Of Cats and Crows (Sugawara Koushi)

Delegation

This time of year was always the absolute worst. Nomiya and Matsuki stood in front of their teammates during the morning practice announcements. They would be graduating pretty soon and this was their last practice before open tryouts. This meant one thing, and everyone was dreading it.

"Well, four years later and watching several captains go, I guess it's my turn to stand here and pass the keys." Shimura laughed and tried to keep things light-hearted. This was hard on everyone. "It's been one heck of a season! We are now the number one college team in the nation. I guess first off I can say, I'll be signing on with the Nagoya Falcons while interning at the Nagoya Museum of Natural History in their marketing division."

Everyone cheered. It was a big deal to be signing onto a division one team. Shimura had been keeping it a secret for quite some time. Plus she managed to get a paid internship. So she was happy that she would be able to pay off her student debt.

Mitsumi realized why she recognized the team name. "You'll be playing with my teammate, Nagisa. Good luck." She smirked a bit. Honestly, Mitsumi would pay some serious money to see how Nagisa and Shimura got along.

Matsuki gave Mitsumi a motherly look before clearing her throat to speak. "I'll be off working in the graphic design department of the V. League. I've decided to retire from volleyball for the time being so I can take care of my family while I work." She bowed to the people that meant the most to her. "Thank you so much for everything over the last four years!" 

Nomiya slapped Matsuki and Shimura on the back. "I'm off to Matsukawa High School to teach History! I'll also be their girl's team assistant coach!" She grinned and slumped over onto the other two graduating seniors. "I expect to see you guys at Spring Nationals next year when I take my new team there!"

Shimura laughed, "They'll make it there. But I don't know about you." She teased and looked out at everyone. "Anyways, your new captain will be Makoto! And your vice-captain will continue to be Yuki!" She grinned and clapped along with everyone.

Coach Yamata stepped forward, "With that, we will have some new faces around here soon. This is a new beginning for them, but we are only continuing what we started. Let's get to work!"

...

Mei was on the phone with Mitsumi. She assumed she was done with practice. "So, Makoto is the new captain? Exciting." She was currently walking to the music building from the office.

"Yeah, it's bittersweet," Mitsumi remembered giving her farewell speech in high school. She had never teared up in front of her team before. "Before I forget, I told Dr. Haruno, I won't be in aural skills class today. Do you mind getting me the chord progressions for this week?"

"Of course! Where are you headed?" The pink-haired pianist questioned. It was unusual for Mitsumi to be missing class.

"Roster photos got moved to today since we have a practice match on Saturday. I'm on my way to the stadium right now." Mitsumi wasn't keen on missing class. This was the first time she had to skip for any reason. "Down to study together for piano lit tonight at the cafe? Suga has an exam."

"I was just about to ask! I'm not ready for the quiz tomorrow." Mei sighed. "You'll have to show off your new look too."

"Heck yeah! I'll see you later!" Mitsumi ended the call. She was grateful to have a friend that understood the importance of roster photos.

The training center was buzzing with excitement. Photographers and people from the seamstress office were pushing racks and equipment around. Mitsumi followed the signs to the check-in room. She was greeted by a staff member who gave her some paperwork to sign. Nothing major, just a paper showing that she was given her jersey. She was then given a large cardboard box with her name written in sharpie on it. Mitsumi was anxious to go through its contents.