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A Matter of Memory	By : Bastet Category: Prince of Tennis/Tennis no Ohjisama > General Views: 7858 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Prince of Tennis (Tennis no Ohjisama), nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 8
- 9
Finally I�m
done.� It�s my longest chapter in this
story so far.� As for the next chapter
that might take a while because I�ve been trying to switch back and forth a
chapter on this and a chapter on Ghost Hunt, and I�m going to be pet sitting
away from home this weekend and the week or so after that.� So I won�t be at my computer much.� Sorry.

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Ryoma was really sick of running today.� No, not just running, he was just plain sick and
tired of crazy people making him run or walk away.� All he wanted was to get to a hospital so
that they could help him remember his life and instead he�d been abandoned by a
boy who hissed a lot, then creeped out by what he
thought was a perverted old man.� That
had been followed by him being molested by either a crazy lady or a whore (he
couldn�t decide which she was), then mistreated and nearly kissed by a nut
claiming to be his boyfriend.� Then, as
if that hadn�t been bad enough, he�d been harassed by a guy who�d wanted to
beat him up, only to be saved by a tough looking guy who told him to run
away.� Somehow they�d all seemed to know
who he was but other than a name he knew nothing about himself.� All in all Ryoma came to one conclusion.� This day really sucked.� That decided he slowed himself down to a walk
and looked around curious to see if he recognized anything.�

He didn�t really expect that he would, so he was surprised,
enough so to stumble to a stop, when he looked across the street at a sushi
restaurant that brought a face flashing across his mind.� It was gone before he could place it though,
so he studied the building more carefully.�
Kawamura Sushi.� Sushi� the word
brought to mind a kind gentle meek looking face which a moment later contorted
into an aggressive fierce looking boy.�
It was confusing though because it was the same face and both felt to
him like they belonged.� Like they were
something he was used to but it made no sense to him.� Shaking his head he turned away and started walking
again.� The place was closed at the
moment anyway.� He pondered as he walked
just what that face might mean to him.�
Was it someone he was often with?�
A rival?�
Maybe, but in what?� Or could that flash of a face possibly be the
male lover he was supposed to be with?�
It was all confusing and all getting him nowhere fast.�

Something to his left caught his eye and he turned to
look.� It was an electronics shop with a
television in the window which had a basketball game on.� He stopped in time to see an athlete slam
dunk the ball and received another dizzying flash from his memory.� A tall lithe boy with sinewy muscles and
spiky black hair was jumping into the air with something in his hand.� He was reaching for something and Ryoma felt
himself smile though he was unsure why.�
Ryoma tried to hold onto the memory this time but the purple eyed boy
slipped away just as fast as the last memory had.� It was almost infuriating now, glimpses of
people he knew but didn�t know, things he remembered but didn�t at the same
time.� He knew all these people meant
something to him, but for the life of him he didn�t know what or why.� He quickly wiped away the tear that was
threatening to fall from the frustration he felt, knowing that crying would do
him no good.� He had to keep going.� He didn�t know what was driving him anymore
but something was telling him to just keep going.� Maybe if he found enough things to jog his
memory he might fully remember what he�d forgotten, or at least remember
something significant like an address he could go to find help.� Anything was better than staying in one spot
and feeling sorry for himself, he decided just as a convertible came to a stop
next to where he stood.

�� Yo, Ryoma.� What are
you doing wandering around and making your cousin Nanako worry like this.� The man at the wheel said lowering his
sunglasses.

�� Do I know
you?� Or better yet do you know how to
get to the nearest hospital?� Ryoma asked tiredly.� He was really sick of people not answering
that question.

�� What do you
mean do you know me?� I�m your cousin�s
boyfriend, Taro.� Now come on and get
in.� She�s worried sick about you.� Don�t worry I�ll take you to wherever you
need to go.�� The man said in a
deceptively nice tone as he slipped his sunglasses back on to hide the glint in
his eyes.

Ryoma hesitated unsure of why his instinct was telling him
to be cautious while his common sense was telling him to get in the car.� Taro leaned over and opened the door from the
inside with a welcoming smile and motioned for him to get in.

�� You�ll
take me to the hospital?� he asked unsure of what to believe.

�� Yeah, of course.� Wherever you need to go.�
C�mon kiddo we�re wasting time.�

Still fighting his irrational instinct to run Ryoma got into
the passenger�s seat and shut the door.�
He�d just done up his seatbelt as the car was pulling back out into
traffic when he heard someone shout behind him.

�� NO!� RYOMA DON�T GO WITH HIM HE�S DANGEROUS!�

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�� Was I seeing
things or did Mizuki have very wet pants?� Oishi asked in bewilderment.

�� Yeah, nya.� He looked
like he pissed himself.� Did Ryoma make
him pee his pants?� Eiji said just as confused.

�� Why would
Echizen do that?� Kentarou asked loudly.

�� Echizen
can be as frightening as Fujiko on the courts when he wants to be, but he
seemed to be coming out of that restaurant; what could Echizen have done to him
in there?� Kawamura queried quietly.

�� We can ask
that later.� Right now we need to decide
which direction to head in to look for him.� Oishi commanded as he shook his
head to get his mind back on topic.

Before any of the others could give an opinion Eiji grabbed
Oishi by his arm and started dragging him in the opposite direction that Mizuki
had taken.

�� It�s this
way!� I can feel it.� O�chibi would have gone this way!�

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�� Fssshhhhh�� Kaidoh hissed in worried frustration.

�� We will
find him Kaidoh.� You shouldn�t worry too
much.� Inui tried to reassure him.

�� Now that
we have a general starting area our chances of finding him first have increased
to 39.7 percent.� That is better than
what we had five minutes ago.� We should
cut down this alley and the two after it; it�s a shortcut to Kotto Street.� It will decrease our travel time by at least
fifteen minutes.� Renji supplied as he pointed the other two towards the alley
he�d suggested.

�� Sempai�
what if something really bad has
happened to him?� Kaidoh asked suddenly.�
Ryoma might not have been his best friend but he was a teammate and he
had to admit that the kid had some redeeming qualities.� They�d never gotten close to one another
because they both understood that their personalities just weren�t compatible
in that way.� Kaidoh liked silence when
he jogged because he liked to think, whereas Ryoma tried to get him to talk if
they were running together.� Whether it
was just egging him on trying to make it a competition or just whatever popped
into the boy�s head Kaidoh found it annoying.�
Still he didn�t wish any harm to Ryoma, and he was a teammate.� That meant he was someone to be protected,
even more so since he was a kouhai.�
Kaidoh was willing to fight to protect anyone he thought worth it and
his team was definitely worth it.

�� Kaidoh�
Kaoru� I�m sure he�s fine.� He�s got too
much luck and about as many lives as that cat of his.� We�ll find him and we�ll get him help.� Inui
stopped Kaidoh and made him look into his eyes as he said this so that he could
see just how sincere he was.

�� Besides
there is a 100 percent chance that Sadaharu won�t let your teammates kill you
for this.� He is just as protective of
you as I have observed you to be of him.� Renji said almost longingly as he
turned away from them and carried on walking leaving the other two a little
puzzled at his behavior.

Inui and Kaidoh looked at each other in silent bafflement
before realizing that they were being left behind.� They had nearly caught up to the Rikkaidai
strategist when they heard someone yell from the street ahead of them.

�� NO!� RYOMA DON�T GO WITH HIM HE�S DANGEROUS!�

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�� This is
unacceptable!� Atobe fumed outside of the fenced construction zone.

�� Keigo calm
down.� Low budget apartments with a
daycare in the building are a good thing for the court to be turned into if it
had to go.� Sanada said trying to soothe one of his lovers.�

The other two hadn�t said a word since they�d parked and
walked down to find the beginnings of a building where the tennis court had
once been.� Tezuka appeared unruffled to
anyone who didn�t know his intimately but to his lovers he looked both worried
and more than a little sad that a memorable place had been destroyed.� Fuji
had simply taken his hand and held it tightly occasionally rubbing his thumb
across the back of it in a comforting gesture.�
Despite the quiet none of them were really surprised when Fuji�s
cell phone went off or that he answered it without letting go of Tezuka.

�� Nee-san,
do you have anything?� he asked after seeing the name on the screen.

�� Shusuke
I�m really worried.� I was performing
another reading when a candle tipped over and rolled across the cards.� It touched several of them but it lit only
one on fire.� The ten
of swords.� When I put it out the
smoke formed one of the shadows I saw in my dream.� Shusuke I�m sorry but something really
horrible is going to happen unless it�s stopped.� Echizen needs to be found and found now.� Yumiko said over the line nearly in
tears.

�� Dammit!� Nee-san we
have no leads.� We don�t know where to
look!� We� we don�t know him as well as
we thought�� Shusuke said as his voice nearly broke with the pain of the
thoughts running through his mind.�
Tezuka�s hand tightened on his trying to be reassuring but failing
miserably.

�� Shusuke� I
don�t know what to tell you.� Honey I�m
sorry but the cards just aren�t telling me where he is��

�� We�ll find
him Nee-san.� We have to� I�ve got to go, we need to check with the other�s.� Shusuke managed to
say, barely keeping his voice steady, before he hung up a moment later.

Again no one said anything but Tezuka drew Fuji
into his arms and just held him close trying to comfort both himself and one of
his lovers.� He didn�t have to look to
know that Sanada was holding Atobe in the same way but the two of them shared a
look of support and love over the shorter two�s heads.� Surprisingly it was Sanada�s cell phone that
rang next and he had to maneuver a little to answer it while still holding the
Hyotei captain.

�� Genichirou,
its Seiichi.� We saw him, but we have a
big problem.�

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�� Akaya what
do you mean he�s dangerous.� Who the hell
was that?� Yukimura demanded in a tone that commanded it be obeyed.

�� That was
Nanako-san�s boyfriend.� She�s Ryoma�s
cousin but her boyfriend is definitely someone he wouldn�t have willingly
gotten in a car with.� What the fuck just
happened?� Ryoma hates him� he�s actually
scared of him and for damn good reason.� Kirihara tried to explain.

�� What
reason Akaya?� What is going on?�

�� That�s
what we�d like to know.� Where did
Echizen go and who did you say he was with?� Inui demanded as he, Kaidoh, and
Renji ran up.

�� He got
into a car with Himura Taro, Nanako-san�s steady
boyfriend.� But he�s dangerous.� Really, really, dangerous.� He tried to run Ryoma over in that car once
and he tried to dump Karupin in the river.�
Ryoma didn�t press charges because there were no witnesses.� It was his word against that bastard�s and
Nanako-san just brushes it off as jealousy or something whenever Ryoma tries to
tell her about him.� So do his
parents.� I�m the only one he�s told the
full truth to.� Kirihara explained quickly to his two teammates and to the two
Seigaku players.

�� Fsshhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!� Why would Echizen get in a car with him
then?� How could I let
this happen?!� Kaidoh burst out completely terrified for Ryoma and for
himself as well.

�� Let this
happen?.. never mind we�ll
discuss that later.� Right now I need to
make a phone call.� Yukimura said with a look that promised a long talk later
as he took out his phone.

�� Genichirou,
its Seiichi.� We saw him, but we have a
big problem.� Ryoma seems to have gotten
in a 2004 black Toyota Solara convertible with his
cousins boyfriend who Akaya says has tried to badly injure or kill both Ryoma
and his cat.� We�re five blocks from Kotto street,
by Kawamura Sushi.�

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The following is one
meaning of the Ten of Swords Tarot Card.
All they that take the sword, it has
been said, shall perish with the sword, and the Ten of Swords is a card that show us the real-life implications of this
proverb. This is the ultimate manifestation of the Swords suit and its
negative, destructive power. Even though only one sword would be needed to kill
this man, ten were used: he has not simply been killed, but annihilated. The
Ace of Swords was a warning about using excessive force for evil purposes and
the Ten is the inevitable result of that abuse of power. Those who refuse to
listen to the wisdom of the Swords will eventually be impaled on them.
This card usually symbolizes a sudden
and unexpected failure or disaster, a power beyond your control that humbles
you without warning or mercy. Karma, the law of cause and effect, has free
reign in the Ten of Swords, so a past misdeed may indeed be the source of
future trouble. Sometimes you will be able to change this outcome, but most of
the time you will simply have to bear down and take the hit. The positive side
is that the Ten of Swords is the final ordeal, and no more pain will come to you
from that source. It is darkest before the dawn, and as gloomy as it looks, the
sun will rise again.
Something that is important to note,
at least in the Rider-Waite symbology, is that the
sun is indeed rising in the background despite the black clouds. Each new
beginning must come from another beginning's end, and with every defeat are
sown the seeds of future victory. Enlightenment comes from using your mental
and spiritual powers for good, and this is the true
lesson of the Swords suit. This card is the ultimate teacher, and it shows you
how to learn from your mistakes and misdeeds so you never have to fall prey to
the evil side of the Swords suit again.
When this card appears after a
painful situation, it is a signal to pick yourself up off the ground and start
thinking about what happened to you and what you have to learn from it. Hidden
deep beneath the surface of the Ten of Swords is the ultimate power of the
Swords suit: the ability to analyze your ways and learn from yourself. True
wisdom does not come from without, but from within. The Ten of Swords is a sign
that what you have gone through was not without purpose. The great positive
power within you can be used to learn from your pain and draw wisdom from
defeat. This is the Swords ideal.

This information was made by
James Rioux (The Black Shadow), bshadow@nbnet.nb.ca.

Copyright 2000 James Rioux.
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A Matter of Memory