Incomplete [Chapter 14]

[Chapter 13]

Izuku glanced up when he heard giggles from the next room, but he couldn’t see anything but hallway through their open door. He looked at Yoshiki next, but he didn’t even raise his head, focussed on his new sketchbook. Izuku couldn’t tell exactly what he was working on, with it upside down, but he’d never seen Yoshiki so focussed and content, and he was pretty sure he could have just sat there for hours and watched him, if he didn’t think it would creep Yoshiki out.

“Sounds like they’re having fun,” he said, when Koharu giggled again. “Do you think we should be concerned?”

Yoshiki cracked a smile, and Izuku grinned back – it was always a good day when he could make Yoshiki smile or laugh.

“Can I see what you’re working on?” Izuku asked, caving to his curiosity. “It looks cool.”

Yoshiki turned it around, and Izuku felt his eyes widen. In shades of pale brown and yellow, Yoshiki had inked out a castle complete with drawbridge and turrets, surrounded by a moat of flowing blue. Atop the walls and riding over the drawbridge on horses were tiny knights in armour, partially-coloured in pink and purple.

“It’s our sand castle,” Izuku said softly, stunned. “It’s beautiful, Yoshiki.”

Yoshiki’s face burned as he gently slid it back to himself, his fingers trembling a little as he reached for a pink marker again.

“I mean it, that’s so cool.”

“It’s for Koharu,” Yoshiki mumbled. “I want to put a dragon too but I’m not sure how to draw one.”

“We could look up some pictures?” Izuku suggested. “We can find one that looks cool and you can use it for inspiration.”

Yoshiki nodded, and Izuku retrieved his tablet from his bag, turning it on to start some searching. He rounded the table, while Yoshiki finished off his knights, moving to the seat beside Yoshiki’s, and together they began scrolling through images, trying to find one that looked right for his artwork.

“Where do you want to put it?” Izuku asked. “We could try like ‘dragon flying’ or ‘dragon sitting’ depending what you want.”

“On the tower,” Yoshiki said, turning his drawing around again to point it out, where his sketch hadn’t yet been inked over. “I think maybe with the tail wrapped around.”

“Ohhh that sounds so cool!” Izuku agreed, typing a couple more words into the tablet. “We might not find a perfect reference, but I bet we could find a good one for the main dragon body, then another for the tail if you want help with that separately.”

They scrolled together until Yoshiki pointed at one, and Izuku grinned, tapping on it to enlarge it. It was ambitious, for sure, but Yoshiki’s eyes shone at the sight of it.

“With the claws hold onto the edge?” Izuku asked, getting a little nod in return. “That would be awesome.”

“I think he’d break the sand,” Yoshiki mused, glancing at his picture again. “Maybe the edge bits can be crumbled a bit.”

“Like he’s broken part of the parapet?” Izuku asked. “I love that.”

“Parapet,” Yoshiki said to himself. “I like that word.”

“It’s a good word!” Izuku agreed. “That’s the wall part here, but the whole thing is called the battlements, which is a pretty cool word as well.”

“I like that too.”

Yoshiki began sketching with his pencil, and Izuku just held the tablet in place for him, letting his eyes dart between the screen and his page. It was Izuku’s chance to just watch, to see him at work, and marvel over the concentration he put into his work. He’d never seen Yoshiki so invested in anything before, except maybe the first project they’d built together with their little plastic bricks.

When the sketch was done, they went back to the tablet again, hunting down the perfect tail reference for him to sketch that as well. Then, finally, he went for his markers again, fingertips running reverently over the smooth cases. They were the best kind on the market, Izuku knew – not just because he recognised the name, but because he knew the Bakugous would settle for nothing less, when it came to gifts for their new grandchildren. Katsuki was the same: if he was going to get a gift for someone he cared about, he was going to get the best gift he could possibly find.

When Katsuki’s laughter rang from the living room, joining Koharu’s, Izuku could no longer resist the urge to check in – somehow it felt like a disaster waiting to happen, when Katsuki was so gleeful about something.

“I’ll be back,” Izuku said, patting Yoshiki on the head lightly. “Can’t wait to see how your dragon looks.”

He peeked out into the lounge, trying his best to be quiet lest he disturb something, only to find the pair of them sitting around the coffee table, wearing crowns made of pink paper. Koharu carefully poured juice from a teapot into two of their nicest mugs, and Izuku just had to stop and watch, smiling softly to himself. Somewhere, they’d found a little plate of assorted cupcakes and cookies, and Izuku was honestly a little mystified by it – they had to be homemade, Katsuki wouldn’t settle for any less, but Izuku hadn’t smelled a thing, and he was normally a bloodhound for home baking!

Izuku slid his phone from his pocket, snapping a quick photo before he hurried back to the kitchen.

“Did they break anything?” Yoshiki asked knowingly.

“No,” Izuku laughed. “They’re having a tea party.”

Yoshiki wrinkled his nose, and Izuku grinned knowingly, sliding back into his seat.

“Woah, he looks so cool,” Izuku praised. “What colour is he gonna be?”

“Mm... M’not sure yet.” He glanced over at his markers, hesitating. “Dragons should be bright but it doesn’t match.”

“Dragons can be any colour you want,” Izuku assured him. “What made you choose pink and purple for the knights?”

“Their armour is the shells.”

“Oh! That’s so cool! I never would’ve thought of that!”

“Should he be a shell dragon?”

“He could be,” Izuku said with a nod. “That would be cool, almost like the knights modelled their armour after him too. Or he could match something else at the beach, like... ocean coloured, or seaweed.”

“Maybe blues like the ocean,” Yoshiki agreed. “With pink and purple spikes like the shells.”

“That sounds awesome.”

Mind made up, Yoshiki reached for his markers, picking out all the blues he could find and lying them out against the page. A few of the darker ones he’d used already for the traces of water visible in the moat, but Yoshiki paused over lighter shades, staring at them with a blank look in his eyes for a moment.

“I think these ones,” he said hesitantly, picking up two from the pile. “I think the ocean was light.”

“It was definitely light near the beach,” Izuku said, thinking back. “With the white foam too it probably looked even lighter. It was a bit darker when we went out deeper, but that was much further from the sand castle.”

“Yeah. I guess I can make it darker if I don’t like it.”

“That’s true. It’s hard to go lighter, but going darker is easier.”

“Light blue, then.”

He settled in to work again, and Izuku just watched, leaning his head on his hand. As much as he’d wanted to avoid staring, he was too fascinated, too impressed by what Yoshiki could do already at such a young age, with such limited resources offered to him over his years so far.

“Do you think you’d like to do art, when you’re older? For a job?”

“Mm... maybe,” Yoshiki said, shrugging. “It might not be fun if it’s for work.”

“That’s true, sometimes it’s better to keep fun things as hobbies and do something else for money, instead. I bet you’d be good at it, though.”

“Maybe drawing houses or something.”

“Like architecture?” Izuku asked. “That could be cool. Drawing, but without ruining the fun kind of art in the process. That takes math though, you’re gonna have to keep doing your homework.”

“Ew. Not architecture, math is gross.”

Izuku laughed brightly, and Yoshiki cracked another smile, glancing over at Izuku’s joy.

“How does it look?” he asked, when he’d finished his dragon. “Okay?”

“It looks amazing, Yoshiki! Can I take a photo?”

“F’you want.”

Izuku pulled his phone out before Yoshiki had even finished saying it, carefully angling his phone to make sure he got it all in the right perspective, and didn’t cast any shadows over the artwork.

“Can you show Mr and Mrs Bakugou?” Yoshiki asked quietly. “And tell them I really liked the present?”

“Absolutely I can, they’ll love to see it.”

“Maybe I can draw them something too, one day.”

“I bet they’d love that. But there’s no rush, you can take as long as you want, before you meet them.”

“I know,” Yoshiki nodded. “Um, thanks.”

“No need,” Izuku assured him. “We’re here to take care of you and keep you safe, and try to make you happy along the way. I hope you know that.”

“I know,” Yoshiki agreed quietly. “Thanks.”

“Do you want to show Koharu and Kacchan your art now?” Izuku suggested. “Maybe they still have a couple of cupcakes left, to share with us.”

“They have cupcakes?”

“Apparently!” Izuku huffed, unable to quite hide his smile all the same. “They have sneaky hidden cake, apparently. Isn’t that so mean?!”

Yoshiki smiled back, the proper kind this time, and Izuku felt his grin stretch wider as he stood up from his chair.

“Alright! Operation Cake Thieves is go!”

They scurried into the living room, peeking around the corner at the little tea party, and Izuku gave him a little nudge ahead, to show off his drawing. While Katsuki was staring, and Koharu was gushing, Izuku sneaked the remaining cupcakes off the table, subtly slipping the plate behind his back.

“Isn’t he amazing?” Izuku asked, when Katsuki glanced his way. “I never would have thought to model the knights’ armour off the shells, that was such a cool idea.”

“And the ocean dragon,” Katsuki said, nodding his agreement. “I love the mix of blues, and the little white bits like on the waves.”

“Yeah,” Yoshiki said, a little surprised. “It was Izuku’s idea mostly.”

“All I said was ocean! You were the amazing one!”

“It’s for you to keep,” Yoshiki said, as he set it down in front of Koharu. “Like your story.”

“Really?! I can keep it forever?!”

“Uh-huh.”

“You’re the best, Yokkun!”

She jumped up to hug him, despite his little whine, and Izuku slipped away again, squirrelling the cupcakes into the kitchen. Behind him, he heard Yoshiki excuse himself to put his markers away, and Izuku offered him a fist, grinning when Yoshiki bumped it with his own.

“Hey!” they heard from the living room, as they took their first bites of cake. “You little thieves!”

Footsteps ran toward them, Katsuki and Koharu laughing despite their complaints, and Izuku just wrapped Katsuki up in a hug, holding him tight.

“Love you, Kacchan.”

“Sure you do, cake thief.”