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Round 5 -- Sweet
I KNOW YOU GUYS ARE SUPER BUSY WITH YOUR OWN FIC, BUT IF YOU HAVE TIME YOU SHOULD TOTALLY HELP ME COME UP WITH A TITLE FOR THE KANEKO/MITANI ONE, WHICH IS THE ONE I THINK I'LL ACTUALLY SUBMIT.
Pseudonym: akota
Title: Icing
Characters/Pairings: Ashiwara, Saeki
Rating: G
Summary: Continuation of last week’s entry, Misplay.
Saeki, with his pale, colourless hair and unblemished skin, seemed like he should be icing on a cake, all smooth and soft and deliciously sweet.
Does he taste like butter cream? Ashiwara wondered, watching as Saeki flashed a small smile at one of his friends as he and a group of pros ambled toward the Ki-in’s cafeteria during their midgame break. Like cream cheese, like marzipan?
Saeki was always polite, too—not stiffly so, but rather the sort of polite which suggests that he was painfully aware of his own actions and the effects they may have on the people around him. Ashiwara had always previously considered this to be part of Saeki’s charm, gentle and subtle and cute. Now, having been on the receiving end of this careful kindness, Ashiwara was forced to revaluate his previous judgement.
Saeki looked up from his conversation, and their eyes locked briefly. Ashiwara smiled brightly and gave a small wave, but made no move to approach the other man or shout out a greeting.
After all—I wouldn’t want to be irritating, would I?
It wasn’t that Ashiwara wasn’t used to that particular adjective being applied to him on a regular basis; truth be told, he was more likely to actively encourage that opinion than not. And really, Ashiwara had been trying to drive Saeki up the wall. He just hadn’t realized he’d been succeeding so well; indeed, he’d always thought that some part of Saeki revelled in the attention. It was embarrassing to have been so far off the mark—he hadn’t misread a game so completely since his insei days.
Especially not one that he’d invested in so dearly.
Ashiwara jumped slightly as someone settled down beside him on the bench. A small package of lemon drops appeared in front of him.
“You seemed a little gloomy,” Saeki said mildly. “I thought these might cheer you up.”
Ashiwara just blinked at him, unsure as to what was going on.
“I never thought you’d be one for sour candy, though,” the other man continued, growing a little awkward at Ashiwara’s silence. Humph. He’d never had to carry a conversation on his own, had he? No, that was Ashiwara’s job, wasn’t it?
“I’m not, really,” he said quietly, not feeling up to his normally energetic tone.
Saeki frowned. “Then why…”
“It sounded like fun?” Ashiwara couldn’t prevent his lips from turning up at the corners.
Saeki sighed ruefully and made to stand. “Next time, just invite me out to dinner or something. A nearby dinner.”
As Saeki walked away, Ashiwara called out after him, “Don’t worry—I was saving that for round two!”
Saeki laughed and waved in acquiescence, and Ashiwara smiled, his cheeks going a little pink. Maybe Saeki was made of icing after all.
END
Pseudonym: akota
Title: Playoff: A First Date Story
Characters/Pairings: Kaneko/Mitani
Rating: PG
Summary: Mitani plays defence; Kaneko plays offence.
Kaneko kicked out and smiled when she heard the accompanying yelp. “You’re supposed to be studying, not daydreaming.”
Mitani scowled and determinedly settled his wavy head back into the circle of his arms, trying to block her out.
She kicked him again, harder this time.
“Up! Eyes open! Sit up straight!” She punctuated each command with a firm kick, and Mitani grumpily managed a vaguely-upright slump over his homework, eyes at half-mast.
“Now. What can you tell me about problem H?”
“…”
Kaneko sighed. “That’s the one at the bottom of the left page.”
Mitani redirected his eyes and eventually found the problem in question. And stared at it blankly.
“Mitani, pretty as you are, I didn’t come all the way over here just to watch you make cute faces at a sheet of paper. Get on with it.”
He glared at her and scribbled haphazardly onto the paper before shoving it at her. She peered down at it and was surprised to see that his answer was correct. Maybe he’d been listening after all.
She kicked him again. “You’re not being graded on penmanship, but it has to be legible, dumbass. Well, come on. We’re finished here, then.”
They gathered up their supplies and headed out. Mitani frowned when Kaneko lead them in the opposite direction of their normal go salon.
“Today you’re paying me by buying me lunch, rather than by playing go with me,” she said in answer to his unspoken question.
“Why?”
She didn’t say, ’Because boys never take me out to restaurants,’ and she certainly didn’t say, ’Because I’ve sort of liked you since I first saw you back in Junior High.’ After running through a few possible candidates, she settled on, “Because I said so. Walk faster.”
The café she’d chosen was tidy and elegant, but she’d taken care to avoid the ones all decorated in pink and hearts and knowing smiles. Mitani gazed around disinterestedly as she led him in and deposited him at a table before she headed off to the counter to order.
Returning, she slid into the seat across from him, announced how much he owed her, and the two settled into an unfamiliar awkward silence.
Perhaps she hadn’t thought this through all the way. They’d spent plenty of time alone together before, but there was no need to come up with a conversation topic when she was tutoring him in classes or they were playing go; during their walks to and from stations, the library, and the salon, they normally simply bickered.
Their order was called, and Kaneko quickly stood to collect it. She carried the two trays back to the table and carefully set them down before hurrying off to gather straws and napkins.
“You got me melon soda?” Mitani asked when she returned.
“Don’t complain.” She grabbed his soda, tore open the plastic covering a straw, and shoved the straw into the lid before handing the soda back to him. “I know it’s your favourite.”
“Yeah, but how do you know?”
Kaneko paused, suddenly wondering the same question. Finally, she snapped her fingers. “After the last go tournament in Haze Junior High, the go club all went out for lunch and you and Fujisaki were arguing about whether melon sodas or cherry cokes were better.”
Mitani stared at her for a moment, then shrugged. “No wonder you do so well in your classes if you can remember random shit like that.”
“Don’t curse. And use a napkin—you’re getting crumbs all over the table.”
“Your girlfriend sure is bossy, kid.”
Kaneko nearly exploded. This was just what she needed—a bunch of assholes sauntering around during this disaster of a pseudo-date, throwing around words like “bossy” and “kid” and ”girlfriend.” She sat up straight, ready to throw all of her frustration at these barely-upperclassmen.
Mitani answered before she was able to, simply saying, “So what?”
Kaneko stared at him blankly. Where were the fervent denials? And had he just agreed that she was bossy? Maybe she was a little commanding, but there was nothing wrong with that.
“Doesn’t it get on your nerves? There are plenty of girls out there—you don’t need to be stuck with this one.”
Kaneko felt herself turning red, but that was possibly less important than the fact that she was seeing red, too. How dare these jackasses talk about her like this right in front of her.
Mitani frowned thoughtfully. “No,” he said. “It doesn’t. And I know, and I don’t care. Why do you? She’s my girlfriend, not yours. Piss off.”
The red glow faded in her confusion. Okay, she could see Mitani being too lazy to bother with a heated denial of their being anything more than kind-of-friends. But why would he reassert that assumption? Was he just embarrassed to admit that he had a tutor?
After a few more jabs, the boys wandered away, evidently growing bored from the lack of reaction.
Mitani slurped at his drink as though nothing had happened.
Kaneko scowled. “I wish you’d let me handle that. I would have torn them limb from limb.”
“I know,” Mitani replied. “That’s why I spoke instead. It’d have been a pain to explain to the owners why there were mangled corpses on the floor.”
Kaneko snorted inelegantly and changed the subject. “Want to play go? I have a magnetic goban in my bag.”
“Sounds good.”
The rest of their meal passed uneventfully, dotted with their normal sprouts of bickering, which continued on through their walk back to the station.
“Masako?” Mitani asked, just as they were about to split up to take their separate lines.
Kaneko turned in surprise. She hadn’t even realised that Mitani knew her given name.
“Next time you take me out on a date, let’s go see a movie.”
Kaneko felt herself turning red. “Fine, jerk,” she said. “I’ll choose the gushiest, mushiest chick flick I can find.”
Mitani smirked. “But then you’ll be bored, too.”
As Kaneko headed toward her line, she felt a tiny, tiny seed of elation start to rise through her, but she quickly pushed it down. She’d have to remember to check the movie listings on her way home. Maybe they had a science documentary showing. Mitani hated science and documentaries.
It’d be perfect.
END
Pseudonym: akota
Title: Icing
Characters/Pairings: Ashiwara, Saeki
Rating: G
Summary: Continuation of last week’s entry, Misplay.
Saeki, with his pale, colourless hair and unblemished skin, seemed like he should be icing on a cake, all smooth and soft and deliciously sweet.
Does he taste like butter cream? Ashiwara wondered, watching as Saeki flashed a small smile at one of his friends as he and a group of pros ambled toward the Ki-in’s cafeteria during their midgame break. Like cream cheese, like marzipan?
Saeki was always polite, too—not stiffly so, but rather the sort of polite which suggests that he was painfully aware of his own actions and the effects they may have on the people around him. Ashiwara had always previously considered this to be part of Saeki’s charm, gentle and subtle and cute. Now, having been on the receiving end of this careful kindness, Ashiwara was forced to revaluate his previous judgement.
Saeki looked up from his conversation, and their eyes locked briefly. Ashiwara smiled brightly and gave a small wave, but made no move to approach the other man or shout out a greeting.
After all—I wouldn’t want to be irritating, would I?
It wasn’t that Ashiwara wasn’t used to that particular adjective being applied to him on a regular basis; truth be told, he was more likely to actively encourage that opinion than not. And really, Ashiwara had been trying to drive Saeki up the wall. He just hadn’t realized he’d been succeeding so well; indeed, he’d always thought that some part of Saeki revelled in the attention. It was embarrassing to have been so far off the mark—he hadn’t misread a game so completely since his insei days.
Especially not one that he’d invested in so dearly.
Ashiwara jumped slightly as someone settled down beside him on the bench. A small package of lemon drops appeared in front of him.
“You seemed a little gloomy,” Saeki said mildly. “I thought these might cheer you up.”
Ashiwara just blinked at him, unsure as to what was going on.
“I never thought you’d be one for sour candy, though,” the other man continued, growing a little awkward at Ashiwara’s silence. Humph. He’d never had to carry a conversation on his own, had he? No, that was Ashiwara’s job, wasn’t it?
“I’m not, really,” he said quietly, not feeling up to his normally energetic tone.
Saeki frowned. “Then why…”
“It sounded like fun?” Ashiwara couldn’t prevent his lips from turning up at the corners.
Saeki sighed ruefully and made to stand. “Next time, just invite me out to dinner or something. A nearby dinner.”
As Saeki walked away, Ashiwara called out after him, “Don’t worry—I was saving that for round two!”
Saeki laughed and waved in acquiescence, and Ashiwara smiled, his cheeks going a little pink. Maybe Saeki was made of icing after all.
END
Pseudonym: akota
Title: Playoff: A First Date Story
Characters/Pairings: Kaneko/Mitani
Rating: PG
Summary: Mitani plays defence; Kaneko plays offence.
Kaneko kicked out and smiled when she heard the accompanying yelp. “You’re supposed to be studying, not daydreaming.”
Mitani scowled and determinedly settled his wavy head back into the circle of his arms, trying to block her out.
She kicked him again, harder this time.
“Up! Eyes open! Sit up straight!” She punctuated each command with a firm kick, and Mitani grumpily managed a vaguely-upright slump over his homework, eyes at half-mast.
“Now. What can you tell me about problem H?”
“…”
Kaneko sighed. “That’s the one at the bottom of the left page.”
Mitani redirected his eyes and eventually found the problem in question. And stared at it blankly.
“Mitani, pretty as you are, I didn’t come all the way over here just to watch you make cute faces at a sheet of paper. Get on with it.”
He glared at her and scribbled haphazardly onto the paper before shoving it at her. She peered down at it and was surprised to see that his answer was correct. Maybe he’d been listening after all.
She kicked him again. “You’re not being graded on penmanship, but it has to be legible, dumbass. Well, come on. We’re finished here, then.”
They gathered up their supplies and headed out. Mitani frowned when Kaneko lead them in the opposite direction of their normal go salon.
“Today you’re paying me by buying me lunch, rather than by playing go with me,” she said in answer to his unspoken question.
“Why?”
She didn’t say, ’Because boys never take me out to restaurants,’ and she certainly didn’t say, ’Because I’ve sort of liked you since I first saw you back in Junior High.’ After running through a few possible candidates, she settled on, “Because I said so. Walk faster.”
The café she’d chosen was tidy and elegant, but she’d taken care to avoid the ones all decorated in pink and hearts and knowing smiles. Mitani gazed around disinterestedly as she led him in and deposited him at a table before she headed off to the counter to order.
Returning, she slid into the seat across from him, announced how much he owed her, and the two settled into an unfamiliar awkward silence.
Perhaps she hadn’t thought this through all the way. They’d spent plenty of time alone together before, but there was no need to come up with a conversation topic when she was tutoring him in classes or they were playing go; during their walks to and from stations, the library, and the salon, they normally simply bickered.
Their order was called, and Kaneko quickly stood to collect it. She carried the two trays back to the table and carefully set them down before hurrying off to gather straws and napkins.
“You got me melon soda?” Mitani asked when she returned.
“Don’t complain.” She grabbed his soda, tore open the plastic covering a straw, and shoved the straw into the lid before handing the soda back to him. “I know it’s your favourite.”
“Yeah, but how do you know?”
Kaneko paused, suddenly wondering the same question. Finally, she snapped her fingers. “After the last go tournament in Haze Junior High, the go club all went out for lunch and you and Fujisaki were arguing about whether melon sodas or cherry cokes were better.”
Mitani stared at her for a moment, then shrugged. “No wonder you do so well in your classes if you can remember random shit like that.”
“Don’t curse. And use a napkin—you’re getting crumbs all over the table.”
“Your girlfriend sure is bossy, kid.”
Kaneko nearly exploded. This was just what she needed—a bunch of assholes sauntering around during this disaster of a pseudo-date, throwing around words like “bossy” and “kid” and ”girlfriend.” She sat up straight, ready to throw all of her frustration at these barely-upperclassmen.
Mitani answered before she was able to, simply saying, “So what?”
Kaneko stared at him blankly. Where were the fervent denials? And had he just agreed that she was bossy? Maybe she was a little commanding, but there was nothing wrong with that.
“Doesn’t it get on your nerves? There are plenty of girls out there—you don’t need to be stuck with this one.”
Kaneko felt herself turning red, but that was possibly less important than the fact that she was seeing red, too. How dare these jackasses talk about her like this right in front of her.
Mitani frowned thoughtfully. “No,” he said. “It doesn’t. And I know, and I don’t care. Why do you? She’s my girlfriend, not yours. Piss off.”
The red glow faded in her confusion. Okay, she could see Mitani being too lazy to bother with a heated denial of their being anything more than kind-of-friends. But why would he reassert that assumption? Was he just embarrassed to admit that he had a tutor?
After a few more jabs, the boys wandered away, evidently growing bored from the lack of reaction.
Mitani slurped at his drink as though nothing had happened.
Kaneko scowled. “I wish you’d let me handle that. I would have torn them limb from limb.”
“I know,” Mitani replied. “That’s why I spoke instead. It’d have been a pain to explain to the owners why there were mangled corpses on the floor.”
Kaneko snorted inelegantly and changed the subject. “Want to play go? I have a magnetic goban in my bag.”
“Sounds good.”
The rest of their meal passed uneventfully, dotted with their normal sprouts of bickering, which continued on through their walk back to the station.
“Masako?” Mitani asked, just as they were about to split up to take their separate lines.
Kaneko turned in surprise. She hadn’t even realised that Mitani knew her given name.
“Next time you take me out on a date, let’s go see a movie.”
Kaneko felt herself turning red. “Fine, jerk,” she said. “I’ll choose the gushiest, mushiest chick flick I can find.”
Mitani smirked. “But then you’ll be bored, too.”
As Kaneko headed toward her line, she felt a tiny, tiny seed of elation start to rise through her, but she quickly pushed it down. She’d have to remember to check the movie listings on her way home. Maybe they had a science documentary showing. Mitani hated science and documentaries.
It’d be perfect.
END