A/N: Ok I am going to be wrapping up the story in the next few chapters and yes, you will get to see what Niou has planned. It may or may not involve another school, it may or may not lead to mental imbalance for others, and it may or may not destroy the world as we know it. Those are your hints. LOL. Enjoy the new chapter.

Chapter 12 – A Surprising Result

He felt like he was losing his mind. When Jackal got home that morning, his mother and father looked at him like he had lost his marbles… and he had to wonder if it wasn't true. "Yukimura sent me home because I wasn't feeling well," he stated as he went to his room to lie down. Part of him still felt like this was some sort of nightmare and once he went back to bed, he would wake up, it would be Monday again, he would never have disrupted tennis practice, and all would be right with the world yet again.

Moments after he entered his room and fell upon his bed, his mother came in with a thermometer to take his temperature. Maybe Jackal was sick and it was affecting his mental balance, attitude, and dream state (and more than just sick in the head). His temperature was normal, his stomach felt fine, his head felt fine (in the physical sense), and his body felt as good as ever; and yet, he was not fine! Ok, first he needed to calm down. It would do no good to get worked up. He had already decided he was stuck in a horrible dream and he needed to wake up… somehow. Rubbing his head, he decided the best course of action would be to bury himself in his covers and not come out until the morning… the real morning he when he would actually wake up; and he would do that just as soon as his mother stopped fussing over him, "Okaa-san, I'm fine. I am just going to go back to sleep. I think I am just tired."

"Alright Kuwahara. You sleep and I will bring you some soup later. You have probably just been overworking yourself," the mother smiled and left her son alone to rest.

Sighing, Jackal slipped under the covers and closed his eyes. Now if his theory was correct, he would wake up and everything would go back the way it was supposed to be.

"Kuwahara, wake up and eat," the mother shook her son awake after she set a tray of food on his nightstand.

Groaning, the teen came out from under his blanket and stared bleary eyed at the person who woke him up, "What day is it?"

His mother giggled before answering him, "It's still Thursday."

"Thursday?! Ugh!"

"What day did you think it was? Were you expecting me to let you sleep for 24 hours?"

Jackal shook his head, "No, I just thought… never mind."

"Well I brought you some lunch. Your father has already gone down to the shop and I am about to head down myself. If you need something, you will need to get it yourself or call us on the phone. I'll check on you after the lunch rush is over."

"Alright."

"Is everything ok?"

"Yah, just been a weird week."

"Sometimes we need the unexpected to give us a new perspective and direction in our lives," the mother smiled before kissing her son's head and leaving his room once again.

Glancing at the tray his mother brought him, the defensive player lifted it and placed it on his lap to eat as he mulled over what his mother had told him, "New perspective huh? Maybe." After finishing his food, he placed the tray on the floor and lay back in his bed again, staring up at the ceiling. This week had been an eye opener, although he supposed that was true not only for him. He never minded helping others because it gave him some sense of pleasure and it was really hard to say no to people… he always felt that if he did so, he would disappoint Fatima. However, lately he had become a scapegoat and been railroaded more times than he care to count. Even if this was a dream, maybe it was time for some changes. They did say that dreams were a window into your heart, so if this was a dream, it was telling him that he needed to grow a freaking backbone and stop giving in to all of the demands that his best friend and that second year monster always heaped on him. Although, he did have to admit his sewing skills had never been better having to fix anything from a stuffed animal to a ripped uniform, and he was probably the most patient person on the tennis team… hell the whole school. Closing his eyes once again, he decided he could be the Jackal the team knew, but he didn't have to be the pushover he had become. That night he dreamed of his friend Fatima…

"Hara!" A young girl ran up to him and grabbed him around the middle.

"Fatima?" Jackal asked a little confused.

Giggling, she said, "Well, of course. Who else would it be?"

He opened his mouth to reply and then quickly snapped it again. Opening it again, he snapped it closed. He wasn't sure what to say to her. He took his time and gathered his thoughts and when he opened his mouth to speak, the only thing that came out was, "I missed you."

"I missed you too! What have you been doing? Do you still play tennis?"

"Yah, and I have made some good friends doing it. They are a little bossy at times, but they are good guys."

"I'm happy for you. I wanted you to find some good friends to watch over you."

Snorting, Jackal barked, "I wouldn't say they watch over me… more like I watch over them because if I didn't, they may burn the school down, turn the oceans to steam, or inadvertently kill themselves."

Fatima laughed at the picture he painted, "Well, you always needed something to do with your time. Tell me about them?"

So he did. He told her about how he had met his friends, about the tennis team, his buchou and fukubuchou, and about the craziness that is Rikkai Dai; and when he was done, he was smiling and laughing so hard, tears were streaming down his face.

A smile also lit up Fatima's face as she joined in is amusement, "You know Hara, it's ok to say no sometimes too because if you don't, you will forget about yourself, but it sounds like with you around, they are well taken care of. I'm glad you help people though. Now you have to hurry back or they may destroy life as you know it." She teased him before disappearing.

Jackal called out to her, but she was gone and blackness started to surround him….

A loud beeping in his ear and a female voice calling out to him forced Jackal to open his eyes with a moan, "What?"

"Kuwahara! You're awake!" His mother yelled.

"Well yah, isn't it time to go to school?" Jackal grumbled. He felt groggy and couldn't remember his dream for anything. He only remembered that Fatima was in there. The beeping persisted, "Okaa-san, can you turn off my alarm for me?" His arm was reaching for his bedside table, but for some reason he couldn't reach it and the alarm was starting to get on his nerves… and then he realized, his alarm was set to the radio not a beeping. Eyes popping open, he surveyed the room. This was not his home, this was a hospital, and he was in a hospital bed, "Okaa-san?" The door to the room opened and Jackal's eyes moved to the sound, "Otou-san?"

"Kuwahara! When did he wake up?" The father questioned the mother and then moved out of the way when the doctor appeared behind him.

Turning around to the crowd outside the door, the doctor said, "You boys can come in after I examine your friend. Alright?"

Was that Yukimura and the others standing outside his door? What was he doing in a hospital bed? Why did his parents look relieved, and why did the doctor have to examine him?

"How are you doing young man?" The doctor smiled and walked up to his bed.

"I'm okay," Jackal answered hesitantly.

"Are you in any pain? How does your head feel?"

Now that he thought about it, Jackal realized that his head did in fact hurt and his head still felt a little cloudy, "My head hurts. What is going on?"

Shining a light into his eyes, the doctor proceeded to examine his patient, and when he was done he said, "You fell catching someone and hit your head. What is the last thing you remember?"

"Fell? I think I had been sent home after telling buchou 'no', but I'm not sure. I was in trouble for disrupting tennis practice earlier in the week," Jackal answered.

"Earlier in the week? What day is it?" The doctor questioned.

"Thursday? Or is it Friday now?" The defensive specialist replied.

The doctor patted his shoulder and said, "Well son, you have been here since Monday and it is only Tuesday."

Shocked, Jackal gasped, "Tuesday? What about Marui and Kirihara having to clean the clubroom. I am supposed to help the first years!"

Looking to the patient's parents, the doctor received two shakes. It appeared they had no clue what he was talking about either, "Why don't we ask your team to come in. They arrived a few minutes ago after school let out. I believe one of them said tennis practice had been cancelled today." The doctor walked to the door and opened it up to allow the seven other members to enter. After the boys greeted their friend, the doctor asked, "Your friend is a little confused on the day. Kuwahara, why don't you tell them the last thing you remember?"

Jackal rubbed his head and said, "I told Bunta and Kirihara no and then disrupted tennis practice on Monday when I stormed out of there. They then had to clean the tennis club room as punishment for pushing me over the edge and because I disrupted practice, I had to help the first years and I wasn't allowed to hang out with Bunta for at least a week. Yukimura was even thinking of breaking up our doubles team. Then I started act really weird on Thursday after Niou convinced me to help him with his newest prank and Yukimura sent me home. I went home and okaa-san brought me lunch, I fell asleep, and that is the last thing I remember."

Yukimura's smile clearly said, "Oh no, my one player who I thought was sane has gone crazy." Shaking his head, the bluenette stated, "That never happened. I believe you told Kirihara no and he started to throw a tantrum and climb the fence. He lost his grip and fell on you when you caught him. You hit your head against the ground and we called for an ambulance. That was yesterday during afternoon practice."

"So there wasn't an intervention?" Jackal asked a little confused.

"Well, I wouldn't say that. Last night Genichiro, Renji, and I did meet with Kirihara and Marui about the situation and they have been put on cleaning duty, but you were still unconscious. And I would never break up a winning team unless you wanted me to do so," the buchou replied.

"Torundorou," Sanada grumbled under his breath as he glared at the two team members in question. He had slapped them both last night and apparently they still had the hand prints on their faces, but good news… no earthquake, just a small tremor.

Marui and Kirihara took a very large step back away from their slap happy fukubuchou. The second year looked down when he felt the bed at his back and gave his senpai a sad expression, "I'm sorry Jackal-senpai. Next time you tell me no, I'll listen!" He started to cry and the tears were falling like rivers down his face, and when his buchou pulled him in for a comforting hug, he proceeded to drench the bluenette's shirt.

Still feeling confused, Jackal just nodded. He actually couldn't remember the incident and the dream he had had been so real that he really thought it had been reality, "So I didn't yell and disrupt practice?"

"Not unless you count when you yelled at Bakaya to get off the fence," Marui answered.

"You didn't give me a list of things to do, including dressing up and pretending to be your girlfriend?"

"Well, I did mention something about that, but that was right before the baka over there started to climb the fence after you told him that you wouldn't take him for ramen yesterday."

The pounding in his head grew, "So I haven't gone crazy?"

"There is a 4.73% chance that you have lost your mental facility," Yanagi offered.

Jackal wanted to face palm, but held back because he thought it might hurt his already throbbing head and instead sweat dropped, "Uh thanks."

"Alright kids. Your friend needs to take some medicine and get some rest," the doctor started to usher the team out of the room.

"But hasn't he already been asleep for a long time?" Kirihara sniffled.

Smiling, Yukimura nodded, "Yes, but now that he is awake he has to rest to get better. How about we go out for some ice cream." He guided the second year player out of the room and the rest of the team followed.

The final person out the door was a certain redheaded tensai, "Hey Jackal, I'm glad you're alright… and you don't have to dress up like my date." He left after popping a very large green bubble.

After Marui left, Jackal got some medicine to help with his pain and he drifted off to sleep once more. So it really all had been a dream, but why did he have the feeling that Niou really was planning something? Probably because the silver headed trickster always was.

Elsewhere…

"It appears Jackal-kun knows something," Yagyuu stated.

"Yah, but he doesn't know what it is and he probably figures I always have something up my sleeves. I wonder if he really would help," Niou smirked.

Shaking his head, the former golf player asked, "How big is the prank?"

"Epic," the prankster snickered and started to walk off knowing his friend would follow.