"Wait… Wait Don't push!" A muffled male voice shouted outside Setsuna's door while a few other voices and exclamations could be heard.
The door burst opened, with the entire Seirin team and Tetsuya to fall in while the girls gasped in surprise.
"Ah… Hello! Erm.. Just passing by…to…to Kuroko's room! Yea, that's it!" Hyuga stammered, backing away from the girls especially Riko.
The Seirin manager cracked her knuckles, preparing to pummel them into a single pulp," You guys have been listening outside, weren't you? I hope you boys are prepared for a beating of your life."
Setsuna giggled, "It's alright, Riko san. If Tetsu trust you guys to tell you about Teiko, then I trust you guys with my past. I'm just sorry that the story turned out to be something so…alarming. You don't get to hear about split personalities so frequently… I guess, aside from me and Akashi? Oops, that makes two…" Setsuna laughed again, attempting to make light of her condition.
Kagami was the only one who crossed his arms, closed his eyes comtemplating. After a few weak platitudes from the team, he said out loud," I DON'T UNDERSTAND."
"Eh?" Setsuna blinked in confusion.
"I said. I don't understand. Why is this so complicated? Or maybe I'm too stupid."
The rest of the Seirin team deadpanned," Yes, you are pretty hot blooded and stupid."
"AHHH! I KNOW I'M STUPID, don't need to rub it in! What I am trying to say is… Why does Suna's feelings had to interfere with basketball? If you love basketball, you love it and therefore the decision is already made."
"So you are saying if you were me, you would have chosen Chicago with no qualms whatsoever." Setsuna answered to help him better explained himself.
"Yup." Kagami answered plainly without hesitation. The Seirin team truly has team effort as the entire group elbowed his head, scolding that he was being too simple-minded.
"…You are strong, Kagami san. As worthy of being Tetsuya's new light." Setsuna smiled while Kagami tried to bat off their knuckle rubs and attacks.
"So…" Kagami asked in English," I know we haven't known each other for long, but let's go on a date . Right now."
"Come." Kagami stood up, offering his hand to Setsuna and when the girl hesitated, he said again "Trust me."
Setsuna grasped his hand, pulling herself up and Kagami marched her out to the entrance without saying much.
"Kiyoshi senpai. You seniors were initially heading to the street basketball court for practice right? Do you mind if I borrow the basketball from you?" Kagami looked back, pointing at Kiyoshi's duffel bag.
"Ah… Sure, go ahead. What are you… intending to do?" Kiyoshi asked, just looking on at Kagami helping himself to the ball.
"I said before, didn't I? I intend to defeat all the Generation of Miracles. And after the story, she is now included. Kuroko, please come with me and show me where is the nearest basketball court. The rest can come if you want to see."
Everyone including Momoi looked and nodded at each other, scrambling to wear their shoes and followed after the two.
As the rest ran trying to catch up, Riko laughed," If it's our Seirin ace, I trust he will knock some sense into her."
"Will it be so simple?" Momoi asked worriedly, "It doesn't seem like a basketball match would be something to cure split personality… Right?"
"I doubt it's us who can really change her, since it appears Akashi is at the center of it all." Hyuga answered," But if basketball was one of the main reasons that shut Suna down, then who else is more suitable to wake her up? Kagami is surprisingly smart in this sense."
"No…" Koganei chipped in," I doubt Kagami kun even think that far. He is probably just itching for a match."
"True dat." The Seirin team nodded unanimously.
.
.
"…Have you not heard what I said, Kagami san. I can't play basketball anymore." Setsuna reasoned, watching Kagami flexing his leg muscles to warm up. They were now at the nearest basketball court as directed by Tetsuya, while the rest stood by the side watching nervously.
"You can't play or you refuse to play?" Kagami grinned arrogantly," Or is it because I'm a head taller than you? I will give you a handicap."
Setsuna narrowed her eyes, clearly aware that Kagami was trying to bait her. "No, I'm going home. You ask me to trust you and I have followed you here. But I refuse to play your game."
Setsuna turned away, and when Kagami wanted to continue to lure her in, Tetsuya stepped in and said coolly," Suna, you itched to play, don't you?"
Setsuna now glanced at Tetsuya who had grabbed the ball from Kagami, tried to do a layup but failed.
"Who are you referring to, Tetsu? Me or…"
"It doesn't matter." Tetsuya cut in, the ball in his hands again," But if you insist, I'm talking to both of you. For people who played the game for years, especially you, you can't give up basketball so easily. I know. I tried to quit basketball but in the end, I couldn't."
"Can you honestly say every time someone played basketball, you hadn't want to join in?" Tetsuya turned to the hoop again and when he toss the ball, Kagami noticed her hand twitch in response to the sound of the basketball hitting the board.
"Isn't that why you refused to watch any of our games after Uncle Aki and Auntie Yuki passed away? You can say it had reminded you of your parents, but most of all, you refused to watch because it would have made you want to play."
Setsuna attempted to walk away again and Tetsuya asked softly," Or is Setsuna afraid, playing would awaken Suna again?"
The amethyst girl stopped at her feet. She did not move or speak another word for a long while, long enough that Tetsuya was worried it did not worked. Eventually she turned around with her eyes closed, taking a deep breath. When she reopened her eyes, it reflected a fiery passion which Tetsuya smiled in response, passing the ball back to his taller red-haired friend," Have fun, Kagami kun. The Winter Wolf is not someone to mess with and Uncle Aki was a very good teacher."
Kagami grinned happily as he watched the girl took off her cardigan, doing her warm ups silently," I couldn't ask for more."
Riko came forward to be the match referee, laying out some rules to both of them. "The first person who reach 30 points or more will win the game, no time limit. Standard foul, violations applies. Ok, go!"
Riko tossed the ball up and with Kagami's height advantage, he received the ball first, instantly making a beeline under the hoop positioning himself for a dunk shot. However, just before he could line himself for the shot, Setsuna had suddenly appeared behind, slapping the ball out of his hold, bolting out of the 3 pointer line. Before Kagami could turn around to guard her, she had tossed the ball overhead barely within the line, and it had went through the hoop quietly, immediately earning a 3 point score.
"…What… What was that?" Koganei stammered while the whole group couldn't keep their eyes off the match, "That was so fast as if…"
"Setsuna's basketball skills lies in her agility." Momoi answered, watching Kagami finally scored a 2 pointer," So yes, it's as if Kagami kun is playing against a shorter, faster version of Aomine kun."
After a few shots in by Setsuna, Kagami began to step up on his long range defenses, with his jumping power, he prevented her from making any 3 pointers.
Furihata exclaimed," With his height advantage, the only way Setsuna can score is by throwing long range shots. And with Kagami's jumping ability, won't that give him a natural lead over her?"
"…No." Momoi smiled who can't help but cheered for Setsuna," You are right to note that Suna's not very tall especially against male players. But there's a reason why she was placed as the power forward in Teiko back then."
"Don't underestimate me, you fool." Setsuna glared, releasing the ball in her hands towards the hoop.
"At this angle," Kagami sneered," You can't…"
The basketball slammed onto the backboard just as Kagami correctly predicted that it would not have gone in. Before Kagami could turn around to catch the rebound, the 5 ft"8 Setsuna had dodged pass him and leaped from the free throw line. She caught the ball in mid-air, correcting its direction, sinking the ball into the hoop.
"S…Self alley oop!" The Seirin group shouted.
The team continued to watch as Setsuna made short work of Kagami, making shot after shot, pulling the score now at 25 v 10.
"Is this all you have, Kagami san?" Setsuna taunted, after succeeding in dribbling past the stunned Seirin ace," You can't beat Aomine or Akashi at this rate."
Kagami grinned, then laughed manically, surprising the girl as his eyes had not dulled with defeat but they had shined with greater vigor and determination," I shouldn't expect anything less from someone whose skills are said to be on par with the Miracles. But there is something that they have and you don't."
"AH! Kagami is in Zone!" Riko shouted.
"What do you …mean?" Setsuna was in disbelief as Kagami had not slowed down from fatigue, but he had gotten faster and stronger. The ace stole the ball from her and jumping from the free throw line, slamming the ball in with renewed strength and brutality.
"Meteor Jam!" The Seirin team cheered.
-Flashback-
"Dad, not fair!" a 12 year old girl pout, stamping on her feet just as her father had landed back on his feet. "I'm never tall enough to perform such a move!"
Akihito laughed, scratching his head apologetically, "Ah… Sorry, sorry. Force of habit. Even though it is easier to do meteor jam with height, even my little Setsuna will be able to do it one day under the right conditions."
"What right conditions, dad?" Setsuna grabbed the ball, looking up to her 6.2 foot tall father. Akihito grinned, patting her head with his huge warm hand, "You need to have a…"
"…Love for basketball." Kagami answered, tossing the ball to Setsuna. "What the miracles have that you don't. You can't enter the zone with such half-hearted notion of basketball."
After a period of stunned silence, it was Setsuna's turn to grin and laughed genuinely for the first time ever since her parents passed away. In her grief and various circumstances, she had forgotten what basketball had meant to her and her family. In retrospect, she had finally understand what Sei kun was actually attempting to do in the basketball team room on that day. He was not just trying to keep the team together, he was trying in whatever ability that he could have, to renew their love for basketball and not to lose sight of what was important. And even with the new 'Red Emperor' persona, Akashi had continued to play basketball in memory of Shiori.
Is this what Tetsuya sees in Kagami? Setsuna glanced at her cousin standing by the side, Just pure simple devotion to basketball? Can he do what none of us can accomplish back then?
"Let's continue." Kagami beckoned, cracking his neck.
Setsuna smiled," It's enough, Kagami san. I have lost."
Kagami attempt to retort in shock because he was just starting to warm up, however Setsuna continued," You are right to say I don't love basketball as much as you do. But Suna chan is different. Therefore I hope you could wait. The day she reawakens, you two should have a re-match."
The hot-blooded boy obviously wanted to continue the match, but he took a quick glance at his shadow, and the blue-haired partner had merely nodded to him. Kagami closed his eyes and gave a deep sigh in defeat forching himself to calm down because he understood what the two Kurokos tried to convey. Setsuna's issue is extremely deep-seated and it is not something a simple match could immediately opened her eyes. He smiled, extending his hand towards her in a show of sportsmanship.
"Fine." Kagami finally acquiesced," But there's one thing I want to correct. I recognized your skill. Not Suna's, but yours, Setsuna. The next time I face you, I hope I won't be just playing against you or Suna, but the both of you."
Setsuna blinked in surprise for he was the first who addressed the both of them beside Akashi. It made her extremely happy. To Setsuna, she always felt like a mere by-product of Suna's needs. She was a doppelganger, a stand in, a nobody. But Kagami recognized her. Sees her for who she is.
She blushed deeply with elated tears in her eyes. Her hand reached out shakily, holding his hand in a firm handshake," Deal."
A/N: Sorry for the long break. :P Had been side-tracked with games and stuff, please R&R if you enjoy! It's still a little while more till Akashi appears again, so hold on tight!
