The Beast of Shadows

Chapter 4

[A/N: Hey! I hope you like this chapter! I'm sorry I haven't updated in a while, I've been distracted by other fanfictions (and also, who knew 7th grade is so stressful?!). Anyhow, enjoy this chapter!]

Akashi stared at the familiar bluenette before him. Well, familiar was a loose term, wasn't it? He was taller, and his eyes were no longer blank and emotionless. They were icy now. The stoic azure that Akashi had grown comfortable with was gone, replaced by a gaze in which Akashi had grown accustomed to seeing in a mirror. And that was just the beginning. Kuroko had the same triangular ears as Himuro, and a very long baby blue tail. Was this the same person Akashi had known for over four years?

Akashi just... couldn't. He couldn't believe his eyes. They had never lied to him before, but now they must be. Kuroko, he couldn't change. He was Kuroko Tetsuya, the quiet Phantom Sixth Man of the Generation of Miracles. He was kind and compassionate, and loved basketball. Nothing could make his will waver or fluctuate, not even Akashi. If Kuroko wanted something to happen a certain way, no matter what, Kuroko would make sure it would happen.

"Tetsuya." Akashi finally managed to croak, "You-"

"Spare me, Akashi-kun." Kuroko interrupted, his gaze sweeping over the others, taking them in, scraping their souls bare of any excuses and clean of hopes that this were some sort of odd (though somehow fitting for Kuroko) joke, "Why are you here? Did Himuro-san not... lament to you why you haven't been contacted?" Akashi fumbled to say something. Kuroko's voice was much... colder. There was still the same politeness, yet it seemed more condescending than sincere. An air of disdain surrounded the bluenette. 

"T-Tatsuya did not." Kagami stuttered, jumping in when it was obvious Akashi was speechless, "He just said something about consequences, and stuff. He seemed too nervous to, strangely. And we're supposed to get some sort of confirmation from his... 'higher-ups'" Kuroko's face remained indifferent, though Akashi did not miss the slight furrowing of the bluenette's brows.

"Well, at least Himuro-san has some sense of self-preservation." Kuroko commented offhandedly, making the numbness in Akashi's stomach spread like frost in the Arctic, "Then, come with me. Rainbow will be very interested in you." Kuroko turned around and led them to a ladder hanging down from one of the catwalks. Kuroko used his tail to motion to them in a beckoning motion. The baffled others followed. Kuroko easily leaped up to the catwalk, not bothering to use the ladder. His tail swished back and forth as he waited for Kiseki no Sedai to clamber on up. When they had nearly reached the catwalk, Kuroko started walking. His long tail swishing around. 

Akashi tried and failed to think of something worth commenting, just to start a conversation with the bluenette. To find an excuse to ask the question they all wanted to say, 'What happened to you?' Why was Kuroko like this? Wha- what was going on? Kuroko let the silence stand, and the others were far too gobsmacked to think of something to say. Oh, Akashi could see the irony. This was just like middle school, when Akashi had split with his alter ego, Oreshi. Only now, the tables had turned, and their positions were reversed. Kuroko was the one who had changed, and Akashi had to bring him back. Whether the GoM backed him up or not.

Of course, Akashi didn't doubt the GoM's loyalty to each other, or to Kuroko. Merely, Akashi doubted Kuroko wanted to be so thoroughly questioned and reasoned with. Oreshi certainly hadn't. No one wants to be told their actions are wrong, and what they're doing needs to change. It was part of their masculine pride. But, like Kuroko had decided in Teiko, sometimes people need to be taken off their high horses. So, that's what Akashi must do for Kuroko now! No matter what, Akashi needed to bring back the old Kuroko!

[A/N: Okay, don't kill me for the short chapter. I swear I didn't want this. I just felt so bad that I hadn't updated in nearly a year, and I wanted to get something out... there. But at the same time, interrupting the story at other times will ruin the flow, so this is the best I could do, for now. I promise, I'll try to get out the next chapter by July. With my horrible planning and fluctuating focus, I think that's the best I can try to reach. Thanks for your never-ending patience. Ja ne~]