Q. It seemed to me that Midorima was the only guy who was consistent while the rest of the Miragen were changing for the worse during Teikou arc.
Fujimaki “his sense of values hasn’t changed since then but he was like one of those kids who stand by and watch or ignore bullying. He didn’t take any action for improvement. he wasn’t necessary good person. No one was good in Teikou arc.“ (source)
ALRIGHT THANKS FOR ASKING FRIENDS I AM NOW HAPPY TO TELL YOU
ABOUT MURASAKIBARA AND BABIES!!
OK, so, in that story, I was working with the idea that the
Miracles are all aware that they are genetically designed super-humans and are
just physically stronger than average humans, or at least, (since Kuroko and
Momoi are not physically stronger) *designed* sturdier. All of them know that
they are built to last, so to speak, and that it actually takes quite a lot of
effort before you can damage a Miracle.
So they never really had a childhood, and never really
associated being a child with
something that is vulnerable because
they never were (vulnerable, that is). So when they see babies (which they previously had never seen
in Teiko) it’s like, “holy crap everything can break this small innocent
breakable creature” and they’re a little freaked out by it.
But for Murasakibara, who is always
stronger than everything it’s no big
deal. At any given moment, if he’s not being very careful with his own
strength, he could accidentally damage anyone (even other Projects) without
even trying. So he’s always careful with his own strength around everyone, so it’s not especially
unusually for him to deal with tiny vulnerable breakable things because
compared to him, everything is a tiny vulnerable breakable thing.
Also, I just headcanon Murasakibara as good with kids in general,
because I think it is adorable.
A few bonus headcanons about the woman who randomly left her two
children with Murasakibara:
She is a huge Miracle fan, HUGE.
She has t-shirts with their faces on them, stalks the fan forums
(contributes to the fan forums!)
Was out there protesting against the protesters during that
time with the Special Diet, advocating for their rights.
She saw Murasakibara and immediately ran over to take a selfie
with him.
She had to go back in because she left her wallet in the
store, so she left her kids with him (because he’s a Miracle, and she loves
them).
Those children are going to grow up forever hearing the
story about that time they were held by a Miracle. She has photographic
evidence that this occurred, and will spend YEARS showing this photo to
everyone.
Anon!! I feel you because I have such mixed feelings about that monologue. On the one hand, it’s super cute that Takao thinks Midorima hasn’t really changed. I mean, it’s clear that he has, but Takao knows his essential Midorimaness hasn’t changed, and I feel like you have to know someone really well to see something like that. On the other hand, jeez, go on long enough about how you don’t like Midorima much? (Is this a case of he “doth protest too much” maybe??)
I will say that at least part of the problem here is Crunchyroll’s translation…for instance, Takao doesn’t say “we’re not friends,” he says—well, first let me say that Japanese often doesn’t include the subject of a sentence. So when Takao goes off on this rant, it’s not entirely clear if this is how he, personally, feels about Midorima, or how he thinks the entire team feels about Midorima. It ends with him clearly saying that “everyone” can’t hate him, so maybe the whole speech is about Midorima’s relationship with the team, not Takao in particular? Anyway, back to “we’re not friends,” the original line is 仲良くなってなったわけじゃない which I would translate as “it’s not like we’ve become close.” This monologue started with the question of whether Midorima has changed or not, so this could just be read as a lack of change in the relationship. I think this (and Takao’s feeling at the beginning of the speech that Midorima hasn’t really changed) is at least partly because they’re so close and spend so much time together, it’s harder for Takao to see what has been a gradual change. “We’re not that close, really! We just…spend all of our time together, and…argue like an old married couple, and….okay, you have a point.”
By the way, when you ask for canon, are you including drama CDs?? Because the drama CD that goes along with this game is the one where Midorima spends an entire week worrying about Scorpio’s bad luck and getting lucky items for Takao (including one that cost $500(!), not to mention asking Kuroko and Riko for help), and offering to let Takao ride in the rear cart without doing rock paper scissors, AND at the end of this, Takao wants to spend the day with Midorima because Scorpio’s lucky item is a “precious friend”(!!!!). So, you know…that itself directly contradicts the translation of Takao’s line as “we’re not friends.”
OR, strictly canon scenes:
Takao tossing Midorima a roll of tape and Midorima smiling at him (he sometimes smiles “while he’s playing basketball,” hmmmm?)
Takao offering to skip rock paper scissors after they lose to Seirin
taking a bath together during training camp
also during training camp: Midorima knowing Takao is watching him with Kagami and telling him it’s time to go (he can’t just leave on his own??)
if I may use an example from Extra Game: when Takao first arrives to join Vorpal Swords, he says “thanks for taking care of our Shin-chan,” [a rote greeting you say regarding someone in your “in” group, usually family] which I feel is basically reminding everyone there that Midorima belongs to Shuutoku (and Takao), and Vorpal Swords is just borrowing him for a while
Sky Direct Three Point Shot (and basically all of episode 56)
in 75.5, Midorima asking Takao to get his lucky item, and Takao delivering him to practice
I already said episode 56, but: it’s canon that they’re the light and shadow of Shuutoku. The author of this series looked at Midorima and Takao’s relationship and equated it to the partnership that’s the focus of the entire series
I hope this helps, Anon! Don’t ever doubt that these two are inseparable partners. (งロ-ロ)人(`ω´ )ง
Hiruma taking Kuroko under his wing was amazing. Worth the price of admission alone. I hope they stay in touch tbh.
LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOK!!!
Oh my god, I can seriously die happy now. I mean, this picture would have made me endlessly happy just because it combines some of *my* favorite things– that is, KNB and ES21– but I am doubly honored that my fic could be the inspiration for this story! Especially since “American Football Which Kuroko Plays” has a special place in my heart, because it was the first fanfic I wrote (in this part of my life, at any rate), and the writing of that story lead to some many happy things in my life. So I view it as the story that started it all, so to speak.
No lie, the only reason I posted that story is because I just wanted one other person besides myself to read it. I had finished this story I didn’t think I was going to finish, and it was a story I seriously thought no one else would want to read since it was such a random crossover, but I just thought, “Well, surely there is at least *one* person who will want to read this weird crossover of mine.” So I am always just so incredibly happy that people like that story.
But never in a million years did I think that story would bring such amazing art like this! Kuroko as Hiruma’s protege is still a favorite headcanon of mine, and look how happy and smug and evil Hiruma is! All the best looks for Hiruma!!
Kasamatsu Yukio spent
the majority of his life being largely indifferent to Valentine’s Day. Having
no sisters or female cousins or female childhood friends to give him obligatory
chocolate, and being absolutely incapable of holding a conversation with the
girls in his class, it never really seemed like a holiday that was worth his
attention.
He expects this holiday
to be slightly different, only because it’s Kise’s first Valentine’s at Kaijo,
and if nothing else, Kasamatsu expects to spend the day thoroughly exhausted
with having to deal with Kise and his fanclub.
So it is somewhat of a
surprise when he gets up in the morning only to realize that Kise has left for
school without him.
*
“I hate this holiday,”
Kise says, in dark thunderous tones. Kasamatsu has never heard him speak with
such intense loathing.
“Er,” Kasamatsu starts.
He’d jokingly said, “Why did you leave to school so early? Were you that eager
to get chocolate from your fans?” and he didn’t quite know how to respond to
this proclamation.
“This holiday is the
worst thing ever,” Kise continues.
“You have a lot of
chocolate, though, right?” Kasamatsu frowns. Because surely this isn’t the same
thing as Moriyama’s constant bemoaning of the “wretchedness and cruelty of this
day.” Moriyama, like most of the basketball players, never got chocolate.
Kasamatsu can already see Kise
with his accumulated piles of chocolate.
“That’s not the point!”
Kise insists. “The point is, it’s a stupid holiday! It emboldens people to
confess! Which is dumb! No one should confess their feelings, ever. Especially
not because a holiday told them too.”
“I guess?” Kasamatsu
says, seeing some of the logic there but certainly not all of it and also
wondering where the heck Kise was coming with all of this.
“Also, it’s completely
sexist and unfair. Boys should give chocolate too. Why can’t boys give
obligatory chocolate to the people they care about? Why is that not OK? Boys
might want to give chocolate to the people in their life they care about.”
“If you want to give
chocolate to someone, you should just give chocolate to someone,” Kasamatsu
says.
“I don’t want to give
chocolate to anyone,” Kise says, pouting.
“You’re not making any
sense,” Kasamatsu says.
“This holiday is the
worst.”
*
“Were you taking
chocolate out of Kasamatsu’s locker this morning?” Moriyama asks.
“I have no idea what
you’re talking about,” Kise says through gritted teeth.
Some realization flashes
across Moriyama’s face, “There were rumors last year of some crazy chick going
around threatening people who prepared chocolate for Kasamatsu. I didn’t really
believe it at the time…”
“And you don’t believe
it now, right, Moriyama-senpai?” Kise seethes.
“Riiiiight. You know
most of that was just obligatory chocolate anyway, you can’t really deny a guy
obligatory chocolate on Valentine’s Day, that’s just petty—yeah, fine, fine,
you be you.” He backs away at Kise’s glare.
Valentine’s Day is full
time work, and Kise resents the hell out of this. It is the dumbest holiday in
the world and he doesn’t even get chocolate from Kasamatsu. There is no
point to this holiday even existing.
*
“It’s just obligatory
chocolate,” the women’s basketball captain says. “I’ve known Kasamatsu for these
past three years—”
“If it’s just obligatory
chocolate, then you don’t really need to give it to him, do you?” Kise
says sweetly, while continuing to block her path.
“You can’t seriously
object to this, you’ve accepted dozens of chocolate today!”
“Listen, this is war,
all of the movies say so,” Kise insists. “Desperate times call for desperate
measures. Even obligatory chocolate is a confession of feeling something and
I can’t risk it. Also, I will bite off your hand if you keep trying to give him
that chocolate.”
“Fine!” She throws her
hands up in the air. “God, you are such a child!”
“A child who gets to
SLEEP IN THE SAME ROOM as him!” Kise tosses back, because let’s face it, he
needs to count his victories where he gets them.
*
Kise flops down on his
bed and hates everything. There was nothing like having a whole holiday
dedicated to expressing love to really drive in the unrequited nature of his
own obsession. And while yes he did see Kuroko’s point (who had been
very judgey, during Kise’s guerilla attack last year on Kaijo without anyone
knowing it was him thwarting all the chocolate delivery) that his behavior was
immoral and depraved and fine he also could see Moriyama’s point that
blocking the obligatory chocolate was kind of petty, he also didn’t
care. One bit. Because all the chocolate in the world didn’t make up for not
getting chocolate from the one person it matters and he hates everything.
Something drops on his
chest, causing him to look up and see a bar of chocolate, the kind sold at
convenience stores.
“Here,” Kasamatsu says.
“I have no idea what’s up with you, but stop being so cranky.”
“Senpai?” Kise says,
barely believing what was happening. If any of the other Miracles had the power
to shapeshift like he did, he might expect this to be a cruel prank.
“I stopped on my way
home to get some chocolate for Mizuki and Ren. I thought about what you said
about boys giving obligatory chocolate and I was thinking it’d be pretty sad
for those guys to not get anything just because we’re a family of all guys. I
figured I’d get some for you and my dad while I was at it.”
“Senpai! Thank you so
much! This is amazing! This is the best thing ever!” He stops himself from
gushing too much and also from jumping on the other boy. He can be restrained!
He can be! He looks down at the chocolate in wonder.
“You’re so weird,”
Kasamatsu says, laying down on his own bed. “You’ve gotten chocolate before.”
Kise has to hide his
face, so Kasamatsu won’t see his reaction. He’s sure that he must look
pathetically in love right now, so he just curls up facing the wall, still
clutching the chocolate. It’s only obligatory chocolate, he thinks. But
every chocolate was a dangerous sentiment, that’s why he couldn’t let anyone
give any to Kasamatsu before.
So this was a feeling,
even if it was an obligatory one, and he’ll take what he can get.
Maybe this holiday
wasn’t so bad after all.
A/N: Thank you, anon-friend!
I am very glad to hear that you enjoy Designation: Miracle! And I am always happy to write pining!Kise and oblivious!Kasamatsu. I
hope you don’t mind that I took this chance to write a Valentine’s Day fic.
It’s set before they hook up in Designation: Miracle, although I have no idea
when exactly because I am so bad about trying to navigate timelines. Woo for
lazy writing. Thanks again!! Happy Valentine’s Day to everyone!!!!
just moving along like everyone else 