bakerstreet | They may bear their teeth to all the world, but never to you

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[meme] shipping

They may bear their teeth to all the world, but never to you

S T R A Y
shipping meme

Taking in strays is, all in all, an understandable vice. The dips in between their ribs, those large and forlorn eyes, they can help you forget the claws and the teeth and the danger lurking beneath fur. But the habit's a knife edge; your efforts may not be rewarded with kindness (animal instincts aren't discretionary) and you may get bit despite what you've overlooked. A stray doesn't care about pity. All it can know is survival.

These warnings apply to strays of the more human(oid) sort, too.

But what may even more perilous with this type than any drawn blood is what you can get when they grow to trust you. You can earn their undying loyalty...or their love. Either from such a wild thing is a precarious path to go down, if you allow yourself to do it.

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ＰＲＯＭＰＴＳ

ғɪɴᴅɪɴɢ — Who's that? They're no ordinary passersby! Were they in an accident? Are they foreign? ...should you approach them?

ʀᴀɪɴ, ʀᴀɪɴ, ɢᴏ ᴀᴡᴀʏ — The elements make this night no time to sleep out of doors.

ʙᴀᴄᴋ ᴛᴏ ʜᴇᴀʟᴛʜ — Cuts, broken bones, injuries all of sorts...you have to stitch them back up, then make sure they don't get any

ɢᴏᴏᴅ ɢᴜᴇsᴛ — It's all you can do to show gratitude to the person who took you in. Fix them a meal, care for their house, whatever you can do once you're able.

ʙᴀᴅ ɢᴜᴇsᴛ — FUCK THIS PERSON AND FUCK THEIR COUCH. You didn't ask to be brought here. Let them clean up after you, you don't even care.

ᴡʜᴏ ᴀᴍ ɪ? — How you got into this situation is a mystery. Even more of a mystery is your identity, and why the person you were would be so displaced.

sᴇʟғʟᴇssɴᴇss —

ʟᴇᴀʀɴɪɴɢ — If you've been injured badly enough or can't remember all too well, you might have to relearn a good deal. Luckily, you have a helping hand.

sᴄᴀʀs — Scars from the encounter that lead you here or scars from prior, you don't want them to see either. You still have your secrets to keep.

sᴛᴜʙʙᴏʀɴ — Ugh, your house guest is so stubborn! They always get up when they should be resting, have the worst habits, and completely disrespect your home! You'll get to them, one way or another. Or you'll throw them out. You don't want to, but you will.

ᴄᴏᴍғᴏʀᴛ — Bad memories or nightmares wreck you; your host and nurse comes to your side unexpectedly.

ᴄᴜʟᴛᴜʀᴇ ᴄʟᴀsʜ — The person who's taken you in is from a different culture or lifestyle than you, and adapting is harder than you thought.

ᴄʀᴇᴀᴛᴜʀᴇ ғᴇᴀᴛᴜʀᴇ — Think learning about a new culture is hard? Try being a different species. Can you keep your little eccentricities at bay for the good of your station?

ᴊᴇᴀʟᴏᴜsʏ — Now that your emotions towards your caretaker/host/jailer are softening, you're finding yourself unusually jealous of those in their life who were close to them before.

ɴᴇᴡ ᴀᴄᴛɪᴠɪᴛɪᴇs — You never thought you'd have fun after all that's happened, yet such simple gestures as a picnic or a movie make all the difference.

ʀᴇᴀʟɪᴢᴀᴛɪᴏɴ — You love them, this person who's taken you in or this person you've found. It's not a pity or a thankfulness, it's love, and you know that now. What you choose to do with this information is

ʜɪsᴛᴏʀʏ — Suddenly, the person who's been so nice to you finds out that the two of you have a history. You killed their loved ones or caused something terrible. How can they forgive you?

ᴘʀᴏᴛᴇᴄᴛ — So much has been done for you. The least you can do in return for the one who helped you at your lowest is make sure they never have such a low point.

ᴅᴀɴɢᴇʀ ᴄᴏᴍᴇs ᴋɴᴏᴄᴋɪɴɢ — Anyone in the way of getting to you will be destroyed, and that includes the person you're staying with.

ʟɪᴠᴇ ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴛʜᴇᴍ — You've been given a home, maybe which you've never had before. You don't want to leave.

ʀᴏᴍᴀɴᴄᴇ — Not only are you living with them, but you're starting a proper life with them.

ʀᴇᴠᴇᴀʟ — All secrets are laid out on the table. You've decided to tell about your past and what lead you here.

ʀᴇᴠᴜʟsɪᴏɴ — What you've done and who you are is so heinous, they want nothing more to do. You're to leave their home and leave them alone.

ᴀᴄᴄᴇᴘᴛᴀɴᴄᴇ — It doesn't matter what they've done. You've opened your home and your heart to them, and nothing's changed.

ᴘᴀʀᴛɪɴɢ — All things must come to an end. No matter what you feel for each other, it's time to leave. Hopefully, you'll see each other again.

ʜᴀᴘᴘɪʟʏ ᴇᴠᴇʀ ᴀғᴛᴇʀ — Come what may, you've decided to stay at your new home with the person you love. Now, it's safe enough to do so.

ᴡɪʟᴅᴄᴀʀᴅ

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[He was fully prepared to take things excruciating step-by-step, if he had to. Even when talking about his excitement to be in the other's bed, it wasn't so much sexual as just- He could touch the other. He could brush against him and it would be fine. He didn't have to maintain a sense of control over his body, his emotions, and- maybe just allow himself to be called cute. Some would call him surprisingly easy to satisfy.]

[So there's a brief pause at Toshinori's comment, a bit of a probing look to check. Is he just saying that to satisfy him? It's so strange to him, for Toshinori to gently check his boundaries when Shouta has literally rummaged through the other's belongings.]

[He drops one of his bags on the floor, not caring for the noise it makes. He wanted to give his full attention to this.]

Of course I want to. [But he doesn't make a move because, well. Toshinori said he "would."] ... So? [Toshinori's the one who brought it up, so the expectant look is on him.]

A-Aa! Right!

[Oomph, there goes any flicker of confidence. What, you mean he actually has to start this out? He looks at Aizawa with a grimace, rubbing the back of his messy head and trying not to look too much like a kid at their first prom. He's never kissed anyone with a passion or anything before. Perhaps a childhood sweetheart on the playground when he was in elementary school, just on the cheek, but a real... anything? He's looking at this from all angles, trying to figure out how to proceed.

Okay, okay, he's way too experienced at being alive here, to be this ridiculous.

He leans, leans, leans forward, because Aizawa is a short person to him, just like most people are. Only most, though. And then he laughs brightly at how much he has to lean before he's in Aizawa's airspace.]

Maybe doorways aren't my biggest enemy anymore.

[It can officially be kissing range. Hey, did anyone tell you you have nice eyelashes? No? They've never gotten close enough without you cocooning into a yellow caterpillar? Haha.]

[It's a bit selfish, to ask Toshinori to start it. He was embarrassed. Still, even if it took the ex-Number One Hero entirely out of his element, it was what Shouta wanted. Anyone could kiss somebody, or want somebody, and that made being kissed or being wanted far more valuable.]

[It also made hesitation sting a bit more because the brain came up with a multitude of reasons why it might be happening. Maybe it was too fast. Maybe he wasn't ready for it yet. Maybe he had wanted this whole thing on paper but now that it was real he was doubting. How hard is it to just lean in and kiss someone? Then Toshinori stops to laugh and draw more attention to the time it's taking and-]

[-even with his worries, it's still extraordinarily tempting, for them to be this close together.]

... ah. [Fuck it.]

[He'll do it, push himself up to close the small gap between them, for one of the few people that made him feel short. He'll fix the inexcusable fact that their lips weren't touching right this second. Toshinori can get a better look at those eyelashes when his eyes close, because even someone like Shouta Aizawa knows that you close your eyes for this kind of kiss. It's slow, unobtrusive, but purposeful, like a way of proving he wanted to do this, despite the little metallic tinge to the other's mouth. His free hand comes up, to rest on the back of the other's neck, not with any sort of force, just to reinforce that this is happening.]

[From skilled older hero to novice kisser in .5 seconds, flat. A record. He's surprised by it, kind if dizzied by the prospect that this handsome, scraggly friend of his isn't actually just a friend of his and is now initiating a full kiss -- and he worries he's uncomfortably angular and sharp and harsh, and lord, if he chokes on blood at any point during these kisses he's going to throw himself into a pond somewhere--

But he sags, relaxes into it and closes his eyes in return. As much as he wants to look at Aizawa the entire time like some creepy old man, he at least is familiar enough with kissing to follow suit. It's warm, some kind of weird arrow that fires off, sends a dozen barbed tips right into your heart. Like, ah, that's what the hubbub is all about. And Ai--Shouta, Shouta would probably mock his age, if he said that out loud. Hubbub.

Anyway, he can barely think past hubbub, and he's not sure when his hand ended up on Shouta's neck either, but it's nice -- and when it's done and he leaves that metallic tang on Shouta's lips, he stares for a moment in surprise.]

... That was...

Really nice.

[Spoken as if he hadn't been sure any kind of anything was nice like that.

Sure, romance played it up, but... wow.

He goes in for one more. That's cool, right? One more?]

Edited 2017-12-07 19:23 (UTC)

[It's a bit stiff in that awkward, first kiss kind of way. How many times had it taken for Shouta as a teenager to finally feel comfortable with another person like this? He'd never known where to put his hands and just the sensation of Toshinori's fingertips against his neck say he's got a better instinct for it than he ever had.]

[He wasn't going to rush into a relationship just for the sake of having this contact but even that light touch on his neck is like his body screaming finally. He missed it. He wasn't the type to just let others casually touch him which left a void that had been restlessly waiting for a decade. It makes him want to keep his body a little closer to increase their points of contact. It makes his own shoulders sag a bit in that sensation like melting. If he were a cat, he'd be purring.]

[They pull apart and, unconsciously, Shouta licks his lips. He agreed, he agreed entirely, but the way Toshinori said it, so innocently just made him smirk. It set his mind alight with ideas of what to show him later, how to constantly keep him in a state of astonishment. For now, though, this is fine. He wouldn't tease him, wouldn't make a biting comment-]

[-and certainly wouldn't say no to another. There's a soft sound before their lips touch again, not surprise so much as anticipation, because knowing that Toshinori wanted it almost made his heart beat faster than the kiss itself. It made him lean a bit further into it and seem just a bit more wanting than when he was doing it just to initiate.]

[Ah, see, this is a little better. Right? Not just a cheek kiss. Not that Toshinori wouldn't settle for just about anything, but he wanted to at least offer some of himself, give a little of what Aizawa may have wanted... even if Toshi himself couldn't understand the attraction anyone would have toward the hollowed out All Might.

Ah. Right. He's Toshinori Yagi. All Might is, for lack of a better word, dead. Even if some sliver of him resides in this brittle body, that sliver isn't out protecting, or guiding, or being a symbol of anything. He worries, constantly, over the state of things -- he has to trust the heroes who stand tall in his place, but it's so, so hard not to dwell...

He kisses more deeply, curls his fingers in Aizawa's unruly locks, and blanks those insecurities out for the moment. When he finally breaks the kiss, he's a bit breathless, mind fogging.]

... The tea. I'll, um. Make the tea.

[Don't dwell, just kiss.]

[It's difficult to hide how satisfied the kiss has left him. Sure, he'd go as slow as necessary, he's happy with anything, but... Toshinori does want to kiss him. More than just selfishly taking, he can give something back, and maybe both of them feeling like that just makes it a normal relationship. He seems relaxed in a very different way than usual. There's a small, quiet kind of smile on his face.]

[Of course, those lips quirk up to show teeth again at the awkward remembering of tea.]

Right, of course. [He gently runs his fingertips against the back of the other's neck one more time before retracting his arms back to his personal space. He did have to put some things away, after all. But,]

You know, you'll probably have to lean down less on the couch. [Just saying. For once the tea is done.] It's at least worth trying.

[Toshinori's a little disappointed by the break in contact; he's hoping it doesn't show too quickly on his face, because aaaa, how embarrassing, to be that needy. It's just... difficult to explain to even himself, how lacking in that sort of... feeling was. It's not like he's never been without a kind hand, or something. It's nothing so dramatic...! But to have someone in a relationship, who wants to be with you, someone who touches like that...

He nearly sprays blood at the hint of a continuation on the couch. But he'll settle for coughing into his hand and awkwardly shuffling off with that lanky form of his toward the kitchen. Maybe a step too fast. Not that it takes long, with how big his strides can be.]

Tea! Tea, I'll get tea, yes.

[... Go ahead and settle, Shouta, he's gonna work on the tea.

... He wonders if Shouta's hungry, too. They have all those leftovers still...]

[For Shouta, just that was enough to metaphorically recharge his batteries. He still looks tired, that's not going to change with any amount of casual touching, but there's definitely a bit more bounce to his steps. Even when it comes to basic, simple tasks like placing some of his things back in the bathroom, unpacking papers, reclaiming those spaces of Toshinori's place that he had carefully extracted any sign of himself from earlier.]

[If anything, it's a more pointed sign of decoration than he's ever done at his own flat. That apartment was equally sparse except for a few little things with cat motifs he was embarrassed to bring over the first time. He should bring them over now, he thinks idly. He might get called cute again, though. He could wait for sometime that Toshinori did something so embarrassing it would go without question...]

[With everything back in place, he'll settle down on the couch. With some time to spare, he'll text Mic a simple "It worked."]

[Then, maybe bragging a bit, "I'm pretty sure I got his first kiss." The stream of reply texts briefly entertains him before he realizes that if there's just notification after notification he might not get to continue. It's then that he turns his phone off, shoving it into his bag for later and going back to just waiting.]

[Or, well, waiting with pointed looks over to the kitchen where Toshinori is. He'd stolen glances more sparingly before but now he doesn't have to. He doesn't have to pretend to be watching some inane television show, he's watching Toshinori, and taking a heavy amount of satisfaction in any nervous gestures he catches sight of.]

[Toshinori's in the kitchen, certainly having a mini-heart attack while he works. He has to remind himself that this was actually a while coming -- but it doesn't change the fact that it had only all really imploded this morning, all from the letter burning in his pocket. He nearly spills the tea before he forces himself to just relax, geez--

He looks and catches Shouta's gaze before flustering. Oh, he's been watching him act ridiculous, like this is the first time he's had someone over that he's crushing on, or something. Kind of lame, he knows; this isn't remotely new territory now, having Shouta here. After a moment, he returns, placing the tea down in front of them on the small coffee table with a huff.]

You've been enjoying watching me stumble around now, haven't you?

[He sounds humored by it, at least. Even it's kind of embarrassing.]

... Aa, careful, it's still hot.

Absolutely. [There was no point in hiding it. He was obviously watching and obviously enjoying it. He doesn't reach over for the tea, considering it was still hot anyways, and there were more important things to do.]

Did you want to try? [He leans over a bit from his place on the couch. He didn't feel overeager, considering the way Toshinori was preoccupied in the kitchen. He was interested. He'd discovered something new, discovered it was nice, and Shouta was capable of showing him. Somewhere in his mind, he worries that the discovery was all it was. Maybe it wasn't him, it was a desire for affection, to be loved, and anyone would do. There's a quiet grin on his face as he glances over to the table.]

[That would be fine, too. He'd accept that.]

Although, maybe we should just wait for the tea to cool... If you get too distracted, it might end up cold. [One kiss would turn into two kisses and somehow an hour would pass.]

[Stupidly:]

Kissing?

[He almost winces at his own voice.

Just... be yourself, Toshinori. Be what you usually are.

He's just overthinking this. Shouta's just expecting him, not someone who actually knows what the hell they're doing. He looks at him for a moment before huffing, frowning at him. Trying to look serious and failing, really. Good job.]

You're enjoying this, aren't you? You've got that look you get when you're pulling one over on our kids.

[COUGH.]

... Our students. Our students, that is.

[Yes, Toshinori, kissing, this time on the couch. They could also try it in the bed, against a wall, or possibly in the kitchen against the counter. Ah, maybe that would shrink the gap, too, with him sitting on the countertop, but then Toshinori would be standing for a while and...]

[Logistics aside,]

I don't have nearly as much fun with our students as I do with you. ["Our kids," huh. How like Toshinori to view it in that affectionate, familial way. It was another tool to tease him with but Shouta abstains. He could save it for later, if he needed to.]

Should I not tease you so much? [He can restrain himself a little. He likes keeping Toshinori off-balance, he likes the way he seems so out of his element. He just also likes being liked and while he's not good at changing, he can at least hold his tongue.]

Mmm...

Guess I can't complain about it much.

[He stares at him for a moment, before sighing and flopping over to lounge his head in Shouta's lap. You know, just like before, when he'd fallen asleep -- only this time he's taken initiative, because he... actually really liked it, and couldn't ever say it. But of course, looking back, he'd been kind of an oblivious idiot not to connect some dots.

Like, him thinking that Shouta had been... petting him...

He lays there looking up at the other, hands crossed over his stomach, feet hanging off the end of the couch. Such a funny fellow, flustered and scowling a little still, mostly in thought now. This spot... is a pretty good spot. Looking up into that mess of hair before, he hadn't gotten to appreciate the view. It swells something in his heart, and for a moment, he sort of forgets all of the complicated gears at work in his life. The vision from Nighteye, losing his powers, his health and Midoriya's harrowing future as a hero... He doesn't even think before he reaches up and thumbs Shouta's chin, brushing his bottom lip. The feel of his stubble is nice; he could never pull it off, himself.

His fingers tracing up to the scar on Aizawa's cheek is... a natural gesture, it feels like. Easy as writing his name. Maybe there's some hope for him after all.]

There -- now you're taller than me, Shouta-kun.

[He knew Toshinori remembered his shameful lapse in judgment when it came to hiding his affection. So he's a bit surprised to suddenly have the other on his lap again, as if it might be some form of counter-teasing. Could it even be comfortable? This was why he didn't want Toshinori sleeping on the couch every, horizontally he was just too much for it. The wave of thoughts is quickly silenced when the other reaches up to him.]

[... Not bad, maybe 80 points.]

[He tilts his head a bit, pressing against the touch. His more teasing smile settles down into something relaxed and fond.]

A creative solution. [And he'll move his hand over to gently push those long bangs to the side, then run his fingers through the other's hair like he did that very first time. It's technically petting but there's a fondness there that says: you're absolutely an oblivious idiot, Toshinori Yagi.]

Although it can be inconvenient in its own ways. [Much harder to kiss, for example, and, well, thankfully the atmosphere between them wasn't too hot or heavy. He's not going to say that, though, lest the other end up jack-knifing up again out of some kind of embarrassment.]

[There is the biggest shit-eating grin on this man's face right now.

Apparently, he knows just what Aizawa's thinking.]

Oh yeah? I thought you were supposed to be the flexible one among the heroes.

[Eraserhead, some sort of gymnast-warrior hybrid, hanging around literally to drop on unsuspecting villain's heads. Toshinori's not exactly that kind of fighter; he'd probably hurt himself trying to pull half the moves Shouta does.]

[Oh... is it on? It's on. It's hard for him to have mercy on an old man when he's so cheeky.]

Hm. [A pause, another brief affectionate touch to the other's hair.]

Toshinori. [With the back of the couch, he doesn't have enough room to really dip down and get close to the other's face. Still, he can lean a bit, let their eyes meet in the corridor of shadow formed by his hair hanging around his face.]

Don't tell me you're already thinking about ways I can be... [One hand stays polite, affectionately run through Toshinori's hair. The other one gets a little more bold, trailing down to rest on the other's thigh, slightly more on the inner side than the out. The final word in the sentence is said with a more husky tone than he usually used in the other's apartment,]

Flexible.

[... Okay now all confidence has been lost.

He looks at him with a slightly bewildered and -- sensually intimidated expression.

There is clearly such a thing, in manner of sultriness. He swallows hard, his stomach fluttering.]

... Maybe a little bit.

Can you really blame me? You're easy to think about.

[It's a bit like seeing him deflate, again. Not that he can really deflate anymore. That little yo-yo of confidence back and forth, back and forth...]

[It makes him sort of look forward to when they can exchange barbs about this as easily as some inane television show.]

Between you and me, I'm really the one more suited to having those kinds of thoughts... [There's a bit less enticement put into that line. It's an indirect way of saying- he does have trouble accepting that he's easy to think about. He doesn't move his hand any further down Toshinori's leg, just pausing to think. He'll keep up the light touch to the other's scalp, half-and-half spicy-and-sweet.]

[............... he'd intended to take things slowly, he wasn't even sure if Toshinori wanted anyone or actually him, and importantly, most importantly... he just really wanted to know.]

Tell me. [...] I want to know what you think about.

[He chuckles, though it's weak, like his breath is stolen. That hand on his thigh, despite not moving, is making him feel all sorts of things -- mainly because of who's touching it. He presses into the hand at his head. Is Shouta... serious? He'd been thinking about him like that? Geez. Mr. Gaunt Face, him? But he's pleased.]

Well... You're the first person I've ever really thought about like this.

................

Probably around when I joined the faculty at UA. It was just some... nagging thought.

[It's not like he feels some surge of happiness at being the first person. That would be ridiculous. That would be unsightly. That would be selfish, and greedy, and he's so pleased.]

Ah, well. That's when my thoughts about you started changing. [It was a slow transformation from the first time he saw Toshinori like this. It was easy to hate All Might, the boisterous, immovable, utterly publicized Symbol of Peace. Then, suddenly, he was trusted with a secret and got to see the first signs of weakness. It's not like he was attracted to weakness, it just got harder to hate him. Once it was hard to hate him, his feelings ended up scrambling in the other direction and ended up at love.]

[... but they were still talking about that way right?]

Even if it was just a nagging thought, to think about me like that then... Are you some kind of masochist?

[He snickers despite himself. So comfy, this spot.]

Aaaa, but you're very attractive. The scruffy look, you know.

I figured if I just thought you were cute and stood aside, I'd be happy enough just working with you.

[He hums, closing his eyes.]

I guess I was a masochist.

Your standards are too low. [he says, without thinking. Sure, he's in the exact same situation, but he barely put any care into his appearance! He didn't even try! Meanwhile, Toshinori... had a mess of brittle-feeling hair, still had a bad habit of wearing clothing not suited to his body, and literally coughed up blood.]

[Still, his standards were too low.]

... is... is that why you brought me that stupid, pointless introductory gift?

[He's a little overwhelmed by the idea that, for all his scheming and planning, Toshinori just- liked him? Before Shouta had ever stopped to decide he liked him first? Had he actually fallen into the other's trap? It's ruining his self-image as a creepy, lovesick stalker!]

[Ha! No really, he barks a Ha! at him.]

My standards are too low? Have you seen what's left of me?

[........ That sounded way harsher than intended. Cough.]

I couldn't at least be your friend if I didn't get past you disliking me. I thought a gift would help. Granted, I probably would have gotten you something anyway... There was a lot more than just formality put into it, regardless...

[He's practically muttering like Midoriya.]

[There was a lot more than just formality put into it... And what had he said at the time? Probably something like "I don't need it." He hadn't and he'd never really looked back on that moment with anything like regret. Still, it's just astounding to think about.]

So you've always had this habit of worrying about things pointlessly. [There's another gentle pet of Toshinori's hair. Never mind that, had he done anything remotely like a confession back then, Shouta would have doubtlessly turned him down. It would have been just as easy as rejecting the gift. More than rejecting it that time, that's what he feels a bit bad about.]

As for what's left of you, though... [That other hand shifts, now, tracing down the length of his leg as far as his arm will allow.] Objectively, it's not what people would consider attractive. [He'd acknowledged that time and time again.]

... Attraction isn't something that works logically for me, though. [He sounds a bit ashamed admitting it. It was a bit easier to swallow that he was illogical while in love. Love made plenty of people act irrationally. Attraction seemed more like it should be wired into the body and his failing to do so for years was just another oddity.] When I have feelings for someone it simply... happens. By the time I'd realized my feelings, this was how you looked most of the time. [he drags his hand back, tracing a finger along the inside of Toshinori's thigh, stopping a bit higher than before, resting his hand on the dip caused by sharp hip bones.]

... So, I've only ever thought about you like this. [He's embarrassed of his own irrationality but not of the fact he loved Toshinori's body. He can meet the other's eyes when he says it. There's not quite the intensity behind it as his earlier moments but there's no uncertainty to his tone.]

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