(A/N) I pointed this out at this point in the original posting, so I would like to again take this opportunity to state (if you haven't already made the jump) that this is a canonverse AU/canon-divergent setting, probably taking place close to the first part of the second season of the anime; more details on the divergence from canon later. Author!non is, at least at the moment, an anime-only viewer, and so finds herself unable to tackle certain points of canon in this fic. Luckily, the majority of this fic will be far enough from canon so that that won't be an issue. But yes, in case you were wondering.
That being said, please enjoy the latest installment, and thank you for your continued readership!
It was hunger that woke Izaya several hours later, and his first thought was surprise at the feeling. He sat up drowsily, one hand at his aching middle, to find that Shinra and Celty were already up. Shizuo, to his right, looked freshly-woken.
"Damn, is that your stomach?" he asked, poking at Izaya's protesting belly. "That's new."
Izaya, hot with embarrassment and irritated by the hunger itself, smacked his hand away and scrambled off the other side if the bed. His wings did throw him off balance, but he managed to keep upright without help, and tried to tuck his wings in as tightly as he could. Their tips still dragged on the ground.
"I'm kidding, I'm just kidding," Shizuo huffed, coming up beside him as they made their way into the living room. "Come on. I'll bet Shinra's already started breakfast."
Izaya could smell that Shinra had started breakfast, and that made him all the more impatient. On the way out of the bedroom, though, they passed where Izaya's office door had once been, and the information dealer paused. He sighed wistfully.
"And I liked that chair, too..."
Shizuo stopped as well, staring over Izaya's shoulder and into the wrecked room. The chair that Izaya was lamenting the loss of was in pieces to one side, but more spectacular was the desk— an expensive chunk of ebony wood that was now in splinters and strewn across the floor. There was blood splattered across the walls and carpets, giving the whole scene a horror-movie appearance. This was only aided by the caution tape that someone who thought they had a sense of humor— most likely Shinra —had stretched across the entrance.
"Hey…" Shizuo began awkwardly, but Izaya was already walking again. On his way past the linen closet he grabbed a housecoat, wrapping it around his waist in an improvised skirt when it became obvious that it wouldn't be able to accommodate his new wings. The blonde grudgingly figured that he would end up saying something stupid if he tried to say anything at all, so he just followed Izaya's example and tossed a robe around his own shoulders.
When they came into view of the kitchen, it became obvious that the eagerly-anticipated breakfast was also an impromptu cooking lesson for Celty, who was standing at the stove with Shinra wrapped around her from behind. The dullahan wore a loose robe of shadows, while Shinra was clad only in pajama pants beneath the familiar lab coat.
"Good morning!" the doctor called cheerfully. Shizuo acknowledged him, although Izaya was preoccupied with trying to make the kitchen table chairs cooperate with a twelve-foot wingspan. An attempt to get them tucked up behind him capsized the chair, and he hit the ground with an undignified yelp. After that he just gave up, sitting normally and letting the wings hang down and rest, unfurled, on the ground to either side.
Celty came over with three plates, one for each boy, and held up, "Tell me what you think, alright?"
"Looks delicious," Shizuo said, cutting into a fried egg. "Thanks for the meal."
Izaya nodded slightly before tucking in hurriedly to his own food. Celty had definitely improved, even if the flavor of the miso soup was still slightly off. He ate it anyway, along with the sampling of eggs, bacon, rice and vegetables he had been presented with.
"This is your best attempt yet," he told the dullahan with a honest smile, and the substance from her neck began to billow like it did when she was flustered. "Have any more of it?"
While Celty hurried to get him another helping, Shizuo and Shinra exchanged a sideways glance. It was often troublesome to get the information dealer to eat a full meal at all, and suddenly he was asking for seconds, which he proceeded to eat with just as much enthusiasm as the first helping.
"... Would you let me examine you properly today?" Shinra eventually got up the nerve to ask. Izaya rolled his eyes.
"As long as you're asking about actual examination and no crazy medical-play. You had your shot at that last night."
"Last night?" Shizuo echoed, with the distinct impression that he had missed something. But Shinra only laughed.
"Yes, yes, actual examination. I want to see what's going on under your skin. Your body is demanding a lot of energy for something— that's why you're so hungry."
"Fine by me," Izaya said, through a mouthful of egg. "I'm sure as hell not going to work today, anyway. I'll do some work from home if the mood strikes me, but I don't feel like explaining these," he rustled his wings, "to anyone, least of all Namie."
"Excellent!" Shinra clapped excitedly, then finished off the last of his own breakfast.
"Well, some of us have actual nine-to-fives," Shizuo grumbled, draining his bottle of milk and slamming it down before standing. While the other three finished eating and chatted about inconsequential things, he vanished and then reemerged five or six minutes later, face washed and teeth brushed and hair somewhat combed, dressed in his usual bartender getup.
"Have a good day," Celty offered; he looped one arm around her waist and kissed her neck by way of reply.
"I get a kiss too!" Shinra called out, bouncing to his feet, and Shizuo obliged with a chuckle. Then the blonde went to Izaya, who hadn't stood.
"Aren't you going to at least give me a proper farewell?" he asked, and Izaya raised his wings slightly.
"It's too much of a hassle to get up at the moment." But he held out his arms for a hug regardless, and Shizuo huffed.
"Only today," he said, "because of circumstances," as he bent down.
"Come home soon," Izaya whispered close to his ear, and tightened his grip around the blonde's shoulders. "If Tom will let you go early, come home. Don't worry about the money, just come home as soon as you can."
Softening visibly, Shizuo shifted the embrace slightly and straightened, pulling Izaya up and out of his chair. The information dealer gave a soft cry of objection, wrapping his legs around Shizuo's waist for stability and leaving his wings limp to drag on the ground. Shizuo kissed him once, sweetly, then set him back down on his chair and headed out the door.
"I should go, too." Celty changed quickly from the loose shadow robe to her usual suit. "I only have a few deliveries today, so I'll be home shortly."
"Hurry back!"
"Don't be too long!"
The two boys waved as she vanished after Shizuo, then Shinra turned with glinting eyes to his test subject. Izaya held up both his hands.
"Let me finish my breakfast, first!"
Shinra, to his credit, did wait patiently until the other had cleared his plate. But the second the last bite was swallowed he sprang up, grabbing Izaya's hand and pulling him up.
"I'm coming, I'm coming! Don't yank my arm off!"
"But this is so exciting!" the doctor gushed. "Examining a winged humanoid is something I never even imagined! How have the muscles adapted? Are your bones reshaping to accommodate the change? Will you actually be capable of flight at some point? I can't wait!"
Izaya smiled indulgently, letting himself be pulled along; as they descended into the basement, most of his attention was taken just trying to keep his balance. The basement housed all of Shinra's supplies, equipment, sometimes his test subjects and occasionally his patents. For now it was deserted; he had been doing mostly laboratory study for weeks. Izaya sat obediently on the examination table that the other indicated.
"Lie on your stomach for me, would you? I'll take a physical look, first."
Izaya obeyed as Shinra hopped up beside him, then straddled his hips. "Are sure you've got platonic intentions?" the winged man asked teasingly, feeling something hard pressing against him from behind. Shinra laughed lightheartedly.
"I can't help it. I'm excited."
Izaya let himself relax against the table, feeling Shinra's slightly chilled hands press into his back. It felt to him like he was getting a massage as the doctor examined each muscle with eager fingers. It felt lovely, especially on the sore bases of his wings and his aching shoulders.
"You can just do that forever..." he murmured into his folded arms, and Shinra chuckled.
"I'll do it as often as you let me, I promise. This is... fascinating! I'm feeling muscles I don't even recognize...!"
Izaya gave a soft murmur, less than concerned with that than with how good the rubbing felt. But eventually Shinra stopped, sitting back slightly and reaching over to his desk. As he did so his erection ground into Izaya harder, and the informant had to laugh.
"You're such a nerd."
"Don't judge." Hopping down from the table, Shinra grabbed first one of Izaya's wings and then the other, folding them up so that they didn't drag on the ground. "Feel like letting me take some x-rays?"
"Of course... do what you want."
"I'm going to inject some dye into your veins for an MRI too, okay?"
"Fine, fine... Just rub my shoulders and you can do anything... anything short of cutting me open, obviously."
"Aww... man. Just take all the fun out of it, why don't you?"
