Tide Between Two Worlds

I Didn't Mean To

       Here it is. The final event. The last step towards victory or failure. The 400m freestyle relay. As far as standings went, the top three schools were Uwajima Junior High, Meiou Academy, and Ikuha Junior High sitting quietly at third. With roughly a two minute difference between the schools, the 400m was going to be the event that decides it all.

Shuichi was feeling confident at this point. With Botan coming in the clutch during his last heat, Shuichi felt like nothing was going to hold him back. That's how he felt. How he looked was totally different. On the outside, he was calm and suspicious. The reason, Kaito Yuu. From what he could gather, Shuichi noticed that Yuu could give the most decked out security camera a run for its money the way Shuichi was watched. Good thing he has friends. Those same friends were keeping an eye on things too. Shuichi was especially proud of Kiyoni's behavior. She was collected, observant, diligent to a fault, and (most importantly) supportive. A lot more supportive than she was when she attended a swim meet for the first time. She's going to adore Tsuran City should she ever see it.

Since it was the last race, Shuichi took the time to get into his normal routine, splashing some water on his arms and legs. The skin of those areas tightened but it was more on par with goosebumps than scales.

       Damn you! Kaito cursed. Just what kind of game are you playing, Minamino?

Simple. Shuichi's own and by the looks of things, this was going to be a clean sweep.

       "Minamino," the coach called.

       "Yes, coach?"

       "I forgot to tell you this but you've been moved to anchor for this heat."

       "Oh...actually..." Shuichi realized, taking a quick glance at Kaito in the crowd, "anchor...sounds perfect."

       "Looks like he anchor for this one," Kuronue noticed.

       "Is that good," Kiyoni asked.

       "If I'm thinking what I think he's thinking, yeah."

       "So you see the game he's playing?"

       "Yeah...and it's genius."

It was genius. 100 meters in and Meiou claimed first place. Legs two and three left the team in a very close second place with Ikuha Junior High taking first. Not today. Shuichi was ready. He was more than ready. He was hyped...but calm and in position to freestyle the team's way to victory.

Off he went with the crowd cheering their loudest, friends and schoolmates included. Shuichi felt amazing in the water, about as great as he did in his last dream. Everything was perfect. In the distance, he could see Botan sending her well wishes. She didn't need to do anything but watch. Shuichi had this...or so he thought.

During the final fifty meter swim, Shuichi noticed a spark emanating from his hands. That was new and...quickly ignored. There was a race to win.

       "Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes," Kiyoni shouted.

       "Go, go, go, go, go," Kuronue followed, "We did it, we did it, we did it, we did it...!"

At the very last second, the race ended on another photo finish. The scoreboard received the most attention it has ever received all day. In eighth place, Hayato Private Academy. Third place went to Ikuha Junior High. Second place...went to Uwajima Junior/Senior High, leaving Meiou Academy taking both first place and the regional championship. The crowd went bananas.

       "We did it, we did it," Kuronue and Kiyoni shouted in a celebratory hug.

Even though Yuu didn't get much from this competition, he still had one more hypothesis left to test out. The last time Meiou had a "big win" feel was when Shuichi's fins came out. Will it happen again? At a time when adrenaline was at its highest?