Abracadabra

Chapter 3: Out of this World

Hinata's week could not get any weirder.

When she came into Karasuno wearing her female school uniform - black skirt, buttoned-up blouse, and a cute pink bowtie - she thought that she would be the laughingstock of the entire school. Much to her surprise, however, everything was normal. No one asked what happened to the male Hinata nor inquired about her identity. If anything, everyone seemed to be happy about the arrival of Hinata Shouko, an adorable new girl who, for some unknown reason, had transferred to Karasuno.

Shimizu-san and Yachi-san were right, she thought, and she somehow felt relief. Though she could not help but wonder why a lot of his male classmates seemed to be twice nicer to her than to anybody else.

For some reason, Takeda-sensei managed to get her into Karasuno High without any trouble. By without any trouble, it meant that the teacher managed to talk his way to the principal about her enrollment and "Hinata Shouyou's absence". Takeda-sensei may not have the knowledge in volleyball, but he sure has a lot of other talents. He's quite the persistent and persuasive guy.

So Hinata got to peacefully prepare for the mock exams. It was unfortunate that the teacher did not get to make her an exception in the incoming tests, but you can't get everything in life, after all.

Now, all Hinata had to do was to make sure she will pass the mock exams, or else she won't come to Tokyo until she had finished the supplementary classes.

It was an easy job.

Not.

For the first time in her life, Hinata ventured into the silent jungle of Karasuno High school's library. It was a milestone, a special event worth recording, to anyone who knows her long enough.

Nevertheless, to study hard for an exam was not an easy job at all, for an airhead like her.

The moment she began reviewing, she was immediately faced by an adversary in the form of a tall bookshelf.

She craned her neck up high, at the thick textbook stuck in the topmost niche of the wooden ledge.

Hinata could not suppress gritting her teeth in annoyance. Her height was getting in her way once again.

She stood on her tiptoes and reached out her hand as high as possible. It was at this point that she felt bad about the few centimeters that she had lost when she turned into a girl. She wanted to jump and spike the book out of the shelf, but she would risk toppling the entire bookshelf and squashing anyone standing behind it.

Making a huge effort in trying to get the book, Hinata could feel her joints straining when she felt a pair of hands securely held her hips and lifted her up until she got the textbook out of the shelf.

"Oh, thanks a lot - " Hinata looked over her shoulder and was shocked to see Tsukishima. "What - Gyaaah!"

Hinata struggled to release herself from the tall blond guy that she almost fell. Luckily, Tsukishima got to save her, catching her a second before her butt landed on the floor.

"Ow..." Hinata winced.

"You idiot," Tsukishima muttered as he helped the ginger-haired girl stand up. "Look what you've done to yourself."

"It's your fault for surprising me," Hinata replied, irritated.

"Hey, I helped you get your book, didn't I?"

"You should've just gotten the book from its slot for me instead."

Tsukishima gave her a smug smile. "I don't want to hurt your pride."