Beyond the sea 7

 They stared at each other for a moment until he spoke again.

"Didn't need the tail, did you." It wasn't a question, but she shrugged and nodded anyway.

"Yeah... it's amazing. He likes me!"

"Congratulations," he muttered dryly.

Elly completely missed his sarcasm and nodded, clasping her hands between her breasts. "I just need to know how to change back and everything will be awesome!"

"Let's see what your conditions are, then." Aizawa took a few scallop shells out of a chest on the sea floor and tossed them towards her. They slowly sank, some ending with the curved inside visible. These had markings on them that glowed red like his single eye for a moment.

He spoke without looking at her, his tone as enigmatic as his hidden face. "You'll change back if he drowns."

"Wh - what? I get legs again if he <i>dies</i>?!" The words sounded as hollow as her heart suddenly felt.

"It specifically says <i>drowns</i>."

"<i>NO</i>!"

"I can't change the conditions, nor did I make them. This isn't like a stupid fairy tale, you know. It's out to get you."

"Isn't there anything you can do?" Elly reached out to touch his arm but he flinched backwards, his lower half flashing orange with surprise for a second. "Please?"

"No." The merman scowled darkly at her and crossed his arms. "You knew what you were getting into. Besides, if I could reverse this I'd have changed <i>myself</i> back a long time ago."

"What's your condition?"

He frowned. "I have to have... relations with a certain someone." A bitter sweep of his hand encompassing his rather frightening lower body spoke more than any words could say. "I chose not to burden her with my presence at all."

"So you're going to be like this forever."

"I'm certain of it."

"Why wouldn't you try? It's not like she has to <i>die</i> or anything." Elly angrily snapped her tail, stirring up the shells on the sea floor. She balled her hands into fists as she struggled to calm herself.

"It's more complicated than that now," he murmured.

She spun around so fast she created a line of bubbles that floated up towards the surface. "What was that?"

"I'll lose her for certain if I try," he said quickly, looking away and rubbing at the back of his neck. "You know, maybe this is a curse to pay us back for our impertinence."

"Impertinence?! Is love rude, or wrong?!"

Aizawa sighed deeply. "We were, in essence, looking for a way to enhance ourselves. Isn't that tricking them?" He gathered the shells in one pass of his tentacles, bringing them up to the box he opened with his hands. "I thought that as - as something that may have been her fantasy I'd have a chance."

"Don't you still have one? Damn it, Aizawa, Hizashi has to <i>die</i> but you only need to sleep with someone!"

"Oh? Would you like to be touched by these?" A rubbery row of suckers extended towards her but Elly stood her ground.

"Octopuses aren't bad," she said stubbornly. "And you're still a merman. It counts as a fantasy guy even if you don't have a fish tail."

"Does it?"

"Why not?!"

"Hnf." His lower half undulated in tandem as he thought. "Then would <i>you</i> care to see what I have to offer in regards to sex? It frightened <i>me</i> the first time I saw myself."

The outstretched tentacle curled towards her cheek as if to caress and this time she jerked back, her eyes wide. The dark-haired merman covered his face with a shaky hand, turning so she couldn't see his expression. His shoulders drooped in defeat. The unicorn fish darted around his head, sticking her face in the long hair floating around him until he straightened a little.

"It's useless," he muttered. "I knew it a long time ago."

"If you knew..." Her eyes narrowed dangerously. "You should've stopped me!"

He drew himself up, his hair rising in the current he created as if alive and his eyes burning bright. He even bared his teeth at her, the longer canines displayed in a sudden fit of rage. His companion fish swam off, startled, to hide behind a clump of coral.

"You pestered me for a month straight after you read about that stupid local legend! I begged you, if I remember correctly -" He faltered, his inner voice breaking, "and I do <i>not</i> grovel easily. But you didn't care. All you wanted was <i>him</i> any way you could get him." He deflated, sinking to the sandy floor as his fury wore off.

Elly screamed with rage and sadness and swam quickly away, causing small schools of fish nearby to scatter in fright.

He was right, but she was still furious. It was so much easier for her to feel anger at him than herself, even when she was fully responsible for her own decisions.

It was even worse because he was right; she would <i>never</i> hurt Hizashi. She was going to be stuck like this with only the octopus merman as a potential partner, and they both loved someone else.

Aizawa watched her go, his tentacles blushing a deep, distressed red and writhing restlessly. He slipped slowly backwards into the dark recesses of the cave without another word.

Beyond the sea 6

 He was so <i>wonderful</i>.

Hizashi Yamada was much kinder, and more handsome, and interesting than she thought possible for a human to be. His kiss, though pure of intent, a simple fleeting touch, had sent shivers up her spine. That fabled sense of electricity when touched by the right partner was actually real!

Elly spun around in a circle, high on emotion and playfully passing her hand through the little scattered schools of fish throughout the reef. She exclaimed in surprise when a tiny octopus came out of a crevasse with a shell in her tight grip and helped her find a few others.

That done, her mood sobered quickly. She knew where she needed to go next so she gathered her courage and angled down into the safer, deeper depths. She didn't need to go too far, and technically this level was still the sunlight zone because it was light, rife with with sea plants and creatures. But only a few meters farther the depths lurked, a rich, dark blue that quickly bottomed out to black. She shivered and rubbed her arms as if to ward off a sudden chill.

The reef was larger around here, and she swam nervously forward until she saw the hidden entrance she was searching for. If you had an eye for sea life, you might notice that it was an octopus's garden. The small opening was decorated with shells and debris that shone prettily when rays of light from above struck them, although she knew the real reason was to reinforce their homes.

The tiny hole in the reef was dark. She knew who lived here but it didn't lessen her anxiety.

As she hesitated, a bleak voice called out.

"Back so soon?" A long pause, then a world-weary sigh. "You'd better come in, then."

Being under water, mers couldn't physically communicate except with sounds like clicks and whistles. They spoke mostly by some form of telepathy that was supplemented by the other sounds. Her brain translated the voice in her head as "hearing" above ground speech, however.

Her gills stopped fluttering for a moment as she held her breath, then she furled her fins and pushed into the cave. "Aizawa?"

"Yes." A shining red light flashed in the deeper areas of the cave and then he was there, crawling up to greet her.

Elly shuddered. The merman was rippling with muscle, not only above but below as well. His lightly tanned body morphed into a great, black swarming mass of tentacles below his navel. She knew an octopus had only eight, but there was an illusion of so many more. These legs pulled him up to her level and he settled on the lighted portion of the sandy floor to speak with her. Not only was his octopus half a thing of nightmares but he was unlucky enough to have lost an eye at some point, and one elbow had a huge, sea star shaped scar covering it.

It was clear he thought he wasn't attractive and he didn't bother much with shaving, leaving dark stubble on his cheeks, lip and chin. His black hair was long as he only cut it if it got in his way, and it floated about his gloomy features looking very much like his tentacles. In contrast, a pretty, gleaming white unicornfish swam around him, dashing to hide behind his back from the visitor.

"It's okay," he murmured, and the fish butted his hand fondly.

"I - I need to ask how to end this."

"I know," he said simply. "There's no other reason you would come back to me."

Beyond the sea 5

 He used his hands to dig the pit she asked for, scooping the wet sand out until she said it was probably enough. She floated into it with the next wave, shaking her wet hair back and placing her hands in front of her.

Hizashi's mouth dropped open.

<i>If I'm going crazy I'm in good company</i>, he thought wildly.

Laying in a shallow pool of water beside him was what appeared to be the ultimate creature of fantasy for water-loving men like himself.

She looked just like a mermaid. Her top was pale and human, breasts covered by a snug purple bikini. Below her waist, however, she was something out of a dream.

Her tail started out a beautiful shade of aqua and blended into the deep, rich purple of her eyes and hair. The gossamer fins rippling along the sides were a vibrant, lime green and he swore it appeared they were glowing.

Hizashi's eyes nearly bugged out of his head. He absently took his glasses off, cleaned them on his shirt and placed them back on and... yep. Still a mermaid.

The tail was far too intricate to be anything but real or such an expensive prosthetic and makeup effect he couldn't imagine someone paying that amount to trick anyone. Yet his mind refused to believe what he was seeing and he faltered, stammering awkwardly.

"I - is that, uh, wow, dope colors. Kinda like glow sticks. Did you, um, is that ...shit." He rubbed his cheek roughly with one hand. "Where did you get that?"

Elly grimaced weakly. "I was expecting that question, but there's no way to say this without sounding like a lunatic." She ran a hand along the shining scales. "This is real. All of it. I've got gill flaps along my neck and more scales on my shoulders, plus my hands." She held one up and spread the fingers.

"Can I..?"

"Yeah, but please don't try and hurt me?"

"I wouldn't do that," he said fervently. "Look, I promise I won't try to prove anything, if that's what yer scared of." She nodded thankfully but did start to tremble when their fingers touched.

Hizashi reached out and clasped her hand gently in his. It was slightly cold due to the wetness of the sea, but he felt her warmth coming through. Her hand was long-fingered, the nails rounded points of medium size - not claws, just a different way of filing than he'd seen. They were immaculately painted (<i>natural?</i>) in aqua like her tail top.

In between her fingers was where it got strange.

There was a fine but strong webbing, translucent with a beautiful sheen that matched her fins. He couldn't see how something so thin could be tough enough to last in the harsh swimming conditions she had gone through to get to him. Even the best prosthetics would tear off or the glue be eaten away in the salt of the sea.

Hizashi let go of her hand and sat on the sand, near the piles he'd dug out of the hole she lay in. "This can't be real," he groaned.

"I'm sorry," she whispered faintly. "I can go if you want..?"

"No!" The heartbreak in her voice brought him up sharply. He laid his hand on top of hers on the wet sand, frowning with concentration as he thought. "Please don't go. Look, I don't know what's goin' on, yeah? If this is some practical joke or fuck knows what else, even if you're really what you look like." His hazel eyes met hers and he smiled weakly. "I don't care. I just wanna get to know you."

Her smile came back and this time his breathing picked up with how fast his heart began to race.

<i>Shit, I'm done for</i>.

"Thanks, Zashi. I was afraid ...well, doesn't matter. Not now." Elly pointed shyly at the basket. "Do I smell crab? I love crab!"

"Oh. Yeah!" He ripped the stakes up off the blanket and dragged the basket over to set up in the new spot. "There," he said in satisfaction after placing the huge feast in front of them. He brushed off his wet pants to sit on the more comfortable folded-up cloth and offered her a plate.

The conversation turned to other things, first date questions and easy talk that flowed comfortably between them. Hours passed like minutes in discussions about their favorite topics because they shared quite a few passions, though not exactly the same tastes.

Hizashi glanced over at some point to see the fire dwindled down to embers, glowing faintly. The beach was faintly visible in the pre-dawn light, sea birds crying in the distance as they flew in.

"It's early," he murmured quietly. "How long were we sitting here?"

Elly stretched her tail, uncurling it to flop in the water. She'd moved with the tide all night to avoid drying out. "Ugh, too long. I'm stiff as hell."

He laughed, then winced as he tried to sit up. "Ouch. Yeah, I'm not a teen anymore. Layin' on my side on the sand for hours isn't as doable as it used to be."

She watched him with a little smile as he stood, exclaiming as his knees popped. "I know what you mean."

"Hmm. Well, uh." He coughed shyly, staring at his feet. His throat felt like it was closing up and his heart was pounding so hard he could barely breathe again.

<i>It's only the first date, idiot. Don't try anything stupid</i>!

But he wanted so <i>badly</i> to kiss her. Wasn't that a sign things had gone well? Or was it too fast? He'd never worried much, and it did feel right - a little one, maybe, or...

Elly caught his hand in hers, tugging to indicate she wanted him at her level. He bent, and she hesitantly touched his cheek with her fingertips.

"I like spending time with you," she told him seriously.

All of his anxiety slipped away and he brushed his lips on hers in a fleeting kiss that nonetheless left them both starry-eyed and breathless.

"Tommorow?"

"<i>Yes</i>."

Beyond the sea 4

 Hizashi made the mistake of sighing dreamily a few times during coffee break the next morning. His friend pounced almost immediately.

"You <i>did</i> meet someone!"

He blinked back to focus and waved his hands around to shush Nemuri, who was crowing loudly with delight. "Be quiet! Or everyone'll hear."

"You can't tell me you didn't see her. You're <i>blushing</i>."

He grimaced and placed his palms on his cheeks. "Maybe I'm just sweaty."

"Nah." Nemuri sat back and took a sip from her mug. "I told you, you can't fool me. Now spill - what's she like? Where did you meet, at the club? <i>Please</i> tell me it wasn't the club this time."

"It wasn't the club this time." He opened his laptop to start work again, using it as a shield to duck behind.

She didn't mind; she walked over by his side. "Then what's she like, huh? Besides having drop-dead gorgeous eyes you can't stop daydreaming about." She giggled wickedly. "Or have you moved on to other parts now?"

"<i>Nem</i>," he whined plaintively. "Quit it."

"You haven't shown interest in anybody in ages." She rolled her eyes. "I just want to know how she managed to get your attention. What's she like? C'mon."

"Look, I don't know that much about her yet, okay? I dunno. I'm nervous."


"Yeah, you should be. Your other choices weren't so hot." She nodded thoughtfully.

"Hey!"

"Just calling it like it is. You don't have that great a track record. You're <i>sure</i> you don't want some help?"

Hizashi eyed her warily over his computer screen. "Like what?"

"Oh! I could tail you guys on your date -"

"Nope."

"You didn't let me -"

"Nope."

"Hi<i>zashi -!</i>"

"N-o. Noooo. Nuh uh, no way, de nada, yer not followin' us around. Anyway, it's not a date. I just asked to see her again."

"Are you going to get to know each other?"

He shrugged, closed his laptop and stood up. "Yeah, of course."

"And ask to see her again?"

"Hopefully."

"Then it's a date!"

Another professor walking by the arts department stuck their head in his office door. "Hey, did I hear someone's got a date?"

"Toshi!"

"Oh dear fuck, no." The music teacher proceeded to bang his forehead on the wall nearest him.

Toshinori was the director of their department, a skeletal, tall man that had sunken eyes and dangling strips of blond hair swinging on the sides of his face. All in all an insanely nice guy, but if he knew, soon the entire campus would. He was a bit of a romantic and couldn't help himself whenever a colleague started dating.

"Are you going out for coffee first? Or dinner?"

"Uh." Hizashi scratched the back of his neck uncomfortably. "Nnnneither..? I sorta just agreed to meeting her on the beach."

"Perhaps you could bring some food, then," the tall man suggested with a smile. "It wouldn't hurt now, would it?"

Hizashi thought that was a great idea.

He went out that evening and purchased a variety of meals from his favorite surf and turf restaurant along with a bottle of nice wine. This night he not only built a much neater fire with stones lining the pit, but staked down a blanket big enough for two.

And he waited.

It wasn't long before he saw a head bobbing in the water nearby.

He waved happily. "Hey!"

Elly swam closer, her eyes bright with a smile on her face that was pure happiness. Hizashi's heart beat rapidly at the thought that it was from seeing him.

"Hi," she said shyly.

"I was so nervous," he admitted with a laugh. "Thought you might decide not to show!"

"Aw," she said softly. "Why wouldn't I?"

"Uh. I dunno? You're really pretty, an' I haven't had much luck with, ummmm..." He hesitated to say <i>dates</i> since he wasn't sure if she saw this as one. So instead he gestured grandly at his setup. "I brought some food, if you haven't eaten yet. It's from a local place, all kinds of stuff. I didn't know what you liked so I think I may have bought too much."

Elly eyed the beach with longing. "I - I wish I could, but I can't get out of the water right now."

"Oh?" He raised an eyebrow, turning in the act of pulling out the bottle of wine. "Can I ask why? Is it okay?"

"Yeah, it's..." She inhaled, letting air out in a long, shaky sigh. "If you scoop out an area like, maybe this big -" she showed him with her arms outstretched, "by the shore so it fills up I'll show you. That's as close as I can get."

Just what they needed

 A group of teachers were working quietly at their desks when U.A's counselor went down in a shockingly spectacular fashion, screaming a cat-like screech of fear. She collapsed in a heap of paperwork that scattered around her and striped fur.

"Holy shit!" Toshinori yelped. "Ms. Elly, what's wrong?"

"Ches?!"

"What do you need?"

"Mic," she whimpered.

"What, this guy? He's not what I'd call comforting," Aizawa snorted.

But Elly insisted. "<i>P - Present Mic</i>!"

Hizashi quickly unclasped his neck speaker and set it down on the joint desk nearby. He darted forward, scooting onto his knees at the last moment.

"M'here!" He pulled her into a comforting bundle, wrapping his arms around her and edging about so his back became a barrier between the others. Elly immediately shoved herself as tightly inside his leather jacket as she could, pressing her face into the white t-shirt he wore underneath.

"Mic."

"It's okay, babe," he hummed softly, stroking her back. "Mic's here, yeah? I'll help."

"The hell?" Snipe stared at the two in confusion from where he'd been getting coffee.

"What do you think happened? Is it a quirk?" Toshinori frowned.

"No idea," Aizawa muttered, squinting around the room. "There was no warning or any stimuli that could have caused a reaction like this."

The tall man nodded emphatically. "Yes. We were all here and we saw nothing at all."

"Maybe a delayed reaction..?"

"She was behaving normally until the collapse."

"Uh, guys?" Mic looked up from where he sat with her, his brow tightly drawn with worry. "She's got a - a freaky stinger thing on her neck." He paused, his face draining of color shockingly fast. "D'ya think there's a bug on her? Could it still be here?!" Though his body stiffened in fear he kept his arms around the weeping counselor.

Aizawa, meanwhile, was inspecting the foreign object. "No. Relax, Yamada." He reached out and with a surprisingly gentle touch plucked the barb out. "It's someone's quirk. You'd better take her to the specialty clinic - I know this one, and it's nasty. The rest of us had better tighten security."

Hizashi drove them to the clinic, panicking but forcing himself to remain outwardly calm for her. Once inside, he carried her in and at one glance by the staff the sobbing cat woman was taken into a quiet room in the back.

Standard tests were run and a nurse took the sandwich bag he brought that held the stinger inside for identification. Hizashi shuddered as he handed it over, grateful to be rid of it. He sat by Elly's side, holding her hand and soothing her as best as he could.

Eventually a doctor knocked politely on the door before entering. She was quite imposing, with a wide frame and large hands that were possibly part of her quirk. When she spoke her voice was soft, however. "Present Mic?"

"Yes!" He straightened in the chair and went to give her his hand, but realized it was taken already.

She chuckled. "No need. It seems like Cheshire - Ms. Sketchit -- dropped and started exhibiting signs of extreme fear while at work?"

He nodded anxiously. "Yeah, she - well, look at her."

Elly was whipping her head back and forth on the pillow, husking "no, no, no" over and over again.

"Yes. We examined the stinger you brought. It's from a lesser known villian who has been experimenting with range lately. He may have shot randomly, from outside the gates."

"Shit," he groaned.

The doctor ignored this and continued. "The victim reacts to the venom in such a way that they relive moments of agony from their past."

"Oh, no."

"It lasts only a few seconds, mind you - but she's suffering from the effects of going through that mental state again. She's suffered abuse during her childhood, plus hero work trauma. It will likely take quite awhile for her to come back down." She held out a small slip of paper, which Hizashi took with his free hand.

"What's this?"

"A relaxant. Not a sleeping pill, just something to calm her. Her chart shows she's frightened of medications - especially this type -- so you may have to persuade her to take it."

He wrinkled his nose in confusion, mustache points twitching. "Um, question, doc. I mean, I know this. She told me. But why are <i>you</i> tellin' me all this private stuff? I thought that was illegal unless I'm family."

The woman raised her eyebrows. "You're not her boyfriend? She has you listed -" she checked the files again. "Yep. You're listed as her contact and have been granted access to her information. She signed off on it a long time ago."

"Oh. Huh." Hizashi blushed, looking down at the woman on the cot with a puzzled expression. "Well, we're close, an' she's all alone in Japan. That could explain it."

"Ahh." The woman nodded wisely but said nothing more other than he'd better take her home.

The drive to Hizashi's agency, where he had a large suite of rooms above the work floor, took longer than he liked. He tried various methods of calming her during the ride and found that she was much better if he held her - which, of course, he couldn't do while driving. Still, he talked nonstop and even sang along with some songs on the radio, which helped distract her.

Once inside he carried her through, ignoring the startled looks from the office workers and temps on the bottom floor. He had one thought and that was to get her comfortable at any cost. Hizashi rode the elevator up to his floor and sighed in relief as he opened the front door to his place.

"Here we are, Ches. Home sweet home." He helped take off her gear and shucked his own and heavy leather jacket onto shelving and pegs by the door. "Ahhh, much better already."

"Better," she echoed numbly.

"Now, now," he chirped in an upbeat tone, "things'll be lookin' up before you know it! Lets get ya situated an' stuff, yo." Hizashi placed her on a well-worn leather sofa and went to fill a cup with water for her to take her pill with. When he came back Elly was trembling, backed up into the farthest corner with her ears laid back.

"I don't like pills."

"Hey, it's me, it's okay. I'm not gonna force ya to do anything, but the doc said these will make you feel better." He shook the bottle, eyebrows raised hopefully.

"Don't want to."

"Yeah." He sighed and placed the bottle and cup on the coffee table in front of them, making sure she saw his hands were empty. "Yeah... but we're besties, right? I would never hurt you. <i>Never</i>!" Hizashi thumped his chest twice with this last statement, his face dead serious.

"I know..."

"How about if I take one, too? I checked, I've had these once or twice before an' they won't hurt me. Would that help?"

Elly immediately stiffened, her hand clutching the arm of the couch so hard her nails sank into it. "No, Mic!"

"Ohmigod, baby, I'm sorry." He scooted over and lifted her into his lap, bundling her in his arms since he knew it calmed her. "Holy shit. I won't do it, don't worry, I was just tryin' to think how to help."

"I'll t - take it."

"Wha?"

"Please, before I lose it. Or you suggest anything more foolish."

He glanced down at her in mild reproach as he was shaking a pill onto a leather-clad palm. "Wait 'til I get your drink... here ya go."

She made a face but swallowed quickly, chasing it with a half cup of water.

"Why d'ya hate taking these types of pills anyway?You never said."

"Well..."

Hizashi took the drink and leaned them both forward, placing it back on the table. When he settled back down he pulled her into a more comfortable cuddle with her head resting on his chest.

She listened to his steady heartbeat while the medicine slowly started to take effect. "They dosed me wrong when I was little."

"Wrong?"

"Adult dose on a child. I couldn't sleep. Couldn't feel sometimes, which it was supposed to do..? But I still felt scared and sad." She shook her head, agitated that she couldn't explain it better. "It was bad."

"Ohhhh." He stroked her hair, thinking. "That <i>sucks</i>. That's - that's really bad."

"Uh huh." Her tail slapped one of his legs, once. "And my family treated me <i>worse</i> when I was given them. Once they found out I wasn't 'really' sick."

His brows drew even tighter. "Wait, what?"

But Elly was now deep in her head, thinking of the past memories that hurt her the most.

"I'm not good enough." She sniffled and wiped her nose on a tissue he handed her. "If I was prettier, or smarter, wealthier... maybe he would have loved me. Maybe he'd've loved me." She hung her head, eyes half-lidded and ears drooping. The medicine was working and he felt her sagging in his arms, her speech slurring.

"Ex boyfriend?" Hizashi's stomach clenched with jealousy and anger, but what she said next was worse.

"Daddy," she said in such a heartbroken voice that he whimpered in sympathy.

"Oh, baby <i>no</i>...I'm sorry."

"Why wasn't I good enough?" Elly choked on her own air as she sobbed. "Why'd he scare me? Why'd he say I - I wasn't his daughter? All I ever wanted..." She paused, and he felt wetness and heat as tears started to soak through his shirt. "I'm so <i>scared</i>."

"You're better'n good enough," he told her firmly, a hint of his quirk slipping through to fill the air with soft vibrations of righteous anger and sadness. Hizashi took a deep breath to calm himself. "S'okay, you'll be okay. I'm here to make sure."

"Please," she begged, crying harder. "Please don't hurt me."

Hizashi could barely choke out words his throat was so constricted. He swallowed hard and managed a soft, "Ches?"

Elly clutched his shirt tighter, wringing it in a balled-up fist until her strength wavered and she was forced to drop it. Silence spun out until he realized what she had said...

...it was him.

<i>She was scared of him.</i>

"It's 'cause you like me, ain't it."

She shivered, hiding her face as much as possible.

"Yeahhhh." He dragged her up in his arms so they could look at each other, though her gaze was unfocused. "Scared of me for good reason, right? Don't wanna fall in love 'cause you never get it back?" His glorious hazel eyes shone golden in the soft light of his living room as he squinted at her.

"No fair," she whimpered, frowning. "I <i>fought</i>..."

"Ha! Against <i>my</i> winning charm an' wit?"

"Not again," she pleaded desperately. "Not you, they can all be like that, every single one, but <i>please</i> not you."

Hizashi cupped the side of her face gently in his palm. "Not me," he agreed softly. "Never me, and hopefully there aren't gonna <i>be</i> more, ya dig?"

He watched as she shook her head, her eyes swimming with tears. "I d - don't know..."

"I'll show ya what real love looks like, baby," he said in a low, deep voice while holding her gaze. "I was kinda hopin' to be there by your side anyway, but I thought it was gonna be as your friend. This is much better. If ya want me, ya <i>got</i> me - all of me. 'Cause all of me loves all of you." Hizashi took her hand in his and kissed it gently.

Elly allowed herself to relax a little more. Her fingers toyed with the plain white shirt he wore, smoothing the wrinkles gathered there when she'd grabbed him earlier. He watched, amused and more than a little touched as she stroked his chest.

"Strong," she murmured.

"Eeehhhh, a little." Hizashi grinned when she squeezed one of his pectorals, cupping it in her hand. "I'm not <i>that</i> built, babe. I gotta train though. We all do, yeah? Bet you got muscles, too."

She cuddled closer and her hand trailed lower, tugging the white cloth free of his pants. Hizashi's abdomen jerked wildly when she traced the defined muscles there, but he relaxed when she kept petting like before. Minutes stretched out, spun slowly into a quarter of an hour, before he felt a light brush on the studded belt he wore. Elly unbuckled it so quickly he wondered about the medicine's effects for a brief moment, but then she touched him.

And while his brain was struggling to think of the right response, another, more insistent body part decided to make decisions for him.

In the few seconds it took him to wrest control of himself his belt was flopping free and the zipper on his pants pulled down. The only thing that saved him were the pants themselves. They were so tight they clung stubbornly to his body, making it difficult for her to grasp what she wanted. Still, she tried, rubbing the bulge in the maroon boxer briefs the open slice of leather revealed.

"Baby," he panted, his eyebrows pinching his brow into a tight point as he writhed under her. "Oh baby no, please... don't do that."

She whimpered and jerked her hand back with a hurt look.

"No, no... not rejectin' you! I want you. I really, <i>really</i> do. In fact, I can barely resist ya. But it's not the right time." He shook his head, tapping her on the nose with one long finger. "Yer drugged, Ches. Not thinking straight."

"Yeah, I am." She blinked owlishly at him.

"Nuh, yer not." He reached down to cup her face in his palm. "How 'bout some kisses instead? We really should start there anyway, sweetheart."

She gladly accepted this offer and they shared a tender first kiss. Hizashi sighed and leaned back with his eyes half-lidded, already brushing lightly on her lips for more. The next was more intimate, and the next, until they were very slowly and deliberately lost in the feel of lips and tongue and, in her case, two fuzzy mustache points.

It wasn't long, however, until her hands wandered once more and they were very, very skilled.

"Babe... oh god. Yes." He gave in, squirming on the couch until his pants peeled down around his ankles. She removed his boxer briefs as well with a little help, and he sat with a pile of cloth and leather puddled comically around his ankles.

Elly gasped softly at the sight of him, bobbing free above a patch of darker gold hair. "<i>Hizashi</i>."

He blushed harder, a sheepish smile twitching on his lips. "Heh, yeah, is it okay?" Then, in a much throatier voice, "Ohhh. Your hands are soft. Ah, shit, that feels good."

She ran her fingertips along his length, dipping lower to tickle the tightly drawn balls underneath and getting a sharp intake of breath for a reward. As she teased, his member firmed even harder and a drip of lubricant slid from the head. Her gentle touches immediately gathered this, using it to her advantage.

"Can I just say -" He huffed, tensed all over and then shuddered, relaxing again. "I've never been a fan of gettin' jerked off, but you - you're real gentle but firm and steady. An', fff - <i>fffuck</i>, that little twist at the end, <i>god</i>!"

The praise made her bolder and she added a second hand to cup and fondle him lower while she stroked.

His breathing picked up, faster and harsher in rough little pants as his hips jerked along with her touch. "You do me so good, baby, I - I'm gonna, <i>oh baby I'm</i> -!" Hizashi stiffened, his quirk tickling in the back of his throat but not quite activating. He gasped, slamming back into the couch as she suddenly stopped, effectively edging him.

<i>Edging him</i>!

"H - huh - holy <i>shit</i>."

"Ready?" Elly placed her forehead on his and kissed him sweetly, effectively taking the rest of his breath away.

"Uh..." Hizashi panicked; no two ways about it. If she kept doing this there was a very good chance the next time he wouldn't be able to hold back his quirk. Damned if he could think of a way to warn her, though, and soon she was stroking him again, lightly and with love.

"So handsome, Zashi," she breathed. "Your beautiful eyes look like they're spinning."

"Kiss me." He moaned when she brushed her lips on his with sensual licks and purrs. He forgot his fear and gave in, sliding his hands to her bottom and squeezing as his pleasure mounted steadily.

Elly moved one finger around to the underside of his shaft where the little thread-like frenulum was, grazing it while she rubbed.

"Ohhhh <i>baby</i>," he whined, growing louder and louder. "Wanna come, don't stop this time please, <i>please don't stop</i>!" His long legs kicked out and he lost a slipper as it flew off into the middle of the room. "<b>Oh Ches, baby please, I'm <i>so close</i>... </b>" Her fingers drew together and gently massaged the plump head while squeezing his balls, and he lost himself in a massive release of pressure. Hizashi threw his head back, throat working, and screamed as his orgasm released several thick, warm jets between them. "<b>YES! YES! Y -</b>" He choked, cut off so abruptly he almost fell over.

"Shut up!" Aizawa stood in the doorway with his hair up and single eye bright red. "<i>You asshole, you broke everything in the agency that wasn't already soundproofed</i>!"

Elly was still under the effects of the relaxant so she wasn't embarrassed like her lover. While he spluttered and grabbed at himself to hide his nudity, she simply waved. "Hi, 'Zawa."

Aizawa actually blushed and averted his gaze, giving his friend back his speech.

"Geez, sorry dude, I tried - "

"Yeah, yeah." He coughed loudly, waving one hand weakly in their direction. "You're paying for everything."

"Oh, sure! Sure! Yeah!"

Aizawa paused with his back to them, then called out sternly over one shoulder. "Yamada, she's clearly under the influence -"

He flinched. "Um. Yeah. I know. Not my proudest moment, but she <i>insisted</i>. An' we confessed to each other?"

This time his friend sighed deeply. "Don't fuck it up." He left, slamming the door loudly in irritation.

"Yeah," Hizashi muttered dejectedly. "I think I made an oops, didn't I, baby?"

"What? No." She nuzzled his mustache fondly. "I love you. No oops."

"Well... let's get ya cleaned up, at least." He wrinkled his nose at the mess and hurried into the bathroom where he rummaged around in the cabinet under the sink. Elly followed and sat on the edge of the tub when he motioned.

"This was my fault," he muttered, taking a washcloth and wiping off her suit. "If you want you can wear one of my shirts..?" She nodded and he pointed to another room down the hall. "This one's the bedroom - careful, babe!" He supported her when she wobbled slightly.

"Whoops," she murmured.

"Sit on the bed, yeah? Lemme find ya somethin'." It took longer to find a t-shirt that was on the smaller side but there was on old "Put Your Hands Up Radio" top far back in his dresser. "Ha!" He held it up proudly. "This should fit."

Elly took it and he turned around while she stripped. He felt terrible. He knew he shouldn't have let her touch him but she'd been so insistent and it had been so long...

"Zashi?" Elly touched him on the arm and he faced her. His heart swelled when he saw how absolutely adorable she was wearing his shirt, several sizes too big that reached to her knees but lifted slightly in the back because of her tail.

"Mnnn?"

"You okay?"

"Oh. Uh, sure." He bent and took her suit off the bed where it lay. "I'll put this in the wash with my stuff, and you can have a rest."

"I'm not tired -"

"Yer <i>tired</i>, baby." He stroked her cheek with the back of his hand. "Look - you can hardly keep those pretty eyes open."

She was warm and comfortable in a large shirt that smelled like him and his bed - <i>his bed!</i> -- was there, the silk sheets invitingly pulled back. She did want to lay in it and be enveloped in his scent, but she didn't want to be seperated.

"You need a nap," he insisted. "We'll talk later if yer up to it, don't worry." He smiled at her and left the room, closing the door partway.

Elly curled up on her side, tucking her tail over the side that was upright. She felt tears pricking her eyes again and shut them hard to try and stop the flow.

<i>Stupid pills!</i>

They'd got her so emotional she couldn't hold herself back. Not only had she sobbed and made a fool of herself, she'd forced herself on him. Was she trying to please him because she truly wanted to, or had she tried to ingratiate herself so he would love her?

She couldn't tell. At first, she thought she knew but after the fact her mind went into overdrive, casting doubts and causing her to panic. Elly tried to fight off her sleepiness to think of a solution, but her eyes closed despite her desire.

She woke some time later, not quite understanding that she'd fallen asleep and confused. The bed dipped behind her suddenly and she jumped around, startled.

Hizashi blinked at her in the dim light of the room. His hair was down in a loose ponytail instead of the spike, and he was wearing a soft pair of black sweatpants. "Sorry," he apologized. "It takes me awhile to do my hair. I showered really quick, but drying's another matter."

"Oh."

"Did you think I was gonna leave you alone? Aw, <i>hell</i> no, babygirl." He carefully wriggled his body alongside hers, slipping an arm around her waist. "You're stuck with me. I'm clingy as fuck, too -" He hugged her tight, grinning apologetically. "Hope that's not gonna cause any probs!"

Elly stared deeply into his eyes for a long moment and then smiled. "I like clingy," was all she got out before a huge yawn interrupted her thoughts.

"S'okay, pretty kitty," he murmured. "You can go to sleep now." He nuzzled the top of her head, planting a gentle kiss in her hair. "<i>I love you</i>."

"Love... Zashi."

Hizashi held his breath until she dropped off to sleep. If what he considered small gestures were enough to comfort her, she was in for some really big surprises when they started officially dating. He pressed a hand to his mouth to stifle a happy laugh, imagining how he was going spoil her from the moment she woke up.