#so yeah. they hate each other forever looney tunes style

[constelationprize]

The career-ending injury comes from the fact that I absolutely misremembered Tetsuji's cane as being his mobility aid and not something he throtted out just to beat the shit out of Neil. But even after correcting myself on a re-read I kept the head canon that his Exy career was cut short because I do feel that it fits what bits and pieces we know of him.

Mostly, it's the fact that people in the AFTG universe don't seem to regard Tetsuji as ever having been a good player. He's a coach and a creator of Exy, and maybe that's all that he ever was, but I find it unlikely that he wouldn't have played it even in his 20s when he and Kayleigh were coming up with the game, especially with how much he stakes on success. And I don't think Kayleigh would have created a sport with someone who wouldn't want to play it, Exy's whole deal was about putting something out in the world that would fit their ideals.

So I really like the idea that he was very, very good – but that he was also very reckless. Tetsuji made up the rules, he helped create the plays, and he thought that meant he was unbeatable. So he took many risks, and he liked to show off. I think that side of him went off the most when he was against people he didn't consider worthy of his time, like Wymack. So I see it as one day Tetsuji went for a trick play against Wymack, who saw the turn he would actually take and checked him against the wall. It was a completely legal play, and in any other circumstances Tetsuji would have just shook it off and continued the game, but because he was getting ready for a feint, one of his knees was turned to the opposite side from the check, and the ligament broke. I go back and forth with how bad the break was, if he truly was off-court forever, or if he simply wouldn't be able to be the same and opted for not trying if the prize was just mediocrity. So all in all he had a very short career, and retired abruptly, something that is a blow his ego never recovered from. It was his one chance and being the best at something and he squandered it. It's so far back in the early days of the sport no one even remembers him.

I envision him as a striker, and Kayleigh too, because I like the idea that all that he did to Riko and Kevin was about recreating what he himself once had but in a way he could have complete control over. I think that it's also why he pushes the Ravens so hard, because he sees their success as an extent of the success he never got. And the irony of it all is in fact that Tetsuji isn't really any more in control of this situation than he was before, it's just again a matter of time before his luck runs out.

The bad gay sex has a lot less of thought put into it I just think it's funny. I have two options: once Kayleigh makes a joke about them hating each other because of sexual tension and everyone's drunk enough that it descends into a very fumbling encounter, or it was a threesome where she was having a pretty good time while Tetsuji and Wymack tried to invent ranked competitive sex.

Also, yeah, I think that they hate each other more on vibes than because of Kayleigh because to me (and to him) Tetsuji is the winner of the love triangle, as far as there can be one when Kayleigh didn't love either of them romantically. Like I think he is forever bitter that Wymack had a son with her, but at the end of the day, it was Tetsuji's name on the will, you know? Wymack might have been her lover but Tetsuji was her partner.

What if, unbeknownst to everyone around them, Tetsuji and Wymack are embroiled in a psychological battle of wits and nerve the likes of which would put Light/L (of Death Note fame) to shame? What if their negotiations over Kevin was less professional and rational, and more cutthroat and borderline threatening?

Think about it: why would Tetsuji let Kevin go just like that? Broken hand or not, Kevin is valuable property and Kevin has insider information about the Moriyamas. Even an outsider civilian like Kathy Ferdinand can point out that, surely, it would have made more sense for the Ravens to keep Kevin on board, career-ending injury or not.

WHAT IF. Tetsuji feared that Kevin had immediately told Wymack everything he knew about the Moriyamas and about him being Wymack's son and that Wymack might choose to go public with that information and cause a lot of problems. He might not have been sure what Wymack knew or what Wymack had solid proof of. (Maybe he went looking for the letter that contained the only evidence that he knew from Kayleigh who Kevin's father was and couldn't find it? Maybe he couldn't be sure if he had just lost it or if Kevin had somehow found it and handed it over to Wymack as proof when seeking shelter with him.) He has to walk a fine line between probing Wymack for what he knows and threatening him outright with Moriyama resources (which would definitely give him away).

And what if Wymack guessed that that's what Tetsuji was thinking and therefore chose to play it very carefully, not letting Tetsuji know just how much he knows, nor giving any indication about just how big of a fuss he's considering kicking up. What if he calmly and reasonably suggested to Tetsuji that Kevin doesn't to go back, nor does he want to talk about his time with Tetsuji and the Ravens - for now. He has a lot of concerns and questions to raise with Tetsuji about Kevin's physical and mental state, but perhaps they can all agree that those concerns are less important than Kevin's wellbeing at the moment. And that perhaps it would make sense for everyone if Wymack and his staff looked after Kevin for the time being?

What if that's how Wymack manages to get Tetsuji to hand over Kevin (and later, Jean) - basically blackmail.

It'd be so much fun if from Wymack's POV, AFTG is a high-stakes psychological/political drama involving the mafia, the ERC and the man he has an old grudge with.