𝚂𝙰𝙼𝙴 𝙻𝙾𝚅𝙴 ♕ ʜᴀɴᴀᴍɪʏᴀ ♚

2

"Endo has just got his braces." Those were the first words Kou Miho had ever said to Hanamiya Makoto. It was in primary school, during basketball practice.

"And what about it?" The boy asked, his back turned to her, standing in a defensive stance on the court.

"You've never had braces, have you?"

"Can't you see I'm busy! Stop talking to me!"

"I'm only doing you a favour since your opponents are twice your size, genius!" She huffed, brushing a stubborn strand of hair from her eyes. "For your information, when you have braces your whole face hurts. Every single move is painful."

Hanamiya twisted slightly to look at the girl. Kou smirked at that because she'd obviously managed to catch his attention.

"Besides that, Endo is a lefty," she informed dully, examining her nails.

"A lefty, you say?" Hanamiya tapped his chin thoughtfully.

"Yup."

"What about the others? What do you know about them?"

That's how the two of them met and soon began their little friendship. Miho was responsible for the major part of the background check on Hanamiya's opponents, and the information she couldn't find, the boy just knew only by examining his rivals. Kou had always been his shadow; it didn't matter if on the court or at school. Just as he always came first on the exams, the kanji with the name Kou was bound to be right under his name. Whenever was Hanamiya, she was always somewhere close.

In primary school it was just for fun; junior high school, on the other hand, was a very different thing. Even if Miho wasn't an official member of the team, refusing to be seen as their manager, the coach had always reckoned with what she had to say. During those three years she earned herself a reputation and so did Hanamiya. Kou was called the Shadow Queen of Komagi Junior High. The lost game against Teikö left Makoto and her different, hallow maybe. Because on that certain day Hanamiya lost to Akashi Seijürö and she, as could be predicted, both to current Rakuzan's captain and Momoi Satsuki. Now a chance had occurred to pay them back and neither Kou nor Hanamiya were especially picky about on whom would they get their revenge. After all, they all came from the Generation of Miracles.

The memories from the last 7 or 8 years flashed through Miho's mind, as she was waiting outside the Töö gym. She pushed the collar of her jacket up, scanning the crowd of departing people from the main entrance, looking for a petit, strawberry-haired girl.

"Oi! Momoi-san!" Kou waved upon spotting the girl while plastering a sweet smile on her face. As she saw the girl freeze at the top of the stairs, she slowly approached her, maintaining a friendly demeanour. "You probably don't remember me, Momoi-san—"

"You're Kou Miho!" Momoi's eyes widened at her smiling face. The girl clasped her hand over her mouth in a pure terror. "Oh, dear! I'm so sorry Kou-san! I didn't mean to be so disrespectful!"

"It looks like my reputation precedes me," the girl chuckled at the younger's silly behaviour. "Don't worry Momoi-san! And please call me Miho."

"M-Miho-chan?"

She nodded.

"Alright, M-Miho-chan but only if you call me Satsuki."

"It's all set then!" Kou exclaimed cheerfully and took Momoi's gloved hand in hers. "I can already feel we're gonna be such good friends, Satsuki-chan!"

The younger girl blinked at her, her bag sliding down her arm.

"Let me help you with that," Kou offered, taking it from her before the girl could utter a word of protest. "I've been a fan of yours ever since your Teikö days. Your team gave Komagi a hard time during that game! I believe it was all on you." She smiled, directing Momoi's attention on a different matter.