The three of them share a single heavy exhale, "Whew."

Hitoka's mouth snaps firmly shut for a few seconds before Kaori throws her head back into laughter, her fellow managers joining in soon after, "We killed it," the third-year sighs, stretching out her arms far back, grimacing at the cracking sound that echoes.

Hitoka lets herself lean against the counter, staring at the truly obscene amount of food that they'd managed to cook, filling up plastic containers neatly placed in hollow areas designed for such use, "I can't believe we actually finished."

Needless to say, her opinion of cafeteria workers has just skyrocketed.

"We did a pretty good job," Mako bobs her head slightly, "To think we have to slave away like this and eat last."

Kaori throws the girl a pack of matcha green tea pocky, "Tough it out, we're not the ones who had to do all that jumping around and those horrible drills... although I guess that mostly applies to your team Hitoka-chan, your boys must be starving."

Your boys, there's this pleasant, incomprehensible rush of warmth that hits her, she tries not to think too much about it.

"Karasuno's resilient," she shrugs instead, lips parting to wrap around the pocky Mako was holding out, "Nothing ever keeps them down for long."

They had to be, if they were going to attend Nationals.

"I wish I could muster even half of that devotion to my team," Kaori jokes, munching on her own strawberry-flavored pocky, "I can only handle their antics on my good days, and even my kouhai are all terribly uncute brutes."

Mako snorts, "Liar, you like to act all tough Kao, but we know you're a big softie."

"They obviously appreciate you," Hitoka says, fingertips absentmindedly drumming on the wooden surface behind her as she recalls the way the boys dressed in bright blue jerseys always made sure to thank their manager, speaking to her like one does their equal and not aid, "I'd say they're as sweet on you as you are on them."

"Hush now," the brunette's cheeks dust pink, "Let's finish up with the dishes before everyone comes along."

Thankfully, the task gets done rather quickly with the three of them, and it's just as they finish drying everything up that a few people begin to trickle into the cafeteria, grabbing themselves a tray and plate as the girls snap back in place new pairs of gloves and move to the food counter.

The honey and garlic pork chops are unsurprisingly a hit, the container emptying itself after only twenty minutes - thankfully they have five more of those. The three managers work efficiently, serving the volleyball players food and inviting them to go grab themselves a drink at the table in the back of the cafeteria filled with water bottles, juice, and some soft drinks.

Hitoka's eyes crinkle when some familiar faces reach the counter, "Whoa, the food smells great Yacchan!" Nishinoya-senpai gives her a thumbs-up as she serves Asahi a double portion of mashed potatoes.

"Thanks, I hope you'll like the taste as much as the smell!" she fills the second-year libero's plate as much as Asahi's, unsurprised that they have such an appetite after a hard day of work, "Enjoy!"

Yamaguchi is next, the boy as friendly as ever as he asks her to sit with them later, "I don't know if I'll be finished before you guys are done eating, we have to stay for a bit in case anyone wants seconds. I'll eat with you guys tomorrow since I won't be on lunch duty!"

Kiyoko smiles her way softly, asking for some rice and veggies, "I'll see you later Hitoka-chan, thanks for the food."

The line advances rather quickly, and the tables fill themselves as everyone enjoys their lunch.

"Yachi!" the loud call of her name has the blonde lifting her head, finding the source of the voice behind the Shinzen member she was scooping up some rice and veggies for, "We made it to Tokyo!"

Those who were sitting close to the line send amused glances their way and Hitoka brightens up when her eyes meet clear, sunset-colored ones, "Hi Hinata! I'm glad you and Kageyama finally got here, did you guys get to play a few games?"

"Yes! Well, only one, but it was great! We-" Tsukishima, who was next in line after Hinata, sighs, "You're holding up the line idiot, just tell her what you want to eat."

"Stingyshima!..sorry Yachi, I'll have some of that meat, and some rice please," she scoops up a healthy amount of potatoes, Kaori serving him the pork chops as he advances further.

"It's fine, we'll speak later," she smiles, eyes drifting to the tall wall of a boy named Tsukishima, "What can I get you?"

"Just some of those vegetables and rice, please... there's no need for more, thanks," he says before she can add a third scoop of rice to his plate and she blinks slowly at the portion of food.

The plate resembles one she would take for herself, who didn't play a sport on a nearly daily basis and was rather small. It's worrisome, to say the least, and she hesitates for a few moments, blankly staring up at the lanky boy.

"Don't be shy to come and get some more later, okay?" he gives her a nod of acknowledgment, unaware of the worried frown that graces the blonde's features as he walks away.

She can only hope Tsukishima is feeling a bit under the weather or something, and that he doesn't truly eat so little - she'd have to ask Shimizu later about the boy's eating habits, as she had never truly taken the time to notice them.

"You'll get frown lines if you make a face like that for too long," she's snapped out of her reverie when the next person in line slides to face her, a teasing tilt to his lips, "I'm sure glasses is just fine."

"Oh," she blinks, "Kuroo-san, hello," she and the other managers fill his plate with what he points to, which is every choice they have, besides the mix of veggies, "How did practice go?"

"Great, thanks for asking, and for the food, everything looks amazing," the girl's cheeks flush with pride. If the Nekoma captain is still a bit intimidating, she finds him awfully nice.

The boy's teammates watch the interaction curiously, the one with the mohawk from earlier, staring at her for a good ten seconds, which has Hitoka shrinking back on herself, "Uh, what can I get for you?"

When the boy continues to stare, Mako reaches over the counter and pulls at his cheek, "Stop staring at her, you idiot," she says, putting equal amount of pork chops and rice on his plate before he can ask, shooing him away.

"Bu-but-" Mako waves around her serving spoon in his direction threateningly, asking a certain Yaku, the boy who had passed before Yamamoto to reign in his teammate.

The small libero from Nekoma sighs long-sufferingly, "Leave the girls alone Tora, you're embarrassing yourself and holding the line," he then drags his teammate away by the ear with an apology sent the shy manager's way.

Hitoka jumps as the one with sandy blond hair kicks the back of the wing spiker's knees when the boy is too slow for his tastes, nearly making his plater topple over, "Th-they're certainly something...

The Ubugawa member she serves chuckles at her words, despite them not being addressed to him, "Nekoma's a troublesome bunch, that's for sure."

"Have a nice lunch," she smiles back, recognizing him as the team's captain and a terrifying server, his features are sharp and should definitely be scary, yet they suit him and he is much less intimidating up close, even when he is only a few centimeters shorter than Tsukishima and built like a brick house.

The line has thinned, only leaving a handful of volleyball players waiting for their food, amongst them is Fukurodani's ace, the one who had spiked with such monster strength earlier, "Oh, it's you!"

"Ye-yes?" she asks, not witnessing the look Kaori and Mako share to her right, Bokuto however does, blinking owlishly when they turn to him, eyes narrowed dangerously. Unaware of this, Hitoka asks softly, "Is something the matter?"

"I'm really sorry about earlier!" Bokuto bows so low his head almost hits the counter and the small first-year manager pales drastically.

She squeaks, shaking her head rapidly, "Don't apologize! I was the one in the way, and, and things like that happen all the time during practice...pl-please stand up!"

The boy's head tilts as he considers this tiny, stammering girl, "Hey, those were some pretty good reflexes earlier, you ever play any sport?"

Bokuto's sudden question startles her out of her panicked state, "Huh? No, not at all," it had never been her thing, although her track record would indicate she could not help but stay away from them, or rather those that played it, whose brilliance she could not help but be drawn to like a moth to a flame.

One might say her game of cat and mouse with the element had burned her more than once, yet here she is. Her inner monologue is interupted by Kaori, who softly orders her not to let the boy only fill his plate up with meat.

The pinched face he makes when she serves him a healthy scoop of mashed potatoes draws a smile from her, "But Kao-san! It looks so good," the boy is awarded a swat over the head from his manager who states he needs to also have some vitamins in him, not only protein.

Kaori sniffs, "Run back to Akaashi, you're pissing me off."

Yachi sweatdrops a bit, inwardly wishing she could be as fearless, as outspoken as the girl was, much like her mother and all of her fellow managers, even when the thought of addressing anyone so brusquely sends her stomach into uncomfortable flurries.

"Oh wait!" the boy says, earning himself groans from those still waiting in line, "I forgot to introduce myself! I'm Bokuto Koutarou, Fukuradoni's ace! You're Yachi Hitoka-chan right?"

"Yes," she says, quite surprised the boy knows her name, I wonder who could have told him...Yukie maybe? "It's a pleasure to meet you."

She's awarded a sharp, toothy grin, "The pleasure's all mine! See ya later Yacchan!" the familiar nickname has the ears of a few ears members from Karasuno perking up, Tanaka, and Nishinoya sharing an unamused glance.

Karasuno's first-year manager's jaw drops when she sees how the line for food, which had been reduced to four or five individuals minutes earlier, now trails far, far away. Hitoka blinks, lips parting, "Wha...what?"

Yamamoto Taketora is the first familiar face she sees, "Seconds please?"

Yachi Hitoka follows the other managers into Nekoma High's female changing room, or more accurately, into the showers that it has to offer with a bounce to her steps.

"So, how was your first day?" Eri asks the Karasuno managers, taking off her shoes and unflinchingly stripping into her undergarments once Mako has locked the door, "We haven't scared you away yet?"

Hitoka flushes, closing her eyes politely, "No! It's a lot of work, but it's been really fun so far," surprisingly so, even if she had been quite nervous about interacting with other teams in such a manner.

It had never been an option at Teiko, her team forcing a wedge between them and the rest of the junior high league, both in skill and mentality. Ultimately, such a fracture had even applied between them all, each and every one of them building their own impenetrable fortress around themselves.

The silence stretches and so she cracks an eye open, startling when she sees that all of the girls had been holding in their laughter, waiting for her to open her eyes once again.

"Oh Hitoka, you're so sweet," Yukie reaches over to pat the girl's head, only in her sweatpants and baby pink bra, "I'm surprised you haven't been corrupted yet. We managers are a pretty immodest bunch, it's mostly 'cause we're surrounded by boys on a daily basis."

"Yukie's right! You're precious really," Kaori snorts, folding her clothes into the basket each of the girls had brought, "Shoot! I forgot my shampoo in our room, do any of you have some to spare?"

"I do," Kiyoko waves the bottle of hydrating shampoo in the air, "Is this brand fine with you?"

"It's perfect, thanks Kiyoko-chan! It's actually the same as mine, although I usually buy the one for long hair," to accompany her statement, Kaori unties her hair out of the tight, high ponytail it had been in. Hitoka's eyes shine when long, pale brown hair falls down to reach the girl's curvy hips.

"Wha! It's so long," her previous shyness forgotten, she stalks closer and reaches to pass her fingers through the silky strands, "So soft too, I'm jealous!"

She had never been able to properly manage the mid-length hair she had in Junior High, as it had been so easy to tangle, and the ends always ended up dry and coarse to the touch from lack of proper care. Yet now that she sees how good Kaori's looks, she can't help but wonder if she should try a longer haircut again.

Kaori jumps when cold fingers brush against the bare skin of her back, "That tickles!"

Slowly, Hitoka is able to relax around the other managers, the hour they spend in the changing room spent less in the shower and more throwing loofas over the shower curtains that shield them from the other's eyes and exchanging skincare tips.

"You know," Shimizu says, slowly buttoning her nightshirt on and looking at her younger co-manager from the corner of her eye, "I don't do things like this often, or ever really, there's not a lot of girls at school that like me, it's why I was so glad when you accepted the manager position. I love the boys, but this is also nice."

"Ki-Kiyoko-senpai," Hitoka's eyes are watery all of a sudden, making the third-year reach over in a mild panic, "I'm so happy I decided to join!" before she can think about it too much, Hitoka arms wind around the third year in a crushing embrace.

"Come on now you two," Mako snorts softly from behind them, as demure as ever, "Stop it with the waterworks, you're going to make me sick with your mushiness."

Eri grabs the girl from behind, squeezing tightly, "You're such a liar Mako!" she then turns to the two Karasuno managers, "This one is secretly a softie, she cries every time she watches Lilo and Stitch."

Like a switch had been flipped, the Shinzen manager hisses like an angry cat at her friend, "Eri! You traitorous bitch-" laughter erupts in the room, the air still humid from their showers, and Hitoka's grin does not fade for a long while.

"Eh, Yachi-chan?"

She barely looks up from what she is doing, surprised to see Kuroo as well as another boy, one she had only seen briefly during the games earlier and when he'd come to get food with the rest of his team. "Hi," she waves slightly, having to force herself to put her pen down, "You two are up late."

"So are you," Kuroo makes a strange face, eyeing the empty cafeteria which is dimly lit, "What are you doing here?"

"Coach Nekomata said I could hang out here for a while, as long as I leave before ten, when they'll lock all the doors, the other girls went to sleep and I didn't want to disturb them," maybe it's the tiredness that slowly grips at her that makes her so calm around Kuroo and his unknown teammate.

Even when she's in her pajamas, her hair still a bit damp from her shower - she had decided not to blow dry it when Yukie had offered, her short strands making it easier to dry without heat.

Nekoma's setter is quite the sight, with almost chin-length blond hair, rather long roots of a deep brown, almost black color, and eyes of a striking bronze color so pale they look fluorescent in the poorly lit room - all the lights having been shut besides the ones lining the walls.

"That's not what I asked littlest crow~" she blinks when Kuroo stalks closer, eyeing the papers sprawled around her and the notebook she had been writing in curiously, "Not homework I hope, I thought you guys just had your finals."

If Kuroo is obvious in his curiosity, openly checking out the words and numbers and lines scribbled in her sturdy notebook - she had gotten it just a day ago, to write notes related to volleyball more properly, a cleaned-up version of the messy, unreadable doodles she took during games. The second boy is just as curious, but keeps himself at a distance and only sends a quick glance at her work.

"Not homework," she frowns when she notices a spot of ink on the side of her forefinger, rubbing at it so it won't dirty her pages later, "Just some correlations and stuff."

"What kind?" the pudding-headed boy approaches, eyes widening when he finally gets a good look at what she had been writing. A large diagram and smaller charts fill the page to the right, the left one filled with notes and observations in the form of bullet points, probably related to the first side of that page.

"Oi," Kuroo warns, "At least introduce yourself first Kenma," the boy frowns at his friend's jab, quickly giving out his name, Kozume Kenma, and a half-polite greeting before focusing once again on the intel in her notes.

The notebook is turned to its side for the data to be read in a landscape format, leaving more than enough place for the diagram to take most of the pages. In its high right corner is a chart of all of the outcomes of Karasuno's sets today, if this one is pretty basic, it's necessary support to understand the graphic's information in the center of the page.

Information is expressed through a cloud of dots and lines, some dotted or highlighted in pastel blue.

Kenma's brows furrow as he deciphers the data, while Kuroo makes a small noise from the back of his throat, "The normal lines are Karasuno's points per set, right? And the blue one is what, when they manage to shut down the other team's attack?"

Hitoka hums, "Yeah, the blue is for successful blocks and the dotted ones for receives," she had taken the idea from something Nishinoya-san had once said, about the libero being the team's safety net.

"You recorded all that during the games?" Nekoma's setter's voice is low, mellow almost, but his eyes are sharp with a calculative mind that has the manager looking at him almost carefully.

This is Hinata's precious friend, the boy had mentioned Kenma on numerous occasions and Hitoka's not sure what she was expecting, but this is not it.

The girl nods, shrugging her shoulders as Kuroo sits down next to her, Kenma on his other side, "Kiyoko-senpai kindly did it for the last sets since I was on lunch duty, but yes."

"Why?" Hitoka blinks, slowly considering the question as she lets Kuroo slide the notebook between him and Kenma, turning to the previous pages to reveal more correlations and charts.

"It gives a general idea at how Karasuno did against each team - like how you guys are a pain to score against, or how there are fewer receives than blocks with Ubugawa, since their serves are so good and Noya-senpai still has trouble with them."

The girl doesn't notice the look the two players share, rubbing at her increasingly tired eyes, "It's just a hobby," she says when she receives no answer, "I know things like that don't have much impact in actual games, but it's fun to do."

"I thought you were new to the whole manager thing," Kuroo says slowly, eyeing a squared chart with the average gaps between Karasuno and each of the other teams' points during the first day - the cat head doodled next to Nekoma's name has his eyes shimmering, "That's some pretty heavy work for a newbie."

Fukurodani is a whopping 7.5 points difference, Nekoma a 7, Ubugawa a 4.5 and finally Shinzen with 3 thanks to Hinata and Kageyama's appearance for the second set with them, which had given Karasuno their first and only win of the day.

Kenma cuts in before she can answer, nose wrinkling, "Why wouldn't it have any impact on games? Coaches use data like that all the time," he almost says this is more than what High school coaches use, rarely having the time to collect such precise data and preferring to concentrate on coming up with plays or using recorded games.

"Yeah, but not many players actually end up using it, it's nothing they can't realize during the actual game. At best it can give them visual support or numbers to take into consideration, but it only makes a difference for a particular kind of player," she yawns, fingers brushing against her parted lips to hide it, "Besides this one's not representative since Karasuno's usual starting lineup wasn't complete until the last set, and since they already got a chance to get used to Nekoma's playing style, but not the others."

Inference like this is a data analyst's worst nightmare.

"You're an odd one Yachi-chan," Kuroo laughs suddenly, eyes dark and inquisitive, "I'm curious now, if you're new to this, and you've never played volleyball before, where's all of this expertise coming from?"

She snatches back her notebook, quickly adding some final touches to the graph, and writing First day of training camp in the space above the graph along with the date.

"Why are you guys so interested in this anyway?" she blinks, the dim lighting giving her eyes the color of sticky, sweet caramel, "And don't call it expertise, it's weird," lack of sleep makes her less conscious of what she says.

Relaxation is a good look on her, Kuroo muses at the contrast between the person with him at this moment, and the fumbling, nervous mess of a girl from earlier.

"Now, now, play nice," Kenma sighs when his team captain pokes the girl's nose in an overly friendly gesture, cooing when the girl squawks and swats his hand away, cute, "You can't fault us for being at least a bit jealous of Karasuno for having such a dedicated manager!"

Hitoka puts her things back in her pencil case and closes her notebook for fear that she'll end up falling asleep if she doesn't go back to the girls' room soon, "Kiyoko-senpai isn't here, you can tone it down with the compliments."

The answer has Kuroo chortling a bit, lips curving slightly and giving that impression of a devious feline, "Obviously, I'm talking about you Yacchan."

Yachi blinks owlishly as if truly confused by the notion - which she is, thanks to her woozy train of thoughts, "Oh, thanks then?" she pauses then, wondering if the nickname would stick with her all through this training camp, first with Bokuto and now Nekoma's captain.

"Hey," Kenma says suddenly, "Do you think you could do this with us tomorrow?"

Tomorrow, right, because the managers had planned in advance the rotation rounds as they called it earlier - she would be spending the morning with Karasuno, which she was increasingly grateful for, and the afternoon with Nekoma.

Do this..? Hitoka has to seriously wrack her brain for the possible meaning to Kozume's words.

"Like the stats?" the boy gives a curt nod and she cannot help but marvel at the fullness of his features, from the shape of his face to the imperceptible downturned curve to his lips, "I guess I could, although since I'll be alone to take care of your team, I won't get as much time to work on gathering the intel like I did with Kiyoko-senpai around."

"That's fine, I'm just curious about what you can come up with on Nekoma," the boy says this politely, gently even, yet she cannot help but sense a hint of challenge to the words.

"Okay then," taking care of the team's needs would come first obviously, but she's quite sure she could make something during whatever free time she got, maybe get some insight from coach Nekomata or Naoi, if she ever could manage the courage to speak to either of the men for more than three seconds, "Talking of tomorrow, Kuroo-san, is there anything specific I should know about managerial duties when I'm with your team?"

"Ah," the older boy rubs at the back of his neck, "Nothing specific comes to mind, just the usual, I guess? If there's anything, coach Nekomata will mention it," for someone so sly, he's quite clueless at times, endearingly so.

"Great," just as she's about to stand up she stops, "Did you two come here for a reason?"

Hitoka is awarded blank stares, understanding dawning on the two Kekoma players seconds later. Kuroo makes a noise, halfway between a laugh and a grunt, "We completely got sidetracked! We just wanted some milk from the vending machines, the one in the hall ran out," the boy quickly goes to fetch himself, and Kenma the said drinks, even buying one for her.

"Oh, you didn't need to, I'll pay you back tomo-" the box of milk almost slips out of her hands, when it is shoved in between them, "Thank you."

The girl's eyes drift to the windowed wall of Nekoma High's hallway as they make their way back to their respective rooms, where a starless sky and a cloud-covered quarter of a moon look back at her.

Despite this, when she looks back at the two boys to wish them a good night, already halfway into the girls' room with only her head peeking out, clusters of faraway constellations dance in her eyes.