Title: Coaching Troubles
Fandom: Prince of Tennis: Fudomine Chuugaku
Characters: Tachibana Kippei, Kimotomine Tarou
Prompt: 080 - Why?
Word Count: 367
Date finished: 09/10/2007
Rating: G
Summary: Tachibana makes waves.
Author's Notes: I've been wanting to write something about the adminstration of Fudomine Jr. High - adults that would stand by and watch the younger boys (at least) get beat up. And I wondered how they felt about Tachibana, too.
Disclaimer: Characters are owned by Konomi Takeshi, and whoever did the anime. At any rate, it's not me.

Tachibana Kippei bowed, ever polite, ever correct. "I came to ask if you have found a suitable coach for the tennis team yet. Kamio is a good player, and will be a good captain, but he still needs guidance."

Kimotomine sighed. "We had a perfectly good…."

"Excuse the interruption, but no, you didn't. A good coach would never had allowed anyone to be treated like that, not even first years."

"You're leaving. Why do you care?"

Tachibana fidgeted like he wanted to pace. "Because this team… these guys are my friends. And we've worked hard to get as far as we did. I don't want that to go to waste."

"We don't have the money to hire the kind of coach you're talking about."

The boy didn't back down. "If you want to keep going the way I started, you'll find it."

Irritated - not willing to go over it all again with him - Kimotomine dismissed Tachibana, and marked off one more day until he was gone from the school.

The information that he was getting a new coach for his tennis team surprised Kimotomine, and he stared at his Vice Principal, who'd brought the news. "A what?"

"He was hired by the district and asked to come here."

"We don't have the money…." Kimotomine said weakly.

"He agreed to the salary we offered."

Kimotomine sighed. "Who is it?"

"Tachibana Kippei," a voice announced from the doorway, and Kimotomine just stared, speechless.

He'd followed Tachibana's career - not hard, he made waves wherever he went - but lost track of him a few years ago. He'd kept track so that the irritation wouldn't come home to roost.

Losing track of the man had been the stupidest thing he'd ever done. Kimotomine sighed. "Welcome to Fudomine," he said, echoing the first time he'd ever seen this strange boy and his sister from Kyushu.

"Thank you," Tachibana said. "I look forward to working with you."

More ominous words were never spoken, no matter what anyone else said.

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