Prince of Tennis: Kikumaru Eiji - 076 - Who?
Title: Unexpected Assistance
Fandom: Prince of Tennis: Kikumaru Eiji
Characters: Eiji, Ishihara, Atobe Keigo, Takano Nori
Prompt: 076 - Who?
Word Count: 1564
Date finished: 11/13/2006
Rating: G
Continuity: 010/100
Summary: Atobe Keigo finds that it is not easy being him - and that he has an employee he would never have guessed.
Author's Notes: Oh, Atobe... How you end up in all my fics (even ones not about Hyotei) I'll never know. But as president of the company, he should be, eh? Eiji finds out exactly who he's working for, too.
Disclaimer: Characters are owned by Konomi Takeshi, and whoever did the anime. At any rate, it's not me.
The doors opened to admit the two men Takano Nori had told him about, and Atobe Keigo watched them walk in. One of them clutched papers in his hand, looking almost scared; the other was holding his papers a little less firmly, but looked no less nervous.
"You have ten minutes," he stated firmly. "I must meet with some clients then."
The redhead - the one clutching the papers - glanced at Takano, who nodded. Slowly, he approached the desk, and Keigo tilted his head. He could have sworn he'd seen him before, somewhere; even the voice was familiar, but there seemed to be something wrong, too, as if....
"Atobe-san, please," the redhead said, sounding desperate. "This is important. This is what this contract will bind you to if you sign it."
Keigo stiffened. "Please. Start again," he said sharply.
This time, he focused on the words the young man - about his age, probably - spoke. He was clear, concise, and even offered to show him where the phrases in the main contract were. Keigo looked at Takano in question.
"We weren't given a copy of the contract," Takano answered. "We haven't had a chance to look it over well, but from the summary and the passages they've shown me, I think it might be worth it to at least ask for a little more time to look it over."
"They won't like it," Keigo said.
The redhead gave him a confused look, but only for an instant, and he was almost distracted again by the vague feeling of familiarity. Mukahi came to mind, but that was ridiculous.
"They shouldn't protest it too much; if they do, chances are these two are on to something important," Takano responded.
Keigo nodded. "You are right." He stood and moved around his desk. "Keep them near," he said softly as he passed Takano. "I may want to speak with them later."
Takano bowed and Keigo let himself out.
The meeting with the clients was… strange. The clients - to whom he apologized because he was late, much as he hated to do it - were tense, and seemed to be too tense, even. His request for more time to study the contract made them angry, although one of them hid it better. "What do you need the time for?" the angry one demanded.
"It is an internal issue," Keigo said. "We will be looking into that as well. Can you grant us twenty four hours?"
The calmer man laid a hand on his angry companion's arm, and the two conversed shortly in low voices. Keigo leaned back to give them a little bit of privacy, and after a moment, they stopped speaking and turned to face him. "Twenty four hours will be acceptable," the calm one said.
"I will let you know if we have any questions or concerns. Thank you for your patience." He stood, bowed, and strode from the room.
Takano still waited in the large ante chamber to his office, and Keigo gestured for the man to follow him. He sat down and the other man sat across the desk from him. "Did they say anything?"
Takano nodded. "Yes. Ishihara was pulled into this mess when Kikumaru asked him to help translate part of the contract. I have three of my best contract lawyers looking over it now; they should have an opinion for you by the end of the day."
Keigo nodded, hiding how surprised he was at the familiar name. "Kikumaru?"
"The redhead. He's been struggling with it for three days; it's his job to look over documents. I would dearly like to know how it wound up in his department." Takano hesitated. "He met with a great deal of opposition, trying to bring this to his superiors. He thought he was about to lose his job, if I hadn't arrived when I did." Takano leaned forward. "I'd like to send them both home, Atobe-san, even though Kikumaru isn't technically under my jurisdiction. They were up all night working on this."
Keigo was still, somewhere in the back of his mind, wondering about Kikumaru. "Yes," he said, after a moment. "Have them report to me here in the morning."
"First thing?"
"Yes."
Takano stood, bowed, and left; Keigo didn't see him go, turning his attention to his duty for the rest of the morning. He had things he needed to get done before even this contract issue was settled. He'd deal with the Kikumaru question in the morning.
The lawyer's analysis arrived much earlier than promised; there was a message regarding it when he returned from a short lunch. He called the three lawyers and Takano into a meeting half an hour later.
"It's as bad as Kikumaru and Ishihara said," Takano said quietly as Keigo sat down at the head of the conference table. "The work the two of them did gave us a start; I had Fujiwara check it over cold, and he came to me with questions before he reached the end of the first page. Right at the first note."
Keigo nodded. "Tell me, in detail."
It was appalling. If he'd actually signed this contract that morning, his father might well have disowned him - and he'd have been right to.
"What's your suggestion?" he asked when they'd finished. He felt… strangely like taking a shower.
"Refuse to sign," Takano said without hesitation. "And then find out why that ended up on Kikumaru's desk instead of one of my lawyers'."
Keigo nodded. "I will also take care of the other half of that problem," he said, thinking of the people who'd gotten in Kikumaru's way when he tried to bring it to their attention. Someone must be working with those two from the inside, and he was going to find out who. "Thank you, gentlemen." They stood as he did, bowed, and he left. He still felt like taking a shower - oh, the damage that contract would have done, not just to his company, but to him personally! - but he still had other things to do.
The first thing was to begin an investigation about the misdirected contract. His security staff had at least two private detectives, and he called on one to do what he could. It meant getting into Kikumaru's files, as he was required to document everything that crossed his desk, but with a little help from the IT department that wouldn't be a problem. Next, he called on the other detective to trace Kikumaru's footsteps, and find out why someone had wanted to stop the man from bringing this to the attention of someone who could do something about it. Third, he asked for the employee files of Kikumaru and Ishihara. That was going to be interesting reading.
Keigo hadn't been in his office ten minutes the next morning when his secretary informed him that the two men had arrived. He'd expected that; neither had ever been on notice for tardiness. He straightened as they walked in, noting how much better they looked today, and indicated they should sit down.
"Thank you, gentlemen," he started. "Your work has saved me personal embarrassment, and this company a lot of money. I'm not unaware of the… schism between your two departments," he added. "How did you two wind up working together?"
Ishihara glanced at Kikumaru. "Over tennis," he said, when the other didn't answer.
"You play?" Keigo asked Ishihara.
"No. We were watching a doubles match in the break room. He claimed to have played Oshitari and Mukahi and beaten them."
Keigo smirked, remembering that match, and looked at Kikumaru. "Six games to four, in the Kanto Tournament our ninth grade year," he said. Kikumaru nodded, a small smile on his face.
Ishihara started. "He was telling the truth?"
"I don't lie," Kikumaru said softly.
It was like seeing a pale shade of that hyper boy that had pranced off the court in a show of less than true sportsmanship, although perhaps he could be forgiven, playing with someone he'd never played with at the last minute. Keigo wondered what had happened to make him pale in comparison to his memory. "So it seems," he said. "You have done this company a great service; I have not yet decided how to reward you."
They both stiffened. "That is not…" Kikumaru started.
"It is necessary," Keigo interrupted. "You have saved this company billions of Yen." He left out his own private embarrassment; the less said about that, the better.
The slight smile on Kikumaru's face recognized the futility of protesting further. "Then, Atobe-san, I'd like most to keep my job. I like working here."
Keigo leaned forward. "There has, in fact, been a request for you in another department entirely. Takano Nori has asked that you be transferred to his department. You'll work with Ishihara on learning how to translate the work you'll be seeing if you agree."
"I have no objections, Atobe-san," Kikumaru said, and bowed. "Thank you."
"Good. That's settled. Both of you see Takano and he'll direct you to your new work area."
They stood, bowed, and left.
Keigo leaned back, brow furrowed. Something had definitely happened in the last few years, to change Kikumaru so much. He shrugged to dismiss it - it was none of his business - and then picked up the phone to inform his father why he was not going to sign that contract.
My Table
Fandom: Prince of Tennis: Kikumaru Eiji
Characters: Eiji, Ishihara, Atobe Keigo, Takano Nori
Prompt: 076 - Who?
Word Count: 1564
Date finished: 11/13/2006
Rating: G
Continuity: 010/100
Summary: Atobe Keigo finds that it is not easy being him - and that he has an employee he would never have guessed.
Author's Notes: Oh, Atobe... How you end up in all my fics (even ones not about Hyotei) I'll never know. But as president of the company, he should be, eh? Eiji finds out exactly who he's working for, too.
Disclaimer: Characters are owned by Konomi Takeshi, and whoever did the anime. At any rate, it's not me.
The doors opened to admit the two men Takano Nori had told him about, and Atobe Keigo watched them walk in. One of them clutched papers in his hand, looking almost scared; the other was holding his papers a little less firmly, but looked no less nervous.
"You have ten minutes," he stated firmly. "I must meet with some clients then."
The redhead - the one clutching the papers - glanced at Takano, who nodded. Slowly, he approached the desk, and Keigo tilted his head. He could have sworn he'd seen him before, somewhere; even the voice was familiar, but there seemed to be something wrong, too, as if....
"Atobe-san, please," the redhead said, sounding desperate. "This is important. This is what this contract will bind you to if you sign it."
Keigo stiffened. "Please. Start again," he said sharply.
This time, he focused on the words the young man - about his age, probably - spoke. He was clear, concise, and even offered to show him where the phrases in the main contract were. Keigo looked at Takano in question.
"We weren't given a copy of the contract," Takano answered. "We haven't had a chance to look it over well, but from the summary and the passages they've shown me, I think it might be worth it to at least ask for a little more time to look it over."
"They won't like it," Keigo said.
The redhead gave him a confused look, but only for an instant, and he was almost distracted again by the vague feeling of familiarity. Mukahi came to mind, but that was ridiculous.
"They shouldn't protest it too much; if they do, chances are these two are on to something important," Takano responded.
Keigo nodded. "You are right." He stood and moved around his desk. "Keep them near," he said softly as he passed Takano. "I may want to speak with them later."
Takano bowed and Keigo let himself out.
The meeting with the clients was… strange. The clients - to whom he apologized because he was late, much as he hated to do it - were tense, and seemed to be too tense, even. His request for more time to study the contract made them angry, although one of them hid it better. "What do you need the time for?" the angry one demanded.
"It is an internal issue," Keigo said. "We will be looking into that as well. Can you grant us twenty four hours?"
The calmer man laid a hand on his angry companion's arm, and the two conversed shortly in low voices. Keigo leaned back to give them a little bit of privacy, and after a moment, they stopped speaking and turned to face him. "Twenty four hours will be acceptable," the calm one said.
"I will let you know if we have any questions or concerns. Thank you for your patience." He stood, bowed, and strode from the room.
Takano still waited in the large ante chamber to his office, and Keigo gestured for the man to follow him. He sat down and the other man sat across the desk from him. "Did they say anything?"
Takano nodded. "Yes. Ishihara was pulled into this mess when Kikumaru asked him to help translate part of the contract. I have three of my best contract lawyers looking over it now; they should have an opinion for you by the end of the day."
Keigo nodded, hiding how surprised he was at the familiar name. "Kikumaru?"
"The redhead. He's been struggling with it for three days; it's his job to look over documents. I would dearly like to know how it wound up in his department." Takano hesitated. "He met with a great deal of opposition, trying to bring this to his superiors. He thought he was about to lose his job, if I hadn't arrived when I did." Takano leaned forward. "I'd like to send them both home, Atobe-san, even though Kikumaru isn't technically under my jurisdiction. They were up all night working on this."
Keigo was still, somewhere in the back of his mind, wondering about Kikumaru. "Yes," he said, after a moment. "Have them report to me here in the morning."
"First thing?"
"Yes."
Takano stood, bowed, and left; Keigo didn't see him go, turning his attention to his duty for the rest of the morning. He had things he needed to get done before even this contract issue was settled. He'd deal with the Kikumaru question in the morning.
The lawyer's analysis arrived much earlier than promised; there was a message regarding it when he returned from a short lunch. He called the three lawyers and Takano into a meeting half an hour later.
"It's as bad as Kikumaru and Ishihara said," Takano said quietly as Keigo sat down at the head of the conference table. "The work the two of them did gave us a start; I had Fujiwara check it over cold, and he came to me with questions before he reached the end of the first page. Right at the first note."
Keigo nodded. "Tell me, in detail."
It was appalling. If he'd actually signed this contract that morning, his father might well have disowned him - and he'd have been right to.
"What's your suggestion?" he asked when they'd finished. He felt… strangely like taking a shower.
"Refuse to sign," Takano said without hesitation. "And then find out why that ended up on Kikumaru's desk instead of one of my lawyers'."
Keigo nodded. "I will also take care of the other half of that problem," he said, thinking of the people who'd gotten in Kikumaru's way when he tried to bring it to their attention. Someone must be working with those two from the inside, and he was going to find out who. "Thank you, gentlemen." They stood as he did, bowed, and he left. He still felt like taking a shower - oh, the damage that contract would have done, not just to his company, but to him personally! - but he still had other things to do.
The first thing was to begin an investigation about the misdirected contract. His security staff had at least two private detectives, and he called on one to do what he could. It meant getting into Kikumaru's files, as he was required to document everything that crossed his desk, but with a little help from the IT department that wouldn't be a problem. Next, he called on the other detective to trace Kikumaru's footsteps, and find out why someone had wanted to stop the man from bringing this to the attention of someone who could do something about it. Third, he asked for the employee files of Kikumaru and Ishihara. That was going to be interesting reading.
Keigo hadn't been in his office ten minutes the next morning when his secretary informed him that the two men had arrived. He'd expected that; neither had ever been on notice for tardiness. He straightened as they walked in, noting how much better they looked today, and indicated they should sit down.
"Thank you, gentlemen," he started. "Your work has saved me personal embarrassment, and this company a lot of money. I'm not unaware of the… schism between your two departments," he added. "How did you two wind up working together?"
Ishihara glanced at Kikumaru. "Over tennis," he said, when the other didn't answer.
"You play?" Keigo asked Ishihara.
"No. We were watching a doubles match in the break room. He claimed to have played Oshitari and Mukahi and beaten them."
Keigo smirked, remembering that match, and looked at Kikumaru. "Six games to four, in the Kanto Tournament our ninth grade year," he said. Kikumaru nodded, a small smile on his face.
Ishihara started. "He was telling the truth?"
"I don't lie," Kikumaru said softly.
It was like seeing a pale shade of that hyper boy that had pranced off the court in a show of less than true sportsmanship, although perhaps he could be forgiven, playing with someone he'd never played with at the last minute. Keigo wondered what had happened to make him pale in comparison to his memory. "So it seems," he said. "You have done this company a great service; I have not yet decided how to reward you."
They both stiffened. "That is not…" Kikumaru started.
"It is necessary," Keigo interrupted. "You have saved this company billions of Yen." He left out his own private embarrassment; the less said about that, the better.
The slight smile on Kikumaru's face recognized the futility of protesting further. "Then, Atobe-san, I'd like most to keep my job. I like working here."
Keigo leaned forward. "There has, in fact, been a request for you in another department entirely. Takano Nori has asked that you be transferred to his department. You'll work with Ishihara on learning how to translate the work you'll be seeing if you agree."
"I have no objections, Atobe-san," Kikumaru said, and bowed. "Thank you."
"Good. That's settled. Both of you see Takano and he'll direct you to your new work area."
They stood, bowed, and left.
Keigo leaned back, brow furrowed. Something had definitely happened in the last few years, to change Kikumaru so much. He shrugged to dismiss it - it was none of his business - and then picked up the phone to inform his father why he was not going to sign that contract.
My Table