Chapter Text
The morning air was strong, yet it complemented the heat of the sun like no other. Flashing in the sunlight, the leaves of the trees waved hello to any who would spare a glance. The atmosphere of the fresh day was positive, electrified by traveling people and the sights only Japan had to offer.
With an excited smile and sigh, a (h/c) girl trekked down the sidewalks she had not seen for years. She had lived abroad for the last year and a half, mainly in the antithesis to Japan, America. She had left many friends behind to follow her family back home, for her dear grandmother was very ill at the time. Although her heart sank at the prospect of having to stand before those she had left behind, she was proud of her strength and who she had become and could not be more excited to reach her destination.
Her destination was none other than Seirin, the young school less than a few blocks from her new apartment. She had kept up with basketball news while she was away and was well aware that the fresh basketball club had carried itself far past others’ expectations. She was excited to see the team for herself.
Once at the school, she was met with a gaggle of students, all wishing to have new members for their clubs. With her head down, she shuffled past the loud club members, searching for only one club in particular. In a flash, she saw a flier land at her feet.
‘Join the Seirin basketball club!’
With curved lips, she bent over to grasp the paper, being careful to hold her skirt down. Once upright again, she looked around at all the commotion. Students were flaring about, screaming for members to head their way. Literary club, baseball club, and more were beckoning every passerby. It was almost overwhelming.
Sighing, the girl moved to the edge of the path, pulling a pencil from her bag. A fire built in the pit of her stomach as she filled out the form. She was so close to her passion that she couldn’t wait any longer. After she signed her name, she moved her hair out of her eyes and placed her pencil behind her ear. The basketball club seemed to be up ahead, so she continued through the riled up students. Soon, her eyes fell on her prospective teammates who were chatting with a very large redhead. They seemed busy, so she slipped by and silently placed her form on the table. No one noticed her.
She was used to that honestly.
After Kagami Taiga left their station, the Seirin basketball club was shell shocked. Could he really be a first year? It seemed so unreal.
“Hey, you forgot some papers.”
Riko looked down to find two papers in the captain’s hands. On one was the name Kuroko Tetsuya, and on the other was (l/n) (f/n).
“Teikou basketball club?!!!”
“What?!”
Everyone looked at their coach because of the famous name. “Both of these people have Teikou listed as their middle school, but I don’t recognize their names.”
“If they’re first years, doesn’t that mean they’re with the Generation of Miracles?”
“Wahhhhh! Why did I forget the faces of such golden eggs?!”
“Seriously, what’s with the freshmen this year?”
Later on in the day, tryouts for the team began. In the pristine and basically new gym, the freshmen were lined up in front of their upperclassmen, the coach specifically eyeing them down. They were definitely surprised when they learned Riko was the coach.
“Take off your shirts!” the brunette shouted towards the prospective athletes. With apprehension, they complied. Each peeled off their plain white shirts, revealing the skin underneath.
Unsurprisingly, they were very uncomfortable, but they soon learned the method to Riko’s madness. Due to her father’s line of work, she had grown up learning the ins and outs of the human body and could now see a person’s strengths just from their build.
However, when Kagami fell into view, she did a massive double take. His stats were out of control, and his raw potential was almost terrifying.
“Coach! How long are you gonna day dream?”
“Sorry!”
“You saw everyone, right? He was the last?”
Shocked, Riko rechecked her list. The two Teikou graduates seemed to be absent.
“Kuroko Tetsuya? (l/n) (f/n)?”
“Excuse me…. I am Kuroko.”
With that, Riko jumped and let a shriek past her lips. The bluenette seemed to have manifested right before her eyes. No one else had noticed him, either.
“Since when were you here?!”
“I’ve been here since the beginning.”
Everyone’s eyes surveyed the new recruit. His blue eyes were blank as ever, and his build was too frail for a Miracle.
“You’re not really from the Generation of Miracles, are you?”
“He can’t have been a starter.”
Kuroko was unfazed, almost confused really. “I have played in matches before.”
“Really?!”
After he had taken off his shirt, Riko was perplexed. His stats were much too weak to belong to a Miracle. With a look of interest on her face, the coach thought, “Just what are you hiding?”
Just as Kuroko began redressing, the door to the gym opened with force, a gust of wind hitting everyone. They were glad they had their shirts on again.
“I’m so sorry I’m late!” yelled the intruder as she adjusted her shirt and threw down her sports bag. She stretched her arms as she jogged across the floor, her soft blue and white basketball shoes almost silent as they hit the wood.
“Who is she?”
“Does she think this is a girls’ team?!”
She glared at whoever made that remark before addressing Riko, bowing in apology. “I was held up by a teacher. I hope I can still try out!”
Riko felt even more confused by the girl’s presence, but wasn’t surprised due to how her day had been going. “Are you (l/n) (f/n)?”
(f/n) smiled at the fact that they had gotten her form, saying, “Yep, that’s me. I hope it’s not too surprising that I’m a girl.” She laughed.
With that, Kuroko came out of hiding again. “(f/n)-chan? You’ve returned?”
(f/n)’s eyes widened at the sound of his voice. Her earlier anxiety at the thought of seeing old friends returned, and she turned with slow breath. “Tetsuya? I can’t believe we chose the same school!” Anxiety dissipating, she threw her arms around the man. Tears threatened to form at the reunion, but she held them in.
“I can.”
She paused before laughing at his response. “You really didn’t change.”
“I am taller.”
Everyone around was confused by the conversation, especially Hyuuga, who decided to speak up.
“So you went to Teikou as well?” he questioned.
Kuroko decided to answer for his friend. “She played in games as well.”
“WHAT?!”
“I think my brain is gonna explode.”
(f/n) was guffawing at this point. It was always amusing when the news that she played basketball at Teikou Middle School was broken. It seemed as if everyone became broken as well.
“Yeah, I even started in some games.” A soft smile graced her lips at the nostalgia.
“How were you able to play in a boys’ club?” asked Koganei, his eyebrows furrowed.
Swaying left to right on her feet, (f/n) noticed the slight tinge of pain in her knees, but refused to truly acknowledge it. As everyone waited for her answer, she took in the scent of the air; it still carried the smell of a newly erected building, and she realized that this was the perfect place to begin her career again.
“Well, I fought pretty hard for it honestly. I pestered our captain,” she grinned at the thought of him, “and the coach for a while, and they always denied me. The coach even went as far as to wave the rules right in my face, and one day I just grabbed them from him and left. I read them all the way through multiple times and realized there wasn’t an actual rule that said a girl couldn’t join a basketball club full of men. So I went back to the captain, and he laughed and let me try out with him first. Said I might embarrass myself in front of the coach.”
Here, she laughed and looked up at Kuroko, who seemed amused as well. Everyone was surprised that no rule existed and was excited to hear more. Riko especially, as she respected the courage (f/n) had to offer. She definitely wouldn’t deny her if she was good enough to join the team.
“So we played one on one, and I’m sure he was planning on going easy on me. I beat him by one point, mainly because he wasn’t expecting me to be any good.” Everyone had a look of awe on their faces, and (f/n) laughed at the memory. “I know now that I shouldn’t have beaten him. It was the circumstance. He wasn’t expecting it, and he had yet to hit his prime completely. Now, I honestly wouldn’t stand a chance against him.”
At her pause, Izuki spoke. “Why haven’t we heard of you?”
She stared at him for a millisecond, pondering her response. “Have you heard of Tetsuya?” Everyone shook their heads. She was about to speak again, but Riko beat her to it.
“I had always thought they were rumors.” She looked at her peers. “I had heard of a phantom sixth man and a girl of unparalleled skill, but no one knew their names or faces.”
Kuroko was blank as ever, but (f/n) was amused. “Yeah, when Tetsuya got interviewed, they would always forget to put his part in the final drafts. When I got interviewed, they’d tell them to throw mine out altogether.”
Screams echoed through the gym. “Why?!”
(f/n) shrugged her shoulders and rolled her eyes. “Coach did everything he could to prevent me from being known. They even put me on the roster under the name of this guy who kinda looked like me. Also, I left for America halfway through our second year so it was even easier to forget me.”
After a little more conversation, Riko dismissed the prospective recruits with a promise of actual practice the next day. (f/n) and Kuroko made their way out the door together, finding themselves venturing in the same direction. A serene silence fell around them, their footsteps in sync. It reminded the girl of old times, and she realized she really was glad that Kuroko was the one to come with her. He was always so easy to talk to and so supportive, and they had created a bond due to their shared status. It had always seemed they didn’t belong, always forgotten.
“I see you kept the shoes.”
Staring down at their feet, she realized that Kuroko’s feet matched her own, their old Teikou colors a reminder of how far they had traveled from the past.
“Yeah, I’d never give up on my lucky shoes!” (f/n) grinned at her teammate, eyes just as happy as Kuroko had remembered. He felt that same happiness in his heart; he had honestly thought he would never see the girl again. “Hey, do you still like the vanilla shakes from this place?” Kuroko looked up, seeing the same restaurant they and their former teammates had frequented.
“Of course.”
Together, they entered the establishment, the smell of freshly grilled burgers and hot fries greeting their noses. The atmosphere was calm, few people sitting at the tables scattered about. With a smile, (f/n) ordered two vanilla milkshakes and a large fry. Within minutes, their order was passed into their glad hands, and they made their way to a booth near the windows. Silence encapsulated them, yet it was welcoming. Their thoughts drifted, sailing to and fro in search of coherency. Just as (f/n) decided on a conversation topic, a broad shouldered redhead sat beside Kuroko; a mountain of burgers was added to the table.
And, of course, Kagami jumped when he realized the table was occupied.
“What are you two doing here?”
(f/n) was too busy laughing to respond, so Kuroko did so. “We like the shakes here.”
After an awkward silence on Kagami’s part, he spoke his thoughts. “Earlier, everyone mentioned the Generation of Miracles. Are they really that strong?”
An expression of thought crossed (f/n)’s face. “I have no idea how far they’ve improved, but two years ago I could never see anyone beating them. Tetsuya?”
Kuroko was staring out the window at the passing cars, the lights reflecting off their metallic bodies mesmerizing. His mind was filled with memories of his former teammates, and he felt glad that (f/n) had left when she did, lest she be burdened such as he.
“They have improved greatly.”
“Yeah, I had a feeling.” She looked at Kagami with nostalgia in her eyes. “They were always so individual. They were a team, yet, when each of them had the ball, it was one player versus the world, their teammates included.”
Pondering his tablemates’ words, the redhead continued his meal. Darkness had already fallen, and (f/n)’s eyelids were falling as well, the weight of the night growing with every second.
Suddenly, Kagami’s eyes were filled with a fire familiar to the girl. “Do you think I could beat them?”
One second had passed, yet Kuroko answered like he had expected the question for years. “You would be crushed.”