Chapter Text
"You are most definitely diseased." Ayano says solemnly as she stares down at the cheap thermometer in her hands.
"He's not diseased- he's just got a cold is all. No need to be over dramatic about it."
"Ehhh? Tetsu-chan is sick?"
"Yup. So sick he's probably gonna die."
"Ayano."
"What? It's a definite possibility!"
Kuroko Tetsuya- phantom sixth man of the Generation of Miracles- stares pitifully up at his siblings, who are all crowded around his bed, all looking mildly concerned about his current state. He's sniffling and coughing and his head is pounding and- is it possible for your lungs to shrivel up and die? Because it really feels like that might be happening- but school. He can't stay in bed- he can't miss class and basketball practice!
"What's his temperature?" Hikaru, the second youngest son, inquires.
Ayano, the family's only daughter, squints at the thermometer, close to blind without her glasses. "Um. 102 degrees, I think."
"102 degrees?! That's impossible- he should be dead!" The oldest son, Sora, gasps.
"102 degrees Fahrenheit, you dumbass."
"Ayano!"
"I'm fine. Don't worry about me." Tetsuya interjects weakly. He tries to push himself up to a sitting position, but ends up flopping right back down; it's like all the energy has been drained out of his body. He has low endurance normally, but add a cold to that, and you've got one useless sack of misery on your hands. "Tetsu-chan, don't be an idiot. That's Sora's job."
"Hey!"
"You'll be staying home today," Ayano continues while Sora pouts and crosses his arms with a loud hmph. "Don't worry; I'll stop by your school and get your work- and tell your coach that you're sick. Extremely sick, and that we have quarantined you to prevent the spread of disease."
"You make it sound as though he has the plague."
"The common cold is a thousand times worse than the plague."
This causes bickering to break out between Sora and Ayano- those two are always fighting- with Hikaru playing mediator, and Tetsuya just stares mournfully at the ceiling until he feels the mattress sag with added weight. "Is Nii-chan okay?" Akiko, the family's youngest son, asks as he snuggles up beside his older brother; if Tetsuya had to say which of his siblings he was closest too, he would probably pick Akiko. The five-year-old follows him around like a baby duckling and always hides behind his legs when he's nervous or scared.
"Yes, Akiko-chan. I am just not feeling very well." Tetsuya pats the little boy's head, trying to be reassuring, but his kind smile feels more like a twisted grimace of pain.
"Oh."
"Shuddup, okay!" Ayano yells, silencing Hikaru and Sora and making Tetsuya and Akiko stare up at her. "Tetsuya is staying home today- that is freaking final, you feel me?" She waits for her brothers to nod before continuing. "He is going to stay in bed and rest. I will go to his school and handle things there- after I pick Akiko up from school. Hikaru," Her intense, taking-charge gaze settles on her younger brother. "You'll take care of Nigou. Sora," The eldest brother straightens, awaiting instructions. "Come home as early as you can and take care of him; give him medicine and soup and whatever. Akiko," Akiko puffs out his chest and awaits his own instructions, excited to get a task like a big boy. "You can, ugh," Ayano scratches the back of her head. "Give Tetsu-chan lots of love, or whatever. Make him laugh- laughter is the best medicine, right? And, uh, hurry out after school so you can help me get his work. Everybody cool?"
"Ayano-chan, I really don't feel that-" She raises a hand to silence her older brother.
"Tetsu-chan, did I stutter?"
"No, but-"
"But nothing; you're sick, you're staying home, that's final." Ayano has that aura of don't-mess-with-me surrounding her, and she's like a different person. It's almost scary how quickly she can go from making her weird, sarcastic jokes and fighting with Sora to being Alpha Female.
"Any objections or questions?"
There's silence and Ayano flashes each of her brother's an intense glare that has them fidgeting nervously- after growing up with roughhousing boys, Ayano has no qualms with smacking them around if they're being difficult. Except for Akiko, of course; the soft spot she has for the youngest Kuroko child is painfully obvious. No such affection stops her from hitting Hikaru, Sora,- or even Tetsuya. Sora receives the brunt of her anger though.
"Good. Let's go- not you, Tetsuya!" She growls as her older brother tries- and fails- to get out of bed. "Stay down, dumbass. You're not going anywhere."
"AYANO, STOP CURSING AROUND AKIKO!"
Akiko waddles along beside his Nee-chan as she guides him down the sidewalk, gripping his chubby hand tightly- ever since that one time he ran out into traffic to grab a sparkly thing, she's been careful to always have a good hold on him-, and Akiko wonders if Tetsu-nii is going to be okay.
"Nee-chan?"
"Yeah?"
"Is Tetsu-nii going to be okay?"
"'Course he is. Don't worry about him, alright? It's just a cold." Ayano squeezes his hand gently, and Akiko feels a lot less worried because Nee-chan would never ever lie to him. Nee-chan is really the bestest- besides Tetsu-nii. She always makes him the best snacks for school, and she reads to him whenever he asks, and she lets him win basketball whenever they play, and she helps him with his homework- and actually gives him the right answers. Sora-nii isn't smart enough for that, Tetsu-nii is always way too busy, and Hikaru-nii is super bad at explaining things, since he almost never talks.
Akiko thinks he has to have the best big brothers and big sister in the whole wide world; Tetsu-nii is really nice and teaches him about basketball and treats him like a big kid, unlike his other siblings, who are always babying him- even though he's not a baby. Sora-nii makes the funniest jokes and gives Akiko a lot of the chocolates he gets on Valentine's day. Hikaru-nii gives him the best books to read and helps him with his chores and sings him lullabies when Akiko can't fall asleep. Ayano-nee is the one who takes care of him the most though; she's the one who takes him to school and meets his teachers and schedules his playdates.
"Ah, we're here already!" Nee-chan stops and turns to him, smiling that special smile that's reserved for her baby brother. His kindergarten looms behind her, full of kids already, and the silence of the residential area is chased away by the loudness of the other children. "Have a good day, Aki-chan. Learn a lot, okay?"
"I will, Nee-chan!" Akiko wraps his arms around his sister's legs for a moment, feeling the normal excitement that comes with seeing his friends. "I'll be out on time today so I can help take care of Tetsu-nii! Bye-bye!" Then Akiko is rushing past the school gates, backpack bouncing against his back, calling out happily to his friends.
"Mornin', Hikaru-kun." Midorima Amaya, Hikaru's best- and only- friend, greets him. Her dark green hair is styled into a French braid, courtesy of her older brother no doubt; Shintaro is surprisingly good at braiding hair.
"Good morning, Amaya-chan." Hikaru slides into his desk, frowning slightly at how cramped it feels after that insane growth spurt he just went through- he grew 20 cm in 2 months. He's taller than Ayano now, and rapidly gaining on Tetsuya, and he's apparently not even close to done growing yet. If he wasn't so awkward and graceless, his height would be a huge advantage in sports.
"So, do you want to hang out this afternoon? Mom and dad are going out and Nii-san has basketball practice." She gives him a hopeful look, and Hikaru feels bad about having to turn her down. "Ah, I'm sorry, Amaya-chan. I have to help out at home today."
"Oh." Amaya looks crestfallen before perking up again as an idea comes to her. "Then I can help you! I haven't seen Akiko in forever- Ayano-san too."
"If you would like to, you can. But, be forewarned; Tetsuya-nii has come down with a cold, so you could get sick." Hikaru tries to make his voice sound ominous, but Amaya just rolls her eyes at her friend; Hikaru is really just a big dork when it comes down to it. "Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Did you see the newest episode of SnK? It was fabulous."
"I agree. I'm really starting to wonder about that basement, though."
"Ohmigod, I know! It's so frustrating; why can't they just get to the basement?"
"I hope we find out soon."
"We better! If not, there's going to be some heads rolling." Ayama huffs. Hikaru chuckles at his friend's antics; the green-haired girl is really just as much of a dork as he is, although you wouldn't guess as much from her prim appearance. "Oh! I found a new manga I thought you might like..."
Sora struts through the hallways of his high school, beaming wildly at all the girls watching him and giggling; he's accustomed to being the popular, pretty boy that everyone loves. Honestly, sometimes he wonders if he's the only well-adjusted one in his family- Hikaru is an otaku, Tetsuya is a basketball idiot, Ayano is- well. It's probably best if he doesn't even think about that infuriating little sister of his. Maybe Akiko will turn out normal like me.
"Yo, Sora." Sora cranes his neck to find a tall brunette leaning against the wall in an empty hallway, waiting for him. "S'up?"
"Oh, nothing~ It's nice to see you, Hisoka-chan~" Sora sing-songs, smiling widely at his friend. Kahaya Hisoka is the pitcher of the school's baseball team, a hulking 182 cm wall of muscle that can throw a fastball like it's nobody's business; he always has a bored or indifferent expression on his face. The two make an attractive pair- Sora with his light orange hair and sky blue eyes, Hisoka with his light brown hair and gray eyes. Sora has heard more than a few girls wonder aloud if he and his best friend aren't just best friends, but something more; how else could an indifferent giant with a love for baseball and nothing else, and the school's prettiest boy who's always smiling and practically -ugh- sparkling get along? But, no, Sora and Hisoka are just best friends who've been together since childhood.
"Want to go get some ice cream after school?" Hisoka inquires as he pushes off the wall, looking all cool and indifferent in a way that makes girls squeal. "Ah, would I! But I have to go home and help out today. My poor Tetsu-chan is sick!"
"Sucks."
"I know! And Ayano was being especially mean this morning- she called me a dumbass in front of Akiko! She's suck a- a- a heathen! Yeah; an uncouth heathen!"
"Do you even know what those words mean?"
"Eh. Not really. But they make me sound smart, don'tcha think?"
"Mm."
"Is that a yes?"
"Mm."
"Hisoka-chaaaan~"