***IMPORTANT AUTHOR'S NOTE***

Hello wonderful readers and followers of Shadow Play!

I am so sorry for disappearing for such a long time. Unfortunately, my USB that contained this story was lost to me, so that really put a damper things, then I moved to a new place, I started focusing more on college (which is almost over, thank goodness!), and I lost my writing mojo. However, about a month ago, I came back to this story. I reread every single chapter and honestly, I'm very disappointed in my writing on it. I don't think it's terrible, but I do feel it can be so much better!

I am coming here today to ask for all of your forgiveness for abandoning this story so long ago. I feel terrible for doing so. I recently started watching Kuroko no Basuke again and my love of it has blossomed. Not that I ever stopped loving this series, but I lost time and interest in writing for it. Things are different now, after rereading Shadow Play and rewatching the anime, I want to return to this story.

Not only do I wish to return, I will be rewriting this story in it's entirety. I will be leaving this version up until the new and improved version is complete. I have already plotted the new version, which will have some similarities and some differences. The main concept will remain the same of course.

I really do hope that you all will still be interested in this story! I honestly believe it will be better now that I have a more concrete plot.

Again, I apologize for leaving for so long!

Thank you so much for sticking with me, I hope to see you in the new version of Shadow Play.

Which reminds me, the new version to this story will be called Shadow Play: ReCharge!

Thank you for reading this, I'll see you at the new story page!

Take care, lovely supporters and readers! You are awesome ;)

-Chrissy 3

Author's Note: Hello reader, thank you for being curious enough to click on this story. Recently, I have taken an interest in Kuroko no Basuke and had been thinking of writing a fanfic for it. I read a few fanfics on the series and even a few stories where Kuroko is presented as a female. Originally, I had planned to write a one-shot or two, but then I thought why not try writing a female version of Kuroko story? That's what I have decided to do, after careful thought, I decided that this story will not follow the canon version very closely at all, if anything only the tournaments will be the same. The rest of the story I will be changing entirely to fit with my female verison of Kuroko: Kuroko Tetsumi. I hope that you will enjoy it if you decide to read it!

Summary: Kuroko Tetsumi didn't seem like a threat to most junior high basketball players, but when on the court she was fast and agile with an incredible gift for passing. She could weave through players like it was nothing, but the game before the Winter Cup, Tetsumi suffers a tragic injury. Two years later, Tetsumi refuses to play basketball, but when she watches a game of street ball and the raw talent of Kagami Taiga something sparks inside of her.

Pairings: AominexKurokoxKagami

Warnings: AU. Cursing. Violence. Gender Swap. Mild OOC. Overprotective Generation of Miracles.

Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroko no Basuke, I am merely a fan with ideas.

Last Edited On: February 17, 2016

BROKEN

The crowd became inaudible when the impact occurred. Her internal organs rattle against her bones as she jolted forward. Her opponent's weight hurtled down on her, causing her to stumble toward the basketball hoop. The ball escaped her fingertips and swirled around the hoop. Her blue eyes watched as she came tumbling back toward the wooden floor. People in the stands watched, and hung from the edge of their seats. Tetsumi's teammates held their breaths as the ball circled round and round.

The center of Teiko went to dunk the ball into the hoop, but the rival teams blocked him. Her eyes closed tight when she made a staggering landing onto the ground and hobbled to the basketball hoop's base. She gripped it to keep from falling, and watched as the ball fell into the hoop.

A bright smile flashed on her face as she clenched her fist and pumped it into the air. Their opponents appeared furious that she scored. The halftime buzzer sounded moments later, and Kuroko Tetsumi sighed in relief. She needed a few minutes to catch her breath. Just as she pushed off of the basketball hoop, a shocking pain shot from her leg. Tetsumi gasped and fell back, lying on the court floor. The pain was unbearable like shockwaves of pain firing in her veins. Her eyes squeezed shut. She couldn't even bring herself to scream.

"Tetsumi!" Aomine shouted when he saw her lying on the ground. Her arm lay across her eyes. She felt his thundering footsteps as he came jogging over to her. "Hey, what's wrong?" he asked as he knelt down beside the blue-haired girl and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"It hurts so bad, Dai-kun." Tetsumi grimaced as she moved her arm from her face and laid it on the ground above her head. Tears started to flood her eyes, and when she closed them tight they spilled. Aomine examined her leg and noticed a rise in the skin and a tint of purple and dark red.

"Coach!" Aomine looked over his muscled shoulder and waved for Sanada. The moment he called out to the coach, people in the stadium had their eyes locked on the fourteen-year-old basketball star. "Don't move, Tetsumi. I think it's broken."

"Wasn't planning on it," Tetsumi chuckled and gritted her teeth as the throbbing intensified. She had a gut-wrenching feeling that Aomine was right; her leg was unquestionably broken.

"Tetsumi? What's going on?" Coach Sanada asked as he knelt down in his classy suit and tie. Their coach stared at her leg for and bit his lip. "Oh no," he breathed at the sight of swelling and lift under the skin. Aomine glanced at Coach Sanada, who pressed his lips together.

The referee that came jogging over. "Something wrong, Coach?"

"We need to get her to the hospital. Her leg's broken," Coach Sanada said grimly, watching Tetsumi fighting back the urge to scream. Her eyes opened and tears fell. This would be the end of the season for her; she wouldn't be able to go all the way with her team. The referee nodded in understanding and ran over to the other referee. "Scale of one to ten, how bad does it hurt?" Coach Sanada probed.

Tetsumi looked at her Coach with bleary eyes and forced a smile. "It's about a seven," she lied with a small laugh.

"You're pretty tough, Tetsumi," Aomine said as he sat down beside her. "You just gave an eleven, a seven." He smiled at her, and Tetsumi shrugged. The pain was excruciating, but what made it even worse was that her season for basketball was over.

"Tetsucchi!" Kise Ryota bellowed as he scrambled across the court. Tetsumi rolled her eyes as the blond nearly ran over Aomine to see her. "Is it broken?" he asked, his golden eyes filled with worry and sadness.

"I'm afraid so," Tetsumi answered and looked at her friend and teammate. "I'll be okay, Ki-kun." She smiled at him, and Kise was concerned, but he smiled back. It wasn't a minute before her whole team surrounded her. Tetsumi grinned at all of them with a tear-stained face, and assured them everything would be okay.

The sound of rolling wheels echoed in the building as two medics rushed over a gurney. The Teiko Basketball Club stepped aside, allowing them room to work. One medic was a female and started asking Tetsumi if she could move her leg at all. When she tried a burning sensation consumed her, causing her to yelp in pain. The woman nodded, and told Tetsumi they were going to put it in a splint before transporting her.

A mild pain flooded her senses, burning her nerves as the medics finished binding her leg and lowered the gurney down. The two medics lifted her onto the gurney and raised the side rails, lifting the gurney to its full height. Tetsumi grunted a bit as the sting of the pain waved up and down her leg. The medics were about to wheel her off, but Tetsumi asked them to wait. They informed her they needed to get her to the hospital immediately because of the blood pooling in her injury.

"It'll only take a second," she said, looking at them with pleading eyes. The medics sighed and nodded, removing their hands from the gurney. Tetsumi turned her attention to her teammates. "This is probably the stupidest thing I could say to you guys, but don't you dare lose this game!" Tetsumi snapped.

"We'll win," Midorima Shintaro assured her, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. He shook his green hair from his face and looked to his teammates, who agreed. "There's no way we could lose, especially now."

"Midorimacchi is right," Kise said with a bright smile, clapping Tetsumi on the shoulder. "We'll win."

Tetsumi nodded and looked to the medics, telling them they could take her. As they wheeled her away, Aomine ran over and asked them to stop. The medics sighed and stopped reluctantly, allowing Aomine to talk to Tetsumi. When she looked at him, he smiled weakly and placed his hand on hers.

"I'm sorry," he whispered. "I'm so sorry."

Tetsumi frowned and shook her head. "It wasn't your fault, so don't think like that and don't apologize. Go play basketball." She waved him away to join the team on the court. Aomine pressed his lips together and nodded his head. He let go of Tetsumi's hand and promised her they'd come see her as soon as they won the game. She laughed as her dark-skinned teammate ran back to the team.

The announcer came on over the PA system and informed both teams they would be starting the second half of the game shortly. Tetsumi frowned as she left the arena with the medics. She wanted to keep playing; she wanted to win the game with her friends.

Her eyes drifted to her broken leg. Anxiety consumed her; the pain had not let up even a little—not just physically but emotionally too. Up ahead she spotted the ambulance and swallowed hard.

"So how did it happen?" the female medic asked as they loaded Tetsumi into the ambulance. They started checking her blood pressure, and Tetsumi looked at the woman. "And playing with the boys, you must be very good."

"They cut my team from my old school cause not enough girls signed up. I came here last year, pretending to be a boy so I could play. The captain figured it out after tryouts though," Tetsumi explained with a laugh. She remembered going in for tryouts the very first time so vividly. They trained way harder than the girls' team, but then again they were an all-star team—nothing short of excellence. Tetsumi looked at the woman, who chuckled. "I love basketball, I'd do anything to play…literally."

"Well you took the statement 'break a leg' a little too far," the medic commented, and Tetsumi shrugged with a grin. "You're lucky this isn't an open compound fracture."

"Lucky would have been never getting a broken leg at all," Tetsumi countered. "It all happened so fast, the other player was trying to stop my lay-up. We collided and the next thing I know I landed wrong. I limped to the basket and watched my ball go round and round on the rim. I was so focused on that I didn't even notice my leg was broken until I tried to walk away." She shook her head, thinking that she may have possibly ended her career in basketball.

-###-

Tetsumi sat in her hospital bed, absorbing the doctor's words. She stared blankly at the wall and fought every single urge to cry. It was just as she had assessed. Her career in basketball was hanging by a very thin thread. The doctor guaranteed they'd do everything they could to make sure she could play again, but he told her it wouldn't be easy.

The break unfortunately was not as clean. Parts of the bone had shattered due to the sudden impact of her weight and the other player's that followed. When she first hit the ground, it caused the initial break, but when her opponent crashed down on her and caused her to stumble, it created a bend. The doctor told her she was lucky the bones didn't pop out. Not only had she broken her bone, but also her ACL had been torn in the process and there was mild muscle damage.

It was a lot of information to take in, and the doctor couldn't give her an answer on if she could ever play again. He told her that she'd have a long recovery ahead and only time would tell.

Tetsumi felt a single tear slide from her eye, but quickly brushed it away. They were going to take her into surgery to put everything together again. She was scheduled to go in soon. They feared that if they didn't get her in quickly, they would be risking compartment syndrome. Tetsumi stared at the clock on the wall, watching the second's tick by. The game would be over now, she expected the boys to come barreling in at any minute.

Someone knocked on the door of her room. When she turned her head, Tetsumi smiled at her pink haired best friend, Momoi Satsuki. She smiled and waved to Tetsumi as she entered the hospital room. Momoi was the Teiko team manager and was one hell of an analyst; she was as much apart of the team like all the other players. Her shoes echoed on the white and grey speckled linoleum flooring. When she reached Tetsumi's bedside, she sat down near Tetsumi's feet.

"What did the doctor say?" Momoi asked worriedly. It wasn't hard to see the distraught written all over Tetsumi's face. When the two locked eyes, Tetsumi sighed and shook her head slowly. "Oh no," Momoi breathed.

"They said it'll be a long recovery," Tetsumi explained sadly. "They won't be sure of anything until that point. I have to go in for surgery soon." The blue-haired girl flicked her hair over her shoulder and looked to Momoi.

"The boys are on their way," the pink haired teen said as she stood up from the bed. She walked over to the windows and opened up the blinds, letting in the sunshine. Tetsumi nodded, and lay back against her pillows. "And what do you think about your recovery, Tetsu-chan?" Momoi asked, turning on her heels.

"The more I think about it, the more terrified I become," Tetsumi admitted, feeling like a coward. "What if I can never play again? Or what if I do and I won't be the same? Or there will still be pain? Or I risk doing more permanent damage?" All the questions were floating in her head since the doctor left twenty minutes ago. Tetsumi was not just afraid, but also heartbroken. This wasn't supposed to happen, but it did and it might have ruined everything.

"Hey," Momoi said, walking over to her friend. She wrapped her arms around Tetsumi. "Everything is going to be fine, you'll see. Be positive." When Momoi pulled back, she brushed Tetsumi's hair in front of her shoulder and smiled. Tetsumi looked at Momoi and nodded, finding very little comfort in the pinkette's positivity.

There was a knock on the door. The girls looked to see a nurse standing in the doorway with the doctor. Tetsumi swallowed and looked back to Momoi, who placed a hand on her shoulder.

"It's time to go in, Tetsumi-chan," the nurse said as she walked over to the bed. "Everything's going to be alright." She started preparing to take her out of the room.

"We'll be waiting when you get out, okay," Momoi said as she stepped out of the way.

"Okay," Tetsumi agreed. "Satsuki-chan, don't tell them anything. I'll tell them when I get out." The pink-haired girl blinked, but smiled and nodded before the nurse and doctor pulled Tetsumi out of the room. Momoi followed them and stood in the middle of the hall, watching as Tetsumi was pushed through the swinging double doors.

"Please be okay," Momoi whispered, clasping her hands together in front of her face.

-###-

The surgery went well, but the doctor still told Tetsumi she had a long road to recovery. He was hopeful that it would all go well and in a year she could potentially be as good as new, but they wouldn't know for another six months.

Before he left the room, he stopped in the doorway. "While the surgery went well and I am hopeful you will regain full health, there is still a twenty percent chance that you will not be able to play basketball again...at least not as you have prior to this."

"You mean, I may not be able to play competitively ever again?" she asked in a low, cracking voice.

"I am afraid that may very well be the case, but it is still too early to tell," he replied.

Those words struck a chord in her heart. She felt like she going to suffocate. While twenty percent didn't really seem like much, it was more than Tetsumi cared to risk.

"Is there anything I can do to make sure that doesn't happen?" she asked.

The doctor smiled warmly. "You need to rest and stay positive. Allow your body and mind to heal," he paused for a moment, "I believe your friends are here, I'll send them in."

She nodded and glanced at her leg. It was elevated in a sling and wrapped up nice and tight. Tetsumi had to get better; basketball was such a big part of her life. If she could never play again it would crush her.

As she was mulling over the thoughts of not being able to play again, she felt someone staring at her. Tetsumi's sadness faded away as Aomine Daiki stood in the doorway. He leaned against the doorjamb, his hands shoved into the pockets of the team jacket and his sapphire eyes were locked on her. She wondered if Momoi had cracked under the pressure of everyone asking her if she knew anything. Somehow, Tetsumi believed that Momoi hadn't said a thing, and Aomine just knew.

"Don't stand there all broody," Tetsumi laughed. "You're making me nervous."

Aomine smirked and pushed off the doorjamb, making his way over to her. His eyes fell to her leg, and he shook his head. Tetsumi stared at Aomine, and could tell he felt like it was his fault she'd been injured. Of course, everyone knew that it wasn't his fault. It was no one's fault—it was just bad timing. She was moving so fast and the other team's player was on her like white on rice.

"Stop," Tetsumi scolded Aomine.

He met her gaze. "What?"

She narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest. "Don't 'what' me you know what," she shot back at him. Aomine rolled his eyes as he took a seat on the edge of her bed. "How did you guys do without the star player?" Tetsumi teased, hoping it would lighten the mood.

"We won obviously," Aomine replied with a cocky smirk. Tetsumi giggled and nodded, she expected nothing less. "What did the doctor say, Tetsumi?" The basketball player turned sullen and gestured to her injured leg.

Tetsumi exhaled. "Dai-kun," she paused and met his eyes, "I have a long recovery. And…there is a chance I may never be able to play again." When those words slipped from her mouth, Aomine quickly stood up and looked at her with wide eyes. She could see the sorrow and defeat eating him.

"How big of a chance?" he asked quickly.

"Dai-kun," she muttered.

"How much, Tetsumi?" he pressed.

"It doesn't matter," Tetsumi said firmly. "I'm going to play again. We're going to play again." She looked up at him as he stood beside her, looking all but optimistic about her declaration. Tetsumi wouldn't give up basketball, not without fighting as hard as she could for it.

"You won't be able to play next season?" Aomine asked.

"No, unfortunately not," Tetsumi replied. "But, I'll still go to every game and practice." She winked at him, causing Aomine to chuckle.

"You promise?" he asked her.

Tetsumi held her pinkie finger out. "Pinkie promise," she replied as Aomine rolled his eyes. "Come on, you know you wanna do it." She wiggled her pinkie a bit and Aomine laughed, wrapping his pinkie around hers.

But promises are not always kept.