Leave No Man Behind

He can't see any other option except to leave.

They are different now, so very painfully different; they are cold and distant and indifferent. It hurts, because memories of happier days shine so bright in the back of his mind.

It leaves a bitter taste in his mouth when he thinks about it.

Midorima, who had learned to shoot because he loved the swish of the basket when the ball went in nothing but net! and was ridiculously superstitious about it because he loved it so much…Now he follows the horoscopes because that's how it is and because he won't miss and not because he cares any more. After all, the ball always enters. It's fate.

( - today is a lucky day for Cancers! - will you leave that broom behind! - my lucky item - grins and chuckles and arguing that was all good- )

Musakibara, who had never really loved the game in the first place, and had played because he had the height and well, when it was basketball, that was enough. Of course, his ridiculous level of talent did not hurt either. But, Kuroko thinks, Musakibara might have learned to love the game if he had not come to join Teikou, because loss is greater than winning in loving a game.

(- hey, Kuro-chin, want a chip? - a overly large hand ruffling his hair - a childishness that is both annoying and kind of endearing in a strange way -)

Then there is Kise, who is bright and cheerful and exuberant as ever. He plays hard and runs hard; to the average onlooker, Kise loves the game and loves the thrill. To Kuroko, who remembers a grin and a laugh loud enough to ring in the ears when the blond played with Aomine… well, this Kise is not Kise at all.

(- just you wait Aominechi, I'll beat you! - will you get off me Kise-kun - ee, the captain's scary! - bullying that was affectionate nonetheless- )

Of course, Akashi has always been a rather large question mark to Kuroko. Their captain is amazing, both on and out of the court, with his natural instinct for leading and… mild psychotic tendencies. He respects Akashi, and follows him even now, but he never knew if Akashi played basketball because he liked it or had he chosen the game at random. All he knows is that to Akashi, victory is a given and that is no life to live.

(- ah, play shogi with me - eee, yes captain! - a sigh - maybe a small grin as he watches the team he created- )

Most painfully, there was Aomine, who was his best friend, partner and light all rolled into one freakishly talented boy. He remembers a smile that almost split the tanned boy's face when he played. He remembers encouragement and support for a boy who couldn't shoot or dribble. He remembers fist bumps and ice cream and joy. Then there is coldness and boredom and hatred for something that Aomine had been utterly devoted to.

( -why? Because I love basketball! - hey, Tetsu, want to grab lunch on the way? - let's play a game - hey you lazy bastard, go and practice- )

He doesn't realize the changes at first. He is almost as desensitized to the game as they are by that point.

It goes like this: Musakibara tips the ball to Midorima, who shoots and scores. Akashi tosses the ball to Aomine, who shoots and scores. Kise hangs around a while, waits for the opponent to use some special move (which is blocked by Musakibara) before replaying it back perfectly to the opposing team. Akashi yawns after awhile, and commands Kuroko to come onto the court. Kuroko gets the ball, he passes it to Aomine, who shoots and scores. Akashi makes the opposing team fall before him. They secure the lead, yawn, and let the second string take over. Lather, rinse, repeat…

It is so repetitive. They don't even practice as a team anymore. After all, what was the point? It was all about individual improvement, about beating your own best because after all, who else was there?

It's during a game where no one bothers to throw the ball to him, that Kuroko realizes the difference, because he is a shadow and he needs lights to pass to. But now, there is no one left and he is useless. The realization burns like cyanide at the back of his mind. Aomine does not bother to even look at him, just runs off with a bitter expression on his face.

So as soon as the third championship title is maintained, he leaves. He has no choice. He knows that if he stays, they would probably all go to the same school, probably Rakuzan from what he hears, and that would be no future in basketball for him. To be frank, there would be no real future in the game for any of them.

So he goes away.

He can already guess at what will happen. Aomine will leave the team behind, because really? Even though they grew apart that last year, Kuroko had been the only thing that kept him tied to the Generation of Miracles. Aomine will leave, probably join some team and skip practice all the time. If Aomine knew where Kuroko was going, the tanned boy would probably tag along. Momoi certainly would. So he stays silent.

With their ace gone, the rest of them would naturally drift apart to other schools. It would not be the same with two of their members missing, so the Generation would split up. Akashi would definitely be able to stop it if he wanted, but he has a feeling that the captain has another idea up his sleeve.

He chooses Seirin because the rumours about a newbie team that had made it to the Final League interests him. It's a no-name school, which is great for a no-name player like him. After all, Sixth Phantom Player or not, no one really knows who he is.

He hesitates a bit when he tries to decide if he wants to join the basketball club. Is it worth it, without a light? But then he remembers the squeak of shoes on the court and long hours spent practicing in the third-string gym when no one else was around… and he remembers that yes, he does love the game and maybe he will find that again here.

He signs the form and leaves.

On the first day of the practice, he meets Kagami, who is a giant fireball of irrational action and violence and pure love for the game of basketball. He stood there, staring at the tall boy, before grinning slightly.

He found a new light.

Everything follows from there.

-0-0-0-

Well, this is my first foray into the Kuroko no Basuke fandom, so I hope it isn't too bad. I love Seirin, but I can't help being absolutely fascinated by the MiraGen. They're just so... cool! And I'm sure there's a lot of history that we haven't found out yet.

And Kuroko is my favourite character! I rarely like the main character, but in this case, I adore him! So I had to do this.

I was debating if I should add the brackets in or not, but I decided to in the end. They're really just conversation snippets from Teikou.

Hope you like it, and please R&R because it feeds my soul.

Love

~FO

P.S I'm amazed by the quality of the KnB fandom. Although it's only got 1000 plus fics, they're more or less all awesome!