[KAGEHINA] I Know You - I Fought With You Once Upon A Dream

The cherry blossoms were in bloom when Hinata opened his window. It was raining golden sunshine and the world outside looked much more enchanting than yesterday. Hinata couldn't help but want to go out and explore the meadows he always walked and explore about - and sometimes, he would explore further from the usual meadows. As long as his fairy godmoth-- I mean, fairy godsenpais don't find out about this, he is far from a lecture and a good scolding. He didn't want to do it. He's just vey curious, he is.

He went downstairs in a hurry as if the world outside will go somewhere else if he don't. He then came across Tanaka-senpai whom was blocking his way.

"Oh, Tanaka-senpai!" Hinata greeted.

"Hinata, just in time!" Tanaka said as he gave Hinata his long coat. Hinata coudn't catch up with what is happening. He just followed along with a mind, trying to process his current situation that just happened like lightning.

"Wait, wait, wait-- Where, wha--" Hinata stuttered, trying to make a sentence but before he could, Tanaka already put on the coat for him and walked him towards the door. Hinata stood there, bewildered by his senpai's weird behaviour. But before he left, Tanaka pulled Hinata's hoodie and said to him to enjoy the place as much as he can and be back before dark. Hinata nodded and wondered off, waving to Tanaka whom was also waving back.

"Well, that was easier than I thought!" Hinata said to himself with a laugh.

--

"Ok, he's gone!" Tanaka said. "Ok, guys, this'll be our last time, taking care of him. Later, we have to bring him back to King Kuroo and Queen Kenma. Today is our last day with him. We have to make it the best birthday party for him! So show me what you got!"

And with that, Hinata's other godsenpais, Daichi and Sugawara came out with what seem to be birthday gifts in their own hands.

"First of all, that is not a cake, Daichi-san." Tanaka began, looking at the cake, going down in a slow rate. "More like a cake-tastrophe, Daichi-san!" Tanaka criticized.

Daichi looked at the cake and turned back to Tanaka. "It looks good to me."

" 'good', nothing!" Tanaka argued. "We gotta redo this again!"

Tanaka turned to Sugawara, whom was carrying flower-crowns.

"And I don't think that's how you make a flower-crown, Suga-san." Tanaka said as he put the flower-crown on Sugawara to see how it looks on a person.

"And why, flower crowns?" Daichi asked him.

"Because I think the hydrangeas this time of the month suit Hinata's hair color." Sugawara answered. "Don't you think?"

Tanaka and Daichi stood there, speechless at how innocent and pure the man that is standing before them, is.

--

"Ah, it would be nice if I could nap here," said Hinata to himself, unaware of the animals hidden above the trees. "But I have to be back before dark and when I sleep, I sleep like a log." He laughed when he knocked on the log he's sitting on. Did he just laugh at his own joke? Well, he's never met another human to laugh at his jokes, excluding his fairy-godsenpais but he gets pretty lonely at times, when he's without them.

"I wish I can find someone to play with, in these forests." Hinata wished as he crouched down and put his hand in the deep lake that separates him from the kingdom ahead. "It's beautiful, it is but... I would really enjoy it more if I am with someone."

He rested himself under a tree and looked at the castle ahead. Sighing, he leaned on the somewhat soft tree.

"Wait a minute - soft tree?" Hinata questioned me. He turned to what he is leaning on and saw a man with a crown! Hinata stood up in a panic but ended up,...

"WOAH, Woah-- no! NO!"

.... falling into the lake.

And with a splash, it woken up the man with the crown. Both being terribly drenched with water, they stare at each other, questioning this awkward situation with their expressions, that is thoroughly being written on their faces. But the man with the crown stood up and walked to the boy in the lake.

And when he did, the man with the crown proved that the lake was far from deep. For him, it was shallow!

Hinata tried to stand up but the water level was at his chest. It was quite deep for him.

The man with the crown sighed and lend Hinata a hand. The boy accepted it after gleaming his eyes at the man before him. He admired the man's height.

"What are you doing, in the deepest part of the woods alone?" The man said as he squeezed the water out from his clothes.

Hinata knocked his head and leaned it sideways to get the water out from his ears. "I'm not alone." Hinata answered. "I have my senpais to take care of me."

"Must be tiring to take care of you." The man said, triggering Hinata. "Always wondering of alone - you'll make them worry terribly - all because of you. Go home if you know what's good for you."

Hinata got angry at how much the man belittles him. "What did you say?!" Hinata snapped at the man. "Wanna have a go or something 'cause I'm ready!"

That stopped the man in his tracks and the man turned to glance at Hinata and that glare instantly send chills to his spine.

The man then walked closer to Hinata as Hinata walked backwards, with his fists still up but his face is going places; from fear to determination and back to fear again. Here's to say, he's trying hard to be as brave as he can. But Hinata was stopped by a tree and that really just stopped his face from expressing anything other than fear now.

Hinata closed his eyes. This is getting intense and Hinata can already imagine his life being lost by getting beaten to death by the man's crown and his body falling into the lake only to be drifted off to the middle of nowhere.

But instead of a massive killing tragedy, The man held Hinata's right hand and whispered in Hinata's ear and said, "If you are afraid of me that much, go home before I lose it once more."

Hinata was surprised that he only got a warning and was later on, glad too. He didn't catch what the man whispered and wanted to ask him to repeat his words but his eyes opened, only to find himself alone again. He looked around but there was no sight of the man with the crown. Was that just a hallucination? A person created by Hinata's imagination due to being so lonely? Was his wish of meeting someone in these woods was granted, in a way?

Hinata believed not. The man with the crown was here. There is someone out there. Or maybe, there was always someone out there, all this time. Hinata held up the hand that the man held before and on his palm, a red print was on it. It looks like it hurt but Hinata can't seem to feel much. Well, at least, not right now.

"I did ask my fairy-godsenpais  and they said that the pain on the palm of my hand happened when I was a baby, when a witch casted a spell on me. But they say it will disappear and they didn't say what the spell does to me. But as days go by," Hinata said, clenching the injured palm into a fist. "It's getting worse and worse."

"I hope it will go away..." Hinata gave it's last wish to the enchanted forest and walked back home, only to have his wish be heard by the man with the crown, whom was hiding in the trees.

"It won't." The man said. "It will never go away."

The boy turned away, looking at the sun, going down. "I'm sorry."