Level Horizon (Haikyuu!! WingedAU)

Epilogue; Moirai's Promise

Life doesn't give you the people you want, it gives you the people you need: to love you, to hate you, to make you, to break you, and to make you the person you were meant to be. ~Walt Whitman

We are the story we tell ourselves. ~Jason Robinson

~Fifty Years Later, Summer's End~

Kiyoko steps out of the steaming kitchen into the late summer breeze for a moment, the breath of fresh air cool across her sweat streaked skin as a group of cats wanders by, excited for tonight's kickoff match to start the fall tournament.

She spies Yachi anxiously going over the team matchup schedule with a gull, Tsukishima and Yamaguchi hanging close. She can hear Kuroo barking at Bokuto because 'that doesn't go there, Bro! I told you, that one needs to go by ground net three'. She can see Kageyama and Hinata happily pumping up balls and making sure they are all the right pressure. She smiles softly and her eyes crease with amusement as she spies the red mark on the crow setter's neck when the redhead's gaze strays to it with a secret grin; she's pretty sure Feathers has no idea it's there or he'd be a lot more salty than that small content smile says he is. Beside them, Natsu plays with an infant crow who babbles incoherently, a happy accident only a few years old, born the first child to Ukai and Saeko.

The baby girl doesn't even have teeth yet, but her cute little wings make her surprisingly mobile, and the younger redhead sibling keeps an ever-careful watch over her until one of her parents returns to pick her up later in the day. Kiyoko's smile reaches up into her eyes, because those two as parents had been unthinkable even ten years ago; they'd only tied the knot a couple decades before and it had been almost comical when they'd discovered Saeko was pregnant. Both had looked so helplessly terrified at the very idea of a baby even as Tanaka had happily congratulated them.

But it had been precious to see them both look at their newborn with complete adoration, Ukai even reaching out to take the baby with infinite care and awe before looking back up at Saeko with the same tender expression. They'd proved to be wonderful parents if a little unprepared, and seeing either one of them with their fledgling daughter was almost murderously cute. The little girl is loved by everyone—even the ibis has volunteered himself and Yamaguchi for babysitting duty on occasion. The infant has enjoyed the company of the entire beach crew almost like a second family, and she can often be found in their care on busy days at Ukai's shop—like today.

Kiyoko idly pushes a stray damp lock behind her ear.

It's been fifty years since that first official match was held at the beach between themselves and the Grand King's team.

That first spring bout had been tense to say the least, the whole beach crew and even most of Sheru Bay on edge at their presence. It wasn't very often the small coastal port had even one sentry, and they'd suddenly been taken off guard with not only an entire unit, but the rookery leader himself along with his entourage. Really it was only some fifteen people or so, but Kuroo had been livid because 'they'd agreed on ten and no more, dammit.'

The Grand King had come ready to play his first match in five years according to Iwaizumi. The sentry leader himself had been promoted to heir apparent; a position the crow had had no small amount of dislike for and had never failed to inform the Grand King as such. The rookery leader had lined up as setter across from his son, Iwa's unit making up the rest of his team. For their part, it was mostly just the former first unit that made up Kageyama's team, the only exception being Tsukishima who helped fill the other middle position so they could use Noya in his element as libero.

The match itself had been exciting to watch, and Kiyoko had privately been relieved when it was over; she'd doubted her heart could have handled much more.