My apologies, would have been up earlier but I had a migraine and couldn't look at my computer screen. Regardless, here's chapter ten!

Kuroko stays in his room, clutching the sheathed dagger to his chest. The power still pulses within it, a steady rhythm that used to be familiar. He's not sure what to think of it, not sure what he should think of it.

It's night out, the moonlight shining through the shutters on the window.

He removes the dagger from the scabbard and holds the blade toward the moonbeams, watching as the metal glows a faint blue, the runes inscribed on the hilt grow warm. He knows for a fact he can't throw it anymore, it had been hard enough learning how to do so in the first place, let alone relearning after a number of years. That being said, he reckons he could still wield it well enough to stab somebody.

Not that he would in any case.

Kuroko sheathes the dagger and places it back in the box. He moves it to the desk and hesitates before leaving it unlatched. It's not sentient, it's not going to attack him in his sleep, so why does it unnerve him?

From a small tray at the window, he picks up a glass vial about the size of his index finger. Inside is a slightly glowing plant, red, but shaped like a blade of grass. It's submerged in blue liquid and surrounded by bubbles. He shakes it a little, and keeps it in hand as he gets into bed.

He burrows under his blanket, tugging it tight around him, attempting to sort his thoughts. He still doesn't know what purpose this serves. Momoi suggested that it might be a peace offering, he's not so sure.

Knowing Akashi, it's a calculated move in a master plan that nobody is privy to. The question remains, to what end is this meant to guide him toward? Kuroko's made it abundantly clear that he won't be joining them again. He'd spoken with Akashi, in the wake of that day, he'd had to. He told Akashi his intentions and after nearly an hour and a half of tense conversation, Akashi agreed to let him go.

So what in the hell is he trying to accomplish by sending for the dagger?

Akashi knows that Kuroko can't be bribed, that he's not susceptible to such tactics. Gifts do nothing to sway his feelings, he can't be bought. Then again, this is a sentimental item more than anything else, a source of nostalgia. If so, then the most it can be is just a gesture. The last loose end from Kuroko's time with the Miracle Knights, now tied up and dealt with.

He's not as optimistic as Momoi, maybe he used to be but not anymore.

The dagger can't be a peace offering because none of them understand what truly happened. Maybe Akashi just has a different idea in his head. It's not like Kuroko can give the dagger back, Momoi would have his head, and besides, it's nice to have it back.

Even if for purely nostalgic reasons.

The vial is one of Momoi's less surefire creations, it doesn't always work so its success rate is abysmal. Most nights he won't bother with it, but it's worth a try tonight. The charms he has hanging are only meant to put him into a restful sleep. They work more often than not, and usually put him in such a deep sleep that he's unaffected by dreams.

The contents of the vial are meant to banish dreams entirely, nullifying all other factors.

They're making good progress, but even with the light from one of Momoi's marbles, they're still stumbling in the dark.

"Do you think this will actually lead out where it's supposed to?" Kuroko asks.

"There's only one way to find out," Midorima says. "Besides the point, they have no reason to lie, and you would have known if they were. I don't think we have reason to worry."

A flicker of ribbons from above makes Kuroko pause a moment. There have been a few passes. His sense of direction is terrible, but Midorima had mentioned they'd be passing underneath a main road. Ribbons from both humans and animals had passed overhead. They don't breach through the earth but he can sense them all the same.

Midorima has his weapon at the ready, and Kuroko would be using his dagger but they're still too close to the town so the amplification is doing more harm than good at the moment. Instead he has one of Momoi's blades, a simple knife with no special properties. Aomine and Kise taught him the basics, but he doesn't think he'll need to use it on this leg of their mission.

"Anything?" Midorima asks.

Kuroko closes his eyes and tries to focus, searching the area for their target.

"Not yet, lots of animals though," he says after a moment, "I think we're out of town."

They continue walking and something grows fuzzy at the back of Kuroko's mind. He's not one to put aside his instincts so he reaches for Midorima to stop him.

An arrow, invisible until it meets the light from the marble, hits with a dull thud and Kuroko stares at the sharp head jutting through his shoulder.

Ignoring the pain, he unsheathes his dagger, his reach swelling and allowing him to sense the ribbons of a couple dozen people on either end of the tunnel. He extinguishes the marble and pulls Midorima against the wall.

"Ambush," he says. "They were outside my range before, what do we do?" There's enough adrenaline in his system that he's not taking notice of the pain, not looking at the arrow is helping.

But they're in a tight spot, Midorima isn't a close combat fighter, and Kuroko's not a fighter at all, the most he can do is provide support, but they don't have any of their other teammates with them.

Midorima's ribbons are agitated, snapping about his body in the way that they do when he's uncomfortable. Some of them latch onto Kuroko and he introduces a few strains into them to calm Midorima down.

"Are they converging?" Midorima asks.

"Yes." It's always strange, being able to sense a body but not hear or see it. It's something he's had to get used to, but it's especially difficult with his newfound reach.

"Okay, this tunnel is narrow enough that they won't be able to get at us all at once. Is there anything you can do as an Empath to slow them down?"

"I can make them sluggish, not all of them, but enough I think."

Now they can hear the heavy clatter of running footsteps, the ribbons drawing closer and closer.

"You'll still have to use your dagger," Midorima says. "This won't be a very good fight, but we've never lost before."

Midorima hauls him to his feet and Kuroko adjusts his grip on the dagger, already reaching out for the opposing ribbons. He tries to gather more on Midorima's side, knowing that if Midorima incapacitates those attacking him first, he can help Kuroko.

The approaching ribbons don't seem all that special, the regular haze of battle rage stains about half of them, while the other half are perfectly calm, practiced individuals most likely. They'll have time to piece it all together when they're through this.

He hears Midorima take a breath, trading his bow for a longsword. His ribbons glow, illuminating the narrow space around them, they turn shimmery and nearly all of them latch onto Kuroko.

By the time the first attackers meet them, Kuroko's sapped as much of their energy as he can without losing focus. He brings the dagger in a downward slash, grey and blue energy gathering at the blade. It cuts into the first person, and the magic strikes through him, hitting the next man behind him.

It's after the third cut of a blade across his skin that Kuroko, his heart beat in his ears, holds his hands out and emits a wave of energy, attempting to turn the ribbons a sluggish grey. These ribbons are hostile to him so it takes a bit more energy to wrangle them into submission. A good portion of the attackers drop, their legs giving out beneath them. The rest of them drop their weapons, too weak to keep them up.

There's a rumble overhead and Kuroko barely has any time to register it before Midorima latches onto his arm and starts running.

Then they're just running, Kuroko can't feel his body, he can just feel the panic in Midorima's ribbons and the sudden boom in roses from behind them. Something shoots through his chest but when he looks down there's nothing there.

His vision whites out and-

Kuroko is out of bed in the time it takes to breathe, the vial rolling onto the floor but staying intact. He takes the few steps to the box on his desk and latches it shut.

He stands there a moment, one hand still on the lid, one at his chest as he breathes too fast and too shallow.

Damn it.

Kuroko shoulders his bag and laces his boots, taking the time to at least try and brush his hair out. It's fairly early, the sun only just rising, so ribbon activity in the surrounding area is muted. He makes his way downstairs, fiddling with the latches on his pack.

Momoi's already awake, apparently has been for a while if the stack of sketches littering the counter is anything to go by. He brews her a cup of coffee, setting it beside her along with a note. He sets some coin on the counter as well, a neat stack. She makes no notice of him, too focused on the task at hand.

Her ribbons curled around his wrist for a few moments before letting go though.

On his way to the door, Kuroko plucks a few charms from the various bins, and one small vial of light green liquid that seems to glow just a touch all on its own. He puts the items into his pockets, takes his cloak from the stand, and closes the door behind him.

He told Riko he'd stop by in the evening, but there are other things he has to accomplish today.

Few people are up and around, most of them are shop keepers setting up for the day. A courier rides by on a horse, a number of satchels filled with letters, and he starts to make his rounds.

If it stayed like this forever, Kuroko wouldn't mind living so close to town. The ribbons would be everywhere and all around him, too much buzzing, too much color, too much. But it's nice now. A soft hum in the air, a few colors, most of the ribbons are lazy with sleep, and they drift around as they wish.

He touches the ribbons of the gate guards, drawing their attention to him as he doesn't have his bells. They wave him through without a word and he makes his way to the kitchen.

He has every intention of seeing Kiyoshi but there are things he has to do first.

The ribbons in the kitchen are busier than anywhere else, and for good reason. It only takes a few minutes to locate one of the less busy bakers and trade the few charms and vial from the shop for a wrapped bundle of baked goods that he carefully settles in his nearly empty pack. It's not Murasakibara's baking, but it should appease his craving for castle food, at least for a while.

With his errand done, Kuroko begins his walk to the infirmary, working his way through a small cake loaf on the way.

Kiyoshi has his own home, but he lives alone. If he's on bedrest however, Riko would have never let him off the castle grounds.

The infirmary is quiet, Kiyoshi's ribbons are there, and there are a few sleeping sets as well, but no one that Kuroko immediately recognizes. He pushes open the door, scanning the beds to see who's been keeping Kiyoshi company.

There's three of them, two of which seem to have some kind of sickness, if the curtained quarantine is anything to judge by. The third is in a fitful sleep, his bandaged torso the most likely source of his unrest.

Kiyoshi is awake, sitting up with a blanket covering his legs. He's reading but looks up when the door shuts behind Kuroko. His eyes wander and Kuroko takes hold of one of his ribbons, holding back a grimace when he sees the state of them.

Normally, Kiyoshi's ribbons are a dull pink mottled with grey, small roses swirling through them, fairly active, and perfectly solid. They look ragged now, and they'd be grey if it weren't for all the roses. Kuroko fiddles with a few of them, introducing a few streaks of gold and some others in an attempt to mellow out the pain.

"Oh, Kuroko, Riko said you might stop by sometime, though I thought it would be later."

"You're awake, aren't you?" Kuroko sits on the cot, making sure to avoid Kiyoshi's legs. He sets his bag down at the foot before breaking the cake loaf in half and offering the untouched portion to Kiyoshi.

"Fair enough," he says with a smile. "Thank you."

They take a few minutes to finish up the cake loaf, enjoying the quiet before Kuroko speaks up.

"What did you do?" he asks, eyes still fixed on Kiyoshi's ribbons.

"Pardon?"

"Your legs."

What slivers of pink that were in the ribbons are gone now, replaced by sullen patches of blue, despite the smile on Kiyoshi's face.

"Oh."

Kuroko waits, not wanting to rush anything but desperately concerned. He's seen ragged ribbons enough times to know that Kiyoshi has to be filled to bursting with some kind of emotional turmoil. It's not surprising, actually, Kiyoshi is one of many that Kuroko knows who pushes down his emotions in favor of presenting a much better face.

It's commendable, and Kuroko is in no position to judge, but even he has a good cry every now and again.

"Ah, well," Kiyoshi starts, chewing his bottom lip for a moment before continuing, "I, uh, it's my own fault really. I know my limits, but I thought, maybe, that I could push them. Turns out, I pushed them too far. I think I scared Riko a little, she found me on the training grounds, I couldn't support my own weight so she had to half drag me. I've been here ever since because she won't let me go home."

"For good reason," Kuroko says, "you're a mess."

"It hurts," Kiyoshi says with a laugh, "I'll admit that much."

More than that, Kuroko has the sneaking commission that Kiyoshi will be out of commission for good. This is beyond him, beyond Momoi and Riko even. He's no healer, though he desperately wishes they had one this side of the mountains, but if the roses are anything to go by, they'll be lucky if Kiyoshi will be able to walk by himself.

Without a word, Kuroko flips the blanket to see one of Kiyoshi's legs.

He can only stare.

It's only been a few days, from what he can gather, but the bruises are still startling. Kiyoshi's knee is a mess of color, not a stretch of unblemished skin in the area.

"Oh, uh, it's not as bad as it looks," Kiyoshi tries.

"Beg to differ," Kuroko says, putting the blanket back in place. "I'll ask Momoi to make you something strong, at least so you can manage this."

Something flickers across Kiyoshi's face and he seems to melt into the pillows propping him up for a moment, tension seeping out of his body. There's an understanding about him, like maybe he's been expecting the worst scenario and now it's arrived.

"Thank you," he says after a minute or so.

"Of course, it's the least I can do." Kuroko keeps a steady connection with Kiyoshi's ribbons. There's not much he can do to alleviate the pain, but he can maybe push it aside for a little while, make it a second thought.

"Can I ask a favor?"

"You can."

"Don't tell Riko?"

"I don't think-"

"I want to tell her myself. I'll tell her and then we'll go from there, see what we can do. This is a 'one battle at a time' situation, I think."

On of the ribbons loops around Kuroko's bicep, another rests on his shoulder.

"Right. Contact me when you see fit. We're taking a craft day tomorrow, I'll see if I can't get something sent down by then."

They say their goodbyes and Kuroko stops just outside the infirmary doors.

He makes his way back into town and readies himself. Most of his interaction comes in the form of working the counter at the shop, he's not fond of conversing with strangers, for many reasons actually.

He doesn't bother entering any establishments just asks passersby if they've seen a soldier from another kingdom wandering about, possibly with a tall, red haired man on crutches. It takes about an hour but he finally finds someone who points him in the direction of a leatherworking and armor repair shop.

It's not far, but it's just outside of his reach.

There's no signage on the building but it's well kept, and it looks to have a living space adjoined to it. The doors are opened and Kuroko can sense Himuro and Kagami's ribbons inside, the both of them still asleep. The third set of ribbons, Kuroko figures, belongs to the mentor they mentioned.

He sees her soon enough, a blond woman currently going through a log book, glasses on the edge of her nose as she reads. Her ribbons aren't anything out of the ordinary, strong though, and filling a good portion of the front shop. This area looks to be more of the leatherworking area while an off hallway leads to a smithy.

"Can I help you?" the woman asks after he's touched her ribbons to make his presence known. She stays seated but closes her log book, folding her arms atop it.

"I was told Himuro Tatsuya was staying here, is that correct?" Of course it is, he can sense the man but he has manners.

"Has he done something?"

"Uh, no, ma'am. My name is Kuroko Tetsuya, I'm the one who woke Kagami. I just have a few things I'd like to discuss with Himuro. I understand that it's early but if you could pass a message to him to come see me at his convenience, that would be greatly appreciated."

The woman scans him up and down, there's no malice in her ribbons, she seems quite amiable actuallly but there's a thrumming undercurrent of intense curiosity that makes Kuroko want to take a step back.

"Kuroko? Taiga's mentioned you, told me you're a knight," she says. She stands up and makes her way to Kuroko, setting her hands on his shoulders. Her ribbons flare at the contact and she smiles. "Thank you for bringing him back."

She pulls back, squeezing his shoulders once before crossing her arms.

"You can call me Alex," she says, "I trained Taiga before he joined the army. In any case, I can go wake Tatsuya if this is an urgent matter."

"It's not, but I'd like to see him before the end of the day if possible. He'll know where to find me."

He hopes so anyway, it's not like he goes many places, and he trusts that Himuro is smart enough to look for him at the shop.

"Cryptic," Alex says, laughing a little, "I like it. Okay then, I'll let him know."

"Thank you, I'll take my leave now, have a good morning."

"And you as well, Kuroko."

The town is alive by this point, bustling and busy, ribbons wavering and drifting, a few latching onto him for a few moments as he passes by. While he's here though, he may as well do some shopping.

He stops by a bookstore he used to frequent with Midorima and finds a book about magical plants. It's a good find, legitimate from what he can make out, maybe it'll help him understand some of what Momoi does. He stops by a few other shops, picking up ink, parchment, wine, thread, and leather strips, opting to carry all of it rather than remove his traded baked goods from his bag.

The shops is open, though devoid of customers, when he arrives.

"Kuroko?" Momoi pokes her head out from the kitchen and gives him a smile. "You're back. How is he?"

Kuroko sets his purchases on the small table before emptying his bag.

"It's not good. He'll be lucky if you can stay upright on his own."

Momoi doesn't question the baked goods, just cuts into a bread loaf after setting a cup of coffee in front of Kuroko.

"How's he taking it?"

"He's Kiyoshi."

Momoi sits down across from him, a dry chuckle slipping past her lips.

"And Riko doesn't know yet?"

"I'm sure she suspects, or at least knows it's a possibility. Which reminds me, I told Kiyoshi I'd ask you to brew something for the pain, something stronger than usual."

"Of course, I can start it tonight."

The shop's already been prepared for the day so Kuroko downs a pick me up and unwraps the book from the rough packaging. Momoi browses up and down the isles, minor spells at her fingers to make something a touch more visibly appealing. Showmanship is everything, after all, Momoi wants her shop to be enticing.

There aren't too many customers, though a traveling party from the other side of the mountains passes through, apparently pointed their way by a border keeper. Momoi keeps their attention, bargaining in a way that some might considered underhanded. She's a business woman, she knows what she's doing, and it's not like she's malicious in her intent. She has skills aside from magic, almost parallel to Kuroko in her ability to read people. She can tell what they want, what they need, and can lead them there should she choose to.

He's never judged her for it before, he's not going to start now.

Kuroko gets a few chapters into the plant book when he picks up on Kise and Aomine's ribbons. They're more likely to come to the shop than the others. When not practicing, Midorima is doing record and archival work, while Murasakibara is with Akashi as the latter goes about his duties as the Baron. Kise and Aomine have no secondary title, so they're more or less free to go about as they wish. They outclass other knights in combat so there's no point in their participation at drill times.

The bell rings and Kuroko places a bookmark between the pages, setting the book to his side as Aomine and Kise approach.

"Hello, you two!" Momoi calls from the tapestry wall, magic clinging to her fingers as she touches up the enchantments.

"Hey, Satsuki." Aomine gives Kuroko a glance before moving to talk with Momoi, leaving Kise at the counter with Kuroko.

Kuroko steals himself, there's no calming draught readily available, and with both of them in the shop he's already a little nauseous.

"I heard Kiyoshi's in the infirmary," Kise says in a mock whisper.

"He is."

"Did something happen?"

"He ruined his legs," Kuroko says flatly, meeting Kise's gaze.

"Oh," he says, "that's- uh, that's awful. Any chance he'll pull through okay?"

Kise is very obviously avoiding meeting Kuroko's gaze but Kuroko doesn't waver.

"It's not likely that he will."

Kise hadn't been limping when he came in, and Kuroko can't make out any roses beneath the grey lock. However, limping can be easy to hide if it's light enough, and Kise knows as well as Kuroko that if Momoi sees him limping she'll know how serious it is. Kuroko's not sure if the condition of her ring has worsened, he assumes she would have said something if it had.

But it's still work worrying about.

"I'm okay," Kise says, a real whisper this time. "Swear it, it was just swollen this morning, that's all."

Kuroko hates not being able to tell when people are lying. As an Empath, he's generally exempt from wondering, he knows, and right now he doesn't. He looks for physical tells, anything. Kise has a bright, sometimes airheaded, personality but he uses it to hide the rest of them. There's a reason Akashi chose him. Kise can run with the best of them, can lie and cheat and terrify.

And Kuroko doesn't know what Kise's feeling right now.

Before he can say anything about it, Momoi and Aomine come up to the counter. Momoi's ribbons haven't changed, nothing to indicate worry or apprehension.

Kuroko folds his arms on the counter and waits for either one of them to speak.

"Satsuki said you got the dagger," Aomine says. His tone is light, nothing like the strained mess it is usually. That's good.

Kuroko thinks to his dream, and gives thanks for the fact that his Empath abilities have made him a good liar.

"I did, yes, it was unexpected, but appreciated nevertheless. Thank you." He directs his thanks to the both of them, Aomine just smiles and Kise shrugs.

"We were worried you wouldn't like it," Kise says.

It was an awful lot of trouble to get it, all on the chance that he might not reject it. How strange.

Kuroko watches the three of them talk for a little while, staring at their ribbons and trying to trick himself into believing that the grey lock is lighter than it was when he last saw them.

Kise and Aomine end up going outside to spar, the original intent of their visit apparently. Momoi leans across the counter as they go, most of her ribbons coming to loop around Kuroko's arms and one of them settles atop his head.

She gives a little sigh and smiles at him.

"You okay?" she asks.

"More or less. I don't think they'll be going away any time soon, I'm trying to be okay with everything."

"That's all I ask." She leans close enough to kiss his cheek before smoothing his hair down. "Man the shop for a moment? I have to spell the ground out there so they don't set it aflame."

"Of course."

She goes and, one by one, her ribbons unwind from him. He latches onto one of them, for just a moment, simply to remind himself that he can, then lets it go.

No customers arrive while Momoi's out, but Kuroko can sense Himuro's ribbons on the edges of his reach, moving at a pace that suggests he's walking. Kagami's with him as well, and it seems as though they've brought Alex along too.

He can't remember ever seeing Alex before. It's possible that she's never been to the shop. Before he started staying with Momoi, he rarely strayed from the castle. Sure, he'd go to town with Midorima for books, or Kise would drag him to the merchant's fair, but he never risked getting lost by going out on his own. There was never a point in going to a shop for leather work or armor repair. There was someone at the castle for the former, and they had Aomine for the latter. Some people don't come to the shop because they don't trust magic, or they believe it's a scam.

To be honest, Kuroko is fairly sure that Momoi is the only witch to commercialize magic. The few others that Kuroko has met keep their trade very close to the chest. They enchant objects for specialized fighters, or work under their ruler directly. All the same, Momoi doesn't offer up serious magical items for sale. Those she reserves for those close to her, or simply for personal use.

She's not a conventional witch by any means, but that doesn't mean she's a bad one either.

The bell rings and Kuroko can hear voices now.

Alex's ribbons cling close to her body but one drifts over to Kuroko. Their base is a light blue, speckled in caution, an edge of tension thrumming through them. He holds onto it, introducing a touch of calm that races back to spread to the other ribbons.

Kuroko shakes his bells a little.

"Hey, Kuroko!" Kagami calls, coming into full view.

His ribbons seem better than the day before, not so many roses, and he seems as high energy as ever. Himuro's ribbons hold a similar edge of tension, likely because of his cryptic summoning.

"Hello," Kuroko says.

Alex lets out a whistle, eyes drifting around the shop.

"Lived in this place my whole life," she says, "and I've never come to this shop. Tatsuya told me where you lived, I thought he was joking. Taiga said you're a knight, and you work with the witch. I didn't have you pegged for Miracle Knight material."

Kuroko shrugs.

"I'm retired," he says simply.

"Where is Momoi, by the way?" Kagami asks. "Could I talk to her while you talk with Tatsuya?"

"She's outside, in the back. Aomine and Kise are training back there, so be careful."

Kagami lights up, likely at the idea of seeing two Miracle Knights in combat with each other. Alex goes with him, and Kuroko keeps one of each of their ribbons with him, just in case.

"So you wanted to speak with me?"

"It's nothing egregious, I just have a few questions."

"I suppose answering is the least I could do then."

"Kagami mentioned that your mother is an Empath. As you know, I am one as well, but there aren't many of us so I didn't exactly have an instructor. I was hoping you could enlighten me, share anything your mother may have mentioned."

Himuro drums his fingers against the counter and blows some of his hair out of his face.

"Well, that's certainly not what I was expecting."

"If you can't think of anything, I understand and I apologize for bringing you out here for nothing."

"No, no, that's not it. I'm not sure what I can tell you, I spent more time with Alex, come to think of it. Hmm."

Kuroko lets him think, monitoring his ribbons but not seeing any indication of Himuro being uncomfortable.

"I figure you know this already but she always knew when we were lying. Um, Taiga broke his arm once, she made it so he didn't feel any pain. Um, I'm not sure what else I can tell you."

"Did you ever see her in combat?"

"Once, yes. Someone broke into our house, I think. Mom was awake in an instant and she...killed him. I think she did anyway. She started glowing bright silver and gold and she threw her hand out, kind of like this." Himuro steps away from the counter and stands with his feet shoulder width apart. He raises one arm, palm out with his four fingers bent slightly, his thumb almost parallel to the ground. "Some of that light shot out toward the man and he just sort of dropped, I suppose. She never told me how she did it."

Kuroko worries his hands together, trying to piece together what he's just been told.

He's heard of mind control, that much he can understand. But outright killing somebody? He's only ever used gold to soothe pain, and he's still working out silver. There had been note of violent capabilities within his book but he doesn't think any of it lines up with what Himuro said.

"Is there anything else you can think of?"

"No, I'm sorry."

"Don't be, some information is better than no information at all."

Kuroko eases back on his stool and sighs. It was worth a shot. He'll have to consult the book again, do some independent thinking. He shudders at the thought of practicing, how was such a technique developed in the first place? It's magic all the same, he supposes, there will always be someone to discover a dark purpose for it. Not to make a strike against Himuro's mother, but Kuroko has to wonder how and where she learned it.

"I have to stay here and man the shop, but please feel free to join the others outside."

Kuroko grabs hold of Himuro's ribbons, pushing away the unease and worry so that he's more agreeable to the suggestion.

It's not until Himuro is halfway out the door that Kuroko realizes what he'd just done. He lays his arms on the counter and drops his head.

That night, it's just the two of them. Momoi doesn't have her apron on, but she's wearing her goggles, several lenses magnifying her eyes to a nearly comical size. She's etching runes into a rod of metal. She hasn't said what it is but Kuroko's sitting beside her acting as an amplifier for the soft magic clinging to her fingers.

"Momoi, can I ask you a favor?"

"Sure, what is it?" She's still working on the runes but her ribbons tell him that he has her attention.

"Could I have a piece of the stone you took from the cave?"

Momoi pauses her work a moment before continuing.

"If you need me to enchant something, I can do that," she says.

"That's not what I meant."

"So...you just want a piece of the stone?"

"Yes."

"Okay, uh, sure. How much do you need?"

"Not a lot, about the size of our tokens maybe."

"Oh, okay, let me finish this first, but I can do that."

"Thank you."

She continues her work for a moment but her ribbons are shaking slightly.

"Can I ask why?"

"Personal experiment," Kuroko says. "I just want to try something."

Momoi makes a little humming noise and etches another rune. He takes one of her ribbons, working away the worry.

"When we went to the cave, the stone had an effect on their ribbons, I just want to see if I can mimic that effect, maybe figure something out."

The worry vanishes from Momoi's ribbons, independent of Kuroko, and the pink glows brighter, the silver bleeding into it. Ribbons aside, Momoi is absolutely beaming.

"That's good, I'm glad." She takes off her goggles, setting the rod on a square of fabric. "Come on, let's do it now."

Kuroko stays put while Momoi digs around for the stones. She'd put them in a spelled leather pouch, settled amongst the other magically imbued stones she has at her disposal.

"What kind of effect did it have?" she asks. "I guess ,more importantly, what are you hope it will do?"

Kuroko bites his lip and leans against the table. He doesn't like keeping things from Momoi, but he doesn't want to get her hopes up if this fails.

"When we entered the cave, it changed their ribbons a little," he says. "I still couldn't interact with them, but they changed. That, combined with-"

Momoi looks up from the stone. A focused thread of magic is slowly dividing out a piece of the stone, a little larger than what Kuroko requested. The look on her face tells Kuroko that if he doesn't tell her, she won't stop pressing.

"Kise and I talked when we went to wash dishes that morning. The lock on his ribbons broke. Not permanently, but it was for a split second. I'm hoping the stone will let me recreate that, or at least make it easier to induce."

In a blink, Momoi has her arms around him, squeezing uncomfortably tight.

"Thank you," she says. "I hope it works."

Kuroko just hugs her back, allowing her ribbons to all but envelope him.

It will work, it has to.

A little all over the place but I hope you liked it, let me know what you think! Shit's going down next chapter, so I hope it's up to par.