"Bakugo!"

The front door of monster hunters store flew open, hitting the wall behind so hard the weapons hanging from the ceiling shook and glass in the nearby display cabinets rattled.

"Wow, mummy!" Eijiro crowded Nora as she went stomping into the entrance, following so tightly at her heel he tripped her up a few times, "Your magic is amazing! Gods, I'm so lucky."

The vein in Nora's forehead popped and her eye twitched, but she chose to ignore the comment anyway. The entire way to Bakugo's shop Eijiro had been jabbering her ear off. In many ways, it was cute and endearing, as he obviously had a lot to say to her, but also it was annoying and giving Nora a headache as she desperately tried to unmuddle this mess.

"Katsuki Bakugo I swear to the Gods if you don't show your ugly little face here right now, I will—"

Nora was cut off by the blond literally jumping out of the shadows in front of her, it made her shriek and totally lose her confidence for a split second while she got caught up in the surprise. Fortunately, it was just long enough for Eijiro to grab her and push her behind him as he stepped forward and growled down at Bakugo.

"The fuck you shouting about?" He looked straight around Eijiro to glare at Nora who had fluffed herself back up after the initial scare, but the dragonling was quick to duck into Katsuki's way, growling lowly and baring sharp teeth. Bakugo just rolled his eyes and turned away, "Gods, it's far too fucking early for this oversized lizard's bullshit."

Eijiro made a move to fallow the blond as he began to walk back deeper into the shop, but Nora was quick to duck under his arm and grab Katsuki by the shoulder, "You knew?!"

"Hah? Of course, I fucking knew! What, think I'm some sort of idiot?!" Bakugo gestured to the changling still lurking in the corner, still frowning, still growling. His bright red eyes smouldered predatorily, watching closely.

Nora stared at Bakugo with wild eyes, like he'd just grown a second head, "You knew he could turn into… into…" Nora gestured to Eijiro now.

"He can turn into anything he damn wants, he's a fucking dragon." Bakugo bowled past Nora, heading towards the hearth at the far wall, shoulders hunched. "In fact, it baffles me that he bothers wasting what little energy he has turning into a human."

Nora's head spun and she grabbed at her temples to ground herself. She didn't even bother to shrug the dragon off when he crowded her again, large hands winding their way around her waist to pull her close against his front.

Bakugo glanced over his shoulder, huffing to himself before plopping down on the assortment of blankets and pillows around the flames.

"What's wrong, mummy?" Eijiro growled lowly, fingers rubbing at her stomach, gathering the material of her shirt to slip a hand under it. "You seem upset."

"Hah!" Bakugo barked from the fire abruptly, snapping Nora to her senses and she finally pushed away from the dragon. She stomped towards the hearth, Eijiro at her heels the entire time.

"Explain to me what the fuck is going on," She snapped at the blond, crouching down low. Sparks like white lightning hissed from her palms, and Bakugo's unperturbed gaze dropped to them.

"Hah? What? Do you really need me to spell it out to you?" He pushed at Nora's shoulder harshly and she toppled over. Although she didn't land on the stony floor or amongst the pillows, she landed on Eijiro, who was quick to scoop her up and settle her in his lap. She growled at Bakugo the whole time he brushed his shoulders off lazily, and she ignored Eijiro when he started sniffing at her neck.

"Dragons can change form as they please, sort of, and he's wasting his time in a human form obviously for you, idiot."

"You keep saying 'obviously' when these things really aren't obvious!"

It was Bakugo's turn to start popping veins in his forehead, "You've heard of fucking magic, right?" He snapped sarcastically, as if losing patience with a toddler, "Well, dragons can use it too. Especially Red Dragons - which is what your little boyfriend is. They're practically royalty – or as royal as a fucking lizard can get. They're supposed to be the oldest and most ancient family, the family where all the other dragons descended from – so congratulations."

Nora narrowed her eyes at the blond. Eijiro had started nuzzling his face into the crook of her neck now and purring away, and it was making it very difficult to be taken seriously.

"And you knew all this? When I brought him in, when I brought him in no bigger than a fat cabbage?"

Bakugo shrugged, lounging in the pillows and kicking off his heavy boots, "I was surprised. Especially as he was so small – he obviously wasn't supposed to be so small, and that was odd – but he's clearly an adult." His gaze then shifted to Eijiro who was not paying attention to him, "Oi, lizard brain, how old are you?"

The dragon didn't look up from where he was still rubbing his face back and forth into Nora's neck, "384."

Nora jumped in shock, but Bakugo just let out a 'pfft' noise, "Knew it."

"No, you did not," Nora seethed, glaring. But her attention snapped back to Eijiro when he nipped at the tender spot on her neck and hummed.

"And what's your name?" Bakugo pressed further.

"Eijiro."

Bakugo rolled his eyes, "Your family name."

"Kirishima," He purred, running his tongue up and over Nora's neck, all the way up to just under her ear. She grimaced the entire time, although not because it was gross. She was grimacing at the hot shots of lightening it was cracking through her body. She was grimacing at the fact it felt nice.

"Fucking knew it."

"No, you absolutely did not," Nora snapped. "If you know everything suddenly, answer me this – why is he clinging onto me like a fly to shit and calling me his mate? Huh? What's that all about?"

Bakugo shrugged, although his expression became one of amusement, "He's claimed you, right, Kirishima?"

Eijiro hummed in confirmation, finally popping his face away from Nora's neck to rest his chin on her shoulder. She tried to avoid the way he was looking at her, like she'd hung the stars in the sky.

"Yessss," His forked tongue flickered against her jaw, "I wanted you, I presented to you and you accepted it."

"I-" She cut herself off before the words 'I absolutely do not remember doing that' tumbled out of her mouth. They would have been harsh. "I think this is what I meant by miscommunication, Eijiro."

Bakugo was already laughing, completely flopping back against the cushions, "This is fucking brilliant." He cackled.

"Is it?" Nora snapped, but then she turned her attention back to the face dragon. She shifted to face him, "Eijiro, honey, are you sure about this?" His face was inches from hers, and he dipped slightly to rub his nose lovingly against hers, "I-I just feel this is a little quick, you know?"

Eijiro's expression faltered, something flickering behind his eyes and he pulled away, "Can you not feel it?"

"Feel what?"

"That-that pulling? It's like my hearts on a string and it leads straight to you."

There was hurt in the changlings eyes now, hurt and confusion and it made Nora want to weep. Something so beautiful should never look so sad. It was like a crime.Her heartstrings tugged, and before she realised what she was doing, she was reaching up to cup Eijiro's cheek. She didn't want him to feel like that, never, ever. He was far too precious to her. She bit at her lip, gnawing at it.

"It's like the stars themselves led me to you, mummy. I've waited for so long to find my mate, and now you're here I can't imagine my life without you." His gaze then shifted, he looked nervous, "I-If you don't want me, then I understand. But I've made my choice, and it's you. It's always going to be you. I am all yours, forever."

Nora had never seen Eijiro fearful, not even when he was captured. Sure, he seemed scared then, but right now he looked totally vulnerable, utterly terrified. His large, garnet eyes caught in the hearths fire and glistened, the scales across his skin dancing in the flames, but despite the horns and the fangs, he looked so gentle.

"Maybe..." Nora began slowly, choosing her words wisely, "Maybe you should have asked me... First... Before choosing me. I mean, you can change your mind, right?"

Eijiro's lips dipped down sadly at her words, they obviously weren't what he wanted to hear, "No..." He replied nervously, his eyes hovered over the mark on her neck, "I've made my choice. I made my choice from the moment we met, I knew it was you. I-I thought you felt the same- but- I guess-" He cleared his throat suddenly and straightened up, "I've made my choice," His voice was deeper now, more assured, "I've made my choice and I can't- I won't go back on it, even if I could. I've given myself to you now, I've marked you, I belong to you, I'm tied to you. And I know you want me too, I can feel it," His head dipped again to nip at the mark on her neck, making Nora's entire body jolt, "I can see your pupils expand when you look at me, the way your breath hitches, your body temperature spikes…" Hot lips kissed at her neck with a groan, shooting fire to her belly, "The way your body prepares itself for me."

Bakugo heaved loudly at that and Nora flushed at Kirishima's blatant shamelessness.

"But… But if you refuse me..." He trailed off.

"If you refuse him, he'll probably die." Bakugo chipped in, "Which will save me a fucking earache, this is fucking gross."

Nora started, swinging her attention to him. The blond was still lounging on his back, arms behind his head. He had his knees pulled up, and one leg was balancing on his knee, foot drawing lazy circles in the air. She had actually, somehow, forgotten he was there.

"W-What?" She spluttered, rounding back on Eijiro, "What does he mean?"

For a fraction of a second, the dragon looked nervous again, but then it disappeared, "I don't want to go on without you. There's no point."

Nora gawked.

"It's all very dramatic," Bakugo muttered, but then he sat up with a grunt, "He's marked you. He's not kidding when he says he's given himself to you." He rolled his wrist lazily in the air, "The whole point of this mating thing is that you tie yourself together. He marks you, you mark him, and then you live as one. Your life-essence, spirits, souls, whatever the fuck you want to call it, become one. He's given you part of him, and if you don't give yours back, he'll just eventually... stop existing."

Nora was glaring at Eijiro then, and once again the dragon looked a little sheepish. "We definitely should have spoken about this," She snapped, but then she groaned and rolled her head around on her shoulders. "Alright."

"Alright?" Both Kirishima and Bakugo spoke in unison, equally confused.

Nora huffed, ignoring Katsuki and glaring up at Eijiro instead, "I said alright. As in okay. What do I need to do?" Her eyes flickered to his neck. There were scales there, and she wasn't sure she wanted to bite him even if she could, "I don't really think I can bite you."

The dragon was beaming at her so brightly it made her squint, "Really?" He exclaimed, and there was a thump, thump, thump on the floor behind them. Nora glanced over his shoulder to spot his heavy tail banging on the ground in excitement.

"Erm, sure."

"Don't sound too excited," Bakugo scoffed at her, but Nora shot him a dirty look and he flopped back down against the floor with a huff.

"I don't want you to die, Eijiro," She told the dragon who was still beaming down at her, "but, I think there's a lot we need to work on, okay?"

Good gods, was this really happening? Was she about to sign her life away to a dragon? Although...

Her eyes trailed down Eijiro's face, across his broad shoulders. There certainly could be worse creatures to spend the rest of your life with, and-

"Wait," She blinked up at the Dragon, "You said you were 384?"

Kirishima nodded excitedly, suddenly looking more like that football-sized puppy-dragon again and it made her want to squeeze him, "Uh-huh."

"I may live longer than a normal human, but I won't live nearly as long as you?"

If possible, somehow Eijiro's grin got even wider, "That's okay, once we're bonded, our souls will be tied and our life-forces shared, so we will live as long as each other."

"Is all this real?" Nora rounded on Bakugo then, who was peaking at her from under a dramatic arm cast across his face, "Like all this magic stuff? I've never heard of this kind of thing."

"It's old magic, pretty powerful shit too. They say the Red Dragon's emerged from the very mountains themselves, like, out the rock," Bakugo huffed and clucked in disapproval, "This is the magic the world is formed on – supposedly." He didn't sound like he believed any of it.

"It's as real as you and me," Eijiro purred, and Katsuki gagged dramatically.

"It's as real as the gods," He groused sarcastically.

"Hey! Don't say that!" Kirishima snapped, involuntarily tightening his grip around Nora so suddenly she wretched, "You shouldn't speak ill of the Gods!"

"We have different gods lizard brain! Shut it!"

"Oh," Kirishima settled immediately, smiling once again. "Never mind then, you can piss your Gods off all you want."

"I'm so confused," Nora muttered, but then she paused, "Wait, Bakugo, aren't you from a barbarian tribe?"

"What of it?"

"Aren't the dragons your gods?"

The blond visibly stiffened, his bright red eyes alight like flames against the fire.

"Dragons?" Eijiro sounded confused, "Really? As in, like, me?"

Bakugo started growling, and Nora grinned, "Is that why you were so interested in Eijiro? Because you worship his kind?"

"Well, I'm definitely real," Eijiro said quietly.

The blond sat up so fast it made Nora dizzy just witnessing it, although she didn't dwell on that and instead revelled in the angry man foaming at the mouth.

She threw her head back to laugh, landing against the dragon's chest. But she promptly stopped when thick teeth suddenly sunk into her neck and she squirmed to get away before Eijiro could get proper purchase.

She slapped a hand over her throat and flicked the dragon on the forehead, glaring at him, "Don't just bite me!" She scolded, "You should ask first."

Eijiro looked confused, brow furrowed he licked at his lips. His eyes were suddenly startlingly dark, pupils blown wide despite the close proximity to the fire and Nora watched the scales across his skin bristle and shift for a moment.

"Don't you two dare consummate anything in my fucking shop," Bakugo then snapped, and ignored it when Nora's furious glare rounded back on him.

"What do I have to do, anyway?" She more-or-less demanded then, looking unimpressed. Although strangely enough a coil was tightening in her gut, almost like... Anxiety? Nerves? Excitement? The prospect of spending her life with Eijiro wasn't so bad. In fact, she almost felt... Relieved.

"Well, we will go back to my Kingdom," Kirishima grinned, suddenly snapping out of whatever stupor he supposedly had been in, "We can have a huge ceremony—Oh! My parents are going to be so excited. I haven't seen them in like... 50 years! Wow, I bet everything is going to be so different. But anyway, that only makes it official by law."

"And what makes it official, officially?"

Bakugo scoffed, "What do you think?"

Nora blinked at the blond before turning back to Kirishima, mouth open in question but then her eyes popped. From where she sat between his legs, she felt his cock twitched against her lower back. "O-Oh."

Eijiro growled, eying up her neck again, "I'll have to do that properly too, mummy, and then you'll have to bite me as well, but it'll be easy, don't worry, I'll help you. I'll make sure it feel good." He snapped his teeth at her playfully – dangerously.

Nora let out a loud puff of air, suddenly feeling extremely hot and flustered, "R-Right." Her heart beat wildly in her chest at the idea. Kirishima was looking at her like she was the only thing he could see. It was overwhelming, in a way, but at the same time, she couldn't help the soft smile that came across her face when she looked back at him.

She did love him, he meant the world to her. But yesterday it was as a pet, a mini companion, but now… Her heart bloomed at the prospect.