Author note: A warm welcome to my readers or anyone else who has stumbled upon this story and decided to give it a try, all I can say is that I hope that I don't disappoint. This story is the product of a burst of inspiration that I had received after reading Kuroko no Basuke extra game, so I guess it goes without saying that the story is set after the original series ended which means that there will be a few spoilers after the first couple of chapters. I'll ensure to give spoiler alerts before those chapters and lastly please do send some feedback this way, love it, hate it or absolutely rubbish—all is appreciated.
From the inky depths of the ocean she could see the light guiding her to the truth, yet she refuses to accept her saviour.
Chapter one: Pitch black
She sometimes wonders what it must feel like to dress in white and walk down the aisle, she dreams about it, even more so than other girls because she knows that for her it can never be, no white, frilly wedding dress that makes you look like a beautiful iced cake. No rows upon rows of people smiling with happiness and no parents to cry from joy. Sometimes the pain of longing is far too unbearable, she wants to scream out in frustration, yell to the world that she deserves happiness just as much as anyone else, but so much has happened. How could she possibly even dare to dream, but she does anyway especially when she is alone, so in the growing darkness of the night she finds herself closing her eyes and imaging her wedding day.
All is as perfect as it should be, all her loved ones are here, so ever so gracefully she walks towards the altar. Her dress feels light, bouquet in her hand and then suddenly her eyes meet his; that is when everything slowly melts away in the background, all matters are no longer important. A flutter of excitement erupts within the pit of her stomach, this is what she has been waiting for her whole life, to be with him, as he had always promised. Her heart is beating so fast from anticipation she can hardly wait, the walk down the aisle feels far too long and then she finally reaches him, she can't read his expression due to her veil and she waits anxiously for him to slowly remove it from her face.
The moment of truth finally arrives as his fingers lift the last barrier between them but what she sees next grips her in horror, the golden locks of her groom has been replaced with vivid red. Chocolate coloured eyes that had once comforted her so greatly are now a dark shade of crimson.
"This is mistake"
"Is it Shiori?" And that voice, so familiar yet distant.
"Who are you?"
"Your groom." His tone of voice is nonchalant, no emotion and certainly no love.
It is then Shiori Nori startles awake, instantly she starts to breathe heavily, almost hyperventilating. It takes a minute or two to realise that she had fallen asleep and her last thoughts before drifting off had been about her wedding, the thought instantly depresses her as she glances around the room remembering where she is and what is to come in less than a year.
Life surely knew how to be cruel thinks Shiori bitterly as she once again lays back down in her bed, hoping desperately for a dreamless sleep.
Six months earlier
When did everything go so wrong? She couldn't answer that question, her mind is plagued with memories of the past, those precious few moments in her life when she was truly happy.
Now she feels nothing but numbness, her long strands of hair usually pulled away from her face with a hairband is a tangled mess, she hadn't put a comb through it for a good few days. Dark shadows under her eyes all betray her unusually calm composure—her mother is fighting for her life and all she can do is watch in horror, helpless and lost.
She had begged the doctors to keep her mother in the hospital, so that she could be closer to those who could help and get the treatment that she needed.
"There is no cure for cancer Nori san," the elderly doctor had said to her a couple of days ago, he took her aside and explained carefully that her mother was too weak for chemotherapy, besides there wouldn't be any use as she was in the last stage of her illness.
Only a matter of days, those words sliced through her, leaving her gasping for breath. She wanted to scream, shout from the top of her lungs but most of all she wanted to run, run away from all her problems, her pain and the feeling that she can't save her mother.
Not this time, this time she must accept defeat at the hands of fate.
"My time is up darling that's why I wanted to come back to Japan," her mother had whispered to her one evening while she placed the spoon filled with soup into her mother's dainty lips, which was once a shade of vivid pink but now held a tinge of blue, even her once rose coloured cheeks has now been reduced to a pasty white, it seemed all trace of life was slowly ebbing away from a woman who was once filled with vitality, love and tenderness.
"No you mustn't speak like that," she cried, desperately trying to stop the tears escaping her eyes.
"Shush sweetheart, it's going to be alright I have spoken to Masaomi and you have nothing to worry about. It's all taken care of."
Taken care of? Those words feel like an insult as she remembers the events from last week.
In the very same dimly lit room of the extravagant Akashi manor that her mother had taken refuge for the past four weeks the three of them stood in silence, while her mother lay in bed.
"All we need now is signature from both parties," Masaomi Akashi speaks clearly, his authoritative voice cuts through the gloomy atmosphere within the room. Mamiko Nori gives her daughter a soft encouraging smile, just a curve of the lips, her body too exhausted for anything too strenuous. Shiori glances at the document placed in front of her by her uncle, all it needed was her signature, with a flick of her pen her life would be sealed away but what other choice did she have.
Her mother's dying wish was to see her daughter not left in the mercy of her in laws, for the last ten years she had suffered from their scorn, bitter remarks but her late husband's will had thankfully protected them from anything else and they managed to live quite comfortably in the heart of New York, but what happens after her passing?
It is this very thought that had plagued her mind since the day she had been diagnosed with cancer, night after night she found herself tossing and turning in bed unable to sleep, every time she closed her eyes she would see Shiori on the streets crying.
"Why have you left me mother? Look at the state of me." Despite being a dream those words had been enough for Mamiko to take action, for the first time since the death of her sister in law she contacted her brother and now barely six months later she is slowly dying but she isn't afraid of death.
"The union of our children will be beneficial to us both Masaomi, Shiori will be eighteen in two years and as heiress she will inherit everything then. " Mamiko made good measure to add that in her final request to her brother because he didn't do things from the mere goodness of his heart. Money was the only language he spoke and if joining the two empires meant her daughter's security so be it.
With a slightly shaky hand Shiori signs, not once does she look in the direction of her cousin instead her gaze is fixed on her mother.
Are you happy now mother?
There is silent communication between mother and daughter while the document is passed over to her future husband. Despite the urge Shiori refuses to look at him, her entire life she has spent in the US and had never met him. Seijuro Akashi was merely a passing comment in their household while growing up, her genius cousin did little to tempt her attention but now he is going to be her husband?
The thought sends a sickening feeling within her gut, her teeth instantly bites her lip to keep from screaming out her anguish. As night quickly starts to fall the room becomes darker and Shiori grabs her mother's hand, so frail and she could hardly feel her pulse.
"Well I'm glad to say everything has now been finalised, now if you'll excuse me," and with those words her uncle saunters out of the room, a second later the door clicks slowly shut.
"Please excuse me as well obasan," it was the first time Shiori had heard him talk, she didn't know what to expect from it but it was strangely melodious, deep yet soothing. Under different circumstances she would have been attracted to that voice but all she could think of now is that it is the voice of a man she didn't love.
Her mother gives a nod of her head and Shiori once again refuses to look at him, although the urge is growing. With great determination her gaze is fixated on her dying mother, then just like his father Seijuro Akashi too leaves the room.
It has been a week since she has been labelled fiancé to Seijuro Akashi and the media has been on her back ever since, every time she left the house she found them after her like vultures. Her privacy and sanity had been invaded, Shiori couldn't help but feel so violated. Why couldn't the world just give her a break, couldn't they see she needed her peace. No, instead newspapers, magazines and even the news has been bombarded with nothing else but their controversial engagement. Worst of all it seemed that everyone had something or another to comment about it.
You had modernists disgusted with the marriage which they saw clearly as blue blood trying to keep their lineage, money and status within the family. Whereas, the more sympathetic of the general public had called it as family taking care of their own.
Basketball lovers awaited what the engagement would mean to Akashi's captaincy and future games. Had the red head finally fallen in love?
Each story, opinion and comment had become more exaggerated than the last which was fuelled by the silence of the Akashi family, as neither future bride nor groom had made so much as a comment about the engagement.
Within two weeks the gossip slowly began to finally die down, people moved on to talk about other things and Seijuro Akashi returned back to school, his demeanour hadn't changed in the slightest and it seemed that no such engagement had even occurred.
Two months later.
"Hi, I'm Mei Haruno," Shiori Nori looks up from her novel to meet the gaze of a pretty looking girl, her chestnut brown hair is tied up in a bun and warm honey coloured eyes has a touch of warmness, "you're the new girl right?"
"Shiori Nori," she places her book on the bench next to her, glad to have some human company while the other girl gasps in recognition, oh here it comes.
"Oh! I know you! Megumi-kun said there was a new girl but I hadn't realised that it was you. You are Akashi-sama's fiancé, right? I heard about your mother's passing on the news, I'm really sorry." Shiori instantly stiffens at the remembrance but still gives a pained smile, at least she wasn't pestering her about the engagement as the other girls had done. That's why she had taken solace in the rooftop of Rakuzan's oldest building during break times.
"You know I completely understand what it is like to lose a loved one, my aunt also passed away from cancer a couple of years ago but let's not talk about that." She paused, narrowed her eyes and then turned back to Shiori with a brilliant smile on her face.
"Let's talk about happy things."
"If you mean my engagement."
"Err no thanks, I'm against arranged marriage point blank. No offence." For the first time in weeks Shiori grins.
"None taken,"
"So what do you say Ori-Kun, friends?"
Oddly the nickname cheered up Shiori, she heard about how addressing people by their first name was insulting in Japan especially after a first meeting but something told her that Mei hardly gave a toss about what society thought, and Shiori couldn't help but find that incredibly refreshing.
"Friends."
The ball hits the floor hard, creating a deafening noise— which could only mean one thing, Kotaro Hayama was practicing at his best. The monster of dribbling was bouncing the ball and forth in a feverous pattern, their recent loss to Seirin had left them burning with the desire to reach their full potential until they once again faced each other in court.
"That's enough for today," said coach Shirogane, it is already past eight and ever since their bitter defeat none of the players had left the gym before eight, he even had a sinking feeling that Akashi had carried on practicing when he went home, all of them pushing their bodies to the limit.
"Come on Sei-chan, let's go, the last shuttle bus will leave at eight fifteen," says Reo, pushing his sweaty strands of dark long hair from his eyes.
"Yeah, come on. I need to eat." Grumbled Nebuya.
"When do you ever not eat," Reo teased, Kotaro rushed over and slung both his long arms around his two teammates.
"No fighting now kids otherwise Sei-chan will get mad." He then guffaws with laughter. Akashi watches from the shadows as his teammates playfully banters with one another, although their loss had been a hard one it certainly helped to solidify and strengthen their relationship as a team, the next time they faced Seirin they will be stronger than ever and that was a promise.
"Are you coming Aka-chan?" Asks Kotaro, breaking away from their conversation. The court is now empty leaving just the four of them, the three of the uncrowned kings near the door and Akashi by the hoop still holding onto the basketball. The orange sphere now smooth from their intense practice session.
"I have a few things to take care off, you three go ahead. I'll see you tomorrow." His tone though curt held a strange softness to it that had become more frequent since the loss of their match.
A caring Akashi, who would have ever thought that was possible?
Dominating, leader and emperor were the words used to describe the ex-captain of the generation of miracles.
"Sure thing Aka-chan, see you tomorrow."
"Yeah, see you tomorrow Akashi." Reo however didn't leave as quickly as the others, he was always a bit more perceptive.
"Everything alright Sei-chan, you're not thinking about staying for another hour or two. You'll burn yourself out."
"I'm fine Reo and like I said I have a few things to take care off, nothing to worry about." Reo gives one last look of slight disbelief but deciding not to question the authority of his captain he too follows his teammates out the door.
Akashi stays for five minutes longer, dribbling, shooting and then finally decides to call it a day. After a quick shower and change of clothes he glances at his watch, exactly eight thirty— the time that he had promised to meet her.
When he walks into the library it is deathly silent and he is greeted by empty chairs, desks and rows upon rows of books however, in the corner he sees a flash of auburn hair.
Shiori Nori is fast asleep, head resting on a book. He sits opposite her, slightly irritated as it would mean that he would have to wake her.
At first he clears his throat, no reaction. Then he throws his bag against the chair, still nothing, growing incredibly frustrated he resorts to shaking her awake.
Gently her eyelids flutters open, startling green meets his dark crimson. For a second she is unable to register where she is and then when she does she instantly jerks upright, a blush spreads across her cheek. Akashi had told her that he would meet her after practice as his father had arranged a dinner party with a few of his close business associates.
"I'm sorry." Shiori mumbles.
"We have to get going, I have called the driver and he will pick us up in ten minutes, I'll wait outside."
He doesn't even look at her once.
"Akashi," she asks tentatively.
He turns around yet his gaze still doesn't meet hers, his brilliant red hair shimmering against the moonlit room, lips firm and for a second Shiori is nervous to ask him but she has no other choice. This part of the school is completely empty apart from the two of them and the last shuttle bus to their dorms had already left.
"I need to go to the ladies."
If looks could kill Shiori would probably be dead by now, his eyes gave her cold look which clearly spelt trouble. God she is such an idiot, she could have held it in until they got back to the Akashi estate but no, as usual she has to go on and open her big mouth and get her silly self into trouble. No less by the most feared person on campus and her future husband but, she is really trying not to think about that.
"Then go," Akashi says, his voice brittle and cool.
Shiori takes a deep breath.
"I'm well… I'm…" she laughs slightly to ease her anxiousness and then spits it out, she has already dug herself into a hole no use beating around the bush anymore.
"I'm scared."
It is right then that his little nuisance had become a bigger problem.