Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroko no Basuke

Thanks for reading, welcome to chapter 2!

Artistic License

Chapter 2

Mibuchi Reo was nervous. He was seated across from his boss, with a thin - too thin, really - file placed squarely in the center of the desk between them. He'd known when he'd submitted the report on Kuroko Tetsuya that Akashi wouldn't be pleased. For someone that had such an established career, it had been exceptionally difficult to locate substantive information on the author.

Akashi had read the file in moments, his perceptive eyes moving over the scant text with precision and speed. He'd closed the slender folder and placed it back on the desk and now he was examining Mibuchi with an impassive look that could mean anything, but certainly meant something.

"This is all you could find?" Akashi's voice was deceptively gentle and Mibuchi reflexively tensed in his chair. Despite having known this man for several years and being one of the closest approximations to a friend that the other possessed, Mibuchi was perfectly aware that Akashi had a dangerous side that he did not want to bring out. Akashi hadn't guided his father's company into international dominance at such a young age just by relying on his good looks, he was a shrewd tactician that had little patience or forgiveness for those that didn't deliver results. All of which meant Mibuchi had reason to be concerned for his inadvertent failure.

He could only nod his head unsteadily. "He's a very private person, apparently. The usual channels didn't yield anything noteworthy – he doesn't seem to have any bad habits or scandals in his past, his finances are what you'd expect. Prior to his university attendance, he was an average student with a few minor roles in a small number of extracurricular activities. Once he moved on to university, he studied literature, worked part-time, and apparently wrote a surprise best-seller. Kise-chan was the largest source of information beyond the standard databases, but he's clearly fond of Kuroko-san so while I included the more memorable anecdotes, they're not very useful. Really, except for the fact he has been published before, there's nothing of interest in his background."

It had been three weeks since Kuroko's appointment with Akashi. Even considering the busy holiday season and end-of-year reports he was in charge of, Mibuchi had produced far lengthier dossiers in less than half the time. Akashi conceded that it was possible the author was going to prove even more challenging than he'd initially allowed. He thought back to the way Kuroko's eyes had flashed when Akashi had dismissed his plot and smiled to himself, perhaps he should have expected such a thing from someone like Kuroko.

He'd gone to dinner that night with some acquaintances and business colleagues and while he had not been exactly distracted, Akashi had caught himself replaying their conversation during the occasional odd pause throughout the night. He was used to people wanting things from him, so the initial request to meet with him hadn't been surprising. Akashi hadn't, however, projected that he'd end up playing a tutor of sorts as he'd delved into an overview of his favorite game. He supposed that Kuroko's temper wasn't that astonishing either – it was his livelihood that Akashi had been questioning, after all.

He had half-expected to hear from Kuroko again, but apart from a brief, though very polite, thank you note there hadn't been further efforts at contact. Akashi didn't know why he was disappointed by this. It wasn't as though Kuroko had said he'd need to follow-up to continue with his character's development, and Akashi was prepared to admit his own reaction to Kuroko's idea had probably derailed that possibility anyway. Still, it had seemed obvious to him that they had started something and while he couldn't put into words exactly what he wanted from the enigmatic person that had met with him; he knew he didn't have it yet. And that, coupled with the increasing mystery surrounding Kuroko, was proving too great a riddle to resist an attempt to solve.

The only connection between them was Ryota and that was telling enough in its own way. Akashi hadn't seen the model in quite a while but he knew he wasn't wrong in his understanding that Ryota's acceptance of Kuroko was enough to signal there was more to him that it might appear. Ryota, for all his outward effervescence, was actually exceptionally picky about whom he allowed into his life and their childhood acquaintanceship wouldn't be enough to keep Kuroko in his circle on its own. So when he'd asked Akashi if he would be willing to meet with "Kurokocchi," Akashi had noted the tell-tale suffix for what it was and agreed, expecting to meet someone of similar caliber to have earned Ryota's respect.

Even though he wasn't exactly what Akashi had expected, Kuroko hadn't disappointed in that regard. Not to mention there were other aspects that had seemed to allow glimpses of the person that might be able to hold Ryota's friendship for so many years.

He glanced down at the file for a brief moment before returning his gaze to Mibuchi. "Thank you for your work. You said you went through the normal channels, so we'll try a few that are…less orthodox. Contact his publisher; get what information you can, particularly on any rivalries or rumors. Use my name if you must, but there's no need to be transparent about the reason why – simply say we're investigating a number of public figures for our annual symposium on the arts and his name is on our slate of possible speakers."

Mibuchi let out the breath he'd been holding while Akashi had been thinking. He was lucky, and he knew it, but he would take this opportunity to try to wrangle up more information about this person that had so captured Akashi's attention. He tensed again though, as Akashi's eyes gleamed after he glanced down at the folder one more time.

"After that, reach out to Imayoshi. His approach will be a little less…refined…than yours, but I believe it might prove effective in this case."

The reaction Mibuchi had to that statement was one part strained and one part amazed – he didn't care for the slyly-smirking man who had connections to any manner of criminal activity one might be concerned with, but he couldn't deny Imayoshi was exceptionally resourceful and would do what was needed to fulfill this task. What had Kuroko done to warrant this level of interest?

"Sei-chan…are you sure you want to involve Imayoshi-san in this?" His question was hesitant, Mibuchi knew he was taking a risk by questioning Akashi like that, but Imayoshi's efforts wouldn't be free and he rarely wanted something as straightforward as money for his work.

Red and gold eyes flashed with amusement. "Don't worry, Reo. I'm fine with paying his fee; I know what he will want this time and it won't even be something for you to have to be anxious about. He's wanted to acquire a racehorse I purchased several months ago and I'm happy to let him have it for this piece of work. He'll take good care of the animal after all."

The assistant nodded his head and took the cue to leave; he had additional tasks to accomplish now after all.

When the door closed behind him, Akashi settled more comfortably into his chair and mentally turned over the facts he had at his disposal. The biographical material in the file was little better than what could be pulled from the author's public profile, but it was enough to start fleshing out a picture of the type of person Kuroko was. He didn't doubt that he'd know more soon, as diligent as Reo was, there were apparently certain areas he couldn't access, and that was why he wanted Imayoshi to take a shot.

Still, there was one piece of data in the file that caught his attention but it would require contacting Ryota for more information before he could potentially leverage it into another opportunity to meet with Kuroko. He reached for his phone and called the model, briefly explaining his reason for contacting him and receiving an excited and enthusiastic agreement from Ryota. That was fine, then. He'd have time wait for the new reports to come through before making his next move.

For his part, Kuroko had left the meeting with Akashi feeling a strange combination of fascination and anger. From what he'd heard of Akashi-san he supposed neither of those reactions were really so unusual, but he hadn't been prepared for the overwhelming presence that the redhead possessed. When Kise-kun had asked him how it had gone, Kuroko had had a surprisingly difficult time coming up with the right words – something the model had laughed at but let go in favor of their usual activity of playing streetball. However, he'd ultimately admitted the meeting had been helpful and thanked his friend. It didn't matter that he had originally planned to have a series of interviews with each of the real world inspirations for his book's prodigies – he felt that it would be dangerous to meet with Akashi again. So he'd begun researching shogi on his own and come up with the names of several talented, though well below Akashi's level, players that were willing to meet with him. It would be enough.

He couldn't stop himself from patterning his player along Akashi's example though, and felt he was trying to answer his own curiosity about the charismatic businessman through his writing. It wasn't that the shogi player was really taking over the novel, but as Kuroko plotted out his narrative, the role was becoming increasingly more complicated as it overlapped with the others in a way he hadn't initially considered. To try to counter this, he deliberately described the player as a semi-antithesis of Akashi.

The character, whose name became Ito Katsu, was tall and black haired with hazel eyes – the result of his half English, half Japanese parentage. He made his living as a middle school science teacher rather than an elite businessman and while he still became isolated because of his inability to find a true competitor, Ito's crisis wasn't combined with his lack of family support but rather emphasized his need for an equal among the crowded chaos of his life. His style of playing though – that was Akashi's. Kuroko sometimes imagined Akashi's voice pointing out the fatal error during a match he'd be watching for his research, but he himself was still too new to the game to really recognize all of its finer points. As absorbing as it was to see the different styles offered by local players, Kuroko could tell that Akashi was on another level.

With that in mind, he supposed he shouldn't be as surprised as he was to see the redhead a few weeks later at his own birthday celebration in late January. It was a mid-sized affair that his publisher was throwing at Kuroko's preferred restaurant and had a combination of people from his personal and professional lives.

He'd gone up to the bar to ask for his usual, which the bartender had provided with a kind smile, before turning and being confronted by the heterochromatic eyes of a certain businessman that Kuroko had no difficultly recognizing. But he was confused as to why the redhead was there. Akashi's office wasn't nearby and Kuroko couldn't imagine he'd have much cause to be in this section of town and even if he had, it was unlikely he'd find his way to this particular establishment. It was a perfectly nice bar in a perfectly nice neighborhood, but it certainly wasn't the domain of movers and shakers like Akashi.

Akashi answered his unspoken question with a calmly uttered, "Happy Birthday, Kuroko-san. Ryota was kind enough to invite me when I spoke with him recently. I wanted to return the good wishes you offered me on my birthday at least."

"Thank you, Akashi-san. I don't mind of course, but I'm surprised you are here."

"I thought it might be interesting." He paused and looked at the drink in Kuroko's hand before lifting an inquisitorial eyebrow. "What is that rather exotic concoction you've got there?"

Kuroko glanced down automatically to look at his drink before he shrugged and answered – it wasn't anything to hide. "It's a Chai Blossom. Its spiced tea mixed with lime juice, club soda, lemon, and star anise. I can't handle alcohol or straight fizzy drinks very well, and the bartender here was nice enough to recommend this to me several years ago."

"I see." Akashi privately admitted to being somewhat surprised that Kuroko would so casually disclose such a peculiar thing, but he supposed it was better than some alternatives. It gave Kuroko's companions the illusion he was participating in their drunken revelry without actually subjecting himself to a situation he knew he couldn't handle. But it sounded vile – tea was not meant to be corrupted in that fashion.

Sensing the train of Akashi's thoughts, Kuroko smiled and turned back to the bartender and asked for another one for Akashi. The man nodded and quickly assembled it – he kept a stock of chilled tea for several drinks like this one and he'd prepared even more that evening having known Kuroko's party was happening there. When it was ready, it was handed to Akashi who took the drink with a look that said he was prepared to only take a polite sip and then set it down. Akashi could tell his companion was amused byt his behavior even though his expression appeared to be blank.

Akashi was pleasantly surprised to find the drink was complexly flavored – the spices complemented the citrus but were mellowed with the sugar and club soda - and it was somehow both comforting and revitalizing. He could see why it was a long-standing option for Kuroko.

"This is…remarkably good." He looked over at the bartender next. "Thank you, it is skillfully made." The man nodded in acknowledgment of the praise and went to take care of other customers.

Kuroko tilted his head slightly and looked appraisingly at Akashi for a brief moment before speaking. "I don't know if you were planning to stay long, but you're welcome to come join us. I'm sure you are acquainted with a fair number of the people here anyway."

Akashi smirked for a second. "Are you trying to bribe me into staying as a networking opportunity?"

A small laugh escaped Kuroko who then shook his head good naturedly. "No, I'm sure you don't need my assistance for that. But at the very least if Kise-kun went to the trouble of inviting you he'd be disappointed not to see you. And he'd take that out on me, so really you'd be doing me a favor by letting him know you're here."

"Careful, Kuroko-kun. It can be dangerous to owe me a favor." Akashi spoke lightly but there was a definite undertone of truth to his words.

"I'll risk it this once. It's my birthday after all." And he proceeded to lead the way back to where the others were gathered.

Akashi's expression at the moment was somewhere between anticipation and arrogance – a fairly normal look for him in all honesty – but it was also tinged with a small degree of curiosity at the chance to see Kuroko in fairly neutral territory. He followed Kuroko obligingly and was somewhat amused by the near-universal recognition of his name as Kuroko introduced him.

He found himself seated next to Ryota and across from Kuroko when several people coincidentally, and somewhat nervously truth be told, got up at his arrival with the presumed intent to go order additional drinks for themselves.

"I should take you with me as part of my security team, Akashicchi. You can clear a room even better than they can!" Kise's teasing comment was highlighted by the mirth in his golden eyes as he observed the wide space that had been created by the redhead's arrival.

"If your security is incompetent then you should arrange for better personnel. It has nothing to do with me." Akashi's lazy reply expressed his own awareness of the situation as well as demonstrated he viewed the other male in at least a marginally friendly way.

Perhaps it was because Kuroko and Kise didn't seem fazed by the new arrival, but gradually the other members of the party returned and the lively atmosphere was restored. Akashi missed little as he observed the way the guests interacted with one another. He paid careful attention to Kuroko and realized he was getting better at reading his limited facial expressions.

To test himself, he turned to ask Ryota about the person that had currently stopped to speak with Kuroko. He thought he was seeing displeasure and tension from Kuroko but he didn't know who the other person was – and their expression wasn't much easier to understand.

Kise spared only the briefest of glances for the figure next to Kuroko but Akashi noted that the blond seemed to uncharacteristically weigh his words before he spoke. "That's Mayuzumi Chihiro; he's also a writer with the publishing house Kurokocchi's contracted to. He's only here because his agent made him come; they're rivals and disagree about almost everything. It was starting to get some negative attention from the press though so they're both under orders to play nicely with each other, in public at least."

Akashi nodded and remembered his second report from Reo had mentioned something along those lines. The name had also been brought up by Imayoshi who'd suggested the feud was a little more long-standing than the press was aware of – which Ryota's cautious reply seemed to validate.

He saw that Kuroko seemed to visibly lighten once Mayuzumi left, but it was still such a minimal change that Akashi wondered how he managed to maintain such a stoic look all the time.

After a moment he felt Ryota's gaze and Akashi turned to meet the model's eyes questioningly. Kise had a slightly puzzled look on his face and he was about to say something when an excited "TETSU-KUN!" uttered by a high-pitched female voice broke through the air. A mere nanosecond later Kuroko was seemingly the victim of a pink-haired human hugging bomb. Kuroko's face had a resigned, though still pleased look – he apparently knew this woman enough to both put up with her shenanigans and show more obvious emotions…interesting.

This was quickly followed by an exasperated, "Oi, Satsuki, let Tetsu breathe. You can't kill him on his birthday at least." The speaker of that bit of wisdom turned out to be a tall, dark skinned man with midnight blue hair who approached the table at a more moderate pace than his companion had done.

The woman laughed and after a last squeeze she obediently backed off. She turned and greeted Kise familiarly, and then her eyes locked appraisingly on Akashi. He got the distinct impression she was trying to read him but he doubted she'd have much luck on that front. He smiled politely but blankly at her and hid his secret smirk when she narrowed her eyes in response.

Kuroko, who appeared to have regained his breath once he was released, stood to shake the man's hand and then turned back to introduce both of them to Akashi.

"Akashi-san, this is Momoi Satsuki and Aomine Daiki. Momoi-san and Aomine-kun both work for the police department; she is a profiler and he is a detective. Momoi-san, Aomine-kun, this is Akashi Seijuro; he is the head of the Akashi corporation and the one that kindly provided an overview of shogi for me last month."

The three of them silently evaluated each other but by tacit agreement didn't press one another for further details. Akashi got the distinct impression, though, from the looks they sent Ryota that the blond was going to be in for a rather uncomfortable round of interrogation when they got him alone.

Once they were seated it became clear to Akashi that Kuroko would have preferred his celebration be just with this smaller gathering – he was noticeably more relaxed when he spoke with Kise, Momoi, and Aomine than any of the others that had greeted him. Akashi wondered where he himself fell on the spectrum; he could tell Kuroko was cautious around him, but it wasn't in exactly the same way he seemed to engage the rest of the world. It was fascinating to watch.

Still, Akashi knew it was approaching time for him to leave. He had a lot of obligations to oversee and he didn't want to overplay his hand at this juncture. He made his excuses and was gratified that Kuroko stood to walk him out after a quick assurance to his friends he'd be right back.

As they stood outside, Akashi smiled at Kuroko. "It was an interesting evening, thank you for letting me participate in your birthday celebration."

Kuroko shrugged a little. "I'm surprised you wanted to, I got the impression last month you thought I was impossibly naïve."

"You are. But there's something else there, too. Together it's formed a rather interesting person. And it has never been my style to let things or people that interest me to just pass on by."

If Kuroko's expression had ever been easier to read than it was at that moment, it would have signaled a truly cataclysmic event. Akashi almost laughed at the outrage on Kuroko's face but he stopped when he heard Kuroko's reply.

"Akashi-san, I believe I mentioned before that you were rather like an emperor. That is not entirely a compliment. People, no matter how interesting or not you may find them, don't exist merely to amuse you. It is unkind to suggest otherwise."

Perhaps it was merely that anyone so rarely challenged him, but Akashi found himself staring at Kuroko with a quiet intensity that should have sent the shorter male running, yet the obstinate defiance in the blue eyes that were meeting his was far from fading.

When he spoke again, Akashi's voice was lethally quiet. "I have no obligation to be kind, Tetsuya. I am absolute and that means I am always correct. I expect you will come to know that sooner or later. For now, enjoy what's left of your birthday, I imagine we'll see each other again soon enough. After all, we haven't discussed Ogiwara Shigehiro yet, have we?" He didn't wait for a reply, merely nodded his head at the look of stunned recognition on the other's face before he strode off to the car that was waiting for him.

Kuroko watched the car drive off in silent disbelief; he couldn't fathom why Akashi had mentioned that name or why he even knew it. He visibly shook himself and took a few deep breaths to calm down – he couldn't go back to his friends like this. After a moment longer he returned, hoping his disposition would be written off due to tiredness or even taking a chill from stepping outside as he'd done.

He was unsurprised to see Aomine-kun and Momoi-san had been questioning Kise-kun in his absence and he felt a brief twinge of pity for the blond before he selfishly realized this might take some of the attention away from him. It worked for a while, but soon Kuroko had to excuse himself on the pretense of illness and he left after waving off their concerned offers to escort him.

When he entered his home he was met with a soft bark of welcome from his dog, Nigou. He crouched down and gently ruffled the dog's fur before making moves to settle in for the evening. He had a lot to think about and didn't quite know where to start. If Akashi knew about Ogiwara, he had gone to a significant amount of trouble to investigate his background. Yet Kuroko couldn't say with any great certainty that the redhead had a specific plan in mind for that knowledge – it seemed he'd been prepared to reserve it for some unforeseen circumstance and his chiding of the other male had prompted the reveal ahead of schedule.

It would seem his 'harmless shogi player' was truly a thing of fiction now, as he was confronted with the reality of an emperor bent on enacting some form of reprisal for even the minimal attempt at thwarting him that Kuroko had tried that evening. He didn't exactly regret challenging Akashi's comment, but he couldn't imagine what Akashi wanted from him in the first place. It didn't help that his writer's brain was only too happy to supply possibilities more in line with a horror movie than real life. Kuroko didn't fall asleep easily that night as he grappled with his options. He finally drifted into something like sleep with the thought that he should ask Kise-kun for more information about Akashi since the model knew him better. It wasn't much, but it was a start.