! No, I am not! Mister Gaito, another plate of fried rice please!"

Sakuno stared incredulously at the slim kendo captain, it was her fifth plate of fried rice… and they had just started eating.

"Oi, Saku-chan, don't stare at her." Muttered Tatsue, "She'll be uncomfortable and not eat anymore if you do that."

Sakuno looked down at her food, trying her best not to notice that it was Ayashi's sixth plate, "Is she really… that…"

"Hungry? Nope. She's just a hefty eater, that's all. You'll get used to that when you're eating with us, which I think will happen a lot of times." Tatsue replied, minding her own fried rice (first serving).

"Oh…"

It was Ayashi's seventh plate, and she still hadn't finished complaining.

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"So how do you find Oishi-san as a partner in the job?" asked Emiko, who was holding a recorder at that time.

Mariko glanced at the Seigaku table, particularly at Oishi, "He's hardworking and very patient. I think we can get along, I think, I'm not sure though. He makes the job easier for both of us, actually, very dependable… but like I would let him be the game maker all the time."

Emiko turned at Jun who was looking over the pictures that she and Fuji took, "How about you, Jun-kun?"

"Ano… he's very interested in photography, I think I could let him do that part and I'll take the cinematography. What do we know; maybe we can work together after all." She said, showing a picture that Fuji took, "It's beautiful, isn't it? He seems to have a talent at this."

"Taka-san…"

"Who?" asked Ayashi.

"Kawamura-san, he's also called Taka-san." Replied Emiko, gaining a shrug from the captain of Daigaku.

"I… think he's doing a great job. It's just that…" she stopped, "I think we're more suited with catering than personnel, Natsume-buchou."

"Then who'll be our personnel team if you're not doing it then?" pouted Ayashi.

Emiko turned to Mai who answered almost immediately, "He's got really good moves, you're right, Hide-senpai, he really does seem to be good with his reflexes. Acrobatic tennis seems to pay off for me."

Emiko nodded, when she was about to turn to Tatsue, "Yare, yare, please don't ask anything. It was dreadful. All Momo-chan and Kaidoh-senpai did was argue. It was great that Ryoma-kun was there or we're dead."

"Really that seemingly cocky and arrogant kid actually did something aside from being so good in tennis?" Emiko took out a piece of table napkin and started to scribble something, "That's new."

"Ano… Ryoma-kun does know a lot of things… he's also good in billiards and bowling… and I think he likes science too… he's not all about tennis…" muttered Sakuno in defense of the boy who was not within earshot.

Atsuyo watched from where she was sitting, sipping her orange juice with pursed lips. Her eyes somehow told Sakuno that Atsuyo thinks that Sakuno likes Ryoma. Mai clapped her hands, "Kya! Ryuzaki-chan! You like Echizen-kun!"

"Ha? It's… it's not…" Sakuno waved her hands before her, blushing badly.

Knowing that Sakuno might reveal her little secret which she sort of tried to hide (but awfully failing to do so), Tatsue piped, "Yare, yare, Sachimi-senpai. It's not like that. Ryoma-kun is her friend that's why she's defending him."

She glanced at Sakuno who smiled slightly at her. It was bad enough that Sakuno already had meddling senpai-tachi in Seigaku (according to Sakuno, who didn't use the word meddling, but for Tatsue it was the best word to use) it would be worse to let her own senpai-tachi know about such. Not only would they be so meddling, they might do something rather risky for Sakuno and Ryoma's friendship. Especially that her senpai-tachi (and Tatsue, at an extent), doesn't know a lot about Ryoma and Sakuno's "relationship", or lack of thereof.

"Oi, stop that." Said Ayashi, who was rather ungracefully waving a pencil in the air, "If Ryuzaki-san doesn't want to talk about it, leave it to that. And… don't dare put that in your notes, Emiko." And added hastily "Just in case it would get lost or something."

Emiko frowned teasingly, "But Ayashi-chan!!!"

"Aya-chan is right, Emiko-chan. We really should stop asking that kind of questions to Ryuzaki-san." Mariko said, then turned to Sakuno, "I'm sorry, Ryuzaki-san, they're just a bit, eh… priers when it comes to love life."

Sakuno smiled weakly, grasping her skirt a bit, causing it to crumple at the hems, "No, it's OK. Ryoma-kun and I… are just… friends."

Sakuno knew it very well, they were just friends. Nothing more, nothing less. It was hard to accept it, but no matter what she does, it seemed like Ryoma won't be paying attention to her.

Atsuyo continued to sip from her glass of orange juice, her eyes staring at the liquid; she put down her drink and sighed.

Somehow, Atsuyo was feeling sorry for the freshman. Atsuyo watched Sakuno from the way she seized the hem of her skirt, to the way she talked like she was having a hard time doing so, to the way her eyes flickered with an emotion that Atsuyo knew didn't fit for a seemingly sweet girl like Sakuno.

She had to talk about this with Mai later. After the preparations, maybe.

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The day finished like an instant, Tezuka and Ayashi hadn't talked to each other, but it seemed that they had been able to make a decent program, according to Emiko and Mariko, since they were the ones who checked it. They still had to work on the scripts for the entire feature.

Sakuno heard the kendo buchou complain once more, "Eh? How's he going to make some scripts if he doesn't even talk?"

"You don't have to talk that much to get a job like making scripts done, Ayashi." Mariko pointed out, gaining a pout from the captain.

Thank goodness though that Oishi and Mariko had gotten along well, or the emcees would be uncomfortable on the stage.

Tatsue bluntly (and recklessly) pointed out when both teams were there that she thinks the reason why the buchou of both clubs weren't chosen was because everything might screw up due to the hell-and-heaven difference of the two.

This gained her a special day punishment from her captain, the punishment though wasn't told in front of everyone, but Sakuno (and Seigaku) somehow figured it wasn't exactly easy since the look on Tatsue's face seemed like death had come 1000 years early than expected.

Mariko opposed the idea that they were getting along together because he said that he thought Gravitation wasn't cool (the four third years loved shonen-ai (boy's love) a lot), so Mariko got angry with him. Not to mention that Oishi had somehow pointed it out that Mariko acted a lot like a boy, statements like that (even if it is true) annoy Mariko easily. She said that if they got along well, then he would've guessed that one.

Fuji told the joint club that the equipments for photo-shoots had already been delivered, and that he could bring (and use) a digital camera that he owned. Jun also mentioned that the video camera was ready to be used anytime, and the lights, sound paraphernalia and even the voice recorder could be used anytime.

Inui and Emiko had told Seigaku and Daigaku that they had finished half of the data gathering in that day, this surprised Jun, who told them that Emiko wasn't exactly the fastest worker since she'd rather watch and see how things work out and if she predicted it right. Fuji commented that maybe it was because she was working with another data user, Inui, and found that it might be sort of a challenge of who was better. Inui didn't say anything, but he agreed mentally.

Kawamura had told them that Atsuyo had been able to contact some of the kendo members who had connections with the lighting and sounds (thus the reason why the lights and sounds are ready). He also added that if ever they needed catering for the said event, he could contact some of his father's costumers. Ayashi then excitedly asks if Kawamura's family had some sort of food business, the latter answered with a yes, making Ayashi smile gleefully and asked him if he could put the name of the shop, address and contact number, just in case.

Jun made a funny comment though that it might just be because she's going to go to a "food tripping" the next day.

"Food tripping?" asked Sakuno.

Mariko answered, "It's eating a lot of food in one day, and she usually does it during Sundays since she doesn't have any schedules during that day. Ack, she really should slow down on food."

"But that doesn't seem to be bad to me…" said Sakuno.

"She eats everything from the menu in one shop, then she goes to another shop, and orders everything on the menu, then it just repeats until she thinks she's full. She can be a very, very hefty eater, you know."

Ayashi retorted, "What's wrong with enjoying food?!"

"Kya! Nothing, Aya-chan!" teased Emiko, "But if it's you we're talking about, it's a different story."

TWACK.

Emiko had been hit once again, "KYA! You're so violent, buchou!"

"Shut up!" she threw another book at Emiko.

Kikumaru pointed at the two, "Nya? Aren't we going to stop them?"

"Don't bother, Kikumaru-senpai. That," pointed Mai, "is perfectly normal here."

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It was almost evening that day when they left Daidouji Gakuen.

Seigaku, Sakuno and Tatsue went back to the Tsuyu Tei Park, as what Ayashi "requested" to her lower classman, Tatsue, who seemed to be unable to say no.

"Ano, Tatsue-chan, it's OK even if you don't go…" muttered Sakuno, knowing that Tatsue's house was far from Daigaku.

"Eh? What are you talking about?" asked Tatsue.

Sakuno looked at her friend, "But your house…"

"Yare, yare. I told Natsume-buchou that I will go back with you here, and that's what I'm going to do." she gestured by waving her hand back and forth as if saying don't mind it.

"But…"

Tatsue put her hands behind her head, "This was my punishment for being so reckless."

Momoshiro interfered with curiosity, "This is a punishment? You're lucky to have a nice buchou!"

"Nice? Like hell she is, Momo-chan." Said Tatsue, who continued walking, though she was scratching her head slightly, "But lucky, yeah. I guess."

"Eh?"

"It seems like kendo members love to talk cryptically." Said Kawamura, who recalled something that Atsuyo said (It would be like sand in a desert…).

"Well, here we are." Muttered Tatsue, putting on her cap, and with a little bow "Ja ne, Seigaku… Saku-chan."

She began jog, and she was going, going, gone, it was then that Sakuno realized what punishment Ayashi made Tatsue to do.

"She knew… Tatsue-chan wouldn't like this… and yet." said Sakuno, her twin braids swaying with the wind.

"Nya? Did you say something, Sakuno-chan?" asked Kikumaru.

"Eh? Ano, it's nothing, Kikumaru-senpai. Ano… I'll be going now, senpai-tachi, Ryoma-kun." Bowed Sakuno, then immediately left.

Tatsue hated marathons.

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A/N: Waaahhh… I am so running out of ideas already!!! NOOO!!!!