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Tucked away in a quiet side street on the outskirts of the city, is a humble little flower shop that had somehow defied the odds and managed to survive the tumultuous political and economic climate of the past decade. Hanging above the innocuous doorway is a wooden sign with a simple yellow lily painted on it. To most passersby, it signifies nothing more than a place to buy flowers. To those 'in the know', it was a code.
This was no mere flower shop at all.
Izuku Midoriya, for better or worse, had always been a dreamer. As a boy, he had spent countless hours lost in his own imagination, dreaming up new heroic adventures and fantastical worlds to explore. But as he matured, he found that the real world was a much harsher place than he had ever imagined. Opportunities were scarce, and success was hard to come by. It was this harsh reality that had led him to open his humble little flower shop.
At first, he had hoped that the beauty of his flowers would be enough to draw in customers and make a living. But as the political climate became increasingly unstable and the economy faltered in its wake, he found himself barely scraping by. It wasn't until he met Shota Aizawa that things began to change.
Aizawa was a mysterious man, with a quiet intensity that Izuku found both unsettling and intriguing. Dark long hair, a scar below his right eye and a brooding personality to match his countenance. He had come to Izuku's shop one fortuitous day, and purchased a single sunflower. After payment, Izuku wrapped the stem with care before presenting it to the intimidating stranger with a friendly smile.
But the man simply shook his head and gently pushed the flower back towards the florist, "For you."
He stood there stunned and gob-smacked for several minutes before snapping out of it. A stranger had bought a flower just to give back to him!
And a single sunflower, no less!
If this mysterious stranger understood hanakotoba, then... he was declaring love at first sight!
Izuku couldn't jump to conclusions. It was highly unlikely the man knew what he was implying by giving him a single sunflower. Still, it made Izuku's heart race to think maybe he might...
It was only a few days later when the man returned. This time, Izuku learned his name and that he was a bachelor who had recently moved to this village to start over, although Aizawa declined to tell him what his previous work had been. Given the dangerous aura that surrounded Aizawa, Izuku could easily imagine him being a former shogun.
The transition of power had shifted greatly in recent years, with many new laws and restrictions to reflect that shift of power. The samurais that once patrolled these very streets were now almost completely gone.
It took five more visits to Izuku's struggling flower shop for Aizawa to open up about his past. A former Horishi who used his skills to perform irezumi kei - tattoo punishments - permanent branding's on criminals so all who looked upon them would know their crimes. The man had lost his taste for it and left, seeking work where he could put something beautiful back into the world instead.
There was just one glaring problem with Aizawa's dream - tattoos were now illegal. Only criminals and yakuza were inked and working as a Horishi while the new regime was cracking down on such things was asking to be arrested... or worse.
But Aizawa had a solution; He had been eyeing the basement of Izuku's flower shop since his first visit, and had recognised the potential for a secret tattoo parlour. Izuku, in his desperate need for money, reluctantly agreed to the plan. He had never been one for breaking the law, but with debt piling up and his stomach growling in hunger, Izuku could no longer afford to be picky. Hidden in the basement, the man could work his artistry in peace, away from the prying eyes of the authorities while Izuku continued to keep his shop open during the day.
"If we do this..." Izuku did his best to look intimidating, although the smirk on Aizawa's face told him he'd failed miserably, "Then I have some ground rules you need to agree to."
The man simply nodded and waved for Izuku to continue.
"First, your clients need to disguise themselves well enough to not draw suspicion or this whole thing will be over before it even begins. Secondly, keep noise to a minimum. I can't have screams coming from the basement of my flower shop," Izuku paced as he spoke, gesticulating with his hands as he went, "Thirdly, all of your clients have to buy at least one flower from my shop before leaving!"
"Naturally."
"It would look strange if they came in for flowers and left without any!"
"I agree."
"Fourth - and this point I will not budge on - I am never getting a tattoo!" Izuku stomped his foot emphatically to finish.
"...We'll see." Aizawa grinned and it was so unnerving and enticing all at the same time, it made Izuku suddenly lightheaded.
"I mean it! Never! I hate needles and while I can appreciate the artistry, I have no desire to mark anything on my body permanently, for the rest of my life. Not to mention the fact that I would never be able to bathe in public again! All the bathhouses refuse to allow anyone marked with a tattoo now, not just yakuza! I mean, how on earth do you stay clean? There are men who can go weeks without washing themselves but I am not one of them!"
"Okay! Okay! You've made your point! You'll never get a tattoo!" Aizawa interrupted his tangent, "By the gods, you talk a lot."
With the deal made, Aizawa snuck his supplies in and began slowly renovating the cellar, turning it into a slightly sound-proofed space, complete with a newly dug out escape tunnel should the place get unexpectedly raided. In turn, Izuku renamed his flower shop and rearranged the layout to best disguise the hidden entrance to the tattoo parlour below.
They called it Kiiro Yuri - the Yellow Lily - and hung a simple wooden sign with a painted flower of the same name so that Aizawa's customers knew what to order when they came calling.
As the days turned into weeks, and the weeks into months, Kiiro Yuri grew into a thriving business. A steady stream of customers arrived each day, some coming for flowers, while others came for the illegal tattoos that Aizawa offered. Izuku watched in fascination as the quiet, mysterious man transformed into an artist of the highest caliber, adorning the skin of his clients with intricate designs that were both beautiful and meaningful. It had been a little scary at first, having known criminals walk in, wanting their bokkei tattoos covered up with something new but as Izuku got to know some of them, he realised many were just wayward souls looking for a fresh start.
Despite the all risks that came with running a front for the tattoo parlour below, Izuku found himself becoming increasingly infatuated with Aizawa. It felt inevitable, given how much time they spent together each day, sharing the same space but a love like that was as illegal as their business. Even so, it was impossible for Izuku to resist. Aizawa's dark, brooding demeanour only made him more alluring, and the way he handled his tattooing tools with such precision and care was nothing short of mesmerising. It wasn't long before Izuku found himself caught up in a dangerous romance with the man he had once been slightly afraid of.
It changed one evening, after a particularly gruelling day at Kiiro Yuri, Izuku found himself alone once again with Aizawa in the basement. The man had just finished an intricate tattoo on a fledgling yakuza member and was now wiping down his bamboo needle. Izuku watched him, transfixed by the way his muscles moved beneath his yukata as he worked. He could feel the heat rising in his cheeks as he tried to ignore the growing desire in his belly.
"Izuku," Aizawa broke the silence, voice rumbling in that low husky tone that made the florist melt, "Did you need me for something or did you come all the way down here to stare at me?"
"I-I-I... ummm... I wanted to give you these..." Blushing fiercely and heart pounding so hard he was certain Aizawa could hear it, Izuku handed the man three sunflowers.
Calloused fingers brushed over Izuku's hand and paused there; the true meaning of the gesture sinking in as Aizawa took the flowers before breathing in sharply.
"Really?" He double-checked.
"Truly." Izuku confirmed with a soft smile.
The older man swept Izuku up into his arms and crashed his lips against his; just like that, Izuku knew how it felt to fly.
On the anniversary of the day they first met, Shota revealed the tattoo he'd been painstakingly working on in secret underneath his yukata. It had been bandaged up every night for months so Izuku wouldn't get a sneak peek before it was ready and spoil the surprise. Over Aizawa's heart, on his left pec, was a multitude of tiny sunflower tattoos. It was breathtakingly beautiful.
"Count them." Shota urged him.
"There's so many..."
"Worried you can't count that high?" He teased.
"I have to do calculations for work every day, thank you very much!" Izuku pouted indignantly until he realised he was being messed with. "Okay, fine... One, two, three, four..."
He counted for a few minutes, starting over a few times when he was worried he'd missed one or gotten the wrong number, but every time it came to the number 108.
Not 107, Not 109.
108 Sunflowers.
"...You want to marry me?"
"Yes."
"But it's illegal..."
"So is everything else we've done together. Since when have we let that stop us?"
"No one will perform the ceremony. Even if they didn't report us immediately just for asking, it would put their lives at risk for possibly helping us."
"So we perform the ceremony ourselves. Who says we need to do things traditionally when we are not traditional?"
Laughter bubbled out of Izuku in disbelief.
"Then... yes!"
"Yes?"
"Yes! However many ways there are to tie myself to you, physically, spiritually, emotionally, legal or otherwise... I will take them all, Shota!" Sealing his solemn vow with a passionate kiss, Izuku ran his hand gently over the still healing tattoo on his lover's chest. "One more thing..."
"Mmm?"
"I want a matching tattoo over my heart like yours. All 108 sunflowers."
"What happened to 'I'm never getting a tattoo', hmm?"
"...I guess I found something worth keeping on my body for the rest of my life."