Hinata looks through the window longingly, watching the team practice. His cheeks puff out slightly in a pout. He should be in there with the team, practicing spikes and showing them his skills; not out here with a foul-mouthed, short-tempered, grump of a king. He hasn't so much as look at Hinata since they got kicked out. When Kageyama called the captain back out, he even had the gall to tell the hybrid that he'd rather do everything himself than work with Hinata. Clearly rejected, the brute King is currently pacing back and forth restlessly. Hinata glares at him, silently blaming him for their dilemma.
Why did he have to go to Hinata's school? If he wasn't here, Hinata would already be the ace. Well, maybe not, but he would be inside the gym practicing with the team at the very least. He stick his tongue out at Kageyama's back before returning his gaze back to the window. This is just Hinata's luck. He manages to get into his dream school, only to be kicked out of the club the very first day. With his sworn rival no less. Could this day get any worse?
"Come over here," the King beckons. Yes, Hinata decides, his day could very well get worse.
"What?" Hinata barks, giving the crow his undivided attention but refusing to take a step towards him. If the selfish bird wants to talk to him, he can come to him. It's a subtle defiance, but one none the less.
"I said," Kageyama growls through gritted teeth, "come over here." Hinata scoffs at the demand but jumps down from the window anyway, rolling his eyes along the way. He stops short of the boy, far enough away to say that he has no intention of acting friendly with him, but close enough to show that he isn't afraid. Hinata's dealt with bullies plenty of times before, and it's better to act confident than to display fear, no matter how terrified he may be. Naturally, he's gotten pretty good at acting tough through the years. Dealing with a selfish crow's tantrum is easy in comparison to his past incidents. Hinata crosses his arms and shifts his weight to one leg, impatient and annoyed.
"So?" Hinata asks, rolling his wrist in a gesture to continue. Hinata's attitude ticks Kageyama off, but he pushes it aside for now. Now isn't the time, he can get his revenge later.
"Let's challenge the upperclassmen to a match," Kageyama suggests. Hinata raises an eyebrow.
"Why?" He asks, not understanding the point. Kageyama's eye twitches in irritation. How stupid can this kid be? Guess his brain is as stunted as his wings and height. The impatient ravenette takes a deep breath, calming himself the best he can. Hinata rolls his eyes once again at the dramatic display. That King gets worked up over the most trivial things.
"If we beat them in a match, it'll make them think we can work together," Kageyama explains slowly, as if he was talking to a grade schooler. Now it's Hinata's turn to be peeved, not appreciating the condescending tone.
"Ha, you're just bursting with confidence, aren't you," Hinata spits out venomously. "But I guess that's what makes you King of the Court." Kageyama strides across the distance between them, grabbing the shorter boy by his shirt and effortlessly picking him up with one hand. His pupils dilate, brows screw together, and his mouth curls into a snarl. Hinata can tell he's furious, it'd be hard not to, but he doesn't know why. He doesn't think he's done anything to warrant this severe of a reaction, or maybe the crow has a shorter temper than he previously thought.
"Don't ever call me King," Kageyama growls. Hinata cocks his head to the side. 'That's what he's angry about? Kageyama sure is weirder than I thought. Most people would take that as a compliment,' Hinata thinks.
"Why?" Hinata asks aloud, not a hint of malice in his voice. He was simply curious. "It's such a cool nickname!" Kageyama throws Hinata away in frustration. Hinata, thanks to his quick reflexes, lands easily on his feet, but still isn't too thrilled about being thrown around by the temperamental boy. He opens his mouth, ready to start another shouting match, but Kageyama cuts him short.
"Don't ask," he mumbles, his voice forlorn, void of any anger. He is facing away from Hinata, so he can't tell what kind of expression Kageyama has, but somehow Hinata can imagine. He's heard that voice, that loneliness, many times before; mostly in his room, head buried in a pillow. That's the kind of voice born from someone who has been rejected and isolated. Hinata doesn't know how Kageyama came to acquire such a voice, and for once he doesn't ask. It's not an easy subject to broach, and an even harder one to tell. Instead, Hinata changes the subject altogether.
"Let's do it," he declares. Kageyama locks eyes with Hinata, each reevaluating their opinions of the other. Hinata can see a trace of sadness still lingering in those icy blue irises. The guy clearly had a past, but so does everyone. The past is the past, and doesn't have to affect the present. An unhappy backstory doesn't give him the right to be a jerk now. Still, Hinata can feel his opinion softening slightly, only slightly, with empathy and understanding. Being ostracized isn't a pleasant experience.
On the other side, Kageyama stares into Hinata's chocolate brown eyes, always bright with some kind of energy. There's a fierceness in the crippled crow that Kageyama has to respect. Though the loudmouth is still a shitty player who Kageyama would rather chuck into a closer than let him even step foot on the court. But Kageyama doesn't have a choice now, he has to play with the obnoxious guy. Play and win if he wants a chance to play volleyball. He just has to cram the basics into Hinata and hope he doesn't hold him back during the match.
"Then let's get to it," Kageyama says.
---------
The duo take a few minutes to rehearse what they're going to say. As soon as the two feel adequately prepared, Kageyama knocks on the door once more. The door slides open, reveling Sawamura, an expecting gleam to his dark eyes. Sugawara and Tanaka hover nearby, curiosity winning over them. The first-years whisper a countdown to each other.
"Please play a match with us!" the two shout in unison, bowing slightly.
"We could hear you countdown, though," Sugawara mutters to himself in amusement. Beside him Tanaka snickers at the display. Sawamura smirks. He thought something like this would happen.
"Actually, we have two other first-years joining us," the captain muses out loud. Hinata tilts his head in confusion at the seemingly random statement, while Kageyama's brows knit together in suspicion. The lion raises a finger into the air in a 'ah ha' moment. "How about you have a three-on-three match with them. If you two win, I'll let you practice with us again." Hinata's eyes brighten, a wide smile crossing his face. Kageyama mentally smirks. He'll win easily, even with his orange-haired handicap. "But if you lose, Kageyama will never play setter for as long as the third-years are here."
"What!" Kageyama cries in outrage. Hinata switches his gaze between the captain and Kageyama, bewildered. 'That's it?' he thinks, not understanding why the crow is so upset. Sure, he wouldn't be able to play the position he wanted, but he could still play, so what does it matter? Hinata would be satisfied just being able to play in matches, regardless of what he played.
"Kageyama, aren't you overreacting a bit?" Hinata says cautiously. "I mean, you'll still be able to play, even if we do lose-" Kageyama is on Hinata before he can even finish the sentence. His stark blue eyes turn red with fury. It doesn't take a genius to figure out Hinata has stepped on a land mine, one of the many on the battleground that is Kageyama Tobio.
"I am a setter!" Kageyama shouts, like it's the most obvious thing in the world, because to him, it is. He would rather quit volleyball altogether than play a different position. There is no compromising on this. "To ask me to play a different position is like asking a wing spiker not to spike." Kageyama's eyes are raw with emotion. Anger, shock, and panic war with each other, all visible in Kageyama's expression and posture. Him not being a setter simply doesn't compute in his mind.
"Then we just have to win," Hinata states nonchalantly, as if he was commenting on the weather. That gets everyone's attention. They stare at him, each with a varying amount of surprise. "There's no problem if we win, right?" Kageyama smirks, calm now thanks to Hinata's words. He's right, there's no need to panic. They just need to win, they can do that. They will do that, even if Kageyama has to drag the lousy volleyball player to victory.
"Sounds like it's been decided," Sawamura cuts in. He turns to Tanaka, a predatory gleam in his eyes. Tanaka freezes on the spot, panic edging in. It's never a good thing to be the target of that kind of stare, especially when it comes from the captain. Tanaka swallows slowly, clearly nervous. The last time Sawamura looked at him like that, Tanaka was forced to clean the entire gym by himself.
"Hey, Tanaka," Sawamura calls, causing said human to jump slightly. "How about you be on their team for the match," the lion says, nodding towards the pair of crows. He phrases it like a suggestion, but it's really a command. Unfortunately, only Suga, who has known the hybrid the longest, catches the underlying message. Tanaka is completely oblivious, and forgets his panic in an instant.
"Huuuuh!" Tanaka shouts, taking no effort to conceal his disinterest. "No way, I don't want to babysit some snotty brats." Both Hinata and Kageyama take offense to that statement, but Sawamura cuts in before they can revolt.
"Oh, I thought that you could discipline them, like a good upper-classmen," he says, emphasizing the words. Tanaka has always been a sucker for showing off his superiority, so the chance of telling some first-years what's what is too much to resist. The scowl on Tanaka's face is immediately replaced with an overjoyed smile.
"Well," Tanaka starts, his attitude doing a complete 180, "I guess it can't be helped." He flings his arms over the first-years' shoulders, pulling them in. "You guys have nothing to worry about now, you'll win for sure since I'm on your team." Hinata brightens excitedly, Tanaka's enthusiasm infecting him. Kageyama rolls his eyes, but is careful that the human doesn't notice. The trio carry on in their own little world, Tanaka leading their conversation while Hinata reflects his energy and Kageyama reluctantly getting dragged into the two's pace.
"What are you planning, Daichi?" Sugawara asks, sidling up to the lion. Sawamura grins, not surprised at all that Suga caught on to his plans. It's only natural, given how long they've know each other. They could probably read each other better than their own parents could.
"You'll see," Daichi replies, not willing to disclose his idea yet. He wants to see how well it'll work, because if it does, the whole team will be on a completely new level. They might even win Inter-High. Sawamura's eyes brighten at the thought, something that does not go unnoticed by Suga. He smiles faintly, trying to think of the last time he saw Daichi look this excited about volleyball. It's been a long time, to say the least. Sugawara decides not to press the subject further, satisfied with simply seeing his lion happy.
---------
"Come on," Kageyama calls to Hinata, "let's go see if I can make you suck a bit less before we go home." Hinata fumes at the insult, but follows the crow out the door regardless. At least he'll get to play some volleyball today, after all. The rest of the team stay in the gym to clean up, leaving the duo to their own devices.
Kageyama waits as Hinata fetches his bike, then walks with him to the park nearby the school. Hinata, hating silence of any kind, makes small talk the entire way, bringing up the smallest and most random topics. Kageyama, hating any kind of useless chatter, walks along in silence, trying to tune the chattering fluffball out. Of course, that proves to be impossible, primarily for two reasons. First of all, Hinata is simply to loud to be ignored, and secondly, the weird topics he brings up ensnares Kageyama's curiosity too much to be ignored. As annoying as the hybrid was, Hinata definitely catches people's attention. Bright orange, fluffy hair, gnarled wings, short stature, as well as a vibrant personality and voice to match. Everything about him just screams to be noticed. It's near impossible to overlook him, whether you want to or not.
Kageyama and Hinata arrive at the park and quickly find a spot to practice. It's not hard, considering the place is practically empty. Kageyama forces Hinata to practice his receives, constantly yelling at him to fix his crummy posture. The two practice well into the evening. The street lamps switch on, and the already poor visibility decreases even further.
"When are you going to give me a toss?" Hinata whines after hours of receive practice. Kageyama stills the ball in his hands and scoffs.
"How about when you become a less shitty player?" Kageyama retorts harshly. Hinata scowls but bites his tongue, knowing the crow has a point.
"Come on, just one toss?" Hinata begs.
"I only toss to people I think are necessary to win, and right now I don't think you are," Kageyama answers truthfully. His response shocks, as well as angers Hinata. He's totally necessary to win! Sure his receives might suck. And his serves. And his blocking...And his passes...And all his basics in general...... But he can jump! If the selfish King would just give him a chance, he could show him the best spike he's ever seen.
"One more!" Hinata shouts, getting into a receive position. He'll prove that he's a vital part of the team. If he doesn't, there's no way he can stay in matches the entire time. If he doesn't, he might not be a regular, or even play in any matches at all. Hinata will prove to Kageyana he's necessary, because if Hinata can force him to acknowledge his skills, the rest of the team definitely will.
Kageyama smirks slightly at the crippled crow's tenacity. If there's one thing that's going for the red-head besides his jump, it's his determination. Kageyama complies with Hinata's demand, giving him an overhead serve, softer than his normal jump serve but still with plenty of power behind it. Hinata manages to receive it without injuring himself this time, but the ball rebounds high into the air, way past Kageyama. The taller boy turns around to retrieve it, insulting Hinata with every breath, only to realize that he doesn't need to.
Two boys stand behind them, one of which is holding their ball. They seem to be about Kageyama and Hinata's age. The one holding the volleyball is a hybrid. Splotches of jet black feathers cover his skin at random intervals. Talons replace his fingernails, short and well-maintained, but definitely still sharp enough to cut. Curly, blond hair hangs close to his head, barely reaching the tips of his ears. Behind a pair of black rimmed glasses peer a pair of dark brown, almost black, eyes. He's tall, maybe even taller than Kageyama. The boy standing behind him, who appears to be human, is short by comparison, but shouldn't be too far under Kageyama's height. In contrast to his hybrid friend, the human has longer, straight, black hair. Freckles are scattered across his face instead of feathers, and there are no glasses resting on his nose.
"Wow, I didn't expect to the see the King of the Court out here," the tall hybrid says in mock surprise, sneering at Kageyama. The nickname causes Kageyama to flinch, a movement that doesn't escape the blond hybrid's keen eyes. The hybrid's smirk widens, encouraged by the crow's reaction. "Why is his highness down here with such peasants?" he taunts, tossing the ball into the air and catching it repeatedly. The human behind him snickers.
Kageyama glares at the offensive boy, but stays his tongue for once. Hinata stares at Kageyama, confused why he isn't yelling and screaming to not call him 'King.' Did he react like that only because Hinata said it? If not, then why isn't he saying anything? He doesn't know why, but Kageyama's silence is pissing Hinata off. What the hell happened to the guy that would rip Hinata a new one if he so much as looked at him wrong?
"Why aren't you saying anything?!" Hinata confronts Kageyama. The boy shifts his gaze to the ground, refusing to look Hinata in the eyes.
"It's not worth it," he mumbles. "Let's go." Kageyama brushes past both Hinata and the two strangers, head bowed. Hinata watches on in shock, unable to process the fact that Kageyama just backed down.
"Leaving so soon, King?" The hybrid stranger calls out. When Kageyama doesn't respond, he shifts his attention to his new prey. "Do you know why everyone calls him King of the Court?" He asks Hinata. Kageyama freezes in his tracks, slowly turning around to glare at the annoying hybrid. If looks could kill, the blond hybrid would be a corpse mauled beyond recognition.
"Don't. You. Dare," Kageyama growls threateningly. By some miracle, Hinata doesn't know the story, and he'd prefer to keep it that way. No matter how much Kageyama despises Hinata, at least Hinata doesn't treat him differently because of his past. He wants one person, just one, that he can interact with without fear of having his trauma used against him.
Pleased with the reaction he's won, the hybrid ignores Kageyama and continues with his story.
"He was nicknamed that by his teammates." Hinata stands there, enthralled, torn between wanting to respect Kageyama's secrecy and his curiosity. "They called him that because all the tosses he made were reckless and self-centered, impossible for anyone to hit. Eventually his teammates got fed up and rejected him." Hinata's eyes widen, swinging over to Kageyama. He mets Hinata's gaze only for a few seconds before looking away. In those few seconds Hinata could see the anger and frustration burning in his eyes. The story was true, without a doubt. That's how Kageyama came to have that kind of voice. Empathy swells in Hinata's heart, along with rage. He faces the mocking hybrid, giving him a glare that he reserves for the worst of bullies. Because that's all he is; a bully.
"Whoa there, what are you so made about?" the hybrid asks, noticing Hinata's glare. He smirks, sensing another easy target. "Are you cranky because it's past your bedtime? Grade schoolers should be in bed by now." Hinata's cheeks flush, and his glare hardens further. "Easy now, I was just joking. As fellow hybrids, we should get along." The taunting boy's lips twist into a cruel smile. "Though, you're hardly a hybrid." The last of Hinata's already short patience is whisked away with that last statement. He looks at the blond stranger with icy calm eyes, though he is no longer paying attention to the crippled crow.
"Anyway, we're just here to give our greetings before our match in three days," he says, talking to Kageyama again. "I heard you guys have a lot riding on this game. If you want, we could throw the..." His words trail off as he watches Hinata sprint forward and jump into the air, snatching the volleyball he was playing with back. For a moment, Hinata is even taller than the cruel hybrid.
'How can he reach so high, even though he can't fly?' the hybrid thinks. Hinata lands with his back to the two strangers. Slowly, he stands straight and faces his opponents. His mouth is firm with determination, eyes shining with confidence.
"Whether you throw the match or not," Hinata says calmly, "we'll still win. So come at us with all you got." As the shock wears off of the two's faces, irritation replaces it. Kageyama, on the other hand, seems to have recovered from his depressing trip down memory lane and is now smirking, silently agreeing with Hinata. Key word, silently, since he would never admit that he agrees with the obnoxious crow out loud. No longer able to have fun tormenting the two infamous first-years, the hybrid starts to leave, his human friend tagging along.
"Wait," Kageyama calls out hastily. The pair stops and the hybrid glances over his shoulder, annoyed as hell. "What's your name?" The hybrid scoffs and begins walking again, ignoring the question out of spite. Unfortunately, his human friend doesn't catch his cues, and graciously answers for him.
"His name is Tsukishima Kei!" the human boasts proudly.
"Yamaguchi, shut up!" The hybrid, Tsukishima, commands before making his exit. This time the human, Yamaguchi, takes the hint and follows him, shouting 'sorry Tsuki' as he runs to catch up.
The crows watch them fade into the night. Silence elapses for a while after. Kageyama tries to break the stillness, but can't bring himself to say anything. Now that that irritating Tsukishima character is gone, uneasiness grips Kageyama. Hinata knows now. Kageyama shouldn't care if Hinata knows, but despite their barbed conversations it felt so good to talk with someone who didn't know his past. He doesn't want to lose that. He doesn't want to lose the way Hinata acts so freely with him.
"Tomorrow," Hinata says suddenly, shattering Kageyama's thoughts, "be at the school by five a.m." He locks eyes with Kageyama, not needing to say the rest aloud. Kageyama allows himself a breath of relieve before replying. Nothing's changed, nothing at all.
"Make sure you're not late," he shoots back. Hinata grins, a radiant, happy thing that makes Kageyama's breath catch.
"Same to you!"
------------------------------
I'm going to end this chapter here. Dang, this is the longest thing I've ever written. 14 pages! 14! That's impressive for me, and I'm pretty proud. Oh, and just a forewarning, this book isn't going to update extremely fast. I am a huge procrastinator, and get writer's block all the time. I'm just saying that now.
It has begun. The countdown to mutual love between Kageyama and Hinata has begun. Ohhhhh, I just can't wait to get to the fluff parts! But I'll be patient, because I am a fan of slowly falling in love. And there will be no smut. I do not write smut, no matter who asks.
Alright, now for the serious topic here...
Who has read the latest chapter of Haikyuu!? (If not, please proceed to your next book. I'm warning you, I'm going to drop major spoilers.)
I swear, that was the best update ever!!!!! It fueled the Kagehina ship so much!!! Let's face it, the ship is practically canon. I fangirled so hard when I read it, I literally rolled around on my bed, flailing my legs in the air while silently screaming. And Kageyama smiled!!!! He SMILED!!! And it was at Hinata!!! And it was a legit smile!!!!! I couldn't even, it was just so cute. Someone, please talk to me about this. Everyone in my real life either doesn't watch it, or watches it but doesn't read the manga. I NEED SOMEONE TO FANGIRL WITH!!!