-- ⋆ the view from the top | lacke & din

[lacke]

they say setters are the heart of the team - what happens when a new one is introduced?

a haikyuu based roleplay between din and i!

[lacke]

────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
kiyoshi (pure) sada (pure one) ╍ male ╍ sixteen years old ╍ born april 15 ╍ wing spiker
bisexual ╍ 5'11, lanky and wiry╍ calm, gentle, empathetic ╍ shiratorizawa ╍ second year
────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────

kiyoshi sada is a tall young man, standing at about 5'11. he is rather lanky, although he has a
decent amount of muscle from playing volleyball and training. he has been playing volleyball
since elementary, although he didn't really gain a passion for it until he began high school. he
is known to be rather timid off the court, although nonetheless, he is very calm, gentle, and
at times, over charismatic with his team mates. he can however be very stubborn and hard-
headed, as well as generally anxious. he likes to make sure everyone around him is okay.

he has played the wing spiker position since his first year, and he dons the number 5 on his
jersey, as he believes it's his lucky number. his height gives him a very good advantage for
his position, and although he is not very cocky about his ability, he is rather confident. he
does understand, however, that his ability would be non-existent without his volleyball team.
he grew up in an average house, although now he just lives with his mother and younger sister.

[din.]

male | sixteen | july 26 - leo ♌︎ | setter & right side hitter | 6'0 | shiratorizawa

matsuda is tall, uncomfortably so. he often complains about not feeling at home
in his own skin, but over the years he's learned to use his great height to his adva-
ntage. matsuda played for one of the better schools in nagoya, until he was ripped
from his comfortable spot as a starting setter to go live in sendai with his family.
being recruited to shiratorizawa was a life changing event for him, and he's deter-
mined to be his best for the team.
matsuda is almost always in a state of constant confusion. classes, friends, relatio-
nships, future planning... they're simply not his forte. the one good thing he has g-
oing for him is his ability as an athlete. matsuda has angel hands- at least that's w-
hat all of his past teammates and coaches have said. his feather light touch and p-
inpoint accuracy with a volleyball has been unparalleled thus far. he's not necessa-
rily cocky about it, but he's very confident in his sets.

[lacke]

the coach

nakama katsu - information!
the team

seiko ishikawa - third year - wing spiker/defensive specialist - captain - number 2 - chaotic, slightly mean
kubo hitoshi - second year - libero - number 10 - closed off, very focused
matsuda dai - second year - setter - number 7 - confused yet very confident
kiyoshi sada - second year - wing spiker - number 5 - timid, gentle
suzuki tori - first year - middle blocker - number 27 - has major hops
sozoshi akira - first year - right wing spiker/setter - number 15 - puppy dog demeanor
jack baines - third year - middle blocker - number 4 - most annoying middle blocker you'll ever meet
orio katashi - third year - ace - number 15 - a generally terrifying ace who can be shockingly nice at times
benjiro yamashita - third year - setter

[lacke]

xx

𝐤𝐢𝐲𝐨𝐬𝐡𝐢 𝐬𝐚𝐝𝐚

location: town, the gymxx tags: everyone basically xx words: 769

pale yellows, purples and blues danced their way across the sky and sada exited his house, pressing his face
deep into the collar of his coat, his nose protruding out so he could breathe. his untamed hair blew gently in
the wind as he started his trek to the gym. as the wind picked up, sada cast his eyes to the ground, and he
attempted to push his face further into his coat. he liked the weather in the daytime, it was relatively nice,
but now that he was back up to leaving before the sun totally came over the horizons, he was a little unhappy.

nearly 10 minutes into his walk to the gym, the sun finally cast its light across the city, and sada straightened
up, breathing in the fresh air. he pulled his gym bag closer to him and let out a very wide yawn, stretching one
of his arms as he walked. he was about halfway to the school by now, and as he glanced around at the houses
that spread out all around him, he began to slow his pace. this is where he usually met up with his fellow second
year, kubo hitoshi, shiratorizawas libero. he paused by a stop sign and promptly leaned against it, pulling his
phone from his pocket and checking the time. suddenly, a force pulled him backwards and a hand slid down the
back of his jacket. "come on kiyoshi, you can't show up to practice with the stupid tag sticking out like that."
hitoshi wasn't the brightest, but being the only two current second years, they had a decent bond. sada smiled
sheepishly and rubbed the back of his neck. "thanks man. i don't know why the tag always sticks up."

the two boys walked in silence the rest of the way to the gym, and kiyoshi let out a breath of relief when the
gym came into sight. hitoshi and sada sped up their pace as they saw the third years grouped outside of the
towering gym. they approached and promptly dipped their heads. "ishiwaka, baines, katashi," sada murmured
before standing and watching their captain, ishiwaka, unlock the gym. the third years quietly made their way
into the gym, sada and hitoshi following close behind. they all tossed their bags to the side, and sada crouched
besides his, pulling off his jacket and shoving it in the gym bag. he quickly put on his volleyball shoes, listening
quietly as the third years began talking.

"coach is bringing in the new first years, i hope they have some potential." katashi said with a small smile on
his face. he was met with a grunt from baines, the american on their team. "i've heard that one of the new guys
is a second year." he huffed and sada couldn't help but laugh out loud. "you're one to talk," sada teased,
referencing that baines was once also a transfer student. baines quickly turned to sada and stood, only for katashi
to stop him. "you know the kid was messing around," katashi stated, and shot sada a smile. "anyway, let's
get on with practice. we need to warm up before the newbies get here," katashi stated enthusastically, waving
a hand and dismissing baines from his presence. sada stood and stretched his arms above his head, before going
through the generic stretches so his legs wouldn't cramp.

he swiveled on his heels and walked over to the volleyball cart, grabbing one from the dozen and carrying it to the
serving line on one side of the court. he bounced it a few times, before noticing that hitoshi walked onto the court,
ducked under the net and lined himself across from sada, indicating he wanted to receive some serves. sada smiled
and bounced the ball a few more times before tossing the ball in the air, rushing forwards, and jumping to hit the
ball over the net. hitoshi easily received it and sada walked forwards on to the court so they could continue going
back and forth, but the gym doors suddenly opened and everyone stopped what they were doing. in came their
coach, tailed by 4 others. sada watched quietly as they all entered, glancing around at his fellow teammates to
see their reactions. they all started to walk towards the newcomers and sada bit his lip. they looked like a good
group from what he could tell, and he glanced over each of them. the current players lined up infront of the new
ones, and the coach, and bowed quickly. "welcome to shiratorizawa!" they all said, before standing up straight.

[din.]

________________________

✦✦✦
m a t s u d a
d a i
location; gym
tags; the team || words; 1095

i'm so down to earth
and you're up in the stars
i'll show you the sea
if you take me to mars
________________________

dai was inclined to the cold march weather, and indulged in the way it cooled his cheeks as he rode his bike down the unfamiliar streets of sendai. he was relying on memory alone to get him to where he needed to be, which based off past experience, was an unreliable way to get anywhere at all. the streets were blessedly deserted and dark at the asscrack of dawn, which made it eons easier to navigate.
slung over his shoulder was a sports bag emblazoned with the name of his old high school. he felt self conscious parading it around a town so passionate about their beloved high school volleyball team, but for now, it was all he had to carry his things. he figured that before long, he'd be so smothered in purple and white that he'd drown in it. the brand new pristine purple and white school uniforms hanging in his closet nauseated him slightly, but he was more than looking forward to donning the sports jersey.

dai was eternally grateful to any gods that might've helped him along the way when the towering campus of shiratorizawa finally came into view. he'd been there only twice before, and it's sheer size still shocked him.
lost in his thoughts, dai nearly clipped one of the great big gates while riding through the entrance, and nearly fell sideways off his bike as he swerved to avoid them. what a wonderful way to start the day. he thought sarcastically, trying his best to calm his racing heart.

he decided to call it there, and dismount his bike in favor of walking it respectfully at his side. he doubted bikes and skateboard were even allowed on the campus, but it was deserted for the break, so he figured walking it wouldn't cause much harm.

now... where to go. the thought echoed around in his skull as he stood stock still in what he presumed to be the school quad. important-looking buildings surrounded him like the walls of a great maze, and he felt anxiety grip him. he'd be late at this rate...

ok. the athletics building... in the east wing. dai set off in one direction, honestly a shot in the dark. he kept a look out for any signs that may give him blessed guidance, but was only met with little placards displaying numbers that meant absolutely nothing to him.
luckily, he'd gotten there before the sun had even begun to peek out from the horizon, leaving him a sufficient amount of time to wander around and get lost, if need be.

it was through some great streak of luck that he only got absolutely lost twice before stumbling across an obnoxiously large building with a large placard reading "athletics". light shone through the pristine glass doors into the dark of the early morning, like a beacon beckoning dai in.

he entered hesitantly, displeased to find that there was nobody occupying the front desk. he did hear voices though, and blindly followed the sound. it led him to a small room down the hall, the door wide open with only a couple occupants. upon spotting him, they all went silent, but coach was quick to beckon him in.
dai waited there, talking volleyball with coach nakama and two first years, until the last player arrived. dai noticed that despite being first years, his new teammates were very substantial in size. dai usually towered over anyone he met, but it was comforting to find that he only towered over one person in a room of five people.

before long, the five men were making their way toward the gym, and the first years were talking amongst themselves like they knew each other. they probably did, after all, with orientation and whatnot. two of them had even come from the same middle school, apparently.

"alright boys, today is gonna be pretty casual." coach explained as the gym came into view, and dai was shocked at the size. it was like three of his old gyms put together, plus a connecting building for god knows what. probably a luxury spa, he guessed, taking into consideration the astronomical funds that went into the school.
"most of the team will probably be inside already, and you're gonna introduce yourselves before we start, ok? just give your name, position, and where you came from."
the recruits nodded, all of them eyeing the gym with great anticipation.

dai wasn't surprised when the inside of the gym was just as impressive as the outside. so many courts, so many stands, so many... everything. the ceiling was high and the floor simply shined. then of course, there was his team.
it was overwhelming to have so many eyes turned upon him, the gym so quiet you could hear the birds outside. dai was stunned when the team lined up and bowed to him and the recruits, and he quickly reciprocated.

"meet your new teammates." coach said, nodding in the direction of the first years. dai was relieved that one of the boys took the reins and started introducing himself.
dai listened dutifully, desperately trying to keep his eyes from straying to the rest of the team to avoid being disrespectful.

the first year was tall and lanky. "i'm suzuki tori, a middle blocker, and i'm from nishikigaoka middle school." he bowed, then took a step backwards, looking to his companions expectantly.

the other first years introduced themselves as a right wing spiker-setter, and a wing spiker both from aiku middle school. then it was dai's turn, and so many eyes were turned upon him.

"i'm matsuda dai, a setter from meiwa high school in nagoya." he said, trying his hardest to keep his voice steady. he had nothing to be nervous about... his teammates were going to become some of his closest friends. right?

the team collectively bowed once more and said in unison "we're happy to have you." and it kind of freaked dai out. so the people at shiratorizawa did not mess around, he should've known.

"alright boys! let's see what you can do. warm up, then get into hitting lines." coach said jovially, making his way over to the side of the court to take a ball for himself.

suddenly the crowd dispersed, even the other three first years seemed to know exactly where to go. dai was soon left standing alone by the door, and only thought to follow the crowd when he heard the captain begin to call for group stretches and laps.
this is gonna be a day...

[lacke]

xx

𝐤𝐢𝐲𝐨𝐬𝐡𝐢 𝐬𝐚𝐝𝐚

location: the gymxx tags: team, matsudaxx words: 683

sadas eyes flicked gingerly over their new teammates, and his eyes fell to suzuki tori, and sada had to
admit - he looked like he would be a fine middle blocker. he was tall, lanky and honestly well built for
the position. the next two were introduced as being a right wing spiker-setter and a wing spiker. they
both came from the same middle school. and lastly was the new second year, matsuda dai, and he was
a setter. after the introductions were done, sada and the boys around him bowed once more. "we're
happy to have you." just as quickly as the introductions had started, they were already over. coach
dismissed them to warm up and get into hitting lines, and everyone dispersed to begin stretching and
do laps. sada began to aimlessly follow the rest of his teammates, before noting that matsuda lingered
by the door for a moment, before uneasily following along with the rest of them.

sada hung back for a moment, before gathering enough courage to jog over to matsuda. he caught up
with the boy and trailed alongside him as they got ready to do some stretches. "hey, welcome to our
team! my names kiyoshi sada, i'm a wing spiker. i'm also a second year." sada paused and began to
do move his arms in circles to warm them up. "i know a lot of our team seems really intimidating,
but i promise they'll warm up quickly." he stated, casting his gaze to the side to glance at matsuda.
he knew the first day would be intimidating, but he was already fairly curious about matsuda - he was
a second year, why did he transfer? what had he heard about their team prior to joining, or even from
his previous school? those would all be questions for later he supposed - if the setter ever decided to
talk with him again. he remained in silence for the rest of the stretches, before turning to go run his
laps. "if you ever need something, just let me know!" he said cheerfully, jogging to the edges of the
court to join the other players in their laps.

laps went by quickly, sada glancing towards the clock on the wall a few times. soon enough, they were
getting into hitting lines - a typical starting off drill for them. coach stood near the serving line while
the setters and defensive players got set up. sada stood at the shoulder of katashi, and together they
watched as the coach tossed the volleyball to the setter, who in turn tossed the ball up for ishikawa,
who still astounded sada every time the boy went to spike. ever since sada joined last year, he had
always looked up to ishikawa - his spikes were absolutely amazing. keeping an eye on how the defense
received the ball, he glanced to katashi. "what do you think of the newcomers?" he asked quietly,
watching the ball sail back over the net and to the hands of the coach. the ace only shrugged, and sada
found himself mildly annoyed at not getting an answer. of course they didn't really know how their
new teammates played - perhaps sada should do the same as everyone else - sit back and watch what
happens. he watched timidly as sozoshi akira, one of the new first years, was up to hit next.

the ball was tossed to the setter - one that sada and his team had gotten to know over the past year,
and the ball gracefully launched from the setters fingers towards sozoshi. the first year successfully
hit it, only for it to be quickly shot down by baines who huffed, very loudly, in victory. sada flinched,
casting his eyes to sozoshi who looked a little hurt. he didn't hit it badly, he just wasn't used to one
of the setters yet - it happened. it was also their first practice. sada shook his head slightly, though
he hoped that baines didn't catch him. baines was really good at blocking, but sada thought that at
times, baines couldn't tell the difference between practice and an actual game.

[din.]

________________________

✦✦✦
m a t s u d a
d a i
location; gym
tags; the team || words;

i'm so down to earth
and you're up in the stars
i'll show you the sea
if you take me to mars
________________________

up until the moment coach decided to start practice, dai hadn't been too nervous, but now that it was actually happening, his chest felt tight and nausea threatened to overtake him. shiratorizawa was distinctly different from meiwa- everything and everyone was bigger and better and more expensive.

dai hurried over to the team, which had formed a semicircle around the captain to stretch, and found a place at the end. to his surprise, another boy fell in after him. he began to talk, and dai took this as an invitation to study one of his new teammates. he- kiyoshi- was tall just like him, and had wild dark hair. once again, he was relieved that he wasn't the only giant in the room. in the gym, he was merely a single tall tree in a tall forest.

kiyoshi attempted to console him- apparently dai must not have been doing a good job of hiding his anxiety. he was grateful for his teammate taking the lead in introducing himself though, and dai responded with a simple small smile. he imitated kiyoshi's stretches, noting that the team seemed to have a short routine of stretches they ran through. just as quickly as kiyoshi had come to his side though, he was already rushing off, joining some boys who were done stretching in laps around the court. dai would be sure to catch him during a water break or after practice or something- having at least one friend on the team right off the bat would make things a lot easier.

dai didn't hesitate this time though, and took off after the other boys, finding a comfortable spot in the middle of the pack to run his laps. by the time the captain- ishikawa- signaled that they were finished, dai was breathing too heavily through his nose, and scolded himself for the three sweet buns he'd eaten the day before.

the boys filed into hitting lines, some ducking under the net to go play defense, and a setter taking his spot at the net. dai tentatively made his way over to the right side of the net, lining up behind the few boys that played right side. the setter was obviously very well practiced, and as dai watched the first set and spike, a rush of adrenaline pulsed through him. "wow." he murmured under his breath.

one of the right wing hitters laughed and nodded at dai, "wouldn't expect any less from ishikawa." he said proudly, then turned his back on dai to watch the setter.

dai was mortified at the blockers on the other side of the net, apalled yet so very impressed with the way they dunked on their own teammates, letting only the very strongest spikes through. he watched first years, second year, and even third years take a mean swing, the blockers deciding the ball's fate. the spikes that did make it through seemed to be nearly flawless, and the defense on the other side was always there to cushion the ball.

the setter set whoever he pleased, giving a short call of "left", "right", or "middle" before setting. every player who went up made sure to hit the ball to the best of their ability, undoubtedly aiming to impress their new teammates and coach. he couldn't help but feel a spark of excitement when kiyoshi made it to the front of the wing spiker line- the only guy he knew anything about- besides the first years of course.

dai wasn't surprised when kiyoshi took a swing and made it past the blockers, only for his spike to be absorbed by the arms of a defensive player. he had a very nice form, dai noted, and seemed pleased with himself as the blonde blocker in front of him scowled. dai doubted kiyoshi would see, but he flashed the spiker a grin, and small thumbs up. nerdy for sure, but dai didn't have the guts to cheer for anyone out loud yet.

then it was dai's turn, and his excitement was dizzying as the call "right!" reached his ears. taking a deep breath, his eyes locked on the ball and he began his approach, arms swinging high and legs pushing off the ground as hard as they ever have. when dai connected with the ball, it felt so right, but his satisfaction quickly turned to embarrassment as the ball caught on one of the blockers' fingers. it did make it over the net, but the impact was underwhelming. oh well... at least i didn't get slammed on like sozoshi. and that was good enough for him.

he made his way to the back of the line and watched as the team became more confident in the drill. people called for different sets, took risky swings, and the energy had shifted from "just another practice" to a truly fun practice. now, if only coach would call for the setters to switch...

[lacke]

xx

𝐤𝐢𝐲𝐨𝐬𝐡𝐢 𝐬𝐚𝐝𝐚

location: the gymxx tags: team, matsudaxx words: 683

sada slowly made his way onto the court in rotation, and watched as the coach tossed the ball to the setter,
who promptly tossed it his way. sada felt a rush of excitement and quickly made his approach, arms going
behind him before jumping into the air, arm swinging forward and connecting with the ball. his ball went
through the blockers seamlessly, and he grinned as he returned to the court floor, eyeing the blocker that
had barely missed his ball. shortly after, he started making his way back to the end of the line, and quickly
saw matsuda motion something to him. he shot the boy a smile, and found his place in line just as matsuda
stepped into the rotation. he watched as the setter confidentially stepped into the spike, and felt a twinge
of sympathy when it caught on one of the blockers fingers. however, he was able to get it through.

he watched matsuda make his way towards the back of the line as well and attempted to give him a thumbs
up, indicating that he did well. the team went through a few more players before the coach called for the
setters to switch - and sada watched as matsuda made his way on to the court to sub out their setter, and
sada felt himself get antsy. setters were vitally important, so it would be very intriguing to see what matsuda
would do. he watched the first rotation, and watched as matsuda, very, almost abnormally, gracefully set to
katashi, who, of course, hit it with great vigor straight through the blockers hands. another first year went
next, and sada began to dwell on what he wanted to try this time.

open handed tips were something sada had done before, though not much. and, needless to say, he was a
little antsy to try it. should he try it with matsuda setting though? they were definitely not used to each
other. he finally stepped into the court, and as the coach tossed the ball towards matsuda, sada felt the
same rush of excitement as his previous hit and he began to approach. the boy noticed that as matsuda
went to spike it, it looked like there was barely any effort put into the set, and yet, it was perfect. sada
made contact with the ball, with an open hand and softly hit it upwards. the ball barely cleared the
blockers and gently tumbled towards the floor, only to be quickly received by their libero. sada touched
back down on the court and looked quickly to matsuda - he had managed to do a fine tip, even though
they had never played together before. he was so excited, he wanted to grab matsuda on the shoulders
and give him a good shake, but he knew he couldn't.

sada instead shot the setter a wide smile before trotting his way back to the line. they went through a
few more rotations and resets before ishikawa called for a water break. sada quietly made his way over
to his bag, where he pulled out his bottle of water and quickly began drinking from it. as he took a few
gulps, he glanced towards the clock, noting that time was getting shorter and that their classes would
be starting sooner than he wished. matsuda soon entered sadas field of view, and sada pulled the bottle
away from his lips and gave the boy a wave. "you've got some real talent!" he complimented, pulling his
towel up to dry his forehead. "you move so well it looks like you barely put any effort into it at all, how
do you do it?" he asked excitedly, although he knew he would most likely never understand. of course he
knew how to set, but it wasn't his forte. his eyes drifted back to the court, where a third year was chatting
with hitoshi, probably about wanting to practice some serves while everyone else took a break. he watched
as hitoshi took his spot on the opposite side of the court and tilted his head with interest as the third year
began raining hard hit serves down on the libero.

sada quickly took a few more drinks of water before turning his gaze back to matsuda. "say, how do you
like it here so far? i know you've barely started, so forgive me if i'm asking too much." he stated, raising
the bottle back to his mouth.

[din.]

________________________

✦✦✦
m a t s u d a
d a i
location; gym
tags; the team || words; 732

i'm so down to earth
and you're up in the stars
i'll show you the sea
if you take me to mars
________________________

dai had simply wanted to burst when coach abruptly called "setters switch", then shot a pointed look at him. burst with excitement, of course... definitely not nerves. as he jogged to the net, dai had visions of coach tossing him the ball and the team watching judgmentally as he set a wonky ball all the way past the antenna. no... that'll never happen. he resolved silently to himself, taking his spot at the net.

the drill went smoother than dai could've ever anticipated. he felt good about his sets, and he felt good about the synergy between most of the people that hit. some of the more outgoing boys would occasionally yell "nice set" to him encouragingly, and some would gently ask him to adjust the sets to their preferences, which dai was more than happy to memorize and execute. he could memorize the preferences of 30 teammates, but ask him to memorize one presentation for history class and dai was dead meat.
his favorite people to set to so far were ishikawa, kiyoshi, and the ace he didn't know the name of yet. they all had mean spikes, seemed to adapt naturally to his sets, and best of all, they complimented him. kiyoshi's tips are nice too, and dai could see them pulling that off in a game- even though setting in an actual game seemed a far off dream.

by the time ishikawa called for a break, dai's arms ached pleasantly and sweat dripped down his face. the lines had sped up significantly toward the end, and he had been tossing left and right. the break was such a relief, and dai jogged over to his sports bag to pull out a large metal bottle. a couple teammates complimented him off-handedly on his sets and introduced themselves, but they didn't stop to talk for long. dai didn't mind all that much, as it gave him ample time to greedily chug half his bottle.

dai observed the team during the break, watching his teammates talk amongst themselves, drink like men stranded in the desert, and some even chose to continue practicing in pairs. how to connect with these guys... he probably had to start by talking to them, which was a hurdle in and of itself. maybe the libero-

his thoughts were interrupted by a waving hand nearby- kiyoshi.
dai flushed a bit as he was complimented on his sets, and he didn't really know how to answer. his light touch was a result of tireless hours of practice and probably sheer genetic luck. he didn't tell kiyoshi as much, choosing to grace him with a mysterious smile that said "it's a secret".
when his teammate turned away from him, dai idly followed his gaze to see the libero receiving nasty jump serves instead of hydrating. he imagined that for most of these guys, volleyball was their life, and being on this team was a merely stepping stone to get to the next level.

dai turned back to kiyoshi when he started talking again, capping and tossing his water bottle into his bag again.
"how do you like it here so far" he said, and dai tilted his head.

"um..." he began awkwardly, eyes straying to the boys on the court. how do i like it here?

"i'm impressed." was what he settled on, punctuating his sentence with a chuckle.
"you guys aren't nationally acclaimed for nothing. i'm just happy to be here." dai smiled genuinely, absently wiping the sweat off his brow with the collar of his shirt.

"and i hope i can be a useful addition to the team. that was a nice tip by the way-" suddenly ishikawa's voice rang out, "one more minute. we're doing six-on-six!"

dai leaned back, pressing his hands into his lower back to stretch. i'll be feeling this for days...
"try n' be on my team. i'll set to you!" dai said to kiyoshi, laughing. he doubted it was even possible for kiyoshi to pick, but he didn't exactly know how things worked around there. he then turned and jogged to the sideline, where most of the team was lining up in front of coach, captain, and a couple of third years.

"for the rest of practice, we'll be playing small games. four teams, best of three sets, first to twenty-five gets the set. winners leave early and losers get laps! have fun!"