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It all started as a joke, a nice one. Every time Dabi went in a fight he always ended up with some scratches or worse, like a broken rib. His lack of self-care and his recklessness in combat were quite impressive in fact. It quickly became a running gag in the League and things could have continued like that, a comment or two by Shigaraki and Toga but no. Mr Compress joined the duo and things escalate very fast, too fast to Dabi’s taste. It was nice to have people laughing with you, people who hid their worries behind sarcasm or unhealthy coping mechanism like you did. But… something felt weird when the magician joined them. A good weird, like it was his role in the team, the role of a father . And that fact scared the hell out of him, the name of it especially. And he hated it, because it was different, yet so familiar, or what should have been so familiar to him.
Compress wasn’t stupid, he noticed Dabi’s odd behavior every time he got injured. At first, he thought it was the fact that people made fun of him but even the burned man himself genuinely laughed about his own scars. He talked to Kurogiri about it, hoping that the bartender would have some information about it but he was as clueless as him. The firebender was very secret about himself and no one really knew what was going on in his head or his real name. That was something the thief understood obviously, his mask and his balaclava hiding his face from the rest of the world but for someone as hot-headed (literally) as Dabi, it was strange. After all this time and the mediatization around the league his family would have recognized him right ? But no, his name was unknown, just like his or Kurogiri’s identities. In the end, there was nothing much he could do without Dabi’s point of view and the brown-haired man abandoned the idea of understanding the younger man. Until that fateful day, when something he said definitely rang a bell in his head.
It was a nice day of september, the warmth of summer still heavy in the air and the coolness of the incoming winter in the wind. The League had been on the run since Kamino and struggled to find a stable hideout. A lot of small gangs tried to take them out wherever they went but every fight ended up with a bloodshed on the other side, the League maintaining their superiority against the thugs. They managed to find an empty house, at the limit between the city and a forest. The battle had been as easy as usual, the rogues and the homeless didn’t stand a chance against them and got killed. The most notable thing about the battle was that Dabi didn’t get injured. And obviously, he wasn’t going to be left alone with that.
“So you actually can take care of yourself, I’m impressed” Shigaraki chuckled, a small smile visible behind Father’s fingers.
“Fuck you asshole, I know how to take care of myself” Dabi growled, helping Twice with his injuries. The poor man wasn’t badly injured – a couple of scratches – but he was freaking out and Magne was already helping Toga and Compress, cleaning the place.
“Yeah sure, that’s why you’re always covered in bandages” The white-haired villain snorted, sitting next to Spinner who was trying to find an electrical outlet for his console.
“Or why you have scars all over your body” Toga laughed from the other side of the house, searching for something edible in the kitchen.
“Hey, do I criticize your lack of sleep creep ? Yeah I don’t think so !” The scarred man retorted, patting his friend’s back and standing up.
“You sleep as much as I do !” The second most dangerous villain in Japan mocked, decaying the last body and admiring the dust following the wind coming from the broken window.
“Which means that you don’t unfortunately” Kurogiri sighed, warping himself back to the hideout with food.
“Oh come on everyone ! Stop being so mean to Dabi for once, he’s fine ! You deserve a party young man !” Compress scoffed.
“Oh please, stop your sarcasm if it’s for telling them to shut the fuck up” The dark-haired man rolled his eyes and made his way through the only room, opening the window in an attempt to chase the smell of burned bodies and carbonized flesh.
“I’m serious, I’m proud of you Problem Child n°1 !” The magician smiled, removing his mask. It was new to him, to make them see his face and share such an intimate part of himself. It was exciting and, strangely enough, it didn’t bother him at all. But that was certainly due to the fact that he was now able to wink at a certain misty man, which usually made him blush, something Compress was delighted to see.
Dabi froze as he heard the words coming out of Compress’s mouth. His head was buzzing and he couldn’t hear the rest of the conversation. Realizing that something was wrong, Compress focused his attention on the dark-haired man, and walked towards him.
“Dabi ? Are you okay ?” The older villain gently asked, his hand on his friend’s shoulder.
“Don’t fucking touch me” Dabi growled, a dangerous gaze on his eyes, who looked straight into the other man’s.
“Dabi ? What’s going on ?” Sako repeated, confusion in his brown eyes as he moved back.
“I say don’t touch me asshole !!” The younger man shouted. He instantly regretted his words, watching Compress’s eyes filled with choc and fear. That’s when he realized two things. First, he screamed and all the League heard him and looked back at them, two, his arm was on fire. Literally. Without thinking twice, he ran away, Toga and Twice’s voices calling him and telling him to come back.
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After Dabi’s outburst, the League became strangely quiet. Atsuhiro hadn’t moved, searching for what he could have done wrong to trigger the poor boy but he couldn’t find what. The rest of the kids was really worried but no one tried to run after the firebender, they knew better. The younger man needed his space, away from his friends and any social interaction. Without saying anything, the younger members continued their previous activities, more nervous than earlier and Kurogiri came closer to the magician, gently rubbing his back with his dark hand.
“You should go after him.” The caretaker of the League said, standing next to the magician.
“You think so ?” His lover asked, leaning against the strong body who grounded him by his simple presence.
“Yes, he needs some space but we can’t just let him wandering alone, it’s irresponsible” Kurogiri let out with a smile sigh, his hands following the curves of his partner’s body before making their way to his waist.
“Always, scared for us aren’t you ?” Sako chuckled, his head resting against a misty shoulder.
“More for the people he could encounter…” He slightly laughed, authorizing himself to enjoy the touch of his boyfriend and the calm before the storm.
“Yeah me too ! I’ll go check on him don’t worry dear ” The magician replied, melting against the cool touch one last time and kissing Kurogiri’s jaw before leaving his embrace and making his way towards the open door.
“I know I don’t need to with you darling, just text me when you’ll find him” The bartender smiled before turning back to help Tomura who was struggling with some rubble.
“You can count on me !” The thief shouted, full of confidence and bravery, ready to find his son comrade.
Atsuhiro put his coat on his shoulder, walking on the path they used to come here earlier in the day. It was the end of the afternoon and the forest quickly became colder as he made his way under the trees. Some of them still have enough leaves to hide the warmth of the sun from him. He could only hear the noise of the insects and the birds who lived here but that didn’t matter to him, he has always been good at tracking someone. And Dabi was not the most discrete member of the League, especially when he was in a bad mood. Following the angry footsteps and compressing the blue flames, he made his way in the woods, the trail of fire guiding him.
After something like twenty minutes, Compress stopped walking. He was on a cliff, the ocean a few meters away from him. The salty smell of the water tickling his nose, he breathed slowly, enjoying the beauty of the place. Remembering his reason to be here, he began to watch more closely his surroundings. There was no one around him, only some bushes and a small beach full of rocks under the cliff. Approaching the edge, he kneeled down to have a better view, his hands balancing between his legs. Surprisingly enough, he was completely alone. It was like Dabi had disappeared. Starting to wonder if the boy hadn’t jumped in an attempt to kill himself, the older man bend over, dangerously close to the void.
“’the fuck do you want ?” A raspy voice asked, coming from behind him.
“Oh dear, you scared me, coming out of nowhere !” The magician jolted over, a grin on his face.
“I asked you something” He cut him, a deadly gaze in his piercing blue eyes.
“I came to check on you Dabi, no need to be so rude, I would have just watched you from here, you wouldn’t have seen me at all !” Compress reassured him, his hands raised up in a peaceful gesture.
“Why ?” The younger man angrily shouted back, his arms crossed close to his chest.
“Because… it seems like the right thing to do right now ? Isn’t it ? If something’s wrong, you know you can talk to me righ-” Atsuhiro gently replied, unsure of what he should say to comfort him.
“ENOUGH”
“Dabi ?” His hands tried to reach him before stopping himself, doubting this would be any help to calm down the situation.
“Stop acting like my fucking dad when you aren’t” The black-haired man screamed, his voice breaking and his eyes full of pain.
“Dabi, I just care about you, I’m not trying to act like your dad or replacing him” The villain assured him, panic rising on his chest.
“Well you should, ‘cause he’s a fucking asshole while you, you” The young man sobbed, blood dripping from his scarred cheeks.
“Oh my god dear, can I come closer ?” The brown-haired man gently asked, beginning to understand why the poor boy always spoke to him so harshly.
“I…yeah you can…” He mumbled, leaning against a tree, his arms wrapped around his torso.
“Dabi, do you want to explain to me what’s going on or do you just want me to stay ? I can also leave if you want to, it’s okay” He quickly added, kneeling down to be at his level, a steady hand on his shoulder.
“Why… why are you so nice to me ? I act like a fucking piece of shit with you” The young villain cried, trying to calm himself and avoiding the painful gaze coming from the hidden eyes. Compress was glad he was wearing a mask, pretty sure that if Dabi misunderstood his concern for pity he would completely close his shell and never talk about it again.
“I told you, I care about you, and the whole League too. No matter what you’re going through, you don’t have to be alone anymore dear child.” Atsuhiro assured, slowly rubbing the boy’s back with his gloved hand, the other resting against his thigh.
Without any warning, Dabi hugged him, sobbing harder when he felt strong arms around him and gentle fingers playing with his hairs. Tightening his grip on the dark yellow coat, the marbles clashing against each other in the multiple pockets, the young man stopped fighting against his demons and accepted the comfort of letting someone else hold you close to their chest. The way a father should hold you after a breakdown, waiting for you to calm down with nothing more than pure acceptance for you, whoever you are. Something Dabi wasn’t sure he actually experienced before. But he didn’t care, right now he was in Sako’s arms, he was safe, and nothing else mattered.
“Who wronged you so bad little one ?” The magician whispered, his voice filled with emotion.
Dabi didn’t answer, grasping tighter the fabrics and slowly but surely calming himself, the warmth of the other man and his cries overwhelming his senses. After a while, he managed to stop crying and he felt a gloved hand wipe away the blood on his cheeks. Compress didn’t say anything about his way of crying, only moving his leg to sit more comfortably. The younger man would never admit it but he was really grateful to the older villain, who patiently waited for him to talk, not letting go of the hug.
“He was an asshole.”
The thief nodded, his hand drawing circles on Dabi’s back.
“He wanted to use me to succeed where he failed, he trained me day after day until I couldn’t feel anything else than pain, isolating me from my siblings but… I was too weak” Atsuhiro let out a deep breath, taking upon himself to not interrupt him. “For my fire I mean, I know I’m strong but… I kept burning myself and when my brother was born… He was the perfect child and my father quickly became disinterested in me and I was left alone. My mom was unstable and… He fucking drove her crazy and neglected us, he only had eyes for his little prodigy. I kept training in secret but he found out and would yell at me if he saw me practicing. One day I asked him to come see what I could do, in a small forest near our home. He never came. The rest is… kinda blurry ? I just remembered the warmth of flames. Like, really really hot, too hot for my body to handle. I burned myself and everything around me but I managed to escape. ‘m pretty sure they think I’m dead by now, it’s been ten years I guess… Never really paid attention to the time. Didn’t change the fact I want to kill them, that old bastard and his perfect little creation” He confessed, catching his breath at the end of his speech. Nervous, he looked up to see the look on Sako’s face, still behind his mask. The other man was, for once, speechless. Slightly shaking, the older man put his hand on Dabi’s cheek, before pulling him so close to his chest that he could barely breathe. The firebender chuckled, his head resting on the thief’s shoulder.
“Dabi… what you’ve been through it’s…” The magician began, carefully choosing his words to not hurt his pride.
“I don’t want your pity old man” The younger man growled, even if he knew that he meant well and would never judge nor pity him.
“I know don’t worry. You are so brave and strong, you have no idea how glad I am that you finally talked to someone about this… I supposed that you never did that before did you ?” Compress reassured him, keeping a hand on his shoulder as the dark-haired villain shifted to lazily lay his head against his chest.
“Yeah, I’ve never told anyone and if this could… you know” Dabi nervously replied, not used to being so open with his feelings around someone else.
“Stay between us until you’re ready to say it to the League ? Yes of course dear child, I won’t tell this to anyone” The brown-haired man assured him, his head resting against Dabi’s.
“Thanks” He nodded, making sure to not disturb the other man.
“If you need help to take care of them, you know you can count on me okay ?” Atsuhiro offered, worried that the young man in his arms could be stuck into a fight too dangerous for him. He may not knew the identity of his father but it was pretty sure that he wasn’t the type to mess around with, especially if he “raised” a child as deadly as Dabi.
“Yeah I know” The young man chuckled, happy to know that he wasn’t alone anymore.
“I won’t let anyone treat you that way ever again, I promise you, I’ll take care of you. I’m not gonna lie, I don’t know what to say to you to feel better but if you ever need someone to vent to, you can count on me, I’ll be there, even if all I can do is hugging you until you feel better” Sako proposed, tightening the embrace, his mask against the spiky hair.
The younger man didn’t answer, a serious glare on his face. He was indubitably in the middle of an internal fight but the thief let him figure things out, as always. He was used to waiting and let other people go at their pace.
“Can… can I ask you something ?” He hesitantly asked after a few minutes of silence, his eyes looking up at Atsuhiro’s.
“Anything little one” He instantly replied, his curiosity taking over once again.
“Can I… call you dad ? I mean if you want to or just when we’re alone, I don’t want to make you uncomfortable or anything or-” Dabi mumbled, nervously fidgeting.
“Dabi ? You do realize that I already act like a dad for like… all of you except ‘giri right ? Of course you can call me dad whenever you want, nothing could make me happier” Sako smiled, playing with a strand of spiky hair.
“Tch, you’re so sappy” The younger man mocked, slightly blushing.
“Says the guy who won’t stop hugging me whereas he can barely stand any kind of physical affection” The magician chuckled with a playful tone.
“Shut up, I have a reputation to maintain” He growled, without his usual venom in his voice.
“That’s something I can understand ! But since you let me into your intimacy, I should do the same for you don’t you think ?” The brown-haired man replied with a soft voice, serious again.
“What ? You also have a terribly sad backstory that you want to share to the world in a big reveal ?” Dabi giggled, looking back to the masked face overhanging him.
“Well yes I will do that one of those days, we could even do that together you know, – like father like son – but I was thinking of taking my balaclava off, I believe you’ve never seen my face” The thief reassured him, definitely keeping the idea for later.
“Yeah you’re ri- shit ? You’re not old ?? And like ?? Super hot ?? I mean it was already apparent when you took your mask off but ?? Dude, being that good looking should be illegal ?!” The dark-haired man nearly choked as the other fully exposed his face to him, brown curls framing an angelic face with a devilish grin.
“Stop, you’re gonna make me blush” Atsuhiro laughed, faking modesty with a wave of his hand.
“I’m serious, I look like a burned chicken nugget, people would never believe me if I call you dad” The young man explained, his hands supporting his point.
“Of course, it would have no connection with the fact that I’m only ten years older than you ?” The magician smirked, resting his chin against the other’s head.
“Nah, no way that’s an argument” He dismissed the invisible comment with his hand.
“If you say so but I have my doubts” Compress smirked, feeling Dabi finally relaxing against him.
They sat like that during minutes, the sound of the waves crashing against the rocks below filling the comfortable silence. Their backs hurt but neither of them move, afraid of breaking the moment of peace they created. At some point, Atsuhiro found the audacity to lay a kiss on the top of Dabi’s head, but he was quickly reassured by the firm hand tightening his grip against his arm. They watched the ocean and search forms in the clouds, letting the rhythm of their breaths and the tight embrace betray the storms of emotions inside of them.
“He never told me that you know ?” Dabi whispered softly, breaking the silence.
“Mmh ?” Compress nodded, focusing on the young man.
“That he was proud of me” He finally let out with a deep sigh, looking back at the ocean. He smiled a bit as he saw two seagulls playing over a fish floating in the dark water.
“Oh.” Sako realized that this was the cause of his outburst earlier “Well, if it can bring you any comfort, I definitely plan on saying that to all of you at every occasion I can find”
“Good idea, I would love to see Toga’s face when you said that to her for the first time” The dark-haired man chuckled, readjusting himself against the taller man’s chest.
“Already did” The thief smiled with a proud tone.
“Whaaat ? When ??” He asked, raising his head, a huge smile on his face despite his deception.
“I believe it was a week ago ? I really thought she was going to crush my ribs, she’s stronger than she lets you think she is !” Atsuhiro lightly giggled, faking a memory loss to create more suspense.
“I’ll be careful next time we fight !” He reassured his father, holding back a yawn.
“You better be, I won’t always be there to back you up !” The magician said softly, a serious tone in his voice even if they knew better.
“You say that but we both know you will be there” Dabi smiled, lazily resting against his chest.
“Well what can I say ? I have – and I quote someone you know very well – a ‘reputation to maintain’” Compress said in a mischievous tone, making fun of the firebender without any shame, as always.
“That’s a low blow !” The younger man mumbled, half closed and already half asleep, melting in the warmth of the embrace.
“Yeah I know !” Sako whispered, making sure nothing would disturb the nap of his son.
If someone would have told him that Dabi would feel safe enough to sleep against him he would have never believed him yet, here he was, sitting on the grass with a sleeping son in his arms. Sako felt his heart beat louder, filled with so much emotions at the same time that he had trouble to differentiate them. Quickly enough, he understood which was the strongest in the storm in his chest. Pride. And a fierce determination to protect him at all cost. To protect them no matter what. He knew deep down it was too late, he was already too attached to this dysfunctional family that he only knew for a few weeks, to leave them like he originally planned to if things went south for his business. But it felt like they always belonged with each other, no matter how different they were. And god, he loved that feeling.
Lost in his thoughts, he ran his fingers in the spiky hair, watching the movements of the waves in the ocean. Too focused on the wild strands, he didn’t hear the sound of footsteps approaching him. Without a word, Kurogiri sat close to his lover, a smile on his misty face. Surprised, Atsuhiro nearly jumped, only stopped by a firm purple hand on his shoulder. Waving his hand to make him understand why he couldn’t move nor speak, the magician caught a light chuckle escaped from the always-so-composed man, who took off his phone from his pocket and began to type a message. Feeling his own vibrate in his pocket, he managed to free his right arm and reach for the device, wincing in apology when he saw the notifications of dozens of calls and message stay unread.
F rom : Atsuhiro <3
Sorry, he surprised me, couldn’t call u :3
Always a good excuse darling.
Yeah but it’s true…
Isn’t he cute like that ???
Yeah he is.
Do you want me to take a picture of you two ?
Yes please :DD
And send it to meee
IMG23456707656.jpg
Here you go.
Adorable thank you dear <3
But that’s my ass, not my waist
My hands are where I want them to be thank you.
When I think that the kids still believe you’re prude ;)
Well, I do act like that when they’re here but it’s only the two of us and Dabi is asleep right now.
And they don’t need to know everything ;)
Fuck, you know I love it when you’re like that ;)
Yeah I know that’s why I do that <3
What happened by the way ? I was worried.
Sorryyy ><’’
Dabi talked a lot and I kinda forgot our deal :’3
When you say talked a lot it’s like, screamed a lot or actually talked to another human being ?
The latter :D
And personal things, like very very personal…
I think he just needed someone to vent to but he was too proud to ask before and he ended up by bottling everything
Kinda like Tomura *hum*
Incredible, you can be mean to your son XD
Well, he isn’t here and his way to cope with stress and trauma are not the healthiest unfortunately…
I supposed there is nothing you can tell me ?
Nope, except that he called me dad and that I really want to murder someone :)
That’s wonderful !
I knew this boy liked you.
They all doo :))
Yes but Tomura is mine, don’t steal it please.
Be careful, I’m a professional thief :)
You’re just jealous XD
Certainly not, I have enough trouble with one child.
Yeah sure mama bear, we all know that you’re a big softie inside :))
This emoji is very threatening darling.
I know dear :)
I know :)
We should head back to the house don’t you think ?
This place is rather nice but the kids are worried.
Yeah you’re right…
I just wish I could hold him like that forever you know ?
Trust me, I know how you feel, it’s been a long time but I never forget how it felt like…
Do you want me to warp us behind ? You could stay hidden from the rest of the kids, I’m sure Dabi will be mad if they saw him like that.
Nah, I’d rather walk, in the worst case he’ll wake up
And since Toga and Twice saw him sleeping on Tomura yesterday I don’t think he would mind
Wasn’t he super mad at them for the pictures on the group chat ?
Well yes, but they’re still alive so…
A walk sounds great anyway.
You said that for any activities we do together ;)
That’s because doing things with you always make them better my love <3
Kgahzduiah <333
:)
The two men stood up and Atsuhiro, still blushing, made sure Dabi was comfortable in his arms. Kurogiri opened the way, warping the twigs and the bushes away to facilitate their walk. The woods were now silent, the sun slowly fading behind the ocean, his last rays playing with browns curls, orange highlights emphasizing his beautiful face. The man made of dark mist and flesh watched him in awe, mesmerized by the show his lover made for the two of them. The world could have fallen down, none of them cared. They have each other and tomorrow, all could be over and they could be caught by heroes. They were going to spend every minute and hour and the rest of their lives savoring every moment like it was their last together.
The rest of the world could fall, they didn’t care.
They had each other until death tear them apart.
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Dabi felt himself half awake, his eyes still closed as he realized he wasn’t in a bed or in the van the League stole. Panic rising in his chest, he suddenly calmed down when two surprisingly strong arms tighten their grip on his back and his legs. Memories of the afternoon came back to him and he softly smiled when he realized that Compress was carrying him. Hearing the voice of Kurogiri, the young man continued to fake sleeping, only resting his head against his shoulder.
“At least now you have a real reason to do the “dad talk” to Tomura when they will finally start dating” The taller man chuckled softly, being careful to not wake up the not-so-sleeping villain in Atsuhiro’s arms.
“Yeah you’re right I didn’t think of that” Sako laughed, the rhythm of his rising chest coursing in Dabi’s body “if he’s okay with that of course…”
“Oh I think he will be” Kurogiri mischievously replied, the dark-haired man feeling his gaze upon him.
Repressing a yawn who would betray him, the younger man slowly fell back to sleep, relaxing in his father’s embrace. Without even noticing it, a relaxed smile appeared on his face, the young man finally feeling safe enough with someone to let himself be carried in such a domestic way.