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The Shadow's Past

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Prologue

Third Person POV

It was a peaceful morning in Tokyo, with no sound or life to be found. Except for a flash of teal that remains unnoticed, looking at the basketball court around him with nothing but sadness in his now dull sky-colored orbs. The boy was unmoving, with his poker face now staring at the worn-down basketball in his hands. The boy then moved his fingers to trace the black lines on the orange sphere.

"Why did it end this way...?" he murmured.

*~2 weeks ago~*

It was the week after the Winter Cup had ended, and Kuroko was walking to Seirin's gym for after-school practice. His face looked ever stoic, but if one looked closely, one would see that his eyes held a sort of gleam in them, and his lips tugged a little more upward than usual. Kuroko was glad that everything was back to normal now with his previous friends, the Generation of Miracles. All of them had re-kindled their love for basketball after losing to Seirin. Kuroko really needed to thank Seirin for that. He was released from his thoughts when he collided with the gym door.

'That was close,' he thought. He checked his watch, only for his face to then change into one of shock and worry. It was already past 5. 'Club activities should have started a while ago.' he thought. Then, he shook his head. 'Maybe coach has something else planned for today…' With that reaffirmation, he continued to stay there and wait, sitting down on the concrete, only to feel his eyes slowly begin to droop, and his consciousness fade away, as he became enveloped in the darkness of sleep.

2 hours later…

Kuroko woke up with his neck feeling as if it had been twisted the wrong way and then put back on his neck. He then look up to the sky and expected to see a pink-orange shaded sky, only to be slightly shocked and awed at he saw the scenery before him. It consisted of a beautiful obsidian colored sheet full of specks of light, and together, they made up space and what we call the night sky. As Kuroko was too busy admiring the enrapturing scenery before him, he couldn't sense the presence coming towards him.

"Tetsuya-sama, you seem to have gotten weaker." The old and raspy voice stated deviously. The voice made Kuroko's whole body stiffen, and his posture readjust itself to what it had been 4 years prior, and the 12 years before that. Kuroko then turned to face the man, the joy in his eyes that could be seen when he was looking towards the night sky was gone, replaced with a face even more stoic than anything he has used for the past 4 years. As the two faced each other, a staring contest ensued, with dull gray meeting a judging icy blue, with the icy blue taking in the man's features to try and spot any differences the man might have gained in the two's time away from each other. The man had solid black hair, with no gray streaks to be seen. His face didn't have a single wrinkle, with the only indication of the man's mood being the tiny crease in his eyebrows, and the slight smirk tugging at the corners of lips. The man wore a black tail coat outside of a pristine white shirt, giving the man a butler image, along with his formal black pants, glass spectacles, white wrinkle-free gloves, and blood-red tie. To complete the ensemble, the man had on shiny and waxed dress shoes.

After the man had determined that Kuroko had finished examining him, he opened his mouth, causing Kuroko to tense, and began to speak.

"Tetsuya-sama," he repeated, "His Majesty and her Highness wish for you to return."

"No," Kuroko said without hesitation. "I am quite happy here, and I won't have anyone ruining that for me, even if it's you, Marcuil." The man now known as Marcuil only nodded, and began to speak once more.

"I understand, Testuya-sama, and as does his Majesty, which is why he has decided that you will be allowed two weeks more time if you wish it to be so." Kuroko stayed silent, as he knew there was something more if that man was giving him an extension on anything. And, as expected, his silence was rewarded. "However," Marcuil began once again,"You will need to complete your training, and no matter what the reason may be, you will not be allowed to leave the palace at all unless His Majesty has said otherwise once the two weeks have passed." Although Kuroko's face remained impassive and his eyes still clear of any emotion, on the inside, he was shocked. 'The only requirement is just not being allowed to leave? That seems too good to be true...could there be something I'm missing?' Ideas and thoughts continued to swirl in his head, until he finally breathed out a silent sigh, smiled fondly, and thought, 'If I'm allowed to stay with everyone longer, then...I will accept any consequences that I may have to face because of that!' Kuroko said to himself, with newfound determination.

"I will accept his Majesty's offer." Kuroko said as calmly and cooly as he could, with a fire now burning his eyes. Marcuil then let out a full blown smirk.

"Very well, Tetsuya-sama, his Majesty will be holding you to that promise." Marcuil said, with hidden meanings seeming to be underlying his tone, before leaving the way he came, with his formal shoes producing a *click clack* in his steps, and then he turned into a black mist, effectively disappearing into the night.

After Kuroko had assured himself that Marcuil had left, his posture relaxed slightly, and he turned on his heels and left the campus brooding on the reason for that man's offer, completely forgetting to notice that no one had come to basketball practice that day.

Hello everyone! FluffyVillian162 here! This is my first Fanfic XD so please don't be too harsh T^T Anyway, I'll post the rest of the prologue in the next chapter I promise ;-) See you all later!