Mr. Toriyama's year seven bowling team stood triumphant in the doorway of the bowling alley. Much to Chase's chagrin, they had been given out their matching purple uniforms with gold lace trim (Chase had argued this was a direct violation of his "style"). Sitting in their assigned lane was Ms. Sakura's year six students, dressed in a creamy white. Upon seeing the arrival of their opponents, the younger students scrambled to attention before giving a bow before their seniors, as was customary during all sporting matches in the academy.
Porter returned the gesture as captain and a staredown ensued during the awkward silence between the two groups. The teachers shook hands and nodded to each other, exchanging formal greetings but doing nothing else otherwise. Toriyama then returned to his group and ushered them all over to their lane. "Listen guys, Ms. Sakura over there has been gunning for my job ever since that whole space wolf incident and the rumours I would be fired," the professor whispered to his team. "Please, please kick all their asses for me. I really need it to show her!"
"Yes sir!"
"Excellent." Toriyama rubbed his hands together menacingly. "Then can you please submit the order of play captain Porter?" Chase grumbled as Porter got up and withdrew the paper from his pocket with the names written on it. "Go hand it to the match referee."
Porter absently followed his master's orders, sauntering up to the man who stood between the two alleys. As the teen relinquished the sheet he looked up at the ref and their eyes met. And Porter nearly fell backwards. "Rick?! What are you doing here?"
The Circuit Breaker snatched the paper from Porter's hand and examined it. "The school caught on to me being Mr. Shotuku's assistant and said it wouldn't work because that wasn't a real job opening so the old man got it so that I am the referee for many of the inter-class games." Rick looked over at Riya and Gretta, who had come in to watch and cheer. Rick's voice dropped down and he drew close to Porter. "Just because I have a job at the school doesn't mean I don't have time to watch and make sure she doesn't get hurt." Even in his striped umpire's outfit Rick still looked intimidating as Porter slowly backed away and returned to his team.
"Teacher coin toss!" Rick shouted and Ms. Sakura yelled out "Heads!" in response. The Circuit Breaker flipped a little coin and checked it, then motioned towards the year six team, who gave out a cheer. "Heads called, heads turned up. Ms. Sakura's team to bowl first."
The younger students gave out a round of high-fives before sending up the first bowler. "They're not that good a team,"Mr. Toriyama hissed. "But their anchor is unbelievable. He's one of the greatest bowlers I've ever seen. If we can beat at least three of them and keep the other scores close then the last shots shouldn't matter at all." As he spoke the opposing group took their first two shots, grabbing eight pins total on an unlucky split. Rick called for Nami and she bounded up to the lane as soon as she heard her name.
The stalker girl's shots had a ridiculous spin to them that came from the little twirl she did any time she tossed a ball, and it wobbled from side to side down the lane, flirting with gutters before crashing into the pins at the end and leaving just a single one teetering in the corner. She followed up with a straight, hard shot to finish things off and complete the spare. Afterwards she gave the cutest wink she could back towards the boys on her team and they all swooned and clamoured for her (except for Porter).
Raul was next up, and he nervously stumbled into knocking down seven pins and dejectedly returned to the team. The seven was enough to put everything into a tie, much to Toriyama's dismay. Raul still received a warm welcome back to his chair and looked so depressed over it that Nami reached up and gave him a little peck on the cheek. This immediately sparked a fight between Ardwen, Chase, and Raul as Raul was first to get a kiss, however small, and it took until Nami agreed to give out equivalent kisses to the other two boys before things resolved and they could move on (Nami had also snuck in one to Porter as she went down the line of suitors).
"Ardwen to bowl," Rick declared. Mr. Toriyama's head shot straight up upon hearing it and he approached the referee cautiously.
"I think you made a mistake there sir. It should be Chase who goes third."
"No I have Ardwen written down here." Rick scanned the page to make sure he was right.
"Oh, Porter must have changed it then. So Chase is bowling after Ardwen correct?" the teacher asked.
"Nope. He goes last. Ardwen to bowl." The colour drained from Mr. Toriyama as he turned a ghostly shade of white. Teeth chattering, he slowly turned to look at his captain.
"P-p-p-porter..."
"Yes sir?" The student calmly answered, fully aware of the situation.
"C-can I s-speak w-w-with you a moment." Porter nodded and followed his leader off to the side, out of earshot of the rest of the team, leaving Ardwen to conduct his pre-shot calculations. "Why is Chase our anchor?" Toriyama whispered through his teeth, resting against the wall beside the bathroom to cease his shaking. "You do remember that the best player goes last, not the worst?"
"That's alright sir, I remember," Porter replied. "I trust in Chase. He's a strong guy and he doesn't want to lose more than anything in the world. I think he'll pull through when the time is right. And if we lose it's ok. We learn and grow. We have all season after all."
"Porter, I didn't tell any of you this but Ms. Sakura is also my wife."
"What!?" The pilot nearly jumped out of his outfit at hearing this.
"We're very competitive and she's always wanted to move up and take my job from me but, more importantly, we put a wager on this. If I lose I have to sleep in my classroom for the next week!"
"But...but your names aren't...but you two seem...sir I didn't even know you were married..." Porter's head spun on a swivel as he tried to weasel his way out of this. He already had assumed they would probably lose this match but he wanted to give Chase a chance and put a little trust in him, as he and Ardwen had discussed last night.
"I can't live out of my class Porter!" The teacher was starting to panic, eyes wides and darting back and forth between looking at the captain and looking over the shoulder at the evil wife. "Nobody has ever seen me without my morning face on!" Toriyama had grabbed Porter's shoulders and was shaking him back and forth.
The teenager was snickering imagining a haggard Mr. Toriyama. "Sorry sir, I'm afraid I can't help you now. You shouldn't have made that bet."
"Porter." Mr. Toriyama's voice grew dark and serious. "If you don't do everything you can to win this I will put you so far into detention you'll never see the White Storm again. Got it?" Porter gulped. He got it.
The two returned to see it was Porter's turn to shoot. With the pressure suddenly on, Porter threw a beautiful shot up the middle that ricocheted just enough to garner the strike and put the team comfortably ahead of their opponents. But the ace of Ms. Sakura (whose choice of name still baffled Porter as it gave no indication that she had a husband) was up. He had brought a personal ball with him, golden with blue stars, and sent it spinning down the lane, curling it perfectly so that it cut right across the pins and knocked them all flat in an instant. It was the cleanest strike any of them had ever seen and it tightened the gap in the score.
Everyone turned to look at Chase. It was finally his turn. The hot head popped up out of his seat with an unearned confidence and strutted over to the ball, giving a little menacing growl at the opponents, instilling a bit of fear and doubt in them. He posed a bit before finally stepping up to the line, and both Porter and Toriyama chewed their nails nervously as they watched.
Chase's first shot looked alright, wobbly a little before slowly dragging to the left and clipping the three pins in the corner. Porter gave a sidelong glance at his teacher and tried an innocent grin. "At least he hit something." Mr. Toriyama snorted in response.
The next one went straight into the gutter, without a hint of suspense, and Porter smacked his face with his palm while the year six group gave out a cheer. This would be hell.
* * * * *
Porter took in a deep breath and bowled, feeling a tingle from his shoulder straight down through the tips of his fingers and into the ball. Nine pins fell before him, and the tenth spun on the spot, leaving everyone watching breathless. This was the ninth frame, with an impossibly close score. If Porter got the strike they would be one point ahead.
Mr. Toriyama was wiping sweat away as it poured down over his glasses, his hopes lying in a wobbly pin that just wouldn't settle down. Gretta and Riya were holding each other in the seats on the side, praying for luck. Nami was busy being flirtatious with three boys at once and so they weren't paying attention.
And finally, the pin fell.
The captain's shoulders sagged with relief and he trudged back to the chairs. He exchanged a glance with Mr. Toriyama. They both knew that everything would be decided in the tenth frame. Chase's frame.
The ace of the cream team stood and stretched a little before tossing three successive strikes, barely pausing between each shot (other than letting the pins reset). He sat once again, confidently staring down Chase and the rest of the team. Behind him, Ms. Sakura gave out a menacing laugh as she felt her grip on winning the bet close tighter.
"Yeah, we're screwed," Raul mumbled and Ardwen nodded in agreement beside him.
"Oh come on guys, I believe in Chase!" Porter tried to set a good example, one leg up on a seat and making a triumphant hero's pose. "Why else would I put him last?"
"Porter, not that I don't love and support you," Nami said, "but Chase hasn't ever thrown a strike, even in practice. Now you want him to throw three in a row to win the game?"
"Um...yes?" Porter lost his balance and fell to the side. Chase passed by them all with nose upturned.
"Well, time to show all you amateurs how it's really done." Chase stepped up to the line, his blonde hair up in fiery spikes of passion. He pulled back and swung his arm forward. The ball caught on the ends of his fingers for a moment and took off with a bizarre spin, teetering on the edge of the gutter the entire way down the lane.
"I can't watch!" Mr. Toriyama yelled before covering his eyes. He opened a little slit between two of them though and peeked through. As he did, the bowling ball decided to suddenly veer back towards the centre, cutting straight into the pins and spinning in a circle, knocking every single pin down for the strike. Each person's jaw in the room hit the floor and stayed there.
"He got a strike?"
"He got a strike!"
"That was a strike?"
"That was a strike!"
Chase turned back to grin at his comrades and brag. "And you all thought I couldn't do it!"
"You couldn't do it," Raul snapped back with folded arms and an indifferent look.
"It was complete luck," Ardwen added, mimicking the ninja.
"Just take the second shot Chase, before I have a heart attack!" Mr. Toriyama demanded and the student begrudgingly complied. Just as Chase was about to shoot, a thought struck Porter on a way to inspire the bowler.
"Remember Chase, if you miss you would be a worse bowler than I am!""
"What?" Chase twisted mid-shot and lost his balance, toppling sideways as the ball was released. It streaked up the lane just right of the middle before a perfect curl left into the pins for a gorgeous strike. The entire team erupted with cheers and applause as Chase drew them a shot away from a win. The hot head picked himself up off the floor, brushing away the dust on his body, thoroughly disgusted at having been embarrassed by Porter. "Didn't anyone teach you manners Porter? Don't yell when I'm going like that!" The rest of the students rolled their eyes. "What?"
"Chase," Porter said. "It's all up to you right now. Everyone is relying on you. If you miss, you're a failure. Make it and you're a hero. And you want to be a hero Chase." Porter motioned towards Nami who gave a little wave.
"Porter, stop distracting me before I shoot. I need to focus on being the greatest bowler ever. Oh wait I already am! Ha!" Chase stumbled up to the line, drunk on confidence and attempting to display as much swagger as possible.
"We're still screwed," Raul repeated and everyone else nodded.
"Chase!" Nami shouted, interrupting the shooter's rhythm. "Do it for me! Do it for you mother."
At hearing this, Chase's eyes grew hard and dark, his face suddenly becoming serious. The air around him seemed to rise in temperature, becoming hazy and warped. "For my mother," Chase repeated. "For Nami. For all of them." He tossed the ball and it suddenly shot off, leaving a scorching trail of burned wooden alley behind it. The ball had caught fire, streaking for the middle and exploding into the pins sending them flying in all directions in a spectacular "fireworks" display. Everyone looked up in unison to see the computer screen record the strike and reveal the final score. They won!
The team tackled Chase into the lane as they exchanged hugs and high-fives and cheers all around. Mr. Toriyama stuck out his tongue after his wife as she stormed out with her team. "It's probably unethical but A's for all of you on that last test! A's for everyone!"
"Are you sure you aren't getting a bit too excited there sir?" Nami pointed out as the teacher did a little victory dance.
Embarrassed, Toriyama quickly adjusted himself and straightened out, taking on a serious demeanour. "Yes well, I'll go mark your papers then. Good job everyone. No practice tomorrow because of the dance. Have fun." Mr Toriyama hurried out, anxious to get back to his house before he was locked out by an angry spouse.
And everyone continued the celebration, even after Porter had been yanked away again mysteriously...
A/N: Here we are at volume 4! Thanks for all the support over this period! I invite everyone to help us with the Sigma/Star wiki at sigmastar.wikidot.com. I want to make it the best ever and I know I have the best fans to help me with that! Thanks guys