Early the next morning, Kuroo arrived at the school and made his way to the gym. He was lucky his apartment was located close enough to walk here, because otherwise, he'd have been late. After the practice matches were called off for the evening, Bo and Keiji had taken him out to eat and hang out for a while so they could catch up. Several hours later, he was at home in bed with only a few hours to try and get some sleep.
"Kuroo, can you come into my office for a moment?" Nekomata asked as soon as he'd been spotted.
"Sure, Coach," Kuroo said amiably, and followed the old man into the room. They weren't alone, it seemed, as Kuroo's attention was immediately on both men waiting for them.
"Coach Ukai. Takeda-sensei. A pleasure to see you both again," he greeted them with a bow. As he rose, he took the few steps necessary to bring him closer so he could shake their hands.
"Good to see you, too, Kuroo-kun," Takeda-sensei replied for them both. Ukai merely nodded.
"Please, have a seat, gentlemen." Nekomata said as he made his way behind his desk. "Kuroo, we thought it wise to tell you the news this way, rather than you hearing whispers and rumors throughout the day."
"News, sir?"
He was sure he looked as confused as he sounded. He looked at his mentor, then at both visiting coaches. It was Ukai who spoke up first.
"We found Tsukishima in a rarely used courtyard a few hours ago. We don't know why he was there, but it may have had something to do with his condition."
"Condition? What condition, sir?" Worry laced his words.
"We don't know for sure," Takeda-sensei replied carefully. "The school nurse didn't know how to alleviate the problem, so she advised us to send Tsuki to the hospital. He's resting there now."
The omega coach looked rightfully worried himself, and Kuroo wasn't so sure it was all about Tsuki. In a room surrounded by concerned alphas, some of their scents may be making it past the patches on their necks. Especially Kuroo's, and he had to double check that his patches were still firmly in place. He turned to face Nekomata.
"Sir, may I..."
"As much as I would like to let you go to him, Kuroo, I'm not entirely sure that's a wise decision." The head coach turned his attention to Ukai and Takeda-sensei. "They'll be releasing him soon, will they not?"
Ukai looked at his watch. "Another couple hours, at least," he replied. "They want to make sure he gets the rest he needs, in addition to running a few more tests. After that, one of us will go get him."
"I'll do that," Nekomata said, with no room for argument from anyone. "You two need to concentrate on your team and keep them together, now more than ever. Especially your third years."
"Right."
"But, sir, I..." Kuroo tried to interrupt again, but Nekomata silenced him with a look.
"While I'm gone, you are the head coach. It'll be your job to keep everyone practicing on their positions and keeping the ball from hitting the ground. Think of this as a trial run, if you will."
Kuroo snorted, but kept his mouth shut.
"Good," Nekomata said, winking at him.
Kuroo faced Karasuno's coaches again. "How is he?"
"He's resting, and from what he told us before we left, he's not in pain anymore."
"That's a relief. Thank you, sir."
Ukai looked at his watch again, and slowly rose to his feet. "We gotta head out there. Breakfast is almost over, so the kids will be making their way to the gym."
"Right," Takeda-sensei rose too, as did Kuroo. He followed them as far as the door when Nekomata called his name.
"Stay a moment, please."
"Sir."
He closed the door and came back to stand in front of the desk. As he did so, Nekomata pulled a folder from a desk drawer and handed it to him.
"When you get the chance, read this. Without much in the way of context, it might not make sense. But, trust me, it will."
"What are you saying?" he asked the old alpha. "What do you know?"
"Just read that file. We can talk later."
Nekomata eased himself up on his feet, and walked around the desk, coming to stop beside Kuroo.
"If this is what I think it is, I'm willing to bet you'll have a significant part to play. And soon, if I'm not mistaken."
"You're talking in riddles, sir."
"And you're cunning enough that you might figure out what your part is and what to do about it, too." Nekomata glanced up at him with a sly little grin. "Until then, Coach, we have work to do."
Kuroo sighed, slipped the folder under the papers on his clipboard, and followed his boss out of the office.
~*~
By lunch time, the presence of the folder was driving Kuroo crazy with curiosity. So, instead of going home (which hindsight being 50/50, he should have done that), he went directly to the cafeteria and commandeered his favorite corner table. One of the managers from Ubugawa brought him a tray of food, for which he thanked her, surprised that someone thought to give him food. He slid the tray aside, but still in reach, and placed the clipboard and folder in front of him.
He'd just freed the folder from its place, and was about to open it, when he was invaded by the current crop of Karasuno third years. Kuroo refused to show his frustration at being disturbed, but he was happy to see them. He'd always have a soft spot for them. Especially one tall, blond middle blocker named Kei Tsukishima.
"We're hoping to make it all the way to the finals this year," Hinata said excitedly. "Everybody on the team is really good, and we have a great bunch of subs, too!"
"That's good to hear," Kuroo replied, genuinely happy. "How's being captain working for ya, Tadashi?" he asked the omega. It was rare for omegas to be in a position of authority, but Tadashi had the temperament and patience to be good at his captaincy.
"Most days are better than others," he replied carefully. "It was rough at first," he admitted. "The alphas outnumber the omegas, so it can be a little difficult getting them to listen to me. But Tsuki helps when I can't quite get control."
"Yeah, Tsuki makes the best co-captain!" Hinata chirped. "He's great at reassuring us omegas, and he doesn't take any sh..."
He slapped a hand over his mouth and looked like he was about to apologize profusely. Kageyama reached over and calmed him with a little back rub. No one said anything to the gruff, silent alpha, but it was clear he was concerned for his ginger-haired partner.
"What he means to say is that Tsuki doesn't take any crap from the alphas, either," Yacchan said quietly.
"Yeah," they all agreed, almost at once.
"Have you heard what happened?" Tadashi asked after a few moments of silence.
"Yeah. I was briefed as soon as I got here," he answered. "Do you know what caused it?"
"No, and until we were told this morning, we didn't have any idea of what he was going through. He never told us anything."
"Now, wait a minute," Tadashi said gently. "He might not have said anything outright, but he was having problems after dinner yesterday."
"How long has he been suffering?"
"Well, I wouldn't say he's ever suffered until now. Nothing like this has happened. If Tsuki was going through anything, it wasn't major enough for him to tell us."
"Okay. Well, all I know is that Nekomata went to pick him up from the hospital just before lunch started..."
"That's right! Come on, guys! We need to be out there to welcome him back!"
Kuroo watched as the four of them rose from the table, and three of them took off out of the cafeteria. Only Kageyama remained, and he looked at Kuroo with what looked like relief in his blue eyes. And then he bowed, startling Kuroo even more.
"Thank you," he said. Then he straightened up and went to go follow his teammates.
Unsure what he was being thanked for, Kuroo waited a few minutes more, collected his things, wolfed down a few more bites of his lunch, and then followed the third years. He didn't join them, but he did watch from a place where no one would see him. When the car drove up, Tsuki opened the door and got out. His movements were slow, almost sluggish, like he was relearning how to move again. His friends crowded around him, bombarding him with questions along with the loving reprimands. Tsuki took it all in, a small relieved smile on his pale, wan looking face. When he stopped, Tadashi and Kageyama carefully put his arms around their shoulders and helped him move again.
This group of third years were a lot closer to each other than any other he'd known, including his own class. And Kuroo, for all his happiness at seeing Tsuki out of the hospital and with his friends, wished he was out there with them.
~*~
Finally home, Kuroo was able to read the contents of the folder Nekomata had given to him. He sipped at his tea, and tried to make sense of it. He remembered being told the legend of a beta blooming into an omega, but that was during the last century. Nothing any more recent than that had occurred. At least, not that he was aware. In fact, the story even started like a fairy tale:
"Once in a blue moon, a beta might bloom into an omega. It's extremely rare, but it has happened..."
Excerpts from various historical books were given. Newsprint clippings were stapled to documents, providing irrefutable proof that it's possible. But still, it all sounded so fantastic that Kuroo couldn't quite wrap his head around it. Did all of this information mean Tsuki was another phenomenon waiting to happen? And how would they keep it from being the lead story on local news channels? Hell, how would they keep it from any national news broadcasts?
At the back of the folder was a handwritten note. Kuroo recognized Nekomata's writing. A dear friend of his, a long time ago, also presented beta, who eventually bloomed into an omega. It happened well over thirty years ago, and they somehow managed to keep it a secret, or at least out of the public eye. It could be done, and Kuroo was already set in mind to do the same for Tsuki. He had to protect him, that was his only mission.
Without a second thought, he set his empty mug down on the table, got up, and put his red and white jacket back on and grabbed his keys before leaving his apartment. His thoughts were so consumed with Tsuki, he didn't realize his feet automatically took him to the school, past the gym, and into the building where Karasuno was staying. He had at least one more question he needed the answer to.
The next blue moon was tonight. Exactly how was he going to be a part of all this?