Archive of Our Own ^beta

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“Now Lua, I know you love being out in the rain, but you need to come back in before you get sick!” Ladd says, wrapping his arms around her from behind. The woman had walked out into the sudden sun shower, letting the droplets fall onto her face. “We can’t have you catching a cold, it could get worse and worse and then how would I keep my promise!?”

“Ladd…” she says softly, her voice barely a whisper above the sound of falling rain as she melts into his embrace.

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Emilia latches onto her husband, burying her face in his shoulder, and breathing in the scent of his cologne.

“Do you like this kind, pumpkin?” Shingen asks, having tried a new variety for a special occasion.

“Mhm, it’s great! But how did you even pick this out? Wouldn’t your mask filter out the smell?” Emilia asks, tilting her head in curiosity.

“Ah, well, that’s my little secret, dear!” Shingen answers, before launching into one of his over-the-top laughs.

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“Oh wow, I’m so glad both of you could come! Especially you, Ferret. No offense, Relic, but this is our first date and-” Michael greets his vampiric friends, overjoyed the two agreed to be he and Hilda’s homecoming guests.

However, his rambling greeting is soon cut off by Ferret.

“This is not a date, Michael,” Ferret says, despite the light blush rising to her face. “I agreed to attend only so that Honored Brother and I could enjoy the dance. And even if it were a date, a lady of my standing deserves to be treated with more respect!”

“I’m sorry, Ferret. Hey, would you do me the honor of a dance?” Ferret asks, not put off at all by Ferret’s withering words. “I mean you just look so radiant in that dress, completely enchanting as always!”

“You two have fun, Hilda and I are going to get some punch!” Relic says, heading out before his sister’s wrath boils over.

“Honored Brother, please don’t leave me with…” Ferret began calling out, but her brother had already fled. Turning back to Michael, she sighs. “Alright, Michael. One dance.”

“Geez, thanks, Ferret. I’ll make it perfect, just you wait! I’ve been practicing for months!” Michael says, and Ferret doesn’t doubt him for a second.

Maybe the night won’t be so bad… she thinks, remembering just how determined Michael can be. If that determination goes towards them having a great night, how bad could it be?

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"Well, whaddaya think, Watt?" Pirie asks, admiring her handiwork.

"It's something, Clown. Fucking creative, at least," Watt says, looking over the jack'o'lantern. Pirie has carved into it, and in astonishing detail, the two of them embracing, with a heart above their heads.

"Mean! I put a lot of work into it...I thought you'd enjoy it!" Pirie whines, pouting at the dhampyr.

"I didn't say it was bad or anything! Geez, Pirie, it's adorable. You caught me, I fucking love it," Watt admits, a smile playing across his lips.

"Yay! I'm so happy, I'm going to go show everyone! And put it out for display when I'm done!" Pirie says, picking up the carved pumpkin and heading for the door.

"Damn it, wait a second! Let's not be hasty, Clown," Watt calls after her, as he follows. It's unlikely anyone would recognize their mayor from the pumpkin, but either way, he doesn't want to take that chance.

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crunch

Takumi walks through the forested path, his retainer's following along beside him. Though the Hoshidan prince loves hunting, the three of them are simply enjoying the forest's shift as fall settles upon the land.

crunch crunch

Yet the fallen leaves and their abraisive sound quickly annoy Takumi. He turns to the culprit, glaring.

"Hinata, cut that out. You have to avoid the leaves, especially if you want to go hunting some time," Takumi explains.

"Aw, come on, we're just taking a walk. Besides, it's fun!" Hinata counters, his words followed by several loud crunches.

"Don't make me order you, Hinata!" Takumi says.

"Fine, fine..." Hinata replies, though the young samurai still wears a smile, even after being admonished. Oboro only shakes her head, amused by the boys' antics.

The three walk in silence for a moment. When suddenly...

crunch CRUNCH

"Gods, Hinata, what did I just finish saying?" Takumi starts, his rant only just beginning.

"Hey, it wasn't me!" Hinata says, grinning like an idiot.

"Look, Takumi, it really is fun. You oughta try it!" Oboro says, matching Hinata's grin, with a crushed leaf still beneath her foot.

Begrudgingly, Takumi sets foot upon a leaf, feeling the satisfying crunch as it is crushed beneath his foot. The prince smiles simply, before quickly frowning.

"Ah, no way Takumi, we both saw that smile!" Hinata exclaims.

"Yeah, you like it too! Don't deny it!" Oboro adds.

"Fine. It's alright, I guess..." Takumi admits, sheepishly.

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Shingen opens the door to their home, tired from a long day at the Nebula offices. The gas-mask-clad man is so exhausted, he forgets what today is. And why his wife insisted she have the day off.

But as he looks upon his wife and daughter, he’s suddenly reminded. It’s Halloween, and the two of them have dressed up, in costumes designed by Emilia no less! Emilia has donned a simple red shirt, with a plus sign on the chest, while Shinkei wears blue, with a minus sign.

“Oh, a little atom! Well isn’t that adorable!” Shingen exclaims, quickly figuring them out. The costumes may be simple, but he loves them nonetheless.

“Isn’t it great? It was Shinkei’s idea!” Emilia says.

“Dad! Wait right here, we made you one too!” Shinkei exclaims, rushing into another room. She returns quickly, with a plain grey t-shirt. Without his family, the shirt would mean nothing. But, together with them, he would be a neutron, completing their little atom.

“Thank you, Shinkei! This is such a great family costume!” Shingen says.

Of course, none of them point out that a hydrogen atom has no need for a neutron to be stable, knowing that their hydrogen atom is quite unique.

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“I thought you would be accustomed to temperatures like this!” Shingen says, teasing.

“Yes, Japanese winters are less harsh than Russian!” Emilia joins in.

“I’m still allowed to get cold,” Egor answers, amused by his lovers’ antics.

“Haha, no, I bet you’ve just gone soft! All this comfortable living in Japan has taken away your edge!” Shingen continues, though most would have been too intimidated to speak to a renowned assassin in such a way.

“It’s a good thing he has us to warm him up, isn’t it?” Emilia asks.

“It sure is, Pumpkin! I wonder what the three of us could do…” Shingen answers.

Suddenly, Egor’s blood rushes to his cheeks, and the air doesn’t feel quite so cold.

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The three of them work together to put up the groceries Tom had picked up. The dreadlocked man reached into one of the bags, and pulled out a staple of the fall season.

“I picked these up for you, Vorona,” he says, placing them on the counter.

Quizzically, the Russian woman picked up the package, examining it. "Ah, apples covered in a sweet coating? These are a popular fall tradition. I have long been eager to try such a treat."

"Kinda harsh for you to say they're just for Vorona, Tom. How do you know I don't love candy apples too?" Shizuo says.

At Shizuo's tone, Tom feels a cold sweat breaking out. Despite how close the three of them have gotten, the man's power still terrifies him at times. But, Shizuo's poker face quickly breaks, and he smiles warmly.

"Geez, big guy, don't joke around like that. You had me scared for a second!" Tom says, chuckling slightly. "Besides, it was a package of three. I thought we'd each have one, and it'd work out perfectly."

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“You are aware, of course, that those candies were for everyone in attendance?” Caldimir says, gesturing at the wide meeting hall. Of course, his words lose some of their meaning when one notices Laetitia and Zygmunt are the only officers he bothered inviting. Or, equally likely, the only two who bothered to attend.

“I’m sure that if Zygmunt wanted some, she would say so,” Laetitia says, popping another of the chocolates into her mouth.

“No, I’m fine. I’m not the…not the biggest fan of chocolates,” Zygmunt says, shrinking back slightly. Though she has the ability to subjugate an army to her will, Laetitia still intimidates her.

“Good, that’s more for me!” Laetitia says.

“Now, Laetitia, what if I want-” Caldimir begins, but is quickly cut off.

“Please, Caldimir. If you wanted any, I’m sure you ate your fill as soon as you opened the bag,” Laetitia says, hitting the nail on the head. “The only question I have is, was this before or after you helped a little lost kitty find its way home?”

The meeting hall quickly fell to chaos, filled with Laetitia’s laughter, Caldimir’s repeated requests for a swift death, and Zygmunt’s attempts to console him.

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Watt works late into the night, his mayoral duties cutting into the time he usually reserves for his moonlighting. But as he works, he can’t help but notice a familiar sight creeping into his peripheral vision. Sighing, he takes off his glasses, replacing them with his sunglasses.

“What the fuck are you doing here, clown?” he asks, his personality changing with his glasses.

“I wanted to be with you! The sun set, so I woke up but you weren’t back yet!” Pirie says, her voice coming from the colorful mist that spread through the office. She expected him to fight, to tell her to leave, to say he was busy. But, instead, the dhampyr shrugged.

“I’ve got a ton of shit to do tonight, but if you can stay in here and keep fucking quiet, I guess you can stay with me,” Watt offers, already wondering if that’s a good choice.

“Oh, you must be really stressed if you’re letting me stay! You can tell me all about it, Watt! Maybe there’s some way I co-” Pirie begins, taking on her physical form, and settling into a chair opposite Watt’s desk.

“What did I just fucking say, Pir-Clown!?” Watt says, rising and lunging for Pirie.

“Eek! I’m sorry, Watt, I’ll be quiet!” Pirie says, her grin matching her panic poorly.

Watt knows how unlikely she is to keep that promise, but settles back down anyway. At the very least, her antics are a comfortable background noise…though Watt would never admit that openly.

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“Ahh, isn’t this nice, Ferret?” Michael asks, feeling the warmth of the sun seeping into him. “I’d much rather get a hug from you, that’d be way warmer, but this is pretty good too.”

“I suppose it is pleasant,” Ferret answers simply, choosing to ignore Michael’s roundabout way of saying he’d like a hug. The two of them walked the streets of Neuburg, after all, and such a public display of affection would not suit a noble woman like herself. But, of course, Michael notices the lack of an answer.

“Hey! You didn’t hit me or tell me not to ‘request something so indecent in public’ or anything!” he says, grinning like a fool. “I must really be winning you over! Oh man, this is great, I’m so ha-”

Michael’s words were cut off, as Ferret shoved him, her strength flooring him immediately. But as Ferret moves to help Michael up, she pulls him into her arms, hugging the human. Of course, she breaks the hug as quickly as it began.

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“Hey, Jacuzzi, you can’t do that!” Isaac says.

“Yeah, you can’t do that!” Miria affirms.

“It’s against the rules!” the couple says at the same time.

“Uh…really? I thought that was fine…and isn’t this just a friendly game?” Jacuzzi asks.

“A friendly game!? Chinese checkers is an ancient game! In China, they would use it to decide the Emperor after each term ran out!” Isaac explains, though the game was invented in Germany, and has nothing to do with China, and even if it did Emperor’s did not serve in terms.

“Yeah! Every game is serious!” Miria adds.

“Oh, wow, I didn’t know that…” Jacuzzi says, looking over to Nice for guidance.

“If you ever want to be an Emperor, Jacuzzi, I guess you should take that move back,” she says, sure this is just another one of Isaac and Miria’s tall tales, but happy to go along with it.

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At first, things were complicated. Was Shizuo with Vorona? Or was he with Tom? And of course the same questions could be asked of either Vorona or Tom, with rumors swirling as the three attempted to find their place together.

Whenever the three of them were together, it was difficult for any of them to decide who was a third wheel. Was Shizuo cutting in on Tom and Vorona's time together? Vorona on Tom and Shizuo? Or Tom on Shizuo and Vorona?

Each had their doubts, their worries. And each decided that it didn't matter. That whatever time they had together was "good enough."

Of course, "good enough" slowly changed. The more time they spent as a trio, the more they realized that "good enough" was actually perfect. Sure, the rumors would likely never end, but the debt collectors couldn't care less.

Besides, anyone who spent time near Shizuo quickly learned that legends were always shrouded in rumor. And both Tom and Vorona had no intentions of going anywhere anytime soon.

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Shingen was no stranger to separation. After all, he had lost his first wife long ago, to a separation that could never end. So why was it that these short separations were so much worse?

The scientist hated leaving such a question unanswered, but the solution evaded him. Was it his age, causing him to dread being away from Emilia, even if it was just for a day? Or was it the very fact that he knew separation so well? Or could it be, perhaps, that his love for her was simply too great to bear any separation?

Regardless, these questions faded as soon as he saw her face, even if they only had time for some brief words in the hallways of a Nebula lab. Eventually, Shingen decided that if all he had were theories, with no concrete answers, he would just have to make sure they were separated as little as possible.

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"Zygmunt, I'm not sure if anyone else knows this is your trunk yet, but...don't you think it's a bit risky to visit me like this?" Caldimir asks the woman in his office. She is dressed as a secretary, and would look perfectly at home there were it not for the fact that she is a fellow officer of the Organization.

"Um...well, perhaps it is, but I wanted to speak with you directly," she explains.

"Is that so? Why is that?" Caldimir asks, wondering what important business would bring Zygmunt here in person? Could it be a change in their plans? New information that was too sensitive to trust a mere leaf, or even a branch? The vampire's mind raced, as Zygmunt drew closer. If she was leaning in this close, it had to be some dire secret...

His thoughts continue in that direction, until he feels her lips against his, and his mind crashes to a halt. She was kissing him. That thought overwrote any other, as Caldimir struggled to react. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, he moved, returning the kiss. He would hate to admit it was his first kiss, and thought it would be best of he kept that little secret tucked away.

"Comrade Caldimir...I wanted to tell you in person...I have, um, feelings, for you..." Zygmunt says, her cheeks growing bright red.

"Well, I certainly don't blame you! And...well, I think I might just return those feelings. But perhaps this isn't the best time to discuss them...perhaps after our plans are complete?" Caldimir says.

"Of course, Comrade Caldimir," Zygmunt says, her voice returning to that of an unassuming secretary. He was right, of course, this could all wait until things were resolved. But, Zygmunt still found it hard to keep from smiling.

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Bakugo can’t understand it. Can’t understand how Deku, worthless, Quirkless Deku, is here. How, every day, the little shit gets closer to him. He should have been left behind, should have been far from UA, far from the Hero course, and definitely far from him. And yet he’s here, with Kacchan this and Kacchan that and Bakugo can’t fucking stand it.

And one day, he snapped. It hurt having Midoriya tailing him, always eager to talk to his childhood friend, even with how sour things had grown. It hurt, having to look at that stupid adorable face every day. And even as Bakugo grabbed him, pulling him up by the collar of that damn uniform - that uniform that shouldn’t be the same as his - marvelling at how much heavier he is now, it hurt.

“K-kacchan?” Deku gasps, not even sure why the boy turned on him, why he’s kicking his legs uselessly.

“Shut up, Deku!” Bakugo barks, before pressing his lips to the shorter boy’s. The kiss is quick, but passionate, with Deku only just starting to melt into it when he’s back on his feet, shaken and confused. “I don’t know why you’re always fucking tailing me!”

Of course, this exchange only leaves Midoriya confused. While Bakugo storms off, only made angrier by the realization that during that one brief kiss things didn’t hurt quite so much. Not that he’d ever admit that.

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Sometimes, all Hina can do once Hiro opens his mouth is laugh. The clairvoyant is full of ridiculous stories, even if the way he talks isn’t amusing enough on its own. When he really gets going, Bigfoot this and Heavenly Mother that, peppered with his signature “dude,” Hina nearly doubles over with laughter.
Today, however, that laughter is cut short. Hiro’s finger hooks under her chin, lifting her face as he pushes his lips to hers. For a moment, she falls silent, but it isn’t long before the ridiculous situation has her giggling again.
“What was that for?” she asks, still fighting against her laugh.
“Because you’re super cute when you laugh, dude!” Hiro explains, “You know that’s hard to resist!”

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Toko was surprisingly patient, at times. Part of that was due to her insecurities, of course, but it was patience nonetheless. But the wait for Taka to make some sort of move was becoming unbearable! In spite of her experiences with writing romance, Toko was tragically clueless when it came to the real act.

And Taka was, unsurprisingly, just as inept. The two were together - but not dating of course, Taka would never allow for such a moral slip up - for several weeks before they finally kissed. It was sudden, and it was sweet, and it resulted in both of them locking themselves in their rooms, and not coming out for quite some time.

Still, the brief contact, her lips on his, their bodies so very close, even though other students were nearby… it made quite the incentive for each of them, and once they ventured out, they were undeniably closer. Though Taka would always say such a public display of affection should never occur, no matter what.