Hello anybody reading this! By the way, Gomen to anyone frightened by the InuKai scene in this chapter. It turned out a little weird.
Sakimi1014- Hahaha... Yukimura is so devious, ne?
Shemeno- Nya problem! Thank you!
Meino Nanako- Yeah, no joke! Ikasu is suffering from Akaya-withdrawal. And yay! AtoJi is love! Love love!
DarkDemonCat- Love is a good thing. -Nods.- And, very soon (Though not THIS chapter) you will see just how crazy Ayame really is.
Yoshikochan- Yep, poor Atobe. His parents really didn't have time for him. Well, Fuji isn't called a tensai for nothing, I suppose. Yeah, and poor Ikasu... Well, anyway... New chapter!
Blufox- Uniting them seems to be everyone's idea, but... Ne, not telling. Still, I'm sure Akaya would be very happy with that.
AnimeFan06- Hmmm... Yeah, and Ikasu was smothered again this chapter. -laughs.- Though, I'm not sure about Fuji's opinion about Tezuka myself. Then again, I know stuff that's not in the story yet... So maybe that's what's messing with my perception of it. Naive, maybe, though. Oh, and don't worry! You're review was actually much shorter than some others I get! I really don't mind!
ForbiddenStars- No problem, it's all good! Thank you very much!
Shimizu Miki- Hmm... Maybe teachers just go easy during summer because they want you to enjoy it. I must say, I'm part of the majority though... I love summer... Mostly because I get to write a lot... (Total writing geek). It's funny to imagine Atobe's lawsuit, by the way. And I guess you could find it funny. I normally laugh when I look at it, because in my head Jirou goes 'Nooo, it'll be my pleasure.' But, that's just me... XD About the doors, Fuji did paint BOTH on there, and as for the others, well, there's a little bit of that in this chapter. As For Ikasu... Well, I know that Ikasu could influence his actions, because if Ikasu wanted Bunta to do a certain thing, all he would have to do would be to lay the ground work, and Bunta would end up stuck with it. He might or might not realize it's Ikasu's fault, depending on the situation. As for his thoughts, I don't think so, because although they share one mind and brain, they are two completely different entities, so... I wouldn't think so, no. I've never written a story this long before... And still have no idea how I'm going to end it... -sweat drop-... Still, thank you, as always!
ImmortalTigress- Nya nya! Can't answer that! You'll just have to wait!
Vierblith- Hmm... Well, I don't know what SanadaYukimura would be called... Also, about Fuji, it's not so much that he does have faith in people as it is he has lost his faith in humanity. But, yes, he certainly has faith in Tezuka.
RaiPheonix015- Don't worry, by the way, I'm used to weird. I really would like to bring them in... But I would have to figure out how. Any ideas? And, yeah, Akaya is DEFINITELY traumatized. -Reads and then rereads the part about killing Akaya.- N-n-n-nooo way!!!!!! No no no no no no! NonononononononononononononononononoonoNO! No killing Akaya! Bad idea! Bad Rai! -Sprays with water- Anyway, I'm weird and insane myself, by the way, so your suggestions probably wouldn't be much worse (OTHER THAN KILLING AKAYA! BAD!) than yours. Anyway, that's about it!
KiriharaAkaya- You're right, that wasn't very coherent. Still, I am insane, so I speak 'incoherent' quite fluently! So, I understood you! Yay for pitchforks! (Although I prefer chainsaws! (Oh... Sorry, inside joke...)) I hope you're feeling better though!
Disclaimer- I do not own Prince of Tennis
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Youhei remembered it being very cold when he had gone to sleep. Very, very cold, actually. The kind of cold that normally came around January second, right when the first snow arrived. The only reason he really thought about it now was that half of him was still feeling that cold, and the other half was very warm. And up against something smooth and firm. Wait, was that a chest? Oh, crud.
Youhei jumped backwards from where he had half been under the covers and out in to the cold air of their room. His eyes widened at the sudden change in temperature, but he resisted the urge to jump back into the warm bed. Blushing like nobody's business, Youhei prayed to Kami-sama that his roommate, who's bed he had apparently shared last night, didn't wake up.
No such luck. 'Of course not,' Youhei scowled, like anything else had been lucky for him this morning.
"What are you doing on... The floor?" Hiyoshi's sleep slurred voice, however, made him smile slightly.
"I guess I like that view." Yeah, that was good. Youhei had always thought better under pressure.
"Yeah, the snow is nice." Whoa. Snow? Not only had that been a response he would have never expected from Hiyoshi, but what was all this talk about snow?
Youhei looked out the window and felt is jaw drop.
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"We're snowed in," Ryuzaki announced at breakfast, but hardly anyone was listening. There was about eight inches of snow out there, and there were no signs anywhere that it was going to melt any time soon. Everyone was debating the cause of the snow outside.
"Marui, it wasn't you, was it? I mean, it's November..."
"Me? No! But if it was, I sure wish I would have thought of it weeks ago!"
"What about Ikasu?" The taboo word was out of Niou's mouth before he thought about it, and he cast half a glance at his friend, trying not to be overly obvious about it. Bunta, however, seemed to be fine, though Akaya might have tensed up a bit.
"It's possible," the self-proclaimed tensai agreed. "Ik... He had much better control of our power than I do, and it would have been easy for him to use our body while I was asleep... But I don't see a reason why he would." Several people stared as Bunta contradicted any intelligence in what he had just said by devouring a large forkful of cake.
"Nya! Who cares how we got it! It's SNOW! And there's no school if we're snowed in!"
"Ii, data presents the fact that there is an eighty-nine percent chance that this snow is related in some way to the earthquake a couple of weeks ago," Inui said, pushing his glasses up on his nose and looking over his notebook as he spoke. Kaido glanced over Inui's shoulder at the data, and Kunimitsu frowned.
"Ne, 'Mitsu," Fuji smiled, "Have any plans?"
"Not anymore," Kunimitsu grumbled. Fuji could only assume that it was because they were going to have to cancel two practices. Fuji chuckled.
"Hmm... Good," Fuji gave what he figured was a mischievous glance, and Kunimitsu's eyebrow rose.
"There's not going to be much to do, is there?" Akira frowned, "It's too wet and slushy out there do play tennis..." He held Shinji's hand under the table, and lowered his voice, "And we can't do anything in here..."
"Adults... They have no right to be deciding things like that. Think that they're so smart because they're older than us. I don't know if they're as smart as they think that they are. I've met a lot of really stupid adults..." Shinji continued to mumbled and Akira had smile.
Accidentally overhearing, Fuji couldn't help but smile as he thought that if his plan worked, than Kamio and Shinji would both end up very happy as well.
The plan. Fuji sighed. With all that had been happening, he hadn't had much time to really work the plan out. Still, he figured that a few set backs really wouldn't upset it at all, seeing as the current room order wasn't going to change out of his favor anytime soon, and the residents would be just as willing, if not more so, to cooperate him later on as they would be now.
"What we need," Niou grinned, looking around the long table, "Is a snow fight!"
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He was alone for the first time he could remember for a while. It was a little past noon now, and after the main snowball fight, which Fuji had insisted on being in. Kunimitsu suspected that it was only so that Fuji could 'accidentally' throw a snow ball at his face after he had decided not to join. Besides that, anyway, Fuji had gotten a call on his cell-phone earlier, and was now out on errands. Kunimitsu had offered to go with him, but a smiling Fuji said that there was no need, and that he would get things done faster if he was by himself. He had made some cryptic remark about Kunimitsu being 'too distracting'.
Still, Kunimitsu had been thinking a lot recently. Most of his thoughts, naturally, centered around Fuji and tennis, but some part of his brain kept going back to his past. The parts that he didn't remember from the previous Trivial Pulse, and the parts that would be ingrained in his memory for life.
He thought about he latter the most, mostly because he had no choice. He had had nightmares of that time... Those times... It was a week, wasn't it? Time didn't seem to have the same meaning when it came to that part of his past. Still, he had had nightmares of that time for as long as he could remember. Nightmares that would cause him to wake up screaming and in a cold sweat when he was young, for the first few years after it happened, and then that would cause him to shake and toss and turn as he got older. These days, they came with the pains.
The other reasons he thought about it so often was because he was forcing himself to. He was forcing him to think about it, so that he could decide how to tell Fuji. Or if he should tell him at all. He would have preferred the second option, but it didn't seem fair.
Fuji had trusted him with his past, so he felt that he really should trust Fuji with his. But he worried.
He worried that Fuji would treat him differently if he knew. He didn't want that, and he didn't want Fuji to worry about him. Those days were over, nightmares or not, the actual event was long ago, and he didn't want Fuji to worry about him all of a sudden breaking down or something like that.
Well, that was most of it anyway. His biggest fear about telling the tensai, however, was rejection. He was scared to death that if he told Fuji what had happened back then Fuji would be disgusted and leave him. He was so afraid of that, in fact, that...
He really didn't even want to think about losing Fuji. The very thought made his chest ache and made it hard for him to breathe. He shook his head ever so slightly to clear it of that particular thought, but tried still to concentrate on his earlier dilemma.
There were so many problems that could come about telling him about those events, that Kunimitsu was afraid it wouldn't be worth it. He shook his head again, thinking that Fuji loved him, and would accept him. Of course Fuji would accept him. He had stood by his side through everything else, the pains, his first change, Ayame, everything. He really did love him. Didn't Kunimitsu know that?
Kunimitsu smiled, feeling resolved. He would tell Fuji, and Fuji would accept it because he loved him. He might worry still, but everything would be fine. Kunimitsu really believed that everything would be fine. So, he set about figuring out exactly how to tell him.
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Kaido watched Inui quietly from their bed, trying not to look as disappointed as he felt. Inui worked too hard. He always worked too hard. Kaido didn't like it, not at all, but what could he say?
'Hi Sadaharu, you work too hard. No one asked you to do this in the first place, so why don't you spend that time with me?'
Even in his head it sounded stupid.
"Do you really enjoy watching me work, or are you trying to find out how to ask me to stop?"
The words surprised Kaido, but, then again, Inui often surprised him these days. "Betsuni."
"Oh really?" Inui was facing him and smiling now, and Kaido was secretly pleased. "You seem to enjoy watching me, and based on how you've reacted to me working like this before, there is a seventy-six percent chance that you actually were thinking of a way to ask me to stop." Inui frowned slightly, "Though none of my data explains why that is."
"Fshuuuu... It's not that I dislike you working hard," Inui nodded that he understood that, as they both knew that Kaido respected hard work, "And I do realize that your research is needed, but I don't see why it has to be you, Sadaharu." Kaido hissed again because he was nervous at having said his thoughts out loud, and also because the familiarity of it made it easier for him to look calm.
"No one else will step up, Kaoru," Inui told him softly. "And we need to know why this all happened, to look for a possible way to reverse it."
"Reverse it?" Kaido hadn't expected that. He eyes Inui's cat ears and tail with soft eyes. He had grown quite fond of his boyfriend's feline qualities, but if Inui wanted them gone...
"I wasn't talking about me," Inui said softly, as if following Kaido's trail of thought, or perhaps putting his data to good use. "I was thinking mostly about you, and at least making it so that the option is out there for those who wished to pursue it."
"Me?" Kaido was confused. He didn't want to go back to how he was. That would only separate him from Inui. He was plenty happy with how things were now.
"Aa, because you're a viper. There is a ninety-three percent chance that Momoshiro's teasing and calling you 'Mamushi' has increased exponentially since the change," Inui's voice dropped to a near whisper. "I know that you hate that."
"Who cares about some baka peach?" Kaido asked, shrugging his shoulders. Sure he hated being called Mamushi, but it wasn't like that would stop, even if he actually did get rid of that part of him. "Fshuuuu... I don't want things... Going back to how they were."
"How they were?" Inui looked generally perplexed, and then seemed to understand. He got up from where he sat in front of his laptop, and crossed the room to sit on the bed with Kaido. "Before... Us?"
Kaido simply hissed quietly, looking away. He felt stupid for even bringing it up. He had already known that they weren't like other couples at the mansion. They didn't hold hands around anyone else, and they, unlike about a third of the others in the mansion, hadn't done anything more than kiss. They didn't even sleep in the same bed at night, despite having the permission that they needed to do so without being bothered by the adults. They hadn't even said 'I love you' to each other yet. So, going back to 'before' really just mean that they didn't sleep in the same room or kiss.
Well, actually, When Kaido really thought about it, even if Inui hadn't said that he loved him, he had called him 'Love', like the Mamushi had heard Tezuka-buchou call Fuji, and Oishi call Eiji. And both of those pairs were surely in love.
But somehow it was just so much easier to think that Inui didn't love him, but that he was just an experiment. A new way to gather data: make your kohai fall in love with you.
The bitter joke did nothing for Kaido's disposition or feelings, because he really thought it could be true. He knew that if Inui just got contacts and relaxed around other people, like he occasionally did when they were alone, the girls, and perhaps even boys, in addition to the surprising number of fans he already had, would be all over him. Inui was just too gorgeous when he wasn't trying so hard to be the smart guy that everyone expected him to be, and it was simply unbelievable that he would want to be with a normal, if not scary looking person like Kaido.
"You think that my feelings would change that much, simply because you weren't a positive anymore?" Inui asked, snapping Kaido back into the here and now. Kaido didn't mention that he still really didn't know what those feelings were.
"Maybe," Kaido said, but added in his thoughts, 'Maybe those feelings, whatever they are, will disappear once I'm not an interesting test subject anymore.'
Inui surprised him by pulling him into a tight embrace. "Please, Kaoru, don't doubt us. Don't doubt me."
"Fshhhhhh..." Kaido hissed softly, staying tense even as he knew Inui was trying to get him to relax into the embrace. "How can't I? ... You never tell me anything."
"I tell you thing all the time," Inui disagreed, pulling back so he could look at Kaido's face questioningly.
"Fshuuuu..." Kaido only hissed again in response, but knew that Inui heard the unspoken words. 'Not the things that matter.'
"Do you want me to say it, Kaoru?" Inui asked softly, taking Kaido's chin softly in his hands and moving it so that the junior was forced to look at him. Kaido tried to look away again, but Inui held his face gently, yet firmly in place. "I care about you, Kaoru. I really like you. I love you. And that's not going to change anytime soon, if ever." Inui kissed him softly as if to seal it, and Kaido kissed back automatically, as if on autopilot, while his mind tried to work out the things that Inui was telling him. "Actually, I know it will never change. I love you, Kaoru." He kissed him again, as if he sensed Kaido's doubt and wanted to kiss it away.
"Why didn't you ever say that before?" Kaido asked softly, eyes still slightly wide.
"I had calculated that there was a sixty-seven percent chance that I would scare you off, be moving too fast for you, if I said it too early. I wanted to, but I was giving it time," Inui kissed him again, this time seemingly only because he could. Kaido felt himself slowly starting to melt into it. "I've loved you for a long time, Kaoru. I've had my eyes on you since you were a first-year. I want you to dictate the pace for us. I don't want to rush you."
"...You've only ever kissed me," Kaido whispered, too embarrassed by this conversation (and secretly delighted by the things Inui was telling him) to even hiss. "We don't even sleep in the same bed, like the other couples..."
"I can't sleep in the same bed as you, Kaoru," Inui's voice sounded different somehow, so Kaido looked at his face closely. His eyes seemed to be a little clouded over, as he had taken off his glasses in their room, and his cheeks were slightly flushed. "I can't... I don't know what I'd do... Or if I'd be able to stop if I started something, even if you asked me to."
"I don't think I'd ask you to," Kaido said, understanding the look suddenly. He kissed Inui hard. If Inui wanted him to dictate their pace, they were going to start moving a lot faster than this.
Kaido moved to lie back on the bed, and smiled slightly at Inui. "come on, Sadaharu."
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Kunimitsu was actually very happy when Fuji got back, despite the fact that it was now time to settle things between him and Fuji, and tell him about his past. He was nervous, and still a little scared of how Fuji would react. He didn't know how, or if, he would be able to get through this if Fuji... He shook his head, refusing to think about it.
"Shusuke," Kunimitsu smiled slightly, even though they were in the foyer, and anyone could see him, he smiled for Fuji only, and knew that the tensai understood that. Kunimitsu took Fuji into his arms, not really caring about the other people, a few of whom were staring at his odd behavior. He really just needed to be able smile and hold his boyfriend right now, before he took him up to their room, where he could drop all of his guards and tell him everything.
"You're a real dick, you know that?" Fuji's soft voice took Kunimitsu by surprise as those hateful words rolled easily off of the tensai's tongue. Fuji pushed him away and took a few steps back. He was glaring at Kunimitsu, and it made the short distance between them seem very large.
"Shusuke...?"
"Don't be so familiar with me anymore," Fuji spat, and Kunimitsu really froze. "Why wouldn't you tell me something like that?"
"I was..." Kunimitsu started, but was unable to finish his sentence. Fuji already knew. He had waited too long, and now someone else had told the tensai. No, no, no... Kunimitsu couldn't believe what was happening, as his biggest fears were being realized.
"Honestly, it disgusts me," Fuji was looking down on his somehow now, despite Kunimitsu's height advantage.
"Shusuke... Please," Kunimitsu said, reaching out to the tensai, who moved back.
"J-just stay away from me, Tezuka," Fuji said, "I don't want you anywhere near me!" And then Fuji was changing, his wings ripping through the light material of his shirt, and he was flying up the stairs. Eiji headed up after him at a dead run. Kunimitsu stood stunned for a moment, and then began to move for the stairs himself. Oishi moved to stand in his way.
He shook his head sadly at his friend. "Just, let Eiji talk to him for a bit, okay?"
Kunimitsu nodded, not having any other option.
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Eiji caught up to his friend just down the hallway, and managed to convince him to talk to him. Eiji led Fuji into his and Oishi's room, through the door on which Fuji himself had painted a puppy holding a teddy bear in it's paws, both of whom bore striking resemblances to Eiji and Oishi. Eiji locked the door behind them, and moved Fuji to sit on the bed that he and Oishi had never used, and waited for a moment.
"I... I really didn't want to say all of that..." Fuji mumbled. "Is he going to be okay. Please tell me he'll be okay."
"You really hurt him, Shusuke." Eiji used his first name, as he very rarely did, hoping it would remind the tensai that they were best friends. He didn't ask him why he had hurt their Buchou like that, but waited instead, knowing that if Fuji could tell him, he would.
"I know," Fuji said, sobbing now. Eiji's eyes softened and he rubbed the other senior's back. "I know I did, but I had to... He wouldn't have believed me otherwise."
"... Are you going to be okay?" Eiji asked, looking sadly at his crying friend.
"I don't know," Fuji answered. He was silent for a moment. "Can I stay in here tonight, Eiji?"
"If that's what you need," Eiji confirmed. He wished that he had been able to say 'hoi!', and perhaps lighten the mood a bit, but he couldn't find it in himself to act cheerful just then.
"Arigatou..." Fuji thanked him quietly. "I... I'll tell you everything, Eiji... I promise. Just... Give me a moment or two..."
Eiji nodded and let his friend cry his heart out.