KITTY!

Kuroko lived a lonely life at home when he was not working with children in school. So Riko gave him a basket with a heterochromatic eyed red kitty in it. Seems normal right? ...Right?

Pairing: Akashi x Kuroko

Disclaimer: I don't own KuroBasu!

AN: I like cats when they're not trying to claw my eyes out. And I like using Riko to make the characters of my OTP meet :D

Chapter 1

"Bye, bye, Tetsu-nii!" Two kids waved at the bluenette before they walked away with their beloved family.

"See you tomorrow, Tetsu-nii!" A young boy hugged him before running off to see his father who was just by the door of the classroom.

Kuroko smiled lightly as he received more bye-bye hugs before he finally found himself alone in the room. He still had to gather all the papers, clean whatever mess was left and arrange the chairs and tables since they had played a game a while ago.

The bluenette quietly grouped the sheets of paper while he listened to his colleagues chat a little about their personal life outside of the room. It seems that they already finished their work and were all ready to go home.

"My husband and I will be going out tonight with my children and grandchildren." An old woman smiled sincerely. "I haven't seen my children for a while now since they all got married and moved out to start their families. It's nice to be able to see them again."

"I hope you have an enjoyable night then," A man replied before he sipped his cup of coffee. "I'll be going to a reunion this coming weekend because a few college friends of mine who went abroad finally came back to Japan to visit."

A young woman chuckled. "Wow, it seems that you all have your schedules packed. I have no plans as of yet and I'm only staying home with my younger siblings. Maybe I'll plan something with them to visit my parents in the province."

The teachers were still chatting happily amongst themselves when Kuroko finished his work. The bluenette gathered all the papers he had to check and placed them all in his black messenger's bag. Kuroko walked out of the classroom without being noticed by his colleagues and locked the doors then checked it before leaving for home.

Creee-aaaak

Kuroko's eye twitched in slight annoyance at the raspy sound the old door made as he pushed it open. He turned on the switch beside the door as he closed and locked the entrance. The bluenette swiftly walked through the living room and immediately fell down to the welcoming arms of his sofa that had incredibly soft and fluffy pillows on it.

"Ah…." The bluenette hummed in comfort as he stretched his arms before snuggling himself on the pillow. "I haven't felt this stressed since the incident where one of the students jumped into a stranger's car a month ago. That almost gave me a heart attack. Thank goodness that person noticed the child before he went straight to Kyoto."

He closed his eyes, trying to clear his mind of all the stress he had gone through today and made himself relax in the silence his home offered.

There were times he wished it wasn't so silent though. Even with having to teach and take care of young children with endless amounts of energy and mischievous minds, it was still a lot of fun to talk with the energetic bundles of joy and coming home to a completely silent home makes him….There he say it –

Lonely.

Back then as a high school student, he didn't notice it that much. His friends from Middle School and from High School would come and visit at random times actually. Initially it felt annoying but as time went by, they came so often that Kuroko would always have to prepare something in advance (it was pretty nice of Kagami and Mitobe to teach him some recipes that didn't include using eggs) and occasionally prepare a few extra futons if they would like to sleepover.

The bluenette was happy and content with it all –

Even when his father passed away from a disease just a week after he graduated from high school and his mother died of depression just a couple of months after but through all of that, his friends were there (since they somehow found out about it).

It was during and after college when they didn't see one another that often anymore.

His best friend during middle school, Aomine, became a capable and reliable policeman who was known for playing basketball with the young troubled teens he would come across (and for frequently sleeping on the job). They rarely ever met since he worked in a different district and his time shirts were always changing which left the young man considerably tired after work.

Kise was always out and about since he was a pilot (he's currently somewhere in Middle East if Kuroko remembered correctly). The cheery blonde would send some souvenirs back since he couldn't give it personally. Kise would also send some pictures and emails about the tourist spots and the delicacies of the country. An hour before every lift off, Kise would text him where he was going next and Kuroko would always respond with "Be careful Kise-kun, I want you to have a safe trip."

Midorima was always busy with all the patients he would receive but even then, the emerald eyed doctor would always find time to bring his lucky item no matter how ridiculous it was. They would talk chat with each other online sometimes and the conversation would usually end with Midorima giving him a very detailed lecture about eating healthy and a list of food he should eat for the week.

"I want to make sure that the children's teacher will be in top shape so you have to follow this regimen. It's not like I want you to – "

He's still an adorable tsundere even after all these years.

Murasakibara's schedule was always full due to all the orders he would get since his pastries were absolutely divine (the purple haired giant would send some vanilla flavored pastries every now and then) and sometimes he would forget that the pastry was for a customer and would end up eating it himself.

Kuroko's friends from high school were busy as well. His former coach was currently in charge of the Aida Gym and was screaming everyone's ears off for not following the instructions she would give them to improve their physical attributes.

Kagami was a fireman who sometimes met up with Aomine with their hectic time shifts. They usually see each other in Maji Burger during their breaks. The tall American returnee was still as hot headed as he was before (if not a little more).

Kiyoshi and Hyuga happen to be working in the same publishing company and department (literature). To say that his former captain was annoyed was an understatement. But from what he's heard, those two's teamwork made the publishing company's reputation go skyrocket.

Mitobe works at a sushi shop while Koganei sells books and manga in the book store beside the sushi shop so they see each other very often.

Tsuchida is working as a successful architect and his current project is to design a few more buildings and another gymnasium for Seirin High. It seems that the project includes the former first year trio as well.

And as his friends grow closer to one another, Kuroko Tetsuya finds himself in a predicament about his social life after school.

"I never would have thought that I would worry about such trivial matters now." Kuroko mumbled to himself as he hugged the pillow. "I was always the unnoticed 'phantom' who was known for being a loner. I never really concerned myself about it before. This must be a side-effect of having friends. If you don't see them for a while, you'll feel a strange empty feeling."

"….. Is that normal?" He asked to no one in particular.

"Hissss!" A red blur jumped out of the basket that Aida was currently holding and ran straight to the other direction in an attempt to escape.

"Oh no, you don't!" The brunette did not feel any guilt or remorse as she stepped on the tail of the retreating figure which caused the small figure to snarl venomously while glaring its heterochromatic eyes at her. It even tried to claw her shoe! Good thing she wasn't wearing slippers.

'This thing just has to be the kitty version of the devil!' She thought suspiciously as she picked up the cat that finally calmed down but was still glaring daggers at her.

"Mrowl," The cute kitten placed its small paw on Aida's nose before slapping it hard without using its claws. The feline knew that the brunette would've dropped him if he did that and even if he could fall with grace and on his feet, that didn't mean that it wouldn't come with pain.

The brunette shoved the growling kitten back into the basket and started walking in a faster pace to her friend's place. She didn't want to be with the monstrous feline any longer!

"I thought you were a cute fluffy little kitty when I saw you in the pet shop the other day," Aida muttered to herself as she walked through the neighborhood. "No wonder that owner wanted to get rid of you that quickly! You're the devil in disguise! Using those big eyes of yours to get what you want."

"Meow." The cat purred in agreement while trying to get out of the basket once again.

Aida tsked. "You aren't getting out until I give you to my friend. Since you're one of those kitties that need a lot of attention, I'm sure that guy will have his hands full with you around."

"Nya."

"He's kinda like a loner you see," The brunette didn't know why she was explaining her friend's situation to a cat. For some odd reason, it felt like the red kitten could understand her. How peculiar. "He isn't that easily noticed so people tend to bump into him a lot and ignore him too. But now, he's a pretty good kindergarten teacher. The kids absolutely love him!"

"Mrow." She translated that as "So what's the problem?"

Aida huffed. "I haven't seen Kuroko for almost 2 months already. I've also asked his other friends if they've seen him and no, they haven't. Ever since we all graduated from college, everyone's been busy with work. I've known him since high school and he doesn't talk much unless necessary. Knowing that guy, he probably thinks it's not necessary for him to come to me or the others because he thinks work is more important to us."

"Kuroko's one of the sharpest guys I know but sometimes he can be an oblivious baka like Kagami." The brunette pinched her nose in irritation. "But that's where you'll come in!"

"Nya."

"You'll be his friend outside of his work area!" Aida smiled brightly. This was one of her best plans yet. Kuroko absolutely adored animals! "While the others and I try to fix our schedules, you'll be there to keep Kuroko busy! He's probably lonely after school so you're perfect for him!"

She ignored the growls as she swung the basket excitedly while she walked to the home of her kouhai.

Ding dong!

"Nnnn…." The bluenette grumbled as he put the pillow over his head. Who could be visiting at this hour?

Ding dong! Ding dong!

"Let me sleep…."

DIIIIIIING DOOOOONG

"I'm up, I'm up." Kuroko got up ungracefully and walked slowly to the entrance while trying to ignore the constant ringing of the door bell. He rubbed his eyes and shook his head to shake some of the drowsiness off before fixing himself up to look a little more presentable. He forgot to change clothes after work since he fell asleep in the sanctuary of his sofa.

The bluenette opened the door. "Good Evening, may I help y – "

"KUROKO!" The male froze as he was engulfed in a very tight hug. "I haven't seen you in a while! And you're still skinny! Have you been eating well? I hope you're not living on vanilla milkshakes only! I might set an appointment with Midorima if you are!"

"Aida-san…." Kuroko let out a chokey response in surprise. It was becoming very difficult for him to breathe. "Please…let go…"

"Ah, sorry!" Aida smiled apologetically as she let go of the bluenette who was trying to regain some air. "It's just I haven't seen you or heard from you for a while. You really should get a cell phone!"

"I don't really need one." Kuroko replied as he gestured for the brunette to come in. Aida skipped into his home and scanned it with her sharp eyes.

"Nothing much has changed from before." The former coach of Seirin pointed out as she sat on the slightly messed up sofa. "You're still not one for change of scenery, are you?"

"I'm very comfortable with what I have now so I don't think I have any reason to change anything." Kuroko reasoned, taking a seat next to the brunette.

"You're still in your work clothes." Aida noticed as she put her stuff down and whispered quietly to the cat in the basket to not say anything. "Did you just come home from work?"

"Actually, I fell asleep after coming home from work a few hours ago and I only woke up once I heard the door bell." The bluenette replied bluntly.

"Eh? Are you getting enough sleep? Or is the stress of taking care of children starting to take its toll on you?" Aida snickered as she added, "But I doubt it will make much of a difference for your appearance. You always did keep that baby face of yours. Sometimes I forget that you're only a year younger than me."

Kuroko pouted slightly when he heard that but kept his stoic expression on. "What are you doing here?"

"Always to the point," Aida muttered to herself before grabbing the basket and shoving it to the bluenette's arms. "I have a present for you!"

"….Why?" The brunette mentally smacked herself.

"Do I really need a reason to give my friend a gift?"

"If the gift is from you then yes." Blank eyes stared into those of the brunette.

The older female put her hands up with a chuckle. "Fine, you got me there." She opened the back pack she brought along with her and took out all the things she brought.

"Here! You'll need this!" She handed a small bag of shampoos, soaps and brushes. "And this," A large pack of pet food that probably took up most of the space of the brunette's back pack. "And these toys!" a couple of balls of yarn, a cat scratcher and a few other toys.

"What will I need all these for?" Kuroko asked in confusion.

"For your new cat who is currently in that basket!" Aida grinned without a care in the world. "Well, I've got to go!" She rushed to the door and waved. "See you!" And the door slammed shut with a loud bang.

"… She didn't even tell me why she gave me all these…." Kuroko muttered before setting them all down on the table and the basket was place directly in front of him. In that container was a little kitten waiting to be taken care of. Would he be a good owner? No, owner wasn't a good word for it. Friend? Companion? Was it alright for someone like him to take care of a cat?

'Well, you take care of at least 30 very hyper 3-5 year old kids a day, how much difference can a single kitten make?' A voice in his head said. The bluenette agreed with the voice and besides, a kitten is pretty normal right?

Kuroko nodded to himself and opened the basket.

A red fluffy head with crimson and yellow eyes came out.

"Meow~" The kitten stared at Kuroko's blank icy blue eyes and silence filled the whole home once again. Both the cat and Kuroko did not look away from the other's curious gaze.

Though the bluenette seemed to be completely impassive about the fluffy animal, his mind was actually going haywire with the cuteness of the kitten in front of him.

After what seemed to be a decade, Kuroko picked up the red cat and pulled it close to his face.

"I like you already." In response, the kitten licked his nose.

The next day

"Kitty!" Kuroko called out as he placed a bowl of cat food and a bowl of milk on the floor. "Time to eat!" After saying that, he rushed around the house, grabbing all the checked papers and putting them all as neatly as he could in his messenger's bag.

The bluenette did not notice the kitten watching him in amusement while it quickly finished what was served to him. The red ball of fur stretched itself as Kuroko rushed around the house seizing all the things that he needed for school later while cleaning things up.

His home was a tidy place and he would very like to keep it that way.

"Cat hair here, cat hair there," Kuroko huffed at seeing the small red ball of fur for the 3rd time that morning. "Not as much as I expected though. This one's pretty easy to clean after…"

"Meow," The cute fluff nudged Kuroko's leg.

"Ah, yes?" The bluenette looked down and saw his school ID in the mouth of his new pet. "Thank you very much." He smiled slightly as he took the ID and patted the kitty. Kuroko turned around before he could notice the smug look on the cat's face.

"Ah, you're finished with your food." Kuroko swiped the two bowls up and quickly washed them before drying and putting them back into the drawer. There wasn't much of a difference in his daily routine.

Once everything was packed, Kuroko checked the time.

"Just in time," It usually took a 15 minute walk to get to school and he always came to school half an hour before the bell would ring. "Time to go – Wait – Where's my bag?"

"Mee~oow." The bluenette snapped his head to the direction of his hopping bag that was beside the sofa. He could see a tail swishing in and out of the bag.

"What are you doing there?" Kuroko grabbed his bag and opened it to see heterochromatic eyes shining innocently at him.

"Nyaaa…" Kuroko mentally aww'ed at the cute scene in front of him.

"You want to come with me." It was a statement, not a question."

"Nya." The eyes looked like they were sparkling.

"Well…." Kuroko knew that teachers were allowed to bring pets in kindergarten to entertain and play with the students. So…. "Alright then." The cat pounced out of the bag and landed on his shoulder then climbed up his head.

"Meow!" The cat mewled victoriously before making himself comfortable on top of Kuroko's head.

He was spoiling the cat too much.

"Uwaaah! He's so cute!" A pig tailed girl squealed in delight as she stroked the red kitten. Kuroko watched the students interact with the kitten from afar.

"He has pretty eyes! Red and Yellow!" One of the kids pointed out as he took a closer look at the fluffy little feline. He was certainly enjoying the attention he was receiving.

"Are we allowed to play with him, Tetsu-nii?" The class asked in unison. The pleading tone could be heard loud and clear.

"Of course you are." Kuroko replied with a slight smile on his face when he heard the happy squeals coming from the children and a meow from the kitten.

"Let's play dress up!" A few kids sweatdropped because the last time they played dress up, all the girls and boys had to wear dresses and gowns.

"No! We'll play dungeons and dragons!"

"No let's pretend we're a kingdom! And the kitty's the King!" Shouts of agreement were heard.

A blonde girl announced, "I'll be the princess!"

"We'll be the warriors!" A group of grinning boys said. "We'll protect the King!" A raven haired child carried the kitten and place him on top of the stack of pillows.

"I found a small crown that might fit his head!" One of the kids said as she took a small crown out of the box of toys.

"I'll use my clean handkerchief as his cape!" The crown was placed on the red kitty and the cape was tied a little loosely around the kitten's neck.

"Wait a minute, Tetsu-nii!" A child ran up to the bluenette and poked him a little to get his attention. "What's the name of your kitty?"

Kuroko mentally smacked himself. He forgot to name the kitten!

"Hm…." The older male walked to through the group of kids and looked a little closely at the red kitten. After a few moments of thinking, Kuroko thought of the perfect name for the cute bundle of joy.

"His name shall be, Aka (Red) Shi (King)." Kuroko announced as the kitten perked up. "Your King's name is Akashi."

For some reason, the kitten stared at him with an unreadable look on its face.

"All hail to King Akashi!" The kids bowed to the kitten before they started laughing amongst themselves.

"Tetsu-nii will be the queen!" Kuroko was about to speak against that but chose to keep his mouth shut and let the children have their fun. He did not notice that the kitten was still staring at him.

Kuroko watched closely as they started to pretend to be of royalty while others acted like warriors. It was cute to watch them especially when they carry the crowned kitten on their shoulders. They continued to run around and throw pillows at one another until...

RING~~~

"Nap time everyone," Kuroko said as he clapped his hands to get everyone's attention. "Put all the toys and pillows back to where you got them and arrange them properly!"

"Okay, Tetsu-nii!" The kids gathered all the stuff and did as they were told.

Kuroko walked to the his pet and took of the crown and gave the handkerchief back to his student.

"You seem to have enjoyed yourself, Akashi." The bluenette commented as the kitten climbed its way out of his arms and made itself comfortable again on his head. "You seem tired as well."

"Meeoow…" Kuroko chuckled quietly to himself before joining the kids in cleaning up

"Would you like to come to school again tomorrow, Akashi?" Kuroko asked after he sipped his vanilla milkshake. "The kids had fun playing with you today."

"Nya~" The kitten was currently relaxing on his shoulder. Occasionally licking his cheek as a sign of affection.

The bluenette scratched the head of his cat. "You're a very smart cat you know? You were helping the kids during class. If I didn't know any better, I would have thought that you memorized the alphabet and can really understand me."

"Meow," There was something strange with the tone Akashi used but the kindergarten teacher chose to pay no mind to it.

"But I wonder why you bit a while ago…" Kuroko pondered, looking at his left hand. The bite mark wasn't that visible anymore but it still felt a little stingy. "Did I scratch you in the wrong place?"

"Mrowl…" The kitten let out with an apologetic tone.

Kuroko's lips quirked up a little. "Don't worry, Akashi. I forgive you. I'm just wondering what I did to upset you."

The cat didn't answer and simply closed its eyes after letting out a yawn.

"Yeah, I'm sleepy too."

Akashi silently crawled out of its small soft bed and hopped up as inconspicuously as he could to Kuroko's. The bluenette was in deep sleep which wasn't really surprising. It was a few minutes past midnight already.

The cat looked at the left hand of the male teacher and watched as the mark disappeared. It was as though the furry feline hadn't even bitten the bluenette at all.

Suddenly a light came and surrounded the red feline. Kuroko simply turned his head slightly and covered his face to block out the light. He stirred slightly again but did not wake up. He was still asleep.

The bluenette did not notice the bed move slightly like there was another person sitting down on his bed. He simply moved again, closer to sudden source of warmth that revealed itself beside him.

Kuroko let out a relaxed humming sound when he felt a hand stroke his head soothingly. He could help but unconsciously grab the hand and pull it closer to his face.

"If you keep this up," A dark voice purred as Kuroko latched himself to the stranger. "I will never let you go."

The only response he got was a sleepy hum and the red head silently chucked to himself.

"You're in for quite a surprise tomorrow," Akashi smirked before placing a kiss on the bluenette's cheek and changing back to a kitten. The heterochromatic kit crawled under the bed sheets and made itself comfortable in between Kuroko's arms that seemed to be searching for the source of warmth that had suddenly appeared a while ago. They seemed to have finally relaxed and hugged the red kitten closer to his being.

"Meow~"

Oh what fun tomorrow shall be~

End of Chapter.

OMAKE

"Sign here," The person at the cashier said with a serious tone as he gave the piece of paper to Aida.

"What's this?" The brunette asked as she held the kitten she had just bought.

"I need you to sign here because it will certify that no one shall return this kitten to this shop no matter what."

"Eh?" Aida stared at the cute kitty with confusion. Who would even want to return this fluffy ball of adorableness? And without putting much more thought into it, she signed the paper.

"Here you go," The man took the paper immediately and shoo'ed the girl out of the shop.

"I wonder what that was all about." Aida wondered to herself. "That guy acted like you were a monster or something."

"Meow~"

OMAKE 2

History of Akashi's former owners

First owner: Almost died due to lack of oxygen. A shogi piece was found in his throat. How it got there was not explained. The cat was just sent back to the shop after the incident.

Second owner: Not yet found. The police could only find a cat with red fur in his apartment. The only lead they had was the blood found in the cat's food bowl. The cat was sleeping when the police came to the scene. After finding no evidence about the cat being part of the man's disappearance, he was returned to the shop.

Third Owner: Is currently in a mental hospital. Cannot stop muttering the words, "Red and Yellow".

(Skip to the last owner before Kuroko) Forty fifth owner: In a coma. Reason unknown. Never woke up after she first purchased the kitten.

No one ever noticed the very light mark on the former owners' hands.

What will be Kuroko's verdict?

AN: So it's finally here :D The rating might go up in the future and the KuroBasu characters will pop up one by one in the future. Akashi's secrets will also be revealed as each chapter comes.

Suggestions for the mischief our favorite heterochromatic red head should do? They're very much welcome!