This KnB fanfic is a collaboration between me and zaleras on tumblr. It's mostly their idea, I'm just helping them writing it out and supplying a couple ideas here and there. However we both hope you enjoy basketball dorks being badass.

Also we have drawn some elements of inspiration from various final fantasies for things like the hunting guilds and festival of the hunt. Rated T for language and descriptions of violence.

~Xar

He really hated flowers.

Not the type that just grew in fields all pretty like that people liked to gather in bouquets and give to their lovers, but the giant flesh-eating rabid ones. Like the one that was currently withering away because his sword was stuck in its face.

Kagami Taiga really, REALLY hated flowers. "Goddamn, won't you assholes leave me alone? Is it because I'm a tank? Is it because I have to get somewhere? Well, come ON! I DON'T HAVE ALL DAY!"

He really should've been questioning his sanity for yelling at the rotten corpse of a man-eating flower, but Kagami really didn't care at this point. No one was around to try and feed him a confusion antidote anyway.

It had been a couple weeks already since he entered this kingdom and he could already tell the rumors were true. It was overrun by twisted monsters, and even with his minimal magic power, he could sense something was off with this land. It was like it had been…poisoned, for the lack of a better word. It made him feel sick to the bottom of his stomach.

But that wasn't what he was there for. Kagami needed to find a hunting guild, and fast. There wasn't any better way to rise through the ranks and become the strongest in the land and besides, maybe he'd be able to find his brother again this way.

"Hmph. You all smell weak. Come back when you can give me a challenge." Kagami hefted his sword and again started cutting a path towards the village he'd heard about from locals. Seirin, it was called, home to a rather low-key hunting guild. But since some of the big fancy ones scoffed at a loud foreigner in their midst, he didn't have a choice.

He'd definitely show them-Kagami had a good feeling about this.

Kuroko Tetsuya had always been a quiet, unassuming person, and that helped greatly when he had to travel long distances through monster ridden forests. He had his knife by his side, but his spells weren't exactly the kinds that would help in an attack-at least, not with someone else there. That's why, when he discovered a loud angry tank travelling through the woods, Kuroko did what he did best and shadowed him.

The man was very good at attracting attention and he was able to pass by in peace. There were a few moments when the blue-haired mage was worried for the stranger, but his fears were unfounded-the man was very skilled.

This is very unlike you to get attached to such a stranger, he thought to himself, smiling slightly in the privacy of his own thoughts. Kuroko thought it may have been because he was reminded of an old friend, but he probably was just as soft-hearted as others accused him to be.

He didn't really mind either way.

It was only one day's journey more before the twisted and blackened trees opened up to a beautiful and clear sky. A great field stretched before them, marred only by the shape of naturally grown buildings-Seirin's guild must have a few nature mages among them. There seemed to be a lake over to one side, but all in all, it was surrounded by the dark, foreboding woods Kuroko had just come out of. The trees were twisted in such a way it almost seemed like an impassable wall, if not for the one lone path meandering its way through them.

Kuroko was caught in the moment for too long, so he shook himself, coming back to his senses to realize the tank man had gone. That was okay, for he no longer needed his help, and besides, wouldn't they meet again? Seirin's guild was just up ahead and by the news he'd heard a festival of the hunt was being held there to drum up excitement for the newly formed organization.

Perhaps here I can find allies. Kuroko's thought's wandered as much as his feet did as he slowly made his way down.

By the time he got there, he could tell the Festival part was definitely in full swing. Laughter and loud voices rang down the surprisingly crowded streets, along with vendors set up trying to hawk their wares. Seirin may have been a new guild, but the village itself was home to a surprising amount of mages and the forming members had taken down an S-class hunt just last year. Now they had set things up to drum up publicity for more members, which Kuroko was happy to oblige with.

His low presence allowed him to scoot his way around the crowds of people, families with children, and a couple of mages showing off simple elemental spells. Kuroko found a tiny side-street to sidle down, resting for a moment before continuing along to the guild-house itself. He was impressed with the architecture of the town; it was a beautiful mix of both man-made and natural structures, fused together with the intervention of magic. He even walked past a house that seemed to be literally made out of a tree-definitely the work of an elf.

Seirin seemed to be a good influence on this town and there was no better place for acceptance, he could feel it. His dying hope rekindled in the fact that maybe here, he could have a chance to regain everything. However, Kuroko would just have to wait until the hunt to see if he could find a suitable partner. Everything hinged on that.

His footsteps quieted as he approached the guild, hearing loud voices from inside. Ignoring the large sign that proclaimed "Seirin Hunting Guild", he slid the door open and walked inside.

There were a couple other people scattered around, but his attention was immediately drawn by the same angry red-haired tank that Kuroko had been shadowing very carefully.

"And I'm asking you what the hell this Festival of the Hunt thing is!" His loud voice rang out, and Kuroko almost winced. He was even worse in close quarters. Quickly, while he was drawing the attention, the mage reached out and took a signup paper off the desk to fill it out.

Kuroko hummed to himself as he sat down on the nice wooden floor to fill it out. Name and age were easy: Kuroko Tetsuya, Age 17. He paused in the middle of writing down his occupation, feeling the normal quiver of fear in his stomach. He had resolved to do this, right? To admit everything up straight….besides, Seirin would be different, he could tell that. Kuroko still felt uneasy, but his face betrayed nothing as he quickly wrote the words 'White Mage' down in the empty slot.

Reason for joining was the hard one, but he jotted something down about wanting to become stronger and protect people and stood up again. The red-haired man was STILL arguing with the equally irritated elf with glasses who was manning the desk. It was almost funny. Kuroko slid his application in next to the brown haired woman's hand and turned to leave, sparing only the littlest of glances towards the strange newcomer.

He wasn't inclined to believe in fate, but meeting him like this couldn't be a coincidence. Where exactly would this lead?

Kagami was irritated, and not just because he managed to get into a verbal sparring match with some angry spectacled elf within five minutes of getting here. It was the fact that there was this festival thing he had to participate in and no one had told him.

"Listen. We here at Seirin aren't like other guilds! We don't take you in because your parents are wealthy or were good hunters in their time. We take them in on pure talent! You show us this or you're out, moron!" The elf yelled straight at his face.

"I'm not from around here, okay?! Nobody told me there would be fuckin' requirements to joining a place! I had enough of this shit from the fancy-ass city guilds," Kagami growled, his eyes drilling into the elf's skull. He was tired, hungry and just wanted to eat about five hundred stakes, but instead he was here playing question and answer with the goddamn guild leader.

"And I'm here to tell you I don't care. Either you play by out rules, or you get kicked out!"

"And I'm asking you what the hell this Festival of the Hunt thing is!" Kagami shouted back. They were attracting so much attention but he didn't care.

"Hyuga!" The brown-haired woman next to him snapped, jolting the elf out of his anger. "That's enough!"

She glared at the man until he sat down grumbling, then did the same to Kagami.

"And that's enough from you too. Sit!" She thundered, her face darkening.

"Yes, ma'am," He said, and sat down in one of the seats provided. The human smiled, pleased.

"And Hyuga, I know you're worried about Kiyoshi, but taking it out on the new recruits isn't a good idea. That's my job," she said, causing the elf-Hyuga- to make an ugly face.

"I'm not worried," he muttered below his breath before shutting up completely.

"Now, Kagami Taiga, was it? The Festival of the Hunt is an annual event among hunting guilds to drum up publicity and participation. It's also tradition for new guilds such as ourselves to hold this event to try and recruit more members into our ranks.

"It varies among guild and region, but it mostly involves setting up an arena, forming pairs of hunters, and releasing summoned or captured monsters. Whoever kills the most wins, and the prizes are usually pretty great. Money, fame, the works. However, this Festival is a little special for Seirin. You see, we let new recruits join and train with us, but they can only participate in marks if they win our special festivals," The woman said, smiling innocently.

Something about it sent shivers down his spine. I thought Seirin was gonna be easy to get into! I guess I was underestimating these guys…

"Oh right, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Aida Riko, Seirin's guild leader," The woman continued, causing Kagami to stop in his tracks.

"Wait, what? It's not him?" He yelped, pointing over at Hyuga.

"Idiot! Of course its her! I'm just the personnel officer!" The man shouted again before falling quiet.

"If you want to complain, you'll take it up with my fists, so I better not hear anything from you if you really want to be a part of this guild!" Riko commanded, and Kagami just nodded and sat still. He couldn't tell what class she was just from her simple uniform but he had an inkling he did not want to find out.

"Now that we have that straightened out, where are you from, Kagami? I thought Festivals of the Hunt were common knowledge," She said, organizing the papers in front of her.

"I'm from Verna, originally. Kingdom to the north," Kagami said, trying his best to look disaffected. This garnered looks of surprise from both guild leaders.

"Verna? The destroyed kingdom? How did you make it here then?" Riko asked. "I thought Lunat left it barren long ago!"

"My teacher found me and my brother and took us in after the war had passed our home. Long story short, we got separating, and when I heard your king was dying, decided to chance my luck here," Kagami said with a disaffected air.

Both of them glanced at each other, as if not sure what to say. "I'm surprised you'd come here after all that happened to your homeland."

"That's why I'm here. To become the greatest hunter in Lunat. Then they'll see just how wrong they were." Finding his brother would be an added bonus, along with possibly overthrowing a government, but that was a long time coming. Guilds were exerting more and more political influence every day so in a moment of sudden brilliance, Kagami realized that joining one and becoming powerful was better than challenging a monarch on his own.

There was also something fishy going on with Lunat's elite but he didn't pay attention to that. Right now he cared more about fighting.

"Well, we won't question your motives as long as you don't cause trouble, " Riko said, eyeing him. "Though from your personality that might be asking too much."

"Hey!"

Riko just waved him off. "So, Kagami Taiga, the tank from Verna, you're officially registered. Just in time too. The hunt is about to start in one hour. I suggest you find yourself a partner."

An hour? He had an hour to find some random person who wouldn't hold him back so he could actually participate in hunts and fulfill his dreams? This was bullsh-

"WHAT?!" Riko practically screamed, holding up one of the recruitment forms. Hyuga hadn't been expecting it either, as he jumped just like Kagami.

"What is it, Riko?" The elf asked, trying to peek over her shoulder.

"This kid put down he's a white mage!"

The entire guild went silent at the remark, leaving Kagami extremely confused. "What's so special about that?"

"Idiot! Did your brain rot or something? White mages and holy magic users were pretty much exterminated years ago!" Riko exclaimed, actually standing up in her confusion. "And now one comes to our guild and signs up, from Teiko of all places?!"

Teiko Kagami had heard of. The infamous hunter's guild, one that was famed for having the strongest hunters the world had ever seen-so strong they were given the name Kiseki. Miracles. But it was still a time ripe with conflict and the king of Lunat struggling to regain his control after the war, so Teiko went up against them for reasons still unknown. It was only a few years later that the entire guild vanished, its Kiseki members becoming known more as legends than actual living beings.

At least, until the Red Emperor came to light, and the tale of a fearsome dark knight that roamed the lands, leaving death in his wake was born: the same Red Emperor that had led the now fallen king of guilds. All the members were thought to have been killed or twisted into monsters, so how had this man….

"I didn't even see him, "Kagami wondered, after a moment of introspection, before breaking out into an evil grin. "Now this is gonna be fun."

He stood up and left the guild leader in her stunned silence.

What Riko and Hyuga hadn't told him was that the hunt may have started in an hour, but most of the recruits had already been there for days. And he was supposed to find them with minimal to no directions from anyone. Well yes, he could've asked for some from passerby, but most of them were scared by his angry face and the fact that he was over six feet tall.

Kagami only had to wander for about five minutes though before a stream of people led him outside the village, where a bunch of stands and seats were set up. This was the arena for the hunt, but where were the….

The new recruits were bunched over on the side of the wide open field where someone had set up a few cloth tents for whatever reason, so he pushed his way through the crowd to meet up with them. The excitement in the air was almost palpable-he could hear it in the rushed and enthusiastic voices of the crowds, in the throngs of people running from one place to next, and even in the faces of the participants. This was the atmosphere he lived for.

The tents flapped in the slight breeze as he came to a stop next to the new recruits, most of which looked up at Kagami in fear. He merely snorted and looked out onto the field, squinting. It was huge and open, and there didn't seem to be any monsters in sight, just grass. It was weird, but he was dying with excitement. This was a chance to show off his skills so why didn't they start already?

Oh right, he had to find himself a partner, wasn't it? That's what Riko had said, anyway. He looked back at the other recruits, but everyone seemed to be paired up already. There were a few swordsmen like him, another elven mage, even a couple of Bel'ua archers, their mouse ears twitching in the wind. No one remarkable. No one like the fabled Teiko white mage.

"Any of you don't have a partner?" He growled, causing more than one of the swordmasters to flinch. Seriously? How cowardly were they?

"Sorry, we all got paired up before you came…" The human one looked like he was scared Kagami was going to eat him. As hungry as he was right now, someone like that would just give him a stomachache.

Well this was just great. No partners and no time to even go find a snack before he began. The tank briefly considered just entering alone, until he felt someone poke him on his bare shoulder.

"Aaa!" He turned and gave an ungodly squeak from the unexpected presence next to him. Kagami tried to recover his heart rate and in doing so, found himself staring into a pair of large blue eyes. "What the actual fuck?"

"I'm sorry, but you seemed distracted and I had no other way of gaining your attention. You were looking for a partner?" The man-no, kid said tonelessly. Kagami didn't answer at first, too startled by his appearance. The first strange thing was the bright sky-blue hair, which was not exactly normal for a human. The second were his clothes. Kagami knew the kid had to be a mage, since he was wearing cloth and had what looked like magic potions and charms in his bags, but he'd never seen anything like his outfit before.

It was both white and black, but there seemed to be blue circles along the edge of the fabric that seemed to shimmer and move in the light, the same with the leather straps running down his chest. What struck Kagami as strange the most, however, was his completely blank expression. It wasn't like Kagami was going out of his way to say he had a nice face-hesortofdid-but the kid was just staring at him and it creeped him out beyond normal.

"How the hell did you do that?"

"Do what, Kagami-san?" The blue boy asked.

"You know, sneak up behind me! No one can do that. And how do you know my name?!" Kagami sputtered, looking between the odd mage and the other recruits. They all just looked as wierded out as he was.

"Aida-san told it to me. She said the large, angry red-headed swordsman would be my partner since we both signed up at the last minute," the kid said, as if it was the most logical thing in the world.

"Hey! Don't go deciding things like that on my behalf!" He said angrily.

"It's already been decided. Besides, I wanted to partner with Kagami-san anyway. He seems very promising," the mage continued to say, as if ignoring said tank's increasing discomfort.

"Like I said, stop deciding things for me! Who said I wanted to be partnered with you anyway?!"

"Kagami-san, if you don't-"

"Everyone, welcome to the second annual Seirin Festival of the Hunt!" Riko's voice suddenly boomed across the entire arena, causing half the population to start in surprise. "We apologize for the wait, but we're ready to get things started! Are you?"

A resulting cheer from the crowd of people was the answer, and Kagami felt his arm being tugged on by the blue-haired mage as the rest of the recruits were making their way down to the stage. Startled as he was, Kagami allowed it, at least until they were on the field before he tugged his arm away angrily.

Looking up at the wooden stage, Riko and Hyuga were standing up on it, the leader holding a strange cone that must have been enchanted with loudspeak for her to be heard that clearly. Behind them the seats were raised in a half-circle and filled with villagers of all different races. This is a lot of people for one village…do people travel specifically for this event?

"We have some promising new recruits here to participate! Each participant is paired to a partner and set out onto the playing field. The duo that comes back with the most kills is awarded first place, this amulet of speed-casting, and the chance to become a new ranked member in our guild. Let's hear it for the new guys!" Riko announced, garnering another wave of cheering and applause from the audience. The air was practically bristling with energy now, and Kagami was fidgeting with his armor and sword. He couldn't stand still, he wanted to fight.

"And now, without further ado….Hyuga-kun, Izuki-kun, please do us the honors!" Riko gestured to the two black-haired men standing on either side of her, one whom Kagami hadn't seen before. Both of them raised their hands, seals glowing in their palms. What the-

Kagami whirled around, only to see a similar seal appear in the middle of the giant field before them. It expanded until it took up the whole area, before shattering, releasing tiny sparkles into the air. Immediately there was a snapping sound and the ground sprang to live, trees and vines suddenly appearing and weaving themselves into an almost impenetrable wall. The shadows grew longer as the branches grew bigger, and Kagami could only close his eyes as the crunching and snapping sounds grew louder.

As suddenly as the growth began, it stopped, leaving behind a deadly looking patch of forest riddled with sharp thorns and giant leaves. Hyuga shouted something behind him and the tank heard the sound of another seal being shattered, a roar echoing through the forest not a moment later.

A few screams and cries were heard from the audience-and participants-before everything fell to a deadly, heavy silence. Riko rose her cone of shattering voices. "Medics are on standby to help any of the injured as always. Without any further ado, LET THE GAMES BEGIN!"

Kagami had rushed into the giant magical forest not moments later and almost immediately lost his partner, whom he'd forgotten existed for a few moments, until he heard a weak voice behind him.

"Kagami-san….you're too fast…." He stopped suddenly and turned around, only to find the blue-haired mage bent over, panting.

"What? How long have you been there?" Kagami asked. Seriously, he'd forgotten about him!

"I would say the whole time, but I am rather tired of repeating myself. Kagami-san, if you have any hope of winning, you can't just rush off and leave your partner behind," the boy said after regaining his breath.

"Oh really? Says who?"

"Says your partner."

Kagami nearly punched the kid at that very moment. For someone who spoke so politely he certainly had a mouth on him. "I meant your name, I never caught it."

"Oh right. I'm sorry. My name is Kuroko Tetsuya, Kagami-san," he said, impassive blue eyes meeting his own red.

Kagami stuttered for the second time that day. "W-wait. What? You're Kuroko Tetsuya? That Teiko white mage Riko was going on about? From TEIKO?"

"Yes."

"But you-you don't-"Kagami said, pointing a finger at the small kid. He barely came up to Kagami's shoulder, and apparently couldn't even run for short distances!

"I don't what, Kagami-san?" Kuroko asked, doing nothing but blinking.

"You don't really…look all that impressive," Kagami muttered, suddenly turning his head away and feeling heat creep up his neck.

"Sorry to disappoint, Kagami-san. It is true white mages like me are pretty useless on their own, but since I am partnered with you, I will be able to help you become much stronger." If Kuroko was bothered at all by his brash attitude, he didn't show it in his face and mannerisms. It was like he was frozen in time, and somehow, that irritated Kagami.

"Are you really from Teiko? And what's the deal with everyone saying the white mages were wiped out?" Kagami knew that he'd said something bad immediately when Kuroko's eyes narrowed slightly, a look of pain briefly flitting across his face before turning back to normal.

"I'd rather not talk about it."

"Okay, okay, whatever. Forget I asked. I don't care anyway, as long as you pull your weight. I don't know about the rest of you, but I don't join things like this to have fun. I'm going to win!" Kagami said, pounding a fist against his chest.

"Me too, Kagami-kun. Partners?" Kuroko held out a gloved hand towards the tank. Kagami grinned and took it.

"Fuck yeah."

They had wasted some time, but luckily it wasn't too much. However, a good half an hour in and the pair had only managed one kill so far. Either the other hunters were amazing, or Kagami's sense of smell was worse than he thought, because he couldn't make heads or tails of any of these scents.

"This is troublesome," Kuroko decided to say after their fifth attempt to find a creature using Kagami's senses failed.

"No kidding. I can't find anything in these woods! If we hadn't killed one earlier, I'd say there aren't any monsters," Kagami said, kicking a nearby tree in frustration.

"You said you can smell monsters right? That's an unusual trait for a human, but its most likely the trees in this forest are releasing a pollen designed to mask their scents to take away this advantage," Kuroko stated, poking at a giant leaf in front of his face.

"Just fucking wonderful, how do you know all this stuff, anyway?" Kagami grumbled, swinging his sword around.

"I actually study, Kagami-san. You need brains to study magic," he replied.

"Shut the hell up!" The tank yelled, before freezing in spot. That sound he'd just heard-"Kuroko. GET DOWN!"

He sprang off his heels and jumped straight on top of the little mage as a plant-like creature suddenly burst out of the shrubbery and slammed a spike down straight where Kuroko had just been a moment before. "Shit, you okay?"

Kuroko merely nodded, putting his hands up against the tanks chest to stop himself from being crushed. It was merely instinct he'd done that, and annoying as this mage was, Kagami wasn't going to stand by while someone got hurt on his watch.

He sprang back up into action, glad his sword was already drawn, as the giant plant pulled out its spike and readied for another attack. This thing was ugly-it was a large mouth surrounded by thorny tentacles and completed the look with a load of greasy bug-legs skittering beneath. It was disgusting and he wanted to puke, but not before he stabbed it to death.

"Now's the time to show me what you Teiko hunters have," Kagami shouted, grinning like a madman at the thought of a challenge.

"Please what a moment," Kuroko said softly, and the tank turned in surprise to see the knife in Kuroko's hand softly glowing white. He'd never seen someone's magic glow white before, it almost made the guy look like an angel.

The light burst and washed over Kagami, right as the plant thing decided to attack. The tentacle whipped at him and he rolled under it with amazing speed-everything seemed to be moving slower than normal. Kagami backed up slightly and the plant readied a charge, only for Kagami to suddenly rush at its head and swing at its head, lopping off a couple tentacles.

The creature gave an unearthly screech, madly whipping its arms at Kagami, and skittering backwards. He blocked each blow with ease, sidestepping a couple until he was at the center line again. What was this? He knew that this thing had way better reflexes…

"It's a haste spell, Kagami-san, but please be careful. It will only last for another thirty seconds," A voice echoed by his ear. Another bought of white light shone over him and he felt power surging through his muscles, right as the world seemed to speed up around him.

Kuroko nodded again. "I've buffed your strength. Please damage it as much as possible." Kagami had no chance to say anything before one of its main limbs with the spikes swung down on top of him. He raised his sword to block, just barely managing to stay upright from the force. Kuroko had run off again out of his range somewhere and he was left with his heels digging into the dirt.

"That doesn't help if I can't attack!" Kagami yelled, twisting himself sideways so that the tentacle had no choice but to slam into the ground. Seizing the opportunity, he reversed his sword and plunged it deep into the thick skin, the added strength in his muscle splitting it open straight to the bone.

The creature let out an unearthly wail again, pulling at the foreign object but Kagami gritted his teeth and hung on. With one of its arms stuck in the ground, the plant had no choice but to fall over its side, tentacles flailing wildly. Quickly, without pause, he pulled out the sword, running up to the base of it and severing it completely, causing a murky green pus to come spraying out.

"Oh, that's gross!" Kagami yelled leaping back from the skittering legs. He felt another flash of white light and he started glowing from the increased strength. In response, the plant finally found its footing and pulled itself up, all the while Kagami was running around the base, hacking giant cuts into the monster's otherwise tough skin.

His first miscalculation occurred when a few moments later, his arms suddenly gave out as he lost one of the buffs and the arm came crashing into his chest, knocking him fully to the ground. "Ugh!" Kagami's breath was knocked out of him and his sword was scattered to the side. The large limb lying on top of him weighed like a ton of bricks and he could barely move. If it wasn't for his armor, he was fairly sure that his ribcage would be crushed right now. "Wasn't this fucking-test not supposed to be deadly?"

He pushed futilely at the limb as he saw the spike raise high above the ground and stab down. At the last moment, Kagami jerked to the side, causing the spike to go straight through his right arm. He let out a cry of pain as it was ripped out again, causing his own blood to mix with the plants on the ground. My sword arm! I can't…

His vision was blurred with tears and he was biting his lips so hard he was sure he was bleeding, but no matter how hard he struggled, the thorn just raised its self again and aimed for the head. This was lame! He couldn't die like this, it was just a festival and he hadn't even accomplished anything….

The thorn fell and there was a flash of blue light as a figure suddenly appeared above him. Kuroko flung his hands out above him, shouting a string of words and all of a sudden, a blue dome exploded from his hands to cover both their bodies in a halo of light. The thorn slammed against the wall of light, but it held strong, the color growing brighter as the limb pressed harder before it was blown back by the impact. As soon as that happened, Kuroko had brought down his hands, releasing the shield before flipping out his knife in a smooth motion and stabbing the tentacle that held Kagami down.

It released him immediately and he stumbled upwards, holding onto his profusely bleeding arm. "We don't have much time Kagami-san!" Kuroko said hurriedly, his hands glowing white before a comforting aura settled over Kagami's skin. He watched in wonder as the wound on his arm closed up, leaving nothing but dried blood, and he could even feel his bruises from the impact fade away.

Was this healing magic? He'd never felt anything so amazing in his life…this was the power of a white mage. Filled with renewed vigor, he was about to reach for his sword when the creature rushed at them straight, causing them to dive in separate directions. Kagami got up easily, but hissed when he saw that the monster was going after Kuroko now. He remembered in the back of his mind somewhere his teacher telling him that monsters hated healing and white magic, so they usually went after those casters first.

Kuroko was running as fast as he could, but he was too slow and got caught by and encroaching arm, dangling in the air above its mouth. "Don't you fucking dare!" Kagami howled, running forward and grabbing his dropped sword before throwing it straight at the creature. As luck would have it, it hit it straight in the eye causing the monster to screech and shift its attention to the tank. Making sure it wouldn't change his mind, Kagami activated the only spell he knew: his aura.

Almost immediately he was surrounded by the illusion of red flames, a tiger's head rearing from somewhere inside his soul. He let out a roar and charged at the creature, claws rippling out of his hand and slicing the attacking tentacles to bits. The creature tried to no avail to hit him, but Kagami's aura provided him the agility of a wild beast and he dodged every last blow.

A punch straight to the monster's non-existent neck was all it took to make it drop Kuroko to the ground. Kagami could only hope his partner was okay, so he leaped up onto the head, inches away from the mouth and pulled the sword out. The plant was in its dying throes-pus was leaking from everywhere and its movements were sluggish, but he wasn't going to stop now. His sword, now bathed in red light, was leaking pure blood-lust as it stabbed down into the head again.

"The tongue Kagami-san! Stab the tongue!" He heard a voice, probably Kuroko call, but he was too busy holding onto his sword as the creature thrashed about. He could see a blur of white running around, but didn't pay much attention until suddenly, the monster froze.

"KAGAMI-KUN, NOW!" Kuroko shouted, and he took that as his cute to raise his blood-red sword and plunge it deep into the slimy monster tongue. It let out a long, screaming call, before falling over completely and taking Kagami with it. He tumbled to the ground along with his sword as the monster slowly dissolved away into ash.

The forest returned to silence as he breathed heavily, slowly dying down from the burst of excitement he got from fighting. His aura flickered out, and he was just left lying there, monster completely gone.

A pair of blue eyes appeared over him. "Kagami-kun, did you die?"

Kagami let out a long breath and for some odd reason, started laughing. Maybe it was him being exhausted from the sudden fight, Kuroko's question, or even just the sudden revealing of his abilities, but Kagami kept laughing until he thought he might break a rib.

"Or maybe Kagami-kun has caught a sickness from a monster. That's fine, I can cure him, "Kuroko said, but before he could take a potion out, Kagami held up his hand.

"I'm fine. That was just a fun fight, "he said, still grinning.

Kagami-kun has a very strange definition of fun."

"You know what I mean! I haven't fought a monster like that in forever," Kagami said, rolling his shoulder. "What even was that spell at the end?"

"A stun spell. At my current level it only lasts a couple seconds on something that large, so you have to strike it at the right moment," Kuroko said, standing up and extending a hand to the tank. Kagami just looked incredulously at the shrimp and hopped up on his own.

"Not bad at all. I didn't realize what a white mage could do, but I guess I was underestimating you. You keep it up like that, and we'll do just fine. Just warn me next time you're going to pull stupid shit like that," Kagami said, casually glancing over the mage and seeing he looked fine, other than a few patches of mud.

He was impressed. Not that he'd admit it out loud, but he might not have survived that encounter intact if it weren't for those buffs and spells. And the power he felt while the magic was coursing through him…now he understood all the old stories how warriors and white mages made the best pairs.

Kagami glanced over at the still neutral-faced Kuroko, who was poking through the leaves again. Why this mysterious boy decided to partner with him, he had no idea, but for once, Kagami didn't mind. He'd picked a good one.

"Are you coming Kagami-kun?" Kuroko asked, staring back at him when he didn't move for a moment. "There are more monsters this way."

He shook himself. This was no time to be daydreaming. "Of course I'm coming, idiot. The monsters seem to like you."

The two walked off into the woods towards the sound of battle.