A/N: No smut in this chapter but there were a handful of fluffy scenes I still wanted to add to give this story that final touch! Enjoy Maki being adorable and Benimaru being lovestruck.
Catching their breath in each others' arms as they came down from their bliss together, the new lovers watched as the sun slowly dipped lower into the evening sky. Benimaru could find no motivation to move from this spot any time soon, his current position with Maki nestled against his chest far too comfortable to part from. She was warm against his side, the grass was soft beneath his back, and there was no one around to pester them.
Content to stay right there, he traced nonsensical patterns against the soft skin of her lower back, his fingertips following the curve of her waist before dipping back down. He delighted in her little shiver when he touched a sensitive patch of skin on her hip and wondered if she would be up for round two. He contemplated how he might even be able to convince her to ride him so he could enjoy the sight of her backlit by the setting sun as she fell apart on top of him.
He hoped she would make more of those sweet sounds for him.
He was distracted from that thought by her gently patting him on the chest, grabbing his wandering attention.
"We need to get going," Maki informed, sounding disappointed by her own words.
"Five more minutes," Benimaru grumbled in return, holding her tighter.
"I mean, we need to go find Tekkyo before it gets too dark to see," she explained and it was then that he finally remembered that they had lost her flying mechs somewhere in the woods when they crash landed.
"Ah," he answered simply in understanding before sighing heavily, giving her a lazy, sated peck on the forehead before muttering against her hair, "No time to waste then."
Releasing her from his embrace, Maki sat up, her gaze sweeping the area as she searched for the rest of her clothes. She tried to lean over him to reach her bunched up uniform, tangled up in a ball near him, but he sat up and reached over to grab it instead.
"Lie back," Benimaru commanded softly as he rose to his knees.
Looking up at him with a confused expression, Maki hesitated for a moment before lying back with a blush. Kneeling in the grass between her legs, he helped his princess slide her jumpsuit back onto her legs. Unable to help himself, he leaned down to press one final kiss to her belly, making her shiver, before neatly knotting the sleeves of her uniform at her hip.
As much as he didn't want to, perfectly content to spend hours fucking and cuddling out in their private hideaway, Benimaru pulled away from her and began searching for the rest of their clothes. Spotting her boots, he gathered them up and set them in the grass next to her before grabbing his own shirt and vest. As she slipped one of her shoes onto her foot, he sat next to her, tugging his shirt over his head. When he began the work of lacing his vest around his body, he felt Maki's warm hand on his.
"Let me help," Maki offered softly behind him and he obeyed, letting go of the straps.
Benimaru sighed contentedly and closed his eyes at the feeling of her deft hands working at his back. She looped the straps around his chest and he shivered when her fingertips brushed against his sides, his body still hypersensitive to her touch. He felt the decisive sensation of a knot before her hand brushed down his back affectionately, signaling her finished work.
While Maki slipped on her other boot and finished righting her hair and clothes, Benimaru rose to his feet and took a few steps away. Reaching out, he activated his ignition ability, summoning the matoi they had crash landed on. The others would have to be found alongside Maki's hover units, his matoi lost in the forest as well, but locating tools he so frequently destroyed was far less urgent than finding her missing mechs.
His matoi returned to him like a loyal pet and he guided it to hover next to her, offering her a seat.
"Alright, get on," Benimaru commanded, ready to get moving so he could get her all to himself again at the guardhouse. Maybe they could even grab dinner from the kitchens and eat together.
"Somehow I'm not surprised you're bossy in and outside of bed," Maki teased with a smile even as she obeyed and sat side-saddle on his matoi.
Stepping one foot onto the pole, he leaned in close and dominated her personal space. Glowing, mismatched eyes met hers as he grumbled lowly, "Mouthy little brat."
Blushing fiercely, she shyly looked away, Benimaru nearly smirking as he stepped onto the back of his matoi. Taking to the sky, he was pleased when she remained comfortably seated, Maki already completely at ease in flight.
She truly was a natural and he already looked forward to the next time he could fight her. He only hoped it ended as exciting as this particular spar had.
With the both of them searching, and with a general idea of where her Iron Owls had landed in mind, it took little time to locate her downed mechs. Noting their locations for his crewmates to recover once they returned - the machines too heavy to be carried by hand and too damaged for him to use his flames to transport - the pair returned to the guardhouse.
As they flew home, Benimaru couldn't help but stare at her. He was struck by how beautiful she looked, glowing in the warm light of the setting sun as she smiled faintly at the sky. The wind rustled her clothes and blew through her hair, Maki reaching up to brush a strand behind her ear. Eyes following the movement, his thoughts lingered on how strong she was, how talented she was, and how good she felt.
He wanted nothing more than to guide her back to his private quarters so they could spend the rest of the night together alone but, when they arrived, they were immediately greeted by a crowd of people.
Apparently their spar had gathered quite an audience, half of the city of Asakusa having watched them as they played together in the sky.
When they landed, Benimaru guiding his matoi to allow them both to hop off, Maki immediately became the center of the crowd's attention. Everyone was fascinated by how she could fly like he could, fire soldiers with ignition abilities that allowed them to travel through the sky being an extreme rarity.
"I didn't know you could fly like Waka! What were those things you were riding around on?"
"I've never seen anyone fight in the sky like that, that was amazing!"
"Hey, you should join Company Seven instead! What do you say, want to come work with us?"
Maki quickly became flustered with all of the compliments and questions from the boisterous fire crew, her cheeks bright red with embarrassment as she smiled and waved off everyone's praise.
Irritated by the crowd of people keeping him from Maki's attention, Benimaru was tempted to yell at the voyeurs to shove off. Instead, he took the more diplomatic route and extracted her from the mob of admirers, gently but firmly guiding her into the guardhouse.
And directly into Konro.
"Hey, Maki, I've been waiting for you," the elder man greeted with a friendly expression.
It seemed the universe did not want him to have any more alone time with Maki.
"What's going on?" she asked, returning his smile.
"I received a call from Captain Obi, he has a message for you: everyone returned safe and sound from their mission. There will be a full debriefing waiting for you when you head home tomorrow," he explained simply.
"That's a relief," she answered gratefully, "I'm glad everyone is back safe. They tend to find trouble even when they're not looking for it. I swear they're always finding new ways to surprise me."
"I'd argue it must be a trait common to the Eighth then," Konro laughed good-naturedly, "I think you surprised the whole city, brawling with Waka up in the sky like that."
"People need to mind their damn business," Benimaru grumbled, irritated.
"I'm just as surprised as them, honestly," she answered bashfully, "That was the first time I flew like that."
"That the reason for the crash landing?"
"Ah, no!" she started, embarrassed, Konro curiously quirking an eyebrow at her reaction, "I mean, Tekkyo malfunctioned while we were sparring and I fell. Luckily Benimaru caught me though. Vulcan is going to be upset that they broke so easily."
"So easily? Didn't they stand up to Waka?" he commented in disbelief, "I'd say that's quite an accomplishment in and of itself."
"Not for Vulcan," Maki laughed.
"You must be tired after training with him," Konro commented, the edge of his lip lifting in sly understanding when she blushed hotly, "Come on, let's get some dinner."
"Let's!" she squeaked in return, immediately turning away and awkwardly marching down the hall before disappearing around the corner. There was a moment of pause before she briefly appeared again, this time turning down the correct hallway before disappearing once again.
Konro didn't even have to say anything, simply looking down at Benimaru with a knowing smirk. Rolling his eyes with an irritated huff, the younger man walked around him to follow Maki towards the kitchen.
"Did something more than just flying, hm?" he commented as he walked at his side.
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Benimaru denied, not meeting his eyes.
"Her hair has grass in it."
"We did crash land."
"Your vest is tied differently than usual."
"Musta tied it different this morning."
"You have lipstick on your neck."
"What-" he started, confused, as he reached up to his neck to feel. He didn't remember Maki even kissing his neck, let alone her wearing lipstick.
Konro just snorted in amusement, Benimaru realizing all too late that he had been duped. Grumbling to himself at having fallen for such an easy trick, his hand fell back to his side as they continued onwards towards the kitchen.
"She's a nice girl. She's hard-working, the entire crew loves her, and she's great with Hinata and Hikage," Konro commented in an off-handed tone, as if just making casual conversation, "Hopefully we'll be seeing more of her around here from now on."
Benimaru was silent for a few moments, contemplating the elder man's easy approval, before he quietly responded, "Yeah, hopefully."
When they walked into the dining hall and he spotted Maki, already surrounded by a crowd of fawning crewmates, he grumbled under his breath, "If I ever get a second with her again."
Konro just chuckled, patting him on the back before stepping inside and heading toward the kitchen. Benimaru made a beeline for Maki and the crowd but, before he could reach her, he was intercepted by the twins.
The two girls shoved their way through the crowd without a care, both of them grasping one of Maki's hands each. Unbothered by the conversations they interrupted or the disgruntled firefighters all vying for her attention, they began pulling her away.
"Come on, you're going to come play with us!" Hikage decided as her and her sister led her towards the exit.
"Yeah, forget these guys," Hinata added, "They can bother you later."
Moving to stand in their way, Benimaru crossed his arms across his chest as he glared down at the two siblings trying to take Maki away. That's what he was trying to do. They needed to go play somewhere else.
"Maki and I still got business. Go bug someone else," he commanded, no room for debate in his tone.
"It's our turn to play with her!" Hinata shot back loudly, "Stop being so selfish, you had her all afternoon!"
"She's going home tomorrow so stop being such a greedy jerk!" Hikage berated, already pulling Maki along around him.
"I think you have me mistaken for someone you can boss around, you little brats," he growled in return, stepping in their way.
The two just blew raspberries at him as they continued to drag Maki away before calling out over their shoulders.
"Go away, Waka!" "Yeah, get lost!"
Maki turned to look back at him, offering him an apologetic smile over her shoulder as she was taken down the hall by Hinata and Hikage. Benimaru just sighed to himself, knowing there was no way to get through to her if the twins had her.
Instead, he decided to take advantage of the showers. A bath might do him some good.
Later that night, after he finished bathing and after he sent a group of firefighters to go bring Maki's mechs back to the guardhouse, Benimaru returned to the now empty kitchen to collect a tray of food for dinner. Making a stop along the way to his quarters, he lingered in front of Maki's door, feeling suddenly uncertain.
He felt awkward just showing up now but he wanted her to know he was thinking about her. He never got the chance to tell her that he wanted to see her again and the thought that she might leave before he got the chance didn't sit well with him. He didn't want their relationship to become he had fucked her out in the woods that one time.
Whatever it was that was going on between them, he wanted it to keep going.
Making up his mind, Benimaru leaned down to leave the dish of flan from his tray in front of Maki's door. Knocking three times, he left, deciding to eat dinner and enjoy his drink on the patio.
After navigating back to his room, he passed through his quarters and out to the back. Lighting the hanging lanterns bordering the porch with a flash of his ignition ability, he settled both himself and his tray onto their usual spots on the engawa.
Looking up to the stars, he plucked his bottle of sake from his tray, twisting off the lid before taking a drink. He gazed up at the nearly full moon, quietly sipping his drink as he wondered what Maki was doing.
Almost as if on queue, his attention was broken by a nearby knocking. Turning to face the sound, Benimaru was pleasantly surprised to find Maki looking up at him from the end of the porch with a hesitant smile and a wave.
"Looking for a 'drinking' buddy?" she offered, holding up the plate of flan he had left for her.
"I could make room," he answered with a quirk of his lips, ignoring how his heart swelled at her appearance.
Walking over, she sat at his side, their knees brushing as she made herself comfortable. Fresh from the showers, she smelled like steam and floral soaps. Her hair was still damp, hanging loosely around her shoulders as it dried in the cool night air. Even from here, he could feel how warm she still was from the hot water of the baths, and he found himself already missing the feeling of her warmth against him.
"Everyone here is so rambunctious," Maki commented in amusement as she took a bite of her flan, humming in delight at the taste.
"You definitely seem to have made some fans," Benimaru answered before grumbling under his breath, "Nosy bastards."
She laughed. "They're definitely not shy."
"It doesn't get any better," he sighed, having long since learned that lesson, before he took a drink of his sake.
Following his lead, Maki took another bite of her own treat. "I'm happy I'm going back home soon but I'm really going to miss it here."
"Asakusa isn't going anywhere and neither am I. You have a place here if you want to come back to see m-" Benimaru cleared his throat, feeling oddly vulnerable. "I mean, if you want to train more."
"Can I do both?" she asked, brushing her foot against his calf, "I had a lot of fun today."
"You sure sounded like you did," he teased and she blushed bright red.
"Not just that!" she squeaked before shyly adding on, "I had a lot of fun flying around and sparring with you. I really want to do it again."
"Anytime, princess," he answered, the edge of his lip quirking up as she looked up at him sweetly from underneath her eyelashes.
Finishing their treats together, Maki took a final bite of her flan before sighing sadly.
"I need to go get ready to head home in the morning…" she muttered unhappily, placing her plate down next to her as she gazed up at the moon hanging above them.
"Of course. I need one last thing from you before you go though," Benimaru stated, setting down his empty bottle on the porch.
"What's that?" she asked, turning to look at him with a curious expression.
Closing the distance between them, he pressed his lips to hers in a gentle but brief kiss. He pulled back just a breath away but lingered, a question hanging between them. He wanted to see if she wanted him too, passed their fling during training. He wanted to see if she felt the same as he did.
He felt as Maki's hands curled in the fabric of his coat, his skin buzzing where her fingertips brushed against his chest. She gave him a gentle tug, a soft whine spilling from her lips that made his heart ache. Obeying her quiet request, he followed, leaning forward to seal his lips against hers.
Reaching out to cup her cheek, Benimaru tilted her chin to kiss her deeper and nearly growled at the gentle groan she made against his mouth. He didn't think he would ever get over the little sounds she made, her soft moans and gasps making him want to hear them even louder.
Maki moved her lips against his as she pulled tighter at his coat, wanting him closer. Happy to appease her, he grasped her hip in his free hand and dragged her closer to him. Her arms looped around his neck as she nestled up to him so comfortably it was like she belonged there.
Kissing her a little harder, he found himself wondering if she would still taste sweet from her dessert before he finally remembered himself.
Amused by how easily he got lost in her and how just kissing her made his heart race like this, Benimaru huffed a quiet laugh against her lips. Kissing her one final time, he pulled away and looked down at her blushing face.
"What are you laughing at?" Maki pouted, her violet eyes half lidded as her arms remained looped around his shoulders.
"Just thinking about the pretty sounds you're gonna make for me when I make you cum a fourth time," he flirted, unable to resist kissing her one more time when her cheeks flushed bright red.
That next morning, Benimaru went to see Maki off and was irritated yet unsurprised by the crowd of firefighters who had decided to do the same. With how much Maki had helped out around the guardhouse to how she had fought with him in the sky just that previous day, she had attracted a following of admirers.
At the moment, they were pests more than anything else, standing between him and giving his lover a proper sendoff.
"Big crowd," Konro commented in a half-amused tone as he stood next to Benimaru, surveying the group of fellow firefighters, "Looks like she has a lot of fans."
"More like a bunch of pains in the ass who should mind their own business," he grumbled, scowling out at the group of people surrounding Maki.
Just as Benimaru considered just butting his way through the crowd to reach her, Hinata and Hikage beat him to the punch. Mercilessly shoving through the group of fire soldiers to reach their new favorite person, they cared even less than he did about who got in their way.
"Come back soon or we're gonna squish you!" Hinata threatened in a way that nearly sounded affectionate coming from her.
"Yeah, and bring more candy next time or you'll regret it!" Hikage added in a similar tone, revealing how much the twins actually would miss Maki.
"I'll miss you both too," Maki laughed in return, looking right through their tough act and seeing them for the little girls they still were, "I'll bring plenty more sweets next time. Promise!"
"You better! Bye~!" they both declared in unison with two matching smiles and waves before darting off to their next object of interest.
The sisters had never been ones for emotional goodbyes - or goodbyes at all for that matter - so the fact they had come out to see Maki off at all spoke volumes.
Now if only the rest of this crowd of pests could take a page from the twin's book and get lost too.
Konro drew Benimaru's attention back to him when he patted him twice on the shoulder, giving him a forgiving smile.
Using an authoritative tone that still had Benimaru's inner child on his toes, Konro shouted at the crowd, "Get back to work, you slackers! Do you think you have time to sit around on your asses?! Get moving!"
The rest of the fire soldiers snapped to attention at Konro's command, the elder man effectively shepherding the rest of their company back into the guardhouse. While he could do nothing about the handful of curious onlookers who glanced over before continuing their day, he had at least cleared out the crowd of crewmates. Giving him an understanding nod from over his shoulder, Konro headed inside himself, leaving just Benimaru and Maki.
"I, um…" Maki attempted awkwardly, brushing her hair behind her ear nervously, "Thank you again! I, uh- I'll just be going!"
"Where do you think you're going so fast? And what's with this shitty goodbye?" Benimaru berated, decidedly ignoring the heavy feeling in his chest.
"I didn't know what..." she tried, fumbling over her words as he silently walked closer to her.
"Or, I mean, I didn't know if you wanted to- um…" she tried again, her blush only growing as he came to stand in front of her.
"What is it?" she whined quietly, looking up at him before glancing away nervously.
Reaching out, Benimaru curled one of his fingers beneath her chin, tilting her head to look back up at him. When she met his mismatched gaze, he could see hesitation but longing in her eyes.
He wasn't that big of an idiot. He could recognize that Maki was trying to give him an easy way out if he wanted to be discreet with their relationship, especially with their differences in rank and his reputation in Asakusa. She was trying to be polite by respecting his privacy but there was one thing she would come to learn about him: he was a possessive man.
If she wanted this with him, he wasn't going to tolerate it being some big secret. He had no patience for either mind games or the mental gymnastics that came with a covert relationship. It was all or nothing with him and there was absolutely no way she was leaving today without ensuring she knew that she was his girl.
"You're forgetting something important," Benimaru informed curtly, his hand gently cupping her cheek.
When he kissed her, Maki gasped softly against his mouth, her hands fanning across his chest in her surprise. Her fingers curled in the fabric of his coat, hanging onto him as she melted into his embrace. He looped an arm around her waist, pulling her that much closer as he gave his princess a proper sendoff.
"That's better," he grumbled against her lips, making her shiver, before giving her one final, lingering kiss.
When he pulled away and saw how she looked up at him with those half-lidded eyes, he had to resist the urge to lean in and kiss her again. Instead, he settled for tracing the line of her jaw with his thumb, his fingertips brushing across her neck where he could feel her racing heart.
"Hurry up and get back here soon, Maki-hime. I want to go flying again and I don't like waiting around," he ordered, quietly delighted by how her cheeks flushed at his nickname for her.
"See you then, Beni," she answered softly and, when she smiled, he couldn't help but return it.
A/N: Be honest, who never considered this ship before seeing this story? Have I convinced you to join me? :)