Chapter Text
Your Memories (And My Powers)
“Oh no!”
Looking down at pieces of broken beeswax-thyme-candles, Izuku sighed deeply before raising his head to look at his guest.
“I’m sorry, I have to fix this. I’ll be fast, promise.” On the inside, Izuku was almost crying. He had been looking forward to spending time with Shouto but then his mom needed help with a spontaneous order of their handmade candles and then his vampire friend had been early too… to sum it up, Izuku was quite frustrated that he had work to do and that Shouto would have to wait even longer now.
“Don’t worry, Izuku”, Shouto said and shot one of those small, trademark smiles at the greenette. “You know what, I’ll help you. We will be faster this way.”
Without listening to Izuku’s protests, the vampire grabbed one of the few broken candles and… somehow they became one piece again?
“How did you do that?”, Izuku asked, eyes wide. Taking the candle into his own hands, he could barely see where it had been broken anymore. Shouto looked away for a moment, his left hand hovering over another broken candle.
“Some vampires gain special powers with age. I inherited my mother’s ice and… my father’s fire. Normally I try not to use his powers much though… I figured it might be useful now…” There was a painful edge to Shouto’s voice and his heterochromatic eyes shimmered with suppressed emotions. He was quick to avoid Izuku’s eyes too. Ice and fire? Why did that ring a bell? Frowning, Izuku watched how Shouto took another candle, heated the wax where it was broken and pushed it back into shape.
Suddenly the picture of a snowy forest and a pile of wet firewood came to Izuku’s mind, wet firewood that soon turned into a cozy bonfire…
“Didn’t I tell you already, Shouto? It’s your power, not his.”
Shouto’s head snapped around and he stared at Izuku with wide eyes, eyes filled with a lot of emotions, such as shock, disbelief and… hope?
“D-did I say something wrong?”, Izuku asked, stuttering a bit. He had just spilled what had come to his mind, no filter at all. Oh goodness, what if he had just insulted Shouto? Or worse, hurt him? This clearly was a topic the other didn’t like talking about, so of course Izuku had to ruin whatever kind of relationship had managed to blossom since their meeting at Yaoyorozu-san’s place. Dammit, that was just his luck!
“-uku. Izuku!” Shouto’s voice as well as a cool and a warm hand on his shoulders pulled Izuku out of his inner turmoil.
“I’m sorry Shouto, I didn’t mean to say that, really! It just kinda slipped because…”
“Because?”
“I-i remembered something… a bonfire in the forest, lots of snow…” Looking down at the now fixed candles, Izuku swallowed heavily. “I’m sorry if I hurt you, Shouto.”
“You didn’t. I was just… surprised.”
Looking up again, Izuku waited for Shouto to continue. The older one hesitated but then went on with what he had wanted to say. “I was happy you remembered me, I’m happy about every little thing you remember, because it’s part of my, and I guess your story as well.”
“We talked about your powers before, didn’t we?”, Izuku asked, not really able to grasp the memory.
Shouto nodded. “Yes. Back then they were just about to come through and nowhere near today’s level. But after my mom’s suicide, I swore to myself that I’d never use Enji’s fire. But then you came around and that day you met up with me despite having come down with a cold and I couldn’t let you freeze, could I? I told you about my parents, about Enji’s abuse and how he used my mother to breed a more powerful generation of vampires and how she couldn’t take how much I looked like him, how he raised me, who she thought I would become one day…” Shouto’s hand came up and he rubbed the scar in his face unconsciously. “You said that it was stupid, that I wasn’t like him and that I could do whatever I wanted with my powers. I never forgot this and today…”
Smiling softly, Shouto raised his left hand and a small flame appeared in his palm, dancing around his fingers. Gasping, Izuku stepped closer, watching it. “Amazing…”, he whispered, unable to tear his eyes away until Shouto closed his fist, extinguishing the small fire.
“This is all thanks to you, Izuku. You opened my eyes, you told me that it was my choice, my life and my path, no matter what others told me. I owe you so much for this and I’ll be forever grateful.”
Swallowing, Izuku took Shouto’s hand and rubbed his fingers over the still warm skin. He picked up a candle with his free hand, examining it. “Consider your dept paid then”, Izuku said and smiled brightly at Shouto. He was relieved and deeply moved by what he’d just been told, but he was also very happy for Shouto.
~*~
Later that day, Izuku had shown Shouto around the farm and the forest behind it. They had been texting more after meeting up at Yaoyorozu-san’s the week before and at some point, Izuku had gathered all his courage and invited the vampire over. Shouto had agreed almost immediately, much to his surprise.
Maybe it was just wishful thinking, but Izuku hoped that Shouto had maybe missed him as much as Izuku had missed him. It was strange, the feeling inside of him. On the one hand, he didn’t know much about Shouto yet, but then again, he felt like he had known him his whole life. Which he had but also hadn’t, and wasn’t that a mess? He had so many memories of Zuku’s life by now, so many shared moments with Shouto, other (human) friends, the war and his death, it was quite confusing and overwhelming. Inko had been concerned that he was pushing himself too far, but he just couldn’t help it. Izuku wanted to know every little thing about Shouto, he felt drawn to him in a way he had never experienced before. Was this what a crush felt like? No, this went deeper then any crush the young druid had ever developed. He wouldn’t call it love yet, but it definitely harbored potential.
Looking over at Shouto, Izuku admired how the sunset turned his white hair orange and almost as red as the other half. His pale skin seemed to glow and he had his eyes closed, relaxing against the tree in their backs. Izuku’s stomach was filled with warmth and he had to look away so Shouto wouldn’t see his blush if he opened his eyes. Because after all that had been said, Shouto surely wouldn’t believe him when he told him how he felt, right? He would most likely think that Izuku was feeling obliged to give Shouto what he couldn’t have had with Zuku. But Izuku wasn’t Zuku, they both knew that.
“You’re thinking too loud”, Shouto said, interrupting Izuku’s train of thoughts for the second time that day.
“W-what?”
“Say, Izuku, how much do you remember by now?” Shouto was looking at him now, curiously. Izuku could see it from the corner of his eye.
“Well, I don’t know how to measure something like that, but… I think it’s quite a bit.”
Shouto hummed and closed his eyes again. “You know, at first, I was unsure if I wanted you to remember. But like I said earlier, I’m happy now. It makes me feel closer to you, to Izuku. Does that… sound weird?”
“No, not at all!”, Izuku hurried to answer. “Actually, I feel the same.”
“I’m glad”, Shouto said softly and, after a moment of silence, gently grabbed Izuku’s hand. The greenette’s breath hitched slightly but he didn’t pull away. Instead, he squeezed Shouto’s hand, his mouth pulled into a smile so bright it almost hurt. Not that he could care about that. They were holding hands! On the inside, Izuku was squealing like a fanboy.
“You know… I’ve wanted to do that for a while now”, Shouto said quietly and turned to face Izuku properly. “I don’t want you to think I confuse things though. The feelings I have right now, the way my heart aches, that’s all thanks to you, Izuku. Please don’t think I try to make up for lost chances.”
Izuku shook his head and squeezed Shouto’s hand again. “Don’t worry, Shouto, I understand. It’s a… special situation and I know that there is no way we could ever ignore your past with Zuku-me, but if I wasn’t sure you care about me now, then I wouldn’t be doing this.”
And with that said, Izuku summoned up all his courage and leaned in, kissing Shouto gently before pulling back. His cheeks where burning from how hard he was blushing but he was sure that Shouto’s cheeks had also turned a little pink. Dark grey and blue eyes stared at him, Shouto’s lips parted slightly in surprise and maybe a bit of awe.
“Could you do that again, maybe?”, Shouto asked shyly and now he was definitely blushing. “Any time”, Izuku answered and kissed his vampire again. They kept kissing and talking for hours that night and for many, many nights after.
And if Shouto proposed about five years later, and if they got married in the end, then who would be surprised?
~*The End*~