sportsanime | Bonus Round 1: Memory

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Bonus Round 1: Memory

Let's start our summer by looking at the past—things that happened in canon, or maybe in an AU, or maybe just as wishful thinking...

This round is CLOSED as of 7PM on June 9 EDT. Late fills may be posted, but they will not receive points.

Please read this whole post before commenting to ensure that your team gets the most points possible. (There are changes from last year!)

RULES

Submit prompts by commenting to this post! You prompt should consist of one scenario beginning with the phrase "Remember when", along with any ship/ot3/etc. from our list of nominated fandoms.
- Your prompts can take the form of recalling canon facts/events ("Remember when Nozomi and Eli got parfaits after school?"), non-canon events ("Remember when Megumi and Jin met at the Tadokoro Family Reunion?"), or somewhere in-between ("Remember when Bokuto and Kenma first met?"). Headcanons and AUs are welcome!
- Your prompt MUST include some kind of relationship. (This is not the sports anime gen olympics.) Platonic relationships are indicated by an "&" between the names (e.g., Rei & Nagisa). Non-platonic relationships use "/" (e.g., Rei/Nagisa). Please don't say "Any pairing," either!
Post fills by leaving a responding comment to a prompt with your newly-created work.
Remember to follow the general bonus round rules, outlined here.

FORMAT

Brand-new works only, please.

Required Work Minimums:

400 words (prose)
400px by 400px (art)
14 lines (poetry)

If PROMPTING:	If FILLING:	If FILLING as a TEAM GRANDSTAND participant:
PROMPT: TEAM [YOUR SHIP] Replace [YOUR SHIP] with the name of the team you belong to, including Grandstand or Sports Teams Write it exactly as it appears on the team roster or your team will not receive points Place the prompt's relationship in the first bolded line of the comment. Including the canon isn't required, but it's nice. Below that, place applicable major content tags (when applicable; otherwise write "no tags" or "none") Visual example	FILL: TEAM [YOUR SHIP], [RATING] Replace [YOUR SHIP] with the name of the team you belong to Write it exactly as it appears on the team roster or your team will not receive points Replace RATING with the rating of your fill (G - E) Place applicable major content tags and word count before your fill (when applicable; otherwise write "no tags" or "none") NSFW FILLS: Please cross-link these fills and use clear tags in your comment. Written/text fills should be hosted at AO3 ONLY. Art/visual fills can be hosted anywhere. You may include a small safe-for-work preview of the fill in your comment. To place an image in your comment, use this code: <img src="LINK TO YOUR IMAGE" alt="DESCRIPTION OF YOUR IMAGE"/> Visual example	FILL: TEAM GRANDSTAND, [RATING] Replace RATING with the rating of your fill (G - E) Place applicable major content tags and word count before the fill, where applicable NSFW FILLS: Please cross-link these fills and use clear tags in your comment. Written/text fills should be hosted at AO3 ONLY. Art/visual fills can be hosted anywhere. You may include a small safe-for-work preview of your work in your comment. To place an image in your comment, use this code: <img src="LINK TO YOUR IMAGE" /> Visual example

code of conduct

SCORING

For prompts: 5 points each (maximum of 50 prompt points per team per round)

First 3 fills by any member of your team: 20 points each
Fills 4-10: 10 points each
Fills 11-20: 5 points each
Fills 21+: 2 points each

All scored content must be created new for this round.

Etc.

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Abe Takeya/Mihashi Ren (Big Windup)

Remember when Mihashi gets tipsy at a team party and accidently confesses his feelings to Abe?

alcohol, drunk silliness
word count: 467

No one is sure exactly where the alcohol at the team's Christmas party came from (surely someone will blame Yuu, but Mihashi gets the feeling it wasn't him up to pranks this time), but it was there, and if it's there, it means having to try it. Sometimes you just need to know.

Mihashi decides quickly that the taste is awful, but the warm tingle through his muscles is kind of nice, if not a little strange. He wiggles in place, feeling a bit like jello as he watches Mizutani and Hama-chan try to drag Izumi into a round of karaoke. There's the telltale red spread across their cheeks too, and Mihashi is glad he's taken his spot up against the wall. He doesn't want to be pulled into that mess, if he can avoid it. Loose muscles don't just mean his arms and legs.

When he leans over, his head finds Abe's shoulder. Abe hasn't left his side all night, something about "there's no way I'm letting our ace get drunk and lose his abilities or get hurt because you dumbasses." Not that it mattered in the end, when both of them had drinks shoved into their hands and Abe ended up following suit after watching Mihashi throw his back. The thought of it makes Mihashi smile to himself.

Or not. "You okay Ren?"

Ren. It still makes his heart skip an unhealthy beat to hear his name on Abe's lips. "More than, okay."

"Yeah? You sure you don't want water, you should stay hydrated, or you'll get sick."

Mihashi shakes his head, shifting so he can keep his cheek on Abe's shoulder and look up at him at the same time. When he squints, he can see the red in his cheeks too, hidden behind his baseball tan. "You're the best, A...

...Takaya."

There's a pause, and then, "C-Come on, let me get you water." Takaya is trying to move, but Mihashi makes himself a rock, keeping him in place with his head and the hand that sneaks to his side to grip his shirt.

"I mean it." Mihashi says softly, eyes drifting shut as he thinks of the hundreds of times Takaya's been there for him, doing things no one else would think to do, even if he did get mad or upset or confusing from time to time. "I really, really do."

"Seriously, Ren, you're drunk."

"'nd you're so warm." Mihashi hums, nuzzling closer into the curve of Takaya's shoulder, "I like it."

"Ren--"

"I like you."

Takaya freezes, for a few seconds, for a minute, he can't remember, but when he looks down, tries to say something, Mihashi is already asleep, slack and soft and perfect.

AHHH YES A FILL BLESS YOU <3 Of course Abe's a protective mother hen at the party, and Mihashi is so sweet it hurts. Liquid courage, child. THE FIRST NAMES, and Mihashi powering on while Abe's just kind of trying to escape because WOW HIS HEART IS NOT READY, and him freezing there at the end -- it's all so perfect.

hides my face in my hands, why are you so kind stranger, bless you,

IM GOING TO SCREAM THIS IS SO PRECIOUS???? I CANT DEAL WITH THIS IT'S TOO mHCH FOR M e

One True Battery, always. <3 I love how they're just drifting into each other and Abe is still kind of fighting it but it's Mihashi, so he can't.

alcohol use

624 words

Tajima had told him it would be alright, sometime, a few hours ago, he thinks. But a few hours ago could have been a few days ago, or a few minutes, and Mihashi is starting to think that maybe he wasn’t ready to try the party punch that he was warned about. The room feels too hot and his face is sort of numb but he can still see where Abe sits on one of the living room couches, squished up against the armrest by a few other team members who seem to be ignoring his presence as anything other than a space-holder.

He thinks he smiles, or he tries to, in a shaky sort of unsure way, and crosses the room to see Abe. It takes him too long, and he stumbles over a particularly lumpy piece of carpet that he didn’t see before, and when he looks up Abe is in front of him, and his hand is on Mihashi’s shoulder, steadying him. His hand is warm and Mihashi can feel it all the way to his toes.

“Ah--Abe-kun!” Mihashi stutters, and it’s comforting in it’s normality. He’s not sure how he feels about alcohol after all. “Thank you!” He tries to bow, and his forehead ends up bumping hard against Abe’s shoulder. “Sorry! Ah, uh, thank you.”

Is it his eyes or is Abe a little red, too? His cheeks look flushed but maybe it’s just the heat from the room full of baseball players loudly talking and shoving at each other the way teenage boys in an enclosed space often do.

“You should sit.” Abe says, voice deep the way it always is, with what is probably ill-placed concern. “You have to pitch on Saturday.”

Mihashi nods, head jerking like a startled bird, but he’s afraid to pull away from where Abe’s hand is still on his shoulder. After a few seconds of standing and staring, Abe seems to realize the problem, and uses that same hand to lead Mihashi to his recently vacated couch seat. He sits him down.

“Get out.” He says to Hanai, who is now sitting beside Mihashi with his back to him, facing the other boys on the couch. Hanai looks over his shoulder with raised eyebrows and glares at Abe before standing and moving to the opposite arm of the couch. Abe takes the space Hanai vacated, knees straight forward and hands on his lap.

Holding hands had been weird at first, unusual and Mihashi had been afraid. Now it was easy, and he takes Abe’s hand and holds it between both of his, nestling them between their thighs, before he even thinks twice. He wants to say something. Something nice, or maybe something funny, something to tell Abe what he means to him. He feels like his feelings, usually buried deep in his chest, are lingering in the back of his throat, liable to choke him if he doesn’t let them out.

He squeezes Abe’s hand tighter, hoping it’s enough to draw his attention and he can’t bring himself to look up to see if it works.

“Abe-kun.” He keeps his eyes on their hands, the roughness of Abe’s palm against his. “I’m…” He takes a deep breath, “I’m glad we’re friends, you know, um, if we’re friends.”

“Of course we’re friends.” Abe clears his throat and Mihashi finally looks up to see him. They’re still sitting close but now Abe’s turned towards him, “We’re partners.”

Mihashi smiles. He leans back against the couch cushions, and when Abe leans back his shoulder is close enough that it brushes against Mihashi’s cheek and he finds himself leaning in against it. He’s still got more to say, he thinks, but maybe now isn’t the time.

alcohol; 531w

The night air is cool, but Abe's face feels warm as they walk out of the izakaya, spilling out onto the street in their large group. Tajima is drunk and Hanai is taking care of him but, ever the captain, is trying to do too many things at once with his hands already full, making sure that everyone else can get home safely.

Mihashi is quiet, but that's not really out of the ordinary for him. His cheeks are tinged pink, but he's steady on his feet. It puts Abe at ease, because at least that's one less thing to worry about.

hey break off into smaller groups to make sure that everyone has at least one fairly sober travel partner to see them home, and Abe doesn't even have to volunteer to go with Mihashi. He can't quite tell if they gravitate towards each other or if the rest of the group has just unanimously made the decision for them, but they end up walking together anyway.

Mihashi has grown less timid over the years and it no longer feels like such an ordeal to attempt conversation with him, but Abe finds himself coming up with blanks when he tries to break the silence anyway. He's caught up with what Mihashi has been doing these days, mostly through second-hand information courtesy of Tajima and Sakaeguchi. He could ask for more detail, but he's wary of coming across like he's still trying to control Mihashi, when they're no longer part of a battery together.

He draws a breath, then releases it, looking ahead of him as they walk. It's Mihashi who breaks the silence, clearing his throat softly with his lips turned into a small, relaxed smile.

"It was nice to see you tonight," Mihashi murmurs, and he's not looking directly at Abe, but he's not purposefully avoiding his gaze either. "You're a bit different from high school, but you're still…"

Abe waits patiently; that's something he's learned to do throughout high school, mostly thanks to Mihashi. He's good at it now.

"You're still Takaya," Mihashi concludes, nodding to himself like he's satisfied with this assessment. He's not stammering, but his words slur together a little. Still, it's easier to understand.

"Of course I am," Abe replies. "You're still Ren. That's not going to change."

Mihashi smiles, ducking his head. "I'm glad. I like Takaya. I did through high school too, when I stopped being scared of you. I like you a lot, Takaya."

"I like you too," Abe replies immediately, then pauses. "Wait. By like, do you mean—"

"I like you, Takaya," Mihashi says, putting more weight into his words this time. They've stopped walking without Abe even realising.

Mihashi's hand, when it brushes against Abe's, is warm. Abe can still feel the calluses on his fingers.

"Oh." Abe chases Mihashi's fingers with his own, holding onto them for just a brief moment. "Good. That's what I mean, too. Tell me again sometime, when you haven't had anything to drink, okay? Maybe tomorrow. Will you remember to do that?"

"Yeah." Mihashi smiles at him, meeting his eyes this time, and Abe feels his heart skip a beat. "I'll definitely remember."

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Bonus Round 1: Memory

Prompt: Team Chihayafuru

FILL: Team Azumane Asahi/Sawamura Daichi/Sugawara Koushi, G

Re: FILL: Team Azumane Asahi/Sawamura Daichi/Sugawara Koushi, G

Re: FILL: Team Azumane Asahi/Sawamura Daichi/Sugawara Koushi, G

Re: FILL: Team Azumane Asahi/Sawamura Daichi/Sugawara Koushi, G

Re: FILL: Team Azumane Asahi/Sawamura Daichi/Sugawara Koushi, G

FILL: TEAM MIYUKI KAZUYA/MIYUKI KAZUYA, Rated G

FILL: Team Kyoutani Kentarou/Yahaba Shigeru, G