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31_days2008-11-15 03:31 pm
issen4.livejournal.com) wrote in 31_days2008-11-15 03:31 pm
[15 Nov] [Initial D/Prince of Tennis/Hikago] Slip Roads 15/31
Title: Slip Roads 15/31
Day/Theme: 15 Nov/But must I confess how I liked him?
Series: Initial D/Prince of Tennis/Hikago
Character/Pairing: previous Takahashi Ryousuke/Fuji Yuuta
Rating: PG-13, references to incest between brothers in other chapters
--------------------------
"Go." Shindou, preoccupied by the bag of ramen that he was sorting through, looked up. "You want to know about Go?"
"Just curiosity," Ryousuke said. He wasn't exactly surprised to come home and see the lights on in the kitchen, and despite the need for sleep, he decided to sit with Shindou for a while.
Shindou said, "Huh." He frowned, either vexed by the question or by the need to choose a flavour of ramen.
Ryousuke gathered his thoughts, and explained, "My mother tried to teach it to us when we were young, but Keisuke and I were car-mad and never interested. I've never met anyone younger than Keisuke who plays it, but you and Touya-san and my grandfather--you throw yourselves into it, and-"
"It's just a game?" Shindou asked knowingly. There was such depth of knowledge mixed in the laughter around his mouth that Ryousuke caught his breath. "Well, Ryousuke-san," Shindou asked--Ryousuke was starting to work out why it was that Shindou addressed him as 'Ryousuke-san' instead of the more formal 'Takahashi-san', the possibilities for confusion in their household notwithstanding--and pushed the bag of cup ramen to the middle of the kitchen counter, "Is racing just speeding on cars?"
Ryousuke said, "Of course not-" before he could stop and be more diplomatic, but Shindou was chuckling at him. He had mentioned Project D by accident one night and without knowing how, Shindou had got the whole story out of him about the plan to dominate Gunma's mountain racing scene. "You know what I think of racing," Ryousuke said, feeling as though he should be defensive but not managing it.
Still chuckling, Shindou gazed at the plastic cup of ramen he had selected with almost scientific detachment, his lips still smiling. "I do. About Go, though... It's not just a game. It took me a long time to learn that, though. I got into Go... well, that's a long story. At first, it was just curiosity," he said, echoing Ryousuke's words. "It was much later that I understood the thrill of the game itself." He made a face. "Of course, Touya probably knew about it right from the start, from the first moment he held a Go stone at the age of two. Damn prodigy," he said, his tone making it clear that he meant nothing but affection.
"But it's such an intellectual game," Ryousuke said, still trying to reconcile the idea that playing a game with cold stone pieces on a wooden board could bring the same visceral thrill that was being strapped inside a one-tonne machine that was sliding down winding mountain roads. "The kettle's not plugged in," he added, seeing Shindou fill it from a pitcher.
"Ah." Shindou did so, and sat down at the kitchen counter to wait for it to boil, his fingers pushing the selected cup of instant ramen around as though he were at the Go board. He was quiet, gathering his thoughts, but he looked up after a moment, meeting Ryousuke's eyes. "After a while, you stop thinking of it as a process of 'hane here, block the upper right, capture stones'. It's not just a series of hands."
"Oh?" Ryousuke was recalling impassioned debates by Shindou and Touya at the breakfast table over whether a stone should have been here or there.
"Though we still discuss it in that way," Shindou said, as though he were reading Ryousuke's mind, then made a face. "It's embarrassing to think about the times Touya and I turned a ko-fight into a real fight."
Ryousuke wondered if Shindou knew how often he referred to his rival, as though the name was a touchstone for his conscious mind.
"After a while," Shindou repeated, recapturing Ryousuke's attention, "the Go becomes part of life--no, it settles somewhere in your soul. You can hear the rhythm of the game deep inside, like a memory of the world that we carry with us." He laughed, his eyes far away, and murmured, "Like a voice from the past." He fell silent then, as though he was listening for that.
It was as though Shindou was trying to conjure something from the depths of himself, Ryousuke thought as he watched Shindou's expression grow abstract. He breathed out slowly, as though afraid to upset the moment. There was nothing to hear but the uneven calls of cicadas from outside the kitchen window, and what felt like the night air dampening around the house.
The kettle beeped just then, but it was Ryousuke who jumped, not Shindou.
Shindou only turned towards the counter, peeled off the foil cover to his cup ramen halfway with finger and thumb, and carefully filled it with hot water. He carried it to the kitchen counter, sat down again, this time chopsticks at the ready. "Sounds incredible, huh?" he said, not seeming at all worried about being teased, his voice dreamy. "But then my teacher believed that there was no end to Go. Touya, however, thinks I'm over-imaginative about the mystic quality of Go."
It was the third time he had mentioned Touya, and Ryousuke was only a little surprised when, as though summoned by a thrice-incanted spell, there was a polite knock at the door to the kitchen before Touya entered.
Shindou, however, goggled at the sight of his rival. "Touya, I thought I threw that sweater away!" he exclaimed, all the earlier whimsical mood gone.
Touya was wearing on a worn-looking orange-and-blue sweater that looked like it would have been hideous even when it was new. "Why? It's still wearable."
Shindou mimed scratching his own eyes out. "Because it's the most horrible sweater ever in the history of sweaters," he said.
"You're ridiculous." Touya ignored him and nodded a greeting at Ryousuke. "Ryousuke-san," he said, "Good morning."
Ryousuke thought Touya addressed him as 'Ryousuke-san' for a different reason than Shindou. He had come to learn that Shindou was not someone who was too bothered about formality and proper titles, but Touya struck him as someone to whom formality was second nature. He could not think of a reason why Touya called him 'Ryousuke-san', unless it was in imitation of Shindou.
"If you're looking for a midnight snack, don't even think of having designs on my ramen," Shindou said, holding the bag of ramen to his chest protectively.
"I wouldn't dream of it," Touya said. "And I didn't get up for a midnight snack--honestly, Shindou, hasn't it occurred to you that it's incredibly rude to potter around your hosts' kitchen?"
Behind that accusation was an implicit barb: that Ryousuke, too, shouldn't encourage Shindou's ways.
"I'm hungry," Shindou whined. "It's your fault for playing a game with me before we went to sleep. I'm always hungry after I play with you."
In the silence of the kitchen, Ryousuke wondered if Shindou was aware of the double entendre he had made. After all, Shindou didn't question why Touya had woken up and came looking for him.
Touya shook his head, as though listening to Shindou complaining was simply one of the crosses he had to bear for being his friend and rival. "Never mind," he said.
They sat without talking for a while, and before Ryousuke could feel awkward at the silence, Touya said, "Your ramen's getting soggy, Shindou."
Shindou sat up, made a face as he turned to his ramen, examining and stirring it with his chopsticks. "No, it's just right," he said, squinting at the the contents of the cup through the steam. "You always say that, and you're always wrong."
It seemed that just like Shindou, Touya had an inner stopwatch that measured when precisely three minutes had passed.
Ryousuke wondered what it was like to be so much in tune with each other. He thought he had that with Fujiwara the first time they raced, but Fujiwara had shot ahead so much, and Ryousuke hadn't kept up. He watched as Shindou devoured his ramen, and in turn realised that Touya was watching Shindou as well.
" 'Natto and seaweed'?" Touya read the label on the ramen cup. It was illustrated with a row of what looked like beans with drawn-on mouths and legs, marching happily (judging by the grinning mouths) into a blue patch that probably stood for the sea.
"No, it's natto and seaweed and white pepper," Shindou turned the cup around so he could read the rest of it. "See?" he asked, speaking his mouth still open and showing both Ryousuke and Touya a mouthful of half-masticated ramen.
"Sounds disgusting," Touya said, but he didn't sound particularly repulsed. He sat down beside Shindou. "How do you find these weird flavours?"
"Ask him," Shindou pointed at Ryousuke. "They have a fantastic range at the supermarket he brought me to."
Touya's attention sharpened on Ryousuke, making him feel like a Go stone. "I see."
Shindou, having finished his ramen, was now slurping the soup with relish. After a while, he put down the cup, and wiped his lips with a sleeve. "This ought to be up your alley, Touya. Ryousuke-san was asking me about Go."
"How is that 'up my alley'?"
"You're the best at introducing Go," Shindou said. "Better than me, at least. You know what happens when I try to teach Go to newcomers. They always end up on the other end of the room with lots of Go boards between us."
"It's the gleam of madness in your eyes," Touya told him. "Is Ryousuke-san interested in Go?" he turned to Ryousuke.
Under that intent look, Ryousuke was forced to admit, "Not really. I was asking Shindou-san why he--and you, and my grandfather--enjoyed it so much."
"And I was telling him..." Shindou made a vague motion with the hand that still held the chopsticks, so that he looked like a conductor at a concert. "Well, I was too mysterious about it."
"That's the first time I've heard you admit that."
"Well," Shindou waved at Ryousuke, the expression on his face showing he meant no dismissal by the motion, "he's not just a newcomer, he's... he's a total ignoramus!"
Even Touya's jaw dropped at that. "Shindou!"
Shindou dropped his empty cup into the waste bin. "Sorry, Ryousuke-san," he said, scratching the back of his neck. "No offense meant."
"None taken," Ryousuke said, torn between amusement and bewilderment.
"You know racing, but most of the time, you set a limit on yourself," Shindou said. "Not like Fujiwara-san."
It was telling that Shindou said 'Fujiwara-san', and Ryousuke wasn't sure if he should be insulted. "What about him?"
"He drives like it's a memory, and his focus... he just reaches out and fights," Shindou said, then turned with a despairing motion towards Touya. "See?" he moaned.
Touya smiled at that, and before Ryousuke's widened eyes, he reached out to run a hand through Shindou's hair in a motion that was more a caress than anything. "Ryousuke-san has chosen another path. That's all, Shindou."
Shindou huffed.
"Are you ready to go to sleep now?" Touya asked, letting his hand fall.
Shindou responded by yawning widely. He seemed to be swaying already.
"Let's go, then," Touya said, standing up. "You're keeping Ryousuke-san up."
" 'm not," Shindou said. He leaned towards Touya, looking as though he was asleep already. "Don't forget my ramen..." he said.
Touya, meeting Ryousuke's eyes for a second, took the shopping bag of ramen without a word. "I've got it," he said.
(tbc)
Day/Theme: 15 Nov/But must I confess how I liked him?
Series: Initial D/Prince of Tennis/Hikago
Character/Pairing: previous Takahashi Ryousuke/Fuji Yuuta
Rating: PG-13, references to incest between brothers in other chapters
--------------------------
"Go." Shindou, preoccupied by the bag of ramen that he was sorting through, looked up. "You want to know about Go?"
"Just curiosity," Ryousuke said. He wasn't exactly surprised to come home and see the lights on in the kitchen, and despite the need for sleep, he decided to sit with Shindou for a while.
Shindou said, "Huh." He frowned, either vexed by the question or by the need to choose a flavour of ramen.
Ryousuke gathered his thoughts, and explained, "My mother tried to teach it to us when we were young, but Keisuke and I were car-mad and never interested. I've never met anyone younger than Keisuke who plays it, but you and Touya-san and my grandfather--you throw yourselves into it, and-"
"It's just a game?" Shindou asked knowingly. There was such depth of knowledge mixed in the laughter around his mouth that Ryousuke caught his breath. "Well, Ryousuke-san," Shindou asked--Ryousuke was starting to work out why it was that Shindou addressed him as 'Ryousuke-san' instead of the more formal 'Takahashi-san', the possibilities for confusion in their household notwithstanding--and pushed the bag of cup ramen to the middle of the kitchen counter, "Is racing just speeding on cars?"
Ryousuke said, "Of course not-" before he could stop and be more diplomatic, but Shindou was chuckling at him. He had mentioned Project D by accident one night and without knowing how, Shindou had got the whole story out of him about the plan to dominate Gunma's mountain racing scene. "You know what I think of racing," Ryousuke said, feeling as though he should be defensive but not managing it.
Still chuckling, Shindou gazed at the plastic cup of ramen he had selected with almost scientific detachment, his lips still smiling. "I do. About Go, though... It's not just a game. It took me a long time to learn that, though. I got into Go... well, that's a long story. At first, it was just curiosity," he said, echoing Ryousuke's words. "It was much later that I understood the thrill of the game itself." He made a face. "Of course, Touya probably knew about it right from the start, from the first moment he held a Go stone at the age of two. Damn prodigy," he said, his tone making it clear that he meant nothing but affection.
"But it's such an intellectual game," Ryousuke said, still trying to reconcile the idea that playing a game with cold stone pieces on a wooden board could bring the same visceral thrill that was being strapped inside a one-tonne machine that was sliding down winding mountain roads. "The kettle's not plugged in," he added, seeing Shindou fill it from a pitcher.
"Ah." Shindou did so, and sat down at the kitchen counter to wait for it to boil, his fingers pushing the selected cup of instant ramen around as though he were at the Go board. He was quiet, gathering his thoughts, but he looked up after a moment, meeting Ryousuke's eyes. "After a while, you stop thinking of it as a process of 'hane here, block the upper right, capture stones'. It's not just a series of hands."
"Oh?" Ryousuke was recalling impassioned debates by Shindou and Touya at the breakfast table over whether a stone should have been here or there.
"Though we still discuss it in that way," Shindou said, as though he were reading Ryousuke's mind, then made a face. "It's embarrassing to think about the times Touya and I turned a ko-fight into a real fight."
Ryousuke wondered if Shindou knew how often he referred to his rival, as though the name was a touchstone for his conscious mind.
"After a while," Shindou repeated, recapturing Ryousuke's attention, "the Go becomes part of life--no, it settles somewhere in your soul. You can hear the rhythm of the game deep inside, like a memory of the world that we carry with us." He laughed, his eyes far away, and murmured, "Like a voice from the past." He fell silent then, as though he was listening for that.
It was as though Shindou was trying to conjure something from the depths of himself, Ryousuke thought as he watched Shindou's expression grow abstract. He breathed out slowly, as though afraid to upset the moment. There was nothing to hear but the uneven calls of cicadas from outside the kitchen window, and what felt like the night air dampening around the house.
The kettle beeped just then, but it was Ryousuke who jumped, not Shindou.
Shindou only turned towards the counter, peeled off the foil cover to his cup ramen halfway with finger and thumb, and carefully filled it with hot water. He carried it to the kitchen counter, sat down again, this time chopsticks at the ready. "Sounds incredible, huh?" he said, not seeming at all worried about being teased, his voice dreamy. "But then my teacher believed that there was no end to Go. Touya, however, thinks I'm over-imaginative about the mystic quality of Go."
It was the third time he had mentioned Touya, and Ryousuke was only a little surprised when, as though summoned by a thrice-incanted spell, there was a polite knock at the door to the kitchen before Touya entered.
Shindou, however, goggled at the sight of his rival. "Touya, I thought I threw that sweater away!" he exclaimed, all the earlier whimsical mood gone.
Touya was wearing on a worn-looking orange-and-blue sweater that looked like it would have been hideous even when it was new. "Why? It's still wearable."
Shindou mimed scratching his own eyes out. "Because it's the most horrible sweater ever in the history of sweaters," he said.
"You're ridiculous." Touya ignored him and nodded a greeting at Ryousuke. "Ryousuke-san," he said, "Good morning."
Ryousuke thought Touya addressed him as 'Ryousuke-san' for a different reason than Shindou. He had come to learn that Shindou was not someone who was too bothered about formality and proper titles, but Touya struck him as someone to whom formality was second nature. He could not think of a reason why Touya called him 'Ryousuke-san', unless it was in imitation of Shindou.
"If you're looking for a midnight snack, don't even think of having designs on my ramen," Shindou said, holding the bag of ramen to his chest protectively.
"I wouldn't dream of it," Touya said. "And I didn't get up for a midnight snack--honestly, Shindou, hasn't it occurred to you that it's incredibly rude to potter around your hosts' kitchen?"
Behind that accusation was an implicit barb: that Ryousuke, too, shouldn't encourage Shindou's ways.
"I'm hungry," Shindou whined. "It's your fault for playing a game with me before we went to sleep. I'm always hungry after I play with you."
In the silence of the kitchen, Ryousuke wondered if Shindou was aware of the double entendre he had made. After all, Shindou didn't question why Touya had woken up and came looking for him.
Touya shook his head, as though listening to Shindou complaining was simply one of the crosses he had to bear for being his friend and rival. "Never mind," he said.
They sat without talking for a while, and before Ryousuke could feel awkward at the silence, Touya said, "Your ramen's getting soggy, Shindou."
Shindou sat up, made a face as he turned to his ramen, examining and stirring it with his chopsticks. "No, it's just right," he said, squinting at the the contents of the cup through the steam. "You always say that, and you're always wrong."
It seemed that just like Shindou, Touya had an inner stopwatch that measured when precisely three minutes had passed.
Ryousuke wondered what it was like to be so much in tune with each other. He thought he had that with Fujiwara the first time they raced, but Fujiwara had shot ahead so much, and Ryousuke hadn't kept up. He watched as Shindou devoured his ramen, and in turn realised that Touya was watching Shindou as well.
" 'Natto and seaweed'?" Touya read the label on the ramen cup. It was illustrated with a row of what looked like beans with drawn-on mouths and legs, marching happily (judging by the grinning mouths) into a blue patch that probably stood for the sea.
"No, it's natto and seaweed and white pepper," Shindou turned the cup around so he could read the rest of it. "See?" he asked, speaking his mouth still open and showing both Ryousuke and Touya a mouthful of half-masticated ramen.
"Sounds disgusting," Touya said, but he didn't sound particularly repulsed. He sat down beside Shindou. "How do you find these weird flavours?"
"Ask him," Shindou pointed at Ryousuke. "They have a fantastic range at the supermarket he brought me to."
Touya's attention sharpened on Ryousuke, making him feel like a Go stone. "I see."
Shindou, having finished his ramen, was now slurping the soup with relish. After a while, he put down the cup, and wiped his lips with a sleeve. "This ought to be up your alley, Touya. Ryousuke-san was asking me about Go."
"How is that 'up my alley'?"
"You're the best at introducing Go," Shindou said. "Better than me, at least. You know what happens when I try to teach Go to newcomers. They always end up on the other end of the room with lots of Go boards between us."
"It's the gleam of madness in your eyes," Touya told him. "Is Ryousuke-san interested in Go?" he turned to Ryousuke.
Under that intent look, Ryousuke was forced to admit, "Not really. I was asking Shindou-san why he--and you, and my grandfather--enjoyed it so much."
"And I was telling him..." Shindou made a vague motion with the hand that still held the chopsticks, so that he looked like a conductor at a concert. "Well, I was too mysterious about it."
"That's the first time I've heard you admit that."
"Well," Shindou waved at Ryousuke, the expression on his face showing he meant no dismissal by the motion, "he's not just a newcomer, he's... he's a total ignoramus!"
Even Touya's jaw dropped at that. "Shindou!"
Shindou dropped his empty cup into the waste bin. "Sorry, Ryousuke-san," he said, scratching the back of his neck. "No offense meant."
"None taken," Ryousuke said, torn between amusement and bewilderment.
"You know racing, but most of the time, you set a limit on yourself," Shindou said. "Not like Fujiwara-san."
It was telling that Shindou said 'Fujiwara-san', and Ryousuke wasn't sure if he should be insulted. "What about him?"
"He drives like it's a memory, and his focus... he just reaches out and fights," Shindou said, then turned with a despairing motion towards Touya. "See?" he moaned.
Touya smiled at that, and before Ryousuke's widened eyes, he reached out to run a hand through Shindou's hair in a motion that was more a caress than anything. "Ryousuke-san has chosen another path. That's all, Shindou."
Shindou huffed.
"Are you ready to go to sleep now?" Touya asked, letting his hand fall.
Shindou responded by yawning widely. He seemed to be swaying already.
"Let's go, then," Touya said, standing up. "You're keeping Ryousuke-san up."
" 'm not," Shindou said. He leaned towards Touya, looking as though he was asleep already. "Don't forget my ramen..." he said.
Touya, meeting Ryousuke's eyes for a second, took the shopping bag of ramen without a word. "I've got it," he said.
(tbc)