YEAR ONE 2/8 Promnesia
Déjà vu is the mind's way of letting you know you are in the right place at the right time. ~Unknown
Kei Tsukishima lands in the rookery tree market, Yamaguchi shadowing him like a pup on leash. To be frank, he's impressed on some level at the design of the place what with the boardwalks stretching between the shops several feet above the ground, but he can already tell this is going to be a trip to remember— and perhaps not with the fondest capacity.
Yep. We are totally going to succeed at staying invisible, he mentally grouses with wry cynicism.
There are more crows around him than he's ever wanted to see, and almost everyone stares at his pale wings. Adults glance away in embarrassment when he meets their gazes, conscious of having been caught, the shopkeepers taking extra note of his presence.
And there are kids. All of which don't even bother to hide their fascination. This can't get much better, he muses with a frown as one wanders up in front of them with blatant curiosity. She can't be more than four hundred years old with solid black eyes, and Kei has the irrational certainty that children are, indeed, spawn from hell. Shaking his head at the moronic thought, he eyes her distastefully, careful not to scowl if he can help it; Yamaguchi said he could make kids cry if he looked at them wrong and that's the last thing they need.
But she's completely alone.
Seriously, she looks like an orphan. Where were her parents? What person lets their little blood minion just wander around unsupervised like this? And she keeps staring at him with bright inquisition that reminds him eerily of Hinata. What was he supposed to do with her? What did anyone do with a little spawn monster?
But no sooner is he considering casting about for a guardian of some type, then Yamaguchi has it under control. If under control means the crow bending down to her level and beckoning her closer. She shyly moves up to the freckled crow, her gaze straying up to him every other step.
"Hi kiddo, what's your name?" Yamaguchi asks with an easy smile and the little girl focuses on him more squarely.
"Mei." She says softly and his face brightens.
"Aw, that's adorable— just like you! Want to know something neat? His name is Kei. They rhyme!" He bubbles animatedly and the ibis almost coughs.
What the heck was Yamaguchi up to now? The little girl smiles and turns and points at his wings. She turns back to the crow with a happy grin.
"Pretty!" She blurts and Kei's brow arches.
Really, now, they weren't—
"They are, aren't they? The feathers on their undersides are super soft." Yamaguchi says with a laugh and holds his arms out to the small child and Kei deadpans.
What the hell, Yamaguchi. And don't pick that kid up. You don't know where it's been, he wants to grouse but the little girl is already reaching for the crow who scoops her up and settles her on his hip. Kei abruptly wants to bang his head against a wall.
Oh, yes. Great idea.
He's pretty sure they look like they are abducting a small child right now. Yes, kidnapping was a stellar way to keep a low profile.
Yamaguchi leans in toward her, but glances at him.
"Do you think he might let us touch one if we ask him nicely?" The crow whispers conspiratorially and her black eyes dart toward him. Kei resists the urge to jolt at her excited little wiggle and settles for a frown at Yamaguchi.
No. He's not a side show.
"Please may I touch, Kei?" Her voice draws his attention and he looks back into small black eyes that shine with a hopeful brightness. He flashes Yamaguchi a dark look.
Absolutely not.
He's most definitely a no-touchy person, and Yamaguchi knows this. The other crow watches him with nothing but reproach despite the smile he wears when he leans in toward the child once more.
"Aww, he's pretty cranky today. That's what happens when you grow up to be pretty, you get to be cranky. So remember that for when you get to be all beautiful." He says with a salty grin and taps her nose lightly at her downcast expression. Kei suffocates a snort.
"Never had a kid, but I'm pretty sure that's not something you're supposed to tell them." He mutters, but the little girl looks so crestfallen that he almost relents… almost. But Yamaguchi pins him with an accusatory look.
"See? Definitely cranky." He loudly whispers to her once more and Kei pulls a blank expression.
Yeah… forget it.
Quicker than Kei can react, Yamaguchi's arm snaps out and he feels a pinch.
"He's grouchy a lot, no matter how cute you are." He says and she looks back up at him. "But guess what!" He continues with a grin and holds the pale flight feather he just snagged from Kei's wing in front of her. "He sheds one of these every day and you were lucky enough to be here when he lost this one."
There's a chuckle from somewhere behind him, but the only thing Kei can manage is to stare at the crow holding the child secure in one arm and his feather in the other hand. Her eyes go wide in awe and she reaches for it but pauses and looks up at Yamaguchi as if seeking permission. His grin gets bigger and he nods. She carefully takes the pale feather, careful not to disturb the sleek lay of the vane fibers as she runs her little fingers down its length. She looks back up at the freckled crow with a happy smile.
"Can I have it?" She asks, her face full of brilliant hope and Kei's again reminded of a certain redhead. Yamaguchi brings a thumb to his lip and scrunches his brow in overexaggerated thought before looking back at her.
"Hmm, he won't need it anymore. He might let you keep it if you can help us with something?" Her face lights up like a lantern at a festival.
"Really? What can I do?" She asks, the prospect of securing his feather bringing out her enthusiasm in full force as she glances between them.
"We are looking for the Volley Point shop. Our ball went flat and a friend said that was the place to get a new one. Do you know where it's at?" Yamaguchi asks and she squeaks and nods quickly before scrambling out of his arms in a tangle of limbs and spastic little black wings.
Definitely like Hinata. Perhaps a little more polite, but there are so many parallels, it's creepy. And Kei has the presence of mind to realize that he's unwillingly contributed to this rampant mass of energy. He feels like he's just hit a new low point in his life.
She zips up into the air for a better vantage point, a cautious yet iron grasp on his feather, and beckons to Yamaguchi. The freckled crow follows her up and she exuberantly points and gestures to a spot a little way away, her little voice talking a league a minute.
"Okay, got it! Thank you! I guess that means that's yours now." Yamaguchi says, dropping back beside him, the little girl trailing after with a huge smile, his feather— her prize, still clutched in her hand.
"Mm!" She nods enthusiastically, but Kei can barely shift his gaze from the freckled crow as he tries to wrap his head around what just happened.
Yamaguchi just pulled one of his feathers. For a kid. To get directions.
That crow was, without a doubt, the slyest bastard Kei knew. A light touch against his hand draws his attention and he looks down into sparkling black eyes with misgiving.
"Thank you, Kei!" The little girl says before spinning and disappearing with his flight feather. Definitely better mannered than Hinata.
"I have a bearing Tsukki, let's go!" The freckled crow says, latching onto his arm and tugging him along after him. Kei frowns at his enthusiasm… did he contract something from that kid? He's not usually this rambunctious.
"Yamaguchi." He murmurs and the crow tosses a chipper glance back at him that makes Kei's feathers prickle.
"What's up Tsukki?" He asks buoyantly and Kei consciously refrains from rolling his eyes.
"Don't do that again."
"What? Refuse to talk to kids? Glare at them? That would be awesome because then I'd be like you, Tsukki!" He says with a laugh and the ibis nearly coughs. It's obvious the crow is excited; the more he's enjoying himself, the more frequent his witty remarks surface.
"You know what I mean." He mutters darkly. Yamaguchi barely spares a glance for his admonishment.
"It was one feather." He says half petulantly.
"There are hundreds of kids, Yamaguchi." He states blandly.
"That's why you only shed one feather a day!" He says offhandedly and Kei does roll his eyes. The freckled crow is having a field day.
"Tadashi."
Yamaguchi glances back at him with an expression torn between put out and apologetic.
"Yeah, yeah, sorry, Tsukki. You can pull one of mine next time." He murmurs before his attention is focused back ahead of them, the freckled crow pulling him forward once more.
Except Yamaguchi wasn't the one that drew eyes everywhere they went, Kei mentally grumbles and releases a light sigh of annoyance.
They round a corner in the elevated market, and he wants to curse. If there had been a lot of crows before, there are probably twice as many here. Kei feels assaulted by the sheer number of black wings. It could get crowded for him back at the beach house what with fifteen other people, but he's never felt overwhelmed by so many people that all had one thing in common he didn't share. He feels all the more visible among them when they were supposed to blend in.
"Wow, Tsuki, look! They have fish! And this far from the ocean!"
Speaking of blending in… One of his pale brows quirks. He knows Yamaguchi is smart— brilliant actually, but Kei would be hard pressed to recognize that at the moment.
"Rivers are a thing." He says pointedly, but the freckled crow isn't paying attention. He wants to huff in frustration.
Oh, yes. We are definitely lying low, Daichi.
That was what the crow had asked of them right before they'd left, wasn't it?
"We've set up a contact that will meet you at the Volley Point shop in the middle of the big market."
"You trust this person?" Kei had questioned critically and Daichi had smirked.
"With our lives. You'll stand out a bit, but Yamaguchi being with you should help. Try to be discreet." He'd said with a grin.
But as Kei watches his crow companion exclaim over each new shop or sight, he wants to facepalm. No one had banked on Yamaguchi's uninhibited elation, and if they stand out it's probably going to be more the crow's doing than his. The freckled boy is pretty much broadcasting that they aren't from the area.
"Wow, this place is incredible! Tsukki, have you ever seen so many crows?" He asks and Kei's eye twitches.
"Yamaguchi." His voice comes out quiet and rife with annoyance. The crow jolts before turning to face him uncertainly.
"What, Tsukki?"
"Do you know the meaning of inconspicuous?" He drawls at him and Yamaguchi blinks.
"Eh… low-key?" He asks as if he's double checked it in his head twice but is unsure if that's the answer Kei is actually looking for. The ibis' head tilts in a slight nod.
"Very good… you should try it." He says as if he's bored with this whole venture and Yamaguchi has the sense to at least look a little sheepish.
"Try all you like, you are both failing spectacularly." An amused female voice says behind them.
Yamaguchi spins to find the speaker in surprise, but Kei takes a moment to school his face into a blank scowl before slowly turning to survey whoever has pointed out their poor camouflage skills.
"S-Sorry?" Yamaguchi's already speaking but the ibis sizes up the grinning woman before them with an odd feeling of recognition ticking in the back of his head.
Her clothes are a touch on the risqué side in Kei's opinion, and short blond hair a few shades darker than his own frames a sharp face with slightly slanted eyes and a pointed chin. She's not very tall, her back straight and her arms crossed in front of her, making her chest perk just a bit and the ibis wonders if she's doing it on purpose.
Maybe it's the way her shoulders are pulled back yet still held casually, but there's something about her posture that simply screams 'over-confident' to the pale avian. It's uncanny, he thinks, how he feels like he's seen it before, but he's positive he's never met this woman.
"Can we help you?" He asks, feigning disinterest. She laughs and throws an arm over both of their shoulders and Kei wonders how he's failed to project the 'no touchy' vibe for a second time today.
"I've been looking all over for you guys!" She says with a wide smile that blooms up into her eyes and Kei realizes that she's actually pretty short.
"Er— we were actually headed for Volley Point. We need a new ball." Yamaguchi murmurs weakly and she laughs again.
"You found it!" She says with a nod toward a building across the way.
And there it is. The place they are supposed to meet their contact… except they've already attracted attention. He frowns. He doubts their person will speak to them with this obnoxious woman clinging to them.
"I know a better gear shop! Shall we head over there? We can talk about everyone on your team and how they all play on the way." She says and Yamaguchi's expression is beginning to look a little frazzled.
"Ano… are you some sketchy bait salesperson?" He asks guardedly and when she looks at him with a grin that could double as a grimace, Kei is struck almost stupid at the sense of familiarity he gets.
He's definitely seen that look before.
"Man you're great at this, ain't ya?" She says in a grating and somehow hostile voice, the odd feral looking smirk still stretching her mouth— and then Kei's got it. She is their contact.
"Tanaka." He murmurs in surprise and she looks up at him with dark eyes bright.
"Bingo! We've got a live one! What do you guys say we head over to that other shop now?" She says once more, the rough edge not quite gone from her tone as she urges them toward a launch platform. As Yamaguchi stares, Kei caves and allows himself to be guided along.
"And for the record, I work in a cafe and assist with festivals." She mutters, a salty note invading her remark and Yamaguchi perks up.
"Festivals? Really? What do you do?" He asks, his excitement creeping back into his face. She releases them and steps forward before flashing them a real smile filled with both arrogance and pride just like the bald crow was prone to.
"Heh. You're looking at the best daiko drummer in the rookery." She says, a thumb jabbing into her chest before she turns and leaps from the platform.
They follow her without question, flanking her without being told. He's not sure how, but he's positive this woman is somehow related to the bald crow. He can see hints in her face, and while she's shorter, their personalities are a mimic of one another. He's not sure how he didn't make the connection off the bat— although the blond hair probably has something to do with it. When Tanaka's hair fuzzed out long enough, it grew in dark like Asahi's before he'd shave it off when Lev or Kuroo started running a hand over it.
"Don't worry about lodgings and meals while you're here, we've got that covered. There are a lot of people who want to talk to you… the safe ones will be behind closed doors later, but there are plenty of guys who'd love to question you in a more official capacity so it might be a good idea if you didn't wander alone too much. In the meantime, how about a tour?" She says with another big smile and Kei quirks a brow.
"Didn't you basically just say not to go out in public while we're here?" He asks skeptically and she turns that predatory smile on him.
"Not alone, you moron— that means don't get a wild feather and decide to take a flight through the military barracks or something stupid like that. You are with me right now so you will be fine. People will just think I've found some new crazy friends." She says and Yamaguchi's face scrunches dubiously.
"The way you say that makes me wonder what happened to the old ones." He says and her laugh erupts once more.
"Oh, I like you guys. This is going to be fun! Come on."
A/N: A little shorter, but I actually had a lot of fun writing this chapter... I can't help but feel like Tsukki would be at a complete loss when it came to dealing with kids- and Yamaguchi would be the direct opposite, lol
Eh... so, very few of my drabble chapters are from Hinata's/Kageyama's POV, so I apologize if that's what does it for you guys. They get a decent amount of 'screen time' since Drabbles usually always follows 'their' arcs (ha, except just not this one), but they are rarely in the 'driver seat'. I feel like a lot of the events in Drabbles are better told story wise by other people, so the POV is never the same from chapter to chapter. I hope that doesn't drive anyone insane :(
Hope you all have had a wonderful holiday, stay awesome and have a great night!