A/N: Okay, this is a week late but the ending just wouldn't come and I suddenly got inspiration this morning. I apologise and hope you enjoy the chapter. Next week I'll try not to be late.

Chapter 12: Unexpected Allies

Midorima was worried. Scratch that, he was terrified. This rescue operation was fraught with risks, they were going in almost blind! Something was going to go wrong and now it had.

He clenched his fist on the desk as he stared at the dots that represented Akashi and Kise. They were nowhere close to where they were meant to be. They should have been heading for the cells on the lower levels, if not already there, instead, they were in an office several corridors away.

"Akashi, Kise, what happened? Answer, damn you!"

No reply. Midorima slumped back in his chair, head in his hands. The only reason they would not have answered him was if they had not been able to. If they were not alone where they were. They had found, probably caught.

He could not ask Aomine and Murasakibara to come back, they would argue. If he told them what had most likely happened, they'd go haring off into the building and be caught too. He knew the back-up plan, they knew the back-up plan, but they all knew it would never be followed, had only been accepted in the first place because Akashi had put his foot down and insisted.

"Shintarou," Akashi's voice came over the speakers, and Midorima looked up.

"Akashi?"

"We're sorry for worrying you, Midorimacchi," Kise's voice came next and Midorima suppressed a sigh of relief.

"What happened, nanodayo?" he asked, mind going over what adjustments may have to be made.

"We are receiving some unexpected assistance, Shintarou," Akashi replied. "It would appear that not all of the Council's workers agree with its views, or, at the very least, with the methods of those in charge."

"Okay," Midorima paused to wrap his head around the very narrow miss they had just had. "What now?"

"Two of our new allies will guide us to where Tetsuya is being held and will ensure we are not interrupted. However, we have been informed that she will not come with us willingly."

"Tetsu's stubborn, we already talked about this." Aomine chipped in over the line.

"Agreed. If we cannot get her to come willingly, then we shall use force," Akashi said.

"You're sure we can trust them, nanodayo," Midorima questioned, a slight hint of concern in his voice.

"No, Shintarou. But we have little choice in the matter."

The line went dead and Midorima was left to worry for two of his bond-mates who might be walking into a trap.

Kise side-eyed his escort with suspicion. After being pulled into the office of Junpei Hyuuga and Teppei Kiyoshi, according to the nameplates on the door, he had expected not to get out again without some very creative tricks and a whole lot of luck.

He and Akashi had been in the office the two Council workers, staring each other down while he could hear Midorima, Aomine, and Murasakibara worrying through his earpiece.

Before either side could make a move though, a tall, red-haired man had barged into the office without even bothering to knock.

"Hey, Hyuuga, Riko wants you for…" he'd started, trailing off when he registered there were two more people in the office than there were supposed to be.

"Hello, Kagami," said the one Kise assumed was Hyuuga. He had black hair and glasses and was wearing a look of profound exasperation.

"Ma, ma," the other one said, rubbing the back of his neck. "What does Riko want us for?"

"Something about the Shadow," Kagami paused, scrutinising the two intruders. "Bring them along," he said.

Kise and Akashi found themselves escorted, one person on each side and one in the middle to keep them separated, down several corridors and into a different office with an irate-looking young woman sitting behind a large desk.

"Teppei, Junpei, there you are," she said, looking up and seeing five people when she'd only expected three. Riko grimaced, gave a long-suffering sigh and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Of course," she muttered under her breath. Louder, she said, "they're here to rescue the Shadow, aren't they?"

What followed for Kise was a confusing mish-mash of silent conversations between their four captors, and Akashi arguing their case, which somehow led to an agreement to escort the two of them to Kuroko's cell. He didn't truly register the baffling series of occurrences until he was apologising to Midorima for worrying him so much.

So Kise now found himself following the tall, black haired Hyuuga to see his dear Kurokocchi.

Stopping outside a plain wooden door, Hyuuga gestured for the two to move quickly while he distracted the guard, he and Akashi followed and crawled through the window into the cell.

Straightening from his drop to the ground, Kise got his first look at Kuroko since she'd left.

Kuroko could hear what sounded like voices outside her prison, but didn't turn from her spot on the bench, staring blankly at the wall. She had the fleeting thought that she seemed very popular today but she was in no mood for more company.

The muffled thumps drew no reaction either, she had no wish to know who would want to sneak into the cells just to see her.

"Kurokocchi?"

The sound of Kise's voice got a startled flinch but Kuroko still didn't turn to look. She had imagined her bond-mates voices many times in the four days since she'd left, each and every one painful.

"Tetsuya," a vision of Akashi was standing in front of her. It was the first time her mind had supplied a visual along with the auditory illusions.

"Kurokocchi, come home with us," the illusion that was Kise wrapped his arms around Kuroko's shoulders and they started to shake. It wasn't an illusion her mind had conjured up to torment her further. Kise and Akashi really were in her prison cell, had snuck in to get her back.

"What are you doing here?" she spa, pushing Kise's arms away and standing to put as much space between them as she could.

"We're here to get you back, Kurokocchi!"

"No! I was ordered to kill you! Don't you understand that?" Kuroko turned away to hide the tears sliding down her cheeks. She was delighted at this proof they cared, but she wanted nothing more than for them to leave.

"But, Kurokocchi…"

"Tetsuya," Akashi said, crossing the small space to stand just behind her, careful not to touch. "You did not kill us. Chose to face your own death rather than carry out your orders."

"I could have done it, you know. It would have been easy." Kuroko admitted in a small voice. "I've done it before."

"Kurokocchi?" Kise came to stand beside Akashi and Kuroko finally turned to face them.

"His name was Ogiwara. He was an Inferior, like myself. We met in basic training when the Council was looking for its newest 'Shadow'. We became friends. Everyone else looked down on us both, me because I'm female, him because he was really clumsy.

"Anyway, to cut a long story a bit shorter, the Council found out there was a spy among the trainees and told us all that whoever found and eliminated that person would get the position. Everyone else would be terminated.

"Ogiwara was the spy… And I killed him."

A/N: So, my inspiration was mean and left a cliff-hanger, wonder what it's going to do for the next chapter.

By the way, a big thank you to lotusdate who gave me the idea to include Ogiwara. The ending would have been different without you.

Anyways, review, favourite, follow, let me know what you think and (fingers crossed) I'll see you next week.