A/N: My first Kuroko no Basuke story. I haven't got much to say, this story popped into my head and wouldn't let me sleep until I had written it. My first one shot as well. This story is a lot of firsts for me.
I usually end my fics with the sign off :D Laughing on the Inside :D at the end of the chapter, but that seems inappropriate here so I won't.
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Dearly Departed
The gathered group stood silently in front of the grave. They had all arrived on time, including Kagami and Aomine for once in their lives. The funeral proper had been held yesterday, but it was requested that family only attend.
The ceremony was a quiet affair.
The group had respected the wishes of the family and had all agreed to meet the next day at the burial site instead. There were a couple dozen people in all; the entirety of Seirin and the Generation of Miracles with various members of their new high school teams. Takao had accompanied Midorima, Momoi stood with Aomine, Kasamatsu had a hand on the shoulder of a sobbing Kise, Himuro stood solemnly with a blank faced Murassakibara. Only the red headed Rakuzan captain had come alone.
The mood was appropriately sombre and there was a chill in the air. The weather had predicted a cloudy and overcast day, but the sky was a surprising shock of bright blue. It matched his hair perfectly.
Eventually, the reigning silence was broken.
"Goddamit," Kagami whispered to himself; the first person to say a word since arriving. "God. Fucking. Dammit!"
As he yelled, he kicked out toward the marble headstone before him. Hyuuga and Kiyoshi jumped forward to stop him from defiling the grave, but the gesture was unnecessary. Kagami halted his foot just before it made contact, leaving it to hover a hair's breadth from the stone. He held it in place, looking like he might really consider booting it out of the cemetery with a mighty soccer kick. After a long moment, with a violent motion, he stomped his foot powerfully into the soft ground. Sprays of mud showered his foot and leg.
"Why?" Kagami asked no one in particular, his eyes full of pain, "Why Kuroko? Why couldn't it have been anyone else?" He growled. His frustration and his anger were boiling up. He looked ready to punch a brick wall. His eyes were ablaze with fury.
Riko slapped him.
"How dare you?" She asked quietly, silent tears streaming down her face as she held Kagami's eyes and ignored his shocked expression, "How dare you diminish his sacrifice like that? He risked his life to save another. How dare you imply that just anyone could have done that! Kuroko was a selfless, courageous, foolhardy idiot and he deserves more than your temper tantrums!" Riko's voice had grown steadily louder until she was yelling just as Kagami had been. Hyuuga pulled her into a hug and she sobbed against his shoulder.
"I…" Kagami paused and looked around him. He took in the distraught faces of his friends and foes alike. He visibly deflated.
"You're right. Kuroko deserves better," Kagami walked up to behind the tombstone and addressed the crowd of high schoolers gathered before him; "Kuroko deserves much more," He continued, "He was a true friend. He was a bastard and sometimes I think he got his kicks from giving people heart attacks," This garnered small smiles from the crowd, "But he was also loyal to a fault," Kagami's eyes roamed over the Generation of Miracles, each of whom was contending with their grief in different ways. "The fact that so many are gathered here is proof of how Kuroko touched each of our lives. He made us better people. He was Seirin's fighting spirit and he taught us to never give up," Kagami then placed a tender hand on the stone and looked down as if to address it personally, "Rest in peace, my friend and thank you for everything,"
Kagami stepped in front of the tombstone and placed the vanilla milkshake he'd been carrying at its base. He then took a step back to join the rest of his team. Riko, who had pulled herself back together, looked around,
"Who wants to go next?" she asked in a quiet voice, completely different to the loud yells she normally used, especially when coaching.
She looked to the Generation of Miracles. Midorima was slowly clenching and unclenching his fingers as he stared at the grave with teary eyes. Murasakibara, much like Midorima, had begun tearing up and stood still with a plastic bag full of sweets and candies in one hand. She was surprised to see that he was not eating. Aomine looked frustrated and angry, much like Kagami, as he held a crying Momoi to his chest. Kise stood with silent tears streaming down his face. Members of Seirin had expected him to grieve and wail loudly, sobbing "Kurokocchi" as he normally did when he visited their gym. The blonde did nothing of the sort. His anguish was quiet and it was heart breaking.
Akashi took a step forward.
"I'll speak on our behalf," He said referring to his former teammates who looked like they would have had a hard time trying to string together a coherent sentence, let alone make a speech, "Tetsuya was many things to us," he said with his usual, powerful voice, "He was our phantom sixth player, he was our friend but most of all; he was one of us. He was our heart back in Teiko and he was the glue that bound us. He never gave up on us, even when we gave up on him and, for that, we, each of us, are grateful. Rest in peace, Tetsuya," Akashi stepped forward and drew the single red rose from his lapel. He placed the perfect bloom in a large, beautifully carved vase that he had brought with him.
Riko was surprised; did nothing faze the redheaded captain? His speech was made with a clear, carrying voice. The only emotions he conveyed were gratitude and tenderness, showing none of the blatant sorrow the rest of his former teammates were exhibiting. Even after his team had lost the Winter Cup, the fierce man hadn't shed a tear. It seemed as if today, as well, the captain would not cry.
"I…I want to say something to Tetsu," Aomine said hesitantly. He walked up to the tombstone and placed a hand on it; it was not a speech to the crowd, but a heart to heart with his best friend.
"Hey, Tetsu. It's been a while, huh? Remember that time you saved Momoi from those bastards who were hitting on her even though there were three of them and they were all double your size?" he gave chuckle, but it was strained and his voice hitched in his throat, "I told you you'd get yourself in trouble with your crazy stunts," a single tear rolled down his cheek. He quickly rubbed it away, "Well, I hope you're playing basketball up there and you're showing 'em why we're called the Generation of Miracles," Aomine placed a small, child-sized basketball on the grave, digging slightly into the dirt and propping it up to make sure it wouldn't roll away.
"Can I say something on behalf of Seirin?" Kiyoshi ventured once Aomine had returned to stand with Momoi. The first years as well as the regulars all nodded, "Kuroko was an odd one. He always seemed to disappear and reappear out of nowhere. In fact, I think we forgot him at a game once and had to turn the bus around to pick him back up," The Seirin members smiled, "But, Kuroko, though sometimes we'd fail to see you with our eyes, your presence was and will always be felt in our hearts,"
Kiyoshi walked up and placed a framed picture on Kuroko's grave; in it was all of Seirin, dressed in their basketball gear and celebrating ecstatically. Riko held the Winter Cup in her hands as the team surrounded her with smiles and cheers. Even Kuroko was grinning as Kagami slung an arm around the small boy.
No one else felt the need to give a speech; the words already spoken were enough to convey their sentiments. As the sun began to set, Seirin was the first to depart. Riko placed a large bouquet of flowers, a gift from the whole club, into the vase that Akashi had brought. She, with the rest of her team, touched Kuroko's tombstone and said a heartfelt goodbye to their teammate. Their friend.
Murasakibara was next. He placed a tall purple Iris in the filling vase and dropped the plastic bag he had been holding next to the stone. A couple of vanilla candies spilled out and rolled onto the muddy ground. He placed a large hand over the tombstone, patting it lightly, as he had done to the real Kuroko, himself, many times.
"Kuro chin…" He struggled to find the words, "You were too good a person," He pulled back his hand, "I…I will miss you," Himuro patted his shoulder and escorted him out of the cemetery.
Midorima was next. He placed a small light blue teddy bear at the base of the stone.
"Tch this growing collection of knick-knacks," he shook his head as he clicked his tongue, "I…will come to visit. And I'll make sure your stone is kept properly neat, Kuroko," He placed a green chrysanthemum in the vase and took a step back.
"Is the bear his lucky item?" Takao asked as they walked away.
"No. It's just something I thought he'd like," Midorima said looking away. Takao placed a hand on Midorima's shoulder; it was the first time he'd ever heard of Midorima buying a gift that someone would want instead of a lucky item. Takao decided that Midorima must have put a lot of thought into the gift.
Kise moved forward after Midorima. He still hadn't said a word since arriving. He just cried silently, rubbing his puffy, red eyes against the sleeve of his black suit jacket. He placed a bunch of yellow daffodils in the vase and stood up.
"Do you want to say anything, Kise?" Kasamatsu asked quietly.
"Kurokocchi, I…" he began, but his voice cracked and he couldn't continue. He looked to Akashi and gave him nod, touching the daffodils. Kasamatsu allowed Kise to tug on his jacket sleeve as he guided them out of the cemetery.
Momoi moved forward once Kise had left. She placed a blooming sweet pea flower in the vase. She frowned; there were a lot of flowers in the vase and some of the smaller ones were being shadowed while some of the larger ones were being crushed. She took a moment to rearrange them so that they were able to flourish instead, enhancing and complimenting each other instead of competing, "Tetsu kun always did value teamwork," she said softly, bursting into a fresh round of tears.
Aomine knelt next to her and passed her his flower; a tall, blue delphinium. "This is for you, Tetsu," he said quietly as Momoi arranged in the vase. With their messages conveyed, they waited for Akashi.
"You two may go. I wish to say a couple of words to Tetsuya before I leave," Momoi was hesitant to leave Akashi alone, but Aomine nodded his understanding and drew Momoi away. Their captain was a strong man; he would be fine.
Akashi stood silently before the grave for a very long time.
"I asked them to bring flowers," He said finally, "I told them to bring flowers with a meaning. I predicted that they would not be able to say all that they would want to say," Akashi paused, "I'm still controlling, aren't I, Tetsuya?" he gave a conflicting expression halfway between a cringe and smile.
"I'm sorry about everything," He said as he sat slowly on the freshly turned soil. He faced the tombstone, as if to have a conversation with it, "I'm sorry that I failed to keep the team together. I'm sorry that I let it fragment the way that it did. I'm sorry for making you hate basketball. I…" Akashi paused, not knowing what else to say. He stared at the stone in front of him. He reached out and traced the guilded words etched into it. Then he bent his head forward so that his forehead rested against the cool stone and he wept.
Kuroko Tetsuya; Beloved Son, True Friend
Dearly Departed
Gone too soon
We Won't Forget You
End of Story
Murasakibara; Iris; "Your Friendship Means So Much to Me"
Midorima; Green Chrysanthemum; "You're A Wonderful Friend; I Wish You Cheerfulness and Rest"
Kise; Bunch of Daffodils; "You Are the Only One"
Momoi; Sweet Pea; "Good-bye," and "Thank You for a Lovely Time,"
Aomine; Blue Delphinium; "Anything Is Possible, Keep Reaching For The Stars"
Please let me know how this fic made you feel and if I tugged on the right heart strings. Thank you for reading.