#teachinggrace

"Dabi, you look like you're gonna faint."

Said Firestarter slowed his pacing enough to look at the purple haired man on the couch. He slowly nodded in acknowledgement, taking a deep breath and stopping to sit in the armchair across from him.

"Hey, you'll be fine. You've had this planned out for months, it'll go off without a hitch."

"You can do it, Dad!" Eri walked over to give him a hug, letting the white haired man pick her up and settle her on his lap.

Dabi felt the familiar pang of guilt hit as the small girl cuddled into him. She adored him, enough that she wanted to call him her Father, and had for years, but that nagging voice in the back of his mind, almost constantly proclaiming he didn't deserve that love, was hard to listen to. By now, he'd had plenty of practice to ignore it, but it still hurt from time to time. He hugged his daughter closer to him with a content sigh, pressing a kiss to the dyed black hair on top of her head. "Thanks, sweetheart."

Eri moved to squish his face between her hands, forcing him to look at her. The young girl had trained her Quirk enough to be able to heal the prevalent scarring over his body, which Dabi had finally agreed to the year before, allowing him and Gabe to go out and enjoy the cheesy couples dates he'd always wanted to take them on. Having the feeling back in the lower half of his face was still an odd thing to experience, wincing as the now 12 year old pinched his cheeks. "Daddy," she said forcefully, knowing his mind was wandering back to the worst case scenario, "it'll be alright."

The low rumble of a motorcycle approaching drifted through the open windows, catching all of their attention. Eri happily bounced out of Dabi's lap, pulling at his hand to stand him up. "You've got this!! Gambatte!!"

Hitoshi laughed at the scene, also moving to stand. "I think your Dad can stand up on his own. Why don't you go get Hancock out of their duffel bag?"

She turned to glare lazily at Hitoshi, pouting, but letting go to go and find the tom cat. "Hanny~!"

Dabi stood up, running his hand through his white hair as Hitoshi walked up to him, grasping his shoulders in support. He towered over the Todoroki, now that he was an adult, standing well over six feet, and was very well versed in using it to intimidate when he needed to. Now though, he was nothing but encouraging to his Mom's boyfriend.

"It's four nights of just you and Mom. You'll have a great time in Yonezawa. You’ll get fat on all the great food, and relax in the onsen. He's already pumped you’re making the trip up with them on the bike. It’ll be perfect." A tired smile crossed Hitoshi’s face, eager to get them sent off on their journey. Between dealing with Dabi’s panicking, and making sure the transition of power went smoothly, so InfoNET didn’t collapse without his Mom for a week, the Brainwash user was feeling very stretched thin; He was starting to realize exactly why Gabe had such a severe caffeine addiction.

Dabi nodded, whispering in agreement and thanks. Hitoshi passed him a small box that was quickly tucked into his jacket pocket as the front door opened, revealing the grinning Puppeteer holding a large box. The gold honeycomb pattern of his helmet, resting precariously on top of the box, caught the morning rays of the sun, casting the pattern onto the walls of the entryway. He carefully toed off his boots, and finally hip checked the door closed, shutting out the chill autumn air.

"Hey Bee, can you come take this?" Hitoshi hopped into action before his mom’s helmet could fall, taking the box and letting the blonde undo their riding jacket, covered in patches of bands, symbols and scraps of cloth layered thick enough to ward off even the coldest wind chill. “Thank you. Where's your sister?”

"Trying to get Hanners out of your bag. He knows you two are leaving, and he wants to go with you, as usual."

"I got him!" Eri cheered, striding back in, triumphantly cradling the loudly purring Sphinx like a baby.

"Good job, honey. Thank you for getting him."

Eri looked at the box in her brother's arms, eyebrows shooting up in excitement. "Is that Dad's new helmet?!" The blonde nodded, watching his daughter start bouncing around her brother in excitement.

"I've already seen it, so go ahead and open it. I'll make sure we're all set." As Gabe went to walk away, Dabi grabbed his hand, threading their fingers together and pulling him in for a soft kiss. His free hand slid home onto their hip, which he squeezed lightly, clearly missing the feeling.

"Thank you, Sunshine~."

Gabe smiled and hummed happily, rubbing their nose along his. Dabi leaned in to press more soft kisses against his partner's mouth when their youngest let out an impatient whine.

"Daaaaad! I wanna see your helmet!!"

The two chuckled low as they parted, slow to release the other's hand; Dabi slowly turned his attention to the box and Gabe wandered further into the house. Hitoshi set the box and helmet on the table, setting the latter off to the side. Dabi waited til Eri had hopped on to one of the chairs to see in before pulling back the cardboard flaps.

A black bag adorned with ‘Minamino Customs’ greeted them, along with an absurd amount of packing paper, which Hancock happily claimed, wiggling out of Eri’s arms to drag away, the paper comically trailing behind him into the living room. The Cremation user lifted the bag out, allowing Hitoshi to pull the box away to make room, and slowly pulled at the drawstring for dramatic effect, much to the others annoyance. The echoing groans of ‘Dabi!’ and ‘Dad!’ pulled a laugh from their mom, still working in the bedroom.

“Fine, fine,” Dabi laughed, shaking his head. He pulled the fabric away to reveal a glossy black carbon fibre helmet, with blue flames erupting out from under the chin guard, reaching around to lick past the edges of the visor, that mirrored the group's reflection in a dark blue. The three stared awestruck at the protective gear, mesmerized by the way the artificial light of the kitchen caught the metallic highlights of the flames.

“Holy crap, Dad. It looks so cool! It looks just like your Quirk!” Eri bounced, the chair squeaking under her in protest; Hitoshi and Dabi nodding in silent agreement. “It’s perfect!!”

“Try it on, make sure it fits comfortably,” Gabe called, the unmistakable sound of the zipper signaled he’d finished up sounded after him. Moving the helmet to his head, Dabi made sure to tuck his ears in first, so the metal of his piercings wouldn’t catch on the padding, and pulled down, settling the protective gear in place. A few solid wiggles ensured it was comfortably snug, and he flipped up the mirrored visor, turning as Gabe returned, carrying a dark green duffel bag and Dabi’s own patch-work ride jacket.

“See? Perfect fit.” Dabi raised his arms in presentation, striding towards his partner confidently. The blonde reached up, grabbing the chin guard to tilt his head from side to side, before pulling him down to touch their forehead to the visor, a content smile quickly spreading across their face.

“Perfect. Happy anniversary, Touya.”

The pair said their goodbyes, to both kids and pets, with hugs, kisses, and a threatened reminder to not forget to water the marigolds again. Their respective helmets tucked under their arms and the duffel slung over the taller's shoulder, they left towards the bike, a much loved and cared for maroon V-Star 650 named ‘Lady’.

“I’ll drive for the first leg?” Dabi offered, lifting his helmet to rest on top of his head, waggling his eyebrows in question. Gabe's own eyebrows shot up in delight, the grin that sprung up on their face contagious as Dabi’s began to mirror it.

Gabe’s grin then gained a cheeky edge that gave Dabi’s stomach butterflies. “You just wanna drive the thing vibrating between my legs for hours, don’t you?” Heat rose in the fire user’s face as he not so subtly eyed his lover up and down.

“Maaaaybe~.”

“Our first gas stop is in Goka, we’ll see how you’re driving by then.” Gabe stopped to kiss Dabi’s cheek, taking the duffel off his shoulder while passing him the keys. The white haired male smiled dreamily as the blonde walked away, eyes wandering down to watch the two skeleton hand patches sewn on the ass of his pants sway in time with his steps. His hand subconsciously reached down to pat at his pocket, making sure his gift was still safely inside. Feeling the shape brought on a wave of excitement for the days ahead, and he jogged to catch up, pushing his helmet the rest of the way on.

~

8 hours of driving, pit stops, sight-seeing, and various pauses to cure their wandering hands, and the sight of the ryokan finally came into sight. Parking was easily settled, as was checking in, and they were finally granted access to their rooms for the next few days.

The entryway opened facing a raised platform, where 2 twin beds lay, thick blankets covering both of them. Past the platform, the floor transitioned from the hardwood flooring to tatami mats, and the most inviting looking kotatsu took up the center of the room. The large, floor-to-ceiling window held the view of a quiet pond around a cherry tree, it’s leaves already having lost their green and were well on their way to becoming mulch. Small lanterns around both the pond and the tree lent the scene a gentle glow in the twilight.

“I don’t care how comfortable those beds are, I’m sleeping under that kotatsu,” Gabe groaned, kicking off their boots and resting their honeycomb helmet on top of the shoe shelf. Dabi laughed, toeing off his own boots as he watched his blonde shuffle towards the table.

“Babe, we should probably, ya know… eat first? Then you can fall asleep under the kotatsu,” Dabi set the duffel bag and yukata’s provided by the ryokan down, starting to strip himself of his riding crust. “The faster we get changed, the faster we can get some of that shabu-shabu in us. Just think, Yonezawa wagyu…” he trailed off, starting to drool at the thought of the delicious beef.

Gabe’s own appreciative hum followed after, mouth also watering at the thought, making him turn back to his boyfriend, shucking his jacket in the process, but a sight stopped him in his tracks.

“Or…”

Dabi stopped part way through undoing his belt, looking up in confusion. “Or… what?”

The Puppeteer stared at the shoji in front him, smiling slyly, slowly tilting his head in Dabi direction, eyes quickly shifting from his pyro to the door and back. “Or…” they dropped their jacket down enough to catch on their elbows, biting his lip, “we could make a head start on breaking in our onsen?” He quirked an eyebrow, turning towards the flame user just enough to show him that his hands had slowly begun bunching up the bottom of their shirt, showing off the delicate ink work decorating his stomach.

Dabi licked at his lips, and slowly stalked forward, belt hanging loosely over his hips, temporarily forgotten, his eyes only leaving his partner's stomach when his hands had slipped under the fabric of the shirt to rest them on their hips, pulling them close with a rough tug. He swayed gently, pulling them along with him in a sort of dance, leaning into the blonde's ear with a low growl, “... I think I like that second option.”

~

The sun shone through the window the next morning, gently coaxing the lovers awake from each other's embrace, and the warmth of the kotatsu. A faint buzzing sound from the tabletop caught their attention, the phone screen lighting up to show Eri’s smiling face. Dabi rolled onto his back, rubbing the sleep from his eyes, and Gabe sat up, adjusting the dark green yukata they’d worn last night, and answered the video call.

“Morning Mom! Morning Dad!”

Gabe smiled through their yawn. “G’morning Baby Girl. How are you and Grandma Rei getting on?”

“Really good! Auntie Fuyu came over last night with her girlfriend, and we had some really good… uh… Grandma, what was the food Auntie made last night called?”

“Sukiyaki, dear.” The white hair woman moved to hug Eri, her face appearing in frame. “Good morning, you two. Happy anniversary.”

“Thank you, Rei.”

Dabi yawned, stretching, and finally sitting up, hearing his mothers voice on the other end. “Thanks, Mom.”

Rei brought her hand up to her mouth, hiding the smile that had infected her face. “Trying out a new style, my dear?” Her eyebrows rose slightly, nodding in Dabi’s direction. Dabi looked down at the soft pink, flowery yukata covering him with a chuckle, looking back up with a grin.

“Yeah, I’m starting to think pink might be my colour, what do ya think?” Rei’s gentle laugh rang through the phone's speakers, making the couple smile happily.

“I think your yukata makes you look very pretty, Daddy!”

“I agree, I think it suits you, Touya. So, what do you two have planned for today?”

Dabi draped himself over Gabe’s shoulders, still not quite awake yet, allowing the blonde to answer for the both of them. “We might go for a walk up to one of the temples, or drive over to the brewery. We’re saving the Tengendai ropeway for tomorrow, when it’s clearer.”

“Oh that all sounds wonderful. Well, I hope you two enjoy yourselves.”

“Thank you Rei. Be good for Grandma, honey. Love you.”

“I will! Bye Mom! Bye Dad! I love you!”

“Love you too, sweetheart. Bye Mom.” Dabi smiled, resting his chin on Gabe’s shoulder.

“Bye Touya, Gabriel.”

“Buh-bye.” Gabe tapped the red circle, hanging up and leaning his weight into Dabi, sighing contently. Dabi leaned back, laying back down on the pillows, pulling his blonde with him to lay in his arms. The silence surrounding them gently pulled at their eyelids, begging them back to sleep.

“Sleep in the actual bed for a bit?” Dabi offered through another yawn, a few minutes later.

“Sleep in the actual bed for a bit. 8 hours on a bike is murder, and tatami is not as comfortable as I remember,” the Puppeteer groaned, dragging himself out from the warmth of his boyfriend and the kotatsu. Dabi stuck out his arm, allowing Gabe to pull him out as well.

“Breakfast first. Then back to sleep.” Gabe yawned, accepting the terms with a strained nod, grasping Dabi’s hand again as the taller led them out to the dinning hall towards the alluring and welcoming scent of warm food.

~

The temple, beautifully framed by the colours of fall all around them, was a gorgeous walk in the late afternoon. The two were bundled up in sweaters and scarves, hand in hand, walking the grounds, enjoying the light crunching of the fallen leaves under their boots, and the echoing gong of the temple's bells as it listened to its visitors' prayers.

Gabe let go to look at the wall of ema hanging on the shrine, Dabi moving to look at the designs available, when he heard his phone go off. It was a snapchat from Shoto and Natsu, taken at an attractive angle, with a perfect view up their noses, captioned with a simple ‘So?’ Dabi took a selfie of himself sticking his tongue out, flipping them off, capturing Gabe looking at the wall of wish plaques just over his shoulder. He captioned it with ‘Not yet’ before sending it off. Gabe looked over at him as he tucked his phone back into his pocket, and reached out to him.

“Brothers?”

Dabi nodded, closing the distance to hold his hand again. “Figure out what you're gonna wish for?” He brought the other’s hand to his mouth, pressing sweet kisses to the backs of the blondes fingers, bringing a smile to their face.

“Health, safety and happiness. You know, the usual boring stuff. What about you?”

The fire user smiled, looking towards the wall, thinking for a moment. “... Continued good fortune. You’ve got everything else covered, might as well,” he chuckled, wrapping his arms around Gabe’s waist, kissing his nose. The blonde wrinkled his nose in reply with a wide grin.

“Sounds good. Let’s pay for our ema, then.”

Gabe picked out two plaques for them, as Dabi padded over to tuck some money into the offering box. They silently wrote out their wishes, hanging them and threading their hands back together for the walk back to the ryokan.

~

The next day was a blur of delicious food, warm colours, and warmer hot springs as the two relaxed under the kotatsu late into the evening. The drone from the tv made for a subtle white noise as they dozed and nursed their full bellies. A flash from outside caught Gabe’s eye, making them sit up. A moment later another flash flew by, followed quickly by another.

“Touya! There’s a meteor shower!”

Dabi shot up, spying out the window as a few more flashes flew by, watching his Puppeteer scramble to stand up, stopping in front of the window. He moved to join them, sliding his hand into theirs to watch the shooting stars over them. He felt Gabe squeeze his hand excitedly, making him look down at them. The joy and amazement on their face reminded him exactly why he loved them, and threatened to make Dabi’s heart beat out of his chest.

His hand drifted to his pocket again, feeling the soft velvet under the pads of fingers, and he nodded to himself with a smile. With the box tightly clutched in his hand, he knelt down, pulling gently at the blonde's hand to grab their attention. As the Puppeteer looked down, their eyes widened in shock, a smile fighting its way onto his face.

“I’ve been wracking my brains forever, trying to think of what I’d say, how I was gonna ask… And they all felt wrong; too cheesy, too boring, too… Cookie cutter,” he said with a laugh. He sighed. “I love you so much, and I wanted it to go perfectly. But nothing’s ever gone ’perfectly’ for us. We’ve never gone into this with any sort of plan in mind, we just sort of… went for it. So...” he paused, pulling his hand out of pocket, opening the box with the help of his chin, showing a silver band holding a heart shaped gem, the same shade of blue as his eyes, “will you marry me?”

Gabe’s free hand shot up to cover their mouth, tearing up at their boyfriend's question. They nodded, laughing, dropping down to tackle him in a hug. Dabi smiled into their neck, squeezing him tightly, refusing to let go. He pulled away enough to slide the ring onto it’s new home, cupping his fiancé’s face to kiss them sweetly, happier than he’d ever been. Happier than either had ever been.