"Sei-nii, I'm not sure about it..." the teal-haired boy muttered.
"Don't worry, Tetsuya. All's going to go well. Remember what your mother told you?"
He smiled. "She used to say 'Testuya, you're proof humans and ghouls can get along, don't forget that'." he repeated. "What did your mother tell you?"
The redhead smiled. "She used to say, 'Promise me you'll make human friends, Seijuro'. I can never forget her words."
The two boys smiled at each other, almost too similar in appearance for not to be related. But in that blissful moment, they were surrounded by a threatening, faceless group, and Tetsuya couldn't make out if they were humans or ghouls that seemed so hell-bent on ending them both.
"Stay behind me, Tetsuya." he heard the other say, his voice stone-cold, completely devoid of any emotion. "I will protect you."
It wasn't more than seconds that that bright sunny day was turned in a scarlet inferno, filled with screams, blood and gore. The echoes of breaking bones and tearing flesh echoed in his ears, accompanied by a mantra that made no sense.
"You brought that to yourselves... You brought that to yourselves..."
And when he searched around for the source of the mindless chanting, he had spotted the other, same built as his, the pure white uniform was now tainted crimson. The other had turned to face him as well, completely covered in blood and gore, and his eyes, oh, his eyes, were once more that terrifying combination of ruby and ebony.
"Can you see now?" he mocked. "What monsters we all are? The monster that I am, Te~tsu~ya~"
And he screamed.
"Kuroko-kun? Are you alright?" he heard someone talk to him, while he tried to adjust himself on his bed.
"I'm fine, Mo- I mean, Riko-san." he replied.
"You look feverish." she observed.
"I had a bad dream." he confessed.
"Care to share?" she asked. "Maybe it'll help you if you get it out of your chest."
"Maybe you're right."
"So, what was it?"
"I dreamt of someone important to me."
"But you said they were important to you... Did something bad happen to them in your dream?"
Kuroko nodded.
"Oh, I'm sure they'll be fine, Kuroko-kun." she tried to cheer him up.
"What happened? In your dream, I mean." she insisted. "If you want to share, of course." she was quick to add.
"My friend..." he muttered. "He lost his mind. He tried protecting me, but...!" he focused on suppressing his tears, hands trembling. "He attacked me for some reason, and I...!" he couldn't handle it anymore. "I killed him. I killed the most important person in my life! The one I owe everything!"
Riko wanted badly to console the azure-eyed boy but knew not how. Instead, he embraced him on a hug, and muttered 'It's okay, it's only a dream' over and over.
Riko didn't leave his side that night, even after the other fell asleep, worried he might have more nightmares during that night.
She heard him mutter six names over and over, cheerfully, and she guessed those were the names of his dearest friends.
But then there was someone called Sei, and Kuroko kept on thanking him, pleading, and asking for his forgiveness.
(Relief)
"Thank you again, Kiyoshi-san." he said, accepting the vanilla milkshake he was offered.
"There's nothing to thank me for, Kuroko-kun." the other replied. "After all, that's why I'm here, remember?" he smiled. "If anything, I'm worried about you."
"Worried, why?" the shorter of the two asked.
"You eat too little." he observed. "You only drink your milkshakes, nothing more."
"I don't have much of an appetite."
"So I was told."
His surprise was barely hidden from his tone of words, even though his expression was unreadable, as always. "Akashi-kun said that?"
"Ah! So that was his name!" he exclaimed.
Tetsuya felt the need to roll his eyes.
"He's a good friend of yours, right, Kuroko-kun?" he asked, not expecting any answer.
Kuroko nodded. "I owe a lot to Akashi-kun. I could have been dead if he weren't for him."
Kiyoshi Teppei paid the outmost attention to his words. "And now, you keep yourself to the company of investigators." he concluded. "I suppose he trained you at that, as well?"
"Kiyoshi-san, you date Riko-san as well."
Kiyoshi laughed mirthfully. "Riko is a nice girl. But sometimes I feel I'm putting her into too much danger."
"No investigator bothers with the legendary Iron Heart." Kuroko replied. "Not when some claim he disappeared."
Kiyoshi seemed to be blushing. "It's just a title, Kuroko-kun. I'm not that fond to be referred to that. Do you like being called Phantom, Kuroko-kun?"
Kuroko pondered over it for a moment. "I don't. But it's better to be called invisible than to be called a beast. Even if you are a monster."
Kiyoshi could say nothing to the younger male, as he walked away.
(Loneliness)
Of course Tetsuya missed them. They weren't just friends. They were family. Every single one of them was important to him, an irreplaceable member of their dysfunctional, yet loving, family. Always strict Midorima-kun, lethargic Murasakibara-kun, rowdy Aomine-kun, or cheerful Kise-kun, even kind and observant Momoi-san.
And of course, there was him. They might have been only a month apart, but he acted like the father figure to all, always taking the mature decisions, doing what should be done.
He had taken the decision to each one take a different path. Half of them (Momoi-san, Aomine-kun, Midorima-kun and himself) had remained in Tokyo, Kise-kun moved to Yokohama, Murasakibara-kun went to Akita, while he moved to Kyoto, promising to visit the rest frequently, assisting them to their grand plan.
And as always, he assigned to himself the hardest task of all. It scared him to no end. He feared for his well-being. He knew well, the other's mentality was a fragile thing. After all, he had witnessed it once, seeing a monster at his friend's face, a cruel, ruthless person he refused to acknowledge. He suspected it was the monster that suggested to not even calling him by the name he used to.
He told them to pretend they didn't know each other. And though he could comprehend the idea behind it, he hated it. It was such a cruel thought, the need to pretend they were strangers, everything they built over the six years they spent together in both middle school and high school, all for the sake of his grand plan.
Akashi-kun…. No, Sei-nii. Please. Come back. Please be the kind brother you used to be.
(Chapter End)
I promised myself each chapter will be at least 1k words without my added notes. I kind of struggled a bit with that, but I think it came out well.
I wanted to mention it before but I forgot. It's about Akashi's father. Yes, I know that in canon he's harsh and all, but here, I need a bit of a different approach. He's strict to both his sons (mostly Seijuro), but he's developed some pretty self-destructive tendencies after the deaths of Shiori and Haruka. I really can't wait to write some of him.
Kiyoshi makes his appearance! His background in this story? He helps ghouls who can't get by themselves, or wish to not hunt. And Akashi being Akashi, he managed to contact him and 'asked' him to 'assist' Tetsuya whenever he needed. Which means mostly nag him to eat more than he does.
Speaking of which, I'm not that cruel to deny Kuroko of his vanilla milkshakes or Murasakibara from his snacks completely. Well, I can be cruel, but not that cruel.
And Kuroko had a momentary encounter with Bokushi… But Akashi will most often call him Tetsuya, regardless if he's Oreshi or Bokushi, mostly because they're siblings, and, in a large part of the story, whenever these two interact, there won't be a reason for them to hide their connection.