i follow rivers home

As I was writing Sure Bet, I realized that much of it wasn't going to click into place for my readers, because the continuity it has come to be a part of is currently unfinished and unpublished anywhere, so I thought I'd include some of the notes and passages that were not including in the final version of this piece:

Thought I'd start with the obvious--the whole Imaoka/Touko angle. This pairing doesn't have much basis in canon, but think about it--for all that Touko has more than a little crush on Aniya, he's so focused on baseball and his friends that it desn't even really occur to him that he needs to 'stake a claim', so to speak. Which is a terrible thing to say, since it makes her seem like property, but if he has feelings for her I think he would make it a bit more obvious. Besides, this is the drama, so the kiss from the manga totally doesn't count. XDDDD

That doesn't leave Touko with much--her canon friends are all girls, and the only boys she ever sees are the baseball guys. It seems likely that she would end up in a relationship with one of the Futago boys before she ends up with some random guy from school. Of her choices, the only one with enough sanity to not drive her crazy with annoyance or constant come-ons is Imaoka. Or Mikoshiba, but since my Mikoshiba is rather focused on Aniya (in that manner, at least) it isn't much of a possibility.

...besides, I like Imaoka. He needs a break. ((And it would drive Hiratsuke nuts! XD))
As a note--in my canon, Imaoka eventually ends up studying photography / journalism at Todai, while Touko gets her law degree. =]

Passages not included in the final version--
There were two passages not actually included in the final version that would have led to a fic about twice or three times as long, as a matter of necessity for wrapping up loose ends. The first of those was full-cast interaction in the aftermath of this whole incident--

'    The next morning at school, Aniya and Mikoshiba were studiously ignoring all physical contact with one another, even though they were generally all over each other in a comfortable kind of way. Shinjo kept holding things above Sekikawa’s head and saying something in a low voice to make Sekikawa laugh. Imaoka showed up to class holding a bentou with a note from Touko clearly written across the front, flushing brightly when Touko grabbed his hand in front of them all. When Hiratsuka got over his initial flailing, Touko handed him another bentou, too, smiling. Hiratsuka was too busy yelling her name in adulation to notice Imaoka and Touko sharing knowing, wry glances.

    Wakana made his confusion abundantly clear at practice, and Yufune teased Imaoka mercilessly while they were changing. Okada and Hiyama, however, took the smarter route and spoke in quiet tones carefully watching Sekikawa and Shinjo lean a little too close while they changed. Aniya and Mikoshiba’s obvious discomfort even caught Kawato’s attention and their boisterous coach made Mikoshiba catch for Aniya at patching practice to try and fic it. After a few terrible pitches, Mikoshiba made a caustic remark about Aniya’s pitch placement, and Aniya yelled something back about still not feeling well after last night, which only made Mikoshiba laugh. By the end, the two were once again speaking, and Mikoshiba even adjusted the form of Aniya's curveball with a hand at his elbow.'

Since this section is unwieldy, bulky, and unnecessary to the piece as a whole at the time of publication, it was thrown out. It was initially written because I'd realized I'd ignored pretty much everybody but my two ships and Imaoka, then I realized I didn't really need to involve them. This isn't a team!fic, it's an ImaAni!fic. :DDDD

The section passage was planned and partially written, a bit of Touko-Aniya interaction that revealed the source of the whole plot--Touko herself. I imagined something like this:

' "...what are you and Imaoka doing on your date?" asked Aniya gruffly, looking away from her.
Touko smiled. "We're going to go picnicking at the lake and feed some ducks!" she said.
Aniya actually stopped. Touko slowed, turning to look at him. "...what?" she asked.
"Who the hell are you, and what have you done with Touko?" asked Aniya. "...duck watching? What the fuck?"
Touko laughed. "Shush, Kei-chan. It's not really about the ducks, you know! The lake is still nearly deserted at this time of year, and the weather's really nice so we'd like to go before all the crowds set in.
"...maybe this time I'll let him kiss me," she continued, flushing.
"This time?" asked Aniya after that sentence made it through his brain.
"Well, sure," answered Touko, "we've gone out four or fie times now, you know."
"NO, I MOST CERTAINLY DID NOT KNOW!" answered Aniya, almost turning around to go beat the shit of Imaoka for good this time.
"Kei-chan, you promised Shinobu-kun you'd let us do what we'd like," said Touko sweetly.
"...this was all your idea," accused Aniya flatly.
Touko merely smiled. '

...now that I read that, I kind of like it. XDDDD I may keep it if this fic gets extended into the larger arc of my canon. :D

Besides that, I've realized that not everyone has the resources I do when it comes to character information. On the lj comm
morita_babies , some kind user posted up the character profiles of the manga versions of the characters. I thought I'd include it here for everyone else to see. It's important to note that these are not my translations. However, I have done two things: ordered the characters by number / position, added their heights and weights in the American system, and finally added their heights for the drama version, as found in the Rookies Perfect Book. So now no one can say that I'm pulling stuff out of my ass when I mention Sekikawa's two sisters and Imaoka's older brother :D

None of these siblings have been mention in canon; I have, however, named several as a necessity, and those names are included at the end. If anyone wants to steal them, they're welcome to. =]

1) Aniya Keiichi
School Year: 2
Height/Weight: 181 – 75 (5’11” / 165) --- 5'7" in the drama
Blood type: O
Throw/Bat: Right - Right
Position: Pitcher
Family: Father - Mother
50m Dash: 6.0 seconds
Throw: 123m
Respected Person: Kawato

2) Wakana Tomochika
School Year: 2
Height/Weight: 179 - 71 (5’10” / 156.5) --- 5'9" in the drama
Blood type: B
Throw/Bat: Right - Right
Position: Catcher
Family: Father - Mother - Younger Brother (1)
50m Dash: 6.4 seconds
Throw: 97m
Respected Person: Kawato

3) Yufune Tetsurou
School Year: 2
Height/Weight: 186 – 80 (6’1” / 176.3) --- 5'9" in the drama
Blood type: O
Throw/Hit: Right - Right
Position: First Base
Family: Father - Mother - Older Brother (1)
50m Dash: 6.5 seconds
Throw: 100m
Respected Person: Kawato

4) Mikoshiba Toru
School Year: 2
Height/ Weight: 154 - 47 (5’1” / 104) --- 5'9" in the drama
Blood type: A
Throw/Bat: Right - Right
Position: Second Base
Family: Grandma - Father - Mother - Older Sister (1)
50m Dash: 6.9 seconds
Throw: 83m
Respected Person: Kawato

5) Shinjo Kei (10)
School Year: 2
Height/Weight: 185 - 81 ( 6’ / 178.6) --- 6'2" in the drama
Blood type: AB
Throw/Hit: Right - Left
Position: Third Base
Family: Father - Mother - Younger Sister (1)
50m Dash: 6.3 seconds
Throw: 112m
Respected Person: Kawato

6) Hiyama Kiyooki
School Year: 2
Height/Weight: 174 - 65 (5’9” / 143.3) --- 5'10" in the drama
Blood type: O
Throw/Hit: Right - Right
Position: Shortstop
Family: Father – Mother – Older Brother (1)
50m Dash: 6.9 seconds
Throw: 90m
Respected Person: Kawato

7) Imaoka Shinobu
School Year: 2
Height/Weight: 152 – 45 (5’ / 99) --- 5'5" in the drama
Blood type: AB
Throw/Hit: Right - Left/Right
Position: Left Field/Pitcher
Family: Grandfather - Grandmother - Father - Mother - Older Brother (1)
50m Dash: 7.3 seconds
Throw: 76m
Respected Person: Kawato

8) Sekikawa Shuta
School Year: 2
Height/Weight: 163 – 54 ( 5’4” / 119) --- 5'8" in the drama
Blood type: A
Throw/Hit: Right - Right
Position: Center Field
Family: Mother - Older Sister (1) - Younger Sister (1)
50m Dash: 5.6 seconds
Throw: 88m
Respected Person: Kawato

9) Okada Yuuya
School Year: 2
Height/Weight: 170 – 59 (5’7” / 130) --- 5'7" in the drama
Blood type: A
Throw/Hit: Left - Left
Position: Right Field
Family: Father - Mother - Younger Brother (1)
50m Dash: 6.8 seconds
Throw: 85m
Respected Person: Kawato

10) Hiratsuka Taira (5)
School Year: 2
Height/Weight: 175 – 75 (5’9” / 65.3) --- 5'11" in the drama
Blood type: O
Throw/Hit: Right - Right
Position: Third Base
Family: Father - Mother - Younger Brothers (3)
50m Dash: 7.0 seconds
Throw: 100m
Respected Person: 両津勘吉 (Ryoutsu Kankichi?)

I've named Mikoshiba's older sister An.
The name I've given Sekikawa's older sister is Hizuru.
I've named Shinjo's younger sister Kaede.
A possible name for Imaoka's older brother is Kazuki, as of this time. =]