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asaseya · 6 years ago

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The Princess of the Court: Chapter Nine

Link to chp 8

Ao3 link

Blouse and Skirt, check. Blazer, check. White socks, double check. Feeling like today warranted a bit of sparkle Majida switched her front pair of earrings for golden star shaped studs. She normally kept her hair in one style during the week, today she styled the front portion of her hair into a crown braid and swept the rest into a side ponytail. The box from the uniform company was waiting by her apartment door after basketball practice last night. Since she had ballet practice the next morning she pressed it immediatly and placed it in a garment bag. She rode her bike to practice carefully so that the bag wouldn’t fall from on top of her basket. And hung the bag up as soon as she opened her locker.

Natsuki clapped as Majida did a little twirl. “I thought you said your uniform wasn’t due to arrive til Monday?” she asked.

Practice passed quickly today. Their instructor noticed Majida’s good mood and was a little bit harsher on her than usual, not that Majida cared. “I thought so too, but I’m not going to complain.” She looked down and waved her foot. In her excitement she’d even shined her shoes, a pair of black leather mary janes, she could see her reflection in them. “It’s weird to see my legs.” The skirt should reach just below her knees, but like most girls she’d rolled her skirt up, just enough that the hem line was above her knee. She’d go higher but it didn’t seem appropriate, nor prudent. Accidentally flashing her neighbors while she rode her bike wouldn’t raise their opinion of her.

Natsuki giggled. “Are you sending your male uniform back?”

“They said I could keep it so...I guess I’ll keep it? Never know, I might break it back out in the winter. I don’t do cold.”

Natsuki laughed a bit louder now, drawing looks from the other girls in the locker room. Now that Majida thought of it they probably didn’t hear Natsuki laugh loudly often, if at all. Guess that’s the natural outcome of isolating a person.

Majida swiped on some lip gloss before zipping up her bag. She slung it on her shoulder and draped her garment bag over her arm. “Ready to go?”

Natsuki nodded and grabbed her things. “Are you sure that you don’t want a ride?”

“Yep. Wanna feel the breeze.” Majida made a swooshing motion with her hand, inspiring another loud laugh from Natsuki.

Furuse stood at the same spot as yesterday, watering the plants in his grandmother’s sted. Majida wondered if she should stop and say hello, but decided not to push her luck. She’d had enough weird conversations for the week. Furuse watched her as she speed past,eyes wide. That reaction was the standard once she entered the school. The stares continued as she walked down the hall, even her classmates greeted her with silence.

Amari-kun broke the ice. “Good job” He gave her a thumbs up. “Though you could roll the skirt up a little bit mo-”

Maki-chan bopped him on the head with a notebook. “Please stop.”

Amari scratched his spiky hair, he seemed to think the upward style made him taller. “Don’t worry I still like your legs the best Ma-”

Maki flushed. She hit him with the notebook again, harder this time. The thunk could be heard throughout the classroom.

“Think this counts as spousal abuse?” Airi asked dryly.

“Sp...spousal!?” Maki got even redder and moved to attack Airi. Wielding her notebook with a vengeance.

Airi doged, barely. She scrambled to stand behind Hina, a strange sight since Hina was the shorter of the two

Hina raised her hands defensively and Maki, dejected, stopped her assault. She sulked back to her seat.

“Sooo,” Hina started once she was certain she was no longer in danger. She disentagled herself from a still wary Airi. “Nakamura-kun, what do you think about the change?”

“Why are you asking him?” Majida asked as she sat at her desk.

“I hate it,” Shin answered.

Majida squinted at him. “Huh?”

“Doesn't fit in with my plans to smuggle you onto the team,” Shin said matter of factly. He didn’t look up from his sports magazine.

She rolled her eyes at him then turned to face forward in her seat. “Yes, because living my life according to your plans is my ultimate destiny.”

Shin flipped a page in his magazine. “I’m glad that we’ve come to an understanding.”

“You two are the weirdest couple,” Hina said as she took her seat in front of Majida.

Majida’s brain fizzled, managing only to stare at Hina in her shock. Where did she get that idea?

Airi took her seat next to Hina. “Oh! She’s not denying it!” she said in a sing song tone of voice.

Shin lowered his magazine as he laughed. “I’m sorry? You think we’re together?” He gestured to Majida. “Oh, that’s funny.”

“Ouch,” Hina said. “Are you okay with this?”

Majida shrugged. If he denied it then she wouldn’t have to. “Not at all concerned.”

“Ignore Hina Majida-chan,” Hayashi said from across the room. “She just likes to play matchmaker.”

“No one asked you,” Hina responded bitterly.

Several students charttered, giving overlapping accounts of Hina’s failed matchmaking attempts. The jovial conversation was halted by the class door opening. Everyone turned to see Furuse-kun standing in the entrance. His eyes flitted about, looking for somewhere unintrusive to rest. He blushed deeply when his eyes met Majida’s. A sinking feeling washed over her. Please, Please, PLEASE let that just be a sign of general embarrassment.

Furuse ducked away, hurring to his seat. He was quickly ignored by the rest of the class.

“Excuse me,” Ko always felt ten times taller when visiting the first year floor. He felt five times taller when was a freshman, but the growth spurts never stopped. He was now around 6’2” and if his father was any indication he still had an inch or two to go until he reached his full height. The first years sitting outside of their classroom looked up at him with wide eyes. As if he’d suddenly snap and eat them if they made the wrong move. He was never good at managing his neutral expression and had stopped trying after middle school. At the very least he never had to worry about anyone disrespecting him, something he used to his advantage whenever possible.

The girl stood first. “Yes?” she answered, her voice wavering.

The boy stood soon after. He patted the girls shoulder before taking over. “What can we help you with?”

Absently Ko wondered how much hair gel the boy used to make his hair so spiky. He resisted the urge to ask. “I’m looking for Mikami-chan.”

The pair looked to each other, communicating without saying a word. The boy broke their gaze first, moving to poke his head into the classroom. “Majida-chan. Someone’s looking for you.”

“Yeah?” Mikami called from the classroom.

Ko moved to stand in front of the door, quickly scanning the faces in the room. Mikami rose from the gaggle of girls who had pushed their desks together at the center of the classroom. Huh...Ko had heard a lot about Mikami. Mostly because she was a popular topic of discussion. The neighborhood was fairly insular so anyone from a larger city piqued the student body’s interest. Last year a transfer from Yokohama was the subject of rumors well past the first quarter. Mikami? She seemed bound to give the rumor mill material for years. Ko didn’t take kindly to rumors. It felt rational to limit his ideas of people based on what he knew instead of hear say.

What he did know? Well, he wasn’t at all convinced that Mikami made a convincing guy. Mostly because he spent too much time around guys to miss certain tell tale signs. Most notably, she didn’t reek after practice. He had seen her in the male uniform and could see how an unobservant person could make the mistake from behind. And maybe someone who’s ideals of manliness were shaped by pop stars could think she was a boy from the front. But anyone who interacted with her and still thought she was a guy was an idiot. Cultural differences aside, she carried herself like a girl. Even her style on the court lacked the aggression and showmanship popular in basketball currently. Too many boys, himself included, watched too many NBA games and tried to copy what they saw. Or at least they did until a good coach could drill proper form into them. None of the girls he knew who played, Mikami included, had this affliction.

As for the rest, she was stupidly flexible. Which meant the rumors of her studying ballet had to be true in some form. Ko toyed with the idea of making her flexibility a taboo topic for the team. The constant jokes made it such that he could not but notice or consider its implications. It was weird. It was weird because sure he would have noticed anyway, he wasn’t some paragon of virtue like Masaru seemed to think just because he didn’t have a new girlfriend every month. He checked girls out all the time. But she was, at least for the moment, a part of the team and thus off limits.

Today’s meeting added to his knowledge of her physical attributes. She had rather shapely calves. Like, obviously she never skipped leg day and he needed to know her routine. Also, baggy gym clothes should be banned for women because, he sighed internally, hips. And now he was staring, okay maybe she didn’t need to be off limits all the time, just on the court. Or just- Ko now realized that she had caught him staring. “You changed your uniform?” he asked lightly.

“I have.” She didn’t seem to completely buy his cover. He’d seen her do this before while playing, that piercing gaze. Masaru did it too when he played, must be a point guard thing, always watching, always picking people apart. Masaru didn’t make him feel ticklish whenever he did it though.

“Have you already eaten lunch?” he asked, working hard to strengthen his voice. To pretend that everything is normal, that he didn’t just get caught.

“No, Captain. Not yet.” she answered with a little too much deference for his liking.

“Good, Can we talk for a moment?”

“Sure.”

“The captain huh….” a girl with short hair held back by a headband said. She gave Mikami a smug look.

“Must be some serious team business,” a girl with a high ponytail added.

“Hmm, but why would he only want Jida-chan then? Certainly Nakamura-kun should be going too.” headband girl said .

Ko managed to keep his expression calm. “It concerns the female team.”

Mikami looked over to the two girls with a smile that said “See, nothing to fuss over!” The girls didn’t look convinced. There was going to be another rumor circulating by the end of the day.

The walk to the courtyard was longer than usual. Partly because she walked silently behind him like he was leading her to the gallows. Added to that were the weird looks they were getting. There was no need to wait for her year mates to start rumors it seemed. By the end of the day It would be said that one of them had confessed their feelings or whatever because apparently life worked as depicted in his little sister’s manga collection.

Ko found a spot where they wouldn’t be overheard under a large tree and sat down. “I need to ask something before we get to business.”

Mikami sat, taking extra care with her skirt. That was another thing about her that he noticed. Sometimes her movements were oddly delicate, maybe it was because of the ballet thing. “Should I be concerned?” she asked.

“No, just.” He leaned in a little. “How do you deal with that?” He jerked his thumb towards the school building. “Do they always stare like that?”

She smiled knowingly. “Staring seems to be everyone’s reaction today.” Gesturing to herself she continued. “It may take a while for everyone to get used to the uniform change.”

“You got me there.” Ko had the decency to look sheepish. “I’ll ask the student council president about it. Maybe he could drop a line to the teachers and-”

“No, you don’t have to worry that much over it. I’m new of course they are curious.”

“I’ll talk to him.” Ko reiterated firmly. “I’m a member of the student council, so its partly my job anyway.” He reached his hand out for a handshake. “ But we’ve already skipped a few steps. I don’t believe I’ve introduced myself. I’m Akino, Ko.”

She returned his handshake firmly. “Mikami, Majida.”

“So, I knew the gist of why you’ve been training with the boy’s team. But I just recently heard the whole story from Mia.”

“Are you going to ask why I choose this school?”

He smiled, which seemed to catch her off guard judging by how fast she looked away. Interesting. “Why did you choose this school?” He asked as he picked up his bag. It was filled with various types of store bought foods. School kept him far too busy to pack his lunch like he used to.

“My grandparents live in the area and I didn’t want to go to the all girls school. I didn’t know about the girls team being disbanded though.” She unwrapped her lunch as well.

He could smell the fried shrimp from where he sat. Not fair, not fair at all. “So your parents moved here to be closer to your grandparents?”

“No. Work has them traveling around for the next few years. Since it’s a bit silly for them to drag the kids along I decided to stay here. My little brother’s still in the U.S. though.”

“So you live with your grandparents?”

“No, though I do visit. Actually,” she tapped her chopsticks against her lips. “I need to stop by again soon.”

He cocked his head as he looked at her, uncertain of which question to ask first.

She spoke again after she finished chewing. “I didn’t want to be driven everywhere so I found a place in a central location,” She said, answering at least one of his unasked questions. “It’s actually pretty awesome living alone. I can use the space however I want. Cook whatever I want.”

“So you cooked that?”

She offered her lunch box to him. Ko wasn’t proud enough to decline. Another bit of information. She could cook.

She looked at him expectantly.

“It’s good,” he answered. That seemed to satisfy her, she beamed at him before continuing to eat. “We got a bit off topic,” he said after a few minutes of silent eating. “No one’s explained what happened with the girl’s team last year did they?”

Mikami shook her head.

“Their ranking is pretty low, so the number of girls who joined have always been limited. Last year the team was comprised entirely of second years.”

“All of the third years last year retired?”

“Or moved on to the volleyball team, yes. And as for the freshmen, no matter how many recruitment drives they ran last year no one took the bait. The administrators wanted a boost to the school's reputation so they hired new coaches. It worked, the girls were finally winning games. But anyone who knew the team could tell something was off. They always looked haggard, Mia especially.”

Majida grasped the hem of her skirt tightly, suddenly not wanting to know the answers to her many questions. “They didn’t complain?”

“ Never. After one game where Mia missed a shot she was made to practice for hours after school with no breaks.”

“That was for a mistake,what happens if they lost?” she asked. Her voice felt small, distant to her own ears.

The captain sighed roughly “Luckily they were still eligible for the winter cup,” his voice had began to harden. “But the practice afterwards? One of the girls was pushed so hard she twisted her ankle. She changed schools a week later.“

“How,” the proper translation was slipping. It happend sometimes when she got emotional. She pushed the looming anxiety from her mind to grasp at the Japanese words she needed. “How well did they do in the winter cup?”

“They lost in the first round”

“Oh.”

The captain took a deep breath, he closed his eyes before speaking. “Mia showed up to school the next day with a black eye.” He could no longer hold back the anger in his voice. His eyes burned when he opened them again.

Majida shifted uncomfortably, setting the rest of her lunch down.

“ Rukiya told me the whole story. The head coach went nuts, the assistant coach...Er You’ve met Coach Ueda, had to step in. Broke a few fingers while fighting the head coach off. Needless to say the head coach was fired.”

“And they pressed charges?” she asked, willing some hope into her voice.

“Never got the answer to that question.”

Silence, and not the pleasant kind, stretched between them. Majida gathered the words she needed once again. “I looked up this school and didn’t see anything about it. So I guess not.”

“The principal, he generally means well, but he’s not the only one in charge of things. And Mia just wanted to forget.”

“If I had known I-”

“You wouldn’t have come here right?” he snapped. His face softened after speaking. “Sorry,” he said, calmer. “I didn’t mean-

“It’s alright. And possibly yes,” she answered honestly. “But even if I did come I wouldn’t have tried to reform the team. Or at least I wouldn’t have been so pushy about it.” She leaned back a little. “I feel kinda heartless now.”

“ I don’t think Mia completely hates basketball. She just has no confidence when it comes to playing. She told me that she told you that she would need to see your dedication?”

“Yes.”

“Well from what I can tell she definitely sees it. The problem now is your skill.”

Majida was puzzled, she didn’t bother hiding it. “My skill? Am I lacking anywhere...no I mean sure there is always room for improvement but-”

The captain interrupted her by holding up his hand. “I don’t mean it that way. You are good Maybe the best at handling out of the first years. But don’t tell them I said that.” He winked at her. He better not be flirting right now. She wasn’t prepared for something like that right now...Okay she wasn’t prepared for something like that ever but somehow managed to swallow the squawk rising from her throat. Glory be he’s still talking so maybe he hasn’t noticed. “It’s a bit intimidating actually. They probably don’t feel like they could match up, and would just be dragging you down.”

Majida thought back to their short conversation yesterday. “So that’s why she said I’d be better off on the boy’s team?”

“Most likely,” he nodded somberly. “Also, the logistics of hiring a new coach. I suppose coach Ueda could go back to the women's team but…”

“Adults aren’t immune to trauma,” she filled in.

“Yes, as you’ve noticed he’s a quiet man. He offered to resign but was shown leniency because he came forward with the whole truth after Mia was assaulted. Either way he’s sorta window dressing now. He mostly just watches and takes notes. I doubt he’d be an effective head coach for a reforming team.”

Majida cradled her face in her hands and took a few deep breaths. “I don’t even know what to do now,” she said from behind them. She can’t, she won’t, cry now. She wasn’t upset about not being able to play, not anymore, this was just impossible. Her upperclassmen were convinced of their own inferiority and had no hope that they could improve. And why would they? Maybe in another year. Maybe at another school. But now? She’d probably want to quit too if she was in their shoes.

Gingerly the captain pried away a few of her fingers. Majida froze, through her traitorous eyes didn’t stop producing tears. He removed his hand to retrieve a dark blue handkerchief from his blazer. The gesture made her laugh.

“Sorry.” She dabbed at her eyes with her fingers. He offered her the handkerchief again and this time she took it. “What are you a shoujo character?”

He grimaced. “Please don’t.”

She laughed again. “I’ll wash this and get it back to you.”

“Don’t worry about it.”

“You know that’s not gonna happen. Now that the trope’s been activated I have to follow through.” Her comment made him laugh , the sound made her heart flip.

“Are you still going to try and reform the team?”

She thought for a bit before answering.“I’d like to, but don’t think that’s going to happen. At least not this year.”

“At least you can stay sharp while practicing with us.”

“I only have one more week of that left so.”

“The principal can talk Coach Saitama into it if you asked.” He picked up his lunch and began to eat again.

“Actually, he might.” The thought wasn’t comforting. The principal would do it just for the entertainment value. “I guess I’ll just have to adjust.”

“You seem to be fitting in just fine.”

She picked up her lunch box and messed with her food a little. “It’s going as well as can be expected.” Nishi was probably still sore over that last game. This afternoon’s practice was going to be interesting.

“Are they bothering you?” There was a warning in his tone. The last thing she wanted was to get any of her yearmates in trouble but the thought of him standing up for her at practice was appealing. She knew that it wouldn’t help in the long run.

“No, just getting the pecking order sorted out. Nothing time won’t fix.”

“Alright.” He didn’t sound convinced.

Majida gave up on the rest of her lunch. “Should almost be time to head back already.”

Ko pulled his cell phone from his back pocket. He checked the time before setting it down. “Yeah. Want me to walk you back?”

“Please don’t.”

“Don’t?” He seemed almost offended. She wasn’t sure of what to make of that.

“I just don’t think it would be productive.”

He laughed again and she knew she was doomed. There was no going back on this crush now.

#princessofthecourt #black protagonist #original fiction #original character #sports anime #basketball #ballet

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