Summary: Tokoyami and Tsuyu go out into town for the day, but on the way back to the dorms, it begins to rain. Tsuyu wants to relax in the rain, but Tokoyami doesn't quite like how it feels in his feathers. Despite that, he's more than happy to just watch her.
The weather forecast for the day had not called for rain. Despite that, Tokoyami had noticed that the clouds were a bit darker than usual. Call him superstitious, but he'd taken his umbrella with him regardless. It had a useful strap that kept the umbrella against his back, meaning he didn't have to carry it around. It also meant that he had double the hands free to take a hold of Tsuyu's hands during their trip out.
The trip itself wasn't anything special. Tokoyami was eager to visit his favorite bookstore, maybe pick up some new CDs on his way back, when Tsuyu had asked if she could join him. Being who he was, Tokoyami would never deny his girlfriend anything. He agreed, maybe a bit too quickly, which Tsuyu was ecstatic about. Every time she smiled at him, Tokoyami's heartstrings were pulled in every which way direction. So, tossing on a black leather jacket, a gray sweater, black jeans, black boots, and a red scarf wrapped around his neck, Tokoyami stood at the door, his umbrella on his back, waiting for Tsuyu.
The two of them hadn't been dating long, but it already felt like it'd last forever to Tokoyami. He wouldn't say that out loud, though, in fear of jinxing it somehow, but it was true. He was oblivious to a lot of the more social aspects of living, as he wasn't the type of person to seek out unnecessary companionship. Tsuyu's bluntness, however, seemed to counteract that. She would tell him when he was thinking too hard and she was always honest with him, no matter how hard he seemed to doubt himself. Tokoyami loved her that much more for it.
"Fumikage-chan, are you ready to go?" He heard a voice ask from behind him. He had been standing in front of the door, staring out of the window in thought. Now, though, he turned to face the voice and a smile pulled at the edges of his beak. Tsuyu was wearing a pair of blue jeans, a green blouse, and a thin black jacket over that. Black sneakers and a wide-brimmed hat topped off her appearance. Once more, Tokoyami felt his heart doing cartwheels in his chest. Tsuyu's smile on top of that made it that much better.
"..I am. Are you, Tsu?" He asked after a moment. He had to admit, he was captivated. Call him a hopeless romantic, but he got happy whenever he saw Tsuyu.
She smiled at him as she walked closer and, stopping at his side, looped her arm through his.
"I am. Let's be on our way, ribbit." She pushed open the door and the two left briskly.
Tokoyami pushed the door to the bookstore open and stepped out, holding Tsuyu's hand as he did. With a curt bow to the shopkeeper, he shut the door and the two of them were on their way. They'd stopped at the music store first and had both picked out a few different CDs. Tsuyu managed to persuade Tokoyami into buying some lighter music than he usually listened to. 'All that loud music can't be good for your ears, Fumikage-chan. Try listening to some lighter things, ribbit.'. He had to admit, he'd been intrigued by some lighter things before but had never acted on the impulse. Tsuyu pushed him gently to try some things out, and he conceded in the end. 'There wasn't any harm in it', he thought in his own defense.
Now, with a bag of CDs on Tokoyami's arm and a bag of books on Tsuyu's, the two decided to return to the dorms. They'd been out for a few hours and had enjoyed themselves, though that was mostly in part to just being around one another. The trip would've been routine if Tokoyami had gone on his own and he was happy that Tsuyu had asked to join him. It took longer, but it was much more fun with her around and it meant more.
"Fumikage-chan. Why'd you bring your umbrella?" Tsuyu asked him as they walked on. He looked down at her, his head tilted to the side in question. She puts a finger to her lip before pointing at the handle of the umbrella over his shoulder. "The weather didn't call for rain. Are you worried?"
He shook his head before turning to look up at the clouds. "Not worried, per say, but cautious. The clouds have been dark all day. I thought it'd be best to be prepared, just in case it does rain." His gaze fell back to her and he smiled. She returned the smile and turned her eyes back to the road in front of them, effectively dropping the topic. Tokoyami did the same, but Dark Shadow's ranting in his head distracted him for the time being.
"Oooooh, what if we jinxed it?! Once you talk about it out loud, the universe will go out of its way to make it happen!" Shadow exclaimed, making Tokoyami sigh internally.
"I don't believe that's how it works, Dark," Tokoyami replied. Despite that, he nervously glanced up at the clouds again. They hadn't seemed to have gotten any darker over the course of the day, but he couldn't be sure. He wasn't a meteorologist, after all. "And besides. I brought the umbrella for a reason. I'm prepared.".
"I'm just sayin'! If it starts to rain in the next ten minutes, you owe me hot chocolate when we get back!" the childish spirit declared. Just to get him to pipe down, Tokoyami agreed hastily and then shushed Dark Shadow on the premise of: "I want to be able to enjoy this quiet moment. It won't last once we get to the dorms.".
Huffing in agitation, Dark Shadow agreed and all was silent on the street. Tokoyami sighed in content and shuffled slightly closer to Tsuyu. She took notice and smiled up at him, leaning her head down on his shoulder as they continued. A slight blush spread across his cheeks, and he looked away. A short moment later, though, his eyes jumped back to her and he smiled. The two walked in relative silence, only ever talking when they really felt like it. The truth of the matter, though, is that they didn't really want to. Both Tsuyu and Tokoyami were content with just walking together in silence. They didn't really have to do much of anything else.
Tokoyami's head immediately jumped and looked around. He seemed confused. Tsuyu tilted her head, jabbing a finger at her lip.
"Fumikage-chan? Is something wrong?" She asked him, tilting around to stand in front of him. It took him a moment, still looking around them, to answer her. Once he did, he bowed slightly, his eyes closed.
"My apologies, Tsu," He said, leaning back up a little. Her head was still tilted to the side, a motion that Tokoyami had always thought was quite cute. "..I thought I felt something, is all. It kind of felt like...someone poking the top of my head?" Tokoyami shakes his head, holding a hand over his beak. "My apologies again. That...doesn't sound like it makes much sense, once I say it out loud."
Tsuyu is still looking at him for a moment, that same, blatant look of concentration on her face. Then, without warning, she turns his head upward and looks toward the sky herself.
"It makes sense, Fumikage-chan," She says, still staring up at the dark and, now stormy, clouds. "I think you just felt a little raindrop, ribbit."
"O-Oh...," He mumbled in response. Another raindrop falls and plops just between his eyes and he sighs heavily. "Well, it seems I was right to bring my umbrella, then."
The bird-headed boy reached over his shoulder and pulled his umbrella out, though not opening it yet.
"At the very least, it doesn't seem too bad yet," Tsuyu replied, going back to her place at his side. "If it doesn't get any heavier, then we won't need the umbrella, ribbit."
He nods, smiling at her as he does. "My thoughts exactly," He adjusted the bag on his arm and hefted the umbrella up over his shoulder. "Let's hope it doesn't get worse then."
It was safe to admit that, at this point, Tokoyami would have to make some hot chocolate for Dark Shadow once they got back to the dorms.
The rain had picked up quickly. It went from a light drizzle that was barely noticeable to a downpour in just a few minutes. Tokoyami had long since opened the umbrella and now held it high over their heads. The bags jostled on their arms as they walked at a calm pace. The rain wasn't bad, just a bit spontaneous. It was soothing to the ear, at least, so that was nice enough. Thanks to having an umbrella, Tokoyami didn't have to deal with it getting in his feathers. He didn't like the rain much if he was honest.
He felt a weight lift off of his hand and his eyes followed Tsuyu as she stepped out from underneath the umbrella and into the rain. Tokoyami knew that her quirk made her frog-like, meaning the rain would feel heavenly to her. Unfortunately, he couldn't share her interest in it. He liked listening to it and watching it but hated being caught in it. His feathers were delicate, and rain matted them down horribly. It felt disgusting, so he strayed from the rain as a whole nowadays unless there was a clear barrier between it and him.
For the next minute or so, Tsuyu walked along in the rain while Tokoyami trailed behind her, now holding both bags on one arm, with his umbrella over his head. She has this smile on her face and-It's really hard for him to describe it, and so the only way to do so is-it's the most beautiful thing he's ever seen. Despite what he knew of her quirk, he's surprised to see that just the rain can make her as happy as she is at that moment.
Admittedly, he is a bit upset. He loves watching her have fun and loves even more just to see her happy. It's unfortunate that he couldn't join her, though. It'd mean a bit more if he was with her...
Tsuyu turned around to face Tokoyami again. The wide smile on her face fell a little at the sight of his eyes, which seemed so clouded over with sadness for a moment that she doesn't quite know what to do with herself. He looks up and catches her staring and, with a blush on his cheeks, he waves it off.
"Don't worry. The rain does well to ruffle my feathers, Tsu. But I would be more than happy to watch over you." He tells her, shoving his hand back into the pocket of his jacket as he does. He smiles at her, but Tsuyu can't help but feel that it's a false smile; One that he's only putting on to make her happy. She sighs and, after a moment of thought, decides to take a gamble.
She takes short strides until she's standing in front of him under the umbrella. She grabs his wrist, pulling his hand out of his coat pocket, and pulls him forward, just to the edge of the umbrella. He opens his mouth to protest, but Tsuyu speaks over him.
"I understand not liking the heavy rain, Fumikage-chan. But this rain is so soft. Give it a try, please?" Tsuyu says, quietly enough so that the rain almost overpowers her voice. She loves Tokoyami-Gods, does she love him-and she has so much fun when she's with him, but the rain is the one thing that they really disagree on because of his feathers. Just as much as Tokoyami hates seeing her sad, Tsuyu hates seeing him sad too. She wants him to be happy and, since it made her happy, maybe the rain would help her do that. Despite trying to smile, for his sake, it's not as full as usual-A fact that Tokoyami picks up on.
"Boo you! Look at what you've done now!" Dark Shadow begins berating him in his head, beating him up over making her look sad. "Aren't you supposed to be a gentleman?! How could a gentleman make a beautiful woman sad?!".
Inwardly, he curses the specter before sighing. Even if Dark wasn't aggressively beating him for it, Tokoyami would've conceded to her anyway. If it would make her happy, he'd do it. He'd do just about anything to make sure she stayed smiling.
Slowly, with skepticism lining his actions, Tokoyami dropped the umbrella and closed it. He could immediately feel the rain in his feathers, but it wasn't heavy like he'd thought it'd be. It was soft, almost like feathers. It sounded hard when it hit the ground, but...it wasn't. It was even comfortable, to an extent. A little amazed, he held a hand up and let the rain fall into his palm. His mouth, slightly agape, as he looked around at his surroundings for the first time since it'd started raining.
It dawned then and there that Tokoyami had been taking the potential the rain had and had ignored it. It was truly beautiful. Standing in the empty street, with everything covered in a sleek shine, and the sound of the rain colliding with the ground and the buildings around him, his nerves are chilled immediately.
Tokoyami turned to face Tsuyu, who had been watching him with something akin to fascination in her eyes. The smile she wears now is wide and-In his honest opinion-is even more beautiful than the one she'd worn earlier. A bright blush runs over his dark cheeks and he turns away, a hand over his beak, embarrassed. Tsuyu laughs at his reaction, sounding a bit like a frog's croaking, and she steps over to his side again, grabbing his hand in hers. He instantly intertwines their fingers and turns to face her again. As he does, though, she leans up to plant a kiss on his cheek. His cheeks light up red again but, instead of turning away, he leans in to nuzzle his chin against the top of her head affectionately. She giggles and returns the gesture in kind.
After that, the two of them walked on in relative silence, listening mostly to the rain and just enjoying each other's company. Once in a while, one of them will say something and the other will respond, but whatever it is they talk about is overshadowed by just the calm and relaxing environment between them now. Despite enjoying the rain as much as he is, Tokoyami's feathers are starting to take the brunt of the rain's heavy downpour. His feathers droop, taking in the water like a sponge, and hang heavily over the back of his head in the most uncomfortable manner possible.
He shakes his head to try and dispel some of the water now sticking to his feathers, but only succeeds in alerting Tsuyu to his discomfort.
"Fumikage-chan? What's wrong?" She asks him, concern clear in her voice. Tokoyami shakes his head a little again before looking down and meeting her eyes.
"...The rain. It's beginning to hoard away in my feathers like I feared. They're quite heavy now." He replies, shaking his head again for effect.
Her brow falls and she tilts her head. "Oh. Do you want to open the umbrella again, ribbit?" She asks him. The bird-boy is quick to shake his head 'no' and grips her hand affectionately.
"No, it'll be fine. It'll look odd when we get back, but...maybe you could help me fix it, then?" He asks her, the blush on his cheeks betraying his calm demeanor. With that, she smiles again and may as well have lit up Tokoyami's world again.
"Yes. Definitely." She answers with a grip on his hand to accentuate her words. She turns forward again, though Tokoyami continues to watch her. Her own long, straight, hair is slick with rainwater. Compared to his mess of feathers right now, her hair looked so much better than his. As they continued to walk, he couldn't help but continue to watch her. She seemed to glow for most of their day out. Initially, Tokoyami had acquainted it with her quirk. Now, though, he was hoping he contributed to that somewhat as well...
Suddenly, Tsuyu looks up at him again, catching him staring, and tilts her head, jabbing a finger against her mouth in that cute manner that she always does.
"What're you thinking about, Fumikage-chan?" She asks him. Tokoyami blushes on the spot and immediately goes to cover his beak with his hand.
Quietly, though just loud enough for her to hear him, he mutters out: "I...I simply adore you, is all, Tsu."
A cloud of blush dusts her cheeks, but Tsuyu smiles and nuzzles up closer to him, gripping his hand a bit tighter as she does. "I'm quite fond of you as well, Fumikage-chan."
Together, the two of them then continue on their walk. The rain doesn't get any worse, but it persists and ends long after they've gotten back to the dorms. By then, however, Tokoyami and Tsuyu are comfortably cozied up together on one of the couches in the common room; A blanket wrapped around the both of them and Tsuyu's head on Tokoyami's shoulder. Dark Shadow resting on the back of the couch, an empty mug of hot chocolate dangling from his hand.
It was safe to say that, alongside the CDs and books they'd picked up, their day out had been quite productive if the slight wetness of Tokoyami's feathers were any indication of such.