Fairy Ring

Main character(s): Kagami Taiga and GOM

Rating: T

Warnings: light shounen-ai and bromance. Non-human Kagami.

Summary: AU. The generation of miracles were stubborn, very stubborn. So when Momoi suggests that the group has the right to be scared of a haunted forest, they are determined to prove her wrong. An accidental shove is what caused the group to fall into a realm of danger and betrayal. GOM/Kagami

Disclaimer: Uh? The term fanfiction should explain everything. I own and drew the cover image.

/

It was an accident. A pure, simple, clumsy accident. Aomine didn't mean to shove Kise so hard. So very hard that the blonde took a tumble down the barely used pathway. Panicking, Aomine ran after the blonde and Kuroko followed. Determined to not allow the generation of miracles to split up, Akashi ran after them and shouted for Midorima and Murasakibara to follow.

Running on the path, Aomine stopped abruptly as Kise vanished before his eyes. And not in the way that Kuroko uses. No, when Kuroko vanishes he didn't get the feeling that Kuroko disappeared to never be seen again. Walking to where Kise was, Aomine was stopped by a hand pulling him back in mid step.

Turning around, Aomine didn't exactly need to see Kuroko to know that he was the one to stop Aomine.

"What the hell?!" Aomine yelled at Kuroko who refused to let go of Aomine's sleeves, "let go!" he tried to tug the hem away.

Kuroko held on tight. "No" he said seriously as he gave Aomine an annoyed look. If Aomine really wanted to he could dislodge Kuroko, but thinking about the last time he used force Aomine shuddered and tried to gently pry Kuroko's hand off him.

"Why the hell not?" Aomine growled and the rest of the generation of miracles arrived.

Looking at Kuroko and Aomine curiously, Akashi raised an eyebrow. "What is going on?"

"Kuroko won't let me go!" Aomine complained and still tried to shake Kuroko's hands off.

Akashi looked surprise.

"Why not?" Midorima asked as he stepped closer to the shadow and light duo.

Kuroko pointed at the circle of mushrooms that Aomine was about to step on.

"Kuro-chin" Murasakibara knelt down near the ring of mushrooms, "does Kuro-chin believe in fairies?" he asked as he carefully poked at the mushrooms.

"What do fairies have to do with this?" Midorima asked as he gestured at Aomine and the ring of mushrooms.

"Fairy rings" Akashi interrupted as he also knelt down to better view the ring of mushrooms.

Murasakibara got out a lollipop, "my onee-sans always tell me about fairy rings".

"My mother told me" Akashi said as he stood up slowly.

Kuroko released Aomine's sleeve. "Haven't you heard of the legends-?"

"We have to go after Kise!" Aomine interrupted loudly before picking up Kuroko, "I don't have time for old wives tales!" he hissed and Murasakibara stood up quickly as he watched Aomine.

"Stop and think!" Kuroko raised his voice. Aomine was shocked silent and at the uncharacteristic shouting from Kuroko. "Kise just disappeared in front of our eyes!" Kuroko's eyes widen as he pleaded with Aomine.

Swallowing thickly, Aomine tossed Kuroko at Murasakibara who caught the small teen on reflex.

"Where do you think you're going?" Akashi asked, his voice dripping with venom.

Aomine ignored the redhead and tried to cross the ring of mushrooms. Midorima stepped forward and pulled Aomine's shirt.

"I don't know what they are talking about" Midorima stiffly pushed his glasses up, "you should at least hear Kuroko out".

Aomine pulled against Midorima with more strength than he had with Kuroko. Losing his footing, Midorima let out a shout as he fell upon Aomine. Akashi and the rest gaped as Midorima and Aomine disappeared in front of them as the two fell within the fairy ring.

"Its true" Murasakibara whispered as he clutched Kuroko closer to his chest.

Kuroko just stared blankly at the ring as Murasakibara used him like a teddy bear.

Akashi stood frozen at the edge of the fairy ring. Swallowing thickly, Akashi turned to face Kuroko and Murasakibara, "I am going after them" he stated.

Murasakibara let go of Kuroko and approached Akashi, "I'm going too" he added as he as he stuck his chin out stubbornly.

Kuroko stood up silently and jabbed Murasakibara in the stomach. "I am going also" Kuroko spoke as Murasakibara rubbed his stomach in pain, "accept it" Kuroko said as Akashi bit his lips.

"Excuse me" a voice spoke from behind the trio, "but you're blocking my way". The three miracles turned around to face what seemed to be a floating basketball.

Murasakibara snatched the ball hovering in the air. "Does it talk?" he questioned as he rolled the ball around in his hands.

Kuroko and Akashi both subtly stood on their toes as they tried to look at the ball.

"It looks relatively normal" Akashi said as he got down from standing on his toes.

Kuroko followed the slightly taller teen's example. "Perhaps it is a spirit" he suggested.

"Like a kodama or uwan?" Murasakibara asked still messing with the basketball in his hands, "but for a basketball?"

A tiny voice rang out behind the trio. "Let that go!" they whipped around to face a faintly glowing body hovering at Murasakibara's eye level. "It's mine! I found it fair and square! So give it back!" the three Teiko students just stared at the hovering form.

"Yōsei" Kuroko muttered to himself in shock. The being across from them merely huffed and crossed its arms.

"More like fairy" it said and Akashi was hard pressed to believe it. His mother always told him that yōsei beings were bewitching in appearance, and the thing across from them was bewitching in its appearance.

Floating before the trio was a small human the size of Kuroko's head. Relatively small and the flapping wings did nothing but make the fairy seem smaller. The wings were the twice the size of the fairy and from what the humans could see, they looked like leaves colored with the autumn season.

"Give it back" it hissed as it flew around Murasakibara and the ball he was holding.

Murasakibara said nothing as he held out the basketball shakily.

"Thank you" it said as it flew underneath the ball. Taking the ball from the tall teen, it was about to fly into the ring, when Akashi stopped it.

"Our friends fell into that ring and haven't come out" he told the floating fairy.

It scoffed and would have crossed its arms if it's hands weren't full. "So, what do you want me to do about it?" it asked in a mocking tone.

"Please help us get them back" Kuroko appeared underneath the floating fairy.

Lowering to Kuroko's level, the fairy zoomed in on the phantom's face. "Interesting" it hummed, "but I don't know what they look like" it continued to float around Kuroko in interest.

"Like humans" Kuroko stated bluntly as he stared at the fairy.

It snorted, amused at the bluntness of Kuroko "Everything look like humans in the fay realm, it's how we attract prey" it said as if it was a well-known fact.

"Prey?" Akashi had a clue on what it meant by prey.

The air around it seemed to buzz "You don't think we only eat greens? We need our protein too".

"I never thought that a fairy would know what protein is" Kuroko smirked slightly.

"Don't let it stress you, we know everything you humans know and more" it sounded smug.

Murasakibara retrieved a snack from his pocket and nervously ate it. "Will you help us?" he asked between his munches on the chocolate bar.

It's gaze focused solely on Murasakibara. "Maybe" it watched Murasakibara finish the candy bar, "if you give me that".

"This?" Murasakibara holds out the wrapper for the chocolate bar in his hands.

"Yeah that, I want it so give it" it demanded like a child.

Akashi stepped in front of Murasakibara "What do you want it for?"

"Cause it has a basket on it!" it cheered energetically.

Murasakibara walked around Akashi to face the fairy, "Do you like basketball?" he asked.

"Yeah I do, so what of it?" it bristled angrily as if expecting Murasakibara to insult it.

Kuroko tilted his head, "We could teach how to play if you help us find our friends" he offered as he bribed the fairy.

The fairy paused in thought, "okay but I can't help if they ate something from the fay realm" it responded in a low voice.

"Ate something?" Murasakibara asked.

"Yeah, you humans made a myth about it-" it stopped in mid-sentence, "Peppy and Hade I think"

"Persephone and Hades" Akashi corrected automatically.

The fairy didn't seem to hear or care for what Akashi just said. "Do you mean that if we ate anything over there that we would be trapped?" Kuroko asked before Akashi lost his patience with the fairy.

"Pretty much" the fairy said in a tone that implied boredom, "do you still want to go?" it asked.

The group didn't even have to look at each other to synchronize their 'yes'.

"They're our friends; we can't leave them behind" Kuroko answered honestly.

"We stick together" Murasakibara added.

Akashi stared at the fairy, "assist us" he demanded.

"So demanding" the fairy threw the basketball into the ring for it to disappear. "Okay" it flew around the ring of mushrooms "just step into the ring! I will be right behind you guiding your landing!" it chirped.

The generation of miracles stepped forward together.

The fairy zoomed in front of them, blocking their path as much as a gnat does. "Not at once!" it protested "I'm directing your transfer over there so I can't focus if you all go at once!" it explained.

"Then I will go first" Akashi stated in a voice that held no room for argument.

Murasakibara cut in front of Kuroko, "then me" he told the fairy.

"I don't care about your order" it sniffed, "just go before a trooping fairy finds you" it seemed to vibrate.

Ignoring the anxious fairy, Akashi enters the ring at a slow pace and right behind him Murasakibara stood waiting for the okay from the fairy.

"Next" the fairy spoke and Murasakibara entered quickly, contradicting Akashi's slow pace.

Waiting for Kuroko to step up, the fairy hovered around the tiny teen, "Well are you going to enter?" it asked in agitation.

Kuroko stared blankly at the fairy, "Why are you helping us?" he asked as he stood still at the edge of the ring.

"Why did your friends enter a fairy ring?" the fairy responded in mockery.

Kuroko held his breath as he tried to make out the expressions on the fairy's tiny face, "they didn't know" he answered.

"That's why-" it snorted, "-you humans don't know how things work in the fay realm and seeing you so helpless I feel like I have to help" the fairy explain in a dull tone.

Kuroko felt a nagging suspicion in the back of his head. "How noble" he paused as he kept an eye on the fairy, "what is a trooping fairy?" the term was unfamiliar to Kuroko.

"It's a fairy who is in a group and form a settlement outside of the courts" the fairy explained, this time its voice held an unknown emotion to Kuroko, "they don't have to be fairies in order to be called a trooping fairy" it further explained.

Kuroko paused as he remembered what the fairy spoke of earlier, "Is there a settlement nearby?"

"Yeah" it's laughter sounded like bells "they happen to live in a tree west of here but don't worry about them".

"You said you didn't want to be seen by one" Kuroko accused the fairy.

The fairy didn't seem to care about the accusation, "Because they would tattle on me for helping humans".

"Are you putting yourself in danger for helping us?" Kuroko almost worried about the fairy's health, but stopped as he remembered what he read about them.

The fairy growled in annoyance, "Just enter the damn ring before the tree fairies spot us".

Kuroko looked at the ring before looking back at the fairy, "thank you for helping us" he spoke earnestly before entering the ring.

If the fairy was bigger and anyone was around to see, they would've noticed the bright blush on it's cheeks.

/

The fay realm wasn't anything like the movies, it wasn't anything like what the legends said they were like either. To start with, the realm wasn't green or flowery. The fay realm was barren, barren of life, of rain, of everything. It was like a desert colored in deep blue with a moon and stars that shone red. A red that reminded Kuroko of the fairy that he just met.

Standing up slowly, Kuroko felt the air shift and become harder to stand and breath in. Taking a deep breath, Kuroko prepared to shout for the rest of his friends when Akashi and Murasakibara popped up in front of him. Right behind them was Midorima and Aomine both looking frayed and sunburnt.

"Tetsu!" Aomine shouted as he came to a stop in front of the tiny male.

"Where is the fairy?" Akashi asked, subtly looking around the lifeless desert.

"You guys met a fairy?!" Aomine's hands clasped Kuroko's shoulder, "that's so cool! I bet she looked hot" he wolfishly grinned down at Kuroko.

Midorima gave Aomine a disgusted look. "Is that all you think about?" he asked incredulously.

"Aomine is simple minded" Murasakibara spoke from where he crouched examining a tiny rock.

A figure suddenly appeared besides the group, "I would like my wrapper now" the floating figure spoke to Murasakibara.

"You grew" Akashi stated as he took in the fairy's appearance. Standing the same height as Aomine, the fairy that they met had red hair and eyes that shone like the moon above them. It was obviously male by human standards and it's voice no longer contained the squeaky bell quality it had when it was smaller. But the most beautiful thing about the handsome fairy was not his face or voice, it was his wings.

Twice the size of the fairy, the wings glowed red with intricate golden designs. However it did not look like an insect's wings as the group had first assumed. No, the fairy's wings looked feathery, like an angel whose wings were dyed red with blood. The clothes the fairy wore also had a feathery quality to it. Golden like the designs on his wings, the clothes were reminiscent of togas the Greeks and Romans used to wear. With shoeless feet, the fairy made an image of an angel ironically.

However, despite it's unearthly beauty the fairy still had its unruly and immature attitude. "I didn't grow" he scoffed and crossed his arms as he looked down at Akashi, "your bodies shrank so that they could fit into the fay realm". Akashi's fingers twitched as he resisted the urge to stab the obnoxious fairy.

"Excuse me" Midorima spoke as he pushed his glasses up, "but who are you?"

The fairy snorted again, "I wasn't born yesterday, human" the fairy used the word human as an insult, "I'm not giving you my name".

"What does that mean?" Murasakibara stood from his crouched position.

The fairy sighed, "its unimportant" he looked to the sky, "we have to leave before the moon sets" he spoke and started to hover over the ground, "you found your friends now keep your promise" the fairy glared at the group.

"We still need to find one more friend" Kuroko spoke.

The fairy raised an eyebrow, "no kidding" he said in contempt. Putting his fist on his hips, the fairy's bare feet touched the ground, "fine but there is no guarantee that he hasn't ate anything from this realm" it sighed and motioned for the generation of miracles to follow it.

"Where are we going?" Kuroko asked as the group followed the fairy.

"To my place, we need to get you some clothes" it spoke, not bothering to turn around to see if the humans were following.

"What's wrong with our clothes?!" Aomine asked loudly, awkwardly pulling at his shirt.

This got the fairy to look back, "you look like humans" it stated.

"Why is that bad?" Murasakibara asked.

The fairy turned around as he guided the group into a maze of rocks. "Humans are food not friends" it's voice trailed off. "Keep up, the sun is rising" the group of humans looked up to the sky. Indeed the red moon was on the horizon and the sky was starting to be turned into a palate of blue and the dessert started to lack the purplish glow it had before.

"Is the sun blue in this world?" Midorima asked, looking at the sky.

The fairy looked back, "you'll find out soon" the maze was starting to be lit by the sun. Suddenly stopping in front of a painted wall, the fairy looked intensely at the wall pictographs.

"Why are we stopping?" Murasakibara asked, "We're not out of the maze".

And they weren't, the maze still had a way to go and they were simply standing at an intersection that the maze had.

"Are you lost?" Akashi asked.

The fairy ignored the humans and started tracing lines on the wall.

"What are you doing?" Kuroko tried to make sense of what the fairy was tracing.

The fairy stepped back and suddenly the wall it was tracing opened. "Enter" it spoke as it stepped aside with a sweep of his hand.

The generation of miracle looked at each other before entering. Once they walked into the cave and the fairy right behind them, the cave's entrance shut closed quickly and with a loud bang that resonated in the cave.

"It's dark" Akashi remarked dryly and he was right. The only source of light came from the glowing fairy.

"Just wait" the fairy said in a gruff voice as the darkness of the cave disappeared.

Blinded by the sudden light, the group covered their eyes and slowly blinked once the light was no longer too bright and piercing.

Gasping, Midorima murmured to himself: "impossible".

In front of the group was a city. A beautiful city made of white stones surrounded by waterfalls and lakes and water. It was the exact opposite of the wasteland that the group just exited from. The place was grassy, flowers bloomed from trees growing inside the lake and city; and there was a rainbow covering the city. The rainbow was gorgeous, it looked to be created from crystal and its beauty was reflected by the water around the city.

"Are you guys done gaping?" the fairy asked, standing inhumanely still on top of a lake, "I would like to get this done before he discovers us" it looked at the city with a pained expression.

"Who is he?" Kuroko asked, looking down at the ripples caused by the fairy's feet.

The fairy snorted and the group of humans was wondering how something so beautiful could be so rude inside. "He is someone who likes making your kind miserable" the fairy responded before walking across the lake and opening a door attached to a large tree.

"Do you want us to swim?" Akashi asked sarcastically.

The fairy merely tilted his head in confusion.

"Humans can't walk on water" Aomine spoke as he looked down at the lake. It was during looking at the lake when Aomine noticed that the miracles of generations were the only thing without a reflection. Inhaling sharply, Aomine snapped his head up in panic and stared at the fairy, "Why don't we have a reflection?"

The fairy floated back to the group and gave Aomine a wet kiss on the mouth.

"W-w-what?!" Aomine shouted as he quickly backed away from the fairy.

"Why did you kiss Mine-chin?"

Midorima, Akashi, and Kuroko remained silent as they gaped at the fairy.

The fairy just snickered at Aomine, "you have a reflection now" it spoke between the chuckles. Crawling slowly to the edge of the land, Aomine looked down at the water and saw his reflection.

"Wha- how did this happen?!" he asked the fairy.

"You can also walk on the water" it responded, avoiding answering the question.

Akashi's eyes narrowed at the blatant avoidance. "Why can he walk on water now?" he asked as Murasakibara and Aomine made noises of excitement as Aomine started dancing on the water.

The fairy bit it's lip and tilted it's head in thought. "I don't know" the fairy admitted after a moment of thought, "it just works that way" the fairy shrugged. And then it gave a kiss to each miracle on the lips. Beaming, the fairy grinned at the humans, "enough chat" it spoke in a haughty voice "we must move!"

Murasakibara and Aomine crooned in excitement as they followed the fairy out onto the lake, Akashi right behind them.

Staring at his teammates in wonder, Midorima bit his lips as he slowly placed a foot onto the lake. A pair of hands pushed him onto the lake and Midorima stumbled before turning around abruptly and glaring at Kuroko.

"Why did you push me?" he snarled only for Kuroko's face to blur into the smiling fairy's visage.

"Fooled ya!" it snickered and for a moment Midorima was speechless. "You-but-where is Kuroko?!" he screamed at the fairy.

"Already inside" the fairy spoke bluntly and pointed to a place behind Midorima. "You were taking so long that the others already made it inside"

Midorima bit his lips as he stared across the lake.

"You know-" the fairy started as he placed a hand on Midorima's back and forced the human to start walking, "-if you really want to save your friend you can't be indecisive" Midorima looked up at the floating fairy's face. "You might be taken advantage of and forced to live here forever" the fairy gave a grin that made Midorima wonder if it was helping the group or taking advantage of them.

About to enter the tree, the fairy bent down to whisper in Midorima's ear, "you'll never be able to save Kise at this rate" Midorima shivered as it's cold breath brushed over his ear, "your indecisiveness is going to kill your friend" it gave a cold chuckle before flying over the rest of the humans, suggesting what they should or shouldn't wear.

"Shintaro" Akashi approached the frozen Midorima, "why are you just standing there?" he asked as he held out a fake leafy wing to Midorima.

"It said Kise" Midorima whispered to himself.

Akashi's eyes went wide in realization. "Let's keep this to ourselves" he whispered to Midorima.

Midorima nodded numbly.

"Slowpokes!" Aomine yelled at them, dressed in fake leafy wings and a fur lined blue outfit, "get changing! We need to get to Kise!" he waved at them before turning around with Kuroko and Murasakibara.

The fairy smirked at Midorima and Akashi once the others were no longer facing the fairy. The smirk was toothy and blinding and somehow, both Midorima and Akashi knew that the fairy was keeping something from them. They just didn't know what it was keeping secret.

"Keep an eye on him" Akashi ordered as he attached his fake wings to his feathery outfit.

Midorima's eyes narrowed as he nodded; both males unwilling to take their eyes off the fairy.

/

A/N:

I was going to make Kagami a Diwata but decided against it. The story fit better with Kagami as a fairy.

Now, why did I make a fairy story take place in Japan? A nation that is not very European like with its lack of fairy rings? Simple, the challenge of it. I know that if the GOMs knew about fairies they would only know the basics that Disney skews. I don't think that they would know about fairy rings or eating foods from the fay realm or the dangers the fays put humans through.

Anyways, I re-read some of my stories and I noticed that a lot gets cut off from it when I transfer the document into fanfiction. I need to take time and compare my stories online to what I have saved in my documents.

A kodama is a spirit that lives in a tree while an uwan is a disembodied voice that typically inhabits old, abandoned temples and homes.

Trooping fairies are fairies that appear in groups and might form settlements. Trooping fairies can be either good or bad or both. That is why Kagami wanted to avoid them. From the stories I know from my childhood, there are two types of fairy courts; the Seelie and Unseelie court. The Seelie court are pranksters that don't care if a human is harmed or killed in their pranks while the Unseelie court are just malicious and enjoy hurting humans. I foreshadowed which one Kagami is by comparing his laughter to bells.

Notice Kagami's lack of willingness to give his name? That's because some beliefs say that you could summon and control a fairy if you knew their name. For Kagami, the only way to summon him is to call him 'Taiga'.

I'll make another chapter of this, just not right now. After this semester is over so sometime in December. Until then, deal with it. As usual, I own up to all mistakes. I'll probably post "Pack" sometime next month. "Pack" is what I entitled the werewolf Kagami, Kasamatsu, and Takao story.