#nyssi

Zenyssi dance 🎎🌟

Ref:

“Is that for me?” Draped over a chair in a now-empty corner of Sinostra’s vibrant casino, Taiga pointed a lazy finger at the heart-shaped box in Nyssi’s hands.

“Yeah, I picked it out for you.” Seeing the disgruntled look on his face, she added with a small smile, “I was hoping you’d accept it, but you don’t have to…”

He shrugged. “Sure I’ll take it, but it better be edible.”

“It is…” Truthfully, if she could’ve found a way to get him a gift that suited his…tastes, then she would have, but she didn’t want to think about the specifics regarding that idea in the first place anyways.

Snatching it from her, the ghoul twisted and turned the box in his hands with a furrowed brow, as if it were more complex an itemthan it appeared. When he was satisfied with the analysis, his black nails seized the ribbon and pulled it loose.

When the lid came off, his eyebrows flew up in amusement. “Chocolate?”

“Yeah! I thought a little treat would be a nice change of pace.”

His green eyes rolled back down to the box, filled with a variety of chocolates shaped like poker chips, dice, and Lucky 7s. Plucking one of the thin choco chips, he tossed it into his mouth.

Seconds passed as he chewed on the dessert, mulling over his opinion of the taste. “It’s not bad. There was more effort in the appearance than the taste though.”

“Oh no, I’m sorry…”

He shrugged.

Then, his face filled with mischief. He discarded the box onto the table, grabbed the ribbon, and ripped Nyssi by the arm into his lap. With deft movements, the ribbon was wrapped around her neck and pulled into a tight enough bow to send her heart racing.

A wicked grin lined his features as her face lit up red, and he leaned centimeters from her ear, breathing in a low voice, “Instead of that, why don’t I take you as my treat, Kitty Cat?”

“Taiga—”

“C’mon Kaito, deep breaths.”

His bright blue eyes scanned the crowd, honing in on a familiar approaching figure.

“Girls aren’t into guys with no chill. So stay cool…”

The mutterings fell from his mouth, heart pounding a dizzying rhythm with each of the girl’s steps as she shortened the distance between them. It felt as though he missed a beat here and there, the lost time taken up by his anxieties as she bid hellos to each man she passed by. 

In her hands: a large heart-shaped box, undoubtedly filled with her belovedly hand-picked Valentine’s chocolate.

But she continued walking, cheerfully regarding each potential suitor as she passed them by. Step by step by step, until he appeared to be the last man standing.

“Kaito!” she addressed, sunshine in her smile. “Good morning!”

Please, don’t let Luca be behind him right now.

Another mumble fell from his mouth. “Stay—”

But his mouth slammed shut when a red, iridescent heart filled his vision. “Happy Valentine’s Day!”

“Are those chocolates for me?!” his voice squeaked. “I’ll take them to my grave!”

Nyssi grinned, waiting patiently until Kaito could pull himself together after the emotional wreckage their first Valentine’s together was doing on him. The man couldn’t help but weep pathetically, his cranial ocean thrashing from the thunderously pleasant surprise.

Not that this was anything new for him, and Nyssi was aware of this, hence why she got him one of the largest boxes she could find in stores. “Do you like them?”

“I…I Iove them!” he sniffled. “You’re too good to me!”

“Aww, I’m glad!” As if he wasn’t struggling enough, she trapped him in a hug, sending him through another tsunami. “I just wanted to get you what I thought you deserved!”

Somehow, his emotional parade came crashing down, grounded as her fuschia blue hair snuggled into his chest. Replacing the feeling of torrential waves was something warm, something soothing that cradled him adrift in his internal sea.

Rough sketch?

Bonus:

“What’s this packet? I can’t eat solids.”

Before Nyssi could open her mouth, Jiro continued speaking, analyzing the contents closely.

“Oh, you made it? I can probably eat some of it then.”

“I tried not to make too many so maybe you can enjoy them all.”

“Did Mina tell you about that?”

She nodded. “Yeah. I wasn’t sure what to get you considering your condition, so she helped me brainstorm.”

The bag was turned over once more. “Thanks”

The wheels of a chair scraped across the ground, and Nyssi retrieved a water bottle tied with a red ribbon from her bag. 

When they were seated comfortably, she gingerly raised the bottle to his lips. “Like this, right?”

“Yes.”

Cool liquid trickled down his throat, and he held up a hand to cease the flow. The bag crinkled as he pulled out one of the tiny pieces, shaped like a slightly crooked beaker. He seemed to admire the effort, then passed it to her to place on his tongue.

He chewed carefully, ensuring it was fully broken down before trying to swallow. “Dark chocolate, and…citrus? Sweetened with honey?”

“I opted for something on the healthy side.”

His crimson eyes floated out into nowhere, as if he were searching his thoughts. “It’s good.”

“I’m glad you like it!”

“I’ll have one more.” He leaned once again to lessen the distance between them, and accepted another small amount of water and small chocolate.

“You’re not feeling nauseous?”

“Not yet.” His hands wrung the bag to reseal it. “I’ll save the rest for now though.”

“That’s fine. I don’t want to see you get sick.”

“I know. That’s why I’ll eat the rest later.”

“Jiro…”

“Yes?”

“Just…don’t make yourself sick over me.”

His lips popped up in a smile. “I don’t intend to.”

“When you want to try some more, just let me know.” The bottle was returned to her bag. “I might be over here anyways, so…”

For some reason, Jiro felt himself seized by a strange impulse. With little thought on it, he acted accordingly, leaning down to close the distance between them and gently nuzzling his forehead against hers. “Alright.”

A blush found her cheeks from the unusual display of affection, but she happily reciprocated. “Take care of yourself, please?”

“I will,” he replied. “If I don’t, Yuri will also be mad at me.”

“Someone has to keep you in line,” she joked.

“I suppose.” His hand reached up, stroking a lock of hair from her face. “You take care of yourself too. It’d be a hindrance to our research if you died.”

Her fingertips pressed against him, pushing his palm flush against her cheek. “I know. I’ll be careful.” Searching through his tired eyes, her voice came again. “...Would you forget me if I died?”

“...Probably.”

A stifled laugh left her mouth. “Then I can’t die. I don’t want you to forget me.”

“This is that ultra-spicy chocolate they only sell this time of year…” Leo took the box from Nyssi as if it was made of shattered glass, expression rife with awe. “I’m actually genuinely stoked right now.”

“Heehee, I thought you’d like them~”

“How did you get these? They’re already sold out!”

Her lips curled into a smile. “I pulled some strings…made some arrangements~”

Their eyes met, and he beamed. His phone was dug out with one hand, thumb instantly pulling up his social media. The box was eagerly pushed back to her. “Hold this for me?”

When the camera went up, Nyssi flew into a cutesy pose, flaunting both herself and the gift for her influencer.

The pictures were posted with a sickeningly-sweet filter and a billion heart stickers, captioned, “Look what my adorable gf got 4 me 💝💓💞 Happy Valentine’s Day everyone 🫶”  with her @ and a couple #’s.

As the comments exploded, he wrapped her in his arms and gave her a squeeze, then snatched the box back and tore into it like a kid on…well, on Valentine’s Day.

Sparing the time for a few more pics, he finally popped one into his mouth. His eyes lit up, but he paused for a moment. “Mm…they’re not as good as they were hyped up to be.”

“Oh no…” Nyssi’s shoulders sank. “I’m so sorry…”

A devilish grin spread across his face. “‘It’s the thought that counts’, right?”

She smiled sweetly. “Yeah.”

Ignoring the kaleidoscope of butterflies set aflight in his stomach, Leo darted up and captured Nyssi’s lips in a passionate kiss. She didn’t pull away, instead savoring this fleeting moment, long enough for him to slip his tongue into her mouth, dragging the warm metal piercing along her soft taste buds.

When he was finished, he slid back and whispered, “They’re very good, actually.”

Her eyes followed him for a moment, giving a bit of a dopey smile until she felt heat on her lips.

Then, her whole mouth felt as though it were set aflame.

“Uwaaaaaah, spicy!!” Tears flung from her eyes as she squeezed them shut, trying to bear with the initial sting of pain. “How dare you!!”

Since floating dolls were more of an unnatural occurrence outside of Darkwick campus, the Hotarubi crowd opted to have Saburo sit on Nyssi’s shoulder, as the only shoulder he would agree to sit on as a means for her to more openly communicate with Zenji. (And in fact, he became rather irate when anyone else offered to hold him instead.)

She and Zenji had been flitting about the stalls up until the countdown was near, to which the group retreated to the agreed-upon shrine.

“Looks like we dropped you off at a good time,” Haku stated with a satisfied smirk. “Now let’s hope the temple I chose this year isn’t too busy either.”

“We’ll see you when you get back!” Nyssi wave to them.

“Farwell my friends,” Zenji called. “When we meet again, the year will have budded anew, and your spirits fresh to face another year of excellence!”

Haku raised a brow. “Something like that. See you later.”

Once the others had gone, Nyssi turned her head vaguely towards Saburo. “I’m sorry we can’t go to a shrine for the countdown…”

“It’s no trouble, my Dear. It’s simply a precaution that Haku and I agreed upon. I simply cannot disappear before the world knows my brilliance!”

She giggled.

“And besides, we can still have our prayers here. So long as I can begin the new year with you and my little brother by my side, then it matters not what activities we abstain from.”

When their gazes met, she could feel her lips spreading into an almost goofy smile. She broke contact simply to compose herself, then pointed towards a board in the distance. “Look! They have a countdown going over there!” She turned, nearly oblivious to the looks she received from passersby. “Should we get closer to watch it?”