Two updates today. (SNIPPET BELOW)
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
School the next day was an interesting one. The student council president was seeking re-election again, and he saw a few posters and flyers about it around the school once more as he waited for lunch break to end.
Edmond, her sister’s girlfriend, spotted him and came jogging over.
“Hey, Ritsuka, are you up for some more basketball today?”
He smiled, “I’m afraid not, I have plans after school.”
Edmond wrapped his arms around his shoulders. “No, right now, we’re a man short. You game?”
He was going to refuse, because he wanted to eat alone while he had the chance between classes. However, he heard his sister’s pressure.
“Be more social little brother.”
He took a deep breath, looking down at his lunch. “Fifteen minutes, then I need to eat.”
“Great, Edmond turned him around the corner back to the basketball court.” It was a whirlwind of names and introductions. People he’d known from classes and such, but never met whenever he was in the gym. Then he had to run off to change into his PE clothes because it was wiser not to play in his current clothes.
The lead boy on the other team gave a small huff, “I’ll go easy on you, quiet boy.”
Ritsuka smiled and said nothing. As if daring the other team leader to make a move directly on him.
Edmond, however, huffed, “You’re gonna eat shit, Alexander.”
At a friendly whistle, the ball came to him. Edmond had set that start-up, of course, because they needed to make a point quickly.
Down six, not terrible.
They dribbled down, and with a reverse bounce, on the ball, Ritsuka spun them around like an easy bounce, and instead of laying it up, bounced it off the glass to Edmond, who made an easy shot.
Alexander looked at Ritsuka.
Ritsuka only smiled.
The other lead boy nodded and planned to go right at him. Now that he’d seen he wasn’t a pushover, he wanted to test him.
It was only natural, of course.
Alexander was the lead basketball player for their sports team. Edmond was the second.
Suddenly, he got the impression that this was more of a tryout.
86 AU:
https://archiveofourown.org/works/67157932/chapters/173426089
He felt a distinct relief come over him at realizing who the woman was standing across from him. She looked like Kadoc, that same mix of Alabaster and Heliodore that adorned her beautifully.
Nor had he expected to be suddenly so taken with her appearance.
Ritsuka hadn’t known what to expect, but there was a way those amber eyes seemed to light up upon realizing who he was. He hung on her every word as it dared him, luring him to say something to her.
He wanted to bicker.
But as all those worries faded to relief, the truth was all that remained. He was clutching the para-raid choker in his hand, and he smiled simply.
“It’s good to see you, Jeanne.” He said, using her name before he could stop himself.
It had put a pause on whatever would’ve come out between their lips next. But a bicker, a snide remark, a quip couldn’t come to him as much as he tried to do so.
Business first.
He didn’t hang his head in defeat, but he didn’t fight the small smile in seeing her. She had that beautiful ashen white hair, complemented by those amber eyes that were easy to draw him in. Hearing her voice without the static of a para-raid, the strangeness that came with that distance had vanished to a table's distance.
Less than that, as she leaned over the table toward him, her fingers stretched along the maps he would need in a minute to give the briefing of the plan. The flight suit did little to hide her. Her hair was short, which was different from when they had last talked for a prolonged period of time before the major Legion offensive had started.
She mentioned her long hair and that she was probably going to cut it.
Finally, his words seemed to sink, and he saw her face turn just a shade redder as she suddenly straightened up.
He delighted in that, the same way she no doubt delighted in him, realizing who she was.
Business-
He bit his lip, trying to bury all those silly things he wanted to ask her in person. About her drawing. About her…
About her.
-first.
