Hello there! I hope you're doing well! It's been a while!
I'm so excited to be writing this author's note because it means that I'm finally starting this fic. I love new beginnings!
This fic is going to be different from my other two. Without spoiling it, I can say that is going to be long as hell, there is going to be a lot of pining involved, and real slow burn. Also there is going to be a lot of Mei, a lot of the seido team, and Miyuki and Azusa won't get together that fast. Also, this will cover the first and second season of the anime and it will go through all the way until koshien in the act ii of the manga. So that's a major difference since it will be my first time including manga content.
I hope that you're here for the ride and that you enjoy it.
I would like to thank you for your support.
I would like to specially thank Mrcleanheichou for helping me brainstorm and come up with ideas during my planning process.
As always, if you have any comments and/or suggestions please let me know.
Disclaimer: I don't own Daiya No Ace, Yuji Terajima does. I only own my OC and sort of this plot.
Enjoy!
"You can do it Mei!" Azusa yelled from the stands amidst the constant cheering for Mei. It was a small stadium but it was packed as if it was a high school baseball game since everyone wanted to check out the new prodigious pitcher. She couldn't help but to watch down in awe as her older brother demonstrated his skills.
They were playing against the Edogawa Dragons in the semi-final game of the junior high summer tournament. The game was close but they were winning 5-4. Only one more out and they were going to be in the finals.
Mei pitched again only to get a ball, but she wasn't very worried despite the fact that there were runners on both second and third base. The batter was the catcher Miyuki Kazuya and he had yet to get a hit off of Mei. So she didn't think that it was going to be any different now. During clutch moments like these, players usually get flustered and make rash decisions. Despite the catcher showing level-headnesses and resilience, he hadn't shown any extraordinary batting skills since he got struck out at every one of his at bats. He was also short like Mei (well not as short as Mei since everyone was taller than Mei) and was very small with glasses looking too big on his face. Definitely not an intimidating batter at all.
'But it would ease my nerves if he stopped pitching his fastball. It's obvious to me that the runners on base have thrown Mei off his game since his pitches are getting more rough. I'm pretty sure that the batter has yet to notice though,' Azusa mused in mild concern.
Mei geared himself up to pitch again and Azusa groaned as she noticed that he was going to throw a fastball. Again. 'Why does he obsess over certain pitches all the darn time?'
Miyuki stepped right in as if he knew what Mei was going to pitch already and the ball made perfect contact with his bat. It flew over past the shortstop and it hit the fence resulting in a home run.
"What?"Azusa's mouth hung open in disbelief while everyone else in the audience was also surprised. 'How did that even happen?'
She watched the runners advancing to the home plate still in a state of shock. Everything happened so fast and she was sure that they were going to win.
'Did… did the catcher know about Mei's weak point?'Azusa pondered while she glanced over at Mei. He was looking down at his feet and she was sure that he was hiding his tears. Mei hated losing more than anything else in the world.
What kind of player was Miyuki Kazuya?
Azusa got up from her seat in a dejected mood as she made her way out of the stadium along everyone else in the audience. She decided to wait for Mei and his team outside. She was the only person from elementary school so it was not like she could hang out with Mei's classmates from junior high. She couldn't wait until next year so she could be in junior high and be like the older kids. She was tired of being treated like a little kid. She was eleven years old already for god's sake.
Azusa then shook her head. 'You gotta grow up. Stop thinking about that. Right now the most important thing to do is to cheer up Mei. He probably is feeling very down now.'
"Oi Azusa! What are you doing standing there by yourself?"Azusa heard Mei obnoxiously calling out her name. He was close to the exit looking all sweaty and dirty from the game with his white uniform on.
Azusa clenched her fists in annoyance as she walked towards him. "I was waiting for you," she said in a restrained tone.
"Were you now? You're such a good little sister. Going to your amazing onii-chan's game and then wait for him all by yourself. Without caring that you may look like a friendless loser," Mei said in a teasing tone.
Azusa growled in anger. "What did you just say? You're such an ingrate," she hissed through gritted teeth.
"Ingrate how? I'm recognizing the great sacrifices that you make for your dearest older brother," he teased again with a toothy grin.
"Why you?" she growled again.
"Hey you!" Mei suddenly called out. "The third batter."
Azusa blinked in confusion since he was not talking to her. She followed his line of sight and turned around to notice that he was calling out the catcher who was behind her.
The catcher turned around to face both her and Mei with a nonchalant expression gracing his features.
Mei, however, was unfazed much to Azusa's surprise. Mei didn't like being disregarded, ignored, or losing. So the fact that he didn't show any signs of annoyance was surprising to her. "It's been a very long time since someone got a hit off me like that," Mei said in a matter-of-fact tone.
Miyuki didn't say anything at first. "I can't really respond to that," he said. "I can't discuss your weak point since you're going to be an opponent again in the future."
Azusa gasped.
Mei gasped as well. "What? Weak point? What do you mean?"the pitcher demanded.
Miyuki didn't say anything as he walked away.
"Next time I'm not going to lose you hear me?" Mei yelled again.
"So he noticed your weak point too," Azusa said to no one in particular.
"Don't tell me that you too Azusa," Mei said with a pout while turning to her. "What is this weak point that you two are talking about?"
She didn't say anything as she stared out at Miyuki's back. So her suspicions were correct. He knew too. Azusa felt the corners of her lips curl into a smile. That catcher was not an ordinary player.
"It seems like I underestimated you, Miyuki Kazuya."
'Bzzz'
A loud buzzing sound filled the room in the midst of darkness. It was very early in the morning. The sun still hasn't come out yet making the task of waking up much harder to a particular young girl.
"Shut up,"Azusa grumbled while she took her phone from her nightstand. She got up as she turned off the alarm of her phone. She rubbed her eyes while absentmindedly looked around her room. It was messy with shoes scattered across her room, the wooden floors could be a bit cleaner, and her clothes were on her desk across from her bed. Along with her vanity who looked like a mess since she didn't organize any of her toiletries. Not to mention that her bed was going to join in the messiness since she wasn't going to make her bed. If she was going to sleep on her bed again at night then what was the point of making her bed? However, she would never admit any of this to her mother who always nagged her about keeping her room clean. That along with always saying how she should be more organized like her older sisters.
Azusa got out of bed and checked her reflection in the mirror as she pinched her cheeks to wake up. She had a little bit more color on her with her pink cheeks. Not like it would matter anyway. She still looked like a junior high student, despite the fact that today was going to be her first day of high school. Azusa had newly grown out thick blonde hair past her shoulders, with bangs adorning her face, sparkling innocent-looking blue eyes, and a petite shape. Not to mention her small B- cup breasts much to her disdain. She could almost fool anyone. The only thing going for her was her height. At 5'7 she was taller than most girls since the national average was 5'2.
"Stop being so stupid. Who cares about that? You're not going to Seido to get a boyfriend," she told her reflection in the mirror. "You're going there with a mission."
After that, she left in a hurry to the bathroom to take a quick shower and get herself ready for school.
Today was the first day of the most important journey of her life so far.
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'This is such a huge campus,' Azusa thought amazed by the open vast grassy fields and the baseball fields as she walked through the Seido grounds. She felt her mood lighten up as she looked around and gawked at the batting cages and all the top notch equipment. She couldn't wait to start her duties as a manager since she was so excited. The only thing missing was the bright sun since it was still a little dark out, foggy, and she felt the cold spring chilly air. It couldn't be helped since it was very early in the morning for the time meeting.
She fastened her pace to get up to the dorms' entrance where all the managers were going to meet before going out to the field. There all the players would introduce themselves to the coach and existing team members. She already had her manager's uniform on since she didn't want to be late in her first day.
Finally the 'Seido's Spirit Dorm' came into view indicating her that she was already there. "Don't we have a very eager first year today?" A girl with pigtails said in a teasing tone. She was standing next to another girl around the same height as her with a pixie cut. Along with a taller girl with long black hair and bangs framing her face. They were all wearing red, white, and blue tracksuits just like her.
Azusa blushed at her comment. "What's wrong with being on time?" she chided in a defensive tone.
"Weren't you the first one to arrive last year Sachiko?" the girl with the pixie cut teased the pigtailed girl, ignoring Azusa's comment.
"What? No, I wasn't," Sachiko said with a small blush.
"Girls," the taller girl said in an authoritative tone making the other two clear their throats and stand up straight. Then she turned to Azusa. "You must be one of the new first- years," she said.
Azusa nodded. "Yes, my name is Narumiya Azusa. Nice to meet you," she politely introduced herself with a small bow.
The taller girl gave her a small smile. "Nice to meet you too. My name is Fujiwara Takako, and I'm a third-year. "Takashima-sensei told me about you," her last comment surprised Azusa. Why would Takashima-sensei mention her in particular ? Did she tell her about Mei?
"My name is Natsukawa Yui, and I'm a second-year," the girl with the pixie cut said with a small smile as well.
"And I'm Umemoto Sachiko, a second-year as well," the girl with the pigtails said with a grin.
Azusa nodded in acknowledgement.
"We're just missing one more first-year," Takako said while looking around to see if someone was coming.
Azusa cocked her head to the side since she didn't know there was going to be another first year starting with her. "Is-
"Suminasen' a redhaired girl yelled while running towards them. She promptly stopped in front of them while bending over her knees trying to catch her breath. "I'm Yoshikawa Haruno."
"You're late," Sachiko chastised.
"Introductions are about to start," Takako pointed out with a stern look.
"I'm so sorry," the girl said in between breaths. "I tried so hard."
"The coach is very strict about punctuality," Yui said, warning her.
Haruno looked more disheartened by each different comment and Azusa couldn't help but to feel bad for her.
"Are you okay? You looked like you were in a bad shape in the bathroom," Azusa asked in a concerned tone, crouching beside Haruno and placed her hand on Haruno's back.
"Huh?" Haruno shot her a puzzled look.
"What do you mean?" Takako asked.
Azusa turned to Takako. "I was about to tell you senpai," she began in a timid tone. "Before coming here I went to the restroom and there I found her. She looked so sick, and I offered to take her to the infirmary but she refused. She pleaded me to go introduce myself to you guys, so there would be at least one first-year manager on time," Azusa explained in the most convincing manner she could while pinching Haruno.
Takako turned to Haruno. "Is that true?"
Haruno widened her eyes in surprise. "I… Uh… Yes… It's true. My stomach was a little bit unsettled… But that was because of my nerves! I'm fine now! I promise."
Takako sighed in relief. "In that case then I guess it's fine. There is no need to overexert yourself in the first day."
Azusa also sighed in relief since her lie seemed to work.
"Now let's go, we don't want to be late," the older manager said, turning on her heel and leading the way. The second-year managers followed, with Azusa and Haruno trailing behind them. Then Azusa felt something tug at her sleeve, and she turned around to see that it was Haruno.
"Thank you," the red headed manager mouthed to her.
Azusa just smiled at her.
"No problem."
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Azusa stood alongside the other managers with Rei while the coach was introducing himself and then let the first years introduced themselves as well. The coach was tall and looked intimidating with his sunglasses and erect posture with his arms crossed across his chest with the older players standing behind him.
As the first-years started introducing themselves, she couldn't help but to get giddy with excitement since the first years seemed promising. They all came from outstanding teams that she had heard of. Even teams that got to play at a national level. However, she shouldn't be surprised since Seido always recruits top notch players like every school of its caliber.
"He came here late, but he's trying to sneak into the line!" Someone yelled from afar.
Azusa flinched as she recognized that masculine voice and her eyes fixated on a brunette boy who was frozen on his spot along with everyone else.
While the coach was reprimanding him in a quiet yet authoritative tone, she noticed that someone sneaked into the group of the second and third-years behind the coach. She recognized that someone. It was the person whose that voice belonged to. Miyuki Kazuya.
'Of course it was him. He was the only one cunning enough to think of that plan and then use someone else to take the fall for him. That first year looks too innocent to concoct something like that,' Azusa thought while lowering her gaze to the ground. She didn't want to take any risks and have Miyuki recognize her.
"Now run for the entirety of morning practice," the coach told the boy. "The same goes for his two roommates, and the guy who sneaked into the line while of this was happening."
Azusa quietly laughed to herself as she slightly looked up and noticed Miyuki's shocked expression along with the other two. One of them was about her height with spiky green hair and the other one was bigger with a buzz cut and moustache.
'That's what you get for being sneaky. Wait until Mei finds out about this,' she devilishly thought.
All four them went to run laps as instructed but Azusa couldn't help but to stare at the late first year.
She didn't know why but time will definitely tell.
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Both Azusa and Haruno hit the ground running. The three older managers explained to them what their main responsibilities were and showed them around the fields so they knew their way around it. At first, Azusa was not intimidated by any of that. She was already used to the world of competitive baseball, but as her senpai explained things more and more to them everything seemed more daunting little by little. Most of the assignments were not rocket science, but they were… A lot. Not to mention that she was always a little bit on edge since she was dreading the possibility of Miyuki recognizing her. She didn't want him to see her. At least not just yet. She was exhausted by the time morning practice ended and the players went to the cafeteria for lunch. Azusa exhaled the most profound sigh of relief of her life so far since she desperately needed a break.
But the break seemed that it went by in a flash.
"Are you still not done picking up the baseballs?" Sachiko asked both Azusa and Haruno while approaching Azusa.
"Yes, I'm done," Azusa said with relief while showing her the small basket full of baseballs.
Haruno came sprinting up to them with a smile on her face. "I'm done too- AHHH," she screamed as she fell on the ground along with the baseballs that spilled out of the basket.
Azusa wanted to facepalm so bad but refrained from doing so.
Sachiko groaned, crouching down and then picked up one of the balls and hurled it to Azusa. "No, you're not," the older manager said. "Pick up this mess both of you and then bring it to the shed. We have to prepare the drinks. You two are going to slow us down with your clumsiness," she added in a curt tone before turning around and leaving them to their duties.
'Hai,' Azusa said in the most respectful tone that she could muster.
The truth was that she didn't like being reprimanded or being told what to do.
'It wouldn't have killed her to be a little bit nicer,' the blonde thought as she bent over and started the picking up the baseballs from the ground.
"Ugh, it's getting too hot," Azusa complained feeling the sun's heat on her back. It was already afternoon practice, and she was already feeling the fatigue.
"I'm so sorry," Haruno profusely apologized while picking up the baseballs that she dropped. "You have to do extra work because of me."
Azusa shot her a small smile. "You don't have to apologize," she said. "It's our first day, and we're bound to make mistakes. Besides, we're both first-years, so we have to stick together."
Haruno slowly nodded. "Thanks for being so understanding."
Azusa only nodded in acknowledgement. She couldn't lie. Usually, she would get mad and irritated in this type of situation but she couldn't find the heart to get mad at Haruno. The poor girl looked so sweet and innocent. Like a cute little puppy. And it didn't help that the older managers were being tough on them. She was already struggling as it was so Azusa decided to be patient with the redheaded manager.
"I'm getting the ones over there!" Haruno pointed to the far corner of the field.
"Alright! I'll keep picking these up," the blonde said while putting some baseballs back in the basket.
"I'm here to be the ace!" both managers heard a voice yelled. They promptly turned around and noticed it was the same first-year who was late in the morning.
Since they were far away from the players, Haruno and Azusa couldn't hear what they were saying that much. But it was obvious that he was being brazen and disrespectful again. The coach pitched a ball straight to the fence surprising everyone. The coach's skills were not rusty at all. Next, the coach handed him a ball and then pointed to the fence. Azusa assumed the first-year had to hit the fence in order to be forgiven or something along those lines.
"Is he going to make it?" Haruno asked while they both watched him prepare to throw the ball.
The loud-mouth first year threw the ball with all of his eagerness, and it looked as if it was going to make it which surprised everyone. However, that was until all of the sudden the ball curved; failing to make contact with the fence, prompting everyone to laugh.
"Oh no he failed. I feel so bad for him," the redheaded manager said.
Azusa didn't say anything as she looked deep in thought. 'It curved? But how?' Azusa pondered. There was something peculiar about that throw.
"Although those baseballs were not the ones you dropped, I'm still going to pick them up since we're still going to have to do it later. Might as well just do it now," Azusa announced as she walked towards the field that the players were using to practice. Haruno just nodded while she continued on her with her duties.
'Was this the reason why he piqued my interest?' she asked herself. Perhaps. It was most likely that. But the only way to be sure was to observe him pitch up close. She couldn't wait to witness his pitching but if he keeps being disrespectful then she wouldn't be able to see it until next year. If she was lucky, that is.
Azusa walked all the way to the fence to pick up the ball that Sawamura threw as if it was magical and would give her the answers. It was absurd but she did it, nonetheless. She bent over to pick up the baseball since she couldn't afford to waste much time before the managers scold her again.
"Oi, what are you doing with that ball?" she heard someone asked her prompting her to turn around to see who it was. And lo and behold it turned out to be the pitcher.
Azusa narrowed her blue eyes at him. He had short brown hair, brown eyes, and he wasn't that much taller than her. "This?" she asked holding up the baseball.
"Hai," the pitcher said with a nod and then he shot her a confused look. "Wait. Aren't you a girl? What are you doing here?"
"I'm a manager, which is quite obvious judging from my uniform. Are you dumb or what?" she replied with a snort.
The pitcher clenched his fists in anger. "Who are you calling dumb?"
"You, you baka pitcher," Azusa deadpanned.
"My name is not 'baka pitcher' you blondie!" the pitcher yelled in anger. "It's Sawamura Eijun!"
Azusa rolled her eyes while putting her hands on her hips. "I don't care," she said nonchalantly. "But don't ever call me blondie again!" she warned with a menacing finger.
"Blondie! Blondie! Blondie!"Sawamura yelled.
Now it was Azusa's turn to get angry as she growled."Baka pitcher! Baka pitcher! Baka pitcher!" she yelled back."Why are you even here? Don't you have to be running laps anyway? Since I doubt the coach is going to allow such a dimwit like you to join practice," Azusa chided.
"Why you?" Sawamura hissed. "I just wanted to see the ball."
Azusa snorted again. "Why? Were you going to ask the ball why it curved?"she mocked despite the fact that the only reason why she came to this side of the field was just for mere curiosity. But there was no way in hell that she would admit that to him.
"That was just a fluke! I could do it if I was a given a second chance!" the pitcher said.
Azusa burst out laughing. "There are no second chances when the stakes are this high."
Sawamura was taken aback and blinked in confusion showing her that her statement had some type of effect in him.
"Azusa-san! I'm already done!"Haruno yelled from the opposite side while waving her hand in the air.
Azusa waved back. "Coming!" she said to haruno before turning to Sawamura for one last time. "See you baka pitcher!" Azusa added with a wink before leaving to catch up with Haruno.
"My name is Sawamura Eijun!" the pitcher angrily reminded her but it was to no avail since Azusa didn't turn around.
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"Good work girls! See you tomorrow bright and early," Takako said with a faint smile.
Standing alongside each other, Haruno and Azusa bowed at the same time. "Thanks."
They were at the entrance of the campus, and night had fallen upon them along with the end of practice.
"Good night!"
"Oyasumi," both Haruno and Azusa said to Takako for the last time and started making their way home.
Azusa sighed in relief despite feeling her aching muscles and numb feet. "Thank goodness is over, right?" she asked Haruno as they both silently walked down the dimly lit streets.
Haruno nodded. "Yes, it was such a long day."
"And we have to do it all over again tomorrow,"Azusa said with a sense of dread.
"Don't remind me. My feet hurt so much,"Haruno said with a shudder. "But also… I don't want to complain too much. After all, it was my dream to become a manager."
"And it's also the first day. We can't seem like whining babies,"the blonde manager added.
Haruno nodded. "Yes, you're right…" she said and then glanced at Azusa. "Ne, was it your dream to become manager too?"
Azusa's eyes widened in surprise since her question caught her off guard. "Something like that… You can say that," she vaguely replied as she avoided the other manager's gaze.
Haruno didn't seem too convinced with her answer and stopped to a halt. "I have to go this way now," she said, pointing to an alley on her right.
"I still have to go straight to get to the bus stop," Azusa said pointing to the street ahead. "So see you tomorrow and don't be late! My excuse won't work again."
Haruno nodded. "I'll wake up early. I promise. See you tomorrow!"
"Bye!" Azusa waved her newfound friend goodbye before continuing to walk towards the bus stop. Thankfully it was not that dark and the streetlights along with the lights of the convenience stores made it less scary for her to walk home alone at night. She had to make it home in one piece or else her parents are going to have fit and get all overprotective since she was the youngest of four. She also promised them that she was going to be fine since she could take care of herself so she couldn't prove them wrong.
Azusa quickened her pace to a power walk since she didn't want to risk anything, despite the fatigue that was settling in her muscles. Perhaps she was getting paranoid but even before Haruno left she was feeling as if someone was following her. She didn't hear any unusual noises but couldn't shake the feeling of a presence behind her. It was an odd eerie feeling that she just couldn't shake.
Then she heard the faint sound of footsteps.
'What's that? Is someone really following me? Should I turn around? No, don't turn around. That's stupid!'she berated herself and decided to walk even faster to get to the bus stop even faster.
But the footsteps were getting louder which meant that someone was indeed following her.
"Who is it?" she finally asked as she turned around despite not wanting to.
"AHHHH," someone screamed.
"AHHHH," she screamed as well while covering her eyes.
"Why did you have to scare me like that?" the mystery person asked her.
Azusa's heart rate quickened since she immediately recognized the voice. "Mei?" she asked, withdrawing her hands from her face.
"Yo," he simply answered with a grin gracing his lips.
Azusa narrowed her eyes at him. "Why did you scare me like that?"
Mei scoffed. "Me, scare you? You were the one who scared me!" he replied in an indignant tone.
Azusa gasped. "How did I scare you when you were the one following me, you idiot?!"
"I wasn't following you," he said, rolling his eyes. "I was just making sure that you got home safely,"he retorted.
"Same difference!"
"No, it's not!"
"Yes- you know what? Forget it," she said, shaking her head. She wasn't going to continue with the argument. "What are you doing here? Don't you have to be at Inashiro?"
"That's what I came to ask you!" Mei said in a demanding tone while glancing at her sky- blue eyes. "What are you doing here? Why did you decide to go to Seido at the last minute and abandon me? I thought you were going to Inashiro with me. You're such a bad sister!"Mei whined.
"Why not go to Seido?" Azusa deadpanned, ignoring his childish outburst.
"Because they're never going to nationals,"Mei replied in a matter-of-fact tone.
Azusa scoffed. "And how do you know that?"
Mei smirked. "Because I have my all-star team now," he said in an arrogant tone. "Even if Kazuya decided to go to Seido as well."
The younger blonde glared at him. "Your arrogance is going to get the best of you again, Mei," she warned. "Someone will give you a taste of your own medicine."
"Perhaps," he conceded with a shrug. "But one thing I know for sure is that is not going to be Seido. So why don't you come to Inashiro when there is still time so you can be on the winning side?"
Azusa clenched her fists in anger. "Even if I knew for good that Seido was never going to nationals, I still wouldn't go to Inashiro with you and your all-star team. You're so arrogant and self-centered that it's irritating to no bounds. So forget it and stop wasting your time!"
Mei pouted. "But why?" he demanded. "You've always been there helping me.I thought you were on my side."
She glared at him again. "The world doesn't revolve around you, Mei."
"But yours does," he said. "It's always been like that."
"No, it does not!" Azusa angrily exclaimed. "And if you think that, then you're nothing but a self-centered idiot! I'm not going to Inashiro!" she yelled before running towards the bus stop on her own.
"You're going to regret it, Azusa!" Mei yelled as she ran away.
His claim fell on deaf ears. Azusa knew that she was not going to regret her decision of choosing Seido over Inashiro. She was tired. She was tired of it all. Mei was right. She's been with him for all of her life playing baseball and helping him improve every step of the way. Azusa was always content tracking his progress but as time passed by she was seeing herself only living in the shadows of the great Narumiya Mei. But not anymore. She had to find her own path; away from Mei. But that was something that someone so selfish as Mei wouldn't understand.
He wouldn't understand that she was tired of living in the shadows.
But she was going to show him.
She was going to show and prove to him and to everyone else that she was more than a shadow.