Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroko no Basuke

Chapter 1

It was just before noon that Kuroko finally realised that he had to go to the ruins for more herbs. The sudden outburst of the flu claimed all of his supplies and it seemed that it's going to linger in the village for a little while more.

The best herbs are certainly at the old Ruins. But the trip would take half a day and he knew that he's cutting it too close to twilight for comfort. And it's too dangerous to be there when the sun sets. There was no other way. His patients needed the medicine. After grabbing his bag the blue haired boy left his small house.

The ruins have become a nest not only for wild animals, but also for savages and thieves. Even though Kuroko knew that the Ruins were not the safest place to gather herbs, but the quality of them outweighed the dangers. However, he felt relaxed there. Perhaps because of his childhood there, or perhaps the lack of the remains of his previous life instead, but the old remains of the once prosperous village made him feel completely at ease.

There were two women standing on the round and as he was unnoticed passing by, he overheard their gossip. They were huddled together, but their voices could be clearly heard. Not like they were purposefully trying to hide anything.

"Hey, hey, did you hear?" One asked.

"About that cute boy that's been searching for something?" The other nodded enthusiastically.

"Yes! Yes! The one that should soon come to our town! Ah, I can't wait!" She squealed.

"Ah, I heard he's a true eye candy!" The other added in a dreamy voice.

"Maybe he's searching for a wife?"

"If he's as cute as they say, I'd marry him anytime!" She winked and they both burst into hysterical giggles. Their loose wrinkly skin billowed from their laughter. Kuroko shuddered and increased his pace.

Once he stepped into the forest that surrounds the ruins, a refreshing breeze ruffled his hair. Kuroko closed his eyes and breathed in the fresh air. It brought the smell of moss, trees and grass, but also the smell of smoke. The teen's eyes snapped open and he looked around. He could see moving figures and he hid in the shadows, cautiously creeping closer. Soon he could see two people entering and exiting the remains of the houses. They only poked their heads through the door, looked around and tried another house with a sigh.

They're searching for something? Kuroko mused to himself. He decided to make a detour and avoid being seen and pick the herbs from the shadows.

He carefully placed a few bundles of the handpicked herbs into his bag, when two horses caught his attention. Soon he noticed a mahogany coach with golden lines snaking on the surface, forming beautiful ornaments. He curiously sneaked closer.

Two feet were dangling from the coach's open door. Soon the two men came back and bowed to the carriage.

"Did you find anyone?" The man inside asked.

"My apologies, Kise-sama." They bowed their heads lower. "This may not be the village we were looking for."

"M-my sincere apologies, Kise-sama!" A trembling woman's voice apologised. "I-it's all my fault! I deserve a punishment!"

Kise-sama? The king? No, perhaps it's the man the two grannies in the village were gossiping about. He's somebody from the royal family.. Kuroko squinted his eyes.

"So, we're going to spend the night here?" The man jumped out of the carriage and stretched. He was a blond, lean man and he was wearing clothes Kuroko hadn't seen before. A light blue jacket with golden embroidery, a beautiful rapier dangling on his hip and his white trousers were tucked into black boots.

Kuroko's brows furrowed. They're going to camp here? They're like sitting ducks for the wild animals and thugs. He shook his head. Better not to get involved.

A low growl cut the air. Kuroko flinched at the sound. He whipped his head to meet a wolf glaring at him dead in the eye, his long fangs glowing in the dim light of their fire. Its powerful muscles tensed below his skin and the small boy frantically searched for any weapon. A glass shard or a rock, anything would do. He cursed himself for not realising of such a possibility and bringing a weapon beforehand. Just when his fingers wrapped around a rock as big as his fist, the wolf lunged itself. Kuroko swung the rock with all his might and when it made contact with the beast's temple, it released a satisfying cracking sound. Blood gushed out of the gap and sprayed his face with crimson. The beast's body twitched on the ground and then suddenly stopped moving. The boy panted heavily, adrenaline still pumping in his veins, looking down on the animal.

Undoubtedly, its pack was near.

There was no way for him to outrun their pack on foot. Unless.. Unless he used the carriage to escape, even if it meant involving himself with the three strangers. He jumped on his feet and sprinted towards them.

Perhaps it was the sight of a young boy sprinting towards them at full speed, shouting "Wolves!" from the top of his lungs, or perhaps it was the fresh blood, sprayed all over his face and dripping on his tattered shirt, was the reason that petrified them, but the three figures stared at him wide eyed, not moving from their spot.

Kuroko furrowed his brows and pursed his lips, but didn't stop running. As soon as he yanked Kise's hand, moving him out of the way and jumping into the carriage, a wolf landed where they stood seconds ago.

"Get out of there!" Kuroko hurried the two servants and shut the coach's door.

Snapping out of their daze, they leapt onto the coach box and the carriage lunged forward, leaving the howling wolves behind.

Kuroko was still panting heavily when he glanced upwards and met the curious stare of the teen in front of him. The boy shrugged and wiped his face with his sleeve, smearing it with blood and sweat.

"I believe we've have lost them, Kise-sama." A female voice announced.

"Ok, but don't stop moving forward just to be safe!" Kise commanded.

Kuroko glanced at the moving scenery behind the window. "Stop. Wrong way." He breathed out.

Kise looked at him questioningly. "Pardon?"

"Stop. You're going the wrong way. The village is not this way."

"You know where it is?" Kise jumped on his feet, making the coach sway. Kuroko nodded in response. "Hey, can you stop the carriage for a minute?" He asked in a higher tone.

"Of course, Kise-sama."

The carriage drew to a halt, Kuroko jumped out of the coach. The two servants were already standing by the door, eyeing him wearily.

"Do you have a map?" The blue haired boy asked the pair. The woman glanced at Kise and after an approving nod spread it on the ground a minute later. Kuroko crouched before it.

"No wonder they came to the Ruins." He whispered and raised his head. "We are here." He pointed at the map. He slid his finger a few centimetres down. "These are the Ruins. We came from here. It's not a village anymore, just rubble. And…" He circled a blank spot. "..the village is around here. Your map is too old to have it drawn."

The two servants glanced at each other. "We cannot just blindly trust him, Kise-sama. He may be deceiving us." The woman nodded in agreement.

Kise shrugged. "Well, we have nothing to lose. Might as well try trusting him, right?" He looked at the blue haired boy and smiled. "Lead the way."

It was already past midnight when they finally reached the small village.

"So there really was a village here!" Kise exclaimed in excitement.

"Everyone is already asleep, so please restrain from shouting so loudly."

"Oh, sorry." He whispered with an amused smile on his face.

The carriage stopped in front of Kuroko's house and the small boy jumped out. He entered his house with a sigh, one of the servants trailing behind.

"Where is your bed, little boy?" The dark haired man asked. Kuroko pointed at the small door on the right. "Kise-sama, your bed is this way."

"I can sleep in the carriage!" Kise assured the raven, looking at Kuroko apologetically. "Really!" He added when saw the frown on his servant's face.

"You cannot sleep in the carriage, Kise-sama." And he dragged the prince to the small room.

The woman came in a few minutes later. She glanced around and nodded understandingly. "He occupied your bed, didn't he?" Kuroko's bitter look made her giggle. "Sorry about that. Oh, we haven't introduced ourselves, have we? Call me Mary, the boy with black hair is Kasamatsu-san and the blond man is Kise-sama. They're nice people, really, but Kasamatsu-san is a little overprotective. Especially towards Kise-sama." She giggled again, cheeks slightly flushed with pink.

"I'm Kuroko. Nice to meet you, Mary-san."

"Nice to meet you too, Kuroko-kun." She smiled. "I should go help them." She gave a small smile and silently entered Kise's bedroom.

A sigh escaped his lips when he pulled out a blanket out of a drawer. He laid down on the hard bed for his patients and pulled the blanked over his head, wishing for the day to end quickly.

Alrighty. The first chapter. I've already written a few more, but do tell me what you think and perhaps what you want to see, too, and maybe I'll add it to my story.

Also, sorry for the OC, but I didn't want to use an actual character for her role, haha.

I hope you'd enjoyed the chapter!

~Monetti