Kuroko rubbed his temples tiredly. On top of studying for finals and entrance exams, he still hadn't actually decided on which high schools to short list, and the deadline to turn in the post-graduation form to career counseling was coming up. He hadn't been releasing any pent-up stress in the usual way, either, since he'd been avoiding the basketball club and everyone associated with it after that finals match.

Finals. That score. The look on the faces of Meikou's players. That last basket Aomine and Murasakibara had cooperated on.

Kuroko suddenly felt as if the walls of the house were closing in on him and then decided that he'd had quite enough of the silent house. He could probably go out for a walk without anyone noticing that a boy of school-going age was wandering the streets. There were occasions when being unnoticeable was actually rather useful. Not that Kuroko would ever admit this to anyone else.

Once inside his usual convenience store, Kuroko took a few steps towards the magazine racks before he realized he'd done it on habit. He turned away before he got there, choosing an aisle at random.

He paused at the freezer case. They had twin popsicles, but Kuroko had barely reached for the door to the case when he remembered that he didn't currently have any one to share with. That thought was enough to make him move away. He wandered through the aisles, looking at the snacks and drinks on display, nothing in particular catching his eye. When he turned his attention towards the magazines again, he didn't stop himself.

The first one he picked up was Basketball Monthly, which had an article on the middle school nationals. Kuroko skipped past it and paused at the article after that. "High Schools to Watch Next Year", it said.

He looked at the article for a little while, and then took it to the counter to pay for it.

He'd stopped by Maji Burger for a milkshake on the way back home, and he now sat at his desk slurping the milkshake slowly in order to avoid brain-freeze. The article had been interesting, even if most of the schools they'd named were so far away that it would be impractical to apply or attend. Of the ones within commuting distance, all the names mentioned were already on Kuroko's potential list of high schools... bar one.

Kuroko checked his watch. If he left now, he'd probably arrive before Kaijou's basketball practice ended.

Kaijou's grounds were surprisingly extensive. Instead of asking for directions, Kuroko opted to wander towards the buildings that looked the most likely to house basketball practice.

Luckily for him, as he approached the buildings that looked the most like gyms, he could hear the familiar thud of basketballs and the squeak of shoes on the court coming from one in particular. Kuroko's heart quickened. It had been a while. He slipped in quietly, standing in the corner looking around before he noticed the stairs that led to the spectators balcony. No one stopped him to ask him who he was as he ascended.

The view from up here was excellent. There were two games going on side-by-side, and the players not in the matches were cheering on the ones that were. It didn't take long to pick out the coach, a very large man standing on the sidelines in between the two courts with two tall players next to him who were quietly conferring on occasion.

"Hayakawa!" someone shouted from the far court. "Take it to them!"

Kuroko watched as a player grabbed the ball that was passed to him. Then he winced as the player roared. "UWUUUUOOOOOOOH~!" the player said, driving towards the goal as the other side mustered their defenses. "I'M COMING, WATCH ME GOOOOOO! I'M GOING TO SCO(R)E!"

Even if Kuroko couldn't quite understand the last incoherent shout, Hayakawa's intent was clear. Three of the opposing side's players arrayed themselves before Hayakawa. He wasn't as fast as Aomine was on the court, Kuroko thought, but he certainly was fearless. The way he was going, though, he was about to get the ball stripped from him... no, wait. Kuroko felt the corners of his mouth tug upwards as he realized what Hayakawa's teammates were doing while Hayakawa was drawing everyone's attention with his charge.

Hayakawa skillfully slipped by the first player that attempted to stop him. Kuroko revised his opinion of Hayakawa upwards somewhat. The other two spread themselves out side by side just enough to halt Hayakawa's charge. Hayakawa stopped, dribbling as he looked around. "Kasamatsu-senpai!" he said, and passed to a player with spiky black hair and knee socks.

"Good job, Hayakawa," Kasamatsu said, easily catching the ball and dodging past the other players. In a second, Kasamatsu was within the key, and he coiled into a shooting position. Kuroko noted the opposing center and two other players closing in on Kasamatsu. If he really was going to shoot from there, he would get blocked easily.

The center got there first, towering over Kasamatsu. "As if I'd let you," he said.

"As if I'd expect you to," Kasamatsu replied, shooting-but not in the direction of the hoop.

A lanky good-looking boy in the corner of the court grabbed it and transitioned into the most unorthodox form Kuroko had seen. The ball swished through the basket. The whistle blew. Kasamatsu gave a thumbs-up to the shooter and patted a joyfully yelling Hayakawa on the back. The center scratched his head, and Kasamatsu laughed and patted his arm too.

The coach spoke. "All right, boys, regroup for the post-game discussion. Kasamatsu, it's your turn to lead it."

"Yes sir," Kasamatsu said, and began a detailed discussion of the strengths and weaknesses of each player on the court, both on his side and on the other team.

The post-game discussion had been insightful, and Kuroko had used his phone to look up Kasamatsu and some of the other players. Kasamatsu Yukio was a nationally ranked point guard even though he was only in his second year; the other players had been decent, but not much had been written about them online.

As the practice below him wound up, Kuroko watched Kasamatsu go around the room patting some of his teammates on the back, talking to some of the others quietly. Kuroko noted the smiles and rueful nods in turn.

He overheard the conversation quite by accident.

He'd headed to the main school building, looking for a bathroom. On his way out, he'd heard voices, and then he'd realized they were coming from the teacher's office before him. The doors were open. Kuroko had paused before the doors, wondering if he'd get in trouble if he was noticed (since he wasn't a student there) but then he'd recognized the voices and he'd been unable to walk away. He stayed where he was, listening quietly.

"Why not, sir?" Kasamatsu was asking.

The coach exhaled a long drawn-out sigh. "Because I know this is just guilt and responsibility talking, and you'll regret this in a couple of months," he said. "No one holds you responsible for it, Kasamatsu. Don't resign."

"But I cost us our opportunity to advance."

Kuroko winced internally at the self-reproach he could hear in Kasamatsu's voice. Was this really the same player that had been so confident and forceful during practice? Then again, the coach had used Kasamatsu's name, and that had sounded like the same voice...

"It was a missed pass, that's all. It happens to everyone," the coach said.

Not true, Kuroko thought, thinking of Aomine and Akashi.

"You don't reward a mistake like that with the captaincy, sir," Kasamatsu was saying. "I'm the last one you should be looking at for that."

"On the contrary, that's exactly why you should be the captain." Another long exhale. "Kasamatsu, if Yoshino had been the one who'd had the ball, what would he have done in your shoes?"

There was a pause before Kasamatsu answered quietly. "Senpai would have made the basket."

"If he hadn't, would you have blamed him?"

If Kasamatsu had made a reply to that, it was inaudible, but then the coach said, "In that case, why do you expect the others to blame you?"

Kuroko didn't hear a reply to that question either.

"Take this back," the coach said.

"Yes, sir." Someone cleared their throat, and then Kasamatsu said, "We'll win next year."

"Yes, we will," the coach said. "I'm counting on you to bring us to victory."

The sound that followed brought to mind a pat on the back, and then a chair squeaked. Kuroko stayed where he was, wondering if he was going to need to think of a story quickly. He didn't hear any footsteps, just the sound of paper shuffling.

Another throat-clearing, and then the coach spoke again. "Now, the reason I called you here. Since you're the next captain, I wanted your input on recruiting for your team. We have a couple of slots available, and I'm thinking of trying for at least one of these players in the middle school circuit. The kids they call the Generation of Miracles at that school Teikou. Heard of them?"

"Somewhat, sir," Kasamatsu replied.

"I've got a video of the finals they played not that long ago," the coach said. "Come, we'll watch it on that TV over there."

Kuroko heard a chair scrape and then the sound of footsteps receding further into the room. Now was the best time to leave, and he did so, feeling vaguely unsettled.

Almost daily, high school basketball recruiters visited Teikou to speak with one or more of the graduating third-years, but no one had called Kuroko out at all. He'd half-expected this, but it was still depressing, especially when the grapevine sent along daily reports of how much class the other members of the Generation of Miracles were missing in favor of conferences with scouts. It was by pure chance Kuroko noticed Kise and Kaijou's coach standing outside one of the school conference rooms as Kuroko was leaving his last class one day. (Kuroko had looked Kaijou's coach up; Takeuchi Genta had been one of Japan's representatives at the Olympics in his youth.)

"Think about it, Kise-kun," Coach Takeuchi said. "We'll be in touch with your family in the next couple of days to discuss the matter further."

"The modeling is okay, you said?"

The coach nodded. "We'll make it work. Play your best for us, and we'll make everything else work somehow. You can come by any time to see us practice, too..."

"I don't think I need to." Kise flashed the grin Kuroko had come to think of as Kise's Sunshine Sparkle Smile. "As long as you're all right with the modeling, my mother will call you tomorrow. Thank you for the chat!" Then Kise was off, mercifully in the direction away from Kuroko.

Coach Takeuchi watched Kise go, and then turned to go back into the room. He paused, looking in Kuroko's direction. "You," he said, making a come-here gesture.

Reflexively, Kuroko glanced behind him to see who Coach Takeuchi was calling, but there wasn't anyone else around.

"You're Teikou's Number Fifteen, aren't you? Please come here for a moment."

Kuroko managed to keep his face impassive except for possibly a slight widening of his own eyes. Takeuchi Genta had seen Kuroko, had noticed him, and had correctly matched Kuroko's face to the number he'd worn playing for Teikou. How? He turned back to face Coach Takeuchi, who had walked up to him and was standing before him now. "Yes, sir?"

The coach studied Kuroko for a few moments while Kuroko merely stood and returned his gaze. Then Coach Takeuchi nodded firmly to himself. "Do you have time right now? I'd like it if you could join me for a few minutes."

Kuroko sat quietly on the conference room couch as the Coach settled heavily into the sofa across from him. "What a coincidence to see you there," Coach Takeuchi said. "Kuroko-kun, wasn't it?"

"Yes sir," Kuroko said, growing more curious by the minute. "Kuroko Tetsuya."

"Well," Coach Takeuchi said, almost to himself. "Since you're here, maybe it was meant to be. Kuroko-kun... have you chosen a high school yet?"

"Not yet, sir."

"How do you feel about Kanagawa?"

"It's a nice place, sir."

Coach Takeuchi paused for a moment, and then pulled out his phone. "What station do you commute from?" Kuroko named it. Coach Takeuchi thought a moment, and then frowned. "Almost an hour's commute? Does it take you that long to get here?"

Kuroko nodded.

"From your station to Kaijou is about the same distance as it is to Teikou," Coach Takeuchi said. "Kuroko-kun, have you spoken to any schools yet?"

"Spoken to schools?" Kuroko paused. "Sir... am I being scouted?"

Coach Takeuchi nodded.

It hadn't been a long discussion. Mostly Coach Takeuchi had talked about Kaijou, although he occasionally asked questions about Kuroko's interests, grades, and basketball intentions. At the end of it, Coach Takeuchi had given Kuroko his business card, a folder full of information about both Kaijou and its the basketball club, and asked, "Do you have any questions?"

After a slight hesitation, Kuroko forged ahead. "Please forgive me if this is inappropriate, but may I ask which of my teammates you've spoken to besides Kise-kun?"

Coach Takeuchi nodded. "No, it's perfectly all right. Besides you, I've only spoken to Kise-kun."

That had been an unexpected answer, both in its honesty and its content. If Coach Takeuchi was willing to speak so frankly, though, perhaps Kuroko could inquire further. "May I ask why?"

The coach eyed him a moment, and then said, "I think Kise-kun has a lot of potential to grow. We'd like it to be at Kaijou."

That hadn't actually been the answer Kuroko sought, although that was illuminating too. He wondered whether it would be politic to ask why Kaijou hadn't considered talking to Aomine, Akashi, Murasakibara, or Midorima. He also wondered why Takeuchi had talked to him.

"You seem the thoughtful type," Coach Takeuchi said.

Unable to think of an answer to that, Kuroko said, "Thank you, sir."

"Did you want to know why I chose you? Or why I didn't choose anyone else?"

Since the man seemed to be offering to answer... "Both, if you please, sir."

"I've been watching your team a while, and I watched practice for a couple of days, too," Takeuchi said. "I think that of your teammates, Kise-kun will fit in the best at Kaijou, and we only have a limited number of slots."

"Why me instead of... Aomine-kun, for example?"

"Are you always this direct?" Coach Takeuchi raised an eyebrow at Kuroko. Kuroko held his expression still.

After a moment, Coach Takeuchi sighed. "Call it gut instinct," he said slowly. "You give a lot, playing the way you do. We like that kind of thing at Kaijou, but don't get me wrong, we're not asking you to join us self-sacrificially. This is just a feeling, but I believe that you'll get back a lot when you play with the boys on our team right now."

Kuroko nodded. "Thank you for answering my impertinent questions with such honesty, sir."

"Thank you for speaking with me, and for asking those questions," Coach Takeuchi said, rising. He held out a hand to shake. "Should I expect a call from your parents too, or would you like to come watch us practice?"

Kuroko shook his hand. "I've already watched Kaijou practice."

He took pleasure in the surprise on Coach Takeuchi's face. It lasted only a couple of moments, and then the surprise shifted into a smile. "So you were thinking about us already," Coach Takeuchi said. "I'm proud and flattered. May I ask why?"

Kuroko smiled. "Gut instinct."