Summary: Akashi Seijuro was not one for gossiping. But when the rumours about the haunted doll reaches his ears, he could not help but be interested. Of course, he never would expect the rumoured doll to fall into his hands. When it comes to life, Akashi realises that there is more to the doll than what meets the eye, and sets out to uncover their chained past, and maybe love along the way.

Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroko no Basuke or Lover Doll. I only own the plot of this story and my OCs.

Pairings: Akashi Seijuro x Kuroko Tetsuya (Main)

AN: Thank you for all of the reviews, favourites, and follows! Each and every single one of them means so much to me. Please continue to support me!

Spiral, spiral, out of mind,

Teach me the stories about life.

Spiral, spiral, fates entwined,

Behind my back a sharpened knife.

Akashi awoke the next day unusually late. The digital clock beside his bed showed that it was already well past noon, making the normally collected teen wince; he had not slept in this late in years. The last time he had was when his mother had passed away, which resulted in the eight year old crying himself to sleep. Which was strange, since nothing of the norm had happened in the past few months. Other than what had happened the previous day. Eyes widening slightly as memories returned piece by piece, Akashi stood from his plush bed, letting the blanket fall gracelessly to the ground.

Upon exiting his bedroom, he swept the room with his eyes, letting out a breath that he did not realise he was holding when heterochromatic orbs finally landed on the box laying precariously on the edge of the coffee table beside the modern kitchen. Taking quick steps towards to table to move the box to a safer place, away from the threat of height. After that Akashi had left it alone, not wanting to lift the worn lid for some unknown reason. Finally allowing his body to take over to perform his daily rituals, Akashi left the box on the centre of the coffee table, making a promise to himself to open it later.

The day passed like any other. Akashi studied, had lunch, and lost himself in a few book from his shelf. However, the nagging in the back of him mind to open the old box cannot be contained further by the time that the clock struck twelve in the living room. He managed to keep his pace to a normal speed, but brisk and sharp, as he walked single-mindedly towards the box sitting innocently on the coffee table. Akashi took his time to analyse its appearance; it was worn from age, the colour faded and it was a miracle that the box even held together. A metal plate on the box glinted in the light, catching his attention. "The Bloody Doll," Akashi murmured to himself, tracing the carvings with the tip of his index finger, raising an intricate eyebrow.

Had he not known better, Akashi would have told himself that he was in the centre of a cliché novel, with hearing the rumours about something that he obtained the very next hour. But he did know better, so, ignoring Momoi's voice in his head, he lifted the cover of the box off. What laid inside stole his breathe away and Akashi chided himself for acting so out of character, though he could not hide the child-like amazement in his eyes at the beauty of the doll before him. A girl by no means, Akashi still picked the doll up, cradling the precious object as though it was a fragile piece of glass. Raising the doll to the light, Akashi beamed uncharacteristically as the sun seeping through his curtain hit the doll's face, creating a heavenly image.

The doll's skin was pale and fair, pure despite its obvious age. Its hair was a shade of teal that Akashi had never seen before, and so soft to touch that it seemed almost real. Pinkish lips and a faint blush highlighted the cyan eyes of the doll, framed by long, pale eyelashes. Its clothing consisted of a pure white shirt of silk, and matching trousers, with a delicate ruby necklace around its neck. It was easily the most beautiful thing that Akashi had ever seen before. Only a fool would name this angelic doll "The Bloody Doll", Akashi thought to himself as he spun around the room, doll in hand and the thought to eliminate anybody who knew of the moment.

Although its lips were twisted in a frown before, the doll seemed to be smiling faintly now. Akashi thought that it was a trick of light, but still, he decided that he liked it the best when the doll was smiling. Maybe it was his late rise that day, but Akashi felt giddy with happiness, as though he had found something that he thought he would never find again.

Deciding that he should calm down before he tarnished his reputation for himself, the teenager made his way to the kitchen for something to drink, preferably freshly brewed green tea. The water took a few minuted to boil, and when the kettle hissed steam, Akashi turned off the stove and helped himself to a pinch of green tea leaves, watching as the leaves unfurled. The familiar smell calmed him, reminding him of the past, with his mother. He had been happy then, Akashi thought, and he should be happy now, just for her sake.

When he returned to the living room with a steaming cup in hand, Akashi noticed that something was off about his surroundings. Somebody else was in the room. Calmly setting the mug in his hand onto the nearby table, he silently scanned the room, making sure to keep his posture relaxed. The person was behind him, Akashi concluded a moment later, and not a second too late, as he dodged a blow to the head by an inch. He swiftly turned and grabbed the wrists of his attacker before they could land another hit, and kicked their legs, making them lose balance. Another moment was all it took for Akashi to have the stranger on the ground, their weapon (A trophy from one of his many conquests, Akashi noted) on the carpet beside them.

"Who are you?" Akashi questioned coldly, "Why did you attack me?" The stranger flinched, their teal hair flowing with the movement, and Akashi realised with a jolt that his attacker held an uncanny resemblance to the doll he had placed on the table a few minutes before. A glance at the now-vacant table was all it took for Akashi to piece the story together. "I would be lying if I said that I believed in the 'Bloody Doll' story, but now that it is before me, I would have to accept the truth." He let go of the doll's wrists, noting with interest the red marks created by his grip, before taking a step back.

Now that the element of surprise was gone, the doll hardly stood a chance against a trained material artist like Akashi. It mainly counted on the basis of fear and surprise, Akashi recalled Momoi saying. But he maintained a fighting stance as he warily watch the doll stand up shakily, turning around to face him. It stared at Akashi for a minute, before cocking his head to the side in mild surprise. "You are not screaming," the doll stated as though a miracle had just graced it with its presence. "This is the first time that I have met a human like you before." It eyes were glassy, but held a puzzled look to them. And being the person he was, Akashi pried away the emotionless façade with ease and saw the sadness underneath. Even though it had attacked him, Akashi felt sorry for the doll, for the past that one comment revealed.

"It is the first time that I have met a doll that comes to life and then attempts to murder me," Akashi retorted, arms crossed on his chest and leaning on one leg, "To think that I would have such findings in one day." The doll gave a barely noticeable flinch at the reply, but did nothing else. "Tell me," Akashi stared at the doll, "What would compel you to kill one that you do not even know?"

Silence settled over the room as the doll fidgeted, trying to find an answer to the question. And Akashi allowed it the time, feeling no hostility towards it even though it had tried to take his life moments earlier, instead, he felt pity. What could possible drive something to kill a stranger was beyond him. With the adrenaline in his veins gone, Akashi simply took time to observe the doll-turned-human. It looked the same as it had in its doll form, but with slightly longer hair and a more graceful aura. Its shoulders were hunched, and its head was held down as if ashamed of itself. Akashi was fascinated, to say the least.

After what seemed like a decade, the doll finally mustered enough courage to look into Akashi's eyes and reply to his question. "I-" it rasped, "If I don't kill you, you will kill me." It flinched again at the pitying look in Akashi's eyes, as though scared. "At least," it continued, "That was what all of my previous owners attempted… So I had to kill them!" The doll's voice was growing hysterical by now, "They would all scream that I am a monster and try to kill me and I would have to kill them before I turn back into a doll and they kill me!" The doll, much to Akashi's surprise, was on the verge of tears as it ranted, eyes wild and terrified. Immediately, Akashi was tempted to wipe away those droplets of water in its eyes, sanity and safety be damned. But he knew better than to trust a potential killer, no matter how defenceless, so he decided to take to a different method.

"I will not kill you," he slowly walked towards the doll, stopping when it flinched once again. Lifting his hands as an act of peace, he gave the doll a half-hearted smile, "I am not going to hurt you," he cooed as though to a hurt animal, much to his distain, "You are still here, not a doll, right?" Then, seeing the tension in the doll dissipate slightly, Akashi ventured on bravely, reaching out to brush away a stray tear. The doll held still this time, Akashi noted as he maneuvered it to one of the near-by couches. He sat down beside it, making sure that, should the situation require a weapon, the nearest one is within only his reach. He could not take any chances, no matter how vulnerable this doll was. It had killed before.

The doll seemed to consider his words, before nodding slightly. "You're right," it murmured, head bowed, "Should you not feel positive feelings towards me, I would be a doll again by now. I apologise." It wiped at its eyes, and Akashi pretended to not notice. "They always gets scared," it sniffed, "Because I turned into a human. They would scream and try to hurt me. Some would pretend to be nice, but I can feel it," it whimpered, "I can feel it when I start changing into a doll again." It met Akashi's eyes, cyan orbs still watery. "And then I would have to kill them so that they cannot destroy me." The doll looked away again, as if sensing the question from Akashi's eyes. "I cannot die yet," it told Akashi, but Akashi felt like it was talking to itself, more than talking to him. "I cannot die because there is somebody waiting for me," it said, "Somebody needs me."

Akashi could feel himself softening at the words. He could tell when one was lying to him, and so far, the doll only told the truth. "I will not hurt you," he assured the doll, "You are safe." Akashi felt that he shared the sadness with the doll, who was not needed, hurt and feared. "I am a friend," he promised, "You are safe here." The doll nodded, and Akashi smiled. He felt as though he had just achieved something that none before him could, and it made him feel almost proud. "Now," Akashi said to the doll, careful to keep his voice low and comforting, "Do you have a name?" he asked, and when the doll shook its head, the smile on his face turned into a frown.

"I always change back before I receive a name," it looked away, "I don't remember my creator." Again, Akashi felt a pang of sadness towards the doll. It looked so fragile and… broken; something that he could not stand to see on this particular face. He needed to change that frown now.

"Tetsuya," he said loudly, startling the doll, who looked towards him questioningly. "Kuroko Tetsuya." The confused expression on the doll's face made Akashi sigh, a small release of air that emphasized how dense the doll was. "Your name is Kuroko Tetsuya," he explained, and if not for his self-control, Akashi would be stabbing a finger into the boy's, Akashi decided that he could not carry on calling Kuroko a doll forever, chest at the confused expression on the boy's face.

The doll, no, Kuroko, spluttered in amazement. Never had he been given a name before. Names were simply words, and shouldn't affect him that much. But it felt like he had an identity now, like he had more of a reason to exist than ever. "Kuroko Tetsuya," he repeated, lips twitching into a large grin when he saw the nod of encouragement from Akashi. "My name is Kuroko Tetsuya." Kuroko was positively beaming by now, his eyes wide and vision blurry from unshed tears. "My name is Kuroko Tetsuya."

"That is right," Akashi allowed himself another smile for this boy in front of him. To hell with it all, if he was going to act out of character, he might as well do it until the end. "Your name is Kuroko Tetsuya and my name is Akashi Seijuro. It is a pleasure to meet you, Tetsuya. How was your day today?"

"It was wonderful," Kuroko laughed, "The craziest thing happened. And I am glad that it did. So, so glad." Tears of joy were streaming down his flushed cheeks, and he sniffed ever so slightly. "You would never believe what happened."

ACT ONE, END.

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