HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Wow, it's been almost two months...not even that, since last year! XD...please don't kill me. I hope you guys didn't abandon this story since I took so long to update...But last month was a wreck for me especially with a beautiful writer's block that wouldn't go away. (*takes out scissors and makes a sweet smile)If only I could cut it up...
And when I finally got something down and asked my friend for her opinion...let's just say that my confidence level dropped, a lot. BUT with the help of your awesome reviews which gave me an unbelievable amount of support, I finally got it done. Thank you guys so much!(*tears of joy)
Special thanks to bloodydarkangel, hitomi65, imKimTheWriter, musicanimefreak,kh07gl, Seijuro-kun, JunAkari, Ihadyprilla, Pugslover, Guest, miki565, Guest(2), KarinJulianzZ2000, TrickTheFallenAngel, and Guest(3)! (I'll answer the several questions at the end)
I can't forget the people who favorite and followed this story as well! Luv you all, here are some cookies!(believe it or not I baked 300 cookies this holiday season and I don't know what to do with the extras...).
I've rewritten this chapter three times and I can't do it anymore so I hope it came out alright. Now enjoy~
Disclaimer: KnB belongs to Fujimaki Tadatoshi~! I only own the plot and any OC's
With the arrival of that taunting letter, my first instinct should've been to rush to her, but I can't bring myself to see her right now. After I've finally found my resolve, if I see her again so soon I know I'll abandon everything just to be with her. But…I can't do that, especially since she doesn't want to be with me in the first place.
I already know what'll be waiting for me in Seiren, that's why I'm so reluctant to go. You'll be there standing to greet us with that cold expression in your eyes and then you'll say those disgusting words, "I hate you." You'll tell us that you've decided to join the enemy instead and force us to fight against you. How can you be so cruel when you know that we all hold special feelings for you? Hah, I'm such a hypocrite. I guess this is just my well-deserved punishment that's long overdue. You should've just disappeared with them that night. If you did that then even if I did want to see you, I wouldn't be able to and my resolve wouldn't be shaken like this. And by the time we face each other on the battlefield I would've finally found the will to fight you as an enemy. Even if it hurts, I know I can't keep running away so I'm coming for you Tamiko. No matter what harsh words you throw at me I won't break down, so you better say what you need to and get out of my sight quickly. I bet those bastards put you up to this anyways just to see our broken expressions. I won't give them that satisfaction; I won't show my vulnerable side to anyone, especially you.
"Akashi, we're here." The said person opened his eyes slowly from his nap, or an attempt at one anyways. With how erratically his heart was beating it was impossible to get some shut eye during the long trip to Seiren. He took a deep breath and then stepped out of the carriage, mentally scolding himself. 'Stop being so nervous! You already know what's going to happen so what's the point of being scared?' Confirming his resolve once more he walked the short distance to the palace gates where two guards were waiting. They both bowed and simultaneously said, "We've been waiting for your arrival Akashi-sama."
He gave a nod of acknowledgement. Knowing that the other members would've received the letter as well, since it was addressed to the Generation of Miracles as a group, he knew without doubt that they all rushed to see the bluenette, abandoning their duties. Strangely, he didn't feel mad; it was probably the nervousness messing with his head. But it was also the fact that he knew just what Tamiko meant to every one of them. He resisted letting out a sigh and just said, "The others have arrived already right?"
Reo stared at him with a deadpan. 'Of course they have when you've put off coming for nearly a whole day by locking yourself in your room! Sheesh, state the obvious would you?'
"What was that Reo?" Akashi asked with a sadistic smirk.
The raven head stiffened but kept his calm composure. "Hm? Nothing Akashi," he said with a gentle smile.
The red head's eyebrow twitched but he turned back to speak to the guards.
Wanting to get it over with, he decided to go right to the point. "Where's Tamiko? I need to see her."
The guards pursed their lips and refused to make eye contact with Akashi. 'Hm, I guess she told them about switching sides already. Tch, didn't even wait for me.'
"Y-You might not have heard about it b-but Tamiko-sama…" Tears pricked at his eyes and he got choked up, unable to continue.
"Kyouji, don't force yourself. Just let Riko or Kiyoshi explain." Akita said with saddened eyes. His frame shook and he was on the verge of crying as well.
Akashi furrowed his eyebrows while Reo widened his eyes at their exchange.
'I understand that she is loved as a wonderful ruler but isn't this a bit too much?'
Still at a lost as to how to deal with the two guards, Akashi suddenly noticed Riko and Hyuga approaching them.
Hyuga placed a comforting pat on Akita's shoulder while Riko gave a reassuring squeeze to Kyouji's hand.
"Calm down and go clean yourself up. I'll get the others to take over for your shift."
"Thank you, Riko-san." They gave her a grateful smile before bowing apologetically to Akashi and Reo then leaving.
"I apologize for their behavior but all of us are a bit emotionally unstable right now," the brunette said professionally.
Now that the situation has become less hectic, Akashi noticed that both knights had bags under their eyes and looked thinner. 'It must've hit them pretty hard. Tamiko was the one they trusted the most and to be betrayed like this is certainly unbearable. But shouldn't they be angry instead…?'
He brushed it off and said, "It's quite alright but judging from their reactions I'm guessing Tamiko is no longer here?"
"H-How do you know that?" Hyuga asked, hand quivering. 'No one outside of Seiren castle should know yet!'
'It wouldn't make sense for her to still be here now that she has confirmed that she's now an enemy so why do they looked so shocked and horrified?' Akashi raised an eyebrow. "Isn't it expected after what happened?"
Their surprised expressions turned into ones of anger and Hyuga had to hold back Riko from attacking the red head.
"IT WAS TO BE EXPECTED?! YOU KNEW THIS WAS GOING TO HAPPENED AND YOU DIDN'T DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT? MAYBE YOU PLANNED ALL OF THIS TO GET RID OF HER!" She screamed hysterically with tears streaming down her face.
Hearing the commotion, Kiyoshi, Izuki, Mitobe, Koganei, and Tsuchida ran to the front gate. Izuki helped Hyuga calm down Riko while the rest regarded Akashi and Reo with caution, hands on their weapons ready to draw them at a moment's notice. Reo displayed the same behavior and stood in front of Akashi defensively.
Speaking up for the group since Hyuga was occupied, Kiyoshi demanded, "Was what Riko said true?"
'None of this is making sense. Why are they so mad and surprised? They all know what happened three years ago so it shouldn't be a shock to them that Tamiko decided to go against the Generation of Miracles. If anything I thought the Black Knights would whole heartedly support her mission in revenge.'
"Yes, I did know about it. Although I didn't plan for this to happen, don't you think this was inevitable? It was bound to happen sooner or later so you guys should just get over it."
Their eyes flashed with anger and Riko once again starting thrashing around in Hyuga and Izuki's arms trying to break loose. "How can you be so heartless?! Did she not mean anything to you at all? We thought you changed Akashi Seijurou but apparently not."
"I don't care what you think, just tell me where she is. Did she give you any clues as to who she's joining? Or just tell me which direction she was heading in, I have some things to settle with her."
'I should be relieved that she isn't here so that I don't have to face her so soon but why is this urge to see her getting stronger, to the point that it's painful? Why do I feel the urge to chase after her even after I've decided to give her up?'
The Black Knights' looks once again changed into ones of confusion.
Impatient, Akashi said, "I asked you a question, answer it."
Pulling herself together the quickest, Riko whispered, "What are you talking about?"
Akashi growled in frustration. "It was a pretty straight forward question Riko-san so would you kindly spit the answer out already?"
"What do you mean who is she joining? She's gone…"
"Exactly! So where did she go?!" Akashi hissed feeling like he was talking to a five year old.
A lightbulb seemed to flash on over Riko's head and she looked right into the heterochromatic eyes of the red head. "Akashi-kun, it seems like you're misunderstanding something."
He quirked an eyebrow and waited for her to continue.
"Kuroko…she died."
Shock. His ears rang from those simple yet devastating words. His muscles locked and then his frame started trembling slightly. His heart pounded against his chest and blood rushed to his head as he tried to make sense of everything.
Denial. He reveled in this comforting emotion that would relieve him from his suffering for a split second before he knew it was no use. His heart sank further and grew colder when his eyes that frantically searched Riko's expression for something that would indicate that she was lying only spotted grief stricken eyes. Who was he kidding? There was no way they would joke about something this serious. But…
"Impossible…" he heard himself whisper in an unfamiliar voice. "Where is she? I need to see her." 'No, I can't believe it until I see it for myself. But do I really need to? Everything is already pointing to a solid fact. The guards bursting to tears at the mere mention of her name, the tired expressions of the knights, the letter…
The letter.
I'm sure you'll enjoy the pleasant surprise I've prepared.
A sudden blast of dread hit him straight in the chest and he almost doubled over from the shock and pain. 'Tamiko…'
Riko's voice brought him out of his trance. "She's in her room w-"
She didn't get to finish as Akashi went on autopilot and rushed past her to the maze of corridors, easily finding his way to the bluenette's room having been there dozens of times. The once welcoming door now emitted a cold and foreboding feeling. His mind went blank as he pushed the door open slowly and stepped in cautiously, almost as if he was afraid. He was, but you would have to kill him before you got him to admit that. His heart pounded against his chest relentlessly and his palms felt clammy as his eyes slowly wandered over to where he knew her bed was. He faintly registered that the other members of the Generation of Miracles and Ogiwara were there too, but that didn't matter since he barely remembered to tell himself to breathe. There on her big, fluffy white bed was Tamiko, seemingly sleeping soundly. But Akashi knew better than that. He knew a dead person when he saw one. Being a general and the leader of the Generation of Miracles, witnessing deaths and killing people was a normal occurrence to him. But not once did he cry or feel pity for his victims or fallen comrades. So why was he crying now? Death was part of his everyday life, but it wasn't until this moment that the reality of it really hit him. Seeing his loved one so cold, so still, so lifeless was simply too much to bear and his finely composed mask crumbled to pieces as he let his tears run freely, as if it was a choice in the first place. Being who he was, he should've been ashamed that he was exposing his weak and vulnerable side in front of someone, but he didn't care. The longer his gaze stayed on the bluenette, the more he felt the harsh brunt of reality but he couldn't tear his eyes away from her. If he did, it felt like she would disappear into thin air, but it was too late because she already disappeared, from their lives that is.
Somewhere in the middle on the inner turmoil that threatened to tear him apart from the inside out, one word kept weaving itself in and out of his desperate calls for the bluenette. 'Why. Why did this happen? Why did it have to be her? Why isn't she with her new allies? Why would someone want to kill her?' The image of the letter flashed before his eyes again. Of course…they wanted to see him break down like this. 'But it doesn't make sense, why would they kill such a powerful comrade for the sake of something so futile? Unless…they weren't on the same side in the first place… Impossible! I clearly heard Tamiko declare us as enemies. But whoever did this sure as hell won't get away with it.' He turned to Ogiwara to silently demand an explanation with his glare, even though it wasn't as effective as he wanted it to be since he was still trying to stop the tears flowing from his eyes. The brunette gritted his teeth and clenched his fists in frustration. "It's my fault…if I didn't leave her alone with that guy than none of this would've happened." Tears plopped onto his tightly balled fists that rested on his knees.
Kise, Midorima, Aomine, and Murasakibara heard the story from the other knights but this was the first time Ogiwara has opened his mouth to tell his side of the story. Everyone knew Kagami and Ogiwara were the ones who were most responsible for what had happened since they were supposed to be with her during the mission. When they had first heard about the situation the Generation of Miracles with the exception of Akashi, flew into a rage, literally breathing flames into their faces and nearly beat them into a bloody mess. Even after the other knights and Momoi managed to calm them down to some extent and helped back up the seemingly foolish decisions that the two had made, they continued to glare holes into the back of their heads. Ogiwara had stayed silent the whole time with an empty expression plastered onto his face, ignoring the chaos whirling around him, stuck in his own little world sulking. Kagami on the other hand had a guilt stricken face and didn't even try to defend himself while trying to keep the tears at the brims of his eyes from overflowing. The only thing keeping them from snapping their necks that instant was the fact that those two were some of most important people to Tamiko, and that she would definitely not appreciate their act of violence. Knowing the kind of person she was, she would never blame them in any way since her well-being was her own responsibility as she had said many times before when they would fluster over any little injury she attained from her fights. They were anything but happy with the way things turned out but if it meant Tamiko would be happy then they would oblige and bear with the burning anger that refused to be extinguished inside.
So with the way things were going no, everyone felt the urge to jump on the brunette and rip him to pieces but all they had to do was think about a certain bluenette to extinguish their killing intent and settle for mild ways of expressing their anger and dissatisfaction with the whole situation. A deep growl resonated from Aomine and choked sobs came from Kise's direction as he drowned in grief instead of anger. Murasakibara looked down at the floor with weary eyes and Midorima just closed his eyes in defeat, knowing what was going to happen.
With the exception of the growls and sobs from Aomine and Kise respectively, the room was dead silent as Akashi waited for Ogiwara to continue. Biting down on his lip harshly to stop it from trembling, the brunette tried to find his voice. After several failed attempts with just breathless gasps coming out due to the effects of crying and breaking down, Midorima being fed up with him, continued.
"Kagami and Ogiwara left Kuroko to interrogate the kidnapper, identified as Takano Shuuji , to guide the victims back to town. Kuroko disappeared when they went back for her and they found a little girl named Maki-chan instead, who also happens to be the closest witness to her…death." Midorima whispered the last part as a pained look made itself into his eyes. Everyone else cringed at the word as they all felt that stabbing pain in their chest.
The image of the man clad in black who was with Tamiko the night before flashed through his mind.
Akashi tightened his jaw when he felt his heartbeat speed up even though it was as if someone was mercilessly squeezing the life out of it. He kept quiet and waited for the greenette to finish his report.
"Accomplices of Takano held Maki-chan hostage to control Tamiko's movements and…it resulted in her not being able to fight back when she got attacked. The guards found her a little later out front…but it was already too late."
Akashi didn't know what to make of it. The words wouldn't stay in his system long enough for him to comprehend, like they entered one ear and left the other. 'Nothing makes sense, what the hell happened? Control her movements?'
Akashi felt like he got struck with lightning. It was so obvious so why did he only see it now? Nothing else made sense…'Tamiko wasn't on their side. She wasn't opposing us, she wasn't betraying me…' Whoever they were dealing with obviously wants to bring down the Generation of Miracles and if they killed Tamiko then they considered her an enemy, which means an ally to Akashi. 'But then, why did I hear her hatred so clearly in her voice…? And why did I see nothing but the truth in that person who tried to ambush us on our way back to Rakuzan?' Leaving that thought astray before it gave him a migraine; he focused on what Midorima was saying while trying to contain the burning anger that was threatening to explode any second now.
"Takano Shuuji is the prime suspect for killing her," again everyone winced at the word when it came to refer to the bluenette, "but according to Maki-chan there were four other people present excluding Kuroko, herself, and her captor; so we can't be sure. Maki-chan can't remember what the guy who killed her looks like since she was too worried about Tamiko and therefore was looking at her most of the time. Adding to that she was psychologically scarred so forcing her to remember would only do her harm…We suspect that they are part of a larger group that is aiming to overthrow us. Unfortunately, we've found no traces of Takano or his accomplices."
Akashi shocked everyone when he burst out into laughter. His bangs had fallen over his eyes and he clutched at his stomach cackling. Everyone looked at him with a mix of worry and fear. When he finally looked up to meet their stares, they could've sworn that their hearts stopped beating, frozen from his gaze. His golden eye glowed eerily and his red one looked bolder, brighter; resembling the color of fresh blood. His eyes were dilated and it had a crazed look in them. Yet in between all of that was true amusement. He raised his right hand up to push back his bangs. His sadistic grin peeked through his fingers and his eyes glinted dangerously.
"Ha, ha, you can't find them…? Aren't we the Generation of Miracles?" He dropped his hand to fully glare at each member in turn. "Are we such pushovers as to allow our trump card to be destroyed and sit still? Whoever dared mess with us made a huge mistake…" he slowly pulled out his scissors and snipped them open and closed menacingly, "because they won't escape with their lives."
A week later
Her eyes fluttered open slowly and she looked around at her surroundings in a daze. Head throbbing painfully like she just woke up from a year-long sleep, she realized she was in a prison cell. Her drowsiness flew away and she tried to make sense of the situation. Memories of the previous day filled her with dread. She looked down at her arms and legs, expecting to find countless cuts and scars from Haizaki's assault but scrunched her eyebrows in confusion when she found none. In fact, her body was in perfect condition. Even the shoulder wound she received from the silver head on the day of the conference in Rakuzan was healed. She realized in dread that she was in an unfamiliar outfit, a white and black dress. It had a boat neck and the black sleeves went down to her elbow where it then flared out into layers of ruffles. The skirt flowed down to her ankles and flared out slightly. The whole dress was black except a strip of white that went down the middle. Golden laces criss crossed down the white part of the dress until her waist, where it was then tied into a bow. A red gemstone hung around her neck from a golden chain. The outfit was pretty she would admit but when she thought about her body being exposed to some stranger she felt sick to her stomach. Pushing that thought away, her eyes trailed to her wrists and she saw handcuffs around them. They were attached to a long chain that was in turn connected to the cold stone wall her back was against. When she raised her arms to test the strength of the chains she realized with dismay that even though it seemed like she took a long nap, she felt like she just ran a marathon. Her breathe came out in huffs and her whole body burned like she just was bathed in liquid fire. Her headache became worse as the dizziness from the fever added to the pounding in her head. Her vision blurred but right before she fainted, she thought she saw an all too familiar silhouette, one that shouldn't exist anymore.
When she came around again, she found with satisfaction that she could lift her limbs with renewed strength but realized in agony that she was blessed with a head splitting headache. The sound of her pulse echoed in her ears and it felt like someone was knocking on her temple with all their strength. As if her brain was made of ice, the pricking of pins and needles shattered it to a billion little fragments. Memories immediately flooded forth and she screamed when the pain intensified. Although the bits and pieces of her memories flashed before her eyes for just a moment and then disappeared to reveal another, she remembered every one of them; because they were all either tragic to the point that it was forever carved into her memory or precious and caused a wave of nostalgia to wash over her. Images of her mother, Ogiwara, Kagami, the Black Knights, and then…the Generation of Miracles.
Kise.
Midorima.
Aomine.
Murasakibara.
Haizaki.
Akashi.
Akashi…
She clutched her head and screamed, pleading for the memories to stop. Her heart pounded with fear and her frame shook uncontrollably. 'Why…? Why..? Why am I remembering these things? I don't want to… I don't want to relive them… Someone…please… help me.' Her body racked in pain to experiences that have long passed and her head reeled from the heart stopping pain and whirl of unpleasant memories. Although she knew that they changed for the better already in the back of her mind, the haunting images of how they once were wouldn't leave her head. She tried to push them back and remember the pleasant times they had together instead but she came up empty, like her brain wasn't listening to her anymore. The creak of a door and the soft thuds of shoes against the cold stone floor, made Tamiko snap her head up to see a shadowed figure approach her cell. When she saw who it was, somehow she wasn't surprised.
"Hanamiya Makoto," she growled.
An ugly smirk appeared on said person's face. "You've remembered my name huh Kuroko Tamiko, or should I say phantom sixth 'man' of the Generation of Miracles?"
If she wasn't writhing in pain, Tamiko would've pounced on him, bound by chains or not. The man in front of her was everything she ever resented; greed, violence, dishonesty, and corruptness all mixed into one.
Despite the obvious pain she was in, she forced her voice to be steady to undermine the appearance of just how much she was suffering. "What did you do to me?" Her voice was monotone but her eyes expressed all the hate she felt for the raven head.
He relished in the sight of the blue headed beauty twitching in pain and licked his lips hungrily before saying, "Don't worry, you'll figure it out very soon. As for now, have a nice nap."
She willed her mouth to move but she was already slipping under. 'No…tell me what's happening! I don't want to suffer from these memories anymore…Please stop! Please…Pl..ea..se…' Unable to hang onto her consciousness anymore, she once again slipped into the cold darkness.
Hanamiya walked into an isolated and empty room that was part of the underground lab with Kuroko in his arms. Seto walked in soon after with a questioning gaze.
"How's the effect of the medicine coming along?"
He didn't bother turning around to face his partner in crime, locking handcuffs around the girl's already bruised wrists. This time the handcuffs were directly attached to the wall, leaving her no room to move around. "Her fever seems to be gone and her 'Everlasting Dream' is just starting to take root." He snapped similar cuffs around her ankles so her body was upright and against the wall. Hanamiya smirked at the sight of his prey, practically waiting to be eaten. He was brought out of his reverie by Seto's voice.
"That's good. I was worried that the fever would kill her. If it was anyone else with any less willpower, they wouldn't have survived. I knew there was going to be side effects, but for it to be so severe..." His voice was full of guilt and shame.
"But it was inevitable wasn't it?" Hanamiya turned around and walked past him, strolling out of the room with him following closely behind. He made sure to lock the door before continuing. Tamiko was bound and all, but she's still a member of the Generation of Miracles and they were considered monsters by most. Who knew what she was capable of…
"Since I told you to make 'Sleeping Dead' stronger so that it would also heal the patient in addition to putting them in a temporary comatose state, there were bound to be consequences. Besides, I'm happy since my plan worked and we got good results."
"But I feel responsible for almost making you lose such a valuable soldier…"
Hanamiya chortled. "Soldier? She can't even be considered that. When we're done with her she'll be our very own puppet."
A/N: I've worked out the kinks for the next chunk of the plot so hopefully I'll update before Valentine's Day. Yes, I'm sorry you have to wait so long but I have midterms next week );
On another note...
Ihadyprilla: I try to update every month but it might vary with what's going on in my life. As for what happened three years ago, that should be revealed in another two or three chapters.
Pugslover and Guest(3): Here's the next chapter! Hope you look forward to the next one too~
Guest(2): Thanks for making me laugh! Um as for Kuroko's cup size,I was thinking along the lines of a B, but since you mentioned it I'll make it a C. I'll try to incorporate it into my story? When Aomine sees Kuroko XD
AND A VERY VERY SPECIAL THANKS TO GUEST(1)! YOUR REVIEW REALLY CHEERED ME UP BECAUSE THAT WAS WHEN MY CONFIDENCE WAS AT A NEW LOW. YOUR REVIEW REALLY MADE MY DAY SO X1000 THANKS. YOU REALLY KNOW WHAT TO SAY TO LIFT MY SPIRITS(ALTHOUGH UNINTENTIONAL, BUT STILL!)
And that's a wrap! Please review~! Constructive criticism is welcome and if you have any questions concerning any plot holes there might be(I know there are), fire away!
