Prince of Tennis: Hyotei's Mysterious Princess (REWRITE VERSION)

Prologue

4 years ago...

"Ara...Aira, you didn't have to come all the way here." A Japanese woman weakly lifted her head in greeting. Her ebony black hair cascaded like waves over her bedridden form. 

"You are my mother," the girl in the doorway said simply. Only those who knew her could hear the tightness in her soft voice. In her hand, a bouquet of chrysanthemums*, magnolias*, and a single geranium*. Her grip tightened on the light blue wrapping.

"How was Egypt? Did you see any mummies? Did they wave their arms and curse you?" The woman asked jokingly. 

The girl sighed softly, entering the room with swift steps, her pale gold hair flowing after her. She put the flowers into the empty vase on the bedside table. "I saw dried up corpses in the museums, they were strangely wrapped in modern bandages. Father might have seen some, he illegally sneaked inside the pyramids. It's a miracle he didn't get caught."

The woman laughed, "your father is always the wild one! He became an adventurer for a reason. I swear that man was raised by wolves." 

Someone knocked on the door. A doctor entered the door and brightened up at the additional guest. He asked in quick French, "Ah, is this your daughter, Mrs. Tskiyomi? What a cute young lady, you're 9 right? Your mother talks about you all the time."

"Ah, don't tattle me out like that Dr Clermonte!" The Japanese woman exclaimed fluidly in French.

"Bonjour Docteur," The girl greeted politely. The doctor nodded back before looking seriously at his patient.

"Mrs Tskiyomi, I'll be blunt. You aren't getting better. The reason why? You aren't resting!"

The woman looked annoyed, "I am, Doctor! Can't you see me lying on my bed like a good patient?"

"Yes, I also saw you on live television yesterday beating a poor player to the ground in a tennis court. Hitting smashes left and right as if you weren't diagnosed with Guillain-barre syndrome

The girl tensed as her mother gasped in anger.

"Dr Clermonte! My daughter is in the room!" 

"From your stories, she survived an adventure with her father in the Amazon filled with over millions of creatures that can kill you in a blink of an eye. Perhaps she can have a hold on her unreasonable mother who is refusing doctor's orders for her own good!"

The woman glared, her cat-like gold eyes pierced the doctor. "The surgery for my illness that might not even work guarantees that I won't be able to play tennis afterwords. I rather die." 

SHATTER

Glass and flowers were on the floor as the girl stood there with sad raging eyes. The room was silent.

"At this rate, you will." She said quietly.

Dr Clermonte let out a deep exhale, his body slumping as if a heavy burden was on him. "I'll let you discuss this out with your family. I'll call a nurse to come to clean up the glass." He turned and left. 

Forest-green clashed with cat-eye gold. A silent battle of wills between two woman so similar and different. Their relationship was an odd one, once close now distant yet still there hanging strongly, desperately. 

The daughter broke the silence first. 

"Why...It's not logical. I know tennis is your career and you played it since young with Uncle Nanjirouh. You are a prodigy at it, worked hard, became pro, and rose to the international stage...but is it worth your life?! Mother, it's just a game!" The 9-year-old who was forced to mature early lost hold of her calm, lost footing from her habitat at the eye of the storm.