Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or Kuroko no Basket!

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...

2nd year – Teiko – after Nationals

Mac walked into the gym together with Daiki and Tetsuya and saw her other friends already there, Ryota waved cheerfully at them and Seijuro nodded with a small smile. Atsushi glanced over at them from his large bag of chips but didn't say anything as he continued to eat, while Shintaro pushed his glasses further up his nose with an annoyed look at the tall centre before nodding at them when he spotted them.

"Why are we standing here?" Daiki asked looking around the gym.

Mac noticed that there was no sign of the coaches yet, and the third years weren't there. Not that they were supposed to be, not anymore. They had quit after Nationals to concentrate on their studies, but Mac still found it strange to not see them.

"We're waiting for the coaches," Ryota said. "Kuroko-cchi, play with me today!"

Mac sighed and placed her bag on the floor and took out her notebook ignoring Tetsuya and Ryota talking, she started to scribble in the notebook trying to think of ways to challenge Daiki so he would find it fun to play basketball.

...

Sanada stood in his new office and looked out over the schoolyard, his hands fisted together as he heard the sound carrying from the gym. He knew the team was back and he would have to go out there and tell them the news. Yet, he didn't move. How could he tell them something like this? His mind went back to the night before.

"The third years quit," Sanada said, "but that's expected."

"Ah," Shirogane said.

"We still have the Generation of Miracles," Sanada continued.

There was a moment of silence before Shirogane spoke up, so quietly that he nearly missed it, "I'm not so sure about that."

"What?" Sanada asked.

"I'm actually worried," Shirogane said. "They're too strong. We'll have to help them keep the team together."

He coughed and Sanada looked at him a little worried.

"They'll be fine," Sanada said, "as long as you're around, I'm sure…"

Back in the present Sanada sighed, Shirogane wouldn't be around anymore. He had collapsed and brought to the hospital. Sanada knew the older man had been tired lately, but he thought that now that's the Nationals were over he could relax and get better, but he had been told that he had to stay at the hospital for a long time.

He was worried about what Shirogane had told him the night before. Was the Generation of Miracles too strong? He did see the change in Aomine Daiki, it was worrisome. Would the same change also happen to the others? He had tried to tell Shirogane that Mac would help, but the older man had looked worried still as he rested in the hospital bed.

"I am sure Potter-san will try her best to keep the team together," Shirogane said. "She will be the best one to do so, but… I worry. Aomine-san will listen to an extent to her, but his loneliness and strength will only grow and he will falter. The others will also grow, and I'm worried. It's too much to ask any 14-year-old to handle."

Sanada knew his mentor and friend was right, but he had a hope that maybe Mac would be the one to save the team. He hoped… He sighed and moved toward the door and out of the office finding his way to the gym. He saw they had started to play a little, he saw Mac sitting at the bench with her notebook and a pen tapping against her lower lip as she had a pensive look on her face and he saw how she glanced at Daiki from time to time.

...

"Attention!" Sanada called as he entered the gym completely and they stopped what they were doing and gathered around him. "I have some bad news to tell you."

Mac frowned as she looked at him and noticed the lack of presence of Shirogane.

"Is Coach Shirogane okay, sir?" Mac asked quietly and Sanada looked over at her slightly surprised that she asked, but then again she was good at reading the situation around her.

"He collapsed yesterday," Sanada said bluntly and saw the widening eyes in the team and Mac seemed to pale a little. "He'll live, but unfortunately he won't be able to coach anymore."

Mac looked down and fisted her hands, she had been worried about the older man.

"So from today on, I will be your head coach!" Sanada said. "We will be practising as normal starting tomorrow. Got it?"

"Kenzie?" Daiki asked looking at her with a concerned look.

"I'll catch up with you, Daiki," Mac said and grabbed her bag. "I'll just have to ask coach Sanada about something."

"Ok," Daiki said but he looked torn about something, but Mac just gave him a small smile and jogged away from him and toward the coach who was walking back toward his office.

"Coach!" Mac called and the man paused before turning to look at her.

"Potter-san," he greeted her. "Can I help you?"

"Um, where is Shirogane-san?" Mac asked. "Is he really ok?"

"He's going to be fine," Sanada said, "but he needs to stay at the hospital to rest."

Mac frowned, "do…do you think I could visit him?"

Sanada looked at her for a moment and Mac waited while he obviously was thinking about it, she worried her lip a little but didn't say anything.

"I'm sure he would appreciate that," Sanada finally said, "just remember that he needs the rest."

Mac nodded and smiled a little and took the small piece of paper that Sanada gave her with the name of the hospital written on it along with a room number.

Mac was silent at dinner and ignored the worried looks from Daiki and his parents, Daiki had told them about Shirogane and she knew they worried about her. She wasn't sure why she was so affected by the news, but the older man had been the first besides Daiki to see the potential in her and believed in her.

...

The next day after practice Mac found herself outside the hospital room Sanada had given her and took a deep breath before raising her hand to knock on the door.

"Come in," she heard a familiar voice say and she pushed the door open.

Mac walked into the white hospital room, she noticed several flowers on a table and nightstand.

"Potter-san," Shirogane looked a little surprised when he spotted her and Mac smiled nervously, clutching the strap of her schoolbag.

"Hi, coach," Mac said softly, "How are you?"

"I'm not your coach anymore, Potter-san," the older man said with a small smile, "but I'm fine."

Mac nodded and looked at the man, he was pale and looked tired but he was smiling at her. He was wearing one of those hospital gowns and had a book on his lap so he had obviously been reading when she came.

"Ah, I was just trying to catch up on some reading," Shirogane said when he saw her looking at the book, "I don't normally have time to read, so it's nice to get a chance to read."

Mac nodded again and felt stupid for not finding her voice, she shifted on her feet feeling out of place.

"Why don't you sit?" Shirogane said kindly.

Mac sat down in the free chair and glanced up to meet his eyes, he smiled at her.

"How did the practice go?" Shirogane asked breaking the awkward silence.

"Like normal," Mac said shrugging, "Daiki is bored, but the others… they seem different now too… Midorima and Murasakibara both seem to have reached another level, and while Midorima still practices like he normally does he's distancing himself. Murasakibara is lazier than normal and not even Seijuro can get him to listen."

Mac looked down at her lap and frowned a little, she wasn't sure why she said that but she just found the words leaving her mouth almost on their own accord.

"I see," Shirogane said.

"Coach, what can I do?" Mac asked quietly, "I hate seeing them like this…"

Shirogane gave her a sad smile.

"Unfortunately there's no right answer," Shirogane said and Mac looked up at him. "All you can do is being there for your friends, Potter-san. They will grow stronger, but they will need someone to keep them together. You may be the one to do so."

"How?" Mac asked.

"I believe you will be the best to figure out that," Shirogane said, "just be yourself and trust that they are your friends. Remember the memories you've made and how they made you feel. I won't lie to you, Potter-san, there will be times that are difficult. There will be times where you'll wonder if they're even the friends you remember any more, but trust that they're still there somewhere."

Mac nodded but felt confused even after listening to him talk. She stayed a few minutes longer before she left with her head filled with questions and worries about how she would keep the team together.

...

Time passed and Mac felt tired, she had to balance school, basketball and magic lessons and it was starting to get to be too much, especially when her friends were starting to break apart. She still hadn't found an answer to how to keep them together.

That was what she was thinking as she watched Atsushi land after having used his force and overwhelmed the two defenders to dunk the ball instead of passing to Seijuro who was free and ready to get the ball. What worried her more was the way he brushed Seijuro off after, the look in his eyes. It… scared her.

"Murasakibara-cchi! That was awesome!" Ryota praised the tall centre later and Mac glanced over at them from where she was writing in her notebook with a small frown on her face as she saw the way Atsushi held his hand in front of him and stared at it like he was seeing something else.

"I just feel so powerful. If I actually tried, I could probably crush my teammates," Atsushi said darkly and Mac glanced away and got up.

"Mac-cchi?" Ryota questioned but she ignored him and walked out of the room and away from them, her mind was spinning and she needed to get away.

...

Sato's home

"It's important that you follow the instruction on the board, today we're making a potion that is cure for boils," Sato lectured and Mac nodded as she looked at the board and saw the different ingredients she would need written up: dried nettles, 6 snake fangs, 4 horned slugs, 2 porcupine quills.

"Dangerous situations could happen if you don't follow the recipe to the letter," Sato continued, "potions isn't a subject where you need your wand, and many don't see it as magic. Though, the softly simmering of a cauldron with its shimmering fumes, the delicate power of liquids that creep through the human veins can bewitch the minds and ensnare the senses… it can save lives and give glory."

Mac nodded and wrote down what he said as she did. She worked quietly and cut the ingredients like the book said or tried to.

"Potter-san," Sato said and she paused. "You're distracted."

She looked down and saw that she was finished with cutting the slugs and she blushed slightly. She bit down on her lower lip to stop her emotions.

"I'm sorry, sir," Mac said.

He looked at her for a moment before sighed, "read the description again and then continue. Push whatever's on your mind away and focus on what's in front of you."

"Yes, professor," Mac said quietly and did as he said. It worked better now and she managed to follow the recipe and smiled a little when her potions started to look the way it was supposed to. Thirty minutes later Sato stood up from his desk and walked over to her, he glanced down at the potion and nodded.

"Good," he said, "till next time I want you to write an essay on the potion and the dangers of making potions."

"Yes, sir," Mac said before she started to clean up the mess she made not seeing the considering look on her professors face.

...

The next subject they were doing that day was Defence Against the Dark Arts and it was something Mac always looked forward to. It was the best subject in her opinion and she found herself getting the hand of this subject better than the others.

"Like I have told you before," Sato started getting Mac's attention, "this will be a more hands-on subject and you will learn how to defend yourself with practical magic. We will start with the basics, but I will focus more on the practical aspects of the subject."

"You said it was because of my past?" Mac asked and he looked at her silently for a moment before nodding.

"Yes, Voldemort is gone," he said, "but his followers are still out there. I don't mean to scare you, Potter-san, but you must be aware that you are a natural target for those who followed Voldemort's ways. They see you as the one who destroyed their master, and some might want revenge."

Mac looked down and couldn't deny the spark of fear she felt at his serious words, she knew he meant what he said and she also detected something else in his words. It was like he was particularly eager for her to learn how to defend herself like he expected her to need it soon. She frowned.

"So, while we will go into the theory of the subject I will not focus on that," Sato said, "I will be teaching you how to duel and spells and curses to use. Nothing dark, but you will need to know what to look out for."

Mac nodded and they continued the lessons and he went through more curses and hexes for her to learn. When she was finished she felt tired and drained but blushed slightly when she saw the contemplative look on her professor's face.

...

"Potter-san," Sato broke the silence and she looked at him.

"Yes, sir?" she asked.

"Are you ok?" he asked looking a little uncomfortable.

"I'm fine, sir," Mac said, "I'm sorry for not paying attention in class. I'm just tired."

Sato frowned a little but he nodded and dismissed her for the day. She packed her things and bid him goodbye before leaving the office and walked out.

"Mac-chan!"

Mac glanced up and saw Daisuke coming down the hall with a book in his hands, probably on his way to return it to the library. He smiled and she tried giving him a smile back.

"Hi Sato-san," Mac said silently.

"I've told you, call me Daisuke," he scolded her playfully; "Sato-san is my dad."

"Professor Sato is your dad," Mac shot back making the older boy blink before laughing loudly. Mac smiled a little more genuinely.

"Ha, you got me there, Mac-chan," he said when he calmed down looking at her with a smile on his handsome face. "What's up?"

"I'm on my way back home and then getting ready for school for the second time today," Mac shrugged.

"Harsh," Daisuke said, "you're really dedicated keeping up with your muggle studies beside your magical ones."

"I don't want to leave my friends," Mac said looking down with a small frown, her worries back again.

"I can respect that," Daisuke said easily, "they're lucky to have you as a friend, Mac-chan."

Mac just shrugged and glanced at the clock.

"I have to go," she said.

"Ok, have a good day…again," Daisuke grinned and waved at her before he turned and walked toward the library in the house. Mac sighed quietly before activating her port-key taking her home.

...

Teiko

Mac paused in the doorway of the gym as she made her way back from the library where she had finished her homework for the next day. She was tired and ready to go home, but she had forgotten her notebook about the team in the gym and she needed it so she had to go back before going home. That's when she heard the sounds of basketball and had her remember another time when she had heard the sound outside of school hours. Back when Daiki loved basketball with the childlike enthusiasm, and had been lured to go to check out the rumours about a ghost and discovered Tetsuya. So much had changed since then, Mac thought as she spotted Shintaro practice shooting.

Seeing Shintaro practice even when the practice was over and the school was empty made Mac smile a little, at least one of her friends still took basketball seriously. She saw how he paused looking at the ball in his hand and then raising his head to look at the hoop on the other side of the court with a considering look in his green eyes. Her eyes widened when he took the position to shoot and felt her mouth go dry when the ball flew across the court with deadly precision and into the hoop before the bouncing echoed through the silent gym.

Mac took a step back and clenched her hands as she processed what she had just witnessed. She had thought that Shintaro had reached the next level, and this proved it. He had bloomed just like Daiki, just like Atsushi. They kept getting away from her, what could she do to hold on to them?

Deciding to get the notebook the next day she left the hallway and stepped out into the fresh autumn air, the trees were changing colours and she knew winter would soon be there. Time passed like normal even when she tried to hold on to the way things were. Why did everything have to change?

...

"Kenzie," Daiki smiled when she entered the house.

"Daiki, how are you?" she asked and he shrugged. "Have you done your homework?"

"Most of it," he said and she gave him a look making him squirm. "Well, some of it.." He amended.

Mac sighed and shook her head, "come on. I'll help you."

Daiki grinned at her and for a moment she saw the happy boy he used to be making her heart melt a little. She followed him up to his room and they sat at his desk and Daiki pulled out his math homework.

Finished with his homework Mac stretched in her seat and yawned covering her mouth with a hand, she noticed Daiki glancing at her with a worried look on his face.

"Are you ok?" he asked.

"I'm fine," Mac said with a tired smile, "just tired. It has been a long day."

That was an understatement, Mac thought, shaking her head a little as if to clear it.

"You're magic studies going well?" Daiki asked.

"Yeah," Mac smiled and thought back to the studies, "it's interesting."

"You like studying too much," Daiki smirked and Mac glared at him but he only laughed at her.

"You should be happy I do," Mac huffed, "who else would have helped you with your homework?"

Daiki shrugged unconcerned and Mac shook her head at her best friend.

"What did you do today?" Daiki asked after a pause and Mac glanced at him and saw the interest in his eyes but also something she couldn't quite read if she was to guess she would say he looked wary. But why would he be wary, though?

"Potions and Defence Against the Dark Arts," Mac said. "I actually managed to make a potion correctly today, and Professor Sato said he would give it to the infirmary at Mahoutokoro!"

Daiki's smile was proud and she smiled at him, she liked seeing the look on his face when she told him about her achievements, they might seem small but to her, they were proof she could do it, and there was no one she rather share them with than Daiki.

They relaxed and stayed talking even as Ayano came up with food for them rolling her eyes at the two fondly before exiting the room.

...

Mac looked over at the bench and saw Seijuro sitting by himself, he looked lonely and she frowned. He had been keeping a distance to the team lately as well, and she knew he too was worried about the growth in his teammates. She walked over to him and sat down next to him making him glance over at her.

"You're worried about something?" she asked and he looked away.

"No, nothing," he said coolly and she arched a brow.

"You know, Seijuro, you'll fool anyone but me with that mask of yours," Mac said after a momentary pause. "What's wrong?"

She spotted the slight widening of eyes but other than that there was no sign of the surprise he felt at her words. He looked at her and she saw how his shoulders slumped slightly, it was barely noticeable but there.

"I had dinner with my father last night," he said and she hid her frown, she still thought that his dad expected too much from him. She didn't know what was normal in a relationship between a father and son but watching Daiki with Takehiro lately, she knew it wasn't normal to expect your son to be an adult already. "He…was pleased with us winning the Nationals and said he would allow me to continue basketball as long as we won."

Mac raised her brows and looked at her friend, he looked normal but there was something bothering him. He was more bothered and worried about what was happening than she realised, she saw his eyes flash at something before Daiki's loud voice brought her attention away from the redhead and over to the navy blue haired ace.

"Don't be ridiculous! Quit letting me past you!" Daiki snapped glaring at the poor defenders who had been completely overwhelmed by Daiki's strength. Mac frowned and moved to get up but Daiki was already talking again. "Even if you can't stop me, if you do nothing, you're not helping at all!"

"I'm trying," Yamada said, he was a second year like them, and looked scared and Mac knew he just said the wrong thing. "You're just too good. None of us can stop you…"

Mac narrowed her eyes and cursed under her breath, she saw the horror on Daiki's face and knew he would blow. It was too much.

"Damn it!" Daiki cursed and stormed out of the gym right past Sanada who called after him, but he ignored him.

...

Seconds, minutes, hours could have passed before Mac snapped out of her thoughts and sound started to fill the gym, she heard mutterings about Daiki and how he was acting arrogant.

"What did you say?" Mac whispered but her voice reached the two players who had been whispering about Daiki. They stopped and Mac raised her eyes to look at them with a look in her eyes they hadn't seen before. "What did you just say about Daiki?"

Her voice was cool, calm, but no one was fooled. They had all heard about how she had torn into Inou after their match in the Nationals.

"N-nothing, Mac-san," Watanabe said.

"No, not nothing," Mac said stepping closer. "You just called him a monster. Like the other teams do. Daiki isn't a monster! I won't have you call him that!"

"He is!" Yamada suddenly yelled looking pale from his confrontation with Daiki. "He's too strong! It's impossible to stop him!"

"That's not true!" Mac snapped glaring at them and she felt her magic burn under her skin. She inhaled knowing she had to calm down before she lost control of her magic. "Daiki isn't a monster just because he's better than you at basketball!"

"Enough!" Sanada stopped the argument before it could get any farther. Mac glared at the other players and turned away from them. "Get back to practice and I will not tolerate anyone calling anyone names! You're a team!"

A murmur of 'yes, coach,' went through the gym as they all went back to their own.

...

Mac grabbed her things as soon as she could; she noticed that both Tetsuya and Sanada were missing. She made her way outside to look for Daiki. It had started to rain heavily, but she ignored it not caring that she was getting wet. All she could think about was that she needed to find Daiki.

She reached the river knowing Daiki liked to watch the water when he was upset and stopped when she saw Tetsuya already there talking to Daiki. She started to walk again and as she got closer could hear the conversation making her heart sink in dread.

"…even if I'm guaranteed to win when I play? Do I need to crush my disheartened opponents even harder?" Daiki was saying.

"I understand how you feel, but.."

"You understand?" Daiki repeated in a bitter voice Mac didn't recognise. "What is it you understand?! Tell me! What could someone so powerless understand?!"

Mac stopped short before reaching the two friends, neither had noticed her yet. She had never thought he would say something like that to Tetsuya. Had he changed that much? Where was the boy who had been doing homework with her just a few days ago?

"Even I am jealous of you and the others sometimes," Tetsuya said and Mac looked at him, he looked so lost and alone. "But crying about it won't do any good! That's why I do my best to pass –"

"Who do you pass to?" Daiki interrupted him sounding sad and bitter, "even without your passes, I could beat anyone myself."

The two seemed to remember something and Tetsuya gasped.

"You haven't passed to me since then," Daiki continued. "It happened so recently, but it seems so long ago. I don't know how to receive your passes anymore."

The look on his face was devastating, he looked so broken and hurt that Mac felt her breath catch in her throat.

"Stop it!" Mac yelled and both boys jumped and turned to look at her startled, but she didn't care as tears were running down her face but the rain was doing a good job hiding them from the two. "Stop it! Stop it! I can't take this anymore! Stop acting like you're not friends! Stop it!"

"Kenzie…" Daiki whispered but she stepped back.

"Daiki, you're good but don't act like the others don't matter!" Mac said, "we're all worried about you. I'm worried about you! I can't fix this! I want to fix it! Tell me how to fix it, Daiki? How do I fix this for you?"

He looked stumped. She sobbed, but not wanting to let him see her cry this time she turned and ran. She ran and ran and ran. All she could think was that she wanted to get away. It was too much.

Daiki stared wide-eyed after Mac who ran away from him, he had frozen when he heard the pained sob leaving her and knew she was crying. She was crying because of him and he was unable to follow her. His legs stopped after a few steps and he clenched his fists as he watched her getting farther and farther away.

The pain from the coach's words was being pushed back as he realised just how much he had hurt his best friend. Again. He glanced at Tetsuya who was silently watching Mac as well, his eyes almost dead but a spark of worry was in them. It was like a fog was lifted and he saw just what his words had caused, but… he opened his mouth to say something, to take it back but nothing came out.

"Shit," he muttered and fell down on the grass. He buried his head in his hands and fought the need to cry. "Shit, shit, shit."

He was aware that Tetsuya was still standing next to him, but he didn't say anything. Daiki felt even worse. He had hurt him, but he couldn't take it back because it was true. He didn't know how to receive the shadow's passes anymore. It felt horrible, but that was how it was.

...

Mac stopped running when she reached a small forest, she wasn't really sure where she was but she paused under a large tree and sank down at the base leaning against it while looking up at the clouded sky. She hadn't meant to run away from them, but she just couldn't handle it right now. She didn't know how. How was she supposed to keep the team together when everyone was breaking? Even her?

Flashes of good times with her friends kept playing in her mind, almost taunting her. The younger Daiki smiled at her, calling her.

Come on, Kenzie! It's fun! Let's play!

She remembered how awed and happy she felt running after him, playing with him. Though, now even playing seemed to be something they had to do, not something they wanted to do.

She was so lost in her memories that she didn't notice someone coming up beside her before a twig snapped and her head snapped up with wide eyes and spotted an old man with grey hair looking down at her, looking rather surprised at the sight of her as he exited the woods.

"O-oh, who are you?" he asked in English and Mac realised just how long it had been since she had talked in English. "What are a young girl doing sitting outside in the rain?"

She took a moment to watch him; he was tall and seemed fit for an old man. His face was wrinkly but looked like he was used to smiling and laughing, and he had kind blue eyes behind a pair of glasses. His head was slightly tilted to the side like a curious animal as he watched her with a sharp look in his blue eyes.

...

...

AN: I'm sorry for the delay in posting.

Thank you for reading. Also, thank you to the ones leaving reviews. I always try to answer the best I can. Feel free to send me a PM if you have questions about the story or something you want to say.