My first Kuroko no Basket story. Huzzah! :D It's just a simple oneshot, but I'm happy anyway! I only recently got into the series, but I love both it and its characters so far—so much that I actually wanted to do something with two of my favorites. Something simple, of course, since I'm just getting started, but yeah!

Here we go!

(BTW, the names are in western order, but the characters are still referred to by their surnames, as usual.)

Past The Zone

Kagami was looking forward to next week maybe a bit too much.

The day was getting old now, the sun setting over the horizon and dyeing his surroundings with a bright orange hue from its waning rays. He normally liked walking home during the evening; the view was always beautiful. Today, though, he was too lost in his fantasies to enjoy the view.

The following Monday was the first day of basketball tryouts that his high school's basketball team was holding, and he was intending on making the top tier with his performance that he'd honed back when he'd lived in America. He had full confidence that he'd have no trouble making it to a high tier, in any case—his six-foot-plus build alone was enough to catch any recruiter's eye alone, but he still had all the experience and strength to back up the message that his huge frame gave off to spectators. Also, he was convinced that his cherry-red hair and eyes would help him stand out even more to the potential recruiters—those features weren't common among people, after all.

His thoughts had worked him up too much to calm down by this point—he had to let off some of his energy with a couple rounds of basketball. But where could he play?

He then remembered that there was a small gym a couple miles from the station that normally took him home, so he immediately changed his course and bolted in the direction of the gym. He'd never been there, so he didn't know how long it would stay open (or if it was even open at this time at all), but it couldn't hurt to check—and he would be getting some valuable exercise with this running, anyhow. He had nothing to lose.

Thankfully, the gym was still open. Not so thankfully, the gym was just about to close up for the day in ten minutes.

Thankfully, again, however, was the manager's allowance of him staying behind for as long as he liked if he locked up the main door afterwards. Kagami agreed to the terms without question—he was itching to play.

"Just don't stay too late, young man," the manager called after him as Kagami dashed to the courts. "Strange characters tend to show up here past seven o'clock!"

"Yes, sir!" he called back distractedly as he went in for another dunk. "I won't stay too late!"

Then he immediately lost track of time.

And just like that, he was alone and the time was seven-thirty when he checked the clock again.

"Ah, damn it," he muttered to himself, toweling off his sweat and setting his phone back into his sports bag. "It's already this late…guess I gotta get going soon."

But then—

"Umm, excuse me. Is this basketball yours?"

He sighed and raised his head to answer wearily, "Oh, yeah; thanks a—" before realizing that someone else was in the building with him even though he'd definitely been here alone a second ago. He caught sight of a light-blue-haired and –eyed boy not much taller than five feet standing directly in front of him, holding out his basketball for him to take. He was wearing a plain white tee with black basketball shorts and dirty basketball shoes, and both of his wrists were adorned with black wrist warmers.

Kagami's heart damn near exploded at the sight of him.

"What the f—where the hell'd you come from?!" Kagami spluttered in a panic, stumbling backward.

"I've always been here," the boy said simply in reply, unfazed by his outburst. He held out the basketball. "So this is yours?"

Kagami put a hand to his heart and tried to breathe deeply and calm his heart down before taking the ball from him. "Yeah…thanks." He then moved to place his basketball beneath his arm without raising his head, his heart still racing in spite of his efforts. Damn, this kid had absolutely no presence. Had he really been there the entire time, or was he just pulling his leg for the hell of it? He turned to look at the kid again, who was still staring at him with those expressionless, penetrating blue eyes of his.

They were admittedly pretty unsettling to look at, so Kagami decided to strike up a conversation with the kid as he packed. "So who are you, kid?" he asked gruffly as he turned away again, folding up his damp towel. "I don't think I've ever seen you around here before."

"My name is Tetsuya Kuroko," the boy answered him in that same flat voice. "I was a freshman member of the basketball team at Seirin High School. Also, I would appreciate it if you refrained from calling me 'kid'."

Hold up; he said he was what now?!

"Seriously?!" Kagami exclaimed, turning back to look at the boy in disbelief. "You gotta be kidding me! A scrawny kid like you made it onto the basketball team there already?!"

The boy that had called himself Kuroko narrowed his eyes slightly—which oddly made him come off as menacing—at Kagami's remark.

"I'm not a kid," he said, his words tinged with the slightest hint of irritation. "So please don't call me that again. I'm going to be upset at you otherwise." The minute change in his expression immediately vanished as he promptly asked, "And you are?"

This kid was seriously giving him the creeps. "Taiga Kagami," he answered shortly as he turned away again, wishing the kid would leave him alone. "And for your information, I've never seen you during the basketball team gatherings. Quit pulling my leg." Though then again, Kagami might've never seen him because he was hard to notice.

This seemed to pique Kuroko's attention somewhat. "Are you a member of the Seirin basketball team as well?" he asked with mild interest, completely ignoring Kagami's remark.

"Not yet, but I'm gonna be soon," Kagami replied, standing up and cracking his neck once as he sighed. Man, why was he still talking to this kid? He didn't even know him. "I'm gonna knock 'em all dead at the tryouts Monday morning."

Kuroko didn't say anything in reply; he just briefly switched his gaze to the ground before looking back up at him and saying with brutal honesty, "Kagami-kun, if you go in with such a hot head, you're going to be crushed within seconds."

"Shut the hell up!" Kagami snapped, a tic going in his forehead as he turned on the boy lividly. "And don't call me by name like you know me; it's freakin' annoying!"

Kuroko blinked. "But I do know you. You gave me your name and everything. There's no point in doing that if you didn't want me to call you by name."

Kagami was damn near popping a vein at this kid's attitude. Jesus, what the hell was with him, anyway? He couldn't understand him at all!

"Um, actually…" Kagami paused at Kuroko's next words. The boy was staring up at him earnestly. "The thing is, I talked to you because I wanted to play basketball with you." He turned his attention to the basketball under Kagami's arm for a moment before look back at him again. "So…may I?"

Kagami raised an eyebrow in uncertainty. "You want to play against me?" he asked skeptically. "You sure about that?"

"Yes. I'm sure." Kuroko stared at him with those penetrating eyes once again before falling into a defensive stance, though…his gaze seemed somewhat different now. More firm, perhaps? Less blank than before? "Please, let me play with you. All you need to do is score one basket. Do that, and it's your win. I'll just try to stop you from scoring. Is that acceptable?"

While Kagami was pretty sure he'd blow past this scrawny brat within seconds, for some reason, he couldn't bring himself to ignore the challenge in the boy's gaze. It wouldn't have felt right. He found himself grinning in anticipation.

"All right; you asked for it," he said, moving his basketball to his right hand and beginning to dribble. "I was just about to leave, but I don't think I can leave you hanging after a challenge like that. I'm going to annihilate you!"

For the first time since the beginning of this conversation, Kuroko's lips twitched into a small smile. "…I wonder," was all he would say in response before both he and the ball vanished before Kagami could even blink.

His breath caught. What the…?! he thought in a panic, whirling about in an attempt to locate the boy. Where'd he—?!

Kagami finally thought to look behind him—and saw Kuroko already on the opposite side of the court, breathing in exertion and ball in hand.

When the hell did that happen?! he thought incredulously as the boy jogged back to where Kagami was. I didn't even see him!

Kuroko stopped about a yard away and held out the ball toward him. "Care to try again?" he asked.

Kagami gritted his teeth and snatched the ball away from his hands. "I don't know what the hell you did, but I'm not falling for it again!" He turned on the balls of his feet to face the hoop and tensed his legs to make the shot before Kuroko could stop him, but the ball was suddenly knocked out of his hands before he'd even raised his arms to shoot.

Kagami nearly choked. What the hell?! He swiftly looked behind him again, and he found Kuroko just a few millimeters shy of pushing his shoulder against Kagami's torso, his hand in the space where the ball had been.

What's with this kid, he thought in disbelief before quickly pulling away and catching the rebounding ball. It's like he's invisible or something! Damn it!

Kuroko looked at him once more. "One more time?" he asked.

Kagami's hands tensed around the ball before he snapped, "I'm not gonna let you win this time!"

And so it went for the next ten minutes.

Kuroko seemed to be getting tired of the routine by the time of the thirtieth or so block. He tugged his wrist warmers into place again before flicking his gaze back to Kagami. His next words were dripping with disappointment.

"I'd been hoping for a bit more of a challenge," he said despondently, lowering his arms and turning to face Kagami in full. His blank gaze was nothing short of patronizing. "You should give up on the tryout. You'll never make the team with only this amount of skill, Kagami-kun—let alone the top tier."

He couldn't take it anymore. Those words made Kagami see red, and he finally lost his temper.

"Don't you dare start patronizing me, you self-entitled bastard!" he roared, tearing his way to the other side of the court hardly a moment after the last syllable had left Kuroko's lips. He launched himself into the air the moment his feet hit the three-point line and dunked the ball into the basket so hard that the entire basket rattled from the force of the blow.

He landed hard on the balls of his feet, the momentum nearly driving him to his knees. He managed to keep his balance at the last minute, however, panting heavily in exertion. He turned around to face Kuroko and began to retort, "So do you still think that I should give up; you—" but cut himself short at the sight of the boy's expression.

Kuroko was staring at him in complete awe. His eyes, which had been rather empty and apathetic up until now, were now wide with shock. If he didn't know better, he'd think that Kuroko was reeling from that performance…and not entirely in a good way.

Kagami couldn't bring himself to finish his retort at the sight of that expression. Wha…was I too quick that time for it to be a fair contest? he thought. Maybe I should apologi—

"Kagami-kun."

Kagami started at the sound of Kuroko saying his name. He had turned his gaze to the floor now, the shadow of his bangs covering his eyes. His words were much more subdued than before.

Still, Kagami couldn't just stand there with his mouth agape like an idiot. "Y-yeah?"

"That play…" Kuroko raised his head then to look Kagami in the eye, a much more pronounced smile gracing his features. "That's the first time someone has managed to score against me. You're…you're an amazing player."

Kagami felt extremely uncomfortable. Was he supposed to thank him for the compliment right now? This situation felt kind of awkward for that. "Is—is that so…" Kuroko's words finally managed to fully catch up with him in the next couple seconds, however, and he lost his temper again. "…Wait a second; I can't tell if that was a compliment or an insult!"

"It was neither. It was just the truth." Kuroko's gaze cast back down to the ground, his smile suddenly gaining a hint of sadness. "It seems like…I won't have to stay here anymore."

Kagami had no idea when this kid would stop catching him off-guard. "Huh? What're you talking about?"

"Like I told you earlier…I was part of the Seirin basketball team myself. Back when I first joined, our team was strong—no other school in our prefecture could compete against us." Kuroko's gaze flicked to the side, looking almost embarrassed. "But around the time I was forced to leave, the team started to grow weaker. They started losing members…and they started to lose more games." He raised his hand and stared at his sweaty palm. "I couldn't stand seeing my old teammates suffering like that. As much as I would like to, I know I can't rejoin the basketball team ever again…so I started waiting here, looking for potential players that could help Seirin get its old strength back without me. I've been here a really long time, since no one I met here ever matched my standards. But…" He curled his hand into a fist and looked to Kagami with a grateful expression. "…I think that…you have the potential—no, the ability—to support Seirin and help them back to the top again. I'm glad I finally managed to find a player like you. Now I don't need to worry anymore."

Here Kuroko paused for a moment, which was much-needed relief for Kagami's reeling brain. He really didn't want to admit it to himself, but he couldn't follow a word Kuroko was saying. Too many things that were coming out of his mouth totally confused him and made no sense in his mind. He really wished the kid would start speaking in a language he could understand.

"Kagami-kun…" Kuroko started to speak again, bringing Kagami's focus back into the conversation. "I…have a request."

Kagami exhaled sharply in defeat. He might as well just give up on understanding him and go with the flow. Maybe this would be done with faster if he did. "Yeah? Lay it on me."

"It's just one thing, but…it's really important." Kuroko's gaze became firm and steely once more in entreating. "Please, help Seirin get stronger in my stead…and help them become the strongest team in Japan."

"…Tch, you don't need to ask me to do that," Kagami said after a moment's pause, a smirk creasing his features. "I was gonna do that anyway. But since you asked politely…" He clamped his hands into fists. "I'll definitely take this team all the way to the top. And I'll make sure you see us the moment we get crowned Number 1 in Japan!"

Kuroko said nothing, simply keeping that grateful smile in place as he lowered his gaze. However, Kagami could see traces of tears trailing down the boy's pallid cheeks at his words.

"…Thank you…" Kuroko's eyes closed. He did nothing to stop the tears from flowing. "Kagami-kun…I just want you to know…" He then raised his head and gave him the happiest smile that Kagami had seen from him since their encounter. "It…it was really fun…playing basketball with you…!"

Kagami couldn't help but smile in spite of himself. He opened his mouth, ready to return the words of gratitude.

But there was no one there to receive them. Kuroko had vanished right in front of him, just as suddenly as he'd appeared.

Luckily, the next day was a weekend, so he was able to stop off at the gym early enough to return the keys to the owner. There was a constant itch at the back of Kagami's mind regarding what had happened the night before, so he stayed behind to ask the owner a couple questions.

"Um, sir—I have a quick question."

The owner pocketed his keys after unlocking the door to the gym. "What is it, young man?"

Kagami rumpled his hair, feeling mildly embarrassed. "I, uh…I actually left a little later than you told me to last night, and—"

To his surprise, the middle-age man just chuckled.

"Well, I figured as much," he said lightly. He smiled knowingly. "So you've met this suspicious character, yes? A young boy, rather unassuming in appearance?"

"Y-yes." How did this man know? Was it a common occurance? "Do you know who he is?"

"I can't say for certain. He just started showing up in my gym after hours ever since an unfortunate accident took the life of a young player that visited regularly years ago. I'd get reports every day from regular visitors talking about a young man asking to play basketball with them whenever they stayed a bit longer than expected. My suspicions are that he is the one that lost his life here."

Kagami almost couldn't grasp what the old man was saying. "Wait, so you're saying that he's a ghost or something?"

The man raised his eyebrows in a peculiar manner. "Well, who's to say? It doesn't sound too out of the ordinary. That boy lived and breathed basketball—it wouldn't surprise me for him to want to stay here for a while and play some more." He turned and headed inside. "Though I suppose it could just be a coincidence as well, as he was never the easiest to notice. Truthfully, I don't even have a good idea of what the boy actually looks like…it depends on what you want to believe." He raised a hand to wave as he disappeared beyond the doorway. "Anyway, thank you for returning the keys, young man. You're welcome here any time."

Kagami was left alone at the entrance to the gym, completely dumbfounded, thoughts whirling through his head without control. He had to struggle to try and line up these thoughts.

A boy had died here in an accident years ago…people were reporting seeing a boy come up to them and ask to play basketball with them late at night…and that boy was hard to notice and very unremarkable. Any way he looked at it, the descriptions he'd heard almost perfectly matched what he'd figured out when he'd met Kuroko last night, when the boy had mentioned that he had been forced to quit the Seirin basketball team and couldn't ever return again…that he'd been waiting a long time for someone who could help them grow stronger without him…that he no longer had a reason to stay here after playing with him…

A sudden chill ran down Kagami's back when he finally put two and two together, even though the day was warm.

There was no way. He hadn't been playing basketball with a dead person that whole time…had he?

'Tis January 31st the day I'm posting this, which means I can say Happy Birthday to my adorable little Kuroko-kun in commemoration of my first KnB story! YAY! :D (It's his birthday today, you see.)

Heh, anyway…this was harder than I thought. ^^; I tried to stick close to the source material for these characters, even though it's an AU. It might not have been the best portrayal, though, since I'm still trying to get to know them. I know it was a tad too close to the source material for this to be a true AU, but I really can't separate these characters from basketball yet for some reason. Maybe in the future; who knows.

For those of you who don't know what Kuroko no Basket is (how the heck are most of you even here), go watch it! Or read it! Whichever! It is awesome!

And I know I wrote in Kagami's POV, but honestly…as much as I love Kuroko, and even though he's the main protagonist of the manga, he was (and still is, actually) too much of an enigma for me to figure out enough in time to be the main character for my first KnB entry. ^^; Still fun to write, though!

Anyway. Hope you enjoyed this! Should I write more KnB stories? Let me know!