(Some Things Are Worth) More Than Nationals
This fic was written for miyabuu for the lovely daiyasecretsanta event! You requested no angst, miyabuu, so I wrote the happiest scene I could think of. *total sap*
Miyabuu’s OT3 is what I’m cheerfully going to refer to as (after multiple conversations with kunnfused) the mochikomi sandwich. If there’s another tag, er… Lemme know? (Sorry for tagging you, ku — I know this isn’t your favorite ship, haha! But I wanted to credit you for naming the ship. :) )
I actually ended up writing a hideous amount of fic for these three, trying to find a way to portray them that wasn’t OOC or just, uh, terrible. In typical Daiya fashion, the only one who would cooperate with me was Haruichi. Thank you, sweet Haruichi. @_@
Anyways ~ happy holidays, miyabuu! I hope your holidays are filled with cheer and sports anime idiots! As is inevitable with anything I post… I immediately noticed tiny errors upon submitting my story. =_= So this version is a little cleaner than the one at DSS. Please accept it instead!
In Haruichi’s second year of baseball at Seidou, Miyuki-senpai leads them to Nationals. The journey is filled with sweat and tears and the anxiety of new partnerships, but somehow, together, they make it. Haruichi grows to respect Youichi for reasons other than the fact that he has Ryousuke’s unshakeable trust — after endless practice sessions, he begins to appreciate the constant strength Youichi loans him, and he tries to return it in every way he can. By the time they face Inashiro High at the very end, Haruichi has more faith in his teammates than he’s ever had before, and his own relationship with Youichi has become a thing that he takes pride in.
He thinks Ryousuke, although he’s been too busy with university to attend any of their games, would be proud of them.
At the bottom of the ninth, Haruichi hits the home run that crushes Inashiro and wins Seidou the game. His bat flies out of his hands as he runs, runs, runs, but he knows in his heart that he’s hit the ball far past what any outfielder can catch. His hit contained all the passion he could muster: for his teammates, for his brother, for Youichi. It’s not a ball that can be caught.