Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Akashi Seijūrō sighed inside his mind — they’d lost against Seirin. Rakuzan was...

‘No, not Rakuzan.‘ he told himself, ‘Never Rakuzan. It’s just...‘

It was strange, this tournament. Seeing his former team scattered playing for weaklings. It grated on his nerves — those five were the ones, whom he’d gathered to bring victory and glory for Teikō. And those five had become family...

Why had they split up? A family doesn’t just split up without a word.

Ryōta. Daiki. Atsushi. Shintarō. Tetsuya. Even Satsuki — she didn’t play in offcial games, but she was, had been, their manager. She was there to support them during training and offcial matches. And sometimes, when it was just them on a streetball court, she would join, subbing out one of the boys, if they got tired. He remembered how they all taught her small things, tricks with the ball. He remembered how her already impressive analitical skills skyrocketed after they started playing together for fun, when she trully understood, how their skills worked and what basketball was like.

They’d had so much fun... (Tetsuya had been right. Sometime, somewhere on the road to fame, burdened by the expectations of Teikō, they’d forgotten to have fun. They’d forgotten they were still young, supposed to enjoy life, while they could. They’d forgotten, that they weren’t just a simple team...)

A sinister chill ran down his spine. Something was wrong. One of his teammates — his family members was close and something was wrong.

 They took a turn to leave the building and that was when he noticed it. Seirin frozen in shock, looking at someone on the ground, calling out worriedly...

“Kuroko.“ he heard Kagami Taiga’s voice, “Kuroko? Hey what’s it...”

Seijūrō moved with speed and elegance he only ever bothered to use on court, when someone pissed him off.

“Move!” he barked at the Seirin players.

Shocking not only those of Seirin, but the members of Rakuzan behind him as well. The Seirin bunch  froze and looked at him, some of their faces showing a mix of fear and shock... “A-Akashi...“ Seirin’s coach stammered.

Seijūrō ignored her and  was in front of his littlest brother — altough Shintarō insisted he was always a mother hen with the Miragen, so he shouldn’t call Tetsuya that...— in a flash, his hands firmly grasping the teal-haired one. Firmly, but gently.

“Tetsuya.” he called.

Not good... he’d seen The Shadow enter The Zone during their match, out of pure desperation... and Akashi addmitted, he’d almost snapped then. For Tetsuya, The Zone was different, than for the rest of the Kiseki no Sedai.

They could enter and come back on their own, with enough training.

Tetsuya couldn’t. As a Shadow, he was forever dependent on his Light, when on court. Even more dependent, when he was in The Zone. And while Kagami Taiga was strong and talented, Akashi could tell he was not enough strong for Tetsuya.

Tetsuya was stronger. Stronger, than Seirin could ever comprehend.

That wasn’t good...Light and Shadow were to be in balance.

Tetsuya could adapt — that was what made him such a valuable player. Officially, Tetsuya had been Daiki’s Shadow. Unofficially, he could adapt to every single Miragen and move in sync. And when all of them had been on court... Seijūrō realised now. It was Tetsuya, who’d made it possible for Teikō to deliver such crushing defeats in the early days. He was a supporting player, but without his support, the team would have fallen apart.

Without Kuroko Tetsuya, the Generation of Miracles had fallen apart.

Him, who had been the most invisible, yet the most irreplacable member of their team. And when they harmed him, he had left to protect himself. And they had fallen apart...

“Tetsuya!” he called, sharper this time. “Come back. Come back, you’re not on the court anymore. The match is over. You won.”

Tetsuya tensed a bit and then his eyes fluttered closed, falling forwards, clutching onto his Rakuzan sweater. “A-Akashi-kun?“

Seijūrō sighed in relief, as he heard the other call his name. “Finally. I thought I would have to turn to drastic measures to bring you back from there. You know...  it would have taken some time, dragging everyone here, just to bring you back.”

“I’m sorry.”

He sighed in irritation and without looking away from the other, he fished out his flask form his bag. “You never, ever enter The Zone again, you hear me, Tetsuya?“ he asked sharply — worriedly— as he pressed the drink into the teal’s hand.

“But...”

“You know it works differently for you, than for us.“ he growled, as the other drank slowly. Good at least he was aware enough to be careful. “You ususally used two of us to anchor yourself. And right now, there was only Taiga for an anchor and let’s face it, he barely scratches Daiki’s level.”

“HEY!” the American growled and Seijūrō glared and faster, than the other redhead could react, he swiped his scissors out and it sailed past the other, drawing blood before sticking into the wall. The Seirin members all shrieked and drew farther away.

His own team muttered something about Taiga’s stupidity and wish for death. Seijūrō had to agree with them — with how much the foreigner was bothering him, perhaps Kagami Taiga did indeed have a death wish. (It could be arranged, if Seirin’s ace didn’t back off very fast...)

“You speak when I speak to you. I’m having a conversation with Tetsuya and not you.” he warned coldly, before turning back to his youngest family member. “Can you stand?“

Tetsuya nodded, handing him back the now-empty bottle. “I-I think so.”

Seijūrō stood up, taking a step back giving space to the Shadow. He stood up, but the moment he  stepped away from the wall, which he was using for support, he staggered and he had to catch the phantom, to steady him.

“That’s it, Tetsuya. You’re coming with me.” he said darkly. The teal was nowhere in the condition to be left alone and he didn’t trust Seirin to handle this situation properly. Tetsuya was naturally... fragile and now, just barely back form The Zone, he was even worse.

“I’ll be fine, Akashi-kun.“

His mismatched eyes narrowed on the other. “I’ll be the judge of that. You can’t stay alone in such condition.”

“I’ll be with Seirin and Aomine-kun would surely come to visit.“

“Daiki is currently sick and I’m impressed that Satsuki had even allowed him out of his bed to watch the matches now. And Ryōta is having a shot in the weekend.” he stated matter-of-factly.

Shintarō and Atsushi simply lived too far away from their Phantom Sixth, to visit so easily. Besides, if he knew correctly, Shintarō would be dealing with his own family headaches in the near future and he didn’t want to burden the tsundere even more.

Tetsuya sighed and a flash of amusement showed on his features, too tired to bother with his usual passiveness. “I’m not even surprised you know that. You still keep tabs on us, don’t you?”

His hand wrapped around Tetsuya’s upper arm. “What sort of captain would I be, if I didn’t keep tabs on you? None of you are responsible — I can only trust Satsuki and Shintarō in that. Ryōta is too excitable, Atsushi is just plainly a child, when he has his moments and Daiki is... Daiki.” he returned evenly. His eyes narrowed, “And you’re as reckless, as ever, Tetsuya. I think I told you the risks of the style you use and you know, there was a reason, why I never taught you to enter The Zone.”

“If you’re going to be like that, Akashi-kun, I’m just going to drag my feet back home.”

Seijūrō’s lips quirked upwards — Tetsuya’s rebelliousness, despite his calm nature was amusing. Tetsuya was the only one, who dared speaking back to him. Of course, the teal knew his place, so it never got out of hand... it was just the level, where it was an odd mix of amusing and irritating.

“And we both know I know where you live, Tetsuya. You also know it’s not beyond me to go there and drag you out of the house. Besides, we both know, that your parents aren’t home and I did just say it is not adivsed to stay alone in such condition. Or I can land you in a hospital... about now.“ he pulled out his phone.

Tetsuya’s eyes widened. Seijūrō smirked, amusement flashing in his eyes.

“You’re coming to my residence or I’m calling the hospital.”

Tetsuya sighed, rubbing his face. “I’m too tired to argue right now, Akashi-kun. Can we at least stop by my house to grab a few things? I know you’re not going to let me out of twenty feet radius of yourself, until I can run my usual laps.”

“Ah, at least you’re learning, Tetsuya. Good. I was staring to get worried, you’re picking up on Daiki’s tendencies, since we left Teikō.” he said, tucking his phone away, as the Shadow leaned closer to him, for extra support.

“I’m many things, but I’m not an idiot and as much as I love Amoine-kun, like a brother, all of us knows he’s a total idiot, if he thinks he can get past you.” Tetsuya murmured.

“And there’s the blunt honesty I always respected in you.“ he noted amusedly. “Let’s go, before you actually collapse.” Tetsuya nodded and he glanced at Rakuzan (who were all wide-eyed, wearing  the typical for every human ‘what-the-fuck-is-going-on‘ expression). “We meet for training in the agreed time. Anyone who’s late... I’m tripling your load. Rest well.“

And with those omnious words, gripping the half-conscious Shadow and completely ignoring Seirin, he walked towards the car, which was no doubt already waiting for him. He stole a tiny glance at the teal-haired boy. Seirin did not know Tetsuya for real. They did not know his true capabilities and limits... he on the other hand, knew them, perhaps even better, than Tetsuya himself. That is why he always kept an extra eye on the Shadow.

‘Even if we’re apart, once a Miragen is always a Miragen. We’ll keep an eye on you, Tetsuya. Seirin’s stupidity will not harm you — we won’t let that happen.‘ he vowed in his mind.

Chapter Text

Midorima Shintarō readjusted his glasses, as him and Takao moved towards the door, which would take them to the spectator area, to watch the match of the day. It was a match between Seirin and Kirisaki Daichi — he didn’t know too much about the opposing team, he hadn’t cheked them out, player by player, but he knew, that it wasn’t a fortunate pair up.

Something gave him chills. And Oha Asa had said, that Aquarius will have a hard day today and one should not piss them off...

He was snapped from his musings, as they passed Seirin’s locker rooms and Takao shivered violently. “There’s some really dark emotions coming from in there...“ he murmured.

Shintarō’s steps faltered. Kuroko.

 He whirled on his heels and strode back towards Seirin’s locker room. It would be for the best to see Kuroko —  just to be sure his teammate was alright. (Not that he cared, nanodayo.)

“H-hey, Shin-chan! Where are you going...?!”

He ignored Takao for a moment, as the dreadful feeling grew in his stomach. He stopped in the door silently, watching Seirin panic.

“Come on, Kuroko! Calm down. It’s not the time to freeze up.“ Seirin’s Captain said, patting Kuroko on the shoulder. For some reason... the oddly familiar gesture set Shintarō even more on edge. Who did that kid think he was, to touch Kuroko like that?

And indeed, the Shadow was forzen, huddled in one of the corners, emitting a dark, dreadful aura. A sort, which Shintarō was painfully familiar with. And as he strained his ears, he could even hear the teal’s quiet whispers.

“I can’t do it. It won’t work. What if I...”

Shintarō had heard enough. All of the Kiseki no Seidai were painfully aware of Kuroko’s insecurities and his self-worth issues. And, he reflected, the way they’d split up, the way they’d excluded Kuroko from their play in the last year at Teikō... it had only worsened those issues. (Aquarius’ lucky item for the day, innocently snuggled in his pocket, seemed to turn as heavy as a mountain.)

He had gained a grudging respect for Kuroko, when they were on court. And something else too... after he realised, that the Shadow could use all of them, to hide and not only Aomine. To guide them to victory in his quiet way...

And he was friend of the younger boy without question, when outside of court. Kuroko was reasonable, like himself and both of them shared love for books and basketball. And Kuroko had never made fun of his lucky items, either. So yes, theirs was an odd friendship... even if he would not admit to others, that he cared for the other.

Kuroko was not a friend.

Kuroko was a little brother. A little, fragile brother, with a golden heart and a mind of steel.

And Kuroko was despairing again, like back at Teikō, when the pressure just seemed to be too big, treathening to crush the small player.

Shintarō moved on instinct, as he heard the words again... ‘I’m no good‘

He cut trough Seirin’s players and crouched next to the fragile Aquarius. “Kuroko.“ he called softly, rubbing his shoulder. The usually passive eyes were filled with uncertanity, as their gazes met. So much uncertanity, that it was like someone had driven a knife into his heart.

“I can’t do it, Midorima-kun.“ he murmured so quietly, that Midorima was sure half of Seirin hadn’t heard.

Shintarō sighed. Stupid Teikō and their policies... it broke good people, like Kuroko Tetsuya.

He slowly brought the other into a hug, sitting on the floor and craddling the other close. “You can, Kuroko.”

“No I can’t.“ came the immediate, haunted rebutal. “They’re just.... not again.... they... failing...“

Shintarō held him close and rubbed calming circles on the smaller’s back. “You can do it, Kuroko.“ he said simply, as if it were a fact. (It was a fact.) “You’re one of us, no matter what. One of the Kiseki no Sedai and we don’t let people walk over us.“ he said, and then lowered his tone even more, “Or walk over what we believe in.”

“But they... I can’t...Why am I even on this team? I can’t...“

“Calm down.“ he said softly, “Remember what Akashi taught you. And remember what you believe in. As long as you have those in mind, it will be okay.”

Kuroko leaned into him and Shintarō held him close. “We believe in you.“ he breathed into the teal’s ear, “We’re watching and cheering for you.”

Kuroko’s eyes went wide with rarely displayed shock and their gazes met. Shintarō reached into his pocket and took out his teammate’s lucky item for the day — it was a brown leather cord wristband, twisted together in an elegant fashion, having a single gemstone in it.

The clear blue eyes glanced at him for a moment in confusion. He slipped the  bracelet onto Kuroko’s hand, beyond his black wristband. “Aquarius’ lucky item for today.“ he stated matter-of-factly.

Kuroko relaxed and there was a grateful glint in his eyes. “Arigato, Midorima-kun.”

Shintarō waited another minute, drawing circles on Kuroko’s back before standing up. “You’ll start soon, so I’ll have to go. Keep in mind what I said and good luck.“ he readjusted his glasses.

“Arigato.“ Kuroko whispered again.

He whirled on his heels and left, ignoring Seirin’s gaping members and the wide-eyed Takao.

Hours later, when they left the stadium — with a win for Seirin— Shintarō couldn’t help the smirk, that adorned his features. A day for Aquarius indeed — Kuroko performed marvelously today and Shintarō was proud of him.

Let the people say whatever they wanted, but Kuroko was one of the Kiseki no Seidai. He was their Phantom Sixth, their little, fragile brother. Their heart.

Chapter Text

Kuroko sighed, quiet tired of their most recent match — this team played just as dirtily, as Kirisaki Daiichi had, during the Winter Cup. It grated on his nerves, altough he couldn’t retailite now, the way he had then. Not immediately. Here, it had taken more to break the opposing team’s trap.

But once that had happened — once they’d figured out a way to break the vice-like hold of the opposing team, his teammates made sure he could score. So, this time, it was his team, who passed to him — all their scores had been made with his Phantom Shot.

Okay, no. Kagami-kun had dunked a few as well, but it was his Phantom Shot, that gave the most points and the Misdirection Overflow had been used to confuse their opponents. By the fourth quarter, they were leading by a 12 point gap and they had managed to keep said gap until the very end.

“Oh, look who we have here...“ a voice leered and Kuroko paused to look up. He found himself face to face with the blonde-haired captain of their most recent en— opponent. He didn’t show it outwardly, but the look on the other player’s face chilled him to the bone.

He nodded to the three players and clamly moved to one side, to pass by, but the orange-haired one, the one Kuroko remembered being the team’s Point Guard, grabbed his wrist roughly and yanked him backwards. Kuroko stumbled and fell against the floor rather hard, dull pain jolting trough his hips and leg, as he landed badly.

“Just what do you think where are you going, you little ghost shit?“

“You thought we would let you get away just like that?“ the third one sneered, “You humiliated us, you filthy little shit. You’ll pay for that.”

Aomine Daiki scowled, glaring at Wakamatsu, doing his best to ignore his loud, bickering — annoying team. Usually he would have left by now, but they were quiet far from their scool, in a different prefecture, so he couldn’t just ditch the Tōō team, as he would have liked. It was more sensible to travel back to their own prefecture with the team — the bus would drop them in front of the school and from there, he could walk home.

“You humiliated us you little shit. You’ll pay for that.“ a voice leered a bit farther ahead on the corridor.

That alone, the choice of words, that is, caught his attention. He looked up, blue eyes narrowing ahead. He saw three players, dressed in red-blue leering down at a fallen figure. He couldn’t recall the team... but something was familiar about the three guys. They just gave off a bad air.

And then, as they took another step back, Aomine noticed just whom they were leering down at.

Tetsu.

His friend — former Shadow — little broter... groaned and curled into a ball, to protect himself better. Another kick came and Aomine saw red.

No one, no one hurt a member of his family. Especially not Tetsu.

He tossed his bag from his shoulder and moved, with speed he only bothered to use, when someone actually challened him on court. When his blood bolied with excitement or when he wanted blood. Like now.

He was between Tetsu and the stranger in a blink and  with the same momentum, he kocked his fist back and delivered a blow to the other player. He felt the crack of the bone — his blow had broken the bastard’s nose, but he didn’t care. The blonde staggered back, along with his two teammates and Aomine stood, to cover his tiny little Shadow from their wiev.

“Take your filthy hands off my brother, you fucker or I’ll kill you!” he snarled. (In the back of his mind, there was a voice — something that said, that Akashi would not be happy at seeing him acting like a rabid dog. Another part of his mind said, that seeing Tetsu down on the floor, kicked by another player would be enough reason for Akashi to join him in killing the three bastards right here and now.)

The blonde snarled at him, his green eyes mad — like... that bastard needed mental care.

“Just who the hell are you?“ the orange-haired one behind the mad blonde spat.

Aomine snarled and allowed every drop of his anger and protectiveness for his little Shadow to fill the air. “You don’t need to know my name, fucker. What you need to know, is that you hurt my brother and if you don’t leave right now, the broken nose will be the least of your prblems.”

“That little shit...“ the third one on the left said and Aomine moved, delivering another blow, this time kicking upwards, making the fucker nearly keel over from the force of it. He slowly backed up, aware that he had to cover Tetsu, who was still on the ground.

“Scram!“ he snarled. “Or you won’t leave here alive. And touch my brother again, I swear on all the existing kami, I will find you and break every single freaking bone in your body!”

The three backed up slowly, anger and hate were clearly visible in their eyes, however Aomine knew they feared him. They knew he was dangerous and that he would most likely follow trough with the treath, if they stayed any longer. They glared one last time — it was probably meant for Tetsu, but Aomine made sure to completely block their wiev of him. They left and Aomine only turned, when he could no longer see the three attackers.

He turned and knelt next to his brother. In the meanwile, his team — slightly wary and taken aback, approached quietly. He was aware of their eyes on him and Tetsu, but he didn’t care.

“Oi, Tetsu? How bad it is?“ he asked, his hand hesitantly hoverig over his former Shadow. (Former Shadow. That thought hurt so much. Kagami Taiga was a weakling, who was far from capable enough to bring forth Tetsu’s true potential. The teal should have gone with him. They should have never split up, in the first place.)

Tetsu sighed and frowned, just a tiny bit. “It hurts, but it’s not as bad, as it would have been. You were fast, Aomine-kun, arigato.”

Aomine hummed and stood up, offering a hand to the teal. “C’mon Tetsu. Up, up, before you get a cold, lying there.”

Tetsu gave him an unimpressed look and took his hand to stand up. The moment he stood up, he lost his balance and Aomine instinctively moved closer, wrapping his arms protectively around the shorter male. Tetsu grunted, looking down at his leg. His face was blank, but Aomine had known him long enough to detect pain and displeasure in his sky blue gaze.

“My ankle.“ he murmured.

“Damn it.“ Aomine cursed. Tetsu was small and fragile anyway — he looked like it too. But the worst, Aomine knew from experience, were his wrists and ankles. As much as he benefitted from his joints being loose, it also meant those could get hurt more easily.

“I won’t be able to play like that... and Seirin still has a match today.”

Aomine shook his head, shifting his grip to take more of the teal’s weight onto himself. “Forget the match, Tetsu. I’m taking you to a doctor.”

Tetsu looked at him and behind the impassiveness, there was a brief flicker of surprise. “Aomine-kun...“

Aomie shrugged. “Tōō’s done for today. We were just leaving.“ he said, making a vague gesture at his team and Tetsu gave them a brief nod in greeting.

“But...“

“You’re hurt, Tetsu.“ he said sharply, “I’m not Akashi, so I’m not going to order you around, but you’re sorely mistaken, if you think I’ll let you leave my sight without seeing a doctor first. By the way — Akashi would have my blood, if I let you stay, when you’re hurt and I’d like to survive and get trough fucking high school, thank you very much.“

“If it calms your nerves, Aomine-kun...“ Tetsu hummed, leaning closer to him, adding more of his weight onto him, instead of his uninjured leg.

Aomine hummed, satisfied with the answer and he looked at his team. Specifically at his Captain. “Tetsu’s coming with us. You can drop us off by the hospital.”

Wakamatsu eyed him for a moment, before throwing an unsure look at Tetsu. “Seirin will miss him. They’re still in-game, Aomine.“

“He’s coming.“ he insisted, drawing Tetsu closer protectively, eyes narrowing dangerously on his teammates, daring anyone to defy him. (He wasn’t Akashi, but he was his own sort of dangerous and Tōō knew that very much. His teammates loved, resented and feared him in equal parts and he knew that very, very well.) He felt as the Shadow tried shifting his weight onto his injured leg before hissing sharply, his weight falling back onto Aomine. He looked knowingly at his brother. “You can’t play.”

Tetsu sighed dejectedly. “I’ve noticed.” his eyes flashed with a bit of irritation before the complete passiveness returned. “I’ll text coach. She’ll understand.“

Aomine nodded, satisfied. “Good.“ he looked at the Tōō members again. Wakamatsu and Susa shared a brief look, before Susa grabbed his fallen bag.

“Very well. We’ve not cruel to leave an injured player out here. He’s coming and we’ll drop you at the hospital.”

Aomine sighed feeling a bit better, as he shifted his grip again, to better support the smaller player. “Come on, Tetsu, looks like you need some medical care.”

“Thanks for the help, Aomine-kun.“ Tetsu smiled breifly.

He gave the shorter male a brief grin. “Think noting of it, Tetsu. We’re frien— brothers.“ he pointed out. He looked at his team. “Do you know which team the fuckers were from?“

Several of his teammates raised an eyebrow at the question and some shared unsure looks, but Susa answered anyway. “Takahashi High, I guess. Those were their colours, but I don’t know the players’ names.”

Aomine’s eyes flashed sinisterly. “Takahashi, huh?“ he murmured, as he carefully steered his injured brother towards the exit.

He’ll call Akashi tonight, after dropping Tetsu off in his home. He was sure, that the redhead would be more than willing to destroy the little ants, for what they did to his Shadow. Kuroko was one of them and no one messed with the members of Kiseki no Sedai without consequences.

Chapter Text

Kuroko looked around trying to keep a clear mind. The commotion was big, there was a total overcrowding of people — it was a streetball gathering which the coach had said would be fun to visit, as a way of relaxing. No one had protested, in fact, the entire team had been elated. Kuroko himself didn’t mind the idea... 

Until this very moment. 

Crowd. Loud. Near. 

This wasn’t like a match, where the spectators were far away, so much that he couldn’t even make out the faces. Sure, the first few rows were clearly visble, but not the rest. Here, here it was different. The crowd was loud and just too much and people kept bumping into him, since they never noticed he was there... 

And then he lost Seirin. He looked around, face impassive, but on the inside he was feeling worse and worse. Where was his team? 

The crowd was too big. His observation skills were very good, but right now, they were failing him. He tried maneuvering through the crowd, to find his way back to Seirin, but it was no use. He couldn’t see them anywhere — actually at this point, any familiar face would have been welcome. Surely, Seirin weren’t the only school, who’d come out here? 

But there was no one and he was starting to feel panic rise in his chest — despite the open space, the crowd and the noise made it feel as if he were inside a tiny room. Constantly stumbling into people, didn’t help either and some of the ruder ones glaring and growling at him for stumbling into them, just added another thing to the long list of his suffering. 

The crowd was just too big, there were too many people, way too close... 

His breath caught in his throat. He couldn’t breathe. His heart was hammering against his chest. Too many people and too close... Where was Seirin? 

An arm brushed against his and he jumped, like a deer caught in headlights, he stumbled and fell backwards, landing hard against the floor... 

“Shh, Kurokocchi, it’s me.“ a soothing voice called, but his vision was swimming, both from the sudden pain and the lack of oxygen. It was like someone was squeezing his lungs. 

He looked up and his eyes met brown ones — dark brown and lighter, honey brown, framed by golden blonde hair... Kise.

Kise’s eyes swept something around them. “Get back!“ he barked sharply and for a moment, Kuroko was reminded of Akashi-kun, as the blonde sounded just as dangerous, “Give space.” 

Kuroko choked on air, trying to draw away, from the touch... 

“Kurokocchi... it’s just me.“ Kise breathed softly. 

Kuroko looked up blinking. “Ki-Kise-kun...” 

The blonde gently brought him into an embrace, letting his head rest on his head. Kuroko paused and listened to Kise’s heartbeat, even managing to sync his breathing to the blonde’s. They were in complete sync, just like back at Teikō, before the team had fallen apart. 

“You’re safe. Seirin is here, you haven’t lost them, I know where they are. I can guide you there, if you think you can stand up, Kurokocchi.” 

For a moment, Kuroko didn’t move. Then, he clung onto Kise, not only to his clothes, for extra support, but to his very presence, just as he would have done on court, to use his Misdirection. Slowly, Kise stood up and Kuroko stood with him, their breath and heartbeat in sync still. 

“You’re safe, Kurokocchi. You’re not lost.“ his teammate — brother, breathed. 

Kuroko hummed and then allowed Kise to lead him, whilst he kept his eyes closed — darkness also helped calm down, when he was in situations like this. Kise’s presence was like a shiny golden flame next to him. Shiny and warm — not as bright as Aomine used to be, nor as purely overwhelming, as Akashi... but powerful and shiny in a different way. 

When he opened his eyes, he found that they stood in a loose, protective circle, made by the members of Seirin and Kaijō. Kise still held him close, despite the few odd looks some of their teammates were sending them. 

Slowly, as Kise’s hand fell away from him, Kuroko let go of the blonde’s presence and found that he was much, much calmer. The crowd and the noise were still there, but their teams’ circle closed off the worst of it. And he knew the spot where they stood — he wasn’t lost. 

Kise smiled at him, ruffling his hair. “See, Kurokocchi? You’re not lost —you’re safe.” “Arigato, Kise-kun.“ 

Kise patted his shoulder and practically sparkled, as their eyes met. (Speak about Kise-kun being a charmer.) 

“Ah, think nothing of it, Kurokocchi. Once of Teikō, is always of Teikō, no?“ 

He hummed and nodded. His face was calm impassiveness again, but he knew that Kise could see just how grateful he truly was. “Hai. Arigato.” 

Kise-kun’s sharp eyes landed on the coach. “Aida-san, I advise you to let Kurokocchi relax a bit and get him something to drink before your first game starts. I think I saw a stand that offers milkshakes?“ 

Kuroko chuckled as he looked at the blonde. “You know me too well, Kise-kun.” 

The blonde waved. “I know you as much as you know me. Just remember to do the breathing exercise after your drink, ne? I wouldn’t want you to lose your head on court.”

He nodded. “I won’t.“ his eyes scanned the surroundings for the stall his friend had mentioned and Kise made a gesture to his left. 

”The stand’s over there, Kurokocchi. Hurry and get your drink.“ 

Kise Ryōta hummed with a tiny smile, as he watched Seirin retreat towards the stand, this time, Kagami having a careful arm around the small Shadow, to make sure they wouldn’t lose him. Kise sighed. It wasn’t as if Aomine was there, but it was fine — he knew that Seirin would take care of the Shadow. 

“What was that, Kise?“ 

“Huh?“ Ryōta turned at the question and looked at his captain. 

“What happened to Kuroko?“ 

“Oh... “ he stole one last glance at te retreating forms of Seirin, “Kurokocchi hates crowds. Especially when he’s alone and has no familiar face. This is way too much commotion for his liking and he lost track of Seirin, so he panicked.” 

His other teammates raised an eyebrow at him. “You... treat this rather.... normally.” Kobori pointed out. 

Ryōta shrugged. “There were times, when this had happened. We’ve all dealt with Kurokocchi in a state like that, back at Teikō. We all... had problems. People tend to forget, that we were young at the time and the expectations that came with being called the Kiseki no Sedai were big. Big expectations, big problems. We all had our own and we all learned to help each other — that was the only way to survive Teikō. We could only count on each other. Kurokocchi’s faith. Aominecchi’s protection. Akashicchi’s leadership, that didn’t only ensure success but our general wellbeing as well. Murasakibaracchi reminding us of eating and drinking, or Akashicchi making sure we ate healthy. Midorimacchi being the voice of reason or reminding us of what we could do if we doubted ourselves...” he shrugged again, “We aren’t a team anymore, not officially.... but at the same time, we will never be anything less than a team. A team, who survived Teikō’s hell together — a team, like that, no matter what, stays together.“ 

And with that, he walked away, leaving wide-eyed teammates behind, who were all forced to reevaluate everything they may have heard of known about Teikō and the Kiseki no Sedai, as a whole. 

However, one thing had been made clear. 

The bonds of the Kiseki no Sedai weren’t as severed, as the world thought them to be. No. It was the opposite in fact. Those bonds were just as strong as before.

Chapter Text

Murasakibara Atsushi sighed. He didn’t understand what this practice match was for — sure, he had come to see Kuroko’s point of wiev, when it came to basketball, after the Winter Cup. He had, in a way, even come to enjoy the game, regardless of it’s outcome. It had taken him some time, but he realised, he loved basketball, just as the other Miragen always said they did.

The point was, that there was a practice match between Seirin and Yōsen.

There was a practice match and he didn’t feel like participating — why? Because their team’s (read: Miragen) baby was on Seirin’s team. And he didn’t feel like playing against Kuroko. Since they were friends again, the fear of breaking the little blue Phantom came back again.

‘Kuro-chin is so tiny...‘ his purple eyes settled on Teikō’s former Shadow and a small frown pulled on his lips. Something was wrong — he just knew it. He didn’t know what was wrong, but something was wrong.

It was just an odd sense. Since Kuroko Tetsuya was the most fragile of them all, all the Miragen had developed a sort of sense... and now that Keep-Kuroko-Safe-Sense was going haywire and he had no idea why. Or what he could do...

“Murasakibara?“

His eyes shifted to fall onto his black-haired teammate. “Muro-chin~“

“We’re starting. Is something wrong?“

“Eeh... no I guess. Let’s go, Muro-chin.” he murmured, lining up to face Seirin. Kuroko was farther down the line, but he couldn’t help it. His gaze continously wandered over to the tiny teal-haired boy. Something was wrong and if something happened to the Shadow while he was here... ‘Mine-chin and Aka-chin would be upset. I better keep an eye on him.‘

The game went on normally. He did his best to block Seirin’s shots, but Kuroko still got a few past him. But as the Shadow moved, he noticed it. He noticed, that the tiniest member of their family was somehow off — no one seemed to notice, so he thought he was just imagining things. But something nagged at his mind.

Food.

And then, Seirin came attacking and his eyes were on the little Shadow and rather uncharacteristically of him, Kuroko missed the pass. His  face was pale and he stumbled...

Atsushi moved before everyone else. “Kuroko!” someone from Seirin called, noticing that Kuro-chin wasn’t fine. He fell and the refree blew the whistle sharply, calling time out. He didn’t care about the game anymore. His eyes were glued on the tiny, unmoving form of his family.

He kelt down, his form overshadowing the tiny Shadow — now, wasn’t that ironic? He put a hand on the other and shifted his form to have a better look. “Kuro-chin?“

Serin’s players crowded around him and someone — maybe Muro-chin?, he wasn’t sure...— called for a nurse. The little teal moved and groaned. “Ah, my head hurts.“ he murmured almost too quietly to be heard. But he’d been around the Shadow for years, he was used to it by now. They’d split up a while ago, but they were still family.

He sat down and gently tugged the teal-haired boy to his side. Kuroko’s tired blue eyes found him very fast. “Murasakibara-kun?“

“Kuro-chin’s sick.“ he said, eyes narrowed.

Kuroko shook his head. “I’m fine.“ he denied with a tiny smile, “Just a bit dizzy.”

RUMBLE

He blinked at that unexpected sound. He was hungry, but nowhere hungry enough, for his stomach to rumble. He’d eaten before the matches started — and yes, for once he’d eaten normal food and not snacks.

Kuroko ducked his head and his eyes went wide. Murasakibara Atsushi was very aware of people taking him for a simple-minded fool sometimes, focused on food about seventy percent of the day, but that wasn’t exactly true. Seirin’s players and his own team were lingering nearby, but as he kept throwing them dark looks, no one really dared coming too close.

And then he remembered. He remembered their little Shadow’s nasty habit of not eating before practice and matches...

“Muro-chin.“ he called sharply, his gaze seeking the shorter male. Himuro tilted his head, studying the two of them — sitting on the court, Kuroko tucked into his side— oddly.

“Hai?“

“Bring my bag, please.“ he said. Himuro blinked and looked at him oddly and he gave the other a scratcihng look. He wasn’t as scary as Aka-chin — Aka-chin could be very, very scary when he was upset— but he knew, that some of his teammates were wary of him. Sometimes even Himuro was wary of his ire. And this case was one such ocassion. Himuro quickly turned away.

“Silly Kuro-chin~“ he said, looking at the Seirin player, “You skipped again, didn’t you?“

Kuroko hummed. “You know me too well, Murasakibara-kun.“

He wrinkled his nose in distease. “What would the others say, hmm? Aka-chin and Mine-chin would be very, very angry with you right now. So I am.”

The teal just sighed and let his eyes drift closed. He guessed Kuroko was tired — how could the tiny boy even think of playing basketball without any food in him, he never understood.  Not when they were younger, nor now.

“I know, Murasakibara-kun. Bad habit.“ he chuckled, “You and Akashi-kun aren’t there to remind me, you know. So it just skips my mind sometimes...”

Himuro came back with his bag and he rumaged trough it, taking out a small bento, immediately pushing it into the Shadow’s hands. “Here. Eat, Kuro-chin.”

“Murasakibara-kun...”

“Now, Kuro-chin.“ he nudged, “Eat, before you upset me.”

Kuroko sighed and opened the box and started eating. As he did so, he heard the small teal’s stomach rumble again. He wondered, just how many meals had the fragile boy missed in the past few days.

Atsushi twitched even thinking about the Shadow missing more than one meal a week — he was obsessed with sweets, yes, but he did have normal meals three times a day. Kuroko... well he wasn’t sure Kuroko had them.

“How many meals you missed, Kuro-chin?“

Kuroko sallowed his bite. “Just breakfast.“ the teal murmured.

Murasakibara Atsushi grunted in annoyance, violet eyes narrowing. “I’m not Aka-chin, but even I can tell when you’re lying, Kuro-chin.“ he said in a low, warning tone, “You should eat.”

“I do.”

“No you don’t, Kuro-chin. Do you want me to call Aka-chin and Mine-chin and tell them you’re not eating... again?“

Sky blue eyes went wide and the chopsticks stopped halfway to his mouth. “No. No, Murasakibara-kun. Please don’t tell them. Akashi-kun’s going to hang me upside down from a hoop, if he hears that!”

Atsushi huffed, crossing his arms. “A part of me says Kuro-chin would deserve hanging upside down from a hoop. You’re not eating again. Which means you’re not taking care of yourself. I hate that. We hate that. And you almost got hurt just now...”

Kuroko looked down. “The week’s just been messy, Murasakibara-kun.“ he murmured sulkily, taking another reluctant bite.

He growled and swiped his phone from his bag, dialing their former captain. He knew Kuroko would have a break from school next week. Just like him. That’s why this match was organised — one last practice before break. He put his phone on speaker, the called number and name clearly visible.

Akashi Seijūrō. (Several people gave him odd, mistrustful looks at seeing the name on his phone screen, but he ignored it. Aka-chin was scary, when he was angry, but Aka-chin cared for them a lot. It was like he was the “mother“ of the entire team. And Aka-chin would make sure Kuro-chin would eat normally.)

“Hallo? Atsushi? Why are you calling? Did something happen?“

“Aka-chin! Kuro-chin and his team had come to play against us. But Kuro-chin fainted — he’s not eating again.“ he said. Kuroko glared at him trying to snatch the phone away, but Atsushi was faster and he used his other hand to gently restrain his former teammate and little brother, making a pointed nod at the still half-empty bento.

“He what? Tetsuya? Atsushi... can he hear me?“

“Yes, Aka-chin. You’re on speaker. And I just gave Kuro-chin my bento. I’ll make sure he eats that at least now. And we’re kind of half-way trough the practice match.”

“Kuroko Tetsuya!”

Atsushi frowned a bit at the sharp tone of the redhead, but he knew that the little Shadow deserved it. He glupped, looking fearfully at the phone, as if Akashi could reach trough the screen and drag him to Rakuzan or something.

“Hello, A-akashi-kun.“

“You’re not eating. Again. Will I be dragging you to Rakuzan to hang you upside down from a hoop or should I visit Seirin and do it there?”

“It’s not as bad as last time! I promise!“ the teal-haired teen said, flailing with his chopsticks, even though their former captain couldn’t see it, “It was an accidet! You know I’m nervous before matches!”

“Atsushi... correct me if I’m wrong, but both yourself and Tetsuya will have a break next week.“

“Yes, Aka-chin. We’re both free.“

“Then please drag him to your house. At least, if he’s there we can be sure he’s eating. I’ll take the Shinkansen in the weekend and he can be back at Seirin by the time they start. We’re going to have a very, very long conversation, Tetsuya. I think we already talked about taking care of yourself...”

He saw Kuro-chin go very pale. “Hai.”

“Wonderful. Have a nice day — I’m afraid I will have to go now. Atsushi, I trust you will take care of him for the week.”

He hummed in affirmative. “Of course, Aka-chin. I won’t let him skip meals.”

“Thank you. Take care.“ and then the line was cut.

Atsushi sighed, as he let his phone fall back into his bag. “That was unnecessary, Murasakibara-kun.“

His eyes narrowed on his teal-haired teammate. “You’re tiny. If you skip meals, the wind’s just going to blow you away, Kuro-chin. Now eat up and you sit down, huh? When we’re done with this game, you come with me.”

“I can play, Mura—”

“You’re not playing Kuro-chin. You just fainted. So you finish that and drink and watch the rest. And on the way home, we’ll stop to shop for our food.“ he said, brushing a stand of his purple hair from his eyes, as he stood up. He carefully grabbed the small Shadow and pulled him up.

“But—”

“Don’t make me angry, Kuro-chin. You should take better care of yourself.“ he said, ruffling the other’s hair. He got a sharp, yet blank look from the shorter boy, but he knew that the look was like Aka-chin’s killer glare (but Kuro-chin was just too tiny and fragile, to be scary).

The Phantom sighed. “Fine. I’ll just sit out the rest. Happy, Murasakibara-kun?“ he showed the empty bento box too, “And I finished it.”

He smiled, patting the teal tresses again. “Better, Kuro-chin.”

He knew the others were staring at them, but he didn’t care. He was in Yōsen and Kuro-chin in Serin and the others elsewhere too... but they were still the Kiseki no Sedai. They were still a team. A family.

And family took care of each other. And that included making sure Kuro-chin ate enough.

Chapter Text

Kuroko Tetsuya, Phantom Sixth Man of the Kiseki no Sedai and Shadow of Seirin Kōkō was walking trough the corridors, which were between the locker rooms of the teams. It was a qualifying game, for the Winter Cup.

The others were training, but he had felt the need to come. The Kiseki no Sedai had split up — the pain was oddly dull in his chest, whenever he thought about those last days,— but they still shared a bond. Even if all of them attended different schools now, being here and watching their qualifiers was the least thing he owed them. He was sure, that watcing all their qualifiers was fine — even if he missed a few practices for it...

Knowing the schedule and the travelling he would need to do, he was sure he would need to skip at least one practice, if he wanted to watch Murasakibara-kun. At least, he didn’t need to worry about catching a Rakuzan match. As the last Champions, Rakuzan Kōkō were seeded.

He froze when he sensed it.

His gaze flashed to the right, where he’d just passed a door — a locker room. Namely, Shūtoku’s locker room and from in there, he sensed something, that twisted his very soul. A desperate cry.

A cry he knew well.  He moved silent and fast, faster than some said he could. He knew that cry. Midorima-kun.

He stopped in the locker room’s entrance and watched for a moment, his hand tightening around the strap of his bag. The Shūtoku members were ready for the game... but it wasn’t what concerned him. What bothered him, was that his teammate — his family, sat borkenly on the floor, a look of despair settling on his face behind his glasses. In front of him on the floor, lay the pieces of his lucky item — a beautiful, green porcelian dragon.

Some of the Shūtoku members laughed, as Midorima trembled with anger, shock and despair.

“Ah, don’t be ridiculous, Midorima!“ one said, “It was just a stupid statue.”

Cold blue eyes narrowed on the brown-haired player. Kuroko knew the other was older, than him, but that had never bothered him, if one dared to mock or harm his family in any way. He tore his gaze from the players and focused on the familiar mop of green hair.

He moved trough the room, already reaching for his bag and for a moment, Shūtoku’s players didn’t even notice him. (Nothing unusual there.)

“Midorima-kun.“ he called. His brother didn’t twitch from his hunched position and his teammates freaked out.

“Ah! How did you get in here!”

“When did you get in! And who the hell are you!” another called. Kuroko ignored them — now, only his family mattered.

He knelt down and wrapped the taller one in a hug for a moment. “Shintarō.“ he called, this time with more force. Shintarō’s teammates all looked at him oddly and with surprise, probably not expecting many people to call the green-haired one by name like this.

He looked up with a strained smile, worry shining in his green eyes. Kuroko Tetsuya learned to hate that look in his eyes. “Kuroko. I... I haven’t seen you in a while. What are you doing here?”

He offered tissues, which the green-haired one took and wiped his face clean. Kuroko drew back, stole a glance at the broken item and then reached into his bag. “What I’m doing here?“ he asked, tone blank, but his eyebrows quirked upwards, just a teeny, tiny bit. Not enough for the other Shūtoku players to notice, but enough for Midorima to do so. “What stupid question is that, Shintarō? I came to watch you.“

His fingers wrapped around  the item and than he pulled out the small procelian dragon from his bag — the exact replica of the one, which lay brokenly at his teammate’s feet. He gently pressed it into the green’s hand. “Here. I can’t have you playing without your lucky item, can I?”

Shintarō smiled and then a tiny chuckle escaped his lips. “You came prepared, Kuroko. Always two steps ahead, just like Akashi.”

Amusement and nostalgia flashed behind the blankness, altough only Shintarō could see it and even he... with struggle. The only one, who could read him without problems, was Akashi-kun. Not even Aomine-kun was that good at saying what he thought or wanted. (But then again, Akashi wasn’t perfect either. The redhead liked to think he was absolute, but between the two of them... Kuroko Tetsuya knew, that not even Akashi believed that. Not even Akashi had a hold on him, not in the way he’d had a hold on the rest of the Kiseki no Sedai, back in the day.)

“I take that, as a compliment, Shintarō.” he said with a brief nod, patting the other’s shoulder, before he stood up and turned towards the people, who’d mocked his friend— nay, his brother. The Kiseki no Sedai were brothers, were family, no matter what. It was a bond, that nothing could break — strain, yes. Their bond was currently strained in a way, but not broken.

Never broken.

He turned and as he laid eyes on the brown-haired male a dark, sinister chill descended the room. “If my understanding is correct, you are this team’s captain?” he asked blankly, yet there was an underlaying current of anger and danger.

The other nodded. “Ōtsubo Taisuke. Who asks?“

“The shadow of your nightmares, Ōtsubo-san. Lay another harming finger on Midorima-kun, physical or mental... I care not. You will regret it. A captain is supposed to lead and encourage, discipline, if need be. But never, ever is a captain supposed to ridicule their teammates or allow others to ridicule them.“

He took a step closer. Ōtsubo took a step back.

“I’ll be watching. You and your team — and I swear on all existing kami, if you harm my teammate in any way ever again, the destruction Akashi Seijūrō is capable of bringing on your head, be it reputation or wealth, will look like a child’s play, compared to the cold bloodbath I’ll introduce you to.“

Shūtoku drew back, farther from him and Midorima, all their backs pressed against the wall and the lockers.

“Was I clear, Ōtsubo-san?“ he asked, locking eyes with the other. He saw, when the dreadful shiver racked the other’s body and waited. And waited... yet there was no response. “Was I clear, Ōtsubo-san?“ he repeated again, eyes narrowing.

The older hurriedly nodded his head. “H-hai!“

Tetsuya hummed satisfied. “Good.“ he turned on his heels, giving one last fond look to his teammate. “I wish you luck and don’t forget I’ll be watching, Shintarō.”

Midorima smiled at him, holding the porcelian dragon close to his chest. “I won’t forget, Kuroko.”

Kazunari Takao stood frozen in his team’s locker room and watched, without being able to do a single thing. That blue-haired, blue-eyed stranger just slinked into the room without their notice and randomly knelt beside his friend and confronted him.

And gave him... a dragon, like the one the fools have just broken? And Shin-chan seemed only a little bit shocked at seeing the guy.

And the stranger called him Shintarō without a twitch and Shin-chan hadn’t protested at all. Not like he did with him. That shocked Takao more, than anything.

And then the guy delivered a death treath with such an impassive face — yet his blue eyes colder, than ice— that it scared the shit out of him. The cold, dark aura, that radiated from the stranger was suffocating... not to mention he was casually throwing around Akashi’s Seijūrō’s name, as if he knew the guy personally!

And then... after scaring everyone half to death... Takao swore he saw the Shinigami linger over their captain’s head, as the stranger stood in front of him. Had Ōtsubo-senpai answered differently to that treathening question, he was sure the older would be dead. Takao had no idea, how the teal-haired kid could have killed the captain — but in hindsight, he didn’t want to know.

The subconscious knowledge, that the kid could do it and would do it, if Shin-chan was harmed in any sort of way was more than enough.

And then he blinked... and the guy was gone, like a ghost. What the fuck?!

Midorima Shintarō sighed, as they headed home after a sucessful match, the porcelian dragon Kuroko had given him cradled in his taped fingers, gently yet tightly, at the same time. It gave him comfort — maybe... not because it was today’s lucky item... no. It gave him extra comfort, because Kuroko had given it to him. Kuroko had been here and had come prepared, like he always had.

It eased his mind.

“Ne~ Shin-chan... who was that guy in the locker room before our match?“

He sighed a bit, throwing a look at his friend. “An old friend.”

“I guessed that much. He... I never heard anyone, who called you Shintarō so casually.“ he remarked.

“There are two people who get away with that, other than my relatives, that is.” he said, his mind briefly flashing to Akashi and Kuroko again.

Midorima saw, as his friend arched an eyebrow. “Really? I’m guessing one is this mystery guy...”

“Kuroko. Kuroko Tetsuya. A... friend of mine, you could say, from my days in Teikō. The other, who calls me that is Teikō’s former Captain, Akashi Seijūrō... altough I addmit, I hadn’t seen Akashi, in a long while now.”

“He seemed protective... and scary.“

He laughed. “There was only one person scarier, than Kuroko Tetsuya, in the enitre Teikō. And that was one Akashi Seijūrō... and there were days, just a few, when they teamed up, outside the court, just plainly as students of the school... and I remember...“ he readjusted his glasses, “They scared the shit out of everoyne. Akashi was not the kind of person you refused. And Kuroko... while usually calm and as expressive as a brick wall... well, his anger was literally destructive. Especially if someone, whom he cared about was harmed in some way.”

His friend shivered. “I can imagine that.“

He couldn’t help but chuckle, as the light glared sharply on his glasses. “What you’ve seen in there, Takao, was nothing. Nothing at all. Kuroko... Kuroko was our team’s heart. The heart, the voice of reason, the protector. Akashi led us and taught us. Protected and guided us on court. Kuroko gave us hope and protected us outside of court — from others, from ourselves...“ he trailed off.

For a moment, there was silence and only their steps could be heard.

“Nani? What happened, then?“

“We broke him.“ he said darkly. (But behind that dark tone, lay years and years of regret. They should have never left him behind.)

The Kiseki no Sedai were a family... and would always be a family. He regretted what he had done then, back at Teikō.

But for some reason, the weight of the porcelian dragon was reassuring. Kuroko had protected them from others and from themselves, when outside of court. And it seemed, the teal was still doing it, even today. No matter what... their bond still existed.

And Midorima Shintarō swore, he would never lose that bond from his sight ever again.

Chapter Text

Kuroko Tetsuya should have been happy — they’d just won their match against Tōō. (Some of those from the first year, said that it was a nice slap to Tōō. A revenge for the defeat during the Interhigh, although Tetsuya had a different idea. Revenge was not a concept, that should exist in basketball, not when it was spoken so... maliciously. He knew his peers did not mean it in a bad way, but it did come out rather sharply.) The team was celebrating, excitedly talking about going out to eat and relax tomorrow, before they resumed training for the next match. He should have been happy, like his teammates were, but he wasn’t. He had seen the shock on his former Light’s face.

He supposed Aomine Daiki wasn’t close friends with the word ‘lose‘... he perked up. Something told him, that his teammates, or precisely Aomine, needed him. He didn’t know, how he knew it — he just did. It was an odd thing, really. He had always known, when his teammates needed his help. Snack crisis for Murasakibara-kun... doubts... or even when Akashi-kun lost it and his bloodier side realy planned killing someone, because said person just couldn’t bow out and let the matter — whatever it was— be.

And now that feeling was there again. But this time... this time it didn’t just send a shiver down his spine. No, this time the feeling of protectiveness came with cold sweat, too. (He knew that the sweat had nothing to do with the match they’d just played... no. It was something else. Something worse.)

His Light needed him. (Because no matter what had happened... even if it hurt, Aomine-kun would always be his first Light. The person, who inspired him, with whom he wanted to play on the same court.)

He abruptly stood up, trying to keep the worry under wraps, as he opened the door.

“Kuroko?“ Izuki asked, noticing him. He cused in his head and threw the black-haired boy a look. His teammates seemed to tense, as if there was something on his face...

“I’ll be right back.“ he stated simply, before slipping out.

The members of Seirin shivered a little, as they watched their Phantom leave the locker room. “What’s with him?“ Kagami asked, glancing at his teammates. “That look...”

“Dark and murderous.“ Hyūga said, stealing a glance at the closed door. “I’ve never seen such thing on his face. Passive and emotionless, but you can see that something has upset him and that he’s out for blood.“ he murmured.

Several people shivered. “Don’t say such words.“ their coach murmured, “Kuroko-kun couldn’t hurt a fly...”

Oh, how wrong she was!

When he reached the Tōō lockers, he found several team members glaring at his friend and Aomine shaking, just barely holding his temper.

“Seriously? You slack off from training and then you underestimate them! When they won the Winter Cup and...“

“I didn’t underestimate anyone Wakamatsu! It’s just that I’m having a bad day...“ Aomine snapped back, raising his fist...

And he moved. In a moment, he was right next to his friend and former partner, holding him. The Tōō members all shrieked, not expecting him to turn up and Aomine looked at him in surprise. There was anger in his dark eyes... anger and hurt, but for a moment, it was completely overtaken by surprise.

“Tetsu-kun!” Momoi called from somewhere in the room — surprise and relief? in her tone—, but for once, he ignored the girl. Aomine was on the verge of snapping and at a time like that, his former Light was just as dangerous, as Akashi Seijūrō. Which didn’t bode well for Tōō...

“What are you doing here?“ Tōō’s coach — Katsunori, if he recalled correctly— demanded. He ignored the older man, gazing at his friend calmly.

“Don’t, Aomine-kun. Is it worth suspension?“

Aomine scowled. “The bastard just said...”

“I heard what he said.“ he hummed, giving a dark look to his friend’s teammate, who took a step back in shock. He turned back to his former partner. “And it’s still not worth it. Take a deep breath, get your things and let’s go home.”

A twitch from Aomine, accomanied by a very dark look... “Tetsu...”

Kuroko didn’t relinquish his hold. “Now Daiki.“ he said sharply. “Or do you want me to tell Akashi-kun? I know you’re temperamental sometimes, but you have more common sense, than to piss him off and we both know that. Come on. Let’s go home. Grab something to eat on the way.”

Aomine took a deep breath and slowly relaxed. Smiling a bit (not that anyone other than his former schoolmates noticed the change in expression,) he allowed the taller boy to go. Aomine turned away and  grabbed his things. “Don’t tell Akashi, Tetsu. I’d rather not die...”

He hummed. “I won’t. Wait a second outside, will you?“

Aomine arched an eyebrow and then snorted, his dark blue eyes sweeping his team. “Just don’t kill anyone, Tetsu, because if you do, I will have to call the captain and tell him what you have done.“

“And we both know Seijūrō would just roll his eyes and get me the best lawyers and then aplaud me for doing what I did.“ he shot back amusedly.

Aomine snorted and shifted his bag. “Sometimes, Tetsu... I can’t decide which of you is more dangerous and scary. Honestly, I think that’s the only thing Akashi isn’t undoubtedly unbeaten at — being scary.”

He hummed. “I’ll take that as a compliment, Aomine-kun, but we both know Akashi-kun is worse, than I ever could be. You forget about his scissors.“ Momoi giggled in background, as Aomine left, a small snort leaving his lips.

Once his Light left, he turned towards the team’s captain and the other shivered. “There’s no person, who loves basketball more, than Aomine-kun... so even if he’s a bit lazy, he would never slack off during a match. Saying that to him was a very bad idea. That hurt him... and I hate, when people hurt my teammates.“ he said in a low tone.

The other looked a bit uncomfortable, but then found his voice. “Uh, well... thanks for helping me, though...”

Kuroko’s eyes narrowed. “Don’t get the wrong idea. The only reason I stopped him, is because he would have gotten into legal trouble. I did it for him and not for you.“ he turned around, walking towards the door. As his hand rested on the doorknob, he swept his gaze across the team, before it stopped on the captain again. “The next time something like this happens, I will help Aomine-kun and you’ll wish you’d never even met a member of the Kiseki no Sedai.”

He left, aware, but uncaring of the deadly chill he’d left behind. He had given a warning — if they had common sense, they would keep it in mind. If not, well... their loss.

Aomine Daiki walked calmly, his last hamburger in hand, as they made their way towards his house. Tetsu had been insistent on escorting him home and seeing the scary look on his Shadow’s face (eerily close to the, you-will-get-exta-special-training look of Akashi), he remained quiet and let the other do, as he pleased. Tetsu was overprotective of them all, be it protecting them from others or from themselves...

He sighed. No matter where they were, which shools they attended, the Kiseki no Sedai were still a team and it seemed, it was Tetsu again, who reminded them — him— of that fact.

“Thanks for...“ he trailed off awkwardly, “... you know.”

Tetsu hummed, giving him an amused, but affectionate look. He had no siblings... but when he was around his former teammates, it felt like family. Like they were all siblings — safe for Akashi, who was definitely the mother hen of the group, altough the redhead would vehemently deny it, to the point of treathening them with his devilish red scissors. *Insert dreadful shiver here.*

“You don’t have to thank me, Aomine-kun. It was painfully obvious, that you still feel the afterefects of your fever.“ Tetsu said calmly.

Daiki opened his mouth to ask how the small Shadow knew about that... but he discarded the idea. He knew it from either Akashi or Satsuki. Satsuki was in the same class as him, so she was the first one to notice and Akashi... well Akashi knew everything. And both Satsuki and Akashi knew Tetsu was reliable and would keep an eye on him (Tetsu always kept an eye on them all, maybe even more, than Akashi, which was saying something), so they told him.

He huffed instead, as they reached his home and Tetsu stoped in front of the gate. “It’s not a big deal, Tetsu.”

Tetsu’s eyes narrowed and... goddamn it, he looked just like Akashi, when he was pissed! (Damn him. He should have never let his Shadow spend so much time with their Captain. Tetsu had picked up Akashi’s scarier habits— minus carrying around scissors— after all and that could have been avoided, if only he’d paid a bit more attention.)

“You’re not completely recovered, Aomine-kun and you’ve just exhausted yourself. You’ll be ill again. Take some medicine, get into bed and sleep.” he said.

He wanted to protest, but seeing his friend’s overprotective side, like back at Teikō, brought a smile to his face instead and he patted Tetsu’s shoulder. The other gave him a pleased look and they parted ways with a brief nod.

He hadn’t said anything... but he was planning on doing what Tetsu told him just now and the teal knew it very well.

Chapter Text

Kuroko Tetsuya sat among the many spectators with the rest of Seirin’s team, watching the two teams play. One was Rakuzan, led by his captain, Akashi Seijūrō — altough, others would have called the redhead his former captain, Tetsuya never felt the same way. No one understood the bond, which the Kiseki no Sedai shared.

It was a strong, special bond, that could never be severed. Different schools... different teams... rivalries. True, these were present, but the six of them were family. And family could never be broken by stupid rivalry and some orders. Akashi was all for ordering and Tetsuya had to addmit... partly the six of them coming and staying together, was Akashi’s work. So there was something good about his strong leadership, yes, but in the end they’d formed special bonds and there was a time, when those orders weren’t really orders, but gentle requests, from one family member to another, for the betterment of them all. (Altough Akashi would have probably denied it and tried skewering him in half with scissors, if he ever said such words in front of anyone, but Miragen members.)

The game ended with Rakuzan winning and the crowds went wild for the previous champions. He himself had mixed feelings about the outcome of the match — a part of him was glad to see his captain and friend suceed. Another was reminded of their time at Teikō, when the long, unbroken string of wins had driven them apart... yet another part was nudging at him, that something was not right.

Of course, they’d known that for a while. Nothing has been right, since Akashi-kun developed split personality. Sometimes... it was hard to tell his two selves apart, other times the difference was glaringly obvious and it bothered everyone, who wasn’t as close to the redhead, as the Miragen. Altough, he supposed, since the last year at Teikō, they’d seen more and more of Akashi’s... darker side. The side, which accepted naught but winning, climbing upwards and utter and complete absolution. That side of Akashi Seijūrō was never wrong. (Or so, said side believed.)

And now... mostly, from his observations and short meetings with his teammates after slitting up... the two halves of the redhead were in a sort of balance, which was almost, as if Akashi was himself, before that brutal loss to Murasakibara. But sometimes... the two sides would get detached and then would come the problems.

Especially if the... well, more forceful side of Akashi was around. The side which the Miragen started calling ‘The Emperor‘, for obvious reasons. And the way Akashi had held himself, as he walked out of court... it sent a shiver down his spine. Something told him, that the amount of fumbling Rakuzan had done was not good.

They’d won, yes, but they’d fumbled a lot and Akashi Seijūrō was one, who didn’t tolerate missteps in his plan. Especially not in a basketball game. As they stood up, the thought nagged at him and he glaced at his teammates. Seirin had horror-struck faces at seeing the literal destruction left by Rakuzan.

Kuroko chuckled dryly on the inside. ‘They call this destruction? Then... they’d never seen the six of us on the same court, on the same team. That was destruction.‘

“Oi, Kuroko-kun, where are you going?“ Aida Riko called.

The uneasiness in him grew — best find Rakuzan, before Akashi-kun skewers someone in half... This was as much for the team, as much for Akashi-kun. Despite everything, Akashi loved people and he was sure the redhead had a certain fondness for his current team as well and once thinking clearly, he would greatly regret whatever bloody deed he’d done in a fit of rage...

Sometimes, he had to protect his teammates — family— from others. But sometimes, the Miragens’ greatest enemies (himself included) were their own demons and not an outsider. And now it was obviously the case. Akashi-kun could take care of himself and stand his ground against others, better, than the rest of them could. But not even Akashi Seijūrō was perfect — the redhead couldn’t save himself from his own demons... and that was what he was here for.

To make sure nothing bad would happen to Akashi (or the rest of Rakuzan).

“I need to see Akashi-kun.“ he said. Kagami opened his mouth to say something, but he didn’t hear what. He prayed to the kami to make it in time, before the Rakuzan locker room was painted crimson.

As expected, the Rakuzan locker room was as quiet, as a crypt. Akashi’s scissors were already bloody and Kuroko could see, that two of the Uncrowned Kings already sported gashes on their cheeks and the third one stood before Akashi, trembling like a girl...

Anyone else would have laughed. Kuroko Tetsuya did not.

Akashi was already on the edge after the match and it was clear as day, that the fools had somehow aggravated the redhead even further. Come now, hadn’t they learned, that aggravvating Akashi was not a good idea? (Even the Miragen had learned in about two months, that an angry Akashi Seijūrō was almost like facing the Shinigami... and that was before his split personality appeared. After... well, after it appeared none remained standing.)

He moved swiftly, unnoticed and not only because of his naturally low presence. All of Rakuzan were like deer caught in headlights, waiting for Akashi to snap... (As if he wasn’t close to it anyway...)

He appeared next to the redhead and grabbed his wrist, which had the trademark red scissors. Rakuazan shifted and  hissed at his sudden appearance, the spell of their pralising fear broken.

“Akashi-kun.“ he called calmly.

The cheterochromic eyes didn’t move from the blonde before him. Hayama Kotarō was one of the Uncrowned Five, known as the Raijū, but at that moment, Kuroko thought, he looked nothing like a beast. More like a trembling kitten...

“What are you doing here, Tetsuya?“ his captain asked, voice cold and commanding, like every time he wore training clothes or jersy. Commanding like the Emperor he was...

He hummed, not moving an inch. “An unnecessery question, Akashi-kun. We both know why I’m here. We both know I’m not letting you dismember him, bloodless or otherwise.“ he stated unwaverignly.

“He’d deserve it.“ Akashi hissed, his hand moving...

... and Kuroko caught the razor sharp scissors, before reaching the blonde. The cold metal cut into his hand and his blood dripped onto the floor of Rakuzan’s changing room. Unbothered by his wound, he turned to the redhead, gently pushing him towards the door.

“Don’t be so rash.“ he spoke evenly, “Aomine-kun’s the one who’s like that, not you. You’re rational enough to know the consequences of such actions...”

“Damn the consequences. He...!”

“Seijūrō...“ he cut in, blue eyes locking with wild bi-coloured ones. “Let it go. Just this once. Please.”

“Are you commanding me?“ Akashi hissed.

Kuroko shivered a bit, but kept his face impassive. Out of them all, Akashi had the least hold of him and even now, in his enraged state, the redhead was aware of it. Any other member of the Miragen would have been a trembling mess by now, like Hayama.

“No, I’m not. I’m just thinking rationally, where as you do not.“ he pointed out, gently nudging the other towards the door. “Let’s grab something to eat. You can deal with them later. Extra training or whatnot... when you’re calm.“

“I am calm, Tetsuya.“ he growled.

“Ah, you are, Akashi-kun.“ he said in a deadpan tone, not convinced at all, “And I’m a girl.” Akashi’s eye twitched and it seemed the flames of Hell burned in the orange one, but Kuroko didn’t step aside. “Get your bag and let’s go.”

For a moment, the room was completely still.

Akashi shifted... “Seijūrō.“ he called again, eyes narrowing.

Akashi scowled and glared at Hayama. “We’re not done yet.“ he whirled on his heels, grabbed his bag and stormed out, as regal as ever.

Kuroko sighed and grabbed the scissors with his uninjured hand and wiped his blood onto the blonde’s clothes, eyes cold. “I don’t know if you’re blind or an idiot. I don’t care which. But you pissed Akashi-kun off, which is a bad idea in itself, even on the best of his days. And today was obviously not a good day. Next time that happens, I will not stop him from dismembering you — or any of your teammates, really. In fact...“ he locked eyes with the frozen blonde and pointed the red scissors at the other, “If by some miracle, you survive Akashi-kun’s anger... well you better be wary of shadows.“

He whirled on his heels and slowly walked out, playing with his captain’s scissors absentmindedly. He glanced back at the team, not noticing the shiver, that ran trough each individual, as his eyes settled on them.

“I hate when people hurt or aggravate my teammates. Do so again and the Emperor’s bloody anger will be the least of your problems, Rakuazan.“

He opened the door.

“And what do you mean by that, whelp?“ someone growled.

Kuroko soon found the owner of the voice and smiled coldly. “The Kiseki no Sedai were made of six players, Mibuchi-san and Akashi-kun was just one of us. You don’t want to meet the five of us, alone... especially not without Akashi-kun around, to stop us from breaking your soul and your dreams into tiny, non-existent pieces.”

And then, he was gone, soundless and traceless... like the shadow he was.

Hayama Kōtarō shivered, as the blue-haired monster disappeared behind the door. They couldn’t even hear him... altough they’d heard their captain’s voice faintly, along with his footsteps. But not the other boy. It was as if the other hadn’t even been here...

He looked at his white shirt, which was red with the blood of the infamous Phantom Sixth.

“Monster.“ he said, with a shiver. “All of the Kiseki no Sedai are monsters.”

If the Rakuzan members had nightmares for the coming week about five, human-like monsters — overshadowed by a sixth one, more dangerous, than the rest,— no one uttered a word.

They merely swore never to speak out of turn, nor to slack of during matches. Akashi Seijūrō was terrifying enough — but the Sixth one was like Hell personified, with eyes and soul as cold, as ice.

Chapter Text

Kuroko Tetsuya sighed tiredly, completely spent after the long day of training. (Training camp was worse this time, than the one time, when they’d been with Tōō.)

As much as he respected Aida-senpai... she could be cruel sometimes. Not worse than Akashi-kun, no one could be worse, than their redhead captain... but still. He still remembered when both Akashi-kun and Aomine-kun grunted about Seirin being clueless, when it came to his ‘phantom abilities‘ and thus were unable to help him bloom and progress the way he should have. It wasn’t like he didn’t trust Aida-senpai... but Akashi-kun was hardly ever wrong and if even Aomine-kun backed him up on the matter...

He was snapped from his thoguhts, when he heard several fearful shouts coming from the nearby Maji Burger, where they’d been heading. Trough the big windows, he spotted Yōsen’s team...

“Huh, what are Yōsen doing here?“ asked Hyūga-senpai. His teammates started conversing, ideas flying back and forth about Yōsen’s presence, but Kuroko ignored it.

Looking at the other team, he could tell something was wrong. That shiver... the shiver and the feeling of his stomach told him that something was wrong. And if something was wrong and Yōsen were here...

“Murasakibara-kun.“ he whispered. His team were discussing of possibly choosing another place, because the tension between the opposing teams was always high and almost too much to handle. Kuroko Tetsuya ignored all of their murmurs and speculations, speeding towards Maji, possibly faster, than he had ever before. (And for once, it wasn’t his overwhelming craving for vanilla milkshakes, that drove him towards the fast food restaurant.)

“Oi, Kuroko!” Kagami-kun called behind him sharply, but he ignored his partner. His brother needed him.

He almost broke the door, as he pushed at the glass in a way he would have done with a basketball. (Ouch... others — and even himself— always forgot he had more strenght, than one would initially assume...)

He strode over to Yōsen, the team taking up two tables, but obviously all of them were uncomfortable and wary at seeing the dark cloud of dread hanging around one Murasakibara Atsushi. Even Himuro seemed unsure, half worried for his friend, half worried for his own well-being, if the usually lazy giant decided to lash out.

Kuroko was next to him in a moment. “Atsushi?“ he called softly — several of the Yōsen players shrieking, that they hadn’t even seen him arrive. He saw Himuro rise an eyebrow at him, at using the other’s given name, but he ignored the other.

“Kuro-chin~“ the purple-haired center whined.

“Hey, it’s okay...“ he said quietly, rubbing the other’s back, as he took a step closer, studying the painful expression on his face. Then he sighed softly — behind him, Seirin just arrived and all of them froze at the feeling of dark, miserable aura Murasakibara was giving off.

“It hurts~“

Kuroko sighed and carefullly took his bag from his shoulder, while still rubbing calming circles on the other’s back. “Of course it does, you big baby.“ he jabbed softly, “We warned you, haven’t we? Both Akashi-kun and me, more than once, too. You should eat less sweets.”

“But...”

Tetsuya huffed and took a small white box from his bag and  popped it open, pressing two green-and-purple pills onto the giant’s hand. “Eat these.”

“But... Kuro-chin~“

His blue eyes narrowed. “Now, Atsushi. Or do you want me to call Seijūrō and tell him you’re only eating sweets again and not paying attention to your health?“

Purle eyes went wide, a flash of fear appearing on his features. “Iie, iie... don’t, please Kuro-chin. Aka-chin would be angry and angry Aka-chin is scary~“

He nodded to the pills and pressed his water bottle — also taken from his bag— into the center’s hand. “Then...”

Murasakibara muttered sulkily, but did as he was told anyway and ate the pills, washing them down with water. Once he was done, Kuroko took the bottle back and patted his teammate’s shoulder. “I’ll escort you home. Is that alright?“

Murasakibara looked at him trough half-lidded eyes. “But Kuro-chin lives far from my place...”

“It’s alright. I’ll spend the weekend there with you and get back home on Monday. There’s been some problems, so Seirin doesn’t have classes on Monday. Just wait for me out there a bit, please.” he said, nodding towards the door and then at Seirin.

“Okay... if Kuro-chin says so...“ the purple-haired giant said, giving an odd look to his team and some Seirin members seemed uncomfortable. Than, he stood and left without a word.

Kuroko sighed and took out tissues, looking at one Himuro Tatsuya. “If my understanding is correct, you’re close to Atsushi.”

“Ah, you could say, we are,“ the black-haired boy said, “we’re also in the same class, so I suppose that also helps. Why?”

Kuroko hummed in understanding, placing two pills onto the tissues and wrapping them. Then, he took a piece of paper and scribed his phone number on it, sliding both over to Himuro. “I’ll spend the weekend with Atsushi... but considering past experiences, he’ll need the medicine longer, than that and if he’s like now, he’ll be grumpier than usual and can’t play either.“

Himuro studied him, glancing at the tissues. “So I should give him the medicine, or what?“

“Yea, basicly. He’s not going to take it on his own volition, so nag him a bit. Best to take it around midday. If he doesn’t want to... there’s my number.“ he gestured at the second tissue, where his phone number was scrawled clumsily. “Call me, if he says no. I’ll have Seijūrō’s number and the two of us are usually persuasive enough and I can get a conference call.“ he stated plainly. “Oh and while he takes the medicine, try limiting his sugar intake. Don’t let him have more than a pack of whatever he has in his hand at that time.”

The American-Japanese paled. “Taking Murasakibara’s snacks? Do you want to kill me?!”

He shook his head. “No, Himuro-san, far from it. I just don’t like seeing my teammate ill. If he complains, tell him you have my number. If that doesn’t work, call me immediately and Seijūrō and I will take over from there. We’ll just need you to be our eyes, figuratively speaking. If that’s alright with you. And I promise, you’ll walk away from the ordeal, if it comes to such, in one piece.”

Himuro took the things he’d placed on the table and hummed, altough there was some uncertainty on his face. “I hope you speak true... because I don’t want to die.”

“You won’t.“ Kuroko hummed, before looking at Seirin. “My apologies, coach, guys, but I’ll have a sick teammate to take care of. See you next week.”

And then he was gone.

Yōsen and Seirin all stared after the retreating forms of their players. “Did the guy just get away alive with telling Murasakibara off, about his eating habits?“ someone from Yōsen’s table murmured.

Himuro sighed. “And he came prepared, if the pills are any clue... so he counted on his foul mood. And he dealt with it better, than any of us had ever done.”

“Scratch that all...“ Kagami murmured, throwing a look at his childhood friend, “He called him Atsushi without a blink and... he did the same with Rakuzan’s captain. Not bothered in the least — that guy didn’t come off the type to let people call him by his given name, even if he does call others by that.”

Meanwhile, the two Miragen members were quietly walking side by side, towards the bus stop. Kuroko occasionally glanced at his friend, gauging his mood. “Are you feeling better, Murasakibara-kun?“

The giant hummed, giving him a lazy smile and patting his head gently. “Yes. Kuro-chin and Aka-chin are good at telling when we need something.”

Kuroko didn’t need to ask, what his frien— brother meant by ‘we‘. It was obvious — at least, it was obvious for him. A tiny smile appeared on his lips, yet Murasakibara caught it. “We’re family. Of course we know when someone needs help — that’s why we’re family in the first place.”

He closed his eyes for a second, the smile widening. No matter the distance, the time... or the mistakes they’d committed in the past. They were a team. They were a family and family was always there to help, no matter the situation.

He would always help and protect his family, no matter what. Because the Kiseki no Sedai could be nothing else, but his family.

Chapter Text

Kise Ryōta sighed tiredly, as they finished the practice match against Seirin. Kami-sama help him, today his (former) teammate and Kagami had been rougher, than ever before. He was spent and several of the Kaijō members were on the floor, at Death’s door. Glancing to the other side, he noticed, that Seirin wasn’t any better, than his own teammates.

Even Kagami was spawled on the floor, breathing harshly.

Only himself and Kurokocchi remained standing, altough Ryōta could tell, that the only thing, that prevented the Phantom from keeling over, was his pride as a former student of Teikō. His former mentor would not give up, not until he himself was on his feet.

“Oi, Kuroko, how the hell are you still on your feet?“ he heard Hyūga speak, “You supposedly have the lowest stamina of us all.”

Kise hummed and his brown eyes met the Phantom’s blue and he chuckled, as the other smiled, until the chuckle turned into full-blown laughter, despite his breathlessness and Kuroko smiled for everyone to see (which, in Kuroko’s case, equalled a full-blown grin from Aomine).

The two teams looked at them oddly for a moment, but Kise didn’t bother with them. He needed a few moments to catch his breath, before he looked at the glasses-wearing Seirin player. “We’re Teikō students, no matter which schools we attend now. And we have our pride, don’t we, Kurokocchi?“

The Phantom hummed, his eyes drifting closed in fatigue, altough he still refused to sit of lay down, like others. “Well said, Kise-kun. I’m afraid both you and me... would get much, much worse, from Akashi-kun, if it reached his ears, that we threw our pride out the window.”

The model snorted lightly at those words and then sighed. “True, Kurokocchi. Akashicchi might live and study in Kyoto, but it always reaches his ears somehow... It’s scary, y’know. How he always knows.”

Kuroko hummed. “If he didn’t know, it wouldn’t be the Akashi-kun we’ve come to respect, fear and love in equal measures.“

Ryōta snorted softly. “True yet again. But then again... it’s easy for you. You’re the only one, who can stare him dead in the eyes and remain standing.“ he grinned wryly, “That’s a trick you’ve got to teach me.”

Kuroko shook his head negatively, much to the blonde’s chargin. “Not going to happen, Kise-kun. The only reason I can pull trough, where even Rakuzan’s players end up floored, is because he used to be my mentor, the way I mentored you, back at Teikō. He kind of... came to trust me and I was his left-hand, in a way. I did things, when Midorima-kun couldn’t.“

Kise whined softly. “Totally unfair, Kurokocchi~“

The door of the gym opened and everyone looked up. Kise straightened up at the sight of his manager. She never sought him in school and he’d told her, that today he had to stay longer, due to the match against Seirin.

“Fukuda-san?“

The stern, brown-haired woman looked at him and nodded to a farther corner of the gym. “May we have a word, Kise? There’s some important things, that came up and can’t wait. I will be brief.“

Kise blinked and stood up. “Eeeh, of course.“ he cracked his neck and walked over to the woman. He caught The Phantom’s eyes and even with the smallest shift in the teal’s expression, he noticed the unvoiced question hanging between the two of them.

 My manager, he mouthed soundlessly, before hurrying over to her, knowing well that she hated, when he made her wait.

Kuroko Tetsuya was not a person to judge others, from first glance. He wasn’t one to judge others after observing them for a longer time either — observing people had helped develop and train his style of basketball, so it had kind of become a training-related hobby. But realy, training wasn’t strenghtenous either — he loved basketball.

Still, as the stranger entered the gym... her presence made the figurative hackles on his back rise. He glanced at his teammate, unvoiced question on his impassive face, but Kise, like the other Miracles, had been around him long enough, to read him from a glance, in a way that no one in Seirin could.

My manager, Kise-kun answered, his lips forming the words soundlessly.

The words should have eased the tension in his body. The blonde knew this woman, worked with her often. Yet the uncomfortable flips in his stomach, which had nothing to do with his current exhaustion after the tough match, didn’t fade. Instead, they seemed to intensify, as he saw the subtle shift on the woman’s face as his teammate — brother, approached her.

They were speaking in low voices, so he couldn’t hear why she was here — lip reading had nothing to do with his observational skills, after all... Kise-kun made a quick gesture and Tetsuya noticed the brief flash of uneasiness, before the blonde shifted, so he could only see his back. The action caused his muscles to tense even more.

Kise Ryōta was very, very aware of his observational skills and often, when Akashi-kun hadn’t been around, (rare as it was) the Miragen always asked him to watch the opponent from the bench and during time out, he always relayed his findings, which the team then used, to defeat the other even more efficiently. The point was, that  Kise-kun knew of his skills and... the blonde was pointedly shifting so he couldn’t read him. And he stood in front of the woman too, in a way, that also made her hard to read.

The uncomfortable flips in his stomach intensified and soon, cold dread crawled trough his spine, like a swam of ants. Something was wrong.

“Don’t you dare!” the woman’s shrill voice filled the gym and Kuroko moved towards the duo, even before his mind trully caught up to the scene.

CRACK

There was a sharp sound... the slap resounding in the deathly gym and Kise staggered back from shock, his brown eyes wide, as he stared at the glaring woman. His cheek turned red and there was  a thin trail of blood — probably caused by a ring.

The next minute, Kuroko Tetsuya stood next to his teamma— brother and his hand clasped around the woman’s raised hand, before she could strike the blonde a second time. Their eyes met. Furious pale green on cold sky blue.

“Oi, who the hell are you?“ the woman asked, struggling against his hold. He didn’t seem as such, but he was pretty strong. His passes needed strenght, especially the likes of the Iginte Pass.

“I could ask the same thing.“ he returned blankly. Her eyes narrowed, “Well, Miss?“

She scowled at him. “Fukuda Hanako.”

His eyes narrowed further. “If my understanding is correct, you’re Kise-kun’s manager.”

“Yes.“ came her cold, clipped reply. “Who are you?“ she asked, tone deadly.

He didn’t twitch at all. Slowly, he shifted between the woman and his brother, face unreadable. “Kuroko-Akashi Tetsuya. And... I don’t appreciate strangers hurting my teammate.”

Fukuda went still at the name, eyes going wide, shock and fear settling on her face. “A-Akashi?“

He hummed, not relenting his grip on her. “Hai.“ his eyes narrowed, “A manager has no right to act the way you just did.”

“But Kise...”

He tighened his grip, just a tiny bit, not enough to hurt her, but enough to warn her not to finish wahever was on her mind. “Ryōta is, first and foremost, a student of Kaijō High and the star of their basketball team. Only second, is he a model and your charge. And I do not like the way you treat him. I’m sure my cousin would be most upset to hear, that our friend and former schoolmate was harmed.”

The woman went even paler. He loosened his hold on Fukuda and the woman yanked her hand back, as if he’d burned her.

“I believe, Fukuda-san, that your business with my teammate is done.“

Fukuda threw one last glance at Kise, before she left, all but running from the gym, as their teams watched in shock. Kuroko sighed and glanced at the blonde, concern flashing trough his features for a second, but it was enough for the model to see.

“Are you alright, Kise-kun?“

“Eh, thanks Kurokocchi.“ he said with a strained, but grateful smile, “You helped me out a lot.”

Kuroko sighed and slowly steered Kise towards the benches. The teams watched, their eyes filled with shock and rage on the blonde’s behalf. Kuroko saw Aida-senpai move, taking a small bag with her, which he knew were filled with basic first aid. Not much, but he knew she’d want to have a look at the cut on Kise’s cheek.  He nudged the blonde to sit among the Seirin players, while he grabbed his bag and dialled a familiar number.

Kise flailed in protest, but since Aida was there, he couldn’t do much. Meanwhile the teams gave the blonde odd looks about why he would panic because of a phone call. The ring ing ended and the other person picked up.

“Hello? Akashi Seijūrō speaking...”

“Seijūrō.“ he called darkly, as a form of greeting. All the players gave him odd looks and Kise flailed even more, but Kuroko was far enough, that the blonde couldn’t reach.

“Tetsuya. I would say it’s nice that you called... but you only sound like that, when something bad happened.”

He hummed. “Indeed. Kise-kun needs a new manager. I’m not letting that harpy close to him again.“ his eyes flashed darkly and the people who saw it, shivered in fear.

“Hm, I trust your judgemet... but what happened?“

“She hit him. Shouted at him for something, probably shot related... and then hit him.”

There was a very... very long silece. Almost omnious.

“Her name, Tetsuya?” even trough the line, it was clear that the other’s voice was dripping with poison and murderous intent.

“Fukuda Hanako.”

“Very well...”

“Oh and one more thing, Akashi-kun.“ he added sheepishly. “When I stopped her, I might have lied and told her I was your cousin...“

There was a blood-curdling chuckle from the other end. “Shrewed, Tetsuya. I’ll keep that in mind. Is Ryōta well?”

“It’s just a scratch from her ring. And hurt pride, probably. Nothing too bad.” he said, throwing a glance at the blonde.

There was a sigh. “Good. Stay with him for a bit, will you? I’ll deal with missing out a day for the both of you tomorrow.”

Kuroko smiled even though the redhead couldn’t see. “Arigato, Akashi-kun.” and then, the line was cut. Kuroko sighed and Kise gave him a wounded puppy look.

“You didn’t have to do that, Kurokocchi. I know, you hate lying. And you lied to Fukuda-san.... and now you called Akashicchi...”

He shook his head, face and emotions now calmer, than before. “Think nothing of it, Kise-kun. Get your things please. We’re going out, my treat.“

“Kurokocchi...”

He threw a look at the blonde. “I hate, when people hurt my family, Kise-kun. That goes for the rest of us, too. The other four would have done the same for you. Murasakibara-kun ad Aomine-kun would have probably made her leave with a black eye at least. And she would have been a sobbing mess, if she did this where Akashi-kun could see.” he stated matter-of-factly.

Kise looked sheepish, before nodding in agreement. “Yes. That sounds like the rest of them. She was indeed lucky it was you, who was here.”

Kuroko grabbed his bag and slid his phone into his pocket, throwing a look at the teams, specifically at Seirin. “See you later. Safe journey home.“ and then he walked off, gently nudging the blonde model with him, a protective hand lingering on the taller male’s arm.

Kaijō and Seirin watched quietly, as the two Miracles walked out, chatting happily, Kise clinging to Kuroko, as if the Shadow was a lifeline and... for once, Kuroko made no attempts at all, to get him off.

“They’re really like a family.“ Aida Riko noted, watching the two walk off.

“A scary family.“ Furihata murmured.

“I’m more shocked about the fact, that Kuroko used Akashi Seijūrō’s name and casually called him afterwards, too.“ Kaijō’s Captain murmured.

“All the Miracles are weird.“ Kagami sulked, “I thought, I have the harmless, least dangerous one, as my partner... but scratch that. Kuroko seemed like he could have killed right now.”

The two teams shared looks and shivered a bit. An unvoiced agreement passed between Seirin and Kaijō, like some kind of pact. Today would never be spoken of, nor would they ever dare harming or badmouthing the Kiseki no Sedai in any way.

It was obvious, what this was about...

Harm one and the other five will kill you.

Those weren’t good chances... and everyone liked living and they would have liked getting trough High School in one piece, thank you very much.

Chapter Text

This time I'm not scared
Now I am unbreakable, it's unmistakable
No one can touch me
Nothing can stop me

— Unbreakable BY Fireflight

Seijūrō was used to attention — being the Heir of the Akashi family and the captain of Rakuzan, he was used to many eyes on him. The reporters and their questions didn’t bother him. Some members of Rakuzan were fidgeting, as the commotion was bigger, than usual.

Of course it was — all six current teams, who’d been at Inter High/Winter Cup and were the teams of the Kiseki no Sedai, had been asked to attend. And the reporters, coming from all over the country,  were shouting their questions, one over the other and the restless cacophony of voices was slowly grating on his nerves.

And he could sense Tetsuya’s and Satsuki’s growing restlesness as well... and Ryōta... well he was getting even more attention, than the rest of them. While the blonde was used to attention and the clicking of cameras, it was obvious, that even he was growing more and more uncomfortable. All his teammates were growing more and more uncomfortable, which in turn, made him uneasy.

Why had they even agreed to this interwiev?

Then, he heard that question.

“What was it like to be beaten by Kuroko Tetsuya? He was the weakest of the Generation, no? Barely present on court...“

It set his blood aflame and suddenly red, no... cheterocromich eyes flashed murderously. (He wished he had his scissors, but he would do without them just for now.)

Kise Ryōta, as a model was used to commotion, cameras and attention in general. Hell, he got attention on the street, even when he didn’t seek it. This interwiev was not too different from the many shots he’d been part of, yet it was...

...it was different.

The crowd was loud and they were prodding him about basketball. How it felt to be beaten in the sport he loved, by the people he had once been teammates with. His blood boiled... They were still teammates. Once a Teikō member would always be a Teikō member and that rang even sharper, even truer to the six (seven, because Momoicchi was part of their little group too,) of them.

“What was it like to be beaten by Kuroko Tetsuya? He was the weakest of the Generation, no? Barely present on court...“

He was a kind, childish person, who was bouncy and liked fooling around. Always looking for something fun in life, always an easy smile on his lips. He was rarely serious and the times, when he was angry was even rarer. But now... now he was furious.

At those words, the last of his patience snapped.

Aomine Daiki hadn’t even been fan of the interwiev in the first place — it wasn’t the crowd or the attention that bothered him (unlike Tetsu, who’d been and in a way still was, forever a shadow, a supporter...). No neither bothered him. What bothered him, were the insensitive questions and the subtle jabs at his former teammates.

“Aomine, what it was like for the first time, to see Kuroko Tetsuya with someone else? I heard he was your former partner in Teikō...?“

He saw red.

Kagami Taiga may be on the same team as Tetsu... but Kagami Taiga knew nothing of the Shadow. Tetsu was his partner. His Shadow. His brother. (Not former. Never former partner. Tetsu was his Shadow first and that would never change.)

Kuroko Tetsuya was his partner and no one else’s. Kuroko Tetsuya way one of the Kiseki no Sedai (Tetsu was a genius at basketball in his own way) and not even a talented, previously nameless player like Kagami Taiga could change it. And then... that last question...

“What was it like to be beaten by Kuroko Tetsuya? He was the weakest of the Generation, no? Barely present on court...“

He snapped.

Momoi Satsuki had been, from the very start worried for her friends, after they’d been told about the interwiev. Their friendship was back to what it had once been — no, no it was stronger now. Their bonds had never been broken, merely strained... and now, thanks to Tetsu-kun’s efforts, all of them were together again. It was almost like they were back at Teikō, before the boys’ talents bloomed.

They were a team again — a family— despite attending different schools. They were like back then, even if meeting everyone needed serious logistics, due to the distance. She’d always loved basketball, but after meeting the boys... and after they were dubbed the Kiseki no Sedai... she loved it even more. Everyone, well almost everyone on the team, was like a sibling... or at least a very good friend. She wished Tetsu-kun would notice her, but...

It didn’t matter. They were together and it was fine. She was content — they were like a family again, who stuck together, no matter what. And then, that question reached her ears.

“What was it like to be beaten by Kuroko Tetsuya? He was the weakest of the Generation, no? Barely present on court...“

No. Tetsu-kun couldn’t be the weakest... all of them were similarly skilled, equals in a way, but all six of them with different skills. But it was okay. The six of them seperately were stong... together, they were unstoppable. Had Japan forgotten their Teikō days?

Her eyes narrowed. No one, absolutely no one called one of her family members weak — and if someone dared calling Kuroko Tetsuya weak, she’d ruin them with an inch of their lives, so badly, that they’d wish they’d faced a pissed of Akashi Seijūrō instead.

She saw red, as her chair squeeked against the floor and she reached for the sportsbag, which rested behind her. She’d brought it to tease the boys after this... but now she had a better idea what to use the bag’s contents for.

Murasakibara Atsushi was usually lazy and cared for very little. He knew what he was like — Himuro kept rubbing it into his face. He was fine with that, he could let that slip, because it was true. No reason to get pissed for something, that was true. Even getting pissed was too tiresome and troublesome. Just like this interwiev. He wondered why had he even agreed to the coach’s... okay, he hadn’t agreed to that. He was here because Aka-chin told him to be here.

So far the interwiev was annoying and pointless. They’d asked why he’d started playing, what it had been like to adjust to a new team... why had he chosen Yōsen...

He answered half-heartedly, too bored and hungry to care. He just wanted this to end and then spend the afternoon with the Miracles, because Aka-chin had invited them. He counted the seconds till the end... until he heard that question.

“What was it like to be beaten by Kuroko Tetsuya? He was the weakest of the Generation, no? Barely present on court...“

Kuro-chin was tiny and fragile and more than once, Murasakibara had been afraid, during their time together, that he’d accidentally crush the small, blue-haired boy. But then Kuro-chin left them and grew — became strong. He became strong with a different team, but he became strong for them. Kuro-chin had showed them their faults — it was thanks to the small Shadow, that he realised, he loved basketball.

Kuro-chin had a big heart and an iron will. Kuroko Tetsuya was many things, but he was not weak and the mere sugesstion, from a person who didn’t know his teammate, pissed him off.

He growled, as the chair squeeked under his weight.

Midorima Shintarō was a calm, logical individual. Someone, who was more to himself, someone who preferred to be away from crowds, in a similar way to Kuroko. (Akashi and Kise were used to attracting and getting attention, but he was not.) Yet, he pulled trough the interwiev so far, calm and collected as he was during matches, because they’d asked it of him and he would do his best. Still, the attention and the questions were setting him on the edge — there was just something in the air, that made him uneasy and even clutching his lucky item with one hand, where no one could see — a basketball keychain,— could not calm his nerves.

With every passing second, he inched closer and closer to the edge and he could barely give calm answers, instead of just rudely snapping at the interwievers— quoting Aomine— ‘just to fuck off‘. But he tried. He kept up his facade.

“Aomine, what it was like for the first time, to see Kuroko Tetsuya with someone else? I heard he was your former partner in Teikō...?“

He saw, when Aomine twitched at the word former and Shintarō barely hid a smile. Aomine was a Tōō player now and Kuroko was part of Seirin... but Aomine had never stopped considering the smaller boy his partner. Even when their bonds had been strained before Seirin won the Winter Cup...

They had unbreakable bonds. There were times, when Kuroko just knew they needed help and he’d come to help and in exchange, they kept an eye on the Shadow, too. And there was a certain camardire too, even on court, when they stood on opposing sides.

He hadn’t told Shūtoku about Kuroko’s lack of presence and Kuroko hadn’t told Seirin about his threes... they were on different teams now, but they were still comardes. Brothers in arms. Ones, who survived the hell, that had been Teikō... and no amount of hostility, no orders from Akashi (surely, the redhead had realised it too,) could break their bonds.

So, when he heard that question directed at Aomine, he was upset for both of his teammates — for the Light and the Shadow alike, whose tag had been dismissed. And the question that followed, was just oil to the fire...

“What was it like to be beaten by Kuroko Tetsuya? He was the weakest of the Generation, no? Barely present on court...“

His eyes narrowed and his glasses glared sinisterly in the flash of the cameras, as his chair’s legs schreeched against the wood. (Kuroko may have had lower stamina, than the rest of them, but his inteligence and analitical abilities were close to that of Akashi and his team mentality, along with his Misdirection made him a formidable opponent. Kuroko was one of them and he respected the smaller boy. Now that he understood the teal’s ideals and wiev on basketball, perhaps... he respected Kuroko even more, than ever before.)

Kuroko Tetsuya was uneasy enough with the interwiev going on — he wasn’t used to attention. In a way, he hated attention. He was The Phantom, The Shadow, the one who supported his team from behind the scenes. But now, too many eyes were on him. He needed all his self-control, the old mantra, which Akashi taught him going trough his head, to try keeping his uneasiness under wraps and away from public eye. (Too many people, too much attention, too much noise...)

But then, the comments reached him.

“What was it like to play against your former teammates?“

“What was it like to stand on opposing sides of the court, not being able to rely on them?“

He didn’t rely on his teammates. They were a team. They relied on each other. (Sure, the picture perfect setting didn’t last forever, cracks had appeared... but now those cracks were gone. Besides, despite standing on opposing sides of the court, the six, seven of them never stopped being a family.)

“What was it like to play against you fromer ‘Light‘?“

Former Light...

He saw red.

He cares for Kagami-kun, but Aomine had been his first partner. Aomine could never be replaced — Aomine was his friend and friends don’t get replaced. No... Aomine was his brother.

The Kiseki no Sedai were family. Now, after the Winter Cup, their bonds were stornger, than ever... and if Japan thought they were weaker for it... weaker because they’d been scattered, because there was a tournament, where they’d played against each other...

Fools, the lot of them. The Kiseki no Sedai were united, even while divided. Because no distance could sever family. The six, seven of them could stand on court right this instant against any other team who’d participated in the Interhigh or the Winter Cup. The six of them could stand up right now and win, because even after all these years, they were still in sync.

Head low, fists clenched tightly while on the table, he pushed his chair back and the metal scraped against wood.

Seven chairs scraped loudly against the floor, as the seven former students of Teikō Junior High — six basketball players and a basketball club manager— stood up in perfect union. Their faces twisted in dark, downright murderous expressions, screaming for blood without saying a word.

Teammates, coaches and reporters all froze and shivered, as the seven glared at the crowd in front of the podium, where they’d all been seated at the start.

“Never...“

“...Ever...“

“...Dare...“

“...Calling...”

“...Us...”

“...Former...”

“...Teammates...“the seven of them hissed, one by one, yet the sentence was completely cohesive and comprehensible. Seven pairs of eyes glared murderously at the reporters.

“We may have found friends, in other schools.“ Kuroko growled lowly.

“We may have found teams worth playing for in other schools.“ added Kise, tone colder, than anyone had ever heard it.

“But we are still a team.“ Aomine snarled.

“Even today, we’re still a family.“ Midorima added, voice like razor.

“We are still, first and foremost the Kiseki no Sedai of Teikō.“ Akashi finished, his voice promising bloodshed, if anyone dared defying his statement, “We are still a team and we will remain so, until our dying breath. We entered the competition, as a form of game between ourselves, but we never stopped being a team.”

“And anyone, who says we just used to be a a fancy team...“ Murasakibara murmured, but the deadly intent was palpable in his tone, “...deserves to be crushed.”

“Any fool, who doubts our bonds and our skills, only because we attend different schools now...“ Aomine hissed.

“Is welcome to try their luck against us.“ Midorima growled out. “We don’t need to attend the same school to work together the way we used to. Once a team, is always a team.”

“Only after the lot has survived the hell that was Teikō...“ Kuroko added, tone cold and eerily light, whisping around the room like the breath of the Shinigami, “only after that, has any team any right to judge us.“

Momoi tossed white bundles at the boys and even without looking at the pink-haired manager, all six of them caught it and unfolded it, to reveal sweaters, like the ones they used to wear in Teikō, only bigger, to fit their current sizes.

“We cherish our current teams and friends...“ Momoi spoke, tone cold and deadpan, similar to the boy, whom she loved, making the crowd shiver.

“But we are still — first and foremost, a team. The Kiseki no Sedai of Teikō and if someone thinks, they can beat us, they are welcome to try, but we won’t let them. Once a team is always a team and we have never lost before.” Akashi growled sinisterly.

The shirts underneath showed their current schools’ crests and colours, while the sweaters’ had the Teikō symbol on them.

Unity in diversity, the cold air in the room seemed to hiss.

Seven pairs of cold eyes settled on the shivering, stunned crowd. Then, Akashi Seijūrō whirled on his heels, looking as regal, as ever – every inch the Emperor he was. Kuroko offered his arm to Momoi and with a blush and sweet, wide smile on her face, the pink-haired Tōō manager took The Phantom’s hand.

Then, they all turned on their heels, showing their backs to the crowd — on the Teikō sweaters, embrodiered with silver, gold and blue, there were three words, running down their backs, clearly visible.

Kiseki no Sedai.

“Get ready for training, usual time, usual place.“ Akashi called, as he strode out, with a mere glance at the crowd of teams and reporters behind him, his golden eye flashing.

Wild, bloodthirsty expressions settled on the faces of the former Teikō students. (In the background, the Rakuzan team shivered with dread, as they knew what sort of training — torture— would the redhead devil of a Captain put the other five trough. But to their utter shock and horror, neither of the five seemed fazed by it. Were they even human, not to fear the training methods of Akashi Sejūrō, Devil incarnate?)

“Hai, Captain.” the team chorused without hesitation, six voices resounding in the room as one, as they slipped out.

From then on, the media was loud with the happenings of the interwiev. But not just the media... the entirety of Japan was loud with it. Words and articles flew trough the island, that drove fear and awe into the hearts of those, who loved basketball.

The Kiseki no Sedai Reformed

The Kiseki no Sedai Never Stopped Being a Team

The Phantom Sixth Dating Tōō Manager

The Unbreakable Bond of Miracles

And the last of the titles held the most truth. The bond of the Generation of Miracles was unbreakable. Come hell or high water, they would always be a team and no one would be able to deny what they were. A team of monsters, when on court. A team of geniuses. But first and foremost... A family.