numbertwohero | Prismatica Inbox

[Just in that first sentence, just the words "quirk marriages", that's enough to get her stomach to start to sink. She had a feeling it was gonna be bad, that she was probably poking at something she maybe shouldn't... but she just had that morbid kind of curiosity about the whole ordeal. She wanted to know.
And she certainly doesn't regret knowing, but...
She still ends up staring down at her jacks, in lieu of her occupied hands, for a solid moment or two.
Finds her mind wandering to the weird, reverse parallels between her family and his, like her family is what his should have been; two people married with a common goal, delighting in their kid getting one of their Quirks so perfectly.
Of course, she only got one of their Quirks, and it's a perfect copy even down to the legal registration - but that's beside the point.

Either way, after just a moment, her tail lifts up under the covers and clumsily wraps around his stomach from in front, kind of swaying all of her weight onto him as she pulls him closer. It's pretty clear it's gotten to her.
But what does she even say?
There's so little one could say to something like that.]

...

I'm glad you're learning to like both halves of yourself, after all that. I like the parts of you I've met, too.

[She's quiet for a long moment. So long he worries that he might have said too much. But she'd asked, and it was only fair to give her an honest answer. There was no point in lying, and after all, she'd shared a lot with him she didn't have to about the last place she'd been in. But he doesn't break the silence, or try to explain further. That wouldn't be fair.

And eventually, she responds--though it's not entirely what he's expecting, that tail suddenly coiling around him, knocking him a little off-balance, Jiro pulling him into an even tighter hug. And then there's what she says, the words making something light and warm and astonishingly soft bloom in his chest, shoving what feel like rather important organs out of the way.

It's good that she's basically buried against him, because his cheeks may or may not be slowly turning a very bright shade of pink.]

That's...thanks. I mean, I like you, too.

[That's--that's probably what you're supposed to say?? Right??? When receive compliment, give same compliment back? Help.]

[The coiling just gets a little tighter, too; maybe seeking out his warmth, maybe trying to hold him as close as possible, it's hard to say. It's not painfully tight or anything, but it's definitely... tight.
Which should be expected from a hug by a big snake, really.

What he says, though... actually gets her to laugh? It's more of a soft huff in his shirt where her face is buried, and she ends up pulling away enough to look up at him.]

You mean you like parts of me.

[If he's gonna echo her like a dork, he's gotta do it right!!]

[The tail coiling around him is pretty tight, but it's not really a bad feeling, either. Like being hugged by a boa, maybe. It's not all that strange--after all, one of their classmates has a tail, right?

In any case, he's too distracted by that little amused huff she gives to worry too much about that. Is she laughing? She definitely looks amused when she looks up at him, and instead of making him feel more self-conscious, it's unexpected enough that he relaxes, the tiniest of smiles on his face.]

Right, sorry. I got it wrong. I like parts of you. The new parts are pretty cool, too. You look like a mermaid.

[What? It's a compliment.]

[And just like that, her jacks raise up like little snakes as her face scrunches up - clearly disapproving of something he said.
She likes being called cool! It's her favorite thing! But...]

A -
A mermaid?

[All she's thinking of is how cutesy mermaids are, nowadays... with their shells and pearls and fish friends.
That is not what she wants. That is the OPPOSITE of what she wants.]

[Fortunately, he seems to miss both the expression and the very particular dubious tone her voice takes on, distracted by the interesting patterning of scales on her jacks, and instead delivers a completely straightforward and honest answer.]

Yeah, a mermaid. The traditional kind, the ones that lured sailors in and drowned them, not the soft Disney kind. The ones with teeth and claws. A real mermaid.

[What? Those are obviously much cooler.

It does not occur to him that 90% of girls his age probably would not want to be compared to a man-eating monster.]

Edited 2019-07-25 06:34 (UTC)

... Oh.

[She settles right back down with that explanation, her jacks lowering from where they were and everything.
In fact, she might be kind of staring at him a bit, eyes going wide and surprised.]

So... you think they're that cool? Really?
I don't really have claws, though, just the teeth...

[Though they're swung up in her head like the retractable fangs one expects from a venomous snake.

And, extra fortunately for him, she's the 10% of girls who absolutely would want to be compared to a man-eating monster.]

Well, yeah...is that weird?

[Listen, when you're homeschooled and aren't really allowed to have friends you do a lot of reading, and he'd always appreciated myths and legends. And also things he could imagine eating his dad. It's fine.]

I'm pretty sure you could make someone regret sailing near you anyway. I mean, I've seen you fight.

[He genuinely means it as a compliment, honestly.]

No, no - it's not weird. I just, I dunno...

... Midoriya said my scales were "pretty".

[There's a light pout on her face as she says that, though it doesn't color her tone; it just succeeds in making her look like she has no idea what to do with something like "pretty".
It's just one step off from cute, right??? Yeah. It's like the cute version of beautiful. So, therefore, it's Not Preferred.]

I'll totally take "cool man-eater", though. I mean, if you're calling me cool... that just means I'm a lot cooler than I thought.
I think.

I mean, they are. But you can be both.

[What? It's true. You can be pretty and also cool and also deadly. There's no rule against it.

He looks a little surprised by the way she phrases that last part, though.]

I mean, you are. But I don't know why it'd be any different just because it's coming from me.

[-- Well, she'd love to explain that to him, tell him he's been the coolest guy in 1-A this entire time and never knew it, but.
Uh.

Instead, she's staring at him a bit, her expression a mix of surprised and incredulous.]

Hold up - you think I'm pretty?

[He's not saying "your moonblessing can be both", he's saying she can be both.
That means he thinks she's pretty, doesn't it??]

[Probably for the best she doesn't, since she'd probably get the completely serious question of if that's supposed to be some kind of joke about his quirk. Instead, he just looks back down at her, blinking and...completely oblivious.]

Yes?

[Obviously he's not just going to call her ugly, especially when she's not. She is pretty, and so is Momo, and Uraraka, and Midoriya, though he's not sure pretty is entirely the right word for that. So are plenty of people at UA. It's just an objective fact that she's one of them.]

...

Oh.

[She's not sure what she expected, but it wasn't that. He said it so earnestly, as if he means it 100%...
Her face ends up starting to flush beneath her scales, and she looks down at where her arm's wrapped around his stomach just to get her eyes off his face.]

Uh -
Th... thanks. I think.

Yeah...

[Did he do this wrong? She's looking kind of uncomfortable all of a sudden. Maybe he wasn't supposed to say that? He really has no idea what he's doing.

But she's been pretty good about asking her own questions outright, and they've talked about being pretty direct, so...]

...Are you okay? I can move if this isn't comfortable enough. Is it too warm now?

[She does look a little flushed. Maybe it's the temperature regulation.]

- N-no, it's okay. I just, uh...

[She lets herself trail off for a moment, thinking about how to word things, before just... well.
Honestly, nah, she doesn't need to get into that. Sure, it's weird to hear "pretty" for herself - she's way used to being called "cool" and "rough" and "unladylike" (unfortunately), but she should probably just accept the compliment as it is. ... Right?]

... I'm still a little cold, actually. Maybe we could sit a little differently?

[Yes, she absolutely should. Mostly because he's really not sure what else he should say, and the more they talk about things like that the more likely he is to shove both feet entirely in his mouth.

So instead he waits for her to figure out where she's going, and when she finally just shakes off wherever she was going and instead asks to shift, he just nods.]

That's fine.

[He'll take her lead. After all, she's the one who's cold, and the tail and fins have to be a little uncomfortable to maneuver around.]

[They can be a hassle, it's true. She still isn't used to moving with them just yet, with her tail already arguing with her - staying put around Todoroki's stomach as she tries to pull it back, only ending up tugging on him for a moment or so before finally letting go.]

My thought is, like... maybe it'd help if I've got both your arms, you know?
So you could sit up against the arm of the sofa.
That wouldn't be too awkward for you, right?

[It sounds like it'd work!

... And like it'd be a lot, lot closer but it'd work!]

[The tail tugging at his waist is an odd sensation, and he looks a little bemused as he lowers a hand to it, to theoretically help, before it finally lets go. The bemusement doesn't fade when it's gone, though; especially not at what she's suggesting. It's...okay, maybe it would help her, but that would also put the two of them...]

...I guess not. We could try it, anyway, and I'll just...tell you if it's uncomfortable.

[After all, it's the least he can do. She'd listened to all of that, and she's obviously still cold and just as uncomfortable, so--he pulls his arm back, and shifts around with her on the couch, until she manages to get them both into a position that seems to work. A tail really does make things kind of awkward, doesn't it?]

[It would put the two of them, it's true. They'll be very put.
That is to say -

She's quick to start moving once he gives her the okay, shifting until he's got his back against the arm of the sofa with her tucked up right in front of him more-or-less in his lap.
With that offending tail stretched out the length of the couch behind her, of course.]

There. That's not too bad, right?

[Said while looking up at him from his chest, which she does not seem to mind in the least. Of course.]

[They are, in fact, very put. He's never really been this close with another person before, and with her looking up at him like that from where she's curled against his chest, he's very, very intensely aware of that fact. But--she seems comfortable, and not at all bothered, and so he tentatively wraps both arms around her in return, the warmth that comes from moonlacing a strong contrast to her cool skin.]

No, it's not.

[It's not bad at all, it's just...unusual. Strange. Not a bad strange, just...different. After a moment of silence, he does feel just the smallest bit awkward, though, and so:]

...Would you play me some of your favorite songs? I'd like to hear more.

[There's probably some part of Jiro that wishes she could say this felt strange and new and different - but honestly, after everything she's gone through, it's more comfortably familiar than anything else. Not with him, specifically, but the situation on its own.
Sitting all wrapped up like this, just kinda enjoying how warm he is... her tail's even starting to flick again.

But he does manage to pull her out of it with his request and she blinks a bit - before giving him one, short nod.]

Yeah, sure. I've got a couple of bands I like, but if you really wanna hear my favorites, then I know just what to show you.
They're just as loud as my mom's stuff, though... hope you don't mind.

[... Of course, instead of moving or anything to look over at her birdbox, she's just gonna hook it with a jack again and bring it up by her face - asking it to play a few different songs by the same band so the silence will stay filled for a while.
(Perhaps unsurprisingly, they're songs by Deep Dope. He DID ask for her favorites after all.)]

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