Thank you to @rock-n-magick for the great suggestion for this day!

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Kuroko’s phone rings, the loud sound piercing the dead of
the night rousing him out of his slumber. His groggy, “Hello?” is answered
by heavy breathing. Glancing at the display Kuroko furrows his brow in concern.
“Kagami-kun?”

“Kuroko,” the ace whispers harshly,“ I need
your help! Get over here as fast as you can!”

“What’s wrong?” Kuroko asks through a yawn.

“He’s in my apartment,” Kagami replies voice rough
with fear.

This catches Kuroko’s full attention. “Who is, what’s
going on? Are you ok?”

“No! That’s why I’m calling you! Just get your ass down
here!”

“Kagami-” Kuroko begins but is cut off with a
hasty, “I’ve gotta go, he’ll hear! Just hurry!”

With that, the line goes dead. Kuroko is tempted to call back
and scold him for playing around but the more he thinks about it the quicker he
argues himself away from that possibility; Kagami doesn’t play pranks. Yawning
again, Kuroko gets dressed and hurries to the station, lucky to find the 24-hour
line at his stop. He makes it to Kagami’s neighborhood and jogs to his complex.

Upon reaching his floor, Kuroko takes quick steps from the
elevator to Kagami’s door. He’s about to knock when he thinks better of it. If
there really is an intruder he doesn’t want to alert him to his presence, best
to use his lack thereof to sneak up on him. He uses the spare key given to him
by Kagami and opens the door only to find said man cowering in the corner with
a mid-size dog between him and the door.

Kagami’s look of relief would be comical if it weren’t so
sincere.

“Kagami-kun,” Kuroko begins slowly, trying not to laugh but
failing, “why is there a dog in your apartment?”

“Because the damn thing followed me home!” he shouts red
faced.

“Really? Why?” Kuroko asks striding forward, hand
outstretched to the red furred creature that is eyeing him with a mixture of
curiosity and caution.

“How the hell should I know? One second I’m walking down the
street mindin’ my own business, the next this dumb ass almost runs into
traffic!” Kagami steps forward a bit when the dog inches closer to Kuroko,
sniffing his hand. “So I grabbed him by the,” he motions helplessly at his neck
searching for the right word.  

“The scruff?” Kuroko supplies and Kagami nods rapidly.

“Yeah, that, and hauled him back just as he was about to get
hit!” Kagami sits down on the couch, watching Kuroko stroking the dog. “Then
the stupid thing started following me home!”

Kuroko chuckles, “Looks
like you’re his hero then. Why on earth did you let him in?”

“I didn’t! He just barged in!”

Kuroko sighs continuing to pet the stray. “He looks like he’s
in pretty decent shape all things considered,” he mutters. “Did you feed him?
Give him water?”

Kagami looks like he’s about to have an aneurism. “Why on
earth would I do that?!”

“Because it’s the responsible thing to do, Kagami-kun.”

“Yeah, well, it’ll also make’em think he’s staying, which he
isn’t,” Kagami says firmly eyeing both his friend and the unwelcomed “guest”.

“Well, he’s too big for me to take home, plus I doubt #2
will appreciate any competition for scraps.”

Kagami’s eyes open wide. “Hold on, wait, time out! He’s perfect for
you Kuroko! #2 could have…a…a…a sidekick! Yeah, he’d love that, wouldn’t he?”

“No,” Kuroko deadpans standing up. But when he sees again
just how scared Kagami is to have a dog even near him, let alone staying at his
apartment, he takes pity on him. “Look, it’s late and I don’t feel like waiting
for another train to go back home. I’ll crash on your couch and keep him
occupied. Tomorrow, we can take him to the pound. I’m sure someone’s looking
for him.”

Mollified by Kuroko’s offer, Kagami nods his head, uttering some
mumbled thanks before rapidly retreating to his bedroom, slamming then locking
the door. Kuroko curls up on the couch, the mutt settling on the floor next to
him.

The next morning, Kuroko wakes up early, taking the dog to
the local shelter. He hopes they’ll be able to find him a home soon because he
really is a nice dog.

A week later at practice, Kiyoshi announces he has a new
friend he’d like them all to meet. The entire team is shocked when a bright red
dog bounds across the gym knocking Kagami down and licking his face amongst his
screams for mercy.

“Where did you find that thing?” Hyuga asks scowling at him.

“The shelter, my grandma wants a dog for protection and he
looked like the perfect choice,” the taller male rumbles.

“Why was that?” Riko asks confused.

Kiyoshi smirks, watching Kagami trying to shimmy up the
basketball hoop pole. “Because he reminds me of someone I trust,” responds the
former ace of Seirin.