Teiko's basketball III: Three's a charm

Passion for sport

Sora chewed on her lip thoughtfully as she looked at the first year. Misaki Mai was tall, lithe and obviously an excellent swimmer judging from the way she looked almost streamlined. Although she did look athletic, Sora doubted whether she would be an asset as far as basketball was concerned. Akira was with her and probably reassuring her that everything would be just fine. Sora sighed. It was a nice gesture but it would just end up complicating things.
As soon as most of the team had turned up, coach looked pointedly at her to begin the practice and Sora took the hint. She set them on the usual drill routine and joined them. After the drill ended, Sora paired up the team for matches and called Mai aside. She saw Akira slip away from the rest of the group and gave an irritated sound.
"Mai-san, what do you know about basketball?" questioned Sora.
Mai looked at her, a bit confused. "You've got to be more specific," pointed out Akira.
"Shouldn't you be playing now, Akira-san?" said Sora evenly.
"I need to make sure you're not too hard on her," said Akira stubbornly. Sora glared at her and then directed her gaze at Mai. "Okay, I'll be more specific... Can you list some of the types of shots you know?"
"Dunk, Alley oop, Hook, Scoop..." began Mai and then glanced at Akira.
"Please look at me, when you answer, Mai-san," said Sora sternly. Mai swallowed discreetly.
"She's new," said Akira. "Shouldn't you be showing her the ropes..."
"I would love to intimate you with the rules of the game," said Sora cutting across "But I must say you joined a bit too late in the season..."
"Oh, I'm a swimmer," piped up Mai. "I think I'll be able to manage the strain."
Sora held up a hand. "Nonetheless, you know nothing about the rules. Unfortunately I cannot help you today. So I recommend you to run a few additional laps around the court. And then proceed with some strengthening exercises. Keep an eye on the game while you do so. It'll help."
"Can't she play?" questioned Akira. But Sora ignored her and went towards the court. "What has gotten into her?" muttered Akira.
"She's rude!" exclaimed Mai. "She didn't even answer your question, Akira-sama."
"She isn't generally like that," said Akira slowly.
"Nae, can I come and play with you?" said Mai.
"We'll play later... For now, let's do what she says," said Akira.
"Okay," said Mai.
After practice, Sora was called away by the coach. Yukiji emerged out from the changing room a few minutes later and saw Sora talking with Mai. After the short conversation, Sora nodded and turned away from her. Yukiji could see a hint of disappointment on her face. She approached Sora carefully and said, "So... What did coach want?"
"Training camp details. We're going after two weeks," said Sora with a shrug.
"Oh. Where?"
"The mountains. Where else?"
"Did she want to know anything else?" said Yukiji carefully. Sora flinched. "She wanted to know what potential the new candidate had."
"What did you say?"
"That she was athletic. Looked like someone with good stamina."
"What do you really think?"
"I just told you," said Sora.
"Oh come on!" said Yukiji. "I just saw your face. Tell me the truth."
"She doesn't seem to have that passion for the sport," said Sora.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, I asked her to tell me the types of shots she knew at the start of practice. I also asked her the same question now and didn't get any variation in her answer. This is quite irksome..."
"How so?" said Yukiji concerned.
"Look at it this way," said Sora bitterly. "There were a lot more types of shots we used today. I set her on laps around the court so that she would have ample opportunity to observe us. She had also made a few friends here and Akira of course is always willing to help any bloody lost puppy. If she were really interested, she would have noticed the variations in our play and the team would have clarified all her doubts. But since I didn't get any change in her reply, she apparently didn't bother to ask."
"Seriously, what do you even expect from her?" said Yukiji shaking her head.
"More... Desire," said Sora. "That's the only hope for someone who joins this late."
"I don't know..." said Yukiji. "I mean, look at Kise. He changes clubs whenever he feels like it. He doesn't do so horribly."
"Kise is an exceptional case," pointed out Sora. "Even without that, there's a huge difference between them."
"Just don't kill the girl before she leaves," said Yukiji resigning herself to the fact that she probably couldn't win today. Sora laughed and skipped to the door. "Kise has been in the basketball club a long time and he doesn't look tired of it. At least it looks like that to me. Oh and Yukiji-san, if you have any doubts about what I say, challenge her to a match now," said Sora.
That statement made Yukiji curious and she hunted down Mai. She was in front of her locker. She was holding something in her hands and looking at it thoughtfully. Yukiji watched her walk towards the dust bin and drop it in. It was a pair of goggles.
"Aren't those expensive?" questioned Yukiji. Mai jumped and then nodded. "Yeah. Only, I won't need them any more. I don't think I can balance both clubs..."
"Says who?"
"Akira-sama... She said it would be hectic."
Yukiji snorted earning a glare from the younger girl. "I agree. But seriously, shouldn't you have stuck on for a bit before throwing away those goggles?"
"Akira-sama has a lot of experience. She should know," said Mai frigidly.
"Hey, can we play?" said Yukiji suddenly. Mai looked at her as if she was crazy and shook her head. "Sorry, senpai. I'm tired. I'm leaving."
Yukiji nodded. "Take care." Yukiji watched her as she left and felt like she understood what Sora was trying to tell her. Kise would never turn down a challenge. But she still couldn't grasp the significance of the refusal and why Sora remained uneasy.