Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or Prince of Tennis!
...
...
Hari blinked as she noticed Ryoma and Momoshiro standing together and talking quietly. Not that it was strange for them to talk or stand together, but it was the way they looked like they were trying to be inconspicuous about it.
What were they talking about?
She shook her head and continued toward the classroom and soon the scene with Ryoma and Momoshiro was forgotten as she entered the classroom and found Sora and Hira coming toward her with worried looks on their faces.
"Hari-chan!" they both exclaimed. "You're finally back at school!"
"Yeah, I was finally set free from the confinement back home," Hari grinned. "So, what's up?"
"What's up?" Sora asked incredulously. "You were hurt and in the hospital and you ask what's up?!"
Hari shrugged and felt the small remaining sting from her chest at the movement, but it was nowhere near as painful as it had been.
"Seemed like a good enough thing to ask as any," Hari said as she sat down at her desk and looked at them.
"How are you?" Hira asked.
"I'm fine now," Hari smiled. "I still can't practice tennis for a couple of days but the doctors were very pleased with how my injury is healing."
They nodded relieved and Hari leaned back in her seat as she continued to chat with them until the teacher entered the classroom and told everyone to find their seats. Hari looked around and saw that Momoshiro and Kaido had found their seats as well. She frowned slightly as she caught the considering look from Momoshiro. He looked like he was trying to figure something out, but what?
She mentally shrugged as she turned her attention back to the teacher and English class.
...
Hari really felt like she was missing something as she sat at lunch with her phone out and texting with Seiichi (again) and looked up to find Kikumaru, Oishi (though he looked like he tried to protest something), Inui and Kawamura (who looked uncomfortable) staring at her. When they saw her looking they all suddenly looked away and tried very hard to pretend that they hadn't been staring at her.
She frowned slightly as she gave them one more glance before looking back at her phone as another text from Seiichi ticked in. She smiled and soon forgot the watchers as she read the text.
I can come to Tokyo this weekend. My parents said it was okay. So, do you think you could spare me sometime this Saturday? I want to take you out on another date. –S.
Another date. He wanted to take her on a date. What could he want to do this time? She felt her smile widen as she remembered their first date at the botanical garden and the flowers…and the kiss. Would he kiss her again? The question entered her mind before she could stop it. She felt her cheeks burning slightly as she remembered it.
She startled slightly as someone suddenly sat down next to her and she saw Ryoma give her a strange look.
"You startled me, Ryo-chan!" Hari gasped.
"What were you thinking about?" Ryoma asked.
Hari shrugged and quickly sent a reply to Seiichi (Great! I'll make sure that I have free time for you! – H), before pushing her phone back into her bag.
"How was your lesson?" Hari asked.
"Boring," Ryoma rolled his eyes and started to eat. "How are you feeling? First day back and all…"
"I'm fine, Ryo-chan," Hari smiled reassuringly. "Promise. I feel a little sore still, but I'm much better."
He glanced at her and she almost winced as she saw the searching way he looked at her and hated that she had given him a reason to worry and doubt her words. She really hadn't meant… she stopped herself and pushed the thought away. She shouldn't dwell on it anymore.
"Good," he said and turned back to the food.
Hari sighed quietly as she looked at her brother and suddenly felt like they hadn't really spent time together just the two of them in a while. During her days spent home because of her injury she had been surrounded by someone all the time, and she and Ryoma hadn't really had time just the two of them.
He glanced at her and arched a brow when he saw her looking at him. She smiled and he looked confused.
"Nani?" he asked.
"I was just thinking that it's a while since we spent any time together," Hari said.
He frowned slightly before he nodded and took a sip of the Ponta in front of him.
"I guess," he said. "You…we've both been busy."
"Maa," Hari said. "We should still find time to chat or hang out just the two of us. You're my best friend and my brother."
He blushed and looked away from her and suddenly looked uncomfortable but she saw the small smile on his face.
"Why are you suddenly talking like this?" Ryoma asked a little gruffly.
"Shiru ka?" Hari smiled. "Maybe it's because of what happened. Maybe I just realised that I miss you."
He looked at her quickly again and this time it was her that looked away.
"Do you plan on telling me what you're hiding?" he suddenly asked.
She looked at him again a little surprised by the sudden change in subject. He was looking at her with a pensive look.
"Well?" he asked. "Don't say that you're not hiding anything. Everyone knows it."
Everyone? She thought about the strange looks she had gotten from her teammates lately (even before the incident) and the fact that she was sure they had tried to follow her at one point… So, okay, yeah they probably suspected something.
"Maybe," she said. "I should tell you and Otou-chan and Okaa-chan soon anyway."
Ryoma frowned.
"So?" he asked.
"Not now," Hari said and looked around. "Besides, lunch is almost over."
Ryoma huffed and looked away making Hari smile a little. She was a little surprised that they had actually managed to get through lunch just the two of them, not that she hadn't felt or seen the others look at her because she had, but it was unusual not to be joined by at least a couple of the others from the team.
...
"Why are we spying on Hari-chan?" Oishi frowned as they followed after Hari when the practice was over (she had of course just observed and not taken part in the practice) and she had told Ryoma that she had something to do before going home.
"Because we're trying to figure out who her boyfriend is!" Kikumaru said.
Momoshiro, Ryoma, Inui and even Kawamura had been dragged with Kikumaru who decided that following Hari was the best choice. Fuji just came with because he found it amusing and wanted to observe the fun. Oishi had followed but mainly just to try to stop them. Tezuka and Kaido both had shaken their head (Kaido glaring as he did so) and refused to join them.
"I still think it's wrong," Oishi worried. "What if she finds out? She'll be angry."
"She will be," Fuji nodded in agreement.
"You don't look worried, though," Momoshiro observed.
"Saa," Fuji smiled.
"And how do we know that she has a boyfriend?" Kawamura asked shyly. "Just because she is on the phone a lot…"
"According to my data, Hari-chan is on the phone for about 67 % of the time during free periods and smiles unexpectedly 48 % of the time she is on the phone," Inui listed. "That is pretty conclusive data for Hari-chan having a boyfriend."
Fuji smiled amusedly while the others gave Inui strange looks.
"See!" Kikumaru broke the silence, "and Fujiko says that she has a boyfriend as well."
"It's pretty obvious," Fuji smiled.
"But who can it be?" Momoshiro asked. "I mean… I would have thought it was Fuji."
The others looked at Fuji like they were seeing him for the first time and Fuji arched a brow.
"Me?" he asked.
"You are close," Kikumaru frowned. "And she did say that you have pretty eyes…"
"That's right," Momoshiro nodded. "She did say that."
"And she calls you by a nickname," Kikumaru continued.
"She does that with Echizen and Kaido as well," Oishi pointed out.
"Okay, so that might not be relevant," Momoshiro said, "but still…"
Fuji was smiling amused seemingly enjoying their speculations.
"Then why would I be here following her with you and not over with her?" Fuji asked.
"Well, you…you could just be finding this amusing," Kawamura suggested.
"That is something you would do," Kikumaru nodded.
Fuji just laughed as they turned a corner and saw Hari a little up the street pausing as she looked around with a confused look.
"Oh, she's lost again," Ryoma sighed. "Honestly."
They watched Hari scratch her cheek before she smiled and waved like she was seeing something they hadn't. Which it turned out that she had, seeing that Tachibana Kippei came out of a small store. They talked for a moment and it seemed like he was asking about something and she touched her chest where they knew the bruise was so it was easy to guess what they were talking about.
Was she here to meet him?
Ryoma frowned a little as he watched Hari talk with Tachibana. He knew Hari respected him and thought he was a good tennis player, but could he be her boyfriend?
Soon she waved at Tachibana again and continued to walk while Tachibana crossed the street and disappeared. So she was not there to meet him.
...
They continued down the streets and realised that they were walking in circles. Great. She was lost and therefore they were lost.
"She really needs to learn to pay attention to directions!" Momoshiro whined.
"I know!" Kikumaru agreed.
But Hari didn't seem to have any haste as she walked and even as she paused a few times and looked around (making them try to hide in strange places and earning strange looks) she looked quite content as she walked.
"Hey!" They suddenly heard a voice call and Fuji arched a brow.
"Yuta-kun," they heard Hari greet and sure enough Yuta came up to her and smiled widely as he did.
The rest of the following conversation was too quiet for them to hear but it looked like they got along pretty well and did she just pat his arm?
"I suddenly realised that they're the same age," Kikumaru said. "Um, Fujiko…are your brother dating Hari-chan?"
"Maybe we guessed the wrong brother?" Momoshiro blinked.
Fuji didn't say anything as he looked at his brother talking with Hari and he wondered. Was he dating Hari-chan? He had thought that maybe Yuta liked her, but he hadn't thought that they were actually dating…
"She was pretty protective of him when we played them," Kikumaru said slowly.
Ryoma didn't say anything.
But like earlier Hari soon said goodbye (or waved) and continued to walk. Yuta smiled after her before going back the way he came and out of their sight. He had probably been with some friends or something when he spotted her.
...
"Where is she going now?" Kikumaru groaned as they walked up some long stairs. She was, luckily, not looking behind her because she would have seen them if she had, there were no places to hide where they were walking now.
"I still think we should go home," Oishi said.
"No," Kikumaru refused. "Not yet."
Ryoma was a little worried about all the walking she was doing. It couldn't be good for her to be moving around this much on her first whole day out after her injury.
They reached the top and paused to look around and see if they could see Hari. It took a moment because the place was filled with people of all ages, it looked like a cross between tennis courts and basketball courts and even a skating park at the end. But eventually, they spotted Hari talking with a silvery-white haired boy with a kind smile. She had her arms around his neck like she had just hugged him and was laughing as she talked with him. The way he reached out to stroke her hair back from her face was enough to make the shadows mouths drop open. Had they finally found her boyfriend?!
"Who is he?" Momoshiro asked. "Though… I feel like I've seen him before…"
Fuji frowned as he looked at the boy and blinked as he recognised him. Before he could say anything they saw some other boys coming rushing over and one who loudly called: "HARI-CHAN YOU'RE HERE!" even hugged her but the first boy they had seen her with pulled him off and seemed to be scolding him.
"How does she know him?" Fuji asked out loud.
"You know him?" Kikumaru asked.
"Yes," Fuji said. "He's Saeki Kojiro. He lives in Chiba originally and plays for Rokkaku."
"But how does Hari-chan know him?" Momoshiro asked.
Ryoma frowned. "She got lost once and ended up in Chiba. Maybe it was then."
"Oh, right!" The others said.
"But still…"
They were so busy talking that they didn't notice that Hari had disappeared until Kawamura pointed it out by asking where she went. They looked around and even started to walk further into the courts but couldn't see her anywhere. They saw some of the boys she had briefly greeted play tennis on one of the courts but there was no sign of Hari or Saeki.
"Are you looking for someone?" A voice asked from behind them making them all spin around to find Hari and Saeki looking at them.
...
Hari knew she was being followed. They weren't very subtle about it, but she decided to pretend that she didn't know. So, she walked and walked, she only got lost once but pretended to get lost more times just to give the others an extra-long walk. It would serve them right.
So when she finally reached Saeki she apologised for being late and quickly told him about her shadows and he smiled amusedly. He agreed to play along, and she only wished she could see their faces as they watched.
She pulled away and greeted his team when they noticed her and came to say hey, she noticed their strange looks but she smiled and waved it away at the same time Saeki did. His team just shrugged and after a quick word or two went back to their tennis matches.
She chanced a glance over at where she knew her friends were standing and saw them talking and not paying attention. She grabbed Saeki's hand and pulled him with her and hid behind a large group of people.
So it was easy to come up behind them when they moved further into the court.
"Are you looking for someone?" Hari asked and hid her smirk as they spun around and looked at her guiltily at being caught.
"Um…eh, hey Hari-chan!" Kikumaru tried to say.
"Hey," Hari arched a brow and looked at them without smiling (though she was keeping one back). They shifted on their feet. "What are you doing here?"
"Um… we wanted to play tennis?" Momoshiro said but it sounded like a question.
"Ah, I see," Hari said. "Well, don't let me stop you. I'm just going to go with Jiro-kun and…"
"Is he your boyfriend?!" Kikumaru burst out.
"Eiji!"
"Kikumaru!"
Hari looked at them and heard Saeki chuckle next to her.
"Hey, Shusuke," he smiled. "It's been awhile, hasn't it?"
"It sure has, Kojiro," Fuji smiled. "So, you and Hari-chan?"
Saeki glanced at Hari who still hadn't said anything.
"Ah…" Saeki said and Hari glanced at him and smiled.
"He's just a friend," Hari rolled her eyes. "I knew you were trying to spy on me and guessed you were trying to figure out who my boyfriend was so I had him play along when I met him."
"You knew?!" Momoshiro and Kikumaru exclaimed and even the others looked surprised. Inui was writing in his book as he looked at her and Saeki.
"Since when?"
"Since the school," Hari deadpanned. "You really aren't good spies."
Ryoma shook his head. "Sorry, Hari."
She rolled her eyes, "well, it was amusing."
...
"So, you know Hari-chan?" Fuji asked Kojiro when they had settled down and Hari had been dragged away with some others from Saeki's team. Fuji was slightly surprised that she seemed to know them. The others from his team had joined Hari while he remained to talk with Saeki.
"Yeah," Saeki nodded and smiled. "I've known her for a while now."
"How did you meet?" Fuji asked unable to stop his curiosity.
"She got lost and ended up in Chiba," Saeki said. "I was on my way home from practice and walked past this street tennis court and saw her playing by herself. I could tell she was good, so I stopped and we talked and played. I spent the day with her until she had to take the train back to Tokyo."
Fuji nodded.
"You were the one who taught her about her motion vision, right?" Fuji asked realising why her form seemed familiar.
"Hai," Saeki nodded. "I saw she had it and decided to help. She learned quickly."
Fuji nodded and looked over at Hari who was talking with Kisarazu and Aoi, both looking amused.
"She has met your team," Fuji stated.
Saeki laughed as he told him about the first meeting and the bet making Fuji smiled amused and shook his head. She really did make friends wherever she went and seemed to just bring life and happiness. But what Fuji worried about was the fact that she didn't seem to realise it herself.
"So, not your girlfriend?" Fuji asked and Saeki shook his head.
"No, she's just a good friend," Saeki smiled. "I have a girlfriend back home."
"Oh," Fuji said.
"So you have no idea who this mystery boy is?" Saeki asked glancing at him.
"No," Fuji said. "But I have feeling that Tezuka knows or suspect, but it's impossible to get him to talk."
Saeki smiled, "well, Hari-chan will tell you when she feels it's right. I don't think she's the type to hide her boyfriend away, so she'll probably tell you soon."
...
Hari slowly put her phone down and glanced at the door out of her room. She heard Hedwig squeak but paid no attention to the owl, she just couldn't right now when her mind was going in overdrive. She had just talked to Seiichi, told him about the day before and the prank she had pulled (he had laughed), and he said he wanted to come and pick her up at her house. Like an old fashioned date, with meeting the family before taking her out.
Meeting her family.
She swallowed. She knew it was coming. It wasn't anything she could put off any longer and she didn't want to either, it wasn't like she wanted to hide Seiichi away. She didn't. She wanted to talk about him with those who were important in her life. So, that meant that she had to tell them.
But how could she tell them? Should she just go in and say she got a boyfriend and that he was coming to pick her up this Saturday for a date? Yeah, right. That would go over so well. She could just imagine Nanjiro's reaction.
"Hari?"
She blinked. She hadn't realised that the door had opened and that Ryoma was watching her. She smiled and he came inside closing the door behind him.
"Ryo-chan," she smiled. "What's up?"
"I wanted to make sure you were ok," Ryoma said. "Is your bruise gone?"
"Almost," Hari said. "I barely feel it anymore. I think my magic is working on it as well now, at least the doctor was surprised with how quickly it was healing."
"Why didn't it do that before?" Ryoma frowned.
"It did," Hari gave the same explanation she had given Nanjiro when he had asked, "and now that I've allowed my body to relax and heal the magic has an easier time working on my bruise. If that makes sense?"
"I guess," Ryoma said. "I still find magic a little difficult to understand. But it's fascinating as well."
"Yeah," Hari said. "I should really be working more on my magic, but… I don't really find the time…"
She felt guilty for not doing enough and felt a little worried that she would be in trouble because of it. She mentally shook herself out of her thoughts, she couldn't do anything about it right now anyway.
"You'll figure it out;" Ryoma said confidently. Hari smile slightly.
Hari lay back on the bed and stared at the ceiling while Ryoma settled on the end of the bed and looked at her for a moment before pulling over one of her magic books. He was curious to see what it said.
They stayed like that for a little while both content with just being there even if they didn't talk. Finally, Hari looked over at Ryoma smiled when she saw him reading her charms book.
"I have a boyfriend," Hari said and Ryoma looked up.
"I guessed," Ryoma said simply.
"I know," Hari said. "I just had to see what it felt like to say it out loud."
Ryoma looked at her and watched as she pushed herself up so she was sitting up and leaned against the headboard behind the bed and looked back at him.
"He wants to meet you, and Otou-chan and Okaa-chan this Saturday," Hari confided.
"He wants to meet Oyaji?" Ryoma arched a brow.
"Yes," Hari said.
"Brave boy," Ryoma said making Hari laugh.
Ryoma looked at her before he scowled slightly. He knew there had been a boyfriend, he knew, but hearing her saying it… Actually, say it. That made it real. He wanted to protect her, but he also knew that he shouldn't go all overprotective on her either.
But who could possibly be good enough for his sister? No one. The answer came immediately.
"I can see you going all protective and arguing with yourself in your mind," Hari interrupted his thoughts wryly.
Ryoma scowled at her, "who is it? I don't think it's anyone on our team."
"He's not on our team, no," Hari said and fiddled with the edge of her duvet.
"Then who is he?" Ryoma asked and Hari sighed as she gave him a searching look.
"His name is Yukimura Seiichi," Hari said.
"I don't know who that is," Ryoma frowned, "he's not on any team we have played. He does play tennis? It sounded like he did when you said he wasn't on our team."
"He does play tennis, yeah," Hari said. "Though, not right now, he's still injured and can't play in a little while."
"What team is he on?" Ryoma asked.
"Rikkai Dai," Hari said. "They're from Kanagawa."
Ryoma arched a brow, "then how did you meet him?!"
Hari smiled and it didn't go unnoticed but Ryoma didn't comment on it as she started to tell him how she had met Seiichi and how they had talked and met up when he was in town. She even told him about the first date and the flowers, though not in detail.
Ryoma still felt like scowling as Hari talked but it was clear that this boy really meant a lot to Hari and he didn't want to make her upset either. It was like an inner pulling contest was going on, the wish for Hari to be happy and the wish to protect Hari from everything that could possibly upset her. The two wishes were in constant battle.
"Ryo-chan," Hari looked at him and leaned forward slightly as she did. "I really want you to like him. He's a good guy, please, just give him a chance? Please?"
Ryoma huffed as he met her wide green eyes and when did she learn to make that look? How could he refuse when she looked like that? Like a puppy, or cat pleading.
"Fine," he agreed reluctantly.
"Thanks!" Hari beamed and with a grunt, Ryoma found himself with his arms full of a happy Hari hugging the life out of him. Or so it felt like, but Ryoma didn't complain as he awkwardly patted her on the back.
...
Hari swallowed nervously and looked over at Ryoma who was leaning against the wall by the door out of the living room. She waited for someone to speak but the room was quiet. Nanjiro was staring at her. Quiet. That was probably not a good thing. Rinko blinked but she was smiling slightly now and Hari felt sure that she wouldn't create any trouble.
Should she say something? He had heard her, right? She had clearly said that she had a boyfriend and that he was coming to pick her up on a date tomorrow (best to give it a day to sink in before the meet) and he wanted to meet them.
"I knew there was someone," Rinko smiled. "So cute! And he wants to take you out on a date tomorrow? How nice. Do you know what you're going to do?"
"No, he said it was a surprise," Hari said unable to stop the smile from spreading on her face even as she glanced at Nanjiro nervously.
He should have said something by now, right? Right?
"Sounds nice," Rinko smiled.
"Nice?!" Nanjiro repeated suddenly having found his voice as he jumped to his feet and looked widely between Hari and Rinko. "How is it nice?! A BOY wants to take Hari-chan on a date?!"
"A second date," Ryoma added and Hari frowned at him but Ryoma just shrugged.
"That's right! A second date! Who's this boy who thinks he is good enough to date my little girl?!" Nanjiro ranted having started to pace up and down the floor waving his hands around widely. "The nerve! Who dares to think…!"
Hari sighed as he continued to rant and glanced over at Rinko who had closed her eyes and were pinching her nose between her eyes.
"Nanjiro!" Rinko finally snapped and swatted the back of her husband's head making him stop and turn toward her with a scowl. "You're being insane."
"I'm not!" He protested. "Didn't you hear?! Hari-chan says she has a boyfriend. A B-O-Y-F-R-I-E-N-D! You know a boy who's more than just a friend! Who would ki-ki-k…" It looked like he couldn't get the word out.
"I know what a boyfriend is, thank you," Rinko said exasperatedly. "And it's sweet. Hari-chan deserves someone who makes her smile like that, and it's not like she said she was going to get married, Nanjiro. Do calm yourself."
Nanjiro looked horrified and spun around to look at Hari who tried to keep calm as she watched them and stop herself from fidgeting too much.
"You're not allowed to marry!" Nanjiro declared and before Hari could even say that no one had said anything about marriage and that she was still just 13 (though soon 14) years old and it was way too soon to be thinking about that she found herself hugged tightly. "You're going to stay here and be my little girl forever and you'll never leave to be with some scary and hormonal boy who will steal you away from me!"
Hari mumbled something but no one could hear what she was saying because her face was mushed against his shoulder.
...
Ryoga whistled as he entered the house and wondered how Hari was today. He had heard about the spying attempt from her team and wondered if they had tried again. So hilarious. He was so going to enjoy watching the drama unfold…
Talking about drama… he paused as he entered the living room and saw his father attempting to hug Hari to death (?) and looked around the room like someone would be jumping out from the shadow and snatch her up and take her away or something.
He smiled.
"Ah, you've found out about the boyfriend, I assume?" he asked casually as he flopped down at the sofa and looked over at his father and Hari. He glanced at Ryoma who frowned at him when he looked away from the hug-attack (and didn't he look amused? Ryoga snorted inwardly).
"You knew?" Ryoma asked as Nanjiro turned his eyes to him as well.
"About Yukimura? Sure," Ryoga said tossing his orange and catching it. "You're going to suffocate her like that, Oyaji, you know that, right?"
Nanjiro blinked before he pulled back a little and Hari took a deep breath of air in relief and scowled at him.
"Seriously, Otou-chan! You're trying to squeeze me to death?"
"Of course not," Nanjiro said. "I'm going to protect you from evil boys who want to marry you!"
"Marry?" Ryoga arched a brow. "Well, that went fast."
Hari glared at him. "You're not helping! And neither are you!"
She turned to Ryoma who was smirking slightly.
"Sei-chan is my boyfriend," Hari said ignoring the flinch from Nanjiro, "and he's a good boy. No one has said a word about marriage! We're teens! We're not thinking about that!"
"But you…"
"No!" Hari scowled at Nanjiro who pouted. "You're going to meet him tomorrow and you're going to be NICE! And so are you!" She glared at Ryoma. "You promised!"
Ryoma pouted and looked away.
"But Ryoga-nii knows this Yukimura?" Ryoma asked again. "How?"
Hari was suddenly behind the couch and put a hand over Ryoga's mouth before he could say a word about having seen the kiss.
"He saw him dropping me off after our first date," Hari said and ignored the mumbled words from her big brother. "And that's all."
"I can talk," Ryoga said when she pulled her hand away.
"I don't trust you to not try to make the situation worse," Hari scowled at him.
He held up his hands in surrender but a smirk was playing on his lips.
"Do you understand, Otou-chan?" Hari turned her eyes to Nanjiro who was crunched on the floor and poking at the wood with a deep scowl on his face.
"Evil boys… trying to corrupt my sweet, sweet girl… evil…" he was muttering under his breath.
Rinko was smiling as she watched Hari glaring at Nanjiro who was deep in his own misery. It was rather amusing to watch her husband being put in place by Hari.
"He'll behave, dear," Rinko said and hugged Hari. "I look forward to meeting your boy."
...
Hari looked frustrated at the selection of clothes she had dragged out of her closet and had managed to spread over the bed. Why didn't she have anything nice? And what exactly was he planning? How was she supposed to dress when she had no idea where they were going?
And since when did she even care? It was Lavender and Parvati who cared about these kinds of things… and suddenly she wished she could have asked them because they would know what she could wear.
Why was this so difficult? She mentally whined as she picked up a top and held it up against her and looked at herself in the mirror with critical eyes.
She was still going through her clothes when there was a knock on the door and Rinko poked her head inside.
"You're ready?" She asked.
"I'll never find something to wear," Hari complained. "I don't have anything nice!"
Rinko smiled as she stepped into the room and her eyes swept over the mess of clothes. Hari watched as Rinko walked over to the bed and went through some of the tops before picking up a green one and a black pair of trousers that Hari didn't even remember she owned.
"This is nice," Rinko said. "You try it on."
Hari nodded and quickly tried it on and blinked as she looked at herself. The trousers were nicely fitting her legs and actually made her seem a little taller, and the green top was casual but also nice as it hung just loosely enough on her.
"There," Rinko smiled. "That's perfect. You really do fit green; it enhances your eyes perfectly."
Hari couldn't help but feel surprised as she looked at herself.
"I never would have thought about this," Hari said.
"It comes with practice," Rinko smiled. "Do you want me to help you with your hair?"
Hari looked at her for a moment and for some reason she felt a little emotional so she just nodded. She sat down on the bed when Rinko motioned to it. Hari smiled softly as she felt Rinko start to work on her hair and the way her hands brushed through her hair as she did.
This was what having a mother felt like. The thought came so suddenly and made Hari fight the tears threatening to pop up. She sniffled a little but Rinko didn't comment and Hari was really grateful for that.
Ten minutes later Rinko pulled back and Hari looked at the mirror. Hari normally just kept her hair down (and messy like it always was if she didn't fight with it to make it stay flat or as flat as it could possibly stay) or pulled it back into a ponytail. But this… She blinked. Her hair was partly up and partly loosely hanging down. The upper parts of the hair were braided back and somehow managed to keep her hair from seeming to wild and messy. It also gave her hair layers and it looked good.
"I…thanks," Hari said.
"You're welcome," Rinko smiled. "I always wanted a daughter and braid her hair. Your hair has so much potential."
"My hair is a mess most of the time," Hari said but blushed lightly at the confession from Rinko.
"It fits you," Rinko brushed her cheek lightly before she got up. "Now, it's not too long before your boy is here, I think. Probably a good idea to be downstairs when he comes. We don't want to have Nanjiro scaring him away, do we?"
...
Hari smiled a little nervously as she opened the door for Seiichi who blinked once when he saw her before smiling.
"You look pretty," he said.
"Arigatou," Hari smiled. "Um. Come in."
He stepped inside and Hari closed the door behind him. No way back now. They were doing this. She inhaled trying to calm her nerves and felt Seiichi look at her.
"You're nervous," he observed.
"I can't help it," Hari said. "I don't want Otou-chan to scare you off."
She said the last part as a kind of joke but it felt flat and she knew that Nanjiro really would do his best to scare him off and…
"It'll be fine," Seiichi interrupted her thoughts. "He won't scare me off."
"You haven't met him," Hari muttered but smiled. "Alright. Come on."
She led him into the living room and found Rinko and Nanjiro standing up and Ryoma and Ryoga were on the sofa both looking toward the door. Ryoga waved at Seiichi who nodded politely to him but his eyes were mostly looking at the couple standing up.
"Otou-chan, Okaa-chan," Hari said. "This is Yukimura Seiichi, my boyfriend."
Hari felt like she could hear her heart beat in the quiet room as she waited for someone to say something.
"Hello, Yukimura-kun," Rinko smiled warmly and stepped forward holding out her hand. "It's so nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you, Echizen-san," Seiichi bowed politely before shaking her hand. "Hari-chan has told me a lot about you and your family. I know she really cares about you all."
Hari was looking at Nanjiro who was staring at Seiichi with narrowed eyes and his arms folded over his chest. Dismissive. That was his whole attitude, and Hari really wished…
"Hello, sir," Seiichi turned toward Nanjiro. "I'm Yukimura Seiichi and I really do care about your daughter."
Hari blinked and wondered where Seiichi got the courage. Or maybe he just was crazy…?
The silence in the room stretched and Hari frowned at her adoptive father who was still staring at Seiichi who met his eyes calmly. Just where did he find that calm?!
"Hmph," Nanjiro finally made a sound. "You're the brat who thinks he's good enough for Hari-chan."
"Otou-chan!" Hari protested.
"As long as Hari-chan thinks I'm good enough I'm not going to be stupid enough to let her go," Seiichi said momentarily stunning Hari because what 14-year-old talked like that? And she was stunned because the sincerity lacing his voice. "She's special and kind, strong and vulnerable, compassionate and mischievous. And I know I'm lucky she sees something in me worth her while because I know she could have anyone she wanted."
Hari wasn't the only one staring at him but he remained staring at Nanjiro who had a pensive look in his hazel brown eyes. He didn't look as dismissive as before, so Hari counted that as a win.
"Hmph," Nanjiro said again but his tone was softer. At least a little. "At least it seems like you realise some of Hari-chan's worth."
"Yes, sir," Seiichi said.
Hari stepped up to him and took his hand because she couldn't stop herself. She felt…she wasn't sure what she felt. Happy? Touched? So many emotions were running through her as she stood beside him and she couldn't help the smile on her face either and it widened when Seiichi looked over at her and gave a small smile of his own. Like he saw something he liked.
"Ryo-chan," Hari turned to her brother. "Come and meet Sei-chan."
Ryoma pushed himself up from the sofa and walked over with slow deliberate steps and his eyes scanned Seiichi who turned to look at him as well.
"The famous brother," Seiichi smiled politely. "Nice to meet you."
"You too," Ryoma said and glanced at Hari who smiled. "You play tennis?"
Hari rolled her eyes at the question but squeezed Seiichi's hand because she knew it was still a sore subject for him.
"Yes, but I'm not able to play right now," Seiichi said. "But I should be back to playing by Nationals if everything goes as planned."
Ryoma glanced to Hari before looking back at him.
"I see," Ryoma said. "I look forward to playing you then."
"Honestly, does everything have to be tennis with you, Ryo-chan?" Hari asked.
"No, we could talk about you," Ryoma shot back and Hari scowled at him.
Ryoga laughed. "Nice seeing you again, Yukimura. How's the team holding up?"
"Good," Seiichi said. "They're getting ready for the Kanto Tournament."
Hari noticed Nanjiro looking at Seiichi with narrowed eyes but he also seemed interested. Tennis always interested him in some way, and she was sure he saw the potential for talent in Seiichi.
Rinko had been quiet as she watched and smiled as she saw the way Hari and Seiichi acted and moved around each other. She had never seen Hari so content, so relaxed around anyone who wasn't Ryoma before. She didn't seem to have any of her walls up and to Rinko, that meant a lot.
...
"Thank you," Hari said as soon as they had left the house and was walking down the street. "I can't believe you actually managed to make Otou-chan stop before he got into a full rant."
Seiichi smiled and squeezed her hand.
"I just said the truth," he said and smiled wider when he spotted the blush in her cheeks. "So, I think that went well?"
She glanced at him and realised that he must have been nervous as well but he hid it so well. She nodded and before she could talk herself out of it leaned up and kissed his cheek. He blinked before smiling.
"It went very well," Hari said. "You were amazing."
Seiichi smiled again and they continued to walk.
"So, where are we going?" Hari asked.
"I was thinking we could go and watch a movie?" Seiichi suggested glancing at her.
...
Hari felt a thrill as she sat inside the dark movie theatre beside Seiichi and felt his hand in hers. It wasn't like they were doing anything but just the feeling of his hand in hers and the dark gave them a semblance of being alone even with others spread around the room… it was enough to make her smile.
"The movie was awesome," Hari said.
He glanced at her and smiled, "I'm a little surprised that you chose to watch that one and not one of the romantic comedies."
"Did you want to watch a romantic comedy?" Hari asked.
"Not particularly," Seiichi shrugged. "But I didn't think you would have wanted to watch an action movie."
Hari laughed as she felt the fresh air against her cheeks and inhaled as she looked at Seiichi who was watching her with a smile. She felt her own smile widen a little as she took in the way he was looking at her.
"I never really watched many movies," Hari said looking away from him. "I've watched a few action movies with Ryo-chan since arriving in Tokyo, but before that…"
She felt him looking at her and she knew he was thinking about what she had said or maybe not said. She waited but he didn't ask and she couldn't resist turning to look at him again. He smiled at her but didn't say anything and she felt relieved and even a little touched that he seemed to be holding his questions back.
She wasn't sure she really wanted to go into the whole Dursley-thing and not being allowed to watch movies. She remembered catching glimpses of movies Dudley watched growing up, the Disney movies and later the action ones, and wishing that she would be able to get lost in a movie and dream of another life.
"Come on," Seiichi said and pulled at her hand bringing her out of her thoughts again.
She looked around and saw an ice cream parlour in front of them and she blinked. She looked at Seiichi who smiled.
"What flavour do you want?" Seiichi asked.
After deciding the flavour (chocolate, caramel, pistachio, strawberry and raspberry) they found a table and sat down placing the large ice cream between them so they could share.
"I can't wait," Hari grinned.
Seiichi laughed and handed her one of the spoons. She took it and dug into the ice cream and felt how it melted on her tongue.
"We're never going to be able to eat all this," Hari laughed.
"Maybe not," Seiichi agreed. "But it is good."
"Yeah," Hari nodded. "It's the best ice cream I've ever had."
She hummed happily as she enjoyed the flavours and the taste lingered on her tongue. She couldn't help but think that this ice cream tasted much better than the ice cream she'd had at Hogwarts.
They talked as they ate and didn't seem to notice the looks they got from the others in the ice cream parlour nor did they hear the whispering conversations about them. Both lost to the conversation and the ice cream.
"I think I'm going to burst," Hari groaned when the ice cream finally was done. "I can't believe we actually ate all that!"
"Shitte iru," Seiichi nodded. "It probably wasn't a good idea to buy so much…"
"Next time we'll do better," Hari nodded but she secretly hoped that they would do exactly the same again because this was fun.
...
"It was a perfect day," Hari said when they once more were in front of her house. She knew that she wouldn't have long before Nanjiro showed up, he probably checked the front gate every few minutes. So she would enjoy the time she still had with Seiichi by herself. "Thank you."
"No need to thank me," Seiichi smiled and reached out to push a strand of her hair away from her face, it had escaped sometime during their walk. "I like spending time with you."
Hari smiled happily and nodded. "I like to spend time with you too, Sei-chan."
He smiled back at her and took a step closer to her and she tried to calm down the storm of butterflies that was suddenly going off in her stomach as he came closer and she could hear her heart beat in her chest.
Ba-thump. Ba-thump. Ba-thump…
He paused when he was almost there and she looked up at him and saw his intense violet-blue eyes look back at her and she understood. It was up to her if she wanted it. She leaned forward and her eyes flickered closed as his lips met hers.
His lips felt soft, careful, at first but when she pushed back more he deepened the kiss and felt how she pressed against him making him feel her curves against his body and his hand went to her hair. He kissed her again and again and he wondered if he ever would grow tired of this feeling. He didn't believe so.
Hari was feeling the same. She loved the feeling she got when she was in his arms and his kisses. They were addicting…
Suddenly a flapping sound interrupted their kissing and Seiichi pulled away when he felt something against his cheek and he blinked dazed before his eyes landed on sharp yellow eyes locked on him. It took a second to realise that the yellow eyes belonged to a snowy owl and said owl was glaring at him.
"Hedwig!" Hari exclaimed and the owl landed on her shoulder and nipped at her hair. "What are you doing, girl?"
"She's…someone you know?" Seiichi asked.
Hari looked at him.
"Um." She scratched her cheek with one finger. "She's my owl. Her name is Hedwig."
"You have an owl?" Seiichi asked surprised.
"Yeah," Hari nodded. "I got her as a birthday present when I turned 11 from a friend."
Just then they heard the door open and Nanjiro appeared. Hari blinked and looked at Hedwig.
"Were you warning us, Hedwig?" Hari asked quietly and got a quiet hoot back. "Thank you, girl."
"You're back," Nanjiro said and eyed Seiichi suspiciously and Seiichi suddenly felt very grateful to the owl who had interrupted them. It was better that it was the owl and not her father, he thought even if the owl glaring at him also felt a little disconcerting.
"Yes, Otou-chan," Hari said patiently though she rolled her eyes so only Seiichi could see and he bit down on his lips to stop from smiling.
...
...
AN: What do you think? XD
Hope you liked it! I decided on having Hari telling Nanjiro (and the others) about Seiichi instead of having him finding out on his own. While the humour of having Nanjiro discovering them on their own had potential and I actually wrote it out, I decided on having Hari telling them. Mostly because it's a trust-thing. Hari deciding to share something important to her with them and opening up a little. It felt more important to do it like this. :) Hope it met your expectations! :)
Next chapter should have more from the British Wizards in it and the Kanto Tournament is right around the corner now. :)
As always, thank you so much for reading and supporting the story! :)
Japanese words used:
Nani - What
Maa - Filler
Shiru ka - Who knows
Saa - Filler
Hai - Yes
Arigatou - Thank you
Otou-chan - Dad
Okaa-chan - Mum
Shitte iru - I know