A/N I know, I know. I said I was going to update more frequently but it's been 5 months. I'm sorry! I could give a bunch of excuses, but I know whoever is actually still reading this thing probably only cares about the new chapter haha, so here you are!

Disclaimer: I do not own Free! or Kuroko no Basuke.

FLASHBACK

"Ryuugazaki Rei, current pitcher for the Teiko Baseball team."

Rei turns to look for the voice and is met with the mismatched eyes of Akashi Seijouru staring back at him. He's heard of the captain of their school's basketball team before, of course, who hasn't? The question is why was he singled out when the two hadn't spoken a word to each other in the year and a half they had been schoolmates.

"Yes...uh...can I help you, Akashi-kun?"

"You turned a below average team into regional champions in one year. How?"

"Well-"

"That was rhetorical, I know how." Akashi stares at the boy in front of him with a calm, but intimidating gaze. "You calculate your way through the game, everything from ball speed to how fast it will take a player to get from one plate to another. It's impressive."

Rei blushes, "Thank you, anyone could do it, though, if they studied the game as much as I have. It's all in the numbers."

"True," Akashi agrees, as Rei looks up, shocked at the nonchalant response. "What? You think I would flatter you some more? Baseball is all about statistics, numbers are everywhere, it doesn't take a genius to figure out that they should use those numbers to their advantage."

Rei frowns, peeved, "Well if that's the case, then why even bother talking to me at all, seeing as how I'm just another dime-a-dozen baseball player."

"I said anyone can calculate those numbers if they study it for long enough, not that they could do it while playing the game. You take into account real time variables and apply them mere seconds later, that is what impresses me. You have a gift." Akashi smirks as Rei looks down to his shoes, blushing once again.

"Thank you for the compliment, but I still don't understand why you are talking to me," he mumbles back.

"You enjoy baseball, yes?"

Startled by the question, Rei looks up and replies, "Ah, y-yes. It's quite a beautiful sport, I've strived to reach perfection through studying form and regulations-"

"Yes, I can see that."

"Thank you, that is nice to hear-"

"It is a pity though," Akashi continues.

Now to drop the bait.

"Wh-What? A pity?"

A smirk makes it's way onto the redhead's face, but he hides it quickly while saying, "Of course. I mean, you have reached perfection, haven't you? Your form is precise, your throws always go as planned, and you can calculate exactly how long it will take a player to get to first base should they be lucky enough to hit something."

"Yes, that's true, but that's a good thing...isn't it?"

"Sure, but..." Akashi trails off.

"...But?"

"But, well, I assumed you were the type to want to continue to achieve perfection, in every way."

"I am!" Rei cries, indignant, "I strive to be at the top of my classes, something you make very difficult, by the way, and maintain a balanced schedule of eating healthy and studying the more beautiful extracurricular subjects outside of school."

"And yet you stay tied to a sport you've already mastered...Aren't you ready for a new challenge? A new opportunity to reach perfection?"

"...A new opportunity to reach perfection?" Rei repeats, unsure.

Akashi holds out his hand, "Join the Teiko Basketball Team, and I'll make you the most flawless basketball player on the court. "

Rei looks at him, surprised, but intrigued. The red-headed basketball player did have a point, he had achieved a certain level of beauty in the sport that one would be hard-pressed to surpass, and simply maintaining the quality of form had become somewhat easy and, dare he say it, boring.

But basketball?

Basketball was entirely new. Terrifyingly, excitingly new. Ball density, the rate at which players move, the positions, court, basket...the variables would completely change. Would it even work? There were so many numbers to keep track of at a much faster pace than a baseball game. Final scores often totaled in the 50s or 60s per team. There were no breaks, no one player up at bat, no "three strikes and your out" consistency. If you have the ball, you try to score, if your opponent has the ball, you try to steal it back. It would certainly be a challenge to bring beauty to a sport like that, but the numbers were there.

Anyways, it's not like he's being asked to try something insane, like swimming.

"Okay, I'll do it."

"Team, this is Ryuugazaki Rei, he will be practicing with us from now on." Akashi looks at the rest of the team, as if he's daring them to say anything negative about his decision.

Kise is the first to speak up, "Ah, Ryuugazaki-chi! I remember you from my stint on the baseball team! You were so good, why the change?"

Rei scratches the back of his head nervously, "Just looking for a new challenge, I guess."

"Haha, I guess I can understand that!" Kise laughs.

"Huh, baseball team? Does he even know how to play the sport? I want a challenge, not newbies who don't even know how to dribble a ball," Aomine pipes in, lying on some mats left on the side of the court.

"I'll have you know I am a very fast learner, and have already studied the game as well as correct forms and play so I won't slow anyone down, Aomine-kun."

"Aomine-kun? Great, another Tetsu."

"That's not a very nice thing to say, Aomine-kun." Kuroko Tetsuya says with a deadpan expression, as if he didn't just appear out of nowhere directly next to Rei.

"GAHH, where did you come from?!" Rei yells.

"I was here the entire time, Ryuugazaki-kun."

END FLASHBACK

As the two swim teams exit the arena after the swim tournament ends for the day, Rei looks nervously over at the stadium across the way.

"Rei, are you okay? You look a little pale. Are you not feeling well?" Makoto asks, worried.

"N-no, it's nothing Makoto-senpai, just a little cold from the wind, I guess. I'm sure I'll be fine once we get back to the hotel," Rei replies as he picks up his pace.

"Well, that certainly good to hear, Rei. Why don't we duck into a restaurant so you can get warmed up while we reacquaint ourselves."

Rei stops in his tracks and turns around only to meet the hetero-chromatic eyes of his old teammate. The rest of the swimmers looked over, confused at the tense atmosphere. Well, all except Haru, who made a bee-line straight to the first restaurant serving mackerel to put in their names.

"It's a twenty minute wait, they need to put some tables together."

Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think!