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Shia's bruises hadn't healed yet, but, like always, she had a story rehearsed to explain them and the day passed smoothly. However, standing in front of the gates for the girls tennis courts, she felt herself getting nervous. She glanced back and many of the boy starters gave her a smile of encouragement and Momo flipped her a thumbs up. She turned back to the gates but Ryoma's voice cut through her thoughts, "I think you'll need this." he said and she spun around to catch a racket. "Yours is broken, isn't it? You can have that one." Shia smiled.
"Thank you, Ryoma," She turned around with a new found enthusiasm. She opened the gate and stepped onto the court. The boys all settled down just outside the fence to watch. Shia's eyes alit with determination as two members of the tennis team walked up to her.
"Did you want somethin'?" A brown haired girl asked, "Or are you just planning to stand there with a racket?" The other girl, a blonde, softly hit the first girl on the shoulder.
"Cara!" She sighed, She looked at Shia with a smile, "Hi, I'm Raina, can I help you with something"
"I'm Shia and actually," She returned the smile, but her eyes stayed determined, "I'm here to join the tennis team." Cara, the brown haired girl, burst out laughing.
"You realize that seventh graders pick up balls and do practice swings all day right!" She laughed. Shia's face stayed cool and set.
"I understand that's how it works most of the time," Shia said, "But I've heard of incidents where it has happened otherwise. One right here at Seishun infact." Ryoma smiled from where he watched. Cara still seemed highly amused.
"So that seventh grade starter has sparked hope in other young players? How cute," She said. Again Raina slapped her arm slightly.
"Cara..." She looked back to Shia, "Well, Shia, we really encourage younger players, but you have to understand that only the best are starters and that is normally the older players, the Echizen boy was a rare exception." Shia smiled.
"That's fine, I've already turned in my paperwork," She said, "When can I start"
"Well---" Raina started but was cut off as Cara laughed again.
"Fine! You can start right now, Rookie!" She smirked, "I'll play ya, we don't have practice for a half of an hour anyway!" Shia smiled in an evil way that Ryoma had never seen from her before, her bangs shadowed her eyes but the evidence of the cruel extent of her thoughts was obvious by the malicious smirk that played it's way across her face.
"That sounds like fun," Shia said, "I could use a good workout." She stretched her arms, Ryoma's racket had a good balance and weight, it felt completely natural in her fingers. They moved onto a court. Raina sighed and moved up into the referee's seat.
"I'll judge the match," She told them and both Shia and Cara nodded, moving into their places. Not a word was spoken as Shia bended her legs into a ready position and Cara served the ball hard and fast. Shia wasted no time getting to it. She wasn't going to play around with Cara, she was simply going to win. Cara seemed surprised at the return, but volleyed it back all the same. Shia moved into position for a moon volley, but thought better of it and hit a cross to the left at the last minute. She was going to win this and she was going to win it her way.
Cara struggled to get to the corner, but returned the ball with a lob. Shia's eyes lit up and her mouth curved into that sadistically evil grin. Without the shadows covering them, her eyes brought a whole new perspective to the look. It sent a shiver down the spine of anyone who saw it. Even Kaoru shuddered slightly; the glare was even worse than his. Shia hit the ball back with a significant force, it wizzed over the net and to the right. Cara moved to get it on the bounce, but at the last minute the ball changed direction and bounced the other way.
"Fifteen- love!" Raina announced and Cara passed Shia the ball, a dumbstruck look still on her face. She shook her shoulders, shaking the look off as well and got ready for the serve. Shia debated hitting a twist serve, sending the ball right at Cara's face, but, again, thought better of it as she tossed the ball up into the air and hit it in a way none of the Seishun players had even seen. She hit the ball over hand, but her elbow stuck out to the side, turning her racket inwards and sideways. Somehow the strange posture did nothing to upset her speed or power. The ball came and bounced near Cara's feet, she took a step backwards, ready for the bounce, but it didn't come the way she had expected It bounced strait up and then went over her head, landing on the back line of the court. Silence filled the air as the ball continued to bounce softly across the ground until it hit the ground and came rolling back.
"When I was younger I was told that I had the devil's own luck," Shia grinned, "And that was what they called the Devil's serve!" Cara, again, looked dumbstruck, but settled down as she passed the ball back. A hint of worry filled her eyes as Shia tossed the ball into the air. She moved her arm into that odd position for the devil's serve, and then stopped, instead letting the ball fall into her out stretched hand. "You serve!" She tossed it back over. She glanced at Raina, "Go ahead and give her a point, okay?" Raina nodded and yelled out the score.
Cara bounced the ball once or twice with a calm expression on her face. She threw the ball into the air and hit a speed serve to the left corner, Shia darted in that direction and was fortunate enough to catch it after a small slide. Shia wasn't afraid to get scuffed up in order to get to a ball.. The ball sailed over the net and Cara moved to volley. What looked like a normal lob suddenly changed into something Shia had never seen before. The lob came over and landed right in front of her, bounced up, and then seemed to almost stop in midair. Confused, Shia swung at the ball, which suddenly dropped. Raina gasped.
"A stop ball! Cara...! If the captain saw that---" Raina started.
"She would be very disappointed and would tell you to run twenty laps, immediately," A light-brown haired girl said in a flat tone as she stepped onto the court. Cara dropped her racket without a word and began running her laps. Shia took a step forward as her eyes returned to their normal, relaxed state.
"H-hey!" She started, "It wasn't all her fault! I provoked her into playing her game better!" The captain's cold eyes turned on Shia.
"And who would you be"
"Shia, Shia Raiku," Shia said with a small bow, "I just turned in my paperwork today, I'm a tryout"
"Well, Shia, I'm the captain of this team, Kiri Yamatashi, and I would say that your tryout is over," Her silvery eyes swept the entire court, "This team works differently than the boys team that everyone knows so well. We only use the starters that can prove their worth, both in practice games and in practice itself. You're a seventh grader, right"
"Yes," Shia said, "but I'm aware that this school isn't keen to let seventh graders play, however it seems to be that way everywhere in this district"
"Well, we work differently," Kiri told her, "If I were you I would watch your back around here"
"I'll take your word for it," Shia said and the captain seemed to smile, in an odd, twisted way.
"We have a strict rule about using your best moves outside of a tournament or practice. You've joined the team and tried out..." The smile got a bit eviler, "I think that calls for twenty laps." Shia smiled as she put down the racket Ryoma had given her.
"I like the way this team is run," She grinned and started her laps. As she passed the boys on her first lap, Ryoma got up to run with her.
"Hey," he said, "How does that serve work?" Shia glanced over at him and then forward again.
"I wouldn't try it if I were you," She said with only the slightest smile. Ryoma didn't ask, but he smiled as they kept running. When Shia was done with her laps she went back onto the courts were Kiri was having a talk with the other girls.
"We'll be announcing the starters in a week," She was saying when Shia walked up, "Of course, this means what it does every year: This next week, hold nothing back. Even the seventh graders are being given a chance, as always." She glanced around and a few hopeful faces darkened, "This year, however, I almost expect that we will have one seventh grade starter." The grins returned to the younger faces in the crowd and a few of the older ones smiled as well, but not for the same reason as the seventh graders. They planned to watch the hopes of hte seventh graders get crushed. "That said, begin practice." Raina stood up.
"Alright," she said, "Um, seventh graders, court C, serve and volley! Eighth and ninth, courts A and B, free choice today, work in whatever area you think needs improvement!" The members of the tennis team all moved out without question or comment, Shia moved towards court C and the starters all moved along the fence until they were within earshot.
"Hey, Shia," Momo said, "We gotta go, okay"
"Yeah, practice," Fuji added and Shia nodded, walking over to the fence.
"Thanks for watching me, I know you all stayed as long as you could," She smiled.
"Nyah! It was fun!" Eiji said, "but watchin' ya got me itchin' to play"
"Then you better go to practice!" Shia laughed and they all said their goodbyes before heading out as Shia moved back to the court. She grabbed a ball. She wondered what kind of serve she should use. Not the devil's serve, she was playing with seventh graders, and not a normal erve, she might get bored. She sighed and decided to work on her quick serve. She tossed the ball into the air, hitting it quickly before it got too high. The ball whizzed over the net and a seventh grader moved to return it, barely missing, hitting it on the edge of her racket. The ball spun off to go out, but Shia moved to save it so that the girl could try again. She got it this time and Shia continued to hit it straight towards the girl so it was nearly impossible for her to miss. A few crazy returns had her running a bit, but she didn't mind, in fact she enjoyed it. After awhile, Raina's voice called for a rest and the girl crossed the net to talk to Shia.
"That was amazing!" she said, "It seemed like I couldn't miss a single volley! How did you do that"
"I just hit them all to the general area of most people's sweet spot. I was just lucky that you have a normal playing style," Shia laughed, "I'm Shia, by the way"
"I'm Sakuno, Sakuno Ryuzaki," The girl bowed and Shia laughed again.
"You don't have to bow! I'm not your superior or anything, besides, I don't like that formal stuff," Shia told the her with an amused smile.
"But you are superior! In tennis anyway," Sakuno added, still impressed.
"No," Shia sighed, "If I was truely, 'superior' I would have been able make you hit all of your volleys to the the same general area." Shia thought, 'Like Nanjiro did yesterday.'
"Whatever you say, Shia-san," Sakuno smiled. Shia returned it and the practice continued and was soon over. Shia used a towel to mop some sweat off her face and then passed it to Sakuno, who was sweating much more than she. They both went and changed in the locker room and came out refreshed. Shia stretched her arms out, "Ah, I always feel so great after working like that!" Sakuno gave her a questioning glance.
"What happened to your racket?" She asked. Shia just smiled.
"I left it in my gym locker," she replied, thinking about what answer she could use for the question that was sure to follow.
"Why don't you take it home?" She asked innocently.
"Hmm? Oh, you've uncovered my secret," she said carelessly, "I'm just extremely lazy. Yep, I don't want anymore to carry than I already have. Besides, I don't have time to use it at home anyway, so why take it there"
"Aren't you afraid someone will take it?" Sakuno asked, her voice going a bit higher than before.
"Oh, I don't think anyone will," Shia said, fighting to supress the evil look she felt edging onto her face. 'Besides,' she added mentally, 'They wouldn't want to know what would happen to them if they tryed...'
"What do you mean?" Sakuno asked but another voice cut in before Shia could answer.
"Hey, Shia," Shia looked up in response to her name.
"Ryoma!" She said, "How was your practice"
"Fine," He said and glanced at Sakuno, "Oh, so you're friends with wobbly-hips"
"'Wobbly-hips'?" Shia mimmicked, "Are you ever nice to anyone Ryoma!" Ryoma didn't answer as Sakuno bowed.
"Hello, Ryoma-kun," She said and Ryoma nodded to acknowledge her. She stood up straight again, "You know Shia-san"
"Nope, never seen her before," Ryoma answered the way he would normally answer that kind of question, mostly out of reflex.
"Oh please!" Shia said, then turned to Sakuno, "He just doesn't want to admit that a girl almost schooled him"
"Almost being the main word," Ryoma commented to preserve his pride.
"Oh pe-sha! If I hadn't had to leave that way you'd be cryin' about how bad yer whuppin' was!" Shia said, suddenly and very randomly slipping into an accent. Ryoma shrugged his shoulders. Sakuno laughed nervously.
"I'm starting to feel like a third wheel here! See you guys tomorrow, okay? Bye!" Sakuno waved and sped off with her stuff. They watched after her for a moment.
"What are you going to do now...?" Ryoma asked and she immidiatly knew what he talking about. Shia pondered over it for a moment.
"I..." She turned her head away, "I don't know yet. I think I should probably just go home, but I'm still not so sure that's such a good idea." She sighed, "I can't just never go back there. Samson needs me, she hates that dog." She looked up to Ryoma with pleading eyes. It seemed strange to be asking for someone's advice. Still, she would appreciate it right now. Ryoma took a deep breath.
"I don't know your mother," he said, "but from what you've told me, I could assume that tennis is what sets her off, right?" Shia nodded in wordless confirmation. "So," Ryoma continued, "Do you think she would have blown over by now, or would she be even more agrivated because you ran"
"I... I don't know, I've never ran before, I've always just accepted the punishment..." Shia said, Ryoma slapped his forehead.
"Don't think of it as punishment, you did nothing wrong," Ryoma told her firmly, "We need to talk to someone, an adult." Ryoma said, and hated himself for saying it. He hated adults. Shia looked up at him with a bewildered look.
"I-I can't do that! I-I-I can't! No!" She stammered and Ryoma put a hand on her shoulder aand made her look him in the eye.
"You don't have a choice Shia, even if you don't tell them about it, I will," He said. Shia looked horrified.
"No! No! No!" She repeated, "I don't want them to know! I don't want them to hate me again! No!" Ryoma took a deep breath before continuing.
"Shia, we just need to tell them about your mom, your secret can remain safe," he assured her, "I swear"
"They won't believe us. Not without a reason for the beatings," Shia said and Ryoma realized she was right. Well, almost right.
"My dad," he said, "My dad knew your condition last night, he saw the damage at it's worst"
"He'll want to know why she'd beat me! No! No!" She continued to repeat. Ryoma put a hand on her shoulder and then glnaced around, glad to see that no one had been listening. She wasn't exactly being quiet about all this. She was now covering her ears in a childish way and repeating her chant of 'no', refusing to listen to him. He took her firmly by the wrist and pulled her left hand away from her ear and using his other hand to make her look at him. She was crying, but his face was set in stone.
"I'll handle it," He said, "Trust me, Shia, I'll handle everything." Then he did somthing that she would have never expected: He pulled her close in an embrace, his right arm wrapped around her, holding her to him, and his left hand stroking her hair lightly.
From where he hid around the corner, Fuji smiled, and it was a real smile. He had suspected something was going on with that girl and was releived to see it all working out. It didn't hurt that the situation seemed to be changing Ryoma for the better either. You walked away with the smile still on his face. It looked like he wouldn't need to help them out afterall. They'd just given themselves all of the push they would need.
When they finally parted Shia had stopped sobbing, but was now in awe of what had just happened. She shook hersef slightly. It was just a hug afterall. Almost as if he could read her mind he gave her a sideways smile.
"Kisses are for happy times aren't they? That seemed right," He told her and she blushed. He offered her his hand and she took it. If she was going to do this she might as well not do it alone. They walked onward. Not even fate could stop them now.