Hey, all. Sorry that these have been taking so long to churn out. All I can promise you is that I'm too invested in this plot now to give it up until I finish. I hope you enjoy the chapter. Be careful with this one if you're sensitive to any of the content warnings.

CW: Transphobic and homophobic slurs (quite prevalent), generalised Japanese racist slur, familial transphobia, deadnaming, threats.

"Kuroko!" Kagami stood over him as Riko helped him over to the bench. "Is he okay?"

"I don't know," Riko muttered. They had been given a few minutes to compose themselves, although the Kaijō coach had been annoyed that this had happened again. Riko didn't blame him.

Saruwatari leaned down as Kuroko lay on the bench. "My mom's a nurse," he explained as he began checking a few things. Kagami didn't know what. It all looked like he was trying to tap Kuroko and mess with his vision to him.

"Well?" Kagami snapped after a minute.

Saruwatari didn't look up for another few seconds. "He hit his head when he fell, but he's not bleeding. He'll need to check in with a doctor afterwards, but he should be fine."

"Good," Kise sighed. He was the only one in blue over with the Seirin team. "Kuroko?"

Kuroko looked up at them, eyes squinted. "See? I'm fine."

"But you shouldn't play anymore," Saruwatari added. "At least not for a few minutes."

Riko looked up at the clock. The second quarter was ending. She gritted her teeth. "Tachibana, I'm putting you in," she decided.

Tachibana grinned and nodded. "Thanks, coach."

A whistle blew. Whatever time they had been given was up. Everyone moved back onto the court and the game started again.

Tachibana marked Kise. Kagami could see the blonde confused by how fast the orange-haired first year was moving, but Tachibana hadn't experienced the Generation of Miracles before.

Within five minutes, Kise had gotten over the speed and was using it to his advantage – stopping too quickly for Tachibana and shooting a mix of three and two pointers to throw him off.

"Idiot," Kagami snapped at Tachibana. "Mark him!"

"I'm trying!" Tachibana huffed. "He's fast!"

"Then make yourself go faster." Kagami glared at him and sprinted to catch up with Kise. He slapped the ball out of his hand and hurled it down the court.

Tachibana caught it and raced up to the Kaijō hoop, scoring a three-pointer with relative ease.

"Is he the one?" Kise muttered to Kagami. The latter nodded. Kise's eyes narrowed. "Sorry about this then."

He sprinted down the court, stole the ball and hurled it up the court just as Kagami had. Faster. Nakamura caught it and scored a three-pointer, negating the points Seirin had just made.

Tachibana just stared at the hoop. Kise smirked at him, and his eyes flashed. "I'd be careful who you hurt when you're playing basketball," he muttered, so low Tachibana barely even heard him. "I saw that wave."

Tachibana opened his mouth, but the ball was rushing towards him. He caught it, but Kise snatched it and ran off again.

Tachibana chased after him. He was able to pull level with the blond, but didn't manage to catch the ball. Kagami grabbed it and threw it back down to Hyuuga.

"Got it," the captain called as he scored a three-pointer. Seirin had lost their lead but they weren't letting the gap widen to more than two points.

"Why didn't you call me when you threw the ball to me?" Tachibana yelled, turning on Kagami.

"Not my job." Kagami shrugged. "Focus on the game instead of Kuroko."

Tachibana gritted his teeth. The game continued in a similar fashion until the final quarter. Tachibana barely caught balls thrown directly at him, and often lost them to Kise, who had taken to marking him like a wolf.

"Why won't you move to someone else?" Tachibana hissed.

"Because you waved." Kise narrowed his eyes. The game wasn't fun for him anymore – not with Kuroko gone and this little shit in his place.

When the ball was thrown up to Kagami, Tachibana chased after him. "Pass!"

Kagami glanced at him, and shot himself. A three-pointer, which he was usually terrible at, but he managed to pull it off this time. The bell for the end of the quarter rang and he walked over to the bench without waiting for the others.

"Take me off."

Riko looked up at him. "You do realise that you're the only reason we're not already ten points behind?"

"I don't care." Kagami jabbed a thumb towards Tachibana. "He hurt Kuroko."

"How?" Riko sighed. "He was on the bench. He didn't move."

"I don't know, but he did," Kagami snapped, "and I'm not playing with him again."

Riko opened her mouth to argue, but shut it again. "Fine," she mumbled. "Once." By that stage, the rest of the team was back. "Tachibana, you're marking Kise. Kagami, I'm pulling you out for this quarter."

"But-" Good. He had the common sense to pretend to argue.

"I don't want to hear it." Riko shot him a glare. "One quarter. That's it." She looked over at Saruwatari. "You take his place."

He tensed but nodded, and the bell rang again.

If possible, the start of the second half went worse than the previous quarter. Tachibana was fast on his feet, but uncontrolled, and Saruwatari marking Nakamura – the new Kaijō captain – wasn't a good plan for the team.

He was a good player – very good – but Nakamura was far better.

"Throw it to me!" Tachibana snapped at Hyuuga.

But his captain just looked at him and shot another three-pointer.

Every time Tachibana so much as touched the ball, Kise would snatch it away and score with as much energy as possible. No one tried all that hard to stop him.

When the third quarter ended, Riko pulled Tachibana out. Kuroko was sitting up by then.

"Kise's too aggravated by you," she insisted when he tried to protest. "We've got a seven point gap to close, and that's hard against Kaijō. Kuroko, you're back in."

Kuroko just nodded. Saruwatari cleared his throat. "Medically speaking, I don't know if that's a good idea. He might need-"

"It's fine, Saruwatari-kun," Kuroko mumbled. "I've had worse before."

"That doesn't mean you should." Tachibana's honey-smooth tone was back. "You could end up even more hurt."

"While your concern is appreciated, it's not necessary." Kuroko looked up at him. "I won't get hurt again."

Saruwatari let out a breath and looked over at Riko. "Should I come out too?"

She chewed the inside of her lip. "No. No, you stay in. Koganei, do you mind-?"

"No, go ahead." He grinned and plopped onto the bench, pulling on a hoodie. "I'll sit this quarter out."

Riko nodded. "Kagami, you mark Nakamura again. Saruwatari, you switch to Hayakawa." Everyone nodded and moved back out as the bell rang.

Kise grinned when he saw Kuroko, the tension in his shoulders easing. "You're back."

Kuroko smiled. "Did you think I wouldn't be?"

"Not at all." Kise's grin grew. One more quarter.

Seconds after the bell, Kuroko passed the ball to Kagami, and Kise laughed.

He tried to snatch the ball back, but Saruwatari threw it back to Kagami, who passed it to Kuroko.

The other caught it and aimed. One of the seventy percent; the ball went through the hoop. Good.

Kaijō scored next – one of Nakamura's. Kagami grabbed it next and threw it to Hyuuga, who made three points. Then Kuroko managed another two, and Saruwatari another two.

Even with Kise and Kagami battling for the ball, the score gap didn't widen all that much.

When the final bell rang, with both teams out of breath, a proud seventy-nine points hung under Seirin's name while seventy-seven hung under Kaijō's.

Kise grinned as he shook everyone's hands, but he managed to miss Tachibana. Kagami was last. "Well done."

The other man met his gaze. "If we had lost, it would have been worth it," he mumbled.

Kise hummed. "Maybe," he agreed, "but I think this will teach him an even bigger lesson."

"Evening, Kuroko-san." The doctor sat down in front of him and Riko. "Nurse Hasegawa tells me you had an accident in a match?"

Riko nodded. "He was hit on the left side of his head with a basketball. Towards the back."

"I see." The doctor nodded. "And you've been here before?"

Kuroko's face turned pink. "Last year," he admitted.

"After a match as well?" Kuroko nodded. "Well, from what I can see, I can tell you that you're fine. No concussions, although you're going to have a bruise in the morning." The doctor smiled. "But maybe stay away from matches for a day or two. Alright?"

Kuroko nodded. "I'll make sure he doesn't play for a few days," Riko assured. "Should he take any extra precautions?"

The doctor shook his head. "Walk home tonight with a friend maybe, in case he gets a little dizzy. Aside from that-" He grinned at Kuroko. "-you're good to go."

Kuroko smiled and bowed his head. "Thank you."

"It's not a problem." The doctor stood again and looked at Riko. "Just make sure he takes it easy."

"I will." She nodded. "Come on, Kuroko." They left the office, and walked out to the waiting room. Most of the team and Kise were waiting for them – Saruwatari was the only first year who had stayed.

"Well?" Kagami was standing – probably pacing back and forth and irritating the whole team the entire time.

"All clear." Riko nodded. "He just needs to take it easy for a few days."

"I can-" Kuroko began.

"No. No way." Riko shook her head. "You're taking two days off from practice. Understood?" After a moment, Kuroko nodded. "Good."

Kise stood up and stretched. "Great. Does anyone want to go for dinner?"

A few people grumbled and made some sort of excuse. "I'll go." Kagami grinned. Kuroko nodded and Saruwatari rubbed the back of his head.

Kise gave him a grin. "You can come too, if you want. We won't bite."

"Thanks." Saruwatari gave him a small smile. They split up, the four walking downtown towards a ramen restaurant Kise found on TripAdvisor, and the rest going home on the bus.

"I never actually asked," Kise admitted, "what pronouns do you use?"

"Me?" Saruwatari pointed to himself. "What do you mean?"

"Like he and him, she and her, or they and them," Kise elaborated.

"He and him," Kuroko answered for him, but Saruwatari still looked a little confused.

"Okay. Say you went to a shop," Kise tried, "and someone asked me where you went. Would I say he went to the shop, she went to the shop, or-"

"Oh, okay, I get you." Saruwatari nodded. "Yeah, he and him." He tried to smile. "I don't know when you could have asked before now considering we were in the middle of a match."

Kise snorted. "True."

Kagami hummed. "Speaking of the match." He looked over at Kuroko. "What happened? You don't get distracted during games."

"It wasn't anything big." Kuroko shook his head.

Saruwatari cleared his throat. "I thought I saw Tachibana waving at him," he admitted. Kuroko glared at him.

"Bastard." Kagami gritted his teeth. "I swear, next time I see him-"

"It was probably a mistake, Saruwatari-kun." Kuroko shook his head. "I didn't see him waving."

"You were looking over at the bench. And I'm pretty sure I saw him too." Kise folded his arms. "Kurokochii-"

"It was nothing," Kuroko snapped. "I just got a bit lost."

"You don't get lost during games!" Kagami insisted.

"Well I did this time! So just drop it." Kuroko stuffed his hands into his pockets.

Saruwatari shuffled his feet. "Sorry I didn't say something sooner."

"There was nothing to say." Kuroko gritted his teeth.

"Yes, there was." Kise shook his head. "But that wasn't your fault, Saruwatari."

Saruwatari shrugged. "Maybe."

"I'm going to kill him when I see him." Kagami punched the palm of his hand. Whenever Kuroko saw him do that, it reminded him of the far-too Americanised action films.

"No, you're not."

"Exactly." Kise's eyes narrowed. "I am."

"Neither of you are killing anyone." Kuroko glared at them. His lip was beginning to twitch a little.

"What about me?" Saruwatari offered a small smile.

"No!" Kuroko hid a laugh. "Seriously. No killing."

"Fine, fine." Kise waved his hand. "Maiming."

"Just drop it." Kuroko's half-smile was gone. None of them brought it up again.

Kagami was the first to speak, after clearing his throat. "Let's just go and get ramen."

When Kuroko pushed open the door, he noticed three things in a very simple order. The purple and orange flowery suitcase standing in the hallway, the smell of chicken cooking, and the sound of loud laughter. His grandmother had come to visit.

He sent Kagami a quick, final text before pocketing his phone. You might need to save me later.

He had to take several long, deep breaths before he managed to walk into the room. His mother was smiling when she looked up. "Kuro, you're back. How was the match?"

"Good." Kuroko nodded. Kuro was a bit of a middle ground. "We won by two points."

"Well done." His father nodded. "How much did you play?"

"Not too much. I had to come out for half the game – I fell."

"Oh, that's not good." His grandmother's voice fell on him like a heavy blanket. "How did you fall?"

Kuroko looked over at her. Greying hair hung cropped around her ears, mottled skin bunching around her chin and eyes. Golden glasses perched on her nose, magnifying her eyes and giving her a look of childlike innocence. "Someone threw the ball to me and I didn't see it, so it hit me."

"Gracious." She covered her mouth. "I never knew basketball was so rough."

"It was a once-off." Kuroko leaned down and kissed his mother's forehead.

She smiled at him – her cheeks were red, and eyes bright. "Did you have fun?" He nodded. "That's good to know."

Kuroko returned the smile. Maybe things wouldn't be so bad today.

"Are the other girls on your team nice?" His grandmother asked.

Or not. Kuroko cleared his throat. "I play on the boys' team."

He could see her stiffen. His father clapped him on the shoulder. "You've been doing well so far – winning a game a week into the start of the year!"

His mother nodded in agreement as she forced herself to her feet. "I'm going to go sort out dinner. Do you want some, Kuro?"

"I ate before I came home," Kuroko replied. She nodded and shuffled into the kitchen.

His father gave him a smile. "Come help us out, eh?"

"Sure." Kuroko nodded.

He followed his father out to the kitchen. While his parents began cutting vegetables, he grabbed knives and forks and brought them back to the sitting room – it was the biggest table they had.

Before he could retreat again to get glasses, his grandmother caught his arm. "Emi, you and I need to have a talk."

He already knew where this was going. "What about?"

"Your mother is our top priority at the moment," she stated. Her hand was hot on his wrist. "She has cancer, Emi. Now all of this can wait for a few years. You're going to look back on this in college and thank the gods that you didn't do anything. Your mother doesn't need that stress in her life."

Kuroko swallowed. Get out. Get out now. "I'm not-"

"You're putting far too much pressure on her," his grandmother continued. "Especially considering how much treatment she has to deal with. She's going to end up getting worse with all of this to worry about."

Kuroko's heart thudded in his ribcage. "She's getting better."

"She's not." His grandmother shook her head. "She's not going to get better, Emi. And all of this is going to make things worse. I've been reading up on this. If she gets too stressed, she's going to end up having a heart attack or a stroke."

Kuroko stared at her. Her eyes held his like a vice, steely and cold. "How dare you."

"I beg your pardon?"

"How dare you!" He yelled, snapping his wrist away from her. "How dare you tell me I'm killing my mother!"

"I never said you were." She stood up.

"You just did!"

"Emi, calm down."

Kuroko took a breath. "Please," he hissed, "just leave me alone."

She stared at him, and he saw her eyes water. "Leave you alone?" She shook her head. "After everything I've done for you; I hope you never want for anything in your life, Emi."

"My name is Tetsuya." He glared at her.

"We're not having this discussion."

"You've already started this discussion!" He stepped away from her when she tried to grab his arm. "No, don't touch me!"

"What's going on in here?" His mother was back, and then his grandmother was in tears.

"She attacked me! She's like an anti-Christ!"

"I never attacked you!" Kuroko pointed at her. "I never-"

"Stop!" His mother snapped, rushing over to his grandmother. "Emi, stop!"

Kuroko stared at her for a moment. "I'm allowed to be angry with her!"

"Emi-"

"You see? Miyuki she attacked me-"

"Mom, please-"

Kuroko whipped around and darted out of the house. He didn't even pull on his shoes.

It was raining, and water soaked through his socks, already black with dirt as he ran through the streets. Tears were blurring his vision, and twice he nearly ran in front of a car.

When he reached the apartment, he rang the bell fifteen consecutive times before the intercom crackled. "Hello?"

"Kagami-kun." His voice broke.

"Shit, Kuroko, I'm buzzing you in now."

The door swung open and Kuroko shuffled inside. His socks left puddles on the floor as he waited for the elevator. He could hear his phone vibrating and he checked it.

A few texts from Kagami asking why he would need to be saved, and three missed calls from his father.

He turned his phone off as he stepped inside. Kagami was waiting for him on the seventh floor.

The second he saw him, Kuroko fell against his chest. "I hate her," he hissed, squeezing his eyes shut. "I hate her."

Kagami's arms wound around him. He didn't ask until he had guided Kuroko back to his apartment and sat him down on the couch. "What happened?"

Kuroko opened his mouth and a sob escaped. "She-she told me I-" He sniffed. "She said I'm k-killing my mother."

Kagami shook his head and held Kuroko closer. "Fucking hell." He gently rocked him back and forth. "Can you breathe?" Kuroko nodded. "Do you want to talk about it?" He shook his head. "Okay." Kagami let out a breath. "That's okay." He looked down at Kuroko. "Do you want some fresh clothes?"

Kuroko sniffed and nodded. "Yes, please."

Kagami reluctantly released him. "Come on." Kuroko followed him down the hall to his room. "I don't think I have any pants in your size, but these sweatpants have a string so they shouldn't fall if you tie them, and this t-shirt is too small for me." Kagami passed him the items. "Where are your shoes?"

"At home."

"You walked all the way here – in the rain – with no shoes?"

"Ran," Kuroko muttered.

"Shit, take off your binder."

"I'm fine."

"Tetsuya, it's like a thirty minute run!"

"I'm fine." He wasn't; his chest ached, and despite what he had told Kagami, his breath was ragged. "Please." But he needed it on.

Kagami hesitated. "You're taking it off in an hour, okay?"

Kuroko reluctantly nodded. "Okay."

Kagami left the room to let him change in privacy, but had to come in again when he heard the crying start.

"Tetsuya..." He pulled Kuroko into his arms and began rocking him back and forth again. "It's not your fault. You're not hurting her – your gran's just an ignorant bitch."

"B-B-But-" Kuroko buried his head in Kagami's shirt. "What if she's right?"

Kagami shook his head. "She's not. She's not. Okay? She doesn't know what she's talking about."

"But she read-"

"The doctors haven't said anything about it, right? Stress isn't going to kill her, and if her son is what's stressing her out most, her entire life must have disappeared since I last saw her." Kagami lifted Kuroko's head. "You're not killing her."

Tears spilled down Kuroko's cheeks. "But what if I am?"

Kagami couldn't find any more words to comfort him, so instead, he just held him and let him cry.

"Have you gone home yet?" Kise asked.

Kuroko shook his head. "Not yet." His voice was hoarse. "My parents know I'm staying with Kagami-kun. I'm not going home until she's gone."

Aomine shook his head. "Can I kill her?" He requested. Kuroko shot him a sharp look. "Relax, I'm kidding." He looked away. "Mostly."

"No killing my grandmother." Kuroko scratched the inside of his thumb. It was already sore, but he couldn't stop. When he did, he began to panic. The repetition was soothing. "Can we not mention it to anyone else?"

"Sure." Saruwatari nodded.

Kise raised an eyebrow. "Even Akashicchi and Murasakibaracchi?"

"Especially them." Kuroko looked up at him. "And not Momoi-san either."

Aomine sighed. "She's going to literally kill us if she finds out."

"She won't." Kuroko looked down at the pavement again. "And if she does, I'll know I made a mistake in telling you."

"Why did you tell me?" Saruwatari piped up. "Like, not that I didn't want to know; it's just that you barely know me."

Kuroko shrugged. "We're friends now, right?"

After a moment, Saruwatari nodded. "Right."

Aomine grinned and hooked an arm around his neck. "But no getting sentimental right now. Funfair time. C'mon – we're meant to be distracting Tetsu."

Kagami snorted. "Yeah. We haven't exactly been doing a good job."

Kuroko shrugged. "I don't mind." Telling them what had happened had helped with the processing of it. He dug his nails into his thumb.

He wasn't a murderer. He wasn't a murderer.

His mother was doing well. Doing well. Doing well. The chemo was working. He wasn't making her worse.

He wasn't a murderer.

"Kurokocchi!" Kise pulled him back. "We're being left behind."

"Sorry." Kuroko winced and rubbed his side. He hadn't taken his binder off the previous night and had fallen asleep in it. He had taken it off for a few hours that morning, but eighteen hours in a binder with only a few hours of a break wasn't exactly safe.

He didn't mention it to Kagami.

Saruwatari noticed the wince and fell back into step with him. "If you want to take it off, you can wear my hoodie?" He offered. "It'll be baggy on you."

Kuroko gave him a small smile. "It's okay, Saruwatari-kun. Thanks for the offer though."

"Are you sure?" Saruwatari raised an eyebrow. "You don't look okay."

"I'm fine." Kuroko watched the other three join a line. "Looks like we're doing a basketball arcade game first."

"What a surprise," Saruwatari chuckled.

The closer they got though, the clearer it became that they hadn't been attracted to the game.

"What did you say about Kuroko?"

"Oh no." Kuroko shrank back.

Saruwatari glanced back at him. "You stay here," he mumbled. "I'll check what's going on."

"Wait-"

But he was already moving closer to the group. Kuroko took a breath before following him.

Tachibana stood almost nose-to-nose with Kagami. "All I said was that he's scrawny."

"No, you didn't – I heard you!"

"Then what did I say?" Tachibana folded his arms.

"The T word!"

One of the others – Kuroko didn't recognise them from Seirin – raised an eyebrow. "Tetanus?"

Tachibana snorted. "Yeah. That's right. I definitely called him a tetanus shot."

"Riko said you'd be kicked off the team if you kept doing this," Saruwatari reminded him.

"Doing what?" Tachibana shrugged. "I was just having a polite conversation with my colleagues and then Kagami came up and started screaming."

"Because you called Tetsu a tranny." Aomine narrowed his eyes. Kuroko winced.

"Do you have any proof?" Kagami hesitated. Tachibana smirked. "Exactly. So leave us alone."

"I don't know if Riko will ask us for proof if we go to her." Saruwatari glared at Tachibana.

Fujimoto sneered at him. "What would you know, gaijin?"

Aomine shoved Tachibana back. "Maybe you should go find your own stomping ground."

"We already did. You're the ones who came up to us." Tachibana glared at him. His eyes flickered to Kuroko, and the basketball court a few metres away, and then lit up. "How about this?" His voice was honey-smooth again, and Kuroko hated it. "We play a game. If we win, you leave."

"And if we win, you apologise to Kuroko and piss off," Kagami added.

"Five on five?" Tachibana offered.

"Give yourselves a chance. We'll take all seven of you on," Aomine snorted.

"Should we be worried?" Saruwatari mumbled.

Kuroko shook his head. "No. I don't think so."

Tachibana nodded, and all twelve of them made their way to the court. They grabbed a basketball and started.

Within an instant, Kise had the ball and threw it to Saruwatari, who managed to get around everyone and throw it to Aomine.

Tachibana tried to block him, but Aomine ran past him and threw the ball over the rim. It went straight through the hoop without going out of bounds.

Kuroko stole it from Tachibana and passed it back to Kagami, but somehow Tachibana's elbow found his rib. He winced and doubled over, but was back in the game before anyone even noticed.

The next time he got the ball, it was one of Tachibana's friends who got him – the arm. Then the leg. Each time, they stole the ball from him, but before they could score, Kise would rush past them in a flash of gold and take their points from them.

By the time the five of them had scored a few points each, Tachibana was the only one on his team who still looked ready to play. They had only scored two points.

"Go on." Aomine threw him the ball. "Try it."

Tachibana didn't wait. The second he caught it, he darted down the field. His speed caught Aomine by surprise for a second, but then Saruwatari was blocking him and Kagami had stolen the ball back.

Aomine threw the ball and landed a three-pointer without much effort. "Get out of here," he snarled as the ball bounced away. "We've won."

Tachibana looked around, but his team were struggling to pick themselves up. "Go fuck yourselves," he snapped. "Faggots."

Kuroko started. Tachibana was usually more reserved than that – possibly because Riko was there, and he seemed to like basketball more than he disliked Kuroko.

Aomine took a step towards him but Saruwatari and Kise held him back.

Kuroko caught Kagami's hand before he could attempt to hit Tachibana. "He's not worth it."

"Yes he is." Kagami glared after him until the orange mess of hair was out of sight.

Kise and Saruwatari reluctantly released Aomine, who walked over to the grass and dropped onto it. Slowly, everyone followed his example until they were all lying back and looking up at the clouds.

"Hey, Saruwataricchi," Kise called, "you're pretty good. How long have you been playing?"

Saruwatari hesitated. The honorific had thrown him off. "Uh..." He shook his head. "I don't know. My mother used to play, so she's been playing with me since I was little."

Kise nodded. "You're really good."

Aomine scoffed. "He's alright."

"He scored more points than you." Kagami smirked.

Aomine glared at him. "And you."

"No way."

"You scored less than me, so if he scored more than me, he scored more than you." Aomine looked far too smug with his revelation.

"Can we not?" Kuroko asked. He hadn't smiled once during the game.

Saruwatari saw his chest hitching up with each breath. When he focused, he could hear the slight catch on Kuroko's exhales.

Aomine and Kagami exchanged a look. "Yeah. Okay."

They lay back and stared up at the clouds. "That one looks like Number Two," Kagami finally mumbled.

Aomine shook his head. "You're insane. It's obviously a frog."

"Guys," Kise whined, "it's a pig."

"What? No, look at it from this angle-"

The red-haired boy was leaning against the wall, eyes fixed on Tachibana. He shifted a little and looked away. The boy hadn't moved since Tachibana arrived.

"Hey."

The voice made him jump, and he turned to see a dark-haired boy standing behind him. His hair was pulled back into short dreadlocks, and four silver piercings shot through his ears.

"Haizaki?" Tachibana raised an eyebrow.

The boy nodded. "That's me." He glanced past Tachibana. "Has he been here the whole time?"

Tachibana turned. He could just see the redhead turning a corner. "Yeah. Why?"

After a moment, Haizaki shook his head. "Probably nothing." He met Tachibana's gaze again. "What was it that you wanted to know?"

"That was amazing." Saruwatari's cheeks were red and his eyes bright.

Kagami grinned. "Told you playing against the third years was fun."

"No kidding!" Saruwatari laughed. "I want to do that again."

"You'll get your chance tomorrow." Kagami clapped his shoulder as they walked into the changing room. They stopped at the door, and behind them, Kuroko nearly crashed into Kagami. "Kuroko," Kagami muttered, "go outside. I'll meet you there."

Kuroko frowned. "Kagami-kun, move over."

Kagami looked back at him. "Go. I'll handle it."

"Handle what?" Kuroko tried to look in past him, but Kagami blocked him.

"Saruwatari, get him out."

Saruwatari nodded and pulled Kuroko towards the door, despite the latter's complaints.

Kagami waited until they were gone before walking in. None of the first years said anything. The second and third years were gathered around Kuroko's locker with their backs to it.

"We didn't want him to see it," Hyuuga mumbled, moving out of the way as Kagami neared.

KUROKO EMI. TRANNY. BURN IN HELL.

They stained the blue metal in black paint. Koganei's shirt was stained black. "I tried to wipe it off," he mumbled.

"Let's get this cleaned up," Hyuuga sighed. "Before Kuroko sees."

Kagami clenched his fists and rounded on the first years. "Who did it?" He roared.

"Kagami, now isn't the time."

"When is the time?" He glared at Hyuuga. "This is going to keep going on if we don't do something!"

"Riko did do something."

"Well it clearly wasn't enough." Kagami turned to the first years again. "Well?"

Tachibana looked up, but walked out of the room without saying anything. Kagami followed him out. Like hell was he going to let him get anywhere near Kuroko if he wasn't there.

Thankfully, he saw Kuroko and Saruwatari by the outdoors court while Tachibana left through the front gates. His eyes narrowed when he saw the red-haired boy with them.

Crimson eyes burned into him as he approached. "It's good to see you again, Taiga."

"Akashi." He nodded. "Why are you here?"

"I decided to pay you and Tetsuya a visit." He looked back at Kuroko and Saruwatari. "And then I met him and Hernan out here. Something happened, I take it?"

"Nothing we can't handle." Kagami folded his arms.

"Are you sure?" One of Akashi's eyes flashed for a moment – or maybe he imagined it. "I saw Shōgo yesterday."

Kuroko swallowed. "I thought Haizaki moved away."

"He did." Akashi looked back at him. "He was meeting your new teammate. Tachibana Akeno."

Kagami scowled. "What for?"

"I don't know," Akashi admitted, "but I thought I should mention it to you." He met Kuroko's gaze. "You know what Shōgo is capable of. If possible, avoid them both."

"I don't know if that's possible." Kuroko chewed his thumbnail. "He's part of the team, and he's a good player. As good as we all were when we started finding what we were good at. Well, not me. You guys. If he gets better-"

"He'll be in games and training more and Kuroko won't be able to avoid him," Saruwatari finished.

"Well I guess you could avoid him if you're dead." Akashi's smile was cold, and Kuroko took a step back. "You know what Shōgo is capable of," he repeated. "You know what he did. If Tachibana is going to him-"

"I know," Kuroko muttered. "But I'm staying away from the incinerator, and-"

"And you think that's the only dangerous thing in the school?" Akashi raised an eyebrow. Kuroko kicked the ground. Akashi just sighed. "Whatever you want, Tetsuya. Just make sure you stay safe in all of this." He looked up at Kagami. "It was good seeing you again, Taiga. Give my regards to Ryōta and Daiki." He glanced at Saruwatari. "And it was good to meet you, Hernan." His eyes flashed for a moment – Kagami knew he didn't miss it this time. "I'll be keeping my eyes on you." He turned away. "I expect I'll be seeing you all again soon. Stay safe, Tetsuya."

Thanks for reading. Please vote and leave a review if you enjoyed. See you next time, Murdering Majestors.

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