Prequel to : Bonds of Gold (IB Rewritten)

A short story about a mysterious camera, a boy, and his past, taking place right before the Winter Cup.

The Camera that Makes You Cry

In November, the last of the autumn leaves silently drifted onto the streets as a lone teen whistled an off-key melody sounding only harmonious to the crows overhead. The debris of leaves crunched beneath his feet as he sauntered down into yard of his Japanese-styled abode, maneuvering to a worn down storeroom at its corner.

He burst open its doors, layers of dust practically flying out at him, as if starved of sunlight, as he released a slight cough. "...Wow, there's actually a lot of stuff in here," Kiyoshi Teppei mused in his ever carefree way as he inspected the thousand year worth of dust gathered around the stone shed.

That didn't deter him from his duties however. Instead, with the pushing of both his sleeves, he proceeded to commence cleaning.

The storeroom sure was old. In its depths, hundreds of trinkets and boxes were practically enshrined within it as Kiyoshi began reminiscing here and there about the things he used to have.

There was a basketball within all that, stored on the top shelf of a bookcase Kiyoshi recalled being too short to retrieve. Now howeverm it was a simple task as he lifted the orange circular mass, way too worn out for use. Yet, that didn't stop Kiyoshi from dribbling it onto the squeaky floorboards before it promptly imploded on itself.

Kiyoshi smiled. That was his first basketball, the ball his grandma bought him the day after he was invited by friends to try out basketball for the first time. Although his fingers were now all too big for the child-sized ball, its warmth, the warmth of those youthful days still lingered.

"Well...what am I going to do with this?" Kiyoshi murmured with a grin as he picked up the deflated orange flab. It was a bit of a waste to throw it so he decided to store it elsewhere instead.

However, as he looked for a place to store it, he came across a cardboard box labelled with a peculiar name.

The tag was thoroughly faded but upon close inspection, Kiyoshi was able to make out the words: "The camera that makes you cry...?"

He promptly brought it to practice.

*Snap!*

Hyuuga blinked, eyes completely stunned and overwhelmed like a hamster before his eyesight slowly recovered, making out Kiyoshi's looming silhouette...along with an automatic camera that probably discontinued decades ago.

Immediately, a click followed as a single photo slipped out of it, picked up by a curious Kiyoshi as he stared at the picture within.

He blinked. "Hyuuga...I didn't expect this from you at all," he murmured with what seemed to be a genuinely astounded tone.

Of course, Hyuuga never bought that.

"Hah? What are you going on about?" Hyuuga scowled, already disliking whatever was going through Kiyoshi's head as he snatched the photo from the teen, closely peering at it before his jaw dropped. HARD.

He swore he heard a bone crack. "Y-you! How did you get this?!" Hyuuga finally managed to croak out as his face instantly flushed beet red, clearly uncharacteristic of him.

It was a picture of the Seirin team, all on the court with Hyuuga staring at the camera, his stoned look from before still in his eyes. However, he looked older, perhaps in his mid-20's. In fact, everyone in the picture did. Riko who was barking out orders from the sidelines had longer hair, Kuroko was actually taller, and Kiyoshi...he was going in for a dunk.

Kiyoshi blinked before slowly, a smile formed on his lips- a genuine one. "So that's why...this is a camera that makes you cry," he whispered.

"H-huh? Camera that makes you cry?! And besides where the hell did you get that? I swear that was what I dreamed about last ni-!" Hyuuga instantly caught himself. Shoot, he was definitely going to be made fun of!

However, snorts never followed. Kiyoshi only continued that eerily melancholic smile that made Hyuuga shiver. Seriously, what was he acting like this?!

"Oi, Kiyo-"

"Hey Hyuuga. This, is this something that you hoped for in the future? Us...always continuing to play basketball together...forever?" Kiyoshi deduced.

Hyuuga instantly flinched but once he noted the look Kiyoshi gave him, he sighed. "Hah? Obviously d'aho! We love basketball don't we and we're a team! Of course I'll want that!" He huffed with a scowl.

"Eh? Then, me too?" Kiyoshi asked, pointing to the picture of him scoring a dunk. They both knew...that by the end of the Winter Cup, Kiyoshi Teppei may never play basketball again. It was the end of the line for him.

Hyuuga furrowed his brows. "Of course! In fact, I wish you'd just do your surgery again and get back on your feet, we'll always play basketball!" He declared.

"Hmm~?" Kiyoshi replied, reverting back into his original goofy face that instantly caused a vein to pop.

"Oi, are you even taking me seriously?!" Hyuuga roared.

"Huh? Of course I'm taking you seriously," Kiyoshi blankly replied before an urge to kick the guy suddenly overcame the shooting guard.

"HAH?! How the hell are you? In the first place, what the hell is that camera?!"

Kiyoshi blankly stared at the camera. "Oh this? It's obviously a camera that makes people cry." he replied.

"HAH?! HOW?!" Hyuuga gaped.

"OI! DIDN'T I TELL YOU TO BE QUIET ALREADY?!" A suddenly seething voice roared before a a clipboard smacked right into the back of Hyuuga's head.

He instantly fell to the ground.

"Hmph, finally, things can stop being so loud," a voice huffed as a girl strode over, hands on her hips and all as Hyuuga descended to heaven. That was a lethal blow!

"Oh, Riko!" Kiyoshi greeted the girl as she turned over the towering male.

"You too Teppei, actually what's with the cam-"

"Cheese Riko!" Kiyoshi exclaimed.

"Eh?"

*SNAP*

With the dazzled hamster-effect in action, another picture shot out of the camera slot.

"Oiii Kiyoshi, do you want to get us killed?!" Hyuuga hissed, reviving due to the imminent danger as he gaped at the absurdity of his teammate to do such a thing. If Kiyoshi showed her something equally embarrassing as what he showed him, the two would immediately be sent to hell through a series of "embarrassed" punching-and she wasn't even a tsundere!

However, being the usual air-headed person he was, Kiyoshi immediately presented the picture before her with a smiling, "oiii, Riko~"

The girl blinked...before her eyes widened in shock.

SHOOT. They were so dead.

Yet, instead of a yell, a squeal, or any other sound that signalled nothing but doom, in a trembling voice completely uncharacteristic of her, she whispered, "Mama..."

Hyuuga stared, taken aback as he instantly rushed over, peeking at the photo. It was picture of Riko, confusedly staring at the camera but she was smaller, much younger at perhaps 7 years old. Beside her was a woman who looked a lot like her, flat-che- um, the same smile and all and on the other side, was her father, looking much younger and less gangster-like than now.

Since he was actually acquainted with her family for a long time. he knew what that meant to her, it was a photo of her deceased mother after all.

Tears were threatening to fall.

Hyuuga gulped. He hated when this happened. In fact, comforting a crying Riko would prove to be a harder feat than a embarrased/excuse-to-kill-everyone Riko. "Oi, Kiyoshi at least take some responsibility!" Hyuuga demanded, turning to the root of all this mayhem before he blinked.

Kiyoshi wasn't there!

"Oi, Koga!" Hyuuga heard Kiyoshi called, finally locating him all the way across the court before another *Snap!* followed.

"OHHH! My Nin-chan!" Hyuuga suddenly heard Koganei cried as he held up a picture, tears in his eyes, maneuvering close enough to Hyuuga for him to sneak a peek inside.

In Koganei's hands..was a Nintendo DS. What in the world?!

"Hmm, I see now. This is a camera that captures what's most precious to someone," Kiyoshi suddenly concluded, moving back towards the trio.

"Oh! No wonder it caught my Nin-chan! I was so sad when it broke 2 years ago!" Koganei sniffed.

Hyuuga pondered Kiyoshi's words for a moment. Although it was impossible for such a fishy item to exist, this time Kiyoshi was definitely right in fact, it caused something to click in his brain.

"Oi...Koga..." Hyuuga suddenly drawled, a murderous aura emanating from him.

Koganei whipped around. "Eh?"

"IT'S ONE THING IF IT'S THE DEATH OF SOMEONE IMPORTANT BUT WHY THE HELL ISN'T YOUR MOST PRECIOUS THING RELATED TO BASKETBALL?!" He practically roared. So far, he was the only one who did think of basketball!

"...I played a basketball simulation game on it?" Koganei asnwered in hopeful retaliation.

Hyuuga snapped. "Oi Kiyoshi make him take it again! I'll force a basketball related picture out of him!" Hyuuga barked, glaring over to Kiyoshi whose hands...were empty.

"Eh?"

"Ooohhhh...I see now..." a dark and ominous voice muttered with spine-chilling giggling. "So with this...I'll be able to see everyone's most embarrassing sides...?" the voice continued as Hyuuga flinched at the borderline yandere giggles of his coach.

It seemed like she planned on retaliating after all.

"W-wait Coach!" Hyuuga cried with alarm.

But...it was too late.

"Izuki-kun!"

"Eh?"

*SNAP*

A worn-out joke book appeared.

"Mitobe-kun!"

"...?"

*SNAP*

An photo of a group of children appeared.

"Furihata-kun!"

"Y-yes?!"

*SNAP*

A picture of him and a girl in a wedding hall appeared.

After numerous amounts of snapping, the gang, now huge in number finally caught up with their fervent coach and stopped her from her spiteful rampage.

"Oh, coach! Where did you get this picture? I haven't seen my first elementary joke book in such a long time!" Izuki exclaimed with teary-eyed glee. "Ah...those youthful days..."

"SHUT UP IZUKI!" Hyuuga automatically yelled. Besides, none of their "precious things" had anything to do with basketball!

"No...more, I must still do more..." his coach slowly muttered, like a zombie starved of brains as she tried to worm her way out of the grip he had on her waist.

"Oh come on coach! You've already had your fill! Didn't we come here to practice for the Winter Cup?!" Hyuuga coaxed.

The girl instantly stopped.

He sighed a sigh of relief. Finally!

Yet, to his horror, flowers promptly bloomed around her. "But, but...don't you want to see what Kuroko and Kagami-kun's most precious things are?" Riko pouted in a sickly sweet voice that sent chills down Hyuuga's spine.

However, her words were far too tempting to ignore.

Maxing out his concentration, he scanned the courts for Kuroko, finally managing to spot him by the benches, dribbling a ball.

Hyuuga instantly snatched the camera away.

"Oi, Kuroko!" He barked.

"Yes?" Kuroko turned, face aimed towards the camera.

*SNAP*

Hyuuga squinted. It was hard to tell whether the hamster effect followed but well, he frankly didn't care because he couldn't believe it worked!

"Oh! Let's see what's most important to Kuroko-kun!" Riko popped up from behind him with scintillating eyes.

"Oh! Could it possible be a picture of us?!" Koganei quipped.

"No, no, it's definitely going to be a picture of the Generation of Miracles, they definitely have some extreme tension going on!" Izuki retorted.

"Eh?! Then maybe we'll get to see Kuroko's deepest, darkest secret?!" Koganei gasped, maxing out Hyuuga's curiosity as he pulled the freshly printed image off the slot with shaking hands.

Many pairs of eyes peered curiously at it.

They suddenly blinked. "Eh?" They gaped in unison.

In the picture, there was Kuroko...dribbling the ball.

Nothing had been altered at all.

Nothing.

Immediately, something struck their minds.

They glanced up at the bluenette who stared back at them quizzically.

They gulped.

Did it mean... he had nothing important to him?

Writing fics about half time travel just made me wonder why I didn't try something like this earlier so yeah, couldn't resist and I did XP Please don't kill me!

Now, the question is, why is Kuroko empty?

Also, this is my first time actively writing about Seirin (omg how biased am I towards the GOM?!) so I hope the characterizations are okay!

If you can, please review! I'd love to hear your responses!