"Damn," Asahi mutters. "That's not right either."

He stands back, tossing the chalk carelessly into its tray. The same hand used to write reaches up to rub at his chin in deep thought, dusting chalky powder all over his overgrown beard. Asahi chews on the inside of his cheek, brows bunching together in pain and frustration. His eyes dart over the scrawl of white letters, numbers, and symbols, frantically searching for the flaw.

Asahi spots it, cursing low to himself—it's at the top of the board, of course, how convenient. He grabs the ladder and rolls it over to the flaw in his calculations, scaling the ladder with the ease. Asahi forgets his chalk and eraser, has to dart back down to grab them, and by the time he's leaning over to erase his mistake, he's worked himself into a mood.

"So if I set the limit to that, instead of that, the result should be...no, no. That won't work either; the function'll be discontinuous right where it shouldn't be." Asahi keeps a steady stream of consciousness going in a low voice while he works his way through the integral, editing limits of integration and making tweaks to the function itself. "Wait, but if this function is actually correct, that means it will never approach the correct value...and the derivative doesn't give any insight either...agh!" He finally decides to scratch the whole function and integral, starting anew for the nth time in weeks.

It's while he's in the middle of furiously scrubbing at the board and his hard work that Noya calls out to him.

"Asahi," he raises his voice to carry across the bay, "you're doing it again."

Asahi halts partway through a swipe. "Doing what?" He asks, puzzled, glancing over at his lab partner.

Noya exhales loudly, spinning his swivel chair around to face Asahi. He yanks out the earbuds to his MP3 player (not even an iPod, Asahi winces), and pushes his lab goggles to the top of his head. "Talking to yourself," Noya replies. "You always start muttering crossly when the calculus doesn't go your way. What's up this time, want me to help you out a little?"

Asahi waves a hand dismissively, but Noya is already peeling off his lab gear. "No, no—there's no need for that, and besides, you're working on an important project, aren't you?" He glances timidly at the large secondary kaiju brain sealed into a preservation tube in front of Noya's work station. Asahi doesn't ask questions about his lab partner's projects most of the time, but it's pretty hard to miss a still-moving kaiju brain, tapping on the glass every now and then. He swallows nervously.

"Nah, Kyouken can wait. He's not going anywhere," Noya replies, grinning at his kaiju brain and jogging over to Asahi's side of the bay. As usual, Asahi feels his heart rate pick up when Noya crosses over the painted line dividing their bay, palms sweating. He hates that he identifies Nishinoya—his friend and partner—with the kaiju that terrify him, but there's really no helping it. Noya loves those aliens, in a scientific sense. They're mysteries for him to solve, each one a disaster that he scours the aftermath of for clues to understanding them. He is frightening and intense and dedicated and loud. Asahi can't decide if he should rely on Noya or run away from him.

Noya stands with his hands over his hips, surveying the mess of Asahi's chicken-scratch handwriting and the chalk dust floating through the air from Asahi's childish erasure of his equations. Feeling silly, he descends from the ladder and stands beside Noya, eyeing his work. It's hard to pay attention, though, when he can feel how hard Noya is concentrating—Asahi ends up wringing his hands anxiously, impatiently awaiting his partner's thoughts.

Finally, Noya hums in contentment and nods. "As I thought, Asahi-san, you're a genius." He turns to Asahi, grinning like an idiot. "I can't understand a bit of this! Amazing!"

Asahi stares at him despairingly. "I thought you said you wanted to help me...didn't you take college algebra and calculus?"

Noya shrugs, unfazed. "'Course I did! But like I said, math and engineering are both so incredibly boring. I slept through almost every lecture." He looks almost proud—Asahi has to smile.

"Honestly, isn't it you who are the amazing one...?"

"Never mind all that," Noya dismisses the 'praise'. "I think what you really need is a break from all that math junk. C'mere." He trots back to his side of the bay, leaving Asahi no choice but to follow him. Asahi regards all the sketches and varied kaiju bits with disquiet, but trusts that Noya won't lead him astray. Noya leads him to the massive electron microscope set up on one of the lab tables next to...Kyouken. The K-scientist fiddles with a few of the knobs while Asahi refuses to break eye contact with the slightly swaying mass of brain floating in amber liquid.

Noya notes the stare-down out of the corner of his eye and snorts, dragging Asahi's attention back to him. "He's not going to bite you, you know," Noya promised, amused. "Come over here, I want you to take a look at this." He moves away from screen of his computer and the image displayed on it. Asahi peers over his shoulder curiously. "Do you know what that is?" Noya asks.

"Of course," Asahi replies. "It's a human neuron." The web-like structure of the cell was unmistakable.

"Good," Noya says with a nod, edging his way back to the microscope and changing the slide out. "Now, with that image in mind, look at this one."

Asahi nearly gasps aloud. The new image clearly shows a neuron of some kind, but the structure is far more developed than anything Asahi has ever seen. From each branching off of the enlarged nucleus, entire webs expanded, entwining the fine, hair-like structures with those of other neurons. Noya switched the black and white image to one of false color, and the neuron lit up, showing all the places where information was exchanged and energy was consumed. The image was a kaleidoscope of color.

"What is this...?" Asahi whispered, impressed even as someone who wasn't as avid about biology as Noya. His lab partner shoots him a satisfied smile.

"That's a kaiju neuron. From the secondary brain. I've only had the chance to look at some small primary brain samples, and let me tell you—they make this baby look like nothing," Noya explains, puffing up his chest in pride. Asahi stares at him in amazement.

"A kaiju's?"

"It's quite something, isn't it?" Noya sounds pleased as a parent boasting about his child's achievement. "There's so much we don't know about how the kaiju think and interact with each other and the world around them. Just look at the neuron's structure! Why did they evolve like that? What is the function of all those neural hairs? It's all a great big mystery. I mean, it's amazing that we were even able to discover that the kaiju have a hivemind, all thanks to Mori's initial research and my analysis."

Noya turns to face Asahi and raises an eyebrow. "I'm not going to try and talk you into becoming a 'kaiju groupie' or whatever Akaashi called me, but I do want you to stop being afraid all the time. Our Jaeger pilots are the best, right? And the kaiju have their moments of beauty and intrigue, too. You don't have to worry."

"Noya..." Asahi starts, a sad smile on his face.

Noya's shoulders slump a little. He sighs. "I know, I know—this is really hard for you. I won't push you too far out of your comfort zone. But I'm not going to give up on trying to help you either!" He plants his hands firmly on his hips and gives Asahi a consoling smile. Asahi nods, exhaling loudly.

"There's no stopping you, right?"

"Nope!" Noya's smile morphs into a shit-eating grin and he hustles Asahi around his side of the bay, pointing out ongoing experiments or interesting finds in his research, talking a mile a minute. Asahi humors him, even though he can't understand half of the garbled K-science terminology that Noya spits out as if it were colloquial language. However, he can understand well enough the wild gestures and sparkling eyes of his companion when Noya latches onto any kaiju-related topic of discussion. Asahi adds "hmmmm's" and "oh, I see's" where appropriate, feeling the stress drain from his body at Noya's almost juvenile enthusiasm and letting his mind wander a little.

Of course, in the middle of his musings and occasional avoidance of kaiju entrails, the last variable to his own equation clicks into place. He stops dead as Noya shows him to the kaiju nail samples, causing his partner to blink in surprise. "Asahi?" he murmurs in confusion.

"Nishinoya Yuu," Asahi begins, eyes wide with realization. He grabs Noya by the shoulders suddenly, staring at him in amazement. "You are the genius!" Asahi nearly lets out a sob of joy, because obviously, obviously that was the mistake he had made! He plants a kiss on Noya's forehead, caught up in the heat of the moment.

"Asahi-san?!" Noya squeaks in surprise, reverting back to an honorific and cheeks coloring a little. But then it clicks for him and he leans forward, grabbing Asahi's arm. "What is it? Did you figure it out?"

Asahi throws his head back and laughs, full and relieved. He nods once. "God, yes, I can't believe I missed it! I kept thinking something was wrong with the parent function or the limits of integration, but it was the damn k value the whole time!"

"What are you waiting for, then?" Noya laughs in return, shoving his partner back to his own side. "Go, go! Write it down already!" They scramble across the bay, Noya grabbing the chalk and passing it up to Asahi as he climbed his rolling ladder and began furiously scribbling the changes across the blackboard. Satisfied, Noya sat back and watched the downpour of numbers and symbols appear in jagged lines of white.

When Asahi finishes, he practically leaps from the ladder, brushing the chalk from his hands and grinning at Noya with that rare, accomplished smile that made Noya's heart soar. He didn't see it nearly as often as he should. They stare up at the completed equation in appreciation for a moment before Noya mutters, "Damn. Yeah, I really don't understand a bit of this."

"Maybe not," Asahi concedes, "but you helped me out here. I owe you one." Asahi's expression shrinks back to his usual sheepish one at Noya's proud look. Noya huffs.

"So what exactly is this equation for, anyway? Something kaiju-related, obviously."

Asahi scratches the back of his neck, frowning thoughtfully at his board. "Well, it's supposed to help predict the rate of kaiju appearances—I've hit a dead end on my size-prediction equation. I decided to work on this using previous data on a whim while I wait for a peer review of my other work. Somehow it turned into this monstrosity. It should work, though."

Noya hops in Asahi's swivel chair at his computer, eyeing the technology assembled across Asahi's desk with interest, but doesn't make to touch any of it with the anxious look Asahi is shooting him. Asahi scribbles a few more calculations in, occasionally consulting his computer for a particularly difficult element of the equation. He flits about the bay with the practiced ease of someone who practically lived there. Noya tracks him with his eyes, arms crossed over the back of the chair.

This is something he enjoys. Once Asahi really gets into his element (math) and forgets about other people watching or bothering him, he shifts into his own super-concentrated-serious mode. The typical timid expression disappears, replaced with scholarly seriousness or frustration or relief when something works. Occasionally he lights up after solving a particularly difficult part of his work with a small, secretive smile that makes Nishinoya's heart soar.

It's not like he has time to waste, but sometimes Noya will devote himself to the pastime of Asahi-watching, a fascinating sport that never fails to amuse him. Whether it's perched in a hidden corner of the bay, from his makeshift lab, or right in Asahi's space, Noya observes the minute shifts in Asahi's facial expressions, thrilled to see the little bits of his true self peeking through. It's a real shame that Asahi tends to clam up around people he's not familiar with—he's really a cool guy!

Or maybe he's just been conditioned to be comfortable in Noya's presence. Being trapped in the same lab every day will do that to a guy.

Asahi purses his lips suddenly, frowning more sharply than before. Noya blinks in surprise. That's an intense look as he's ever seen before. It's the same look Daichi had on his face the first time he and Suga prepared to fight a Category Four. Noya's never seen it on Asahi before. "What's up?"

"Something's wrong," Asahi mutters in a dangerously low voice. "Something's not right with this equation, the numbers are too big." He continues to write regardless, looking more and more concerned with each stroke. Varied mutters of "but this isn't possible" and "no, that should be inconclusive" reach Noya's ears and sits up, leaning forward to try and make sense of the calculus in front of him.

At the bottom of the board, Asahi hesitates for a long moment before finally writing a '2' and circling it a few times for emphasis. "That," he gestures to the '2', "is my problem. That should most certainly not be a two."

"What's it mean? Two months? Two weeks?" Noya rocks back in the chair, causing it to squeak.

Asahi takes a deep breath. "Two kaiju."

Noya meets his stare, confused. Asahi is pale, looking like he's had some kind of grand and terrible epiphany, but Noya doesn't understand at all. "Okay? So there'll be two kaiju in a certain amount of time, what's the big deal?"

Asahi is shaking his head before Noya even finishes. "Noya, that's not—no, that's not what I meant. It means..."—his hands clench into fists—"it means there will be a double event. Very, very soon."

Noya stills. "A double event?"

Asahi nods solemnly. "Two kaiju will come from the Breach at relatively similar times. We're going to have to deal with two kaiju for the first time in the history of this war—what are we going to do?" He sounds so drained and despairing, Noya immediately stands, holding up his hands.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Wait a minute here. How do you know there's going to be a double event?" Asahi gestures helplessly at the equation.

"In a month's time there's going to be an event, but one of the auxiliary functions I'd been using suggested that the rate of activity was going to be almost twice as high as with a single event—it can only be explained by more kaiju activity and therefore, more kaiju. Unless it's a Category Six, but even then, just one kaiju passing through the Breach shouldn't generate so much activity..."

Noya stops him. "Are you sure you haven't made a mistake in your calculations? That's what happened before, right? It's not that I don't trust your calculations, but aren't you jumping to conclusions a little? I mean, no one's ever heard of a double event."

Asahi exhales loudly. "Trust me, I checked. It has matched the other kaiju predictions and past attacks almost flawlessly. It's not a mistake—this is going to be the first double event."

"Hey," Noya says suddenly, worried. "Hey now, it's okay."

Asahi hadn't realized how badly he was shaking until Noya fixes him with an uncharacteristically concerned look. He holds up one hand and watches all his fingers tremble despite his best efforts to keep them steady. Now that he's stopped to actually evaluate his current state, Asahi can hear his shallow, rapid breathing and the sound of blood pounding in his ears. He's woozy, tilting a little and unable to focus on the board, on the bay, on Noya. He recognizes the signs, if he could only say something to Noya—

"Whoa, whoa, easy now." Noya's at his side instantly, supporting him with gentle but firm touches, easing him into one of the rolling chairs in his lab. "Hey, Asahi, are you with me? You're beginning to have an attack. I need you to take deep breaths, okay? Look at me."

Asahi tries to focus in on Noya, smiling comfortingly and still touching him, anchoring Asahi to reality. He struggles to control his breathing, listening only to Noya's voice, low and soothing. "That's it, that's it; you've got it. Good, really good, I can feel your heartbeat slowing a little. Don't drift off, 'kay? I'm here; I've got you."

It takes a few minutes, but Asahi's vision clears and his ears stop ringing. Noya's still rubbing comforting circles into his shoulder, kneeling in front of him. He takes one long, final breath and shuts his eyes, willing his body back to normalcy. His hands are still trembling slightly, but it's far less than before. They're cold. Noya notes this as well and cups Asahi's hands in his own small ones, furiously rubbing them in order to warm them up. The friction helps some of the feeling return to his fingers and Asahi's shaking nearly stops.

Noya's hands are warm, much like the rest of him.

He's burning, from fingertips to toes—a human furnace, really. His metabolism had always been off the charts (that's why he ate far more than the rest of the kaiju response team), turning all that excess energy to heat that radiated from him, physically and emotionally. Noya was often an ember buried into Asahi's side during movie nights with the rest of the team, or a searing hand to Asahi's shoulder on long nights in the K-science bay, guiding him back to their shared room.

But Noya also emanated charisma and energy, a loud and lively comet rocketing down the halls of the base or scaling Tyrant Omega with far more ease than a biology major should have. He drew others towards him with the heat of his presence and the promise of the warmth it would bring them. They were all moths drawn to the candle flame, weren't they?

Better be careful, or I'll get burned.

Noya's confident and hopeful grin prompts Asahi to return it with a weary smile of his own. Noya hasn't let go of his hands yet, in fact, he gives them a reassuring squeeze. Asahi hopes he isn't sweating too much. Getting burned, huh...that's probably okay.

"Honestly, Asahi," Noya sighs, exasperated. "Even if there is going to be a double event, it's not the end of the world. Have a little faith in Daichi and Suga and the rookies, would you? We're stronger than ever right now, you know. Those kaiju don't stand a chance."

Asahi nods, clearing his throat. "Yes I...I suppose you're right. It's just really..." His hands twitch between Noya's.

Noya takes Asahi's hands and gently smacks his cheeks with his own hands. Asahi blinks in surprise. "Chin up, ace," Noya laughs. "We'll protect you. Not even Daichi would let your glass heart shatter. All you have to do is point us in the right direction."

Asahi nods once more, stronger this time, and stands, pulling Noya up with him. Noya smacks him on the back with a laugh, Asahi coughing at the strength of the hit, and just like that, the balance is restored to the bay. Asahi trudges over to his computers, an excitable Noya leaping around him and asking what he was doing, oh, that's a really complex computer model you've got there, what are you using it for? Asahi humors him in a low, calm voice, easing back into his routine with the comfort of mathematics.

Math was, to Asahi, the greatest balm on his rattled psyche. Equations and functions were sturdy friends, never varying because of some stray variable and as absolute as the orbit of the Earth around the Sun. If he got a wrong answer, it was because of his human error, not because the process of the numbers had changed. Even since high school, Asahi had been flighty and anxious, but math—his best and favorite subject—mollified him to a degree that nothing else could. Koushi, his best friend, had teased him constantly for smiling while he did his calculus homework, but it was no matter. Asahi would simply roll his eyes good-naturedly and help his kind-hearted classmate with the latest lesson.

They had lived on the same street in their younger years, although they didn't really speak until high school. Asahi had been too shy to make friends—and the other kids had been too frightened to make friends with him—but Koushi took to him like a duck to water. A gentle soul even then, Koushi commuted with him to Karasuno, much farther from their local high school but a good bet for their education and futures. They took the same college prep classes and Koushi chatted non-stop with Asahi when they walked together, slowly easing him out of his shell. It was a good set-up, great even. Koushi wanted to go to the university in Miyagi so he wouldn't be too far from home and Asahi wanted to go because of the famous professor of mathematics there. They planned to be roommates. They planned to study abroad.

Then, of course, the professor moved universities, taking Asahi's reason to attend the one in Miyagi with him. Koushi urged him to follow, smiling and hopeful for Asahi's future—he knew what a prodigy Asahi was. And once he got a scholarship to go to Tokyo—well. Asahi couldn't exactly turn it down. He and Koushi kept in touch, texting each other often, perhaps more often than they had talked. Asahi coped with his friend's absence. Math majors tended to be similarly minded and quiet anyway; Asahi felt right at home with them. He graduated. Went on to grad school. Earned his two doctorates and an impressive internship with a prominent mathematician. That famous kaiju, Thousand-Tails, struck when Asahi was at the highest point in his life, when he had direction and shining prospects, wiping him back to square one.

His family escaped the carnage when Thousand-Tails made landfall, losing their property but not their lives. Asahi can pinpoint the exact moment he found out about the attack, sitting in a bar with a few of his companions on a rare night out to celebrate his internship, condensation from the beer dripping down onto his white-knuckled hand like the trickle of fear ran down his spine...

He found out that his parents were okay a couple days later and about Koushi even later than that. The trauma, the shock, the psychological damage—he found out about it all in a cold waiting room, the scent of latex clogging his nose and fluorescent lights highlighting the bags under his eyes. Asahi took care of Koushi for a few weeks after that, settling him back into his apartment—he had only been visiting; oh Suga, oh Suga—and taking him to therapy until Koushi stopped looking breakable and his eyes cleared.

Asahi didn't start having anxiety attacks over the kaiju until one late night over at Koushi's, only three days before he returned to Tokyo, and a news special broadcasted the destruction of his hometown through the lens of a shaky cellphone camera. The screen blurred, his throat closed, and Koushi found him tilted over, practically convulsing, and rushed him to a hospitable immediately. That's when Asahi learned he couldn't look at a picture of a kaiju without shaking, couldn't watch footage without dissolving into an attack, couldn't look at Koushi without seeing the sadness lingering in his eyes, translating into the thick sludge of guilt low in his gut. Because after all, what did Asahi have to be so anxious and scared of? His family lived, he had been safe from Thousand-Tails up in Tokyo, and the images of death and devastation didn't haunt him in his dreams like they did Koushi, who woke up wailing and trembling on his worst nights.

"Asahi, I'm going to join the Miyagi Kaiju Response Base, enter in the Jaeger program. I'm going to become a pilot. Just thought I should let you know."

Why? Why did Koushi send him that text that kept Asahi up all night when he received it? How was Koushi still okay, still unafraid to face off against the very monsters that had ruined his life, when Asahi could only shudder at the mere mention of the word 'kaiju'? When he threw up because some guy on the train had a tattoo of Thousand-Tails, like it was nothing, like that unholy demon hadn't destroyed the lives of millions people, killed or otherwise?

"Oh I'm still afraid alright, Asahi. It's because I'm afraid that I have to do this. I won't be satisfied until I know those pilots and techs and whoever are trying their very hardest to protect civilians—I won't let anyone else end up like me or Mom and Dad and Kai."

"...I still don't understand."

"I'm not going to let this kill me. I've got to make something of the rest of my life. God knows I won't find it teaching. I need to help the people the Miyagi base was unable to help."

"Well, if there's anyone for the job, it has to be you, Suga."

It was true, too. Updates from the base came infrequently, but when they did, Koushi always had something positive to say about the training and his rotation. He was fulfilled there, so he said, feeling as if he had found his one true place to belong. Then Daichi happened, and Koushi set his roots in the Jaeger program, forming a team that actually could pilot, that would pilot, even if their Jaeger was a beat-up hand me down. When Koushi told Asahi about his first time piloting as the flank team to Akaashi and Bokuto, Asahi decided it was about time he joined, too. The Miyagi base was looking for a mathematician, and he had been pestered by other bases to join up with them, anyway. He'd get absorbed one way or another, and better the devil he knew (and Koushi) than the one he didn't. Theirs was a kaiju-centric world—he had to face it head-on.

And after a few months, Noya happened to him. Koushi joked about Asahi finally finding his 'other half' like Koushi had found his in Daichi, but he couldn't have been farther from the truth. Noya was everything Asahi was not—wild, confident, and full of so much positive energy, he could have powered the entire base on his own. Asahi—fortunately or unfortunately—was an object of fascination to Noya, who bugged him day in and day out. Asahi couldn't have ignored him if he wanted to.

But he didn't want to, that was the strangest part. Despite being a foil to his anxious, introverted self, Noya endeared himself to Asahi, who often found himself giving in to even the most ridiculous whims of Noya's (they didn't speak of the incident with the bubble bath solution). Noya might have heightened Asahi's anxiety in a completely different way than the kaiju—although there was that, too—but he was good for Asahi, as Koushi pointed out with a smile hidden behind his hand. Asahi smiled and laughed more often because of Noya. He couldn't exactly argue—the base had become home and no one was more surprised than Asahi was.

It almost ended though, that newfound happiness in such a dangerous place, when Koushi chased the R.A.B.I.T. Seeing Koushi carried away, still quivering and sobbing like he'd relived the death of his friends and family (he had) reset Asahi back to those days of watching his best friend crumble to pieces while he watched, helpless and heavy with guilt. All Asahi can remember from that time was a blur before Noya. He remembers the choking, the panting, the tunnel vision of a caged animal screaming at him to escape, escape, ESCAPE, YOU IDIOT IT'S DANGEROUS HERE RUN RUN RUN—

—Then he was in the bay, shoving papers into folders, scattering most of them, the only sound the roar of blood in his ears and his own ragged breathing. Then Noya, standing there in the doorway, the same open body language and bright, curious eyes and god, Asahi needed to get out—

"Asahi-san?" An uncharacteristically soft voice. "Asahi-san, what are you doing?"

"Leaving." Asahi didn't recognize his own voice, cracked and rasping. "Getting out, I need to go, need to get out, god, oh god—"

"You can't do that, Asahi-san, Suga needs you!" Noya leapt in front of him, tugging at his arm. "He needs you here, you're his dear friend!"

Asahi shakes his head, vision swimming, attempting to free his arm from Noya's grasp. "No, no no no, he doesn't; I'm sorry Suga, I can't do this anymore." Asahi slumped forward into Noya, still murmuring noiseless apologies to his long-time friend. Noya caught him uneasily.

"Asahi-san are you okay? Suga mentioned a condition..." He prompts uncertainly, and Asahi can just see the edge of concern in Noya's eyes and hear it in his voice.

No, he wants to say. Give that concern to Suga, he needs it. He's so strong and kind—he needs all the love and support in the world to get better. He deserves it. Don't stay with me Noya; I don't deserve your dedication, your friendship. I'm as guilty as Thousand-Tails, why wasn't it me, Suga shouldn't have had this, it should have been—Noya, I'm leaving anyway—

Maybe he wasn't as subconscious in his pleas as he thought because Noya jolts against him, shoving him back with a snarl. "Stop that!" he practically growls. "You're valuable and important and we all need you too! Don't belittle yourself so much! Don't talk about leaving us! Don't be so stupid, Asahi-san!"

Asahi's vision clears slightly. He still can't breathe quite right, but he can see Noya, hands working in attempt to calm himself down, posture stiff and unyielding. "How can you believe you don't matter? How can you...after all these months together... No one deserves to be hurt by a kaiju, you know. That's why I'm studying them. That's why I'm here!" He bangs a fist against his chest, lips curled in a snarl.

"I'm not here because I feel sorry for someone! I'm here because I want people to stop hurting altogether, not mope over the past! I'm needed, just like you're needed...we can't do this without you, Asahi, so why would you ever think..." The fight goes out of Noya in an instant. He slumps, gaze still fixed on Asahi.

His eyes are shimmering.

If focusing on Noya had calmed his anxiety down, then seeing him tear up, of all things snapped Asahi completely back to reality. Asahi embraced him immediately before he could reconsider his actions. The panic died down in both of them, and hesitantly Noya lifted his arms and wrapped them around Asahi in return, taking deep, steadying breaths, warm air puffing against Asahi's collarbone. Asahi promised, in a small voice that he was alright now, he wouldn't leave, and Noya nodded against him.

Asahi hadn't needed to panic like that. It wasn't just Noya who supported him and had his back—Koushi was there, as he always was, willing to help out Asahi with his anxiety while he was out of commission to recover. Even Daichi, who Asahi would have sworn up and down hated his cowardly guts, popped in to ask him how he was doing or drop off lunch when Asahi forgot about it, wrapped in his studies. Noya's friend Tanaka stopped by more often, another loud companion who was insistent on getting Asahi out more often. Hell, even the nurses who had been looking after Koushi, Narita and Kinoshita, chatted with him on occasion.

Of course, to top it all off, Noya made it his own personal quest to find out as much as he could about anxiety attacks and how to help Asahi when the next one happened instead of "bawling like an idiot", as he put it. And Noya meant it seriously, too. He'd been at Asahi's side more often than Koushi, to the point where Asahi and everyone else called for Noya to help Asahi get through one. (He stopped tacking the –san on, too. Asahi never actually told him how much it meant to him that Noya considered them equals.)

Truth be told, Asahi was glad to have the spitfire attached to him at the hip, even if Noya tended to do dumb or infuriating things, such as prodding at Asahi's computers, as he was now.

"Hey," Asahi chides gently. "Be careful with that data, would you?"

Noya pouts. "Wasn't gonna do anything," he defends.

Asahi's about to reply with a variation of 'yeah, right' when Tanaka pops his head through the door, catching Asahi's attention.

"Yo, you two doing anything important right now?" Tanaka asks, raising an eyebrow at Noya rocking back and forth in a swivel chair. "Well, good to know Yuu's wasting that inhuman intelligence of his. How did you get your doctorate, again?"

Noya stops rocking and spins to face Tanaka. "Five doctorates, Ryuu, excuse you. To think someone who went to grad school for engineering can't count, that's something."

Asahi sighs. Here they go again.

"Oh, so that's how you want to play it, Yuu? Well then, at least all four of my doctorates are legitimate."

"Hey, fuck you, man; K-Science is a legitimate degree!"

"You made up the course!"

"Only because there was literally no research on kaiju that wasn't utter garbage."

"Whatever, I'll give you that one, but any way you look at it, biology's an easier Ph.D. than engineering."

"Okay, now that is total bullshit. Anyone who has a basic grasp of advanced calculus and half a brain could do engineering!"

"Did you even listen to that last sentence? Yuu, you're a moron!"

"Shut up Ryuu, you're just bitter that I have more degrees than you!"

"Could you both please," Asahi interrupts, "please just be quiet?"

Noya and Tanaka had their hands fisted in each other's shirts, screaming into each other's face, spittle flying. Asahi questioned how they could even be friends when arguments like this were a weekly occurrence. Shame-faced, they drop each other anyway, scuffing their feet and mumbling apologies.

"Oh! Well anyway, I was going to suggest we go for a few drinks," Tanaka perks up, remembering his original reason for stopping by. Noya, forgetting the bickering instantly, looks hopefully at Tanaka.

"Really?" His head whips around to look at Asahi pleadingly. "C'mon, you've worked on that darn project long enough; take a break!"

Asahi looks over his work with a mixture of concern and tiredness. Noya could be right. Maybe if he stepped back from his work for a while, it would stop getting so cluttered in his head. A few beers would do the trick. He consents with a smile and a nod, and the duo whoop in excitement, charging out the door, Asahi following more slowly.

The bar they and other members of the staff frequent wasn't more than a mile or so down the road from the base—close enough to walk or jog too, and not so far that they couldn't stumble back to the base if they were drunk beyond belief. It was a tight squeeze on busy nights, but the owner was a good friend of Koushi and Daichi, and therefore, the rest of the base. And the bar tender, a stoic, quiet fellow with the build of a hulking polar bear, easily put down any bar fights or scuffling. It's a good place to calm one's nerves or just hang out with a crowd of spirited and friendly individuals.

Although it's not a requirement necessarily, there are no true 'groups' at The Iron Wall. Everyone intermingles, whether they're locals or from the base, chatting or just sharing table space. The air is one of camaraderie and blissful ignorance of the current world situation, if just for a night. When Noya, Tanaka, and Asahi arrive, the party is already in full swing. It's a busy night, but a scan of the room tells Asahi none of the pilots are there.

Noya leaps onto an open bar stool, kneeling on it to better lean over the bar. "Aone-san!" He calls, drawing the giant's attention. Asahi can't tell if the blank look is one of barely concealed irritation or fond tolerance at Noya's actions, but he ruffles the scientist's hair anyway, earning him a yelp from Noya and immediate backing off the bar top.

"What'll it be?" He asks Asahi quietly, sensing a kindred spirit.

"Ah, the usual will do for all of us. Don't let Noya talk you into giving him any vodka; he was a nightmare last time," Asahi orders for them, raising an eyebrow at Noya's sudden pout.

"Put it on Ryuu's tab," he blurts instead of arguing with Asahi. "It was his idea after all."

Tanaka bitches at Noya for a little while but caves when Noya promises drinks on him next time. They squabble amiably over what kind of beer to order next, gesturing all over the place to the point where Asahi honestly doubts they're talking beers at all. He sips his own gratefully, sharing a meaningful glance with Aone, drying some glasses with a rag. Aone shifts to keep an eye on two newbie Drift techs who are gradually climbing higher and higher onto a table, red in the face from a friendly argument. An anonymous local bumps Asahi's arm and she smiles apologetically, giggling when Asahi returns her smile with a shaky one of his own.

Noya elbows him sharply and Asahi jumps a foot.

"Having fun yet, ace?" Noya's eyes are bright and darting, drinking in the good-feel atmosphere of the bar. He's perfectly at home, practically dripping charisma and drawing the attention of a group of college students who are bound to invite him over to join in on a game of some kind. Noya'll accept of course, bouncing over and throwing himself in the middle of them, brushing against arms and legs like he's known them for years. That's just who he is—drawing moths to his flame wherever he goes.

And Asahi's fine with this. He likes to be the quiet observer, listening in on a conversation or watching the antics of the younger ones, conversing with Aone through a series of knowing smiles and eyebrow raises. Asahi like to watch Noya go, shedding his light on others. Asahi's not selfish enough to want it for himself—and he doesn't have to worry about that anyway. Because in those high moments, after delivering the punchline of a joke or performing some crazy stunt, Noya looks to Asahi. For approval or for amusement, out of habit or out of curiosity; Noya always glances to Asahi, face aglow, and Asahi will nod or huff in amusement, looking away a moment later. It's too hard sometimes, to look at Noya when he's at his brightest.

Having fun yet, ace?

The worries from earlier, thoughts of the double event and of calculus, slip from Asahi's mind like sand through fingers. His muscles ease and his mind clears. He lives in the present, if just for a moment, meeting Noya's expectant smile and nodding. Noya grins in response, and for a second, Asahi thinks he might say something to him, almost like a slip of the tongue. But Noya hesitates too long and the group of kids fulfill Asahi's prophecy and call out to the 'shrimp with the cool hair', drawing Noya's attention from Asahi in a second. He goes easy on them because they're immediately teasing and friendly; the two different parties taking to each other easily. Asahi watches from afar, wondering if Moniwa-san will take a break from managing to drink with them, and Aone slides him another beer. Asahi wonders why it tastes like sympathy.

-------------

A week and a half later finds the three-pair pilot team huddled in a small room a hallway down from the Shatterdome's control tower. Hinata's pretty wound up, jiggling his leg and biting his lip as they lean over the table, prompting Tsukishima to elbow him sharply in the ribs under the guise of "stretching". Hinata yelps in pain and Kageyama fixes Tsukishima with a gaze sharp enough to rival his elbows. Yamaguchi sighs and worms his way between Hinata and Tsukishima, playing the mediator. He also gives Kageyama a reprimanding frown when Kageyama continues to glare at Tsukishima, prompting the overprotective pilot to back down reluctantly.

Daichi and Koushi are silent through the exchange, fighting smiles off their faces. Technically, this was an official meeting and technically, the pilots should have been taking it more seriously, but their ability to sort through kinks in their interactions—mostly due to Yamaguchi's inoffensive neutral presence—was a promising sign that the three pairs would be able to form a cohesive team. Daichi clears his throat and the four stiffen, paying attention again.

"...As I was saying," Daichi began. "The paths highlighted in blue are our main routes for intercepting the kaiju—Tsukishima, you better pay attention, we've changed them a bit—the yellow are for freak situations, using land shortcuts and the like. We try to avoid those as often as we can, collateral damage and all that. The red are the absolute last resort routes. Yes, they're faster, but only at the expense of local businesses and homes. Plus, there're always those people who don't adhere to evacuation advisories despite our best efforts. Stepping on people is easier than you might think."

"Also," Suga gestures to a darker mass of water. "We try to avoid these dark patches of deeper water. Not only is it harder to push through extra millions of gallons of water, but the kaiju of the aquatic variety can easily ambush you and drag you down. It's happened before."

There's a moment of silence amongst the pilots in respect for their fallen predecessors. (And if Kageyama flinches hard then no one has to know except Hinata, who memorizes the sharp slash of shock and fear that passes over their connection before Kageyama can stop it.)

"Tactics-wise," Daichi continues. "Control will give you a route to follow, unique to each Jaeger while we discuss with them the best plan of attack, but it's never bad to know your surroundings in case you need to improvise. Additionally, don't be afraid to put your two cents into our plan of attack—Koushi and I may be the most experienced, but fresh perspectives can sometimes improve the quality of our strategy to an incredible degree. You'd do well to memorize these routes."

Koushi changes the graphics on the table they're gathered around with a few quick finger strokes through the holographics to reveal real-time imagery. A flick of the finger and he projects it in front of the other pilots, panning across their exit bay, slightly choppy waves flickering at the bottom of the holo-screen. He's about to speak when the alarm goes off, the deafening blare of a siren and the flash of red lights filling the room.

Hinata yips in surprise, his whole body flinching at the same time Kageyama shoots out a hand to steady him. Hinata meets his eyes, half grateful, half curious. Koushi herds them out of the room with soft but stern encouragement, Tsukishima and Yamaguchi already out the door and Daichi close behind.

"It's your first real mission, so we'll be putting you two on reserve no matter what category shows up, okay?" Koushi explains. "The first few missions are always rough—take it easy and don't take your mistakes to heart; you'll get into the swing of it." He shoos the two stiff-limbed pilots in the direction of their Jaeger with a parting grin, attempting to instill confidence in the newbies. Hinata and Kageyama exchange glances, but Koushi need not have worried. They break into excited grins of their own, nervous energy filling their limbs as they break into a sprint towards their Jaeger.

They nearly bowl over Noya, streaking in the direction of Mission Control with Asahi hot on his heels. They don't even have a chance to apologize before the scientist and mathematician duo pass them with a desperate energy. Noya blows into the room, a hurricane all on his own, Asahi following in his wake. Saeko's blowing a bubble with her gum, but her eyebrows are knitted together in concern. Asahi fears the worst.

"Saeko-neechan, what's going on?" Noya gasps, panting a little.

She turns around in surprise, popping the bubble and putting her hands on her hips, tense expression melting away. "Well this is quite the rare treat. What're you two doing here, clogging up my techs' space?" The look in her eyes says she's joking, but Asahi still glances around the small room apologetically.

"This is important," Noya insists, looking her straight in the eyes with no trace of humor on his face. "What's the situation with the kaiju?"

Saeko's a little taken aback by his insistence, but she shrugs and pulls up a holographic display. "Category Four, codename 'Dandelion'. Offensive spikes all around its head and on its body. Gonna be a tough long-distance battle. Why? Has something happened I should know of?"

Noya looks to Asahi, distressed. Asahi steps forward, hand moving to press at the base of Noya's shoulder blade comfortingly. "You're sure there are no anomalies? Nothing out of the ordinary?"

Saeko shrugs again, confused. "A Category Four in Miyagi is pretty damn weird in itself. Our sensors went wild, you know? It's not the biggest we've faced, but it's unfortunate that it had to show up on Tyrant Omega's first run." She frowns again, looking between the two. "Something's up, isn't it. What aren't you telling me?"

Asahi shakes his head. "I'm sorry, it must have been a mistake on my part. I was so sure...but this is the reality, and I don't want to cause undue panic over a faulty calculation. Please forgive our interruption, but might we stay for this mission?"

She nods, still not fully comprehending the situation but trusting them to inform her of any relevant information. "Right over there should be fine." Noya and Asahi bow and remove themselves to a corner where they will not interfere with the well-oiled machine of Mission Control. Saeko takes up the com from a tech, scrolling through maps and incoming data while her personal techs record the strategy put into place by her and the main team.

The Marshal shows up, too, standing at Saeko's side. He has a com of his own, the only two allowed to communicate with the Jaeger pilots. The massive windows revealing the interior of the Shatterdome darken and flicker to life moments later as video feeds from the military helicopters and water vessels giving Mission Control as many angles as possible to aid the Jaeger team.

"I don't like it," Saeko barks suddenly. "Tyrant Omega is still new and inexperienced. Close quarters with this kaiju would be—I'm aware of that, Suga, but even if their long-range accuracy is pretty crap, it's still better than sacrificing them to the spikes on that thing. We don't know how tough they are yet." Asahi and Noya can't hear the other side of the conversation, but Saeko's nails drum against the top of a desk with irritation. She's concerned more than angry, but it's apparent the pilots aren't giving her an easy time of it.

"Kageyama and Hinata," she says loud and sudden. "You do realize this is an extremely dangerous kaiju with the capacity to plow straight through all that wiring and machinery that controls Omega, right? You can't get hit at all. You sure you want to risk that? ...Hmm. Fine. If Ukai-san allows it."

The Marshall leans over his mic. "If it looks bad, get out immediately. A more risky plan is better than losing an entire team, for sure. If Sawamura and Sugawara say get out, you get out. Hear me?" Ukai seems satisfied with the response and nods for operations to continue. Saeko barks out a few more orders, and on the screen, Omega begins to surge forward while Strike sets up for long-distance cover and AA circles around opposite from Omega, distance weapon drawn. Omega is the only one with melee weapons—two long swords crackling with energy.

"Plasma sabers," Noya murmurs with interest. "I didn't know he was fitted with those."

Asahi would reply, but his stomach is already heavy with dread at the glistening black shape emerging from the depths of the Pacific Ocean, water streaming from its body as it breaches, falling like a monsoon from the literal dandelion of spikes around its flat face. At the end of its short, thick tail is a heavy club of chunkier spikes clearly designed to knock a Jaeger out of commission.

"Oh no," Asahi whimpers. "Oh god, it's too big, way too big. There's no way...oh, Kageyama and Hinata can't fight that..."

"Hey." Noya takes Asahi's face in his hands, turning his head to look at him, noting the disgruntled expressions of techs near them. "I want you to watch this fight, okay?" Asahi shakes his head—or tries to, but Noya tightens his grip, forcing Asahi to face him.

"Watch this fight. I'm going to prove to you that you can believe in our pilots and in Tyrant Omega. They can do it. They're going to do it. Trust in them and trust in my work." Noya's eyes soften at the pleading look on Asahi's face.

"I'll be sick, I can't watch—"

Noya closes his eyes and presses their foreheads together, standing on his tip toes and pulling Asahi down. Their noses brush and Asahi nearly shies away at the intimacy, but settles down when Noya keeps the contact for several deep breaths.

"Sometimes," Noya murmurs. "Sometimes I wish we had aptitude as pilots. Not because I want to fight the kaiju—I'm not nearly that brave—but so that I could understand you, and have you understand me." Asahi watches the smile twitch at the edge of Noya's mouth. "Must be so easy for them, with the Ghost Drift and all. I wish I could help you just a little, with this—"

Asahi touches Noya's cheek and he jolts, eyes fluttering open.

"You do help me, you know," Asahi murmurs back. "I wouldn't have lasted this long here without you. I think we understand each other more than you're inclined to believe. I'll watch the battle. Just this once." Noya leans into his touch.

"Okay," he agrees in a small voice.

They turn their attention back to the full display, where Strike and AA have engaged the kaiju which, thankfully, appears to be unable to move fast. Apocalypto Alpha is doing most of the damage, taking off chunks of horn when the bullets connect at the right angle, while Gold Strike keeps it occupied and off the trail of Tyrant Omega, creeping behind it in its trademark hunched stance. The small, dark figure is obscured by black ocean water, absorbing light with its organic skin, rather than reflecting the light off metal. AA's coloration is a distraction in itself, too bright and unnatural in an ocean environment.

When Omega charges, it is with a sudden gain in speed from the slow creeping, surprising the entirety of Mission Control. One saber crunches through a gathering of spikes on the kaiju's elbow, knocking them clean off, while the other slices through the belly, leaving a gaping wound spilling blood and some unidentifiable organ. Omega slides beneath the kaiju and safely out the other side, sabers retracting into the hilts attached to its hands. 'Dandelion' shrieks with pained fury, but Tyrant Omega has already dropped to all fours and submerged itself halfway in the ocean, dark skin camouflaging it from the weak eyes of the kaiju.

While it swings its head wildly to search for the new aggressor, Strike loads heavy rounds into its exposed back, AA charging it and firing at the slash in its stomach, severely worsening the wound. Too slow to turn back around, AA is able to knock the kaiju on its side and fire into its exposed stomach while it flails. However, the position leaves Apocalypto Alpha vulnerable to attacks from Dandelion's clawed paws, which it uses to its advantage. The front paws knock away AA's gun while the back paws shove her off balance, falling into the ocean. Both kaiju and Jaeger struggle to their feet. It seems like it might be a test of speed rather than strength before Omega intervenes.

With a surprisingly agile leap, Omega hurls itself at the mass of spikes around the kaiju's head, sabers clearing the way. Switching from sword to hands, Omega grips at two large spikes, forcing Dandelion's head back while it thrashes wildly. Two dead-on shots from Gold Strike and the kaiju's brains are splattered into the Pacific. The thrashing dies down and Tyrant Omega drops the kaiju. Apocalypto Alpha fires one final round through its skull for good measure, and Saeko confirms its lack of life signs, a wild grin on her face.

"I'd say something about this mission," she begins, "but honestly, I don't know what to say. One thing's for sure, though—I'm sorry for ever doubting Omega for a second. Holy shit."

Routine congratulations are exchanged all around, a few techs staying in place to coordinate the return of auxiliary base members and the Jaegers, but the mood has changed from tense to light with relief. Asahi releases his hands from the fists they had subconsciously balled into. Noya whistles.

"Can't say I'm unhappy with the result," he says, puffing out his chest and oh, right, that's his child, after all. "I think Tyrant Omega has made quite the debut. And on a Cat. Four, too!"

He punches Asahi good-naturedly in the side. "Told ya."

And surprisingly enough, Asahi does feel a little better. It was comforting to know that everyone else was holding their breath, starting to sweat when Apocalypto Alpha lost her footing, letting out a collective exhale when it was all over. He's glad that other people feared with him. And Omega had been amazing—there was no Jaeger team out there that could do what Tyrant Omega had done. Asahi tells Noya this, and the scientist turns a little pink, sticking his nose in the air.

"Naturally! I had a hand in his creation. A rather large hand. Of course he'd perform beyond expectations." But he's secretly pleased, Asahi can tell.

Asahi leaves Noya to celebrate his success with the returning pilots, preferring the quiet of their shared bay instead. Noya accepts this without question, knowing Asahi has faced a lot of stressors today and needs to calm down. It's a good façade.

Asahi turns to his massive equation with an ominous look, pulling up the latest results of the base's sensors. "Over-reacting sensors, huh?" He mutters darkly. "That changes things; that changes a lot of things..."

---------------

"Dibs on first shower!"

Daichi humors Koushi's childish declaration as he skips ahead, glancing back at Daichi with a playful look. Daichi raises an eyebrow, and Koushi shoots him the trademark grin that always melts Daichi's cold heart. (The cold heart that he absolutely has, despite Koushi's claims that he's a 'softie' after the fond way he tousled the newbie pilots' hair when they got out of their Jaegers.)

The Drift had been so strong today—for all three of them. Having bared theirs souls to each other, Daichi and Koushi Drifted to almost 'absolute synch', as Michimiya had dubbed Kageyama and Hinata's straight line level of connection. Daichi felt Koushi more intimately, understood every twitch and change in his body, every flicker of thought as if it were his own. They had been able to pull off that trick with knocking over the kaiju solely because of that connection. Even though they had gotten pretty close to being in trouble, the run felt good. Clean.

Actually, Daichi was feeling pretty energetic himself. The Ghost Drift is a live wire, Koushi not bothering to conceal any of his thoughts or feelings and wow, that shower would feel nice right now. Daichi locks their room absentmindedly, hooking himself into Koushi's train of thought about Kageyama and Hinata. There's the slightest tendril of nervousness at how quickly they're evolving, how quickly they'll overtake Daichi and Koushi, but far stronger than that is the pride in them, as if those kids really did belong to them. It's a warm feeling that Daichi returns. Their first meeting and squabble seems like a whole different lifetime when even just today, Kageyama reacted to Tsukishima's antagonism towards Hinata and Hinata had bristled at Saeko's implication that Kageyama didn't have the skill to take on a kaiju in close combat.

It's a little dangerous, that connection. They'd clearly experienced awkwardness about being tied so closely together already, and they only seemed to be growing closer. Daichi sends a silent prayer that if the bond is to evolve, it will be requited. He can't imagine how disastrous it would be for one of them to fall for the other and not have their feelings returned. Kageyama, especially, is a danger if he is to have his emotions tampered with.

A hum across the bond stirs Daichi from his dark train of thought. Koushi's humming—it's an oldie that Daichi catches onto pretty quickly, bouncing the chorus right back at his partner. He can feel Koushi smiling, amusement and love flowing Daichi's way.

Koushi gasps when he feels hands at his hips, spinning around so fast he almost falls over. Daichi steadies him with a mischievous grin. Koushi still has shampoo in his hair, sticking it up at odd angles. Daichi shapes it into a mohawk, Koushi fixing him with the most disdainful look he can muster while internally laughing. Daichi pushes him back under the spray and Koushi closes his eyes, trusting. Daichi washes the soap from his hair, rubbing his scalp with the amount of roughness that makes Koushi melt into him.

When Daichi pulls him out of the shower stream and into his arms, Koushi nestles his face into Daichi's neck, kissing at his throat and jaw lazily, too content to suck at the tender skin. But then Daichi's hands slip below his lower back and Koushi gasps a little, pulling back to meet Daichi's half-lidded eyes and his own gaze sharpens.

"You're trouble, Sawamura Daichi," Koushi declares.

"You wouldn't have it any other way," Daichi rumbles, leaning in for a kiss. Koushi meets him halfway with a smile on his lips.

---------------

Kageyama's not entirely sure how he got roped into this situation. He's decidedly uncomfortable and awkward. The others are also decidedly uncomfortable and awkward. The only one who seems oblivious to all of this is Hinata, babbling away like the too-happy idiot he is.

How did he get roped into this? A stupid question. Obviously, Hinata was involved. And once Hinata latched onto an idea, he put his full attention and effort into bringing about its existence, all 900% of his power.

Kageyama can't remember what jumpstarted Hinata's urge to meet up with his old buddies from high school that also worked on the base. One of them, Izumi, had texted Hinata after their first battle, telling him how amazing the fight was and especially how Tyrant Omega was all anyone could talk about now. Still riding the high from the post-mission party, Hinata had stayed up practically all night, texting back and forth with his friend, snickering in his bed and rolling around, making the springs squeak. It got loud enough to the point where Kageyama hurled a pillow with perfect accuracy straight at Hinata's face, transferring all his rage and irritation across the Drift in the same moment. Hinata cooled down a little after that, and Kageyama managed to get a good night's rest.

Then, of all things, the next morning Hinata leapt onto Kageyama's bed (it kept happening), eyes bloodshot and bags underneath them from staying up all night, spilling out "their" plans for the day at a mile a minute. Kageyama hadn't actually agreed to go to lunch with Hinata's childhood friends. He didn't know them, and furthermore, it'd be awkward, wouldn't it? He could be frightening and socially inept at times, after all.

"Pffft. You're always socially awkward and scary, Kageyama. How is this any different than how you normally are?" Hinata, that little shit, giggled at Kageyama's perfectly rational excuses.

"This is the dumbest of any dumb ideas you have ever come up with, dumbass," Kageyama growled. "I'm not going. I have better things to do than make petty conversation."

"How many times did you use 'dumb' in that sentence anyway?"

"Oi."

"Ack! But I already promised Izumin and Kouji that you would go! And they're bringing two friends of their own, anyway, so it's not like you'll be the only awkward one."

"That doesn't make it any better! Now get over here so I can beat the crap out of you."

"But—" Hinata winces, allowing himself to be caught and for his head to be squeezed mercilessly. He swats futilely at Kageyama's hand before looking at him with an injured expression. "But I really wanted Izumin and Kouji to meet you. All I ever talk about with them is piloting, but it's super hard to tell them how scary and impressive my co-pilot is when they've never seen you before. You're an important part of my life, they're an important part of my life; makes no sense that you would never meet." He mumbles the last part, grimacing, like it was hard to admit.

Kageyama's grip loosens in surprise. It's not like he didn't know Hinata thought he was important or cool or a person he sought to overcome, but saying it out loud like that...it made his stomach flip and his face heat up. Honestly, he felt way more uncomfortable than before.

"I'm not a trophy to be shown off," he mumbles in response, unable to hear himself over the roaring in his ears. His hand is just resting on Hinata's head now, and his fingers twitch, as if to stroke Hinata's head. Alarmed, he draws his hand back against his chest before he does something really stupid. Like in the dream.

(The dream, the dream—the dream that still haunted him with the so-believable reality of each breath and touch, the yearning that drove him to the edge of his sanity. The dream that never could be.)

Hinata's eyes follow his hand, which is also really not helping. "Of course not," he murmurs in reply. When did it get so quiet and heavy in their quarters? The atmosphere is so thick that Kageyama can feel himself start to suffocate. He wants to escape, wants to leave the room, wants to get closer to Hinata, wants to bury his head in a pillow, wants to touch him again...

"I would never consider you to be an object. We're partners aren't we? A team? I want to go up to Izumin and Kouji and say 'See? Isn't this guy so amazing? He's stronger than me and he's great at piloting and I'm really happy that he's my co-pilot!' They keep telling me to introduce you, if you really are so incredible." Hinata ducks his chin and headbumps Kageyama in the chest softly, leaning his chin against the same hand Kageyama had touched him with before and peering up, making the best puppy-dog eyes he can muster.

Kageyama hates how he jumps at the touch, adrenaline dripping through his muscles and making his heart race. Every quickened breath ruffles Hinata's bangs, the proximity making Kageyama's mind swim and his sense of rationality fizzle out. Just one touch wouldn't hurt, right? He hadn't touched Hinata since that night at the outlook other than passing brushes or a steadying hand at his elbow. It was okay if he caved this once...

Tentatively, he reaches out one hand, drawing his fingers along the back of Hinata's head slowly. Hinata tenses at the contact for a moment, but then relaxes into it, blinking slowly at Kageyama. The contact is immediately soothing to Kageyama, too. All the tension and built-up emotion in his chest drains out with a long exhale as he works his fingers through Hinata's hair. He's not sure why he imagined the spikes to be bristly or anything other than pillow-mussed curls of softness. Hinata reminds Kageyama a bit of a wild animal, only ever tame in small moments, orange fur never quite lying flat.

Kageyama is so grateful for the barrier between their minds. They're both holding their end of the Drift away from each other, the only feeling slipping across a hum of mutual contentment. Kageyama thinks he might scare Hinata away from him if he were to feel the warmth billowing around Kageyama's mind, driving his heart to calm itself and his expression to smooth. He needed this, which is actually terrifying, but he's determined not to think too hard about it.

"Well?" Hinata mumbles, attempting to sound annoyed. "Are you gonna go or what?" He's leaning into Kageyama's touch, fighting to keep a petulant grimace on his face. His eyes slip closed though, and he sighs happily, clearly not all that intent on an answer.

Once more, Kageyama stills his hand, and he's already cupping the back of Hinata's head and leaning forward before he realizes what he's doing.

Jerking away in horror, the fog lifts from Kageyama's mind and he's moving away, away, away from a baffled Hinata, who cocks his head, looking somewhat hurt.

"I'll go," Kageyama blurts, walking backwards towards their door, fumbling with the handle. "I'll go just—just give me a minute."

He flees, cursing himself for not following the flight instinct in the first place and giving in to his attraction. Oh god, he would have done it too; would have just kissed Hinata like they did that all the time, like it was perfectly normal to have such a relationship between pilots. He burns all over—hands, heart, throat, eyes—he feels as hurt as Hinata looked. It was just lust, just the work of his unfulfilled sex drive, nothing more, because it couldn't be anything else, he wouldn't let it be anything else.

And yet, despite one long run and resolve in his mind to avoid any unnecessary thoughts of or touches with Hinata, Kageyama still found himself dragged on the damn lunch date with four strangers and one hyperactive source of troubles.

Only, they weren't all strangers.

It would have been exponentially better if they were all strangers.

Kindaichi stared down Kageyama like he was something out of a nightmare. Kunimi might have been green in the face. The tension between the three was palpable and Kouji looked supremely awkward, like he was about to witness a fight to the death. Hinata, immune to the atmosphere of any situation, and Izumin, ignoring the stiffness of the rest of his group, greeted each other with hugs and cheerful small talk.

It wasn't like things were exactly bad between Kageyama and his rotation teammates—after all, they had acknowledged him at his and Hinata's graduation ceremony—but they hadn't made nice either. Instead, they were left with the strange in-between of 'I don't like you, but I'm also not going to be cruel to you either'.

"You didn't say that the pilot you knew was Hinata, Kouji," Kindaichi manages in a strained voice.

"I didn't know that you knew him, either," Kouji replies, equally as strained.

"How nice!" Izumi interrupts in an overly cheerful voice. "We won't have to make introductions, then."

Hinata looks over Kindaichi and Kunimi as if seeing them for the first time. "You're the ones who used to torment Kageyama back in his cadet days, right? The same ones who harassed us in the elevator?" He asks bluntly.

Everyone, even Izumi, winces at the question. Kindaichi and Kunimi look supremely uncomfortable, shifting their gaze awkwardly between the pilots and their companions. "We can't exactly deny that," Kunimi mutters. There's a beat of silence.

"Well, that's in the past now, isn't it?" Hinata shrugs, bouncing over to them and invading their personal space. "What'd you bring?"

Kageyama watches in shocked silence as Hinata immediately involves himself in an altercation, slightly hysterical on the cadets' part. He whines and attempts to peer in the large brown bag Kunimi is carrying while Kindaichi does his best to shoo Hinata away. Persistent as ever, Hinata makes up for height by jumping, shoving his face as close to Kindaichi's as possible to argue.

Turning back to Hinata's childhood friends, equally as shocked, Kageyama dips his head politely. "I'm Kageyama, Hinata's co-pilot—not that he bothered to introduce us. I'm sorry that we have to meet in such an awkward fashion." He's not quite sure why he has to apologize for Hinata's mess.

The two bow deeper and introduce themselves as well, looking at Kageyama in awe. Kouji is the first to break into a grin. "So you're the infamous Kageyama-san, huh? Shouyou never stops talking about you; it's about time we got to see you in the flesh. You're as tragically handsome as he said you'd be."

Kageyama doesn't flush pink, because that would be childish of him.

Izumi matches Kouji's grin. "To be honest, though, you're not what I expected. I guess...I guess I kind of imagined someone with more of a 'grrrr!' feeling, you know? Someone who was always scowling and yelling and beating Hinata to a pulp. You seem to be more of the 'irritated but tolerant' types who's willing to grudgingly put up with Shouyou's antics." Kouji nods in agreement.

"You may not think that after seeing what we were like when we first met," Kageyama grimaces, imagining how annoying Hinata had been to him—and how he often still was.

Kouji and Izumi take one look at his face and burst out laughing. "Your expression says it all," Izumi snickers.

"Tell me, tell me—how god awful is Shouyou as a roommate and co-pilot? He's like a flea isn't he?" Kouji snickers.

Kageyama rolls his eyes and relaxes, feeling much more at ease with these two and their gentle teasing. "He's loud and competitive—even though we're fighting together, he tries to make everything into a contest. And Drifting with him was hell at first. He's so hyperactive! He talks in his sleep, snores, is way too clingy, eats everything in sight, absolutely impossible to ignore..." Kageyama trails off with a huff. "I'm amazed we clicked after all the trouble we went through."

"I'm not," Kouji says. "It's impossible not to love him, right?"

The look in his eyes is far, far too clever for someone who Kageyama had just met. Kageyama was wrong—these two were extremely dangerous and he had to get out of there fast. The panicked look in his eyes must have shown, because Izumi shoots him a soft look.

"Kouji's teasing. What he really means is that we've seen Shouyou grow to love and care for you, even though we haven't been present in your professional lives. It's been a wild ride, but we're glad that you two finally resolved your differences and are good friends now." Izumi claps Kageyama on the shoulder amiably and directs him over to the other three members of their party. For some reason or another, they're sitting down, Hinata sprawled across Kindaichi's lap, trying to get at the pork bun Kunimi is holding in the air, away from him, looking mildly distressed.

"He means business when it comes to meat buns," Kageyama says to them. It's an olive branch.

"I'll keep that in mind," Kindaichi replies evenly, allowing Kageyama to yank Hinata from his lap by his jacket collar. The expressions on their faces shift from cautious to curious, and the hostile air around the group evaporates.

Lunch is a boisterous affair with such a mismatched group. Each pair brought enough to share with the whole group—meat buns, fish and rice, and some kind of broth-based soup recipe Izumi had picked up from a foreign technician friend of his. Hinata plants himself between Kageyama and Kindaichi, taking to involving himself in everyone's conversation and drawing all the attention to himself. Kouji and Izumi act as the mediators among the group, keeping the conversation from dying down or becoming awkward while also caring to drag Kageyama into the fold of the group.

Kindaichi and Kunimi, surprisingly, take to Hinata in an odd, teasing kind of way. They find it particularly amusing to dangle food in front of Hinata and test to see if his reaction time is fast enough to snag it (it is). There's general merriment among the companions, but Kageyama feels a little out of place.

Hinata is so at ease with these people. He accepts their familiar touches and tones and gestures, even from the two he hadn't formally met. An arm slung over his shoulder and a noogie from Kindaichi, an annoyed 'tsk' from Kunimi who brushes a little rice from his hair ("Honestly, who even gets rice stuck in a place like that?"); cheek-pinching from Kouji and a lap to lie in after eating from Izumi. They all interact with Hinata so easily, so informally, while Kageyama can't even bring himself to let their shoulders brush.

It's jealousy, he realizes. He's jealous of these people who can get so close to Hinata when he's the one who deserves the closeness—after all, who rode alongside Hinata in the Jaeger? Who had a mental bridge with him? Who had a deeper connection with him than any normal human being should?

Why does he have to hold back when he deserves so much more?

It's immature and wrong of him to think of Hinata as his, especially after that stunt he pulled in their quarters that morning, but dammit, Hinata is something to him. Perhaps it's the fact that the only close bonds he ever made ended in loneliness and suffering for both parties that makes him want this partnership to work. Kageyama doesn't want Hinata stolen away when they've got such a good thing going. When he really feels that he's found an important person to him, too.

Then the conversation shifts to him and Hinata and things get strange. All four of them want to know what it was like, battling a kaiju in the Jaeger and coming out alive. Hinata gestures wildly and grossly elaborates how cool it was, Kageyama stepping in every now and then to correct him or put his two cents in. They're curious about the controls, about the mechanics, about the Drift, about...oh, what did you call it?

"The Ghost Drift," Hinata laughs. "Oh yeah, that's pretty neat too."

"I just don't understand," Kunimi sighs. "So...you can see into each other's minds?"

"Eh...that's a bit too simple and straightforward," Hinata explains. "It's more like we can send psychic messages to each other and feel each other's mental and physical condition. Like, I could tell where Kageyama was exactly and what he was feeling, even if he was floors away."

There's a murmur of awe. Hinata nods enthusiastically. "Right, but that's pretty hard to do—even we're still working at it. It's way easier to just touch your co-pilot and feel how they're doing."

Hinata touches Kageyama's knee before Kageyama can snap the wall into place completely. He panics internally, but it's too late. Hinata saw it, just the flash of his raw emotions, but that was more than enough. His jealousy and resentment of Hinata's friends. The unfairness of resisting his attraction to Hinata. His fierce, uncalled for protectiveness of Hinata and just how important he was to Kageyama.

Hinata's eyes widen a little, but he plays his poker face perfectly. He gasps dramatically, as if scandalized, and loudly declares that Kageyama was a giant pervert and no, Izumin did not look good in a dress and high heels. Kageyama blushes in anger and embarrassment like he ought to, and the group laughs, conversation rolling back along.

Kunimi notices, as he does in all things. Kageyama's eyes, having scarcely left Hinata since they sat down, now refuse to look at him. And Hinata, careful to disguise his glances at his co-pilot, loses his stealth, and the smile on his face wavers a little when he looks for too long. They go their separate ways an hour or so later, after exchanging numbers and farewells. It's a light-hearted goodbye, but once the group of four is out of earshot, Kunimi turns to a somewhat down Izumi.

"You were right, Izumi," he murmurs. "They're a tragedy waiting to happen."

"Oh, to be young and in love," Kouji adds, smiling softly. "Don't count them out just yet, Kunimi. Something has to break, eventually."

--------------

Strangely enough, Koushi wants to see Kageyama and Hinata that night, too. He's evasive when asked why, promising that it will be a pleasant surprise. They are to arrive at Asahi and Nishinoya's bay just after nightfall. Confused but trusting in their senior, Kageyama and Hinata do as they're told.

When they show up, the party is already in full swing. Noya and Tanaka have rebuilt one of the ventilation shafts into a kind of chimney, and there's a roaring fire in a makeshift fireplace, warming the entire bay. Saeko is fiddling with the radio stations on an old speaker system, tapping her foot to a song she finds particularly agreeable. Koushi is wrapped in a fluffy scarf, running mugs of hot chocolate to the members of the kaiju response team, while Daichi stirs a pot of the stuff over the fire and snaps at Noya not to make the inferno any larger. Everyone is there, save for the Marshal and Takeda-sensei and with the addition of Kiyoko.

Kageyama and Hinata are stunned. True, it had been getting much colder out as of late, but they had never expected a full-scale winter party in the K-science bay, of all places.

Koushi spies them and gestures to an old sofa that had been lying unused in the back of the bay, now placed near the fire. Tsukishima is already situated in a large armchair, Yamaguchi perched on one of the armrests. The girls have commandeered another sofa, and Tanaka is dragging an ottoman and a coffee table over.

"Suga-san, what is going on?" Hinata asks in amazement.

"Exactly what it looks like," Koushi laughs. "It's a winter get-together; we have one every year. It's just a time to hang out and talk, de-stress, you know the drill." He delivers the last two mugs to Asahi and Tanaka, trotting back over to Daichi, who whispers something in his ear, making Koushi giggle.

They're absurdly happy today, Hinata thinks, wondering if maybe they had been looking forward to this celebration for a while. They sure seemed excited, bumping shoulders and kicking each other's feet mischievously.

"A-hem!" Noya directs the attention to himself, and all the side conversations come to a halt.

"Kageyama and Hinata don't know how this works, so I'll explain what our winter party is all about. Basically, we're trying to get to know each other a little better, especially since we work in different areas of the base and don't always have time to chat. So, we each tell a story or something interesting about ourselves to start, or someone asks you a question and we go from there. Pretty simple stuff. I'll start."

Noya talks about the trip he had gone on a month or so prior to Tyrant Omega's first mission to Tokyo. While there, he had exchanged data with Yaku, a close friend of his, regarding the nerve fiber suits Yaku's pilots were using. They had finally got the prototypes to work, and Noya was surprised to say that the results, although still showing success, were completely different from Kageyama's or Hinata's.

"It's really weird! I mean, to be fair, the Jaegers and pilots are completely different, but you'd think the nerve fiber would work the same way. Mori's working that kid of his to death trying to finalize the suits. He really should go easier on him. Lev's an absolute genius, but he gets too eager and makes simple mistakes that really drive Mori up the wall. They're working on making the nerve fiber more durable since their Rangers are a bit rough in their piloting, or so I've heard. If it turns out well, he'll send Lev to us for a couple months to fix up our suits. The kid's pretty excited to work on Omega after the fight against 'Dandelion'."

Kageyama and Hinata nod eagerly, happy for any advancement in their Jaeger's design. The discussion turns to Tanaka, who recalls an amusing incident involving the Tokyo head mechanic, Tora, the fire emergency system and Jaeger coolant system of Tokyo's base, a few trustworthy wrenches, and a dream of making it snow inside the base. There was a reason that keycards were now necessary to access the inner workings of the Tokyo base and that Tanaka was transferred permanently to the Miyagi base. Asahi jumps in with a story involving Moniwa-san, the owner of The Iron Wall, nearly being arrested and imprisoned for terrorism, while Aone apprehended the real, armed terrorists plotting to attack the Miyagi base. With his bare hands.

Tsukishima blatantly refuses to add anything to the conversation, despite numerous attempts to solicit any kind of story from him, but Yamaguchi volunteers two short stories: one about his pretty little hometown and one about young Tsukishima and his elder brother that he had heard from their mom. Tsukishima grimaces his way through the second story but doesn't berate Yamaguchi for talking for him. In fact, he ends up making room on the large chair when Yamaguchi squeezes next to him, looking for forgiveness. He is forgiven with a soft huff and a sliver more room on his side of the chair.

Kiyoko is encouraged to share her tale of rescuing Michimiya from a group of guys harassing her on the street by kicking the shit out of them in heels. Michimiya adds that she had asked Kiyoko to escort her through the bad part of town on her way to an important scientific conference in town, and now Kiyoko had her own class in training bodyguards for important officials and scientists at the base. Furthermore, those same guys had tried to enter the Jaeger program, but one look at Kiyoko in the Kwoon Room and the blood drained from their faces almost faster than they sprinted from the base.

"Hey Saeko-san," Michimiya wonders thoughtfully. "Didn't you know the pilots of Small Giant pretty well? I think Hinata might want to hear about them."

"Oh god, not this again," Saeko sighs, cheeks turning pink. "I only knew one of them, and I didn't even know him that well—"

"Saeko-neechan! You have to tell me about him!" Hinata jumps in, eyes shining. "The pilots of Small Giant are so amazing!"

"Fine, fine," she agreed, waving a hand. "I'll tell you about him."

"Well for one, he didn't start out all that great. Short guy, not a lot to his build, but he had a passion that outshone guys three times his size. He stood out in spirit, even if his results weren't the best. Anyway, one day, he gets it in his head that he wants the Marshal to Drift with him, help him train. Of course, the rotation leader laughed in his face, but he was nothing if not persistent. Oh, and take note that this was the old Marshal Ukai—the one that's famous around the world.

"He bothered the rotation leader, the techs, the scientists...anyone who had a link to the Marshal. Every time he was shut down. Then he came to me. He told me about his test results and how he trained—naturally, I knew all this already, I'd been keeping a close eye on him—and he asked if he could Drift with the Marshal in order to train. He was polite about the whole thing, too. I thought, hey, what the heck; he's been trying so long, why not ask the Marshal? I did tell him that no means no if the Marshal refused, though.

"And, lucky for him, the Marshal was curious enough to try it. One whole day of practically straight test Drifts, and the Marshal decided to take this 'small giant' under his wing. I guess there was something in his mind that moved Marshal Ukai. I'll never know why; he never told me. But after only a few months of individual training, the 'small giant' was ready to be certified as a Ranger—even faster than the regular program. According to the Marshal, he had been giving his co-pilot too much leeway; that was his problem. Imagine that! Trusting your partner too much.

"Anyway, he thanked me profusely for taking a chance on him and he came to visit me every now and then. I watched every single one of his missions. Man, he was a good guy. Super cool, too."

"What she's not saying," Kiyoko adds, "is that she had a massive crush on him and obsessed over every little detail of his life. Luckily, he found her obsession to be cute instead of creepy."

"Kiyoko! How could you betray me like that? It was not a creepy obsession, I just cared about his wellbeing!" Saeko wails, gently punching Kiyoko in the arm, but Kiyoko only smiles with a hint of slyness.

"What was he like?" Hinata asked, wonder in his eyes.

Saeko straightens up and clears her throat. "Ah, well, he was pretty loud. Never did anything halfway. Loved and trusted by everyone on the kaiju response team. He was always trying to make himself and those around him better. Actually, he reminds me a little of you, when you're piloting Omega and you get really into it."

Hinata's eyes are definitely sparkling now. Kageyama looks a little confused. "He didn't fall in battle, right? So where is he now?"

Saeko hums thoughtfully. "That's true, but this was back when the Tokyo base was the only one around. I think he's moved to Australia or California now, but I can't be sure. Either way, he's keeping under the radar and we aren't in contact anymore."

"Who was the point team before Daichi-san and Suga-san, then?" Kageyama muses.

"Ah, that would be Akaashi and Bokuto," Koushi replies. "They're the real masters of this base, all-around experts who've ridden together for far longer than Daichi and I. They're in Korea now, if I'm not mistaken."

"That reminds me," Hinata pipes up. "You never told us how you two met and became pilots. You didn't know each other in high school, right?"

"That's right," Daichi agrees. "We met here at the base."

A brief look around shows Daichi that their story actually holds interest for some of the group and he laughs. "Oh come on. You don't seriously want to hear our boring tale of bad first impressions and lucky scrapes, do you?"

"Sure we do," Tanaka says. "I love romcoms." Noya elbows him in the gut.

Daichi rolls his eyes. "Alright, well if Hinata wants to know."

"I signed up for the Jaeger Program as soon as the Miyagi base was formed. I'd planned to go off university, but ever since the kaiju entered our world, things like degrees and jobs don't really make sense to me. I decided to try out as a pilot more on a whim than anything else—I didn't think I could really make it, but I wanted to do whatever I could to help stop the invasion. Lo and behold, it turned out I fell above average on almost all aspects, except Drift compatibility. I can Drift with various partners, but not very well.

"Still, a new base like this needed soldiers, and since I seemed to be half a step in the right direction, they threw me in a Mark II with another cadet and had us run defense after around a year of training. Actually, I switched partners quite frequently, as they either couldn't take the stress or the conditioning or a variety of other reasons. The Marshal Ukai—junior—started to trust me because of how reliable I was in a Jaeger and put me on flank for Akaashi and Bokuto, back when they were around. But the lack of a solid partner affected my performance. It's really hard to keep piloting well if the person you're connected so deeply to keeps getting uprooted and replaced. It started taking a toll on my psyche. I probably would've been pulled out if it weren't for Koushi showing up." Daichi shoots Koushi a fond look and nudges his shoulder.

"Please, please; you give me too much credit," Koushi dismisses. "We're just lucky we found each other in the first place."

Shifting to make himself more comfortable, Koushi continues the story. "As you know, I came here after I was cleared psychologically and given a clean bill of health, after my family died and my village was destroyed." There are solemn nods or looks of gentle condolence from all assembled.

Koushi smiles sadly. "I wanted to become a pilot so that no one would have to suffer the same fate as I did due to the incompetence of the protectors. My only regret is that I did not do so early enough to change the fate of my loved ones. But that's in the past." He straightens up.

"As for how Daichi and I met..." He shoots Daichi a sly grin and his partner shifts uncomfortably. "Well there I was, only a few months into my training, ready for my first trial in the Kwoon Room with one of the base's top Rangers—a special event only for our rotation—on my way to the Kwoon Room. You know, where I was supposed to be. I wasn't exactly sure where it was, but I wandered around in the general area, figuring that I'd hear the noise from my rotation or ask for directions.

"Then, out of nowhere, this dark, frightening man whips around the corner, all brooding and serious energy. He knocks into me, nearly sending me straight to the floor, and although at first he apologized sincerely, he seemed to realize I didn't have my cadet jacket on. Then he started chewing me out, telling me how I 'wasn't supposed to be there' and that this was a 'high-level area only' and 'regular clearance staff shouldn't be wandering around where they aren't allowed' and blah, blah, blah. I was frozen still with fear, but then I remembered that I had my ID tag.

"So I show this guy the ID tag and he snatches it, skims it once, twice, and turns the most interesting shade of pink I've ever seen to this day. He mumbled an apology and hurried past me, leaving poor little me confused and worried that I was going to be booted from the Jaeger Program immediately." Koushi laughs at the end and Daichi buries his head in his hands as the rest of the group snigger or giggle amongst themselves.

"I was really stressed out, okay? How was I supposed to know you were a recruit with his jacket in the wash?" Daichi feebly defends himself. Koushi squeezes his hand comfortingly.

"I forgive you. Anyway, as you can imagine, there was quite a lot of awkward tension in the Kwoon Room that day. We were both mortified that we had to be within close proximity for the entire day after such a horrendous first encounter. But, when we sparred and got past the tension, our spirits aligned and I felt this intense connection with the scary guy from earlier. We could read each other's moves, and instead of fighting, as it was with other recruits, sparring with Daichi felt like dancing. In the end, he was able to knock me down, but even then, I felt euphoric instead of depressed. I was so sure that the feeling was just because he was a Ranger, but then he wanted me to try out as his permanent co-pilot...how could I say no after a connection like that?"

Koushi remembers that first battle so well. The clever, self-confident smile on Daichi's face as he faced off against Koushi. The silent dialogue between them that said to forget first impressions and start anew. Koushi opened himself to Daichi and vice versa—they circled each other like cats, but each strike was a question. Who are you? What kind of person are you? Are we the same? Are we different? Do I need your soul to fight alongside mine?

They answered in touches of skin and sweat and in the collision of their strength and strategy. The dance flowed without beat or choreography, just simple conversations between their bodies. And when Daichi struck Koushi down, the staff just an extension of his body, resting solid over Koushi's heart, he knew. That impossible handsome and terrifying man above him had to belong to him. They were Drift compatible—more even then the forced connection between Koushi and his rotation teammates. Koushi could Drift with damn near anyone, as was his gift, but Daichi felt different. Better.

And when he extended a hand to help Koushi to his feet, introducing himself as Sawamura Daichi, flank team Ranger, Koushi was sure he had smiled so warmly back as his heart skipped a beat.

There's a suspiciously loud cough from Tsukishima's direction. Koushi blushes, realizing he had trailed off nostalgically. "Ah, pardon me. Well, the rest of the story isn't all that interesting. We ran flank together for about a year, Asahi joined, and the entire base grew from a fledgling to its own animal. Obviously, we're still just a secondary base, but we're in the running to be expanded and upgraded to primary status. After Daichi and I fended off a kaiju that managed to escape the point team and keep it from making landfall, the Marshal commissioned the triplet Jaegers. We got Apocalypto Alpha not too long after. Besides one incident where I chased the rabbit, it's been smooth sailing, even though Daichi and I have more responsibilities as the new point team."

"You're pretty gifted for such a new point team," Kageyama volunteers softly.

"Ah, thank you," Koushi accepts. "It's only been a year, but we hope to lead you two flanks for many more."

"Amen to that," Saeko agrees, slamming her cup onto the coffee table. "It's been grand, you lot, but some of us poor, over-worked souls have research to get to in the morning, and I for one value my sleep." She stands up and stretches, various murmurs of agreement echoing her statement.

The entire group helps tidy up with a kind of satisfied lethargy. Hinata and Yamaguchi hang on their partners like koalas the entire time, provoking different levels of irritation and violence. The girls clean up without complaint, thanking Asahi and Noya for hosting with polite bows, much to the embarrassment of the scientists. Tanaka follows his sister out, yelling something about a package to be sent to their parents. The rest of the assembled bid their goodbyes, moving out of the K-science bay at their own pace. Daichi and Koushi follow Tsukishima and Yamaguchi, Daichi tugging Koushi close to him with an arm at his waist and Koushi leaning against him, sighing in contentment.

Behind them, Hinata watches in envy. "Daichi-san and Suga-san have so much trust and love in their bond. Even in their past—they've always had each other's back and it seems like they never fight or argue or anything. I don't get it, but I'm really jealous. I wish I had a relationship like that."

Kageyama nods in agreement. It really would be nice to never fight with the person he was closest to. Not that he could really imagine having a completely happy and healthy relationship with someone like Hinata. He sneaks a glance at his co-pilot, pouting childishly and giving the retreating backs of their seniors his trademark 'I won't lose to you!' glare.

Kageyama snorts. Yeah, there's no way he could have what Daichi-san and Koushi-san had with Hinata. "It would be nice, wouldn't it? Unfortunately, you're an antagonistic idiot with no impulse control. Who would be able to tolerate you, anyway? I can barely manage it."

Hinata snarls something in reply and launches himself onto Kageyama's back, initiating an argument between them that escalates into a physical altercation quickly, and ironically enough, proves Kageyama's point. Noya snickers and Asahi shakes his head.

"They're probably too dumb to realize just what kind of relationship Daichi and Suga have," Asahi sighs.

"You got that right!" Noya crows. "Even though they've been giving off that annoyingly peppy 'I got laid' aura, Tobio and Shouyou are definitely not smart enough to figure it out. They can't even figure themselves out."

Asahi shrugs. "Still, it's nice to know that they've got each other. They may not realize it yet, but they rely on each other quite heavily, even outside of piloting—I don't see them much and I still notice."

Noya looks up at Asahi, mischievous. "Young love, eh?"

Asahi coughs and looks away. "Wouldn't know a thing about it."

"Aw, come on, Asahi," Noya nudges him conspiratorially. "You're telling me you were never, ever sweet on anyone?"

"I had studies to focus on and anxiety that made spending too much time with unfamiliar people highly stressful," Asahi points out. "Where on earth would dating fit in?"

Noya pouts. "Well you don't have to date someone in order to like them. Actually, I don't really care if you liked someone or not. Just tell me about someone you love, Asahi! Anyone! A friend or a romantic interest, it doesn't matter. I just want to hear about a person that you really love!"

Noya smiles brightly, trying his hardest to look endearing to get his way. It's a tactic he's used before, one Asahi is soft to. True to form, Asahi smiles back gently, expression full of fondness for his small companion. There's an unfurling in his chest, a sense of unusual confidence, and Asahi can't even bring himself to stop his voice from saying the words.

"Isn't it rather narcissistic to ask about yourself, Noya?"

That provokes a reaction. Noya's eyes widen and the smile falters on his face. He manages to only squeak out a tiny "Asahi-sa—" before Asahi brushes a stray hair from his face and leans down to kiss Noya once, very softly. When he draws back, Asahi notes with interest the bright red flush that spreads across Noya's face from the top of his ears to the tip of his nose. For once in his life, Nishinoya Yuu is speechless.

He is finally able to whisper a startled "Asahi-san, you—me? Really, me? Not...not a joke?"

Asahi laughs an unfamiliar, soft laugh that surprises both of them and makes Noya blush even harder. "No, never a joke. Not with you." He ducks his head a little, trademark shyness showing through. "I really love you, Nishinoya."

Noya goes completely still for a moment before attaching himself to Asahi's shirt. "Asahi-san! I really, really love you, too! I think you're really brave and really cool, even when you're scared and you want to run away. I admire you so much, and I always hoped we'd become friends, but I...er, somehow in the process, I fell pretty hard for you."

He peers up at Asahi, that same lively smile in place on his face, although the wildness in his eyes has calmed to a slow-burning affection. Asahi moves to cover his face, embarrassed, but Noya catches his hands, entwining their fingers.

"Asahi," he murmurs. "Come here."

Hesitantly, Asahi leans forward, and Noya stands on his tip-toes to kiss Asahi again, longer this time. Asahi had always thought Noya would love as passionately as he worked, but he's gentle in his movements. He pulls at Asahi's lower lip, but breaks the spell with a laugh when he feels the overgrown mess of Asahi's unkempt beard. He squeezes Asahi's hand to let him know everything is okay, he's happy; they're both happy.

"Come on, let's go to bed," Noya suggests, beaming. "There's no reason to be standing here awkwardly in our lab. Don't worry; I won't jump you."

"I seriously doubt that, Noya," Asahi replies. "You've been known to jump all over anything that's taller than you."

Noya laughs in response. "Okay, good point. Oh, and Asahi?" He pulls the mathematician down to his level and murmurs in his ear:

"Call me Yuu from now on, okay?"

-------------------------

Kageyama shuts the door and clicks the lock. He doesn't like how final it sounds, echoing in the emptiness of their quarters.

Hinata hasn't said a word to him since they settled their argument, choosing to walk in silence, glaring a hole through the floor from how hard he was thinking. It's obvious Hinata wants to say something, but the length of silence is beginning to get awkward. Kageyama takes a breath. "Hey—"

"You know, everyone in the base has someone close to them," Hinata interrupts. "Even outside the pilots. Saeko-neechan and Michimiya-san are partners in studying the Drift, and they're also really friendly with Shimizu-san. Obviously, Asahi-san and Noya-san work together and balance each other out, but Tanaka-san also shares Tyrant Omega as a project with Noya-san. Even the Marshal is close with Takeda-sensei."

"Your point?" Kageyama growls.

Hinata takes a deep breath. "Well, even though I said I'm envious of Daichi-san and Koushi-san, and I think everyone else has a much closer bond than we do, I'm still glad you're my partner! I wouldn't trade you for any of them, Kageyama, and I mean that!"

Kageyama can hardly see through the light shining in from the tiny window in their room, but he's pretty sure Hinata is wild-eyed and completely stiff, as if waiting to be beaten up or worse, laughed at. Kageyama's heart is beating hard—this constant elevation cannot be healthy—but he's far more distressed that this is always, always Hinata's reaction to him.

"Why do you do that?" He murmurs. "Every time you say something you've thought over for a while, you always act like I'm going to attack you for speaking your mind."

Hinata straightens up a little. "I...I just thought...that after today..."

He trails off but Kageyama knows what he's talking about. That moment when Hinata caught him with his walls down. Kageyama's throat closes up a little and he swallows thickly. "So?" He says too quickly, too defensively.

Hinata takes a step towards him. "You're not mad?"

Kageyama barks a laugh. "I should be asking you that."

Hinata shakes his head. "No, I don't know why I would be. You value our partnership, right? If anything, that should make me happy. I just wanted to let you know I feel the same way."

Kageyama's face twists into a snarl. "There's more to it than that and you know it. Why aren't you upset? Be disgusted. Ask for a new co-pilot. Do something."

Hinata shakes his head more furiously and gets in Kageyama's space, still talking at a low volume that alarms Kageyama. "No—Kageyama, no, that's good—I—" He bites his lip and looks away. "I don't want another co-pilot, don't you get it?"

"Not even if I do this?" Before Hinata can make any move to stop him, Kageyama tilts Hinata's head to the side and kisses him right below his ear, along his jaw.

Hinata's entire body shudders against him, and Kageyama feels a lash across his mind so strong it practically burns him. He pulls away, certain that Hinata is disgusted now. It take him a moment to realize that whip across his mind was the most ferocious chorus of yes from Hinata's mind and body that he'd ever felt in his life.

He stares at Hinata, dumbstruck, their bond blown wide open. He's not sure when his hands settled on Hinata's shoulders, but he can feel his partner trembling beneath his hands. Relief and want and love pour over the connection, overloading Kageyama's senses, like the very first time they used the Ghost Drift. Kageyama's projecting, too—shock and amazement and acceptance and more love than he ever knew he was capable of feeling.

He doesn't notice the tears dripping down his face until he sees them in Hinata's eyes, too.

Hinata jerks forward, hugging Kageyama so tight his ribs might've cracked, but Kageyama returns the gesture just as fiercely. Hinata sobs into his chest and Kageyama squeezes his eyes closed to stop the stream of tears, but he can't. They can't even speak, so overwhelmed by the crashing of their minds over the Ghost Drift.

I admire you, I look up to you; your strength is my strength. I'm so glad I found you, I'm so glad you're here with me now. That dream—

Yes, it was mine, too. I want to touch you, I want to care for you, protect you, no matter the cost. You've proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that your spirit and passion supersede raw talent. Really...it is you who are the most incredible.

I wanted you to touch me like that, all the time. I want to feel you as close physically as we are mentally. When we're in the Jaeger, one mind and one body, even then, I want you nearer to me. Can you be?

Always. Anything for you. God, Hinata, I think—no, I know that I love you.

Stay by my side then, forever.

"I love you, I love you," Hinata mumbles thickly into Kageyama's chest, sniffing wetly. He looks up, only to feel a single drop of water fall on his cheek. Hinata watches in awe as Kageyama wipes the corners of his eyes and takes a shaky breath. A feeling of warm protectiveness and adoration rises in Hinata's chest and he reaches up, wiping at Kageyama's eyes for him. Kageyama leans into the touch, breathing unevenly.

It's strange, to have the walls between them collapse so suddenly. Hinata registers distantly that his side of the link is curling and intertwining tighter with Kageyama's side. He's far more interested in the excess of emotion radiating off of the usually reserved Kageyama. All his resistance gives out, and Hinata just feels wave after wave of Kageyama's devotion to him, his love and his lust for Hinata, how he cherishes their union as pilots as much as Hinata does.

Kageyama calms down after a moment. He frees himself from Hinata, sinking instead to the floor, sitting seiza with his hands on his knees in front of Hinata. There's a decisiveness to his mind that catches Hinata off-guard. He bows his head slightly and Hinata, flustered, asks, "Kageyama, what are you doing?"

"Hinata Shouyou," Kageyama begins. "If you'll have me, I promise to stay by your side—whether as pilots or as life partners—for as long as you have need of me. No matter what happens, I won't leave you. Forever, if that's truly what you wish for."

"Wh-why are you deferring to me?" Hinata squawks, still stuck on 'life partners' and 'forever'.

Kageyama looks up at him and raises an eyebrow. "Why wouldn't I?"

Hinata doesn't have an answer for him. This Kageyama truly was nothing like the self-righteous 'king of the base' he had met so many months earlier.

"Do you accept?" Kageyama prompts, looking uncharacteristically patient.

"I...I do," Hinata replies, blushing and looking away. "But stand up, this is way too formal. Feel like I'm being proposed to..."

Kageyama stands up. "It could be a proposal, if you want it to be," he says simply. He scoops up a sputtering Hinata bridal style and carries him to their room. "Though I think that's more of Daichi-san and Suga-san's style, to be honest."

"What? Wait, what are you doing? Hey, wait a second—eep!" Hinata yowls, looking anywhere but at Kageyama's face. "Put me down! I don't wanna be attacked by this ravenous beast!"

"Who's a ravenous beast?" Kageyama growls, dumping Hinata onto his bed. "Stop getting weird ideas in your head."

Hinata tenses uncomfortably as Kageyama climbs onto the too-small bed, looking for all the world as if he were waiting to be assaulted. Kageyama rolls his eyes and tugs Hinata closer, into his chest. Hinata relaxes a little when Kageyama doesn't try anything, just loops his arms around him and nestles his face in Hinata's hair. Hinata actually snuggles back against Kageyama, enjoying the shared body heat and soft breaths rustling his bangs.

—There's a hand at his chin, gently urging him to tilt his head up. Hinata does so, and he feels the warm press of lips on his forehead.

"I love you, Hinata," Kageyama whispers, so quietly it might have been Hinata's imagination if it weren't for the flutter of nervous energy in Kageyama's stomach. He closes his eyes, settling his hand atop Kageyama's larger one, still curled around Hinata's middle. Kageyama twines their fingers gratefully.

"Let's go to sleep," he says, and Kageyama obliges. He spoons Hinata, pulling his tiny partner close to him on the double bed. Hinata is reminded of the star-gazing night and an amused huff in his ear tells him that Kageyama read his mind and agreed. Kageyama pulls the comforter over their entangled bodies. Hinata makes a pleased noise at the instant warmth.

"I meant it when I said forever," he murmurs softly after a while, voice heavy with sleep. Kageyama gives him an answering squeeze around his chest.

---------------------------

When Daichi wakes up, it is to the anxious stirring of the Ghost Drift, calling him even in sleep. He doesn't move much—from what he can tell, Koushi doesn't even realize what he's doing. He cracks one bleary eye open to see Koushi, sitting up and facing away from him, staring out the window. The sheets are pooled around his waist and there are goosebumps all along the bare skin of his back and shoulders. He sits, immobile, the entire time Daichi watches him. It's unnerving. Looping one arm around his waist, Daichi attempts to coax Koushi back to bed. At his touch, Koushi jumps a foot.

"Oh! God, Daichi, you startled me." He smiles down at Daichi, but there's a guilty look in his eyes.

"What's wrong?" Daichi asks. "Something's eating at you."

"Oh, it's nothing, just me worrying over things I have no business worrying over," Koushi replies, looking away. Daichi kisses the small of his back.

"If you're up this late and freezing cold, it can't be 'nothing'. Are you sure you don't want to tell me about it?" Koushi bites his lip.

"Asahi...Asahi told you about his predictions, right? About the equation?" Daichi nods, but Koushi still isn't looking at him. "He said there'd be a double event eventually. He predicted it to be the one Omega took down."

"Right..." Daichi agrees, not understanding where this was going. "But it wasn't. It was just a normal kaiju."

Koushi meets his eyes, worried. "Apparently, the sensors our base uses to predict kaiju sizes and abilities has been somewhat malfunctioning—it overreacts. And Asahi, who uses those results, ended up making the prediction with faulty data. Well, he recalculated it and said that he was way, way off. He hasn't figured out a date yet, but he predicts the double event will happen in the next week or so."

Koushi falls back onto the bed, distressed. "What're we going to do about that, Daichi? What's the world going to do if we have to deal with more than one kaiju at once?"

"Hey," Daichi says comfortingly. "It's only a prediction. And we've been hit recently too—even if there's going to be a double event, it won't hit here."

"You hope," Koushi sighs. "I trust Asahi. He wouldn't cause unnecessary fright unless he was dead sure."

"I trust Asahi too," Daichi says. "I just don't think something like a double event could happen if in the years we've been fighting the kaiju it has never happened before."

"I don't want to fight two of them at once," Koushi whispers, like it's a secret. He curls into himself a little, and just like that, Daichi knows this has been worrying him for a while. And since he knows Koushi like the back of his hand, he knows that this will drive him insane, the fear that something is coming, and that he doesn't know if he can face this something. It's the same fear that made the Marshal hesitate to let him continue piloting, the fear ingrained into his mind that he fought with every day. It's a fear Daichi can't allow to take hold of Koushi's heart and fester and grow, not after how far he's come. He sits up.

"Koushi, will you marry me?"

Koushi blinks and flips to face Daichi. "What?" He asks, baffled.

Daichi smiles boyishly back at him. "You heard me. Would you prefer if I got on one knee?"

Koushi still looks completely and utterly confused. "Why all of a sudden—"

Daichi shuts him up with a kiss, leaning back with the same, excitable look on his face. "Why not? I'm in love with you, you're in love with me—we're going to be with each other our entire lives, why not get married?"

Koushi laughs, a small smile climbing onto his face. "Where? Right here?"

Daichi nods resolutely. "Right here. Come on."

He hops out of the bed, still in nothing but boxers, dragging the sheet with him. Koushi yelps at the cold and chases after him. He wraps his arms around himself, shivering. "Really now, that's childish Dai—"

Daichi flourishes the sheet over Koushi's head, draping it over him like a veil. He holds the two ends at Koushi's neck and his breath catches. Surprised, clear eyes look at him intently, and there's a pretty pink flush to Koushi's cheeks. Silvery hair pokes out from beneath the sheet and two small hands appear to take the sheet edges from Daichi's. He smiles.

"What?" Koushi asks, furrowing his brow.

"Mother always wanted me to have a beautiful bri—ow! Ow, okay, I'll stop!" Daichi laughs, avoiding a second punch from Koushi who, nevertheless, refuses to remove his 'veil'.

"Get on with my wedding, I'm emotional and prone to leaving the altar," Koushi grumbles, fighting off a smile.

Daichi clears his throat. "Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to witness the union between these two smoking-hot young men who are, for the record, not virgins in the slightest—"

"That's not how it goes," Koushi mutters, but he's biting his thumb to keep from laughing.

"Excuse me sir. Anyway, after several years wasted pining after each other, these two idiots finally decided that they were completely and undeniably in love with each other, much to the 'surprise' of all their companions. Today, they will consummate their bond of love through the holy institution of marriage, in the eyes of god, the law, their friends, the Marshal Ukai, and the entire kaiju species as represented by the secondary brain of a kaiju downstairs called 'Kyouken' and the half-breed kaiju, Tyrant Omega."

More serious now, Daichi takes one of Koushi's hands. "Do you, Sugawara Koushi, take this man, Sawamura Daichi, to be your lawfully wedded husband?"

Koushi doesn't break eye contact for a moment. "I do," he says, softly. "Um, do you, Sawamura Daichi, take this man, Sugawara Koushi, to be your lawfully wedded husband?"

Daichi's eyes crinkle at the edges from how hard he's smiling. "I do. And with that, I declare us husband and husband."

"You may now kiss the significantly prettier husband," Koushi laughs, and Daichi takes heed, holding Koushi's face in both hands and tilting his head to kiss him deeply. Koushi drops the sheet to run his fingers up through Daichi's short hair, resting their foreheads together when they break apart.

Koushi gasps, all of a sudden. "Oh! We don't have rings now, do we?"

Daichi raises an eyebrow. "Or do we?"

Koushi watches with interest as he goes to the side table drawer and fishes out two boxes, simple, but still nice-looking. Koushi's heart leaps into his throat. He had just been joking, but they couldn't—

"Just open it," Daichi prompts him, reading the look of panic in Koushi's eyes.

Koushi does, nervously, but gasps again at what's inside. "Daichi! These are—"

"New dog tags," Daichi finishes. "I just got them a couple days ago. I was waiting for a time to present them to you, but this is as good a time as any."

"Look, look!" Koushi exclaims. "They have AA's symbol on them!"

Daichi takes Koushi's from him and places it around his neck, fixing the chain to its proper position. Koushi's eyes shimmer a little. "No one has to know," Daichi whispers and Koushi nods, wrapping one hand around the tag.

"Daichi...this is so nice...but why? Why did you suddenly decide to do all of this?" He asks, puzzled.

"With all that Asahi said, I just think you're forgetting one important thing—you're not alone." Daichi presses a hand to Koushi's cheek. "I'm here, and I won't be going anywhere. Tsukishima and Yamaguchi have our back as always, and now we have Kageyama and Hinata. You said so yourself, one day they'll be good enough to be a point team. Saeko, the Marshal, everyone—they're fighting with us, helping us out. You're not alone, Koushi. No one expects you to fight by yourself. We're with you."

He pulls Koushi into his chest. "I'm with you."

Koushi hold him tightly until the trembling leaves his limbs.

---------------------------

"Asahi? What are you still doing up?"

Noya rubs at his eyes and hops out of bed, padding over to the tiny desk lamp and Asahi's hunched figure. "It's so late, come on, you need sleep, too." He runs a hand down Asahi's arm, frowning at the tension in his muscles. Peeking around at his face, Noya sees a look of alarmingly fierce concentration and half-sounds coming from Asahi's mouth as he scribbles furiously on the paper in front of him.

"Asahi!" Noya barks, jerking him from his intensity. Asahi looks at Noya guiltily. "What are you doing?" Noya asks again, voice slipping into worried exhaustion.

Asahi's expression morphs into one of apology. "Yuu, I'm sorry, this—I'm sorry, the Marshal needs to see this. Forgive me." He kisses Noya's temple fleetingly, grabbing his papers and darting from their shared room, forgetting his shoes and robe. Noya just stands there, caught completely by surprise.

"Asahi..." He whispers. "Please don't hurt yourself like this." There's desperation in his voice, but he's not sure if it's over Asahi's health or the content of his studies.

The Marshal on the other hand, is wide awake, like he expected Asahi to come see him in the dead of night. He opens the door to his office almost immediately after Asahi starts knocking. "Azumane," he says by way of greeting. "This better be important."

"Sir, I really think you need to see this. As soon as possible. It's probably already too late."

Ukai takes the folder from Asahi's hands, skimming the title but especially taking note of the date on the folder—three days from now.