Work Text:
Danny was content as he stepped out of the shower, breathing deep in relief now that he felt clean and fresh. His head had felt sweaty under his helmet and mask all day - one of the downsides of growing his hair out - and he was relieved to be rid of it. He ran the scratchy motel towel over himself and only bothered pulling his pants on before heading out to meet his boyfriend, practised fingers running through his hair and quickly braiding as he greeted him.
Wyn raised his head from where he was sitting on the edge of the bed, unburdened by his hood now while it was just the two of them, so Danny got the full force of the curious look that was cast over him.
"What are you doing?"
Danny could remember a time when he'd been overwhelmed, even frightened, by that voice. It was strange to think back on that time, now that it was his favourite sound in the world.
"What am I doing?"
"Your hair."
"Oh!" Danny quickly tied it off and tilted his head to show him. "It's a braid. Hair's getting long enough that I'm waking up with a mouthful of hair now, so they're good for sleeping." Wyn stood as he approached, ran his fingers curiously over the braid, and Danny stood patiently before him while he examined it, his own hand automatically raising with their proximity to cup his boyfriend's neck. "Would you like one?"
Wyn cocked his head to the side, considering, before giving a small nod but not otherwise moving.
"Come sit on the bed." The Soul Eater did as he was asked, hands squeezing his knees as Danny climbed behind him, kneeling and making himself comfortable sitting on his ankles. He hesitated briefly before running his fingers through Wyn's thick black hair.
He'd touched Wyn's hair before, of course; he couldn't keep his hands out of it sometimes, during sex or while they were lying in bed together. It was soft and thick, and Danny loved it, had to admit it was part of the reason he wanted to grow out his own hair again. There was something intimate about this, though, as he gently pulled the thick hair back, freeing the strands that were caught on his horns as he gathered it into a long thick rope. This exposed his boyfriend's shoulders and neck, and he swallowed, leaning forward to press his lips against his neck. Humming with happiness, he rested his head on his shoulder from behind so he could trail kisses up over his throat towards his jaw.
"Is this part of the process?" He felt the vibrations beneath his lips as Wyn spoke, amusement in his voice, and hummed happily in answer, squeezing his shoulders briefly.
"This is just because I want to." Each word was punctuated with a kiss up his jaw to his ear. He moved his hand to trace Wyn's jaw before gently tilting his head back so he could kiss him full on the lips, gently and intimately. "I love you so much," he told him when he was done, pulling back just enough to brush their noses together, not wanting to pull away completely.
"I love you too."
"Here. Turn around before we get too distracted." Danny reluctantly untangled himself from his boyfriend, pulling away so he had enough space to face the front again. Wyn let out one of his amused huffs as he did as he'd been asked.
"You're the one getting distracted."
"Hush, you." But Danny couldn't keep the smile out of his voice as he finally started working on the braid. Wyn's hair was longer than his, and he put more focus and effort into his work than on his own slapdash sleep braid, and not just because he wanted it to look nice. He'd take any excuse to have his fingers tangled in his boyfriend's hair. "I used to do this for my momma," he told him quietly after a few minutes of comfortable silence. "Just for fun as a kid, then... when her illness was bad, her hands sometimes shook too much to do it herself."
Wyn reached back awkwardly over his shoulder, and Danny shifted so he could cup his cheek briefly before turning his head to kiss the blackened fingertips, grateful for the wordless show of comfort.
"There should be a couple of hair ties in my bag."
Wyn didn't have to reach far to grab Danny's bag from the floor near the end of the bed, pulling it up beside him.
"Where?"
"Front pocket."
He pulled the bag onto his lap, and those blackened fingers delicately pulled at the zip of the front pocket, exploring inside before returning with a hair tie hooked on his tip. He handed it to Danny over his shoulder, and the human took it with a murmur of thanks, tying the end of the braid and pulling back completely.
"Finished." He pulled off the bed, grabbed a shaving mirror from the nearby vanity, and handed it to the Soul Eater. "What do you think? I think you look handsome, but I always think you look handsome."
Wyn accepted the mirror from him, tilting his head to see the braid that fell down the back of his neck and between his shoulder blades. He reached back to trail his fingers down to where it was tied and pulled it over his shoulder so he could see it properly, eyes fixed on the mirror as he eyed his reflection from different angles.
"It's pretty," he concluded, reaching out to run his hand over Danny's head before grasping his nape, drawing him close to kiss him again. Danny went willingly all the way, lips slotting into place with his boyfriend's as easily as breathing. He wrapped his arms around the Soul Eater to cling to him like he was the air he needed to breathe (and for how lost he'd be without him - not for his support but for the feeling like a whole part of his fucking soul was missing - he might as well be). They fell into bed together in a tangle of limbs, wrapped tightly around each other as their kiss turned passionate.
***
Wyn wore his hair in that braid for a week, until a nest extermination got too close for comfort, his hood dragged down and his hair torn free from its tie before he managed to kill the offending parasites.
By the time they returned to the motel they'd claimed while they were here, Wyn was thoroughly frustrated by the turn of events. He pulled down his hood, which he had returned to its place to leave, and ran his fingers through his hair, combing out the tangles with an annoyed huff. Danny, after ensuring Wyn was unharmed beyond the minor inconvenience, found himself more amused by the turn of events and the Soul Eater's reaction to it. Watching his 12000-year-old boyfriend get so huffy and puffy about his hair falling out of a braid was more entertaining than he would admit out loud right now.
"Hey," he whispered teasingly, sidling up to his boyfriend and lightly tilting his face so he was looking at him. "I love you."
Wyn's expression softened immediately, and he leaned in to lightly kiss him, wrapping his arms loosely around the human's waist in order to hold him close.
"I love you too, my sweet human." He ran his fingers through his boyfriend's hair, sweaty and messy after being freshly divulged of his helmet. "Would you like me to return the favour? It felt nice when you did it."
Danny blinked, confused and a little too distracted by the pleasure as Wyn lightly massaged his scalp. It took him a little while to figure out precisely what he was referring to.
"Let me shower first," he told him, leaning in for one last kiss before he pulled away completely, side-stepping Wyn's arms and sauntering over to the bathroom. Wyn huffed in amusement as he left, turning and meandering over to the bed to make himself comfortable while he waited for his boyfriend to return.
He wasn't waiting long, the ex-soldier offered him a bright smile as he came out of the bathroom, shoulder-length hair still damp from his shower. He leaned over Wyn to kiss him tenderly before moving to sit down on the floor beside the bed, crossing his legs as he waited patiently for the Soul Eater to get into position on the edge of the bed behind him. Wyn gently took Danny's long hair in his hands as though afraid he might hurt him if he was even a little firm, and hesitated, unsure of what to do next. Thankfully Danny seemed to anticipate this, and Danny never judged him either, simply giving him instructions in an easy, conversational tone as he met Wyn's eye in the mirror across the room, the smile on his lips full of adoration so that Wyn had to resist throwing his hands in the air on his current task and giving into his want for the human between his legs.
Wyn took a deep breath as he began following the instructions he was given, so focused on Danny's hair that he missed his human's grin in the mirror.
Danny had his eyes fixed on Wyn's reflection, a smile on his face at the expression of concentration on the Soul Eater's features as he carefully entwined the strands. His chest was tight and warm with affection as he watched, filled with so much love it hurt, like his heart might explode it wasn't made to hold this much love in it.
He was so busy staring at the monster's reflection like a love-sick puppy he barely noticed as Wyn tied off the braid and pulled away enough that he could examine his work with a dissatisfied scowl.
"Can I see?"
"No!" Wyn cut across him with how fast the word came out of his mouth, grasping Danny's shoulders to hold him in place when he tried to get up. Then, more calmly, "I'm not done."
"Then you can finish after." Danny ducked under Wyn's hands as he spoke, barely able to hold in his laughter, knowing he wouldn't stop him again as he scrambled across the threadbare carpet to the nearby mirror. He pulled the braid free from where it had got caught in his collar and held it so he could examine it in the mirror in the same way Wyn had his own only the week before. "Oh, Wyn..." The braid was loose at the top, as though Wyn had been scared of hurting him if he pulled too hard, though it tightened up as he'd gone on and gained confidence. There were many hairs out of place, and it was clear where the different strands had gotten mixed up as he'd been working. Somehow the whole thing pulled out at nearly a 90° angle halfway through, and there were strands of hair sticking out of the hair tie itself where they had been caught.
"Let me try again. I can do better this time."
"No, I love it!"
"Danny, I can do better." Wyn approached him at the mirror, reaching for his hands.
"No fuck you, I'm keeping this forever!" Danny danced out of the way of his hands, sprinting back across the room and vaulting over the bed in his attempt to escape.
He vaguely heard Wyn's sigh before he felt the room change as the Soul Eater turned into smoke, followed by his boyfriend grasping him and then the bed rushing into him from behind. He couldn't help as he dissolved into breathless laughter even as Wyn materialised over him on the bed, the human pressing his head back into the pillow to squish the misshapen braid beneath him, so it was out of the other's reach.
"I'll do better next time," Wyn relented with a huff, leaning down to kiss him briefly, once, twice, pulling away only for Danny to chase him each time.
"I've been practising since before the monsters rose," Danny pointed out, wrapping his arms loosely around his lover's neck. "You need practice, so since you're stuck with me, I guess we're gonna have lots of time for you to fit it in."
Wyn huffed in amusement, shifting his weight onto one arm so he could cup Danny's cheek with his long fingers, thumb trailing over his cheekbone down to his lips, heart twisting affectionately as Danny kissed his blackened fingertips as soon as they were within reach of his mouth.
"I'll hold you to that."