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[It sounds like an idealistic and wildly unrealistic dream, but Aizawa can't say he doesn't see where Toshinori is coming from. People do need symbols. Regular heroes have wins and losses, but more than that: they have families, press interviews, trivia facts, blood types and favorite foods and dislikes . . . they're human, and thus people know they can and will fail. It's just a matter of effort, and so there's always a tiny bit of doubt in the back of people's minds.

But a symbol is different. A symbol is something to look at even when things are at their darkest, because they represent the glimmer of hope that things will inevitably improve. A symbol is unfailing and unflappable, roughed up but never beaten, always confident things will turn out the way he wants them to.

Always smiling, because things will be okay now that he's here.

It's admirable, and he feels his cheeks heat up as he stares at him. Ridiculous, he thinks, this boy is utterly ridiculous, but the same spark of heroism that had inspired Aizawa to come here stands up and cheers. No wonder everyone's in love with him, he thinks, and then, with the most absurd flare of jealousy, wonders how many people the miraculous All Might has flirted with.

Not slept with, at least. A symbol can't have something so human and filthy as sex.]

You've only been out of school a few years. Can you really say you'll never suffer a loss?

[Of course not. No quirk, however incredible, is undefeatable. A moment, and he adds waspishly:]

Stop posing.

[He's not going to stop posing. He affects another, different pose, actually-- turning so Aizawa can enjoy his profile. So no, he will not!!]

I can't— but I made a promise to myself and the world that if I'm on the scene, I'll save as many people as I can. I'm not shaken that easily!

[He has that going for him, at least. Being larger than life comes easily to him, conveniently enough, so it's all a matter of turning it on and off when it's needed. Just like his quirk, fittingly, but that's a secret he'll keep close to his chest for as long as he needs to. He worries more than he lets on but a symbol doesn't worry, so it's Toshinori who runs himself ragged training so that All Might's rescues can go off without a hitch.

Still, it feels good right now to talk to someone who knows his secret. This boy simply talks to him, without falling at his feet or scolding him for taking it too far-- he's missed this kind of frank conversation.

That said... "you've only been out of school a few years"? Figuring him out as All Might is easy to explain, he saw the photograph, but he knows Toshinori Yagi, too? Toshinori looks at him, dropping his arms to put his hands on his hips, and really puts his back into remembering.

Hmm. Well, the kid is blushing, and if you shrunk him a few inches and made his face a little rounder, his body less lean - everyone looks more like a child before they start at UA - then--]

We have met, haven't we? You gave me that same look last time!

[Later tonight, when he replays this conversation with a quiet agony, he'll realize his mistake. He'll learn a lesson about carelessness and lying, or at least he'll begin to learn it, and maybe someday this will all pay off in a spectacular way.

For now, though, there is only embarrassment, agonized in the way it can only be when you're a teenager.]

I didn't-- there isn't a look, I'm just looking at you.

[Now he's learning about Toshinori Yagi's dazzling smile, without guile or that hint of plastering it on for the camera. He leans toward Aizawa a little, not taking any steps closer to him, but he's so tall he hardly needs to. He is here!]

Hahaha, you certainly are! [It's-- cute? Oh, it is, it's adorable-- good to know.] What's your name?

[He is too much in his space, but though he dearly wants to, Aizawa doesn't lean back. He stands his ground, scowling sourly, hating his stupid traitorous skin for still being heated. This wouldn't happen if he could just hide behind his hair, that would be so much easier--]

Aizawa Shouta.

[He says it like a challenge, which is in no small part a response to that smile.]

[And Toshinori is somehow delighted by this response, although he isn't so oblivious that he can't tell Aizawa is uncomfortable. Still, he lingers there a moment longer before straightening back up, folding his arms and looking Aizawa up and down. Does he need to be so obvious...? No, but here they are.]

Well, Aizawa, my man-- you already know who I am. [heartthrob smile.jpg] I didn't think too many people would remember me from my days as a student.

[Stop, he wants to tell him, because his poor little heart can't understand what's happening. Is he being mocked? Yes, of course, he thinks at first, because that's the natural reaction. Aizawa isn't that popular (somewhat because of his bizarre quirk, somewhat because he doesn't know how to socialize, somewhat because he simply doesn't believe in not being blunt and harsh), and so what few flirtations he's gotten have been jokes and dares.

(Not all of them, actually, but he doesn't know that).

But Toshinori, while annoying and overbearing, doesn't seem the sort to be cruel. He's popular and loud and bright, but if he was malicious, he wouldn't serve as much of a symbol of peace. But that doesn't make sense, because if he follows that logic, then it means that Toshinori is being genuine as he looks him up and down and beams that way over at him.

And why would he do that?

Surely he has his pick of people who are like him. Even as Toshinori, a normal civilian, he must have people who trail after him. So why not pick one of them? Aizawa is . . . not exactly a great partner. He has one friend, and that friendship only works because Hizashi simply overrides his blunt irritability with his own forceful personality. He's rude and anti-social and, while not actually ugly, certainly doesn't put much effort into his appearance.

So he squints at him, trying to determine what's happening, and hates that there's a part of him that simply shivers and melts at that smile being aimed his way.]

I don't see why. You made enough of a spectacle of yourself even back then.

[Oh, very nice. Defensive sarcasm towards the man he has a crush on, that's a great way to go.]

. . . stop looking at me like that.

[The thing is, Toshinori knows that look. Starstruck and infatuated with him, he sees it enough times a day to have it memorized and politely edge away from it each time. Sure, he'll smile and wink and dazzle the crowd, but it's not often that someone looks at him like this and he wants them to keep doing it.

And he's decided he wants Aizawa Shouta to like him. Not just with the frustrated attraction he apparently has- it's overt- but with something more. His quirk and his passion to succeed have made him a sensation even since his first year at UA, so the way Aizawa challenges him even subtly is something he wants more of.

And if he combed his hair he'd be a real knockout, but Toshinori still thinks he's cute.]

Like what?

[Now this is just actual flirting.]

[Hey, if Toshinori could just wind up and kill him with One For All, that'd be great. Just fantastic. Bit of a shame about Eraserhead's short career, but right now he'd prefer death to this.]

You know what. Like--

[Like he's actually trying to flirt with him, like that's at all a realistic possibility. But also: like perhaps he's just humoring him. He stands there with his arms at his side and his eyes sparkling, and maybe it's unconscious, but he looks like he does in the press. He looks like All Might, posing with his hips angled and his chest puffed out.]

Like you're posing for a camera.

[Heroes have to be brave, after all, and that doesn't just mean against villains. He won't just fluster and mumble or giggle like others. With a scowl Aizawa starts unwinding the strip of cloth around his neck. It looks damn stupid atop his uniform, but the only way to get used to it is to practice constantly.

Besides: it's going to pay off in a moment.]

I'm not the press. If you want to-- to-- if you're going to talk to me, talk to me.

[Quick as a whip, the cloth snaps out, impossibly stiff as it winds around Toshinori's arm. Aizawa jerks his hand, and here he comes, stumbling out of that stupid pose, as a feeling of deep satisfaction rises up within Aizawa.]

Edited 2018-06-18 22:48 (UTC)

[All Might is rarely taken by surprise. It's part of the package: always prepared, always smiling, always ready to perform a few miraculous heroics and save the day. He's been caught off guard once or twice, sure, but it's rare.

Toshinori, on the other hand, is taken by surprise all the time. He lets his guard drop in his everyday life, when he's just a civilian hanging around doing ordinary things and talking to ordinary people. He's let his guard drop even more, standing here with Aizawa, and that's... his own fault; he's allowed himself to get wrapped up in this conversation and look! Now he's wrapped up in something else!

So one moment he's giving Aizawa that look, sparkling and bright, and the next his eyes widen and he stumbles forward, throwing out his free arm to catch himself before he crashes into Aizawa and sends them both sprawling. It leaves him little choice of support to grab onto besides the student desk behind Aizawa, and he's yanked down to almost eye level--

Well. Well. He blinks a few times, which is all the fluster he's going to allow himself for onf clever trick. His eyes search Aizawa's face for a moment, then tear away to glance down at the cloth around his arm.]

That's handy. [Hmm.] I was talking to you.

[He hadn't actually intended for him to come so close. Just stumble a little, get off-kilter, startle him out of that patented I-Am-Here All Might pose and smile. And sure, he got his wish, but--

--but here's Toshinori, only an inch away, earnest blue eyes and blond hair hanging in his face, faint freckles and his breath smelling of something sweet. For a moment Aizawa has the most absurd idea to lean forward and close the distance between them, or even better, use his weapon to have Toshinori close the gap, but--

No. Embarrassment and uncertainty fill him, and within a moment the capture cloth has released his arm.]

You were posing. You've been posing for most of this conversation.

[They're still close, he thinks, the desk is digging into his back, he's certain his cheeks have gone permanently red, and yet he doesn't move a muscle, for fear he might ruin things and drive Toshinori away.]

And you were smiling like I was about to take your picture. I'm not. You're not him here. You're just Toshinori.

To be fair, you were asking me about work.

[Ah, but his arm is free, and for a moment he just lets it hang there. He's still close, taking in Aizawa's dark eyes and the flop of hair that falls halfway into his face, the hard set of his jaw that contradicts how red he's turned. Now Toshinori is stooped down low, nearly close enough to feel the heat radiating off Aizawa's cheeks, and he doesn't move away. He shifts his grip on the desk behind Aizawa, leaning there instead of desperately holding himself up.

He really shouldn't be doing this. Probably. He's tried hard to avoid any attachments, but--]

You're right, though. [He's still smiling, but Aizawa will have to accept that it's thanks to him eventually.] Forgive me?

[Oh, this is even worse, and his nerves are shrieking, but he still doesn't try to pull away. He doesn't want to. Even that slight shifting was overwhelming, legs idly brushing together-- and oh, if that isn't fuel for some fantasy later on, how warm Toshinori is, how damnably muscled, how easy it would be for him to just press their bodies together--]

Yeah.

[Yeah what? He barely knows. But he refuses to look away and get his bearing, so once more his mouth curls in a stubborn scowl.]

We should get that photo. Before someone comes along, we should-- the teachers are going to be doing preliminary rounds soon.

[It's some kind of a moment, that's for certain, and Toshinori finds himself more excited than is reasonable that Aizawa doesn't push him away. He doesn't even look away, and he's smaller and softer than Toshinori but not vulnerable, not letting himself be vulnerable-- so.

For now, he'll be satisfied with a "yeah." He bumps his arm against Aizawa's and steps away, pushing a loose lock of hair back and looking toward the hallway. Hm, yes, that's a... that's a point. About the picture.]

Now you want to steal it? [turning him to a life of crime, young Eraserhead.... Toshinori gives him a lopsided little grin and gestures for him to come with him to the hall.] Let's go!

[He exhales softly, a little sigh of disappointment and relief both. Distractedly he shoves a hand through his hair, sweeping it back out of his face, rewrapping his cloth around his throat-- anything to keep his hands occupied.]

If you have another plan, I'd be fascinated to hear it. Maybe we can vandalize it?

[He says it dryly as he follows the too-tall man out the door and into the hall once more. It's still empty, though he can hear footsteps from upstairs. Nothing has really changed, naturally, and yet Aizawa feels as though perhaps it ought to have, after a moment like the one they just shared.

He sneaks a glance over at Toshinori, trying to see if there's anything different about his face.]

[Well, he flinches in response to Aizawa's sass. Let him live... this criminal activity is bad enough.

But he's looking at Aizawa as they head down the hall, and more overtly, too-- he is quite simply looking down at him when Aizawa glances up at him, which makes him grin sheepishly and stride ahead quickly to get to the display case. Ha... ha ha!]

How heroic is it to pick a lock?

It depends on context.

[Which is a very dry and honest answer in the face of an obvious tease. Still, Aizawa is drumming his fingers against the glass, frowning faintly.]

In this case, I'd argue it's for the greater good, and thus, if not actually heroic, at least not villainous.

[Thanks, Aizawa, that's very helpful. Toshinori purses his lips, then,]

I don't actually know how to pick a lock, as it happens. Do you?

No.

But I know the mechanism of a lock. It shouldn't be difficult to figure out.

Keep watch.

[He gets to his knees, digging through his backpack. They need a thin strip of metal . . . would a paperclip work? Probably, and he's careful in the way he pries it open.]

[They will probably get away with this even if they're caught, considering he is All Might and that's kind of a free pass for a lot of stupid things, especially here-- but Toshinori dutifully turns on his heel to keep an eye on the end of the hall, watching for anyone coming.

So, while Aizawa is doing his thing--]

I owe you one.

Mmhmm.

[Quiet and absent agreement as he leans in, frowning. So . . . locks consist of a series of pins that need to be pushed up so they're even and the lock can turn properly. So it's a matter of effort in pushing the pins up and getting them to stick.

Delicate work. He has to be certain he can feel each pin.]

. . . take me out.

[He stares very hard at the lock as he says it.]

[Oh!! Toshinori stares even more pointedly down the hall, chewing his lower lip so he doesn't inadvertently blind anyone who might come down this way with the force of his dazzling grin. If he looks at Aizawa he will definitely mess up his concentration, so--down the hall it is.

This, too, is very delicate work... thankfully he doesn't hesitate before he answers.]

You got it. When?

Er--

[All his concentration had been used up by both the lock and the sheer nerve it took to blurt that question out. To have to think of an actual date takes a moment.]

Sunday.

[This is why he's being merciful and looking the other way. Cute, though. What does he have to do on Sunday? Nothing that can't be moved!]

Haha, alright! Where should I pick you up?

[Here... at.... school?? That seems odd. How's that lock coming, little guy?]

I'll meet you there.

[Where? It's to be decided. But better to avoid being seen going out by anyone, because they won't ever stop teasing him about it if they know. And the lock is getting there, it's just that he keeps getting distracted by someone . . .]

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