long may she reign
THE AWARD CEREMONY was quite a blur to Mizuki. She recalled vividly that the boys received their awards, the entirety of their cheering section coming down to congratulate them. The lavenderette was so proud and so thrilled. All their hard work had paid off, those nights of restless sleep, afternoons of coming up with new strategies, mornings of training — all of it paid off, and Karasuno's Boys Volleyball team was going to Nationals.
Karasuno was the representative for Miyagi. They were going to Tokyo.
Mizuki scanned the crowd.
And saw a familiar face.
Actually, she saw five.
Her aunt Akira was cheering and clapping wildly, hazel orbs glossed over with tears. Beside her, she saw her soulmates. Akaashi was smiling, he caught Mizuki's eye and waved. Bokuto was jumping up and down, shouting congratulations to the boys, mainly to his disciple. She could see how Kageyama nudged Hinata, the ginger-haired boy waving back frantically, though his cheeks flushed from the compliments. Beside Bokuto was Kuroo, who seemed to be trying to get Tsukishima's attention. From the proud and somewhat challenging expression on his face, Mizuki thought it was best not to alert Tsukishima to the other boy's presence. Kenma had his head ducked down, not actually looking at anyone, but Mizuki thought she saw a ghost of a smile when his dyed blond hair parted just slightly.
Her lips quirked upwards before she returned her attention back to the boys, all of them coming to stand before the four. "Good job, you guys!" Takeda cried, his arms extended and tears streaming down his face animatedly. "I'm...I'm...sho happwy!"
Mizuki watched as Coach Ukai suddenly sprang forward, hands landing on Daichi's shoulders. "Sawamura! Great job completing that three-man block in the end."
Daichi's lips twisted into a smile. "Well, I made a promise."
Coach smiled at Daichi fondly, but then his head snapped to the side. "Tsukishima!" the man bellowed, gaze landing on the blonde. He ran forward, slamming his hands on his shoulders much to the amusement of others. "No matter what anyone says," Ukai told him seriously, "you're the MVP today."
"I'm always the MVP," Tanaka said happily, cutting into the conversation, "so I'll let you have that title just for today, Tsukishima."
"You're definitely the mental MVP."
Mizuki turned her head as they left and saw Hinata had wandered over toward the scoreboard, his soulmate frowning and following after him. It truly was a close match. They had barely managed to pull away enough to score the winning point.
"Hinata Shoyo and Kageyama Tobio of the concrete..." The first-year duo's shoulders stiffened. They knew that voice. They turned instantly, facing the third year. "I'll defeat you next time."
Tobio scowled, but Hinata jumped forward. "I'll make sure I'll be able to stand on the same level as you!"
Tobio pushed his soulmate out of the way. "I'll make you say that I'm better than Oikawa-san!"
Ushijima stared at them for a moment before turning his back on them. The lavenderette followed after her childhood friend, meeting him on his way out. "Wakatoshi," she called, standing by the net. A gentle smile spread across her lips, her lilac eyes softening at the pure devastation peeking in his. "It was a good match."
He nodded stoically, taking her in. He recognised it. "Are they here?"
Mizuki's smile broadened. She turned to the stands, seeing her soulmates converse with her aunt and Ukai's volleyball group members. Ushijima followed her line of sight, briefly looking over the four individuals.
"I'll introduce you properly another day," she said, turning back to face the teenager. "I assume this won't be your last match, right?"
He shook his head. "I've been offered a volleyball scholarship."
"That's good," she hummed.
"Sayeko-senpai!"
Hearing her boys calling, Ushijima took that as an incentive to move on. Mizuki let him, watching him leave. "Wakatoshi," she called once again. He paused in his steps but did not look back. "I'm glad you had fun today."
Ushijima didn't say anything. He continued walking forward, and Mizuki smiled, knowing that she was right.
"Sayeko-senpai! Hurry up!"
"I'm coming."
Mizuki trotted over to where the rest of the team had lined up, standing beside Kiyoko with Coach Ukai on her other side. Only a few moments later, Tsukishima and Yamaguchi came back into the gym and joined them. "And now," the man standing on the podium started, "I present this award to the victors. Miyagi Prefectural Karasuno High School. Concluding the Miyagi Prefecture Qualifiers of the National High School Volleyball Tournament, your team has emerged victorious. I present you this award in acknowledgement of your commendable performance. Congratulations."
Mizuki bit back a smile as Daichi and Sugawara stepped forward to take the award and trophy. A moment later, a woman proceeded to walk down the line and place a gold medal on each of the boys' neck. "To praise both teams for their good match and to wish the best to Karasuno High School for their performance at the Spring High School Volleyball National Tournament in January, I'd like the audience to give them another big round of applause."
They did. Mizuki could hear the distinct voices of Bokuto and Kuroo. Bokuto was yelling for Hinata and "Tsukki!", while Kuroo seemed to be yelling all of their names in a row.
The ceremony blurred by and Mizuki glanced back up at the stands. The seats began to empty, and she saw Akaashi point at the doors when their eyes met. Mizuki nodded, knowing that meant that her family —her soulmates— were waiting for her.
Mizuki's mind flashed to a woman with brown hair and lilac eyes. A woman that had smiled and laughed with her when she was younger. Before the illness, before the bond devoured her whole, before she could no longer hold on.
If only you were here, mother.
Her thoughts drifted to her soulmates and the cacoon of safety they enveloped her in. She craved their warmth, the feeling of their fingers brushing along her skin, their laughter ringing through her ears, their comforting intertwined scents. Her desire for her soulmate grew day and night. Mizuki dared never telling them just how piercingly and endlessly she thought of them.
"Sayeko-san?" A soft voice cut into her thoughts, a hand placed on her shoulder. "Are you okay?"
A smile broke out onto her face. "Yeah."
Sugawara squeezed her shoulder, his eyes filled with joy. He recognised the change in his fellow third year. "We're going to celebrate. Coach Ukai is buying."
She hesitated. "My family is here."
Sugawara's eyes lit up. "Really? Your aunt?" Mizuki nodded. He placed his hands on his hips. "Well, she's welcome to join us."
"Bokuto, too?" Hinata asked suddenly, popping up beside his upperclassmen, jumping up and down excitedly.
"Bokuto's here, too?"
"And Akaashi-san, Kuroo-san and Kenma!"
"Wow," Sugawara said, glancing over his shoulder toward his soulmate. Daichi nodded his head, and Sugawara turned back towards them. "Sure! They helped us quite a bit, after all."
"Yay! Come on, Mizuki-senpai! Let's go find them!" Mizuki was barely able to register the words before Hinata gripped her wrist and pulled her out of the gym towards the hall. "Where do you think they are? I'm sure they're close! They're waiting for you, right?" Mizuki could only watch her kouhai ramble on, gushing about how excited he was to see the four. She followed after him, wondering if she should be that enthusiastic as well. They were her soulmates, after all. "Bokuto-san!"
"Hinata!"
Hinata released Mizuki's wrist and threw himself towards the multi-haired third year. She chuckled softly, seeing them hug each other tightly. She walked forward, greeting the others with a hug, her shoulders relaxing at the familiar contact.
"Surprised?" asked Kuroo, his arms wrapped around her waist.
Mizuki nodded. "I didn't expect you guys to come and watch."
"We wanted to see you," confessed Bokuto, a large delighted grin on his face, "so we thought we'd kill two birds with one stone!"
"Two birds with one stone?"
The owl-like male whipped his head over to Akaashi. "Did I say it right?"
Akaashi chuckled, nodding his head. "Yes, Bokuto-san." He turned back to Mizuki. "We wanted to see you, and we wanted to see how much Karasuno improved." Mizuki hummed, stepping out of Kuroo's hold to greet her aunt who watched them tenderly.
"And you?"
She shrugged, her lips curled upwards. "I had some free time," she answered. "I must say, I see now why you put in so much effort. They were marvellous." Mizuki nodded in agreement, watching as her aunt glanced over her shoulder, eyes drifting over to the entrance and exit doors. "Will your team be celebrating?"
"Yes!" Hinata yelled out before Mizuki was able to reply. "They said you're all invited! I- oh," he broke off and flushed. "Sorry. I'm Shoyou Hinata. Pleased to meet you," he said loudly, bowing at the waist.
"Ara?! So, this is Hinata-kun. Oh, it's so wonderful to meet you! I've heard so many things about you," she gushed, standing before the male and bringing him in a hug. The first year's face lit up, eyes twinkling at the fact that his senpai talked about him. "I watched your match! You were absolutely fantastic. Mizuki already told me about how high you can jump, but it's so different to actually see it. I'm still amazed!"
Hinata's face reddened, heat crawling up his neck the more Akira babbled on about him. It wasn't an unwelcomed feeling, though. In fact, Hinata found it as a nice change. It was almost heartwarming, seeing as his mother and sister could never make it to his games — not with the former working so hard and the latter being so young.
"Will you come with us?" he asked once again. "Our captain said that you're invited!"
"Oh, that's so sweet," Akira cooed. "But I'll have to sit this one out. I have to get back to work early in the morning tomorrow, though I don't see any reason why the boys can't stay." She glanced towards Akaashi, Bokuto, Kuroo, and Kenma, having acquainted herself with them at the beginning of the match. "You four are more than welcome to stay with us for the night if you'd like." She hoped they would stay. Akira wanted to get to know her niece's soulmates better.
They turned towards Mizuki, briefly seeing her nod her head with fond eyes.
Akaashi glanced toward Bokuto, who nodded his head frantically, before smiling slightly at the older female. "Thank you, Sayeko-san. We will do so."
"Oh, please, call me Akira." The older female was definitely happy Mizuki was blessed to have soulmates like those four. She had only talked to them a little, but the way they spoke, the way they supported each other no matter the differences, Akira knew that Mizuki was in good hands. "Well, you all have fun."
Mizuki bid her goodbye, receiving yet another hug before her aunt wandered away, heading back to her office to finish her work. "Mizuki-senpai! Come on!" Hinata said, bouncing off down the hall, Bokuto following behind him. "They'll leave without us!"
"I doubt that," she said, her youngest soulmate chuckling in agreement. The group followed the loud duo, Mizuki's eyes drifting over to Kenma, making sure his social anxiety didn't peak. She knew he wasn't fond of the outdoor, nor was he fond of people.
"There they are!" Sugawara said happily, standing beside the others outside. They turned to the group, bags either slung over their shoulders or dropped on the floor, their conversations all ceasing.
"Suga! Congratulations!" Bokuto yelled out, he and Kuroo hurrying forward, the latter heading straight for Daichi. The two of them entered a conversation that Mizuki thought was best not to listen to. Kenma leant against a wall, his hands fiddling with his sleeves, and Hinata was quick to join the second year.
"It was a very interesting game," Akaashi said, and Mizuki turned her attention towards her soulmate. "I was unsure for a moment what the outcome would be."
"So was I," she admitted. "I would've killed them if they lost. All those countless sleepless nights would've been wasted." She rolled her tense shoulders, her brain fogged with exhaustion. Mizuki spent too much time on the boys for them to lose.
Akaashi chuckled under his breath. This was a new side of Mizuki.
•• ━━━━━ ••●•• ━━━━━ ••
"I'm pretty sure I recently saw my relative's one-year-old do the same thing..." sweatdropped Keishin, watching the younger boys fall asleep on the table, drool dribbling down their mouthes, utterly exhausted from the match. "You guys need to decide if you're going to eat or sleep!"
Mizuki, sat at the other end of the table with her soulmates, watched the ruckus they were making. She nibbled on the food on her plate, not really hungry, even after the emotionally tiring day. All Mizuki wanted to do was curl up on her bed and catch up on her much needed sleep.
"You feeling okay?" asked Akaashi, picking up on her slowed movements, her head bobbing forward as she dozed off.
"Hm?" She turned towards him, and Akaashi saw clearly the darkened bags under her eyes. "Yeah. Just a little tired."
"Here." Kuroo pulled her head down, letting her rest on his shoulder. "You need to eat some food as well," he said, holding up his plate and chopsticks.
Nuzzling deeper into the male, Mizuki replied, "I'll eat later." She was content with where she was with, her muscles finally sighing in relief, grateful for the rest, especially her strained eyeballs. Now that they won, Mizuki could take a few days off the computer.
A hand slipped into hers, the long fingers entertaining with hers. Mizuki opened an eye, glancing to the side and spotting her youngest soulmate with pink-tinted cheeks. Her lips quirked upwards, and she shut her eyes, tightening her hold on his hand.
The group stayed at the restaurant for an hour or so. Mizuki allowed herself to take the time to rest, calming her nerves and allowing herself to slow down. She tuned out the boys' conversations, focusing on the feeling of Akaashi's hand, the warmth exuding off Kuroo. She ignored everyone and everything until she was charged up.
"Why does everyone call Daichi-san Dadchi?"
"Because Suga screams daddy all night long."
"oH."
"NISHINOYA! SHE'S A CHILD!"
"I'M SORRY IT SLIPPED!"
Mizuki exhaled deeply, the loud voices of the boys finally waking her up. "We should be heading out," she announced, raising her head from Kuroo's shoulder and glancing at the time on her phone. Her soulmates agreed with her, especially Kenma, whose social battery was plummeting the longer he stayed. Mizuki could feel it through their bond. It was faint, but it was still there.
Her soulmates bowed towards Karasuno's coach. "Thank you for having us."
Keishin waved it off with a smile. "It's no worries. Enjoy your night. Don't do anything stupid." He stared pointedly at Mizuki, eyebrows raised teasingly. Mizuki's face burned whilst her soulmates and team laughed.
"We won't."
On their way out, Mizuki took out her card and paid for the meal, thanking the lady for her hospitality with a bow. "Your coach is going to flip when he finds out," said Kuroo. Having encountered him a few times, he already knew that the older male was the type to pay for everything, despising when someone did it for him.
Mizuki shrugged. "Paying for a simple meal won't affect anything."
They made their way to her house in a comfortable silence, only being broken by Bokuto asking about something he saw. Mizuki, with her hand still linked with Akaashi's, would answer every question, explaining her hometown to the boy. "There isn't much, but it's home."
Mizuki glanced at all the stores they passed, memories of the time she spent in them with various people —most of them with her mother— filled her mind.
"It seems nice."
"It is."
They continued on, turning left at the end of one street and coming upon Mizuki's house. She let go of Akaashi's hand, searching through her bag for her key. "I'm sure I left it in here somewhere," she muttered, brows furrowing as she pushed the objects inside to the side. "Ah, here we go." She grabbed the key and lodged it into the lock, turning and opening the door. "Make yourselves at home."
They followed her inside, eyes observing and imprinting everything into their minds. It was a simple, traditional house, though fairly large for just two people.
"Are these for us?" questioned Kenma, eyes trained onto the shoe-rack beside the door.
Mizuki's face flushed and a sudden shyness washed over her. "I bought them earlier," she admitted, fiddling with the ends of her sleeves. "I had planned to ask you over, and I figured that you'd feel more at home."
"AWW! MIZUKI!" Bokuto dove towards her, enveloping her with his arms. "You're so sweet!" He nuzzled his cheek against hers, intensifying the blush on her cheeks.
"It's nothing," she mumbled, averting her gaze. The boys grinned, taking the slippers with their initials on them, surprised when they were their sizes. They didn't question it though, noticing that Mizuki looked like she was about to combust. She walked further into the house, climbing up the stairs slowly, allowing the boys time to take everything in.
Mizuki reached for her door handle, forcing back her insecurities. She pushed down, all too aware that there was no going back after this. Mizuki was letting her soulmates into her life, placing her faith and heart in their hands. She just hoped they'd be gentle with it.
"Woah. This much different than I expected," commented Kuroo, stepping into the room behind her, eyes taking in everything.
"What were you expecting?" she asked curiously, moving over to her closet to gather a new change of clothes. "Do I want to know?"
"No," he answered. "Not really."
Mizuki exhaled in amusement, sliding the door of her bathroom open. "I'll be back in a second."
The boys made themselves comfortable in her room. Kenma made his way to her bed, sitting at the front and taking out his DS, resuming his game. Bokuto and Kuroo sat on the floor, leaning against her bed. Akaashi stood at her desk, scanning through the books placed on the shelves above it, genuinely surprised by some of the titles.
"It's not nice to snoop, Keiji," sang Kuroo, a tantalising smirk on his lips as Akaashi sent him a glare.
"I'm not snooping," he said, returning his gaze to the books. "Just...observing."
Kuroo rolled his eyes, going to rile him up some more when Mizuki stepped out of the bathroom, dressed in black fitted leggings and a loose shirt with a faded band print. His eyes drifted over to her, appreciating the casual look she adorned. Even in something as simple and tattered as that, Mizuki still looks divine.
"Everything alright?" she asked, making her way over to the bed, sitting beside Kenma. The boys nodded; Kuroo watching as she shuffled close to Kenma, their shoulders coming to press together. Kenma relaxed against her, leaning back and continuing with his game.
"Ne, Mizuki." Said female turned to Akaashi who pointed at the books in her self. "These are all highly advanced pieces of literature," he mused, lifting the one she was currently reading through, her bookmark poking out at the top. "Any reason for these specific ones?"
"I like depth," she answered. "I like when I can look at something and feel it in my heart. I like when I can read a sentence with few words and feel like I'm drowning." Seeing the confused and slightly wary glances from her soulmates, Mizuki laughed softly, almost feather-like, raising a hand to wave off the uncertainty on their faces. "I'm not a masochist or a sadist," she reassured. "I just enjoy the quiet reminders that my heart does more than pump blood."
Yes. That's right, thought Kenma, eyes drifting back to his game as Bokuto struck up another conversation. There's something uncanny, demonic and fascinating about her. Like chaos and beauty intertwined.
"Are you guys excited for your playoffs?" Mizuki asked, arms wrapped around Kenma — the boy had moved himself to lay between her legs, his head leaning comfortably on her chest. Kuroo took his place when he relocated, sprawling himself across the bed and scrolling through his phone. Bokuto, having felt lonely by himself on the floor, moved to the end of the bed, sitting with his legs crossed whilst Akaashi sat at her desk, flipping through a book that piqued his interest.
"Uh-huh!" nodded Bokuto rapturously, his golden eyes glowing at the thought of volleyball. "I'm so excited!"
"May I ask a question?" That caught their attention, the four of them pausing in their other activities.
"Of course."
"How do you play against each other?" she asked finally. That question had been on her mind ever since she began to pay attention to her soulmates.
"On court?" Mizuki nodded.
The boys glanced at each other. "We don't really change anything," answered Kuroo, switching his phone off. "We play the same way we would play with other teams."
"We're opponents on court." Akaashi crawled over to Bokuto, plopping himself in his lap. "At the end of the day, whether we win or lose, there's no hard feelings."
The others agreed with him.
"Though Bo may throw a fit," Kenma muttered under his breath.
"KYANMA!"
Mizuki chuckled, tightening her hold around the smaller male. She leant her chin on his head, settling into the ambience surrounding them. For the remainder of the night, the group talked about everything and anything. They didn't get into anything personal, just about everyone's likes and dislikes, scraping past their surface level. The boys knew not to overstep any boundaries, especially since Mizuki was pushing herself by letting them into her house. They were grateful she involved herself, and they would wait patiently for her to open up completely.
They had time.