#soft mio

Summary: Mio gets so wrapped up fixing a suspicious festival mechanism that he forgets there's a festival happening around him, until you finally drag him away from his tools. The two of you wander the stalls for a while, then climb up to a quiet overlook, and the conversation drifts into something more personal: why you both push yourselves so hard, and the idea that you don't have to handle everything alone. It ends on a small, unexpected moment between you before you head back down.

The festival had been going on for nearly three hours by the time Mio finally looked up from his work.

Not that he had noticed, the noise outside had gradually turned from the distant murmur of an ordinary evening into something almost impossible to ignore, music drifting through the open windows of the temporary workshop, laughter rising and falling somewhere beyond the grounds, every so often the sound of a festival game followed by cheers or groans from the crowd.

And yet Mio stayed exactly where he'd been since arriving, bent over a half-disassembled mechanism, sleeves rolled up, his dusty mauve hair slightly messier than usual as loose strands fell around his face while he leaned in to inspect the tiny gears beneath the brass casing. A small screwdriver turned between his fingers. *Click.* The gear came free. *Click.* He put it back and then another.

You watched him from across the room. For the past several minutes you'd been pretending to inspect the mission equipment. In reality, you'd been watching Mio, again. "You've been working on that for a while."

Mio didn't look up. "Have I?"

"Yes."

"How long?"

You glanced at the clock. "Almost three hours."

"Oh." His response was so casual you stared at him.

"That's all you have to say?"

He finally lifted his head, his light blue eyes meeting yours, calmly. Then he smiled. "What else should I say?"

"That you're taking a break."

He blinked. "A break?"

"Yes."

He looked genuinely puzzled by the concept and you sighed. "You've been sitting here since we arrived."

"Not continuously."

"You stood up once."

"Twice."

"Once was to get another tool."

"...That's technically standing."

"That's not what I meant."

Mio's smile widened. There was something almost unfair about how easily he could look amused without actually laughing. He never seemed particularly bothered by anything even surrounded by broken equipment, unfinished machinery, and the pressure of an investigation, he carried himself with the same relaxed composure. You'd assumed at first it was simply that he was hard to rattle. The more time you spent with him, though, the more you realized Mio wasn't carefree so much as he just knew how to carry his worries quietly, the same as you did.

The mission itself had been simple on paper. Something unusual had been reported around the festival grounds; several pieces of equipment belonging to the organizers had malfunctioned in ways nobody could easily explain. Lights flickered without reason. A mechanical game stall had started running on its own. A clockwork decoration kept moving despite having no apparent power source. Nothing dangerous enough to cause panic, but strange enough that the Academy had taken an interest and sent the two of you with a team to look into it.

Blending into the festival had been part of the assignment. Unfortunately, "blending in" had apparently meant Mio finding the nearest table, taking apart one of the suspicious mechanisms, and getting so absorbed in it that he forgot there was an entire festival happening outside.

You'd tried helping, you really had. But after watching him stare at the same gear for ten minutes, you'd decided the best thing you could do was let him work until now. You walked over and gently placed a hand over the screwdriver he was holding. Mio stopped. His eyes dropped to your hand, then back to you.

"We're supposed to be investigating," you reminded him.

"We are."

"You've been investigating the mechanism."

"That's part of investigating."

"And what about the rest?"

He tilted his head. "The rest?"

"The festival."

Mio looked toward the window. Outside, the evening sky had begun turning deeper shades of sunset. Lanterns had been lit throughout the grounds, their warm orange glow flickering beneath the branches of the cherry trees, where petals gathered like soft pink snow.

He was quiet for a moment, then looked back at you. "You're suggesting we go outside?"

"I'm suggesting you leave your workshop before you become part of it."

He laughed softly. "That's a little dramatic."

You folded your arms. "Mio."

"All right, I surrender." He set the screwdriver down.

You smiled. "Good."

Mio gathered the small tools scattered across his workspace, put the mechanism back together as much as he could, made sure nothing would be damaged while he was gone, and finally stood. It was almost strange seeing him without something in his hands. He stretched his shoulders and a faint sigh escaped him.

You noticed. "You are tired."

"No."

"You sighed."

"People sigh."

"When they're tired."

"Or when someone finally drags them away from their work."

You smiled. "Same thing."

He shook his head, but he was still smiling.

The festival had grown busier. People moved between stalls beneath strings of lanterns, the smell of grilled food, sweet pastries, and warm tea mingling in the evening air. Children ran between groups of visitors, their laughter blending with music playing somewhere farther down the street.

For a little while you simply walked together. The mission wasn't entirely forgotten; you were still keeping an eye out but neither of you seemed particularly interested in talking about work. Mio kept stopping to examine mechanical decorations. A miniature rotating stage caught his attention, a clockwork bird made him pause, a stall selling handmade wooden toys nearly kept him there indefinitely.

You laughed when you caught him staring. "You like that one."

"It's well made. I'm appreciating the craftsmanship."

You grinned. "You should buy it."

He glanced at the wooden mechanism, then at you. "What would I do with it?"

"Put it in your workshop."

"I already have enough things in there."

"Then put it somewhere else."

He considered that. "Maybe."

You smiled. Mio looked at you a second longer than necessary.

"What?"

"Nothing."

"You were staring."

"Was I?" He gave you that easy smile again. "Maybe I was appreciating the craftsmanship."

You narrowed your eyes. "Very funny."

"I'm glad you think so."

You kept walking. At some point you realized Mio had stopped looking at the festival stalls and was watching you instead and not constantly, just enough that you noticed. There was a softness in his expression that hadn't been there earlier. You wondered if it was because he was finally relaxing or because he was enjoying himself. You hoped it was the second one.

"You seem happier."

He looked forward. "I suppose I am."

You smiled. "Good."

He glanced at you. "You're happy too."

"Maybe."

He chuckled. "You don't have to pretend."

"I wasn't."

"Then why the hesitation?"

You didn't answer right away, the truth was hard to explain. You'd always been determined to prove you could handle things yourself; every mission, every challenge, every time someone looked at you like you might need protecting. You hated that feeling, the sense of being considered weak, of being someone others had to slow down for. So you worked hard sometimes, until you forgot why you'd started in the first place.

Maybe Mio understood that better than most people, because he was exactly the same. He just hid it better.

"I'm just glad you're taking a break," you finally said.

His expression softened. "That's what this is about?"

"Partly."

"And the rest?"

You looked toward the top of the festival grounds, a hill overlooking the whole area, where the lanterns stretched like stars across the darkening landscape. "I want to show you something."

He followed your gaze. "The view? Sounds nice."

You smiled. "Come on."

The path upward was quieter. The farther you walked from the festival, the softer the noise became, the lanterns gradually disappearing behind you. Cherry trees lined the path, branches swaying gently in the evening wind, petals drifting through the air. 

When you reached the top, the festival unfolded below. Lanterns dotted the grounds in warm gold and red, and beyond them the city glimmered under the evening sky, the horizon still faintly pink even as the first stars appeared. The breeze up here was cooler, gentler, carrying the scent of cherry blossoms. 

For a moment neither of you spoke. Mio stepped toward the railing and rested his hands against it. "So this is what you wanted to show me."

You nodded. "Pretty, isn't it?"

"Yeah." His voice was quieter than before.

You looked at him. He was staring into the distance, the wind moving through his dusty mauve hair, tugging at the strands of his low ponytail. He looked different away from his workbench; less like the academy's dependable craftsman, more like an ordinary student who'd finally been given permission to stop for a moment.

You smiled. "You should take breaks more often."

"I'll consider it."

"Really?"

"Really."

You looked pleased. He smiled. "Though I suspect you only wanted to get me away from my tools because you were worried."

You looked away. "Maybe."

"Again with the maybe."

"You make it difficult to answer."

"How?"

"You always seem like you already know the answer."

He laughed quietly. "Sometimes I do."

The wind passed between you. Then he spoke. "Thank you."

You looked at him. "For what?"

"For tonight." His expression was sincere now, no teasing, no easy smile to dodge the seriousness of it. He looked down at his hands. "I've spent most of today thinking about the mission. Even when we weren't investigating."

"I know."

He smiled faintly. "You're observant."

"So are you."

"That's different. I usually observe things that need fixing."

You laughed. "And what needs fixing here?"

He looked at you. "Nothing." Your smile faded slightly and he went on. "That's what I mean. Sometimes I get so focused on what needs to be done that I forget there are things that don't need fixing."

You listened quietly as the breeze moved through the trees again. Mio closed his eyes for a moment, and when he opened them he was looking at you. "You remind me of myself."

You blinked. "Me?"

"Yeah."

You weren't sure whether that was meant as a compliment. He noticed your uncertainty. "Not in every way."

"That's reassuring."

He chuckled. "I mean the way you work." His expression softened. "You work hard because you want to be useful. And because you don't want people to worry about you."

Your fingers tightened around the fabric of your sleeve. Mio noticed but he didn't push, he just kept going. "I understand."

You swallowed. "I just don't want to be weak."

His eyes softened. "You aren't." He nodded. "That's enough." When you looked at him, he went on. "You don't have to prove your strength every second. Sometimes standing beside someone is enough."

The words settled quietly between you. You looked toward the festival below. "I still want to be able to stand on my own. I don't want anyone to think I'm depending on them because I can't manage."

"I don't think that." His answer came immediately, and when you looked at him he smiled. "Working alongside someone isn't the same as depending on them."

Something in your chest loosened. He looked toward the distant lights. "I think that's why I get you. We're both trying to do something for other people." His voice was gentle. "You work hard because you don't want to be a burden."

"I work hard because I want to help."

"Those things aren't mutually exclusive." He turned toward you fully. "And neither of us has to do everything alone."

You didn't know what to say, so you smiled small, but genuine. He returned it. "There."

"What?"

"That's better, that smile." He laughed, and you couldn't help smiling again.

A breeze swept through the cherry trees, scattering petals into the air. One landed on Mio's sleeve, another brushed your shoulder, and one caught in your hair that he noticed. "Hold still."

You froze. "What?"

"There's something in your hair." His hand lifted, and you instinctively stopped breathing as he reached over and brushed aside a loose strand. There, tangled near your temple, was a single cherry blossom petal. He carefully removed it, looked at it for a second, then his eyes returned to you. "Got it."

You nodded. "Thanks."

He didn't move away right away. He looked at the petal resting between his fingers, then, almost absentmindedly, brought it to his lips and pressed a light kiss against it. He smiled.

You stared and your face warmed… that wasn't what you'd expected.

He noticed of course, his eyes narrowing slightly with amusement. "...You made a face."

"I did not."

"You did."

"I was surprised."

"By a flower petal?"

"No." You realized your mistake immediately.

"Oh?"

"No."

"No?"

"No."

"Interesting. You're blushing."

"I'm not."

"You are."

"It's warm."

"It's cooler up here."

You crossed your arms. "You talk too much."

"I thought you liked talking to me."

"I do." You stopped. His eyebrows lifted, and you immediately looked away. "I mean—"

He laughed. "Relax."

You glared at him. "You knew what I meant."

"I might."

"Mio, stop smiling like that."

"I can't."

"Why?"

"Because you're cute when you're flustered."

Your eyes widened. "Mio!"

He laughed again. "What?"

"You can't just say things like that!"

"Why not?"

"Because—" You stopped and he waited, but you couldn't finish it. He smiled. "Because?"

You looked away. "...You're annoying."

"That's not an answer."

"It is today."

He laughed under his breath. "All right." He turned back toward the view, but his shoulder stayed close to yours, your arms brushing occasionally whenever the wind moved you and neither of you stepped away.

Below, the festival went on as the sky kept darkening, cherry blossoms still falling. For once, neither of you needed to be working or proving anything or fixing anything. You could just stand there, together.

Mio glanced at you. You were watching the lanterns below with a quiet smile on your face, and he smiled too. Maybe that was what he'd been missing,  not another invention or mechanism to solve, just an evening like this, a breeze, cherry blossoms, a view, and someone beside him who understood what it meant to keep working even when nobody asked, who made resting feel less like giving something up.

He looked toward the horizon. "I think I like this."

You turned toward him. "The view?"

He smiled. "That too."

You laughed softly. He didn't explain further as he didn't need to.

Eventually you turned to head back down toward the lanterns, ready to tell him the festival would still have food left if you hurried. You didn't get the chance.

Mio reached out and gently caught your wrist, and when you looked back at him, his hand had already moved to your face, his palm warm against your cheek and you went still.

"...Mio?"

He didn't answer right away. He just looked at you, that same unhurried calm in his eyes, like he'd already decided something and was only now getting around to it. Then he leaned in and kissed the side of your cheek, close enough to the corner of your mouth that your breath caught in your throat.

He pulled back only slightly, his hand still resting against your face. "Thank you," he said quietly. "For tonight and for staying with me."

You didn't move. You definitely didn't tell him how close that had actually landed. It wasn't your mouth, technically, and if you said anything you had the feeling he'd only look more pleased with himself, so you let it go.

Mio noticed anyway. His mouth curved, something quietly satisfied in it. "The real one will come later."

Your face went warm all over again. "...What?"

"You heard me."

"I did not agree to that."

"You didn't have to." He straightened up, looking entirely too pleased with himself for someone who'd just said something so unfair and nodded toward the path back down. "Come on. You wanted food, didn't you?"

You stared after him for a second before you managed to find your voice. "That's not — you can't just say something like that and walk off."

"I can." He glanced back over his shoulder. "I just did."

You hurried to catch up, still trying to work out what to say to that, while he walked ahead like nothing at all had happened, except for the faint smile he wasn't quite hiding, and the warmth still lingering against your cheek.

As the evening breeze swept through the cherry trees again, carrying petals across the sky, Mio found himself thinking he'd remember this night because for a little while he'd let himself stop and you would be there when he did.

He looked at you again. You caught him staring.

"You're doing it again."

"Doing what?"

"Looking at me."

He smiled. "Maybe I like what I'm looking at."

You rolled your eyes. "You're really not going to let me have the last word tonight, are you?"

"No."

You laughed and Mio found himself smiling too, the festival lights shimmering below and the cherry blossoms still drifting around you. For tonight, that was enough. Neither of you had to be stronger than you already were, you only had to stay together.