You're Fine
Have been watching Fire Force and thought this flashback had some potential between our favorite devil boy and cat girl! Based on Tamaki's flashback in season 2 episode 23 Firecat
Tamaki Kotatsu sat by her lonesome in a slightly dim corner of the dining room of Company eight's cathedral in her orange jumpsuit and black work boots. Her simple lunch prepared by Lieutenant Hinawa grew colder as she blankly stared at the meal with thoughtless eyes. Her face could not illustrate her inner dilemma with her silence being caused by an upsetting conclusion. The third-generation fire user could not be bothered by the sounds of footsteps approaching and stopping in front of her.
"Hey, why are you sitting in the corner?" the cat loving firefighter did not need to lift her head to know it was her coworker and often unlucky (more like lucky pervert in her opinion) victim of her lecher lure, the self-proclaim hero of company eight, Shinra Kusakabe.
The devil's confused face went unnoticed by Tamaki wondering why she put herself in timeout. "Come sit with me, we can eat together." the seventeen-year-old pointed at said table emphasizing his request.
The company one second class soldier outright rejected the appeal with a numb shake of her head, still not looking from her tray of lunch. She reasoned it was better for her to keep her distance from the adolla linked hero from any shame of her clumsiness. The black-haired twin tails girl hoped her rejection would be enough for Sho's older brother to leave her alone.
Tamaki underestimated her acquaintance's headstrong nature and did not let it go. She heard a simple sigh and a presence sitting next to her. Shinra decided to be seated by her with his identical plate of food. "You go sit at the table; I'll sit in the corner."
The hero's attempt at chivalry hardly impressed the girl. "No, go ahead. I've been used to being alone" waving him off.
Shinra refused to go without a fight. "I think I'm more used to being alone. Where do you think the nickname 'devil' came from?" The pair went back and forth with the offer of the table for a while. Somehow against the laws of reality and physics the two collided with Tamaki's bosom smushing her fellow soldier's face.
The pair unscrambled and returned to their original position by the corner. Tamaki's frustrated pout formed as she whined, hiding her face in her hands. "See what I mean? All I do I cause trouble and make things awkward. Its best I just keep my distance."
Shinra's worried face demonstrated his concern witnessing his friend beat herself up. "Look, I wouldn't act as if things don't get awkward because they do. But you can't control your bad luck, so I don't hold it against you. Look over there." the kick fighter pointed to the same table he sat at. Tamaki saw the resident knight Arthur Boyle sitting at the head of the table, arms crossed and quiet. She wondered how he had entered without her noticing.
"He's a dumbass who walks around the place like he owns it. He can't control it; well, I think he can but that's beside the point. We accept him for who he is, why can't we with you?" Shinra put forth Tamaki's side of the court with his argument.
"But all I do is get in the way! If I'm not crashing into you, I'm either having to be saved or embarrassing myself. Face it Shinra, I'm useless." the feline firefighter hung her head in shame returning her gaze to her stone-cold meal.
"Tamaki, all you need is a little more confidence." The girl jumped feeling the devil's hand rest on her shoulder. His all too familiar tick surfaced with his trademark toothy smile forming from nervousness. "You might not care much about my opinion Tamaki but it's worth saying if it helps. I can't speak for the other but I'm happy you are here with us at company eight." The tsundere's gaze shifted to connect with the hero's sincere look. "You're brave, loyal and nice when you want to be." The underlying jab about her coldness towards him did not go by Tamaki but decided to let him continue.
"You stood up against Rekka protecting those endangered children, you defended Iris when we entered the Netherworld and much more. You're not as bad as you think you are Tamaki; I would say you're just fine the way you are." The words almost broke the third generation pyrokinetic from her sulking but withheld her thoughts on herself.
"But my lecher lure!" she argued
Shinra smiled while briefly refreshing his dry throat with a sip of water. "How about I put it like this; Do you hate my smile when I get nervous?"
Tamaki did not quite understand what the second-class soldier. She said she did not while shaking her head.
"Why not? My smile is scary, weird and makes me look like I want to do nothing but cause trouble."
The harsh and untruthful description about himself caused the cat girl's brow to scrunch. "That's not true! You can't control your smile and it's unfair to judge someone by something they can't control."
"Thats right, so why can't I do the same with your lecher lure?" Shinra countered perfectly. The comparison was so well put together leading to the company one firefighter seeing the bigger picture. She was not giving herself the same treatment she does to others like her hero friend next to her.
"Don't be so hard on yourself Tamaki, you're fine." the devil's footprint repeated hoping to get his point across. The gold eyes of Tamaki remained shut as her features softened while breathing softly. Her face formed a smile with kind eyes hiding no deception.
"Thank you Shinra, really thank you. Even with me being so cold towards you, you still care enough about me to help." Her gaze shifted away from the boy she had affection towards as a faint pink shade tone brushed her cheeks.
The hero waved her off with a much easier on the eye smile. "Don't worry about it, that's what heroes are for." He stood from his seat looking downwards at his cat obsessive friend. "Come join me at the table, it's better to be lonely with someone than by yourself." He was keen on the idea now with their local knight taking his leave of the dining area.
Tamaki's head stormed with a potential idea, she questioned the pros and cons of her brazen thought. After weighing her options, the fire soldier relaxed her nerves with a slow deep breath.
"Shinra, please sit down." she asked while gripping his sturdy forearm. The pull almost caused the resident hero to spill his tray before returning to chair.
"Close your eyes." she demanded.
"What? Why do you wa-"
"Just close your eyes!" Her ire spiced her voice, all too familiar sounding to Shinra and gave in.
"Alright geez." He admitted defeat, no longer willing to challenge the hot and cold girl. The tsundere scooped her surroundings making sure no one would be walking in. The possibility of someone entering seemed to be low and the excuses were over. Tamaki's courage rose from Shinra's words 'you fine the way you are' and lean in as her heart told her.
The devil's footprint felt a pleasant pressure on his cheek, the soft feeling ended too fast in Shinra's opinion hearing a faint click sound. Out of curiosity the devil opened his eyes slowly, his view displayed a shy and timid Tamaki holding her hand over her heart.
"Tamaki..., did you j-"
"Kiss you? Yes."
Shinra's skin betrayed him as a deep red blush steamed over his face, the nervous smile spread over master kicker's mouth. "But why? I thought you hated me?"
Tamaki's face showcased guilt and wanted to clear the air. "I never hated you Shinra. I just acted mean to you hide how I felt. I've liked you since the day you protected me against Rekka and much more. You never get angry or try to take advantage of me during my lecher lure moments. You've told me whenever I'm in trouble to call out for you and you'll help. I'm sorry for how I tr-"
The tables had turned as it was Tamaki's turn to be caught off guard. Shinra heard enough and smashed his lips on hers for their first kiss. She thought of pulling away but gave in to the addicting feeling, the cat soldier intensified the kiss by coiling her arms around the adolla linked firefighter's neck. Shinra on his part pulled his love interest closer and rested his hands on her hourglass hips. The pair finally pulled apart for air, gasping heavily while resting their foreheads together.
Shinra was the first to speak, breaking the silence apart from their breathing. "I've liked you for a while too Tamaki. Sorry for being blind." He hoarsely chuckled.
"Wait, you like me?" Tamaki questioned in bewilderment. Shinra nodded with a grin, his pearly sharp teeth on full display. An interesting thought conjured in the devil's cranium.
"Does this me and you are you know?"
"Girlfriend and boyfriend? I don't know, do you want to be?" the fire cat pyrokinetic put forth.
He answered quickly. "Of course, do you want to be?"
Tamaki's smile was all too clear and hugged her long-time crush. "Thank you Shinra."
"No, thank you Tamaki."
Their embracing while sweet and compassionate ended as the girl felt her new partner stiffen. "Shinra, what's wrong?" while still on his lap her confusion took over seeing his petrified face. His eyes pointed to the entrance of the dining room; she turned around only to freeze. Lieutenant Hinawa stood stone faced and unimpressed.
"You want to explain what happened." he somberly asked. His monotone voice sent shivers down the couple's spines. The two did not speak out fear, the second in command took their silence as disobedience.
"Well, if neither of you want to tell how your food fell, I guess both of you wouldn't mind cleaning up the entire dining room and kitchen." Sure enough, their trays of food slipped near their chairs. The two said yes sir while still tangled in each other's arms.
Hinawa turned to take his leave but commented on one final thing. "Congratulation, you two complement each other well." The pair swore they saw a slim smile before he took his leave. The devil and cat returned their attention to one another, their smiles returned hugging, glad to find each other and started their punishment afraid of angering Hinawa further. The chore passed by much faster working together as a true partnership.
Thank you for reading!
I thought there would be more writings about this scene but I guess people don't like the idea of Shinra and Tamaki being together. Hopefully people find this short work and gain some enjoyment.
That's all and remember, call your love ones once in a while. Peace.