Fic: Conversation with Mother
Title: Conversation with Mother
Series: Hikaru no Go
Disclaimer: Characters belong to Hotta and Obata and are here for entertainment purposes only.
Notes/Type: General fic. Hint of Akira/Hikaru if you wish. Inspired by svz_insanity
Summary: Akira has been influenced by Hikaru.
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“Akira-san? Can I talk to you for a minute?”
The door to his room slid open, and Touya looked up from the collection of kifu to see his mother at the door, her fingers caught between the folds of her skirt.
“Mother, please come in,” he said, straightening and shifting to the middle of the room, where a low table was set.
His mother entered his room with an expression that was even more polite than usual. If it were one of his opponents, Touya would have said that his mother looked nervous. He seated himself neatly, marking his page with a bookmark. “What is it, Mother?” he asked.
His mother attempted the sort of smile she usually reserved for his father’s more hostile opponents, or for Ogata.
“Akira-san, don’t take this the wrong way,” she began, clasping her hands together in a demure-looking gesture. “I know you’re growing up, and I can’t interfere in your life, or in the actions you choose to take.”
This didn’t sound good. He tried to look innocent and attentive.
“But recently, I’ve been hearing some… talk about your behaviour,” she said, a nervous chuckle swallowing up the word ‘behaviour’.
“Talk?” Akira asked.
“I know you and Shindou-kun are very good friends now,” she went on, “and he’s a delightful boy, really, so lively, and I’m glad you’ve found a friend your age that you can, ah, ‘hang out’ with.”
Touya frowned. “This has got to do with Shindou?” he asked, definitely uneasy by now. “What kind of rumours?”
“That...” His mother hesitated, and decided to go to the heart of the topic. “Akira-san, I know that he’s very important to you. But don’t you think… I mean, don’t you think that the two of you are spending too much time together?”
Touya managed not to react outwardly, though he was panicking fast on the inside. “We play a lot of Go together, Mother. At home, or at the salon.” By a miracle, his voice sounded casual. Must be all that practice playing Go.
“Or at his home,” she finished, and tried to smile at him. “It’s fine, really, Akira-san!” she assured him. “It’s your life, and goodness, to other people, you’re already a professional, an adult, and you can make your own decisions. But as your mother, as a parent, I have to admit that I’m concerned about you.”
Touya’s heart gave an extra loud thump at that. “Please don’t worry about me, Mother,” he tried to reassure her. “I can take care of myself.”
“But, Akira-san, the complaints from your school…”
Complaints? With supreme effort, Touya managed not to blink. “Complaints?” he asked. This couldn’t be about the time Shindou came to find him during the recent Junior High Go Tournament at Kaio, could it? He was sure no one saw Shindou. They were in the storeroom all that time, since as pros, they couldn’t take part… manfully, Touya suppressed a twitch.
“Akira-san, I heard that…” she paused, frowning. “Akira-san, are you all right? You looked all flushed. Are you coming down with something?”
“I’m fine,” he said hastily, drawing back a little as she tried to feel his forehead. “Mother, what complaints?”
“Well… I heard from Yun-sensei that you up-ended your go-ke all over one of the Go Club members the other day,” his mother said, all in a rush.
Despite everything, Touya cringed. “Oh.”
“Yun-sensei said that Kato-kun was a third-year like you, and he’s been bullying the younger students. He thought that it was an incident… but,” she hesitated. “It sounds like the kind of thing Shindou-kun would do. Akira-san, that was an incident, wasn’t it?”
“Well…” It wasn’t.
“And this is the second time this week that I’ve had a phone call from your teacher, saying you’ve been studying kifu in class instead of paying attention!”
“I…”
His mother sighed. “I know you don’t intend to go on to high school, and you’re missing a lot of classes now, but I hoped that you would be able to have a normal school life, at least for now.”
‘Normal’ synonymous with ‘well-behaved’. Touya bowed his head. “I’m sorry,” he said.
His mother made a sound like a huff of relief. “Well, so long as you know what is proper,” she said. “I was just worried that Shindou would be a bad influence on you. I’ve heard his mother’s stories, you know!”
“I’m sorry,” he repeated. At least it was only about school.
“Good,” she said, standing up. “I better go and make dinner now.”
He nodded, waiting for his mother to leave so he could give in to the urge to hyperventilate.
His mother was at the door, before she paused, and turned back. “And Akira-san?”
“Yes?”
“Do remember to lock the Go storeroom next time you invite Shindou-kun to your school.”
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Crossposted to hikarunogo