[FIC] - [Once a Pillar] for [BiDi]
Title: Once a pillar...
Author: Maria. Nom de pluime used: Anzu Mazaki.
Pairing: Tezuka/Fuji. Also, Tezuka/Yamato friendship.
Character(s): Tezuka, Fuji, Yamato. Allusions to Ayana (Tezuka's mom), Ryoma, Momoshiro and Kaidoh.
Rating: T (teen, 13+)/PG-13.
Summary: Tezuka promised something to his ex-captain. And that vow still haunts him, years after... Spoilers for the whole anime series.
Warnings: none
Requested by: BiDi. She said... I'd like to see a story where Tezuka is now entering highschool and is no longer captain but is once again a team member under Captain Yamato. How does he handle no longer being in control of his team. It would be nice to see some 'hintings' at either past or present relationships between the two but not needed. If there are some mentionings of TezukaFuji in some way that would also be great.
***
Three years ago.
Kunimitsu Tezuka was more calm after spending quite a while being frustrated, hurt and pissed off. No, things weren't supposed to be like that. He wasn't supposed to get his secret blown in such a way...
Back in those moments, Tezuka just wanted to be respectful, so he hid the fact that he was left-handed and could play with both hands. He didn't want to show off, or to humiliate his sempais. However, his cover was blown... in his very face, and badly enough to have one of the older guys grabbing a racket and violently hitting him on his elbow.
He had even thought (and said out loud) that he didn't want to be in the tennis club anymore. Why should he stay? It had no place for his idealistic view of the world, where everyone should be honorable. He was sorry for the other first-years in the club, yeah, but he wouldn't play along with the idea of serving as a puppet or a laughing stock.
* Become the pillar of Seigaku, Tezuka. *
However, someone managed to turn the tables on him. Yamato-buchou... he was a tall youth with tousled black hair, sunglasses and an enigmatic smile. After hearing his complains and giving him some words of advice... the captain of the Seigaku tennis team made him an offer that he simply could *not* refuse.
Sure, he wanted things to change? He wouldn't make it if he just sat down to whine about his situation. He wanted Seigaku to go to the Nationals? He should start working on it right then. And the first step was... to become strong and reliable. Tezuka already had the respect from the other first years, specially from the always smiling and unpredictable Syuusuke Fuji (he came up with the idea of having the freshmen help Tezuka with the cleaning whenever he was appointed... even risking punishment from the sempais), so it shouldn't be completely impossible...
* Be a source of strength, Tezuka... *
In the darkness of his bedroom, Tezuka sat up on his bed and sighed deeply.
"I will. I will carry on everyone's dreams, Yamato-buchou".
***
Two years ago.
Since Yamato's junior high graduation, Tezuka e-mailed him in a weekly basis. No matter how many tests he had at school or how hard the tennis training was, he would always find time to tell his ex-captain about his improvement. At times he wrote just some short phrases; at others (especially if he was just coming out of Literature class) he'd add some more details.
Yamato replied as punctually as Tezuka, doing likewise in regards to his own life and his development as a player. He rarely mentioned the promise they made, though; sometimes Tezuka wondered if he had forgotten the words he said a year ago, but then he answered to himself that his ex-captain had assumed there was no need to remind him. In a sense, it was true: Tezuka thought that he and his teammates (even the two feisty newcomers, Momoshiro alias Momo and Kaidoh) would be the best.
So, during a spring afternoon when he was checking his e-mails... Tezuka was shocked as he revised the one coming from Yamato.
* Tezuka*, the older youth said in his mail, * I'm not doubting how serious you are... but at times, I wonder if I gave you a burden that's too heavy for you in the current moment... *
Why would Yamato wonder such a thing? Tezuka had no problem with responsability. He liked to take charge, to take care of others and to direct the current action. Those were things that he *had* to do, as the Pillar of Seigaku... so, in a sense, they came naturally for him.
That same day, during practice, Oishi had asked Tezuka if he was okay, and he had said yes. It wasn't entirely true; at times, the pain in his shoulder was rising in intensity, and both the doctor and Ryuuzaki-sensei were worried about it. His assistance to the future Junior Senbatsu camp was in risk...
But Tezuka was determined to fight on. So, he started typing his reply.
* Yamato-buchou... I'll be okay. I know and understand your reasoning, but I don't think I can back off. My dream isn't too far from me... same goes to the dreams of my peers.
I'm not doing this to hurt myself. It'd cause me even more pain to give up. I'd betray myself if I ever did. So, thanks for your concern, but the promise will stand still... *
"Kunimitsu!," a sweet voice called out. "You have a phone call from Fuji-kun!"
"I'm going, mother," Tezuka replied. He then typed some more formal phrases to say goodbye adequately, and hit "send".
* * *
Last year.
Tezuka was still in the Seigaku grounds. In the first weeks he had been a spectator, someone who watched over the new and old members of the team and gave them the basics they needed to go on. Lately, however...
Of course he knew beforehand that Ryoma Echizen would join them. Ryuuzaki-sensei had mentioned that to him and Oishi some days before Echizen himself showed up at Seigaku. Tezuka had seen him practice, had observed him closely during those sessions, and in the match against Fudomine he could catch more than a glimpse of his talent.
Tezuka also knew that it was his last year in Seigaku Junior High. He wasn't sure if he'd join the associated high school since he had several offers from other schools, and many of them were very tempting. It was the last year as the Pillar, and he needed to find someone else able carry on the legacy of Seishun Gakuen.
Ryoma seemed to be *the* perfect one. He had all the potental to be a leader and the one the tennis team could rely on. However, the diamond was flawed... since Ryoma didn't have a style of his very own. As the child and heir of one of the best Japanese tennis players ever, he seemed destined to become a clone of Nanjiroh Echizen. And Tezuka wouldn't let it happen.
Tezuka was the Pillar, and Ryoma would become the next one. But...
"Tezuka!".
The ball hit the wall, and Tezuka turned. "Fuji?"
"Gotcha. Still training?"
"What looks like I'm doing?"
"Sounded like a 'thanks for stating the obvious', eh?".
"Sorry, then."
"Take it easy, Tezuka, not like I'm scolding you or anything. I was finishing an essay in the library, and since you were here I dropped by to say hello...".
"Whatever suits you, Fuji. But I'm done already."
"So, would you mind relaxing a little, eh? And yes, I make it sound so dirty and I know it."
"Fuji...!"
"Pffft, I'm joking, Tezuka. No need to blush. But I mean the relaxing bit. You'll need it before we face our next matches."
"Well...".
Few minutes later, Tezuka left the Seigaku grounds... with Fuji walking by his side.
* * *
Today.
"I see, I won't be able to practice for some days... even then, I'll help Tamaki and Momoi-sensei from the bench. Thank you a lot... and yes, I'll take care of it. See you later, Nishimoto-sensei."
Rubbing his bandaged wrist, Yamato smiles at the school nurse and gets ready to leave the infirmary. But the door is open already, and a tall young man is coming in.
"Ah, Tezuka!" Yamato says cheerfully. "Did I worry the team too much when I sprained my wrist during practice?"
"Enough to have Momoi-sensei sending me here, Yamato-buchou."
"Okay. Shouldn't you call me *Yamato-fukubuchou*, though? The captain is my classmate Soushi Tamaki and not me, heh."
"Sorry about that."
Tezuka's voice sounds normal, but there's a slight blush spread over his cheeks.
"Well... let's go back and tell him that there's no need to worry about it, then, Tezuka."
"Okay."
Tezuka politely bows at the nurse, and both men leave the Sakurada High School infirmary. Sakurada is a very prestigious all-boys school with an excellent tennis team, but it also has a good focus on arts and World History; so, Tezuka finally chose to attend classes there. And another reason was the presence of someone from his past there... Yamato Yuudai, the sub-captain of the tennis team.
Now, both men walk down the halls of Sakurada, going towards the courts. Yamato looks far more relaxed than you'd expect from someone who spectacularly injured his wrist in the middle of the tennis practice, slightly tilting his head back as he walks. Tezuka, on the other hand, looks worried.
"Is there something wrong?"
"Ah, no, don't worry, Yamato-fukubuchou. You should..."
"It's sprained, not broken, Tezuka. And I'll be back to practice soon. So, it's useless to worry..."
Yamato suddenly stops; Tezuka does likewise and stares at him. He suddenly has a feeling of deja-vu; this situation isn't fully new...
"Though it looks like that both over-worrying and taking responsibilities are among your specialties, Tezuka. You haven't changed a lot in these years."
Those words confirm what Tezuka was thinking. So, he opens his mouth to reply, but Yamato is again quicker than him.
"I can understand your reasons, but you should also learn to let go. Not being able to do so almost crush you, in a sense, last year."
"I know," Tezuka says it in a tone somewhat harsher than intended. "I've had enough time to think of it, Yamato-fukubuchou."
"Maybe it hasn't fully worked, then."
Yamato speaks in a quite kind and calm tone, but Tezuka senses that he's doing so as a way to subtly punish him for his last phrases.
"Echizen has evolved as a player thanks to you, and he'll do great in the USA. Momoshiro and Kaidoh are working surprisingly well as captain and sub-captain of Seigaku, and they'll be taking the team to the Nationals soon. And while some of your ex-teammates aren't into tennis as much as they used to, they *do* remember you fondly. Now".
"... What do you mean...?"
"Tezuka", Yamato says, smile and gentle voice still untouched, "it seems you can't fully let go of the promise, eh?"
After all of those years, Yamato hasn't forgotten what he asked Tezuka for, as a freshman in Seigaku. But now that he mentiond it directly... it feels odd.
"How does it feel to be a freshman again, eh?"
Again, Yamato is speaking calmly, smile still in his lips.
Tezuka doesn't hesitate to reply. "It feels strange, not to currently have that weight you once talked about on my shoulders."
"Thought so. Once a pillar, always a pillar. Should've figured that out when you told me you were accepted here, anyway..."
Yamato laughs out loud when he finishes his line. Tezuka lifts an eyebrow at this. Is his captain paying really attention to such an important issue? And why did he have to use a phrase similar to what he told Echizen himself just before he went back to the USA?
"Oh, sorry. That laugh was mostly directed at me," Yamato apologizes as soon as he can talk. "But as I've told you, it's okay...".
They're suddenly interrupted when someone passes by them and touches Tezuka on the shoulder. He turns and sees Fuji, who has his digital camera in his other hand; the blue-eyed student winks at Tezuka, then waves his free hand at Yamato as a greeting and keeps on running, surely towards the room where the boys of the photography club meet every afternoon.
Tezuka stares at Fuji's retreating back, and then turns back to Yamato. And the older youth notices that Tezuka is blushing again.
"I don't think I have much to tell you, then. Seems that, from now on, someone else will remind you to stop when the world's too hectic," Yamato says. He's now grinning, and Tezuka pretends to ignore this as they start walking again towards the courts.
The promise is fulfilled. Other people will carry on the Seigaku legacy. But as Yamato says... once a pillar, always a pillar. Whether it's a curse or a blessing, it depends on his view of life itself...
And with Fuji, Yamato and the others helping him, Tezuka's life will go on.
Author: Maria. Nom de pluime used: Anzu Mazaki.
Pairing: Tezuka/Fuji. Also, Tezuka/Yamato friendship.
Character(s): Tezuka, Fuji, Yamato. Allusions to Ayana (Tezuka's mom), Ryoma, Momoshiro and Kaidoh.
Rating: T (teen, 13+)/PG-13.
Summary: Tezuka promised something to his ex-captain. And that vow still haunts him, years after... Spoilers for the whole anime series.
Warnings: none
Requested by: BiDi. She said... I'd like to see a story where Tezuka is now entering highschool and is no longer captain but is once again a team member under Captain Yamato. How does he handle no longer being in control of his team. It would be nice to see some 'hintings' at either past or present relationships between the two but not needed. If there are some mentionings of TezukaFuji in some way that would also be great.
***
Three years ago.
Kunimitsu Tezuka was more calm after spending quite a while being frustrated, hurt and pissed off. No, things weren't supposed to be like that. He wasn't supposed to get his secret blown in such a way...
Back in those moments, Tezuka just wanted to be respectful, so he hid the fact that he was left-handed and could play with both hands. He didn't want to show off, or to humiliate his sempais. However, his cover was blown... in his very face, and badly enough to have one of the older guys grabbing a racket and violently hitting him on his elbow.
He had even thought (and said out loud) that he didn't want to be in the tennis club anymore. Why should he stay? It had no place for his idealistic view of the world, where everyone should be honorable. He was sorry for the other first-years in the club, yeah, but he wouldn't play along with the idea of serving as a puppet or a laughing stock.
* Become the pillar of Seigaku, Tezuka. *
However, someone managed to turn the tables on him. Yamato-buchou... he was a tall youth with tousled black hair, sunglasses and an enigmatic smile. After hearing his complains and giving him some words of advice... the captain of the Seigaku tennis team made him an offer that he simply could *not* refuse.
Sure, he wanted things to change? He wouldn't make it if he just sat down to whine about his situation. He wanted Seigaku to go to the Nationals? He should start working on it right then. And the first step was... to become strong and reliable. Tezuka already had the respect from the other first years, specially from the always smiling and unpredictable Syuusuke Fuji (he came up with the idea of having the freshmen help Tezuka with the cleaning whenever he was appointed... even risking punishment from the sempais), so it shouldn't be completely impossible...
* Be a source of strength, Tezuka... *
In the darkness of his bedroom, Tezuka sat up on his bed and sighed deeply.
"I will. I will carry on everyone's dreams, Yamato-buchou".
***
Two years ago.
Since Yamato's junior high graduation, Tezuka e-mailed him in a weekly basis. No matter how many tests he had at school or how hard the tennis training was, he would always find time to tell his ex-captain about his improvement. At times he wrote just some short phrases; at others (especially if he was just coming out of Literature class) he'd add some more details.
Yamato replied as punctually as Tezuka, doing likewise in regards to his own life and his development as a player. He rarely mentioned the promise they made, though; sometimes Tezuka wondered if he had forgotten the words he said a year ago, but then he answered to himself that his ex-captain had assumed there was no need to remind him. In a sense, it was true: Tezuka thought that he and his teammates (even the two feisty newcomers, Momoshiro alias Momo and Kaidoh) would be the best.
So, during a spring afternoon when he was checking his e-mails... Tezuka was shocked as he revised the one coming from Yamato.
* Tezuka*, the older youth said in his mail, * I'm not doubting how serious you are... but at times, I wonder if I gave you a burden that's too heavy for you in the current moment... *
Why would Yamato wonder such a thing? Tezuka had no problem with responsability. He liked to take charge, to take care of others and to direct the current action. Those were things that he *had* to do, as the Pillar of Seigaku... so, in a sense, they came naturally for him.
That same day, during practice, Oishi had asked Tezuka if he was okay, and he had said yes. It wasn't entirely true; at times, the pain in his shoulder was rising in intensity, and both the doctor and Ryuuzaki-sensei were worried about it. His assistance to the future Junior Senbatsu camp was in risk...
But Tezuka was determined to fight on. So, he started typing his reply.
* Yamato-buchou... I'll be okay. I know and understand your reasoning, but I don't think I can back off. My dream isn't too far from me... same goes to the dreams of my peers.
I'm not doing this to hurt myself. It'd cause me even more pain to give up. I'd betray myself if I ever did. So, thanks for your concern, but the promise will stand still... *
"Kunimitsu!," a sweet voice called out. "You have a phone call from Fuji-kun!"
"I'm going, mother," Tezuka replied. He then typed some more formal phrases to say goodbye adequately, and hit "send".
* * *
Last year.
Tezuka was still in the Seigaku grounds. In the first weeks he had been a spectator, someone who watched over the new and old members of the team and gave them the basics they needed to go on. Lately, however...
Of course he knew beforehand that Ryoma Echizen would join them. Ryuuzaki-sensei had mentioned that to him and Oishi some days before Echizen himself showed up at Seigaku. Tezuka had seen him practice, had observed him closely during those sessions, and in the match against Fudomine he could catch more than a glimpse of his talent.
Tezuka also knew that it was his last year in Seigaku Junior High. He wasn't sure if he'd join the associated high school since he had several offers from other schools, and many of them were very tempting. It was the last year as the Pillar, and he needed to find someone else able carry on the legacy of Seishun Gakuen.
Ryoma seemed to be *the* perfect one. He had all the potental to be a leader and the one the tennis team could rely on. However, the diamond was flawed... since Ryoma didn't have a style of his very own. As the child and heir of one of the best Japanese tennis players ever, he seemed destined to become a clone of Nanjiroh Echizen. And Tezuka wouldn't let it happen.
Tezuka was the Pillar, and Ryoma would become the next one. But...
"Tezuka!".
The ball hit the wall, and Tezuka turned. "Fuji?"
"Gotcha. Still training?"
"What looks like I'm doing?"
"Sounded like a 'thanks for stating the obvious', eh?".
"Sorry, then."
"Take it easy, Tezuka, not like I'm scolding you or anything. I was finishing an essay in the library, and since you were here I dropped by to say hello...".
"Whatever suits you, Fuji. But I'm done already."
"So, would you mind relaxing a little, eh? And yes, I make it sound so dirty and I know it."
"Fuji...!"
"Pffft, I'm joking, Tezuka. No need to blush. But I mean the relaxing bit. You'll need it before we face our next matches."
"Well...".
Few minutes later, Tezuka left the Seigaku grounds... with Fuji walking by his side.
* * *
Today.
"I see, I won't be able to practice for some days... even then, I'll help Tamaki and Momoi-sensei from the bench. Thank you a lot... and yes, I'll take care of it. See you later, Nishimoto-sensei."
Rubbing his bandaged wrist, Yamato smiles at the school nurse and gets ready to leave the infirmary. But the door is open already, and a tall young man is coming in.
"Ah, Tezuka!" Yamato says cheerfully. "Did I worry the team too much when I sprained my wrist during practice?"
"Enough to have Momoi-sensei sending me here, Yamato-buchou."
"Okay. Shouldn't you call me *Yamato-fukubuchou*, though? The captain is my classmate Soushi Tamaki and not me, heh."
"Sorry about that."
Tezuka's voice sounds normal, but there's a slight blush spread over his cheeks.
"Well... let's go back and tell him that there's no need to worry about it, then, Tezuka."
"Okay."
Tezuka politely bows at the nurse, and both men leave the Sakurada High School infirmary. Sakurada is a very prestigious all-boys school with an excellent tennis team, but it also has a good focus on arts and World History; so, Tezuka finally chose to attend classes there. And another reason was the presence of someone from his past there... Yamato Yuudai, the sub-captain of the tennis team.
Now, both men walk down the halls of Sakurada, going towards the courts. Yamato looks far more relaxed than you'd expect from someone who spectacularly injured his wrist in the middle of the tennis practice, slightly tilting his head back as he walks. Tezuka, on the other hand, looks worried.
"Is there something wrong?"
"Ah, no, don't worry, Yamato-fukubuchou. You should..."
"It's sprained, not broken, Tezuka. And I'll be back to practice soon. So, it's useless to worry..."
Yamato suddenly stops; Tezuka does likewise and stares at him. He suddenly has a feeling of deja-vu; this situation isn't fully new...
"Though it looks like that both over-worrying and taking responsibilities are among your specialties, Tezuka. You haven't changed a lot in these years."
Those words confirm what Tezuka was thinking. So, he opens his mouth to reply, but Yamato is again quicker than him.
"I can understand your reasons, but you should also learn to let go. Not being able to do so almost crush you, in a sense, last year."
"I know," Tezuka says it in a tone somewhat harsher than intended. "I've had enough time to think of it, Yamato-fukubuchou."
"Maybe it hasn't fully worked, then."
Yamato speaks in a quite kind and calm tone, but Tezuka senses that he's doing so as a way to subtly punish him for his last phrases.
"Echizen has evolved as a player thanks to you, and he'll do great in the USA. Momoshiro and Kaidoh are working surprisingly well as captain and sub-captain of Seigaku, and they'll be taking the team to the Nationals soon. And while some of your ex-teammates aren't into tennis as much as they used to, they *do* remember you fondly. Now".
"... What do you mean...?"
"Tezuka", Yamato says, smile and gentle voice still untouched, "it seems you can't fully let go of the promise, eh?"
After all of those years, Yamato hasn't forgotten what he asked Tezuka for, as a freshman in Seigaku. But now that he mentiond it directly... it feels odd.
"How does it feel to be a freshman again, eh?"
Again, Yamato is speaking calmly, smile still in his lips.
Tezuka doesn't hesitate to reply. "It feels strange, not to currently have that weight you once talked about on my shoulders."
"Thought so. Once a pillar, always a pillar. Should've figured that out when you told me you were accepted here, anyway..."
Yamato laughs out loud when he finishes his line. Tezuka lifts an eyebrow at this. Is his captain paying really attention to such an important issue? And why did he have to use a phrase similar to what he told Echizen himself just before he went back to the USA?
"Oh, sorry. That laugh was mostly directed at me," Yamato apologizes as soon as he can talk. "But as I've told you, it's okay...".
They're suddenly interrupted when someone passes by them and touches Tezuka on the shoulder. He turns and sees Fuji, who has his digital camera in his other hand; the blue-eyed student winks at Tezuka, then waves his free hand at Yamato as a greeting and keeps on running, surely towards the room where the boys of the photography club meet every afternoon.
Tezuka stares at Fuji's retreating back, and then turns back to Yamato. And the older youth notices that Tezuka is blushing again.
"I don't think I have much to tell you, then. Seems that, from now on, someone else will remind you to stop when the world's too hectic," Yamato says. He's now grinning, and Tezuka pretends to ignore this as they start walking again towards the courts.
The promise is fulfilled. Other people will carry on the Seigaku legacy. But as Yamato says... once a pillar, always a pillar. Whether it's a curse or a blessing, it depends on his view of life itself...
And with Fuji, Yamato and the others helping him, Tezuka's life will go on.