Title: Flail
Summary: Explanation of Ryoma's inconsistent volleyball abilities.
Inspired by Episode 90 and OVA 7, where in episode 90 Ryoma was the prince of volleyball, and in OVA 7 he uh, wasn't.
Tezuka doesn't understand how someone could fail so much at volleyball. He has to blink when he sees Horio running across the court, tripping over the tennis balls. He amends the thought. He just can't understand how Echizen could fail so much at volleyball.
He remembers receiving a phone call from Inui when he was in Germany. Inui was reciting to him how Kaidoh and Ryoma thrashed some father-son pair in volleyball, and anyone else who dared to stand in the way of their money making scheme, seeing as how someone who Inui did not want to name but mentioned had two years of volleyball experience managed to lose their accommodation voucher. He remembers hanging up just as Inui went off on a Kaidoh tangent.
As he thinks about it, it never makes much sense. Why did Ryoma, for lack of better word, fail so much when they played together? The idea frustrates him, because - though he enjoyed seeing Ryoma flail around helplessly and falling flat on his face in the sand - halfway through the game, with the pressure and knowledge that he would be publicly humiliated by Ryuuzaki growing, he had wished that Ryoma would just stop messing around.
Hope rose in his chest when he saw Ryoma confidently preparing to serve the ball over the net.
Hope died a quick and painful death when Ryoma volleyed the ball backwards and behind him.
He had face faulted, but quickly utilized the Zone to pull the ball back. It was hopeless, however, and would definitely not work because he wasn't the one serving. Ryoma, pathetically flailing about once again, was.
The silver seat was not something he wanted to recall ever again.
These past few days Tezuka has been thinking about it a lot. He doesn't know why Ryoma is unable to play volleyball with him when he plays it so well with Kaidoh. Tezuka knows that Ryoma will never intentionally lose if he can help it, and the tape Inui shows him - most probably recorded by Fuji - is the perfect example of how Ryoma succeeds in every sport.
To be honest, a little part inside of him is feeling very, very, very disappointed. And if he's honest with himself, it hurt a little bit (a lot) too. Did Ryoma just not want to partner up with him for anything?
"Tezuka!"
Tezuka is jerked violently from his musings and he blinks up in confusion at Ryuuzaki. She has an exasperated expression on her face, and appears slightly worried.
"What's wrong? I've been calling you for at least a minute."
Tezuka frowns, and admonishes himself for losing focus. He shakes his head, and murmurs an apology. Ryuuzaki waves him off and points towards the courts behind her.
"Doubles with Inui and Kaidoh."
Tezuka furrows his brow. Why did he need to supervise-?
"You're playing with Echizen."
Tezuka himself is not a very good doubles player, but he knows enough to get by.
Ryoma on the other hand...
The rope constricts painfully around his waist before he finds himself lying sprawled out across the tennis court with a bundle of a fazed out looking pillar lying on his chest.
Ryoma has a slightly drunken expression on his face; he is smiling. Had Inui slipped him some of his new concoction before the game?
Tezuka raises his brow, and decides that perhaps it's best he doesn't understand.
What he does understand though, is that, if not a bit frustrating, it's somehow strangely endearing playing doubles with Ryoma.