[FIN] Up to Serve

[Suudonym]

It had been about half a year since Shoyo had come to Kodo. It had taken some effort, but he had eventually managed to break the habit of answering in Japanese when spoken to abruptly; having learned English as his first language made the transition much smoother. There were various other ways that the move had left him disoriented, though. As if transferring schools wasn't enough of a challenge, he had wound up transferring into a completely different educational system. Where he had been about to begin his first term of his high school career, he had suddenly become a second-year student - or a 'sophomore,' he supposed - in the middle of the school year.

And then, after just a few months, the semester had ended and given way to summer break, which would apparently last for a couple months rather than the several weeks it always had before. There was a lot less homework, too, and so Shoyo was left without complaints.

Except for the one thing.

There was a steady rhythm, a patient series of beats: thwack, bam-bam, thwack, bam-bam. The small boy, sweat beading on his neck and brow, stood to a side of the park's paved area, striking at a ball as it ricocheted from the pavement to the wall of the rest house and arced through the air back to his hand. He purposely hit it in a way that would force him to chase it, darting to and fro to catch the ball and keep it from touching the ground or flying off too far. It was good for a workout, but it wasn't the same as playing at a net, not by a long shot. He missed having people to play beside after school. He missed free days in gym class. And most of all, he really, really missed spiking.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

One could usually hear a plethora of sounds in and around the park on a daily basis, but this one was new. Nicolette found herself, in her boundless curiosity, drawn toward the sound. Similarly curious, Pascal followed alongside his trainer, eyes alert as he tried to find the source of the noise.

Said source wasn't too hard to find, as the pair wound around the path and came out near a paved section with a small building, and a boy playing with a ball against the wall. It didn't seem like a casual game just for fun, given how hard he was working at it, and she didn't normally see balls like those hardly ever. When she did, it was normally on a shelf in a store, and never in play. Was this a type of sport? But no, that would be silly; who could play a sport with just one person? Maybe he was practicing for some sport - that would make more sense. She would've tried to guess for herself, but her knowledge of sports was next to none, if one didn't count pokemon training, and since she had no intention of rudely interrupting him just to ask, the girl simply stood off to the side of the area, her honey-colored eyes wide with curiosity, while her lopunny stood beside her and bounced in place a little, rather envious of the boy getting to play in such an intriguing way.  

[Suudonym]

Steady - even as the ball changed positions wildly and the boy reacted rapidly to catch it, he still kept the rhythm steady. Even if it wasn't good practice for anything in particular, he still wanted to challenge himself. After all, what good was exercising if he didn't push his body? As he moved into position to strike the rebounding ball once more, he caught the sensation of being watched out of the corner of his eye. Though he was only distracted for a moment, that small instant was more than long enough for the ball to escape his control, planting itself solidly against his forehead and knocking him backwards with a graceless exclamation of surprise.  

[BlackFireKitsune]

A sharp inhale marked the moment the ball collided with his forehead, and Nicolette's hands suddenly were at her face as she exclaimed in surprise, "Oh!" The shock passed just as quickly, and she hastened over and dropped to her knees at his side, her hands hovering between her face and his, unsure whether to clasp her hands to her cheeks in surprise or to touch his to see if he was all right. "Are you okay?" She asked instead, her voice, her expression, her entire demeanor practically radiating concern and worry over this stranger she didn't even know.

Pascal hurried over alongside his trainer, though with less concern and more amusement because ha, he hit himself in the face! He attempted to reign in the amusement, though, and instead of lingering there, he instead trotted after the ball to pick it up.  

[Suudonym]

"Gh." Fortunately it had only been a ricocheting ball rather than a spiked one, and so it didn't have the force to do any significant damage. By the time he regained his bearings and started to sit himself upright, Shoyo found himself being fussed over by a pretty girl. "Oh, yeah! No-- I mean yes! I'm fine! That was nothing!" In demonstration of his fine-ness, the boy sprang fully upright with a bounce. The fluster that had invaded his demeanor as a result of suddenly being engaged by the stranger faded in an instant as his expression illuminated with an idea, his whole posture tilting slightly forward with optimism, "Say, are you busy right now?"  

[BlackFireKitsune]

Nicolette jerked back when he suddenly jumped up to his feet, watching him with concern for a few more moments before she stood up, though she couldn't help but remain rather worried. He said he was fine, but he'd just gotten hit in the head with a large ball... "Busy?" She repeated, blinking a couple times in mild confusion as Pascal returned to her side, the ball held between his paws. "Um.. No, no we're not. Just walking through the park. Why do you ask?"  

[Suudonym]

He gave a brief laugh in cheerful enthusiasm before taking a step back, bending his knees, and miming a simple underhanded toss, "Will you toss the ball for me? It's really easy; you just go like whoosh and send it up as high as you can."  

[BlackFireKitsune]

"Oh! Um," she frowned and hesitated, watching him closely as he demonstrated what he wanted her to do, though she wasn't entirely sure... "Just go like... whoosh?" She repeated uncertainly, the small pouting frown still visible as she raised her hands with some hesitance. Again she found herself wondering just what sort of sport this was.  

[Suudonym]

"Yeah!" he nodded his affirmation energetically, wearing a wide smile. He repeated the throwing motion again, "Whoosh! Ah-- High and sort of close to me would be the best, but anywhere is fine as long as it goes up!"  

[BlackFireKitsune]

"Okay..." She replied as she took the ball from Pascal, still uncertain, but it seemed simple enough, and he looked very eager for her to toss it to him... With an expression of concentration, she attempted to copy the way he had stood when showing her how to go 'whoosh' and, after briefly testing the weight of the ball in her small hands, attempted to toss it as indicated - unfortunately, being unused to tossing such a ball, she managed height while sacrificing placement, as the ball soared off to the side rather than near him.  

[Suudonym]

"That's good, that's good!" He was already moving when he opened his mouth to speak, the words coming as a reflex as he tracked the ball with wide eyes. In an instant he was below the ball as it reached the height of its arc, and in one more instant his small body was launched skywards, his palm reaching up to cradle the ball. There was contact for only a moment, and then he swung his arm harshly, slamming the ball straight as an arrow towards the corner where the wall met the pavement. His feet touched the ground again with a small bounce from his excitement, his fists clenched in eager satisfaction and a broad, beaming grin on his face. "That really is the best feeling!"  

[BlackFireKitsune]

She watched the ball as it arced through the air, surprised when he ran underneath it, and even more so when he jumped to meet it. The harsh manner and sound made when he sent the ball careening towards the ground startled her, and she briefly raised her hands to her face. That was... Oh, that was different.

Pascal huffed lightly when the boy jumped rather high, but of course he could do better. Without warning, the lopunny bent down in preparation before launching himself towards the ball, closing the distance with one leap.

Nicolette was too focused on the boy to pay any attention to her pokemon; the redhead's enthusiasm and excitement was infectious, especially for one so easily influenced by others and their emotions, and she found herself suddenly similarly excited, with all traces of her previous worry or hesitance completely gone. "What sort of game is this?"  

[Suudonym]

"Is that a challenge?!" Shoyo exclaimed, pointing at the Lopunny as it jumped. "I won't lose!" He started to move as well but paused, stopping just short of stumbling, when he heard the question. He turned to address the stranger, smiling sunnily as he gave his answer, "Volleyball!"  

[BlackFireKitsune]

"Volleyball?" The girl repeated as she raised a hand to her cheek, intrigued and excited about the topic - though most of her excitement stemmed from the boy's own excitement. "What's that?"

Pascal frowned at the boy's words. Pah! As if a human could beat him at jumping. Lopunny were made for jumping!  

[Suudonym]

"Wha-- Bwuh." The broadness of her question caught him completely off guard, and he sputtered internally as he tried to find the appropriate words to encapsulate his favorite pastime. "It's a sport, you know? Like basketball, but you don't touch the ball more than once at a time, and six people play it, and there's a net, and you jump...!" He extended his arms above him to emphasize the height of those jumps. "...up and up, and you slam!" One arm swung down in a sturdy arc, similar to his midair demonstration a few moments earlier. "And if your team can make the ball fall, you get a point!" He hesitated for a moment, seeming to realize that his explanation had been absolute garbage, and when he spoke again, it was at a more subdued volume but with no less certainty, "It's the best!"