Starting Again

Warnings: extreme ooc. fem!Eijun. overprotective Seido boys.

Disclaimer: I dont own DnA.

LONG CHAPTER GUYS! THANKS!

on another note, HOHOHOHO it's nearly christmas!

CHAPTER 5

"Bos-Coach!" Sawamura immediately approached the Coach when everyone was dismissed. Though it seemed like a few nosey regulars decided to stay. Nevertheless… "What's the meaning of this?! Why was my name called!?"

"I chose whoever I thought would help us. So-"

"I refuse!" No hesitation. Like a shot, she raised her voice and came clear.

"…..Oi. Listen. I haven't finished talking."

"I refuse!" she denied vehemently, shaking her head. "nowaynowaynowaynoway."

In response, the Coach glared at the small girl. He narrowed his eye behind his funky sunglasses as if to half close them and let out a cold sigh. Then, a firm tone entered his voice, "rejected."

"…what…" Sawamura registered that his mood wasn't favourable and got a bit faint-hearted.

"Listen for a second will you."

"Yes sir."

"Tell me why you're so against being the pitcher. Most players-pichers, would be thrilled at this chance." The Coach said. Those words were common to say when a teacher provides a student with advice. But oddly enough, it had some impact.

Because somehow, it sounded to Sawamura like he was saying, "I've seen your pitch so you better not give me some poor excuse brat." So Sawamura was forced to abandon her excuse of being 'incapable'.

'Scary, scary. I'm terrified of you coach.' The southpaw thought. 'Better tell the truth.'

"In my second year of middle school," Sawamura grasped her left elbow tightly. "I had an incident during a match,"

Miyuki gradually dropped his eyes, and his expression looked slightly lonely in response to Sawamura's statement. Kuramochi had to wonder how deep the catcher's relationship actually was with the female southpaw.

"From the incident, I developed yips."

"Huh?" It looked like there was something that Miyuki didn't know. "Wait, Ei-ch-

"Shhhhh-just listen." Kuramochi grasped the catcher's sleeve and stopped him from interfering. He didn't look very pleased.

"Are you saying that because of those yips, you can't throw a ball?" The coach asked, purposely emphasizing his words.

Sawamura knew it was a bad idea to pitch to the coach. Now she can't lie and say 'yes' like she planned. "No, my yips don't stop me from pitching. I can throw just as well as I did before my injury…" A pause. "Given that there's no one standing in the batter box."

"…."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Meaning, when there's a batter, I can't pitch anything but a fastball. To put it even more simply, right now, I can only throw fastballs down the middle." She said in a cheerful voice, but everyone there could tell it was forced.

"I see." The Coach finally said.

"Then you'll take me off relie-"

"No." He quickly rejected. "I'm not changing my decision."

It was at times like this that Miyuki really did love the Coach's stubbornness.

"….um….were you listening to what I said?"

"I did. From what you just said, you are just a first year pitcher who lacks any sort of control and pitch variety; a simple idiot that can only pitch right down the middle right?"

The Coach threw merciless words at the female southpaw.

"..yeah?..."

"Then I don't see your problem. The other first year pitchers are exactly the same with no control and pitch variety. But they have their own weapon they are going to refine over the next three years, as do you, with your peculiar fastball." The Coach grinned.

Sawamura could probably never win against this man if she had not prepared many anti-Miyuki persuasion techniques. She still had another card up her sleeve.

"May I ask a question?"

"Go ahead."

"….why me?"

There was no question, but a subtle rejection in and of itself. It was just that she was facing the Coach and the upperclassmen who had clearly rejected her earlier, so she couldn't simply say 'no' again.

"I'm not a player. In terms of potential pitchers that have weapons they could refine, there are plenty aren't there?"

Now, even Miyuki was at a loss of what to do. He wondered how the Coach was going to tackle this. But Sawamura just continued.

"By asking a 'female' from someone who is not even a player, but a 'manager', then won't it affect the pride of the Seido baseball team?"

This was the issue that the upperclassman had pondered over, staying behind just to see how the Coach would address it. After all, the permission for girls to appear in the Koshien has only been granted recently, not to mention the clear disadvantage guys hold over girls.

It wouldn't be strange if a girl never appears in Koshien.

So if a relief pitcher turned out to be a manager, and a girl to boot, this would have a shattering impact on not just the other aspiring pitchers, but also the pride of the collective body of Seido baseball team players.

There was only silence after Sawamura's speech. Miyuki wanted to speak up, as to not lose this chance for his childhood friend to play baseball again, but he and the others had no rejoinder for this.

I've won! Sawamura judged. Now was the time for her to tactfully decline and-

"Don't be so spoilt!"

The Coach's booming voice rang out, leaving the manager unable to respond. She was unable to discern exactly why she was called 'spoilt'.

"Regardless of whether you are a player or manager that is not important. Everyone in Seido High School baseball team is contributing in some way for victory, for championship."

"But…"

She had to respond. Otherwise…..

"Do not cower Sawamura. Do not worry about being a girl, since you have been selected, go out there and do your duty. If you fall, we'll support you. And if a team mate falls, you go and support them. That is Seido High School baseball team"

-Do not use your status as a manager as an escape route.

-Do not look for excuses.

-Do not put yourself in a position where you have to abandon your passion.

These are what those words entail.

While sighing in her mind, Sawamura helped herself calm down by admitting that all her egress routes have been cut off. That this Coach has seen through everything. "…..I understand! You win! I'll play as relief tomorrow if my turn comes around!" she said as she showed both her palms.

"Yosh!" Miyuki optimistically clenched his fist. But Miyuki wasn't the only one. The shortstop chuckled and went to give his junior a slap in the back. The captain sighed in relief. The second baseman smirked in satisfaction. The center made an amused noise with a scowl on his face.

Four people in a non-conspicuous place, had eyes that burned with fiery determination.

"For the Coach to persuade her to play so insistently, what kind of pitch does she possess?" – They all wondered.

Coach's Room

It wasn't only Sawamura who had qualms about the Coach's decision.

Manager Ota had hands drenched in sweat. Apparently he had been tenser than he thought about the entire affair. "Coach! Are you sure you're alright with that? She's a girl you know! A first year as well! I'm sure there are other pitcher candidates worth it!"

"We're going to go with Sawamura tomorrow." The Coach said firmly as he closed his eyes, his thought straying back to the day he caught her ball.

Born with a flexible elbow and flexible shoulder, her arm is able to fully swing down in an incredibly closed pitching position. That arm is hidden by her body before the very last minute before it appears out of no-where with a swing like a whip. While the speed may not be fast compared to others, Sawamura knows exactly which muscles to use for maximum speed.

"…that was a crossfire I'm sure…" mumbled the Coach. Having imprinted the trajectory of the ball in his mind, he had no doubts about it. "We will need a joker like her if we want to win."

While it was never new, Manager Ota knew that this was the best of the Coach's stubbornness and faith in his decisions…..or maybe, players? Anyway, there was no way but to see for himself, how bright the diamond in the rough can shine.

The Next Day

"Sawamura!" the shouting voice and particular tone was already familiar to Sawamura despite it only being her second day in Seido. It was her classmate, Kanemaru Shinji.

"Morning." She replied.

"What's wrong? You seem tired today."

"Yeah, just a bit." There was still a residual feeling of exhaustion from yesterday. And when she thought about how she was going to spend the day, a rather big yawn came out. She let out a sigh as if to push away the melancholic feeling.

"You better recover soon then," Kanemaru said. "Cause you might be playing this afternoon."

It would be a lie if Kanemaru said he wasn't jealous of the girl. Sure, he and every other first year had the chance to appeal themselves too, but it was as clear as day that she had caught the attention of the Coach the most.

However, he couldn't help but be amused by such a reckless girl who did everything her own way, not tied down by pressures and expectations. Even Kanemaru thought, 'One or two friends like this isn't bad.'

"I know. I hope my turn doesn't come around." She sighed again. "And, I'm not the only one playing you know? All the first years are, including you. So you better be prepared too, because the seniors aren't going to hold back."

"The pitchers are going to be Tanba-senpai and Kawakami-senpai, yeah?"

"Uh-huh."

"Are you on good terms with them? Do you have and tips or advice?" Kanemaru probed Sawamura for information, seeing as how she got along with the seniors during her duties as a manager.

"Mmmm….." She tilted her chin a bit and thought. "I don't talk to them that much because they're always in the bullpen but…"

She looked up with an ear-to-ear grin. This must be one of those infamous mood swings, Kanemaru thought.

"Kawakami-senpai is calm and good at listening, so it doesn't take him long to fix his mistakes. He has exceptional control over his pitches, so it's easy for the catcher to effectively utilize the in's and out's. But he's no good with mental stress, and once pressure starts to affect him he gets really cautious and tenses up. So….."

"Hmmm…."

"Yep yep! I got it!" She exclaimed, "He's kind of like an Abyssinian?"

Though Sawamura wore an expression of dawned enlightenment, what she said didn't make any sense. Kanemaru seriously did not know what she was talking about. Better to ignore someone who's thought process runs in a different dimension.

"…so how about Tanba-senpai?"

"Mmmm...do you think he's scary?"

Kanemaru scratched the back of his head, "Yeah, he can be…pretty intense…"

"That's what I thought!"

Damn this girl.

"Well, you're not wrong in anyway. But the cause of his intensity is because he is pointlessly strict with himself. Especially since he hasn't been performing that well since the start of this year, and his title as Ace might nearly be revoked, he's been on edge lately. But deep inside, he's probably just your typical shy guy."

"For a shy guy, he has a troublesome curveball in his possession."

"You've seen them?"

"Yeah, during the match yesterday, he threw a few curveballs. Even though a lot of it were called balls, they broke like crazy."

"Hmmm…."

"So how do you think he'll perform today?"

"Who knows?" Sawamura replied with a shrug of her shoulders. "But what I can say for sure is that, there is no pitcher that would hand over his mound just like that. They say a pitcher is as tenacious as a lion when it comes to monopolizing the mound."

She lightly laughed to herself.

"Desire may be the force that propels strength, but emotions take that strength one step further. So-"

The idea of taking on the seniors didn't frighten her in the least. On the contrary, she was so laid back about the whole game that you'd think she was sashaying her way to a picnic.

"Let's be careful as to not get eaten alive!"

"Ahhhhhh!" A first year yelled as the ball came flying at him in the batter's box. He shuffled backwards to avoid the ball, lost his balance and fell to the ground.

"Strike!"

The first year was staring at the pitch dumbfounded-he had never experienced such a curveball. The ball just suddenly broke right before it hit him and as if avoiding his body, it dove sharply into the catcher's mitt.

"Strike! Batter out!"

At this moment, the intense emotions that were suppressed suddenly exploded. Tanba gritted his teeth and let out a roar, "Nuooooooooooooooo-!"

Emitting exceptional fighting spirit, with his fist pumped high in the air, he easily retired three of the first years. As he moved towards the dugout ready for offense, his eyes met the blue ones that picked a fight with him-no, all of the seniors, during dinner last night.

As sparks crackled and the two of them prepared for all-out war, Sawamura broke into a giggle. "Hahahaha looks like the fun is going to start from here!"

"HUH?!" the dug-out exclaimed, a collective of prickly gazes filled with a mix of jealousy, envy and enmity.

They picked up their gloves and spoke coldly as they left, "As if a girl like you can ever understand our feelings."

Sawamura blinked and turned towards Furuya, who was sitting beside her, "Why are they so bitter? Did I say something to deserve that sort of treatment?" Sawamura pestered. If there was one thing she hated more than Miyuki Kazuya, it was people belittling her because of her gender.

"…..no…" Furuya replied back quietly.

On the other hand, Kanemaru placed his hand on his temple as if trying to hold back a headache and sighed. "…..Why are you so dimwitted when it comes to your own affairs?"

"Huh?" Sawamura tilted her head to the side. "Anyway, Kanemaru. Here's some advice. If you really want an out, you'll need to be strong-minded enough to shut them up by force."

"…sure?" Kanemaru gave a vague reply because he had no idea what she meant by 'strong-minded', and there wasn't enough time for her to clarify it for him.

"Mmmm….does he really get it?"

"I don't think any of them have realized the purpose of the scrimmage."

From the rear bench that had been silent the whole time came a voice. Sawamura turned her head a little and said, "Even so, if you go join them then we might get a run or two you know, Kominato-kun?"

The game only went downhills for the first-years. During offense, not only were the first years unable to make contact with Tanba's pitches, but they were clearly overwhelmed by the intense pressure that the senior team imposed, and were unable to keep an open eye for chances.

When the turn came around for defense, the seniors, without a moment of hesitation or trace of mercy, completely obliterated the first years. The first years weren't even given a chance for a breather, as the balls were smashed past them one by one.

Before long, it was the bottom of the fourth inning and the score was 17-0.

"Yo-" Miyuki Kazuya leaned against the fence and called out to his childhood friend. "Ei-chan!"

"Ugh…" Sawamura gave an expression of revulsion, as if she was shown a corpse of a cat.

"I just wanted to support our cute first years, so isn't that expression uncalled for?" Miyuki flashed a cool smile. After all, he's gotten very used to the southpaw's cold treatment that he wanted to call it a point of honor.

"What do you want-I mean what are you here for, Miyuki-senpai?" she said and approached the catcher waiting near the bullpen.

Although her cold treatment was nothing new, her new model-student attitude was uncomfortable and honestly, kind of scary. He better do something about it quick.

"How is it going?"

"Hahahaha are you blind Kazu-Miyuki-senpai? If you look at the score, no-without even looking at the score, from the faces of the first years, I'm sure you can tell how it's going?"

Miyuki feigned surprise, "Oh? I have no idea. Not a clue."

Sawamura maintained her smile and said, "Shall I bend that warped nature of yours into shape with my fist so that you can understand?"

"No thanks." Miyuki said shaking his head. "Well, leaving that aside, what do you think of the situation?"

Judging from his serious mien, he did not in the least mean to be joking.

"Mmmmm…..well, if this continues any longer then it might become traumatizing for some players. Most of them have already lost their will to play….but the seniors on the other hand are fired up more than ever."

"Hehe I wonder why?"

"It might be the fault of some first year that subtly picked a fight with the seniors by saying 'I don't plan on anyone hitting my pitch tomorrow', but let's just say it's the fault of the catcher who forced him to say that." Sawamura said with a voice as soft as a gently summer breeze.

Miyuki didn't really mind the voice, after all, it was great to see that his childhood friend who only knew how to say vulgar words, growing up. However, the speaker herself was either a jaguar or leopard waiting for a chance to devour its prey, so he understood very well that he might be exposed to utmost danger if he teased her too much.

But even then, he wouldn't give up teasing her if a chance came by.

"I can't help it if he wants me to catch his pitches."

"But it's not that I can't understand his feelings." Sawamura continued talking, "With those pitches of his, then I can only think of how lonely he must have been."

"Those pitches?"

"Pitcher Change! Furuya Satoru, come up to the mound!" the coach's voice was loud as usual.

"You'll see what I mean, and I bet that he'll prove to be interesting pitcher that you have fun messing with."

Furuya stood up and walked up to the mound, and despite his stone expression, he had a very it's finally my turn attitude. He was seemed apathetic and aloof, yet among all the first years, his presence stood out the most.

"He's finally up."

"We'll destroy you super rookie."

Furuya was amazing in his own right, to make enemies out of all the seniors in less than three days.

But it took literally one throw and moment, for the seniors to reason why he was called the 'monster rookie'.

"-Play ball."

That was the signal. The super rookie unleashed his pent-up momentum like it was exploding from his lower body, and with a snap of his wrist, all the energy transferred into the ball.

_!

Despite knowing Furuya's monster fastball, the catcher faltered before the ball that rushed towards him, delaying his reaction time when the ball suddenly rose up and knocked the helmet off the Coach's head.

Was umpiring such a dangerous job?

Stunned by this scene before them that they had never predicted, they could only stand in their positions before the Coach cut through the silence with a grin on his face.

"You pass, Furuya. You can practice with the first-string starting tomorrow."

There were immediate complaints from the seniors after the Coach's next words. "Pitcher change."

"Wait coach!"

"Please let him continue, Coach!"

"I can definitely hit his pitch!"

"-But there's no first-year that can catch his pitch." The Coach's brief words had a strong persuasive effect. He then turned to the Ace, "Tanba, you're done too. If you can pitch without being overwhelmed, then you will do fine even at nationals. Have more confidence when you pitch."

"Y-Yes sir!" Came Tanba's immediate reply, his expression brimming with confidence.

The first-year pitcher was quite satisfied as well.

A triumphant look appeared on Furuya's face as he looked in the direction of the catcher, "Now I can finally get Miyuki-senpai to catch my pitches." Then, he noticed the presence of a brown-haired girl next to the catcher and shot her a glance saying, 'Now it's your turn.'

"Hey, look Kazuya, the super rookie is looking at you. Aren't you mister popular?" Sawamura said with a totally monotone voice.

Miyuki answered appropriately, "Look at that Ei-chan, monster rookie is subtly trying to pick a fight with you now."

Sawamura paused for a moment and changed the topic, "So, what do you think?"

"Well, he is interesting as you said. And he did technically not let anyone hit his pitch so all's well ends well?"

"It's not the end yet."

"Mmmm….do you want to pitch that much?"

"It not like that!" Sawamura immediately denied, a slight blush present on her face. "I just don't want it to end like this. I mean, even if it's unrealistic, there's still a chance we can make a comeback right?"

Miyuki chuckled, is she finally back? He thought before showing a teasing smile. "You're saying all you want despite not having contributed anything."

"S-shut up Kazu-Miyuki-senpai…I definitely won't let thi-"

"Hey, can we stop this?" Miyuki interrupted.

"Huh?"

"I don't really fancy status stuff in our relationship."

"Relationship you say…..but you are technically my senior you know?" she said, but Miyuki was sure that when she calls him 'Miyuki-senpai', there is not a smidgen of respect. If anything, it felt like she was making a fool out of him.

"Hmmm?!" Miyuki grinned creepily and pinched the southpaw's cheeks. "I'm sorry, did I hear something come out of this mouth?"

"Stop! Stop!" she called out in defeat, the catcher releasing her face. "So, what do you say?"

"Hmmm…no thanks. I don't want to get beat up by Kuramochi-senpai and Kominato-senpai for lack of respect."

"Then, let's have a bet."

"Huh?"

"Let's go with this, if you can win-no, if you can end the game with less than 20 runs difference, then it's your win and I won't complain about this issue anymore. But if you don't, then you'll do it my way. How does that sound?"

"Huh?!" Sawamura's expression was enough to convey that she didn't like what she was hearing. "No way! That means that I can't let the seniors get more than three runs!"

"Eh, and here I am being generous! Three runs is nothing compared to the idiot who exclaimed that she wanted to make a comeback!"

"Ugh…"

"Unless, you are just all bark and no bite?"

As soon as Miyuki said that, Sawamura started cracking her knuckles. "Fine! It's on! Just sit there and watch you stupid goggles! Kazuya!" she said angrily.

"Right….no, wait a second. Kazuya's not even an insult." Miyuki replied back, but his words didn't reach the female since she had already dashed off to the dug-out. "What a simple person…."

Suddenly, from behind, Miyuki heard two footsteps. He knew who they belonged to even if he didn't turn around.

"Miyuki." "Miyuki-senpai."

Both of them stopped and stood behind him.

"You guys were just fighting it out earlier, and you're all buddy-buddy already?"

"No way." "It's not like that."

Furuya's light tone of a voice and Tanba's slightly agitated voice were almost completely in harmony.

"Hahahaha really?"

The three ended up steeped in an awkward silence, while they watched the seniors finish their offense with only two runs.

19-0

Miyuki was impressed that super rookie's one pitch changed the momentum of the game, and all of a sudden, he was so much closer to winning the bet. But he better deal with the two pitcher's behind him first.

He turned towards the two and asked, "I thought the Coach said you can leave, why are you guys still hanging around?"

"This just happened to be the best spot to watch the match." Tanba replied.

Furuya just nodded in agreement.

"Mmm…" Miyuki paused only a moment to think, "I see….you guys too….."

"What are you doing here Miyuki? Is everyone else doing self-training?"

"Yeah, they said they'll come down when they finish. I had prior plans so I came down early. And, just like you guys, I just want to watch…..her."

Sawamura returned to the dug-out and even though she didn't expect a friendly atmosphere, it went from bad to disastrous. Not to mention that she was already about to lose her bet with Miyuki without even lifting a finger.

In any case, the first years were all on the verge of breaking down.

The amazing pitcher who made it to the semi-finals of the junior high nationals had his head hung low, trying to hide his incredibly pained expression. And, all the other first years could only avert their eyes watching such a capable player lose will.

Then, the 'talk' that Sawamura hated the most, started.

"It can't be helped if we lose against people with talent."

"Furuya's in a different league, he's a genius."

"Yeah, yeah…it's only natural for geniuses to win."

"And, aren't the seniors immature?"

"We're just first-years, there's no need to play so seriously…."

"I know…."

The first year's continued to utter comforting words to lick each others wounds, to justify themselves of not trying hard enough. To find a reason and excuse, for this embarrassing match that shattered their cheap pride to bits.

But there was a voice that destroyed all of that.

"Do you really think they're immature?"

All gazes focused on the female southpaw.

"To fresh first year's like us, the pitch of a senior is completely new, even the speed of the ball is on a different level. But of course it is! They've been here for a year or two more than us! But that also means that the next tournament is the last chance they'll get to participate in high school baseball. If they don't make the first strong now, then it will just remain a dream."

The voice she wrung out was sharp.

"So let's drop it, that sort of thing. Talent, genius, I don't care for the excuses you make, but stop justifying yourself for not working hard enough. Baseball is simple, you either win or lose, but if you're overwhelmed from the start and give up, then don't bother playing. From the bottom of my heart and all the way out, in any and every case, I don't care about what you've achieved in the past. What you are proud of, what you are bad at, I'll say absolutely nothing. So I'll just one thing."

Sawamura Eijun spoke.

"Anyone without a will to fight, I won't ever consider a teammate."

"…."

"I love baseball. I want to win."

"….."

"Anyone who thinks otherwise can leave the diamond. I'll play."

Pressured by the glint in Sawamura's eyes that didn't waver, everyone lost their words to retort the female player.

"B-but there's nothing we can do now….." Came a trembling voice.

In the next moment, with impeccable timing, Kominato Haruichi responded.

"-If you don't want to play, then let me."

Everyone suddenly turned around and opened their eyes in shock at the existence of the pink-haired boy.

"What did you guys even come here for?" The speaker pointed his wooden bat at the group. "The coach only wants results, isn't it about time you figured that out?"

"Even if we figure it out, there's nothing more we can do!" A first year yelled, his face twisted at the humiliation of being insulted.

"Oh, but there is something we can do," an astonishingly clearly enunciated voice cut in.

"…what…?"

"We'll start off by getting one run. Since you guys are so clueless about it, let onee-san lead the way." Sawamura said proudly with a mischievous grin.

"Now then, Kominato-kun, Kanemaru, could I ask for a little bit of your co-operation?"

"Huh?" The duo let out a collective question mark. Sawamura rose to her feet. "The bottom of the inning is finally over. We're down by a lot of points, but it's not game yet. This is where we get our first run and launch our attack in the top of the inning."

She jumped off the bench and flashed a smile as bright as the blue sky.

"Launching counterattack!"

TBC...until next time~