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Yuuichirou closed his hand around a fuyu persimmon and tugged. It came off the branch easily with a quiet snap, its rich orange exterior glossy and bright under the midday sun. It was just barely soft, the perfect ripeness, and Yuuichirou felt his mouth water at the thought of his teeth breaking through its smooth skin.
Fuyu persimmons tasted like the purest sugar at this stage. Light and refreshing, like a drink of cold spring water on a hot day; they were a favorite amongst all of his feathered peers as the trees around their humble mountain home grew heavy with fruit.
The first ripe persimmon of the season. It was undoubtedly a treat—Ren would probably go teary-eyed if Yuuichirou ate it without him. Still, it sat, fat and fragrant in the cradle of Yuuichirou’s palm, sweetly tempting him to take just one tiny bite.
Surely, Ren could forgive him for that?
But before Yuuichirou could open his mouth and sink into the soft, firm flesh of his autumn’s bounty, he heard the puff of wings catching the wind and the quiet crackle of fallen leaves as someone landed nearby.
He knew who had arrived before they even spoke. There was only one person who would show up this early, even to something as mundane as a group foraging trip.
But then again, Yuuichirou had also arrived before the agreed-upon time, so maybe it wasn’t his place to complain.
“ Tajima ,” Azusa said when Yuuichirou turned to face him, his voice hushed with unease. The tengu approached on light feet despite his large frame, his footsteps barely audible over the passing breeze. He was partially muffled behind the intimidating vizard on his face, but the wind carried his words easily to Yuichirou’s ears. “What are you doing? You know you’re not supposed to take off your mask when we’re outside of the mountain.”
Yuuichirou slipped the sun-ripe persimmon into his vest. It’d have to be something he’d enjoy later, he supposed. “Oh come on, we’re not that far away from home,” he pointed out, turning to face his fellow tengu. He shot a look out into the empty woods around them. “Besides, barely any humans go this deep into the forest. The most that ever get to see us are the deer.”
He could hear Azusa hesitate through his vizard. “Still…” the other tengu protested.
“See, I didn’t even take it off completely,” Yuuichirou said, tapping the red-lacquer mask hanging around his neck. “I can put it on as soon as anyone gets near.”
Azusa shifted his weight from one foot to the other. “If you’re sure,” he sighed, sounding wholly unconvinced. His face was still hidden, but Yuuichirou could picture him looking exasperated. “Just make sure to put it on before the others arrive, okay? Shiga-san and Momokan are going to get upset if they find out everyone went foraging without their masks on because someone put the idea in their heads.”
“I’m not going to convince everyone,” Yuuichirou huffed. “Nishihiro and Oki only play along if—” he broke off when the cogs started turning in his head, a delighted smile stretching across his disbelieving face. “—if our rule-abiding leader decides he wants to misbehave too. Was there something you wanted to tell me, our oh-so-righteous captain?” he teased, taking a step towards the tengu in question.
Azusa’s breath hitched and he pulled back slightly. “Tajima,” he warned, embarrassment creeping into his voice.
Yuuichirou’s mischief faded into something warmer, softer. He tilted his head to the side and peeked up at his captain with inquisitive eyes. “Tajima?” he echoed quietly.
The taller tengu stiffened and fell silent. His fingers played with the hem of his vest, worrying the pale yellow thread. He probably was overthinking things again, Yuuichirou thought. Azusa always had a bad habit of second guessing himself.
But it was okay, Yuuichirou could be patient. And besides, Azusa was charming with his self-reservations, flaws and all.
Besides, the longer Yuuichirou waited for him, the sweeter he became.
“…Yuuichirou,” Azusa mumbled, barely audible behind his tengu mask.
Yuuichirou’s breath caught. Before he knew what he was doing, he was gently pulling the cherry-red vizard over Azusa’s head to reveal his pink-dusted face. Brown eyes, the color of stones worn smooth by trickling rivers, flickered up at him with a sweet bashfulness that made Yuuichirou’s chest ache.
He looked like a peony, just about to bloom.
A soft smile tugged at Yuuichirou’s lips and he extended a hand to cup Azusa’s cheek. His heart fluttered when Azusa leaned into his touch, dark gray lashes fluttering daintily as he glanced in Yuuichirou’s direction.
“And now you’re not wearing your mask too,” he whispered.
Azusa’s nose wrinkled slightly, but his eyes danced with stars. “I told you you were a bad influence,” he murmured, retrieving his mask from Yuuichirou’s grasp.
Yuuichirou snickered and pulled back. “Oops. But you’re not complaining too much?”
The taller tengu let out a long-suffering sigh and pulled his mask over his head again, tugging it down until it hung around his neck. “I am. You’re just not listening,” he chided, laughing under his breath.
“I am,” Yuuichirou argued. “Pinky-swear.”
The corners of Asuza’s eyes crinkled with warmth. “Mmm. Sure you are.” His gaze flickered down to the front of Yuuichirou’s vest curiously. “Did you start picking things already?” He raised his head and scanned their surroundings. “I thought the trees in this area weren’t ready for harvesting yet.”
“The persimmons are more or less ready. We’ll just have to keep them a bit until they’re ripe,” Yuuichirou said. He retrieved the persimmon from his vest and offered it to Azusa with a smile. He’d planned on eating it himself, but somehow he wanted to see Azusa enjoy it more. “Here, the first of the season.”
Azusa’s eyes lingered on it for a brief second before he tore his gaze away. “Uh, no, it’s okay. You should have it. You picked it, after all.”
Yuuichirou shrugged. “I can always find more.”
The other tengu glanced down at the persimmon again, his expression conflicted. Yuuichirou knew he liked them just as much as the others did, but it was clear that something was holding him back. “But it’s the first—”
“And I want you to have it.” Yuuichirou pressed it into Azusa’s chest. “Take it?”
Azusa blushed. He brought his hands up and cradled the persimmon gently between his fingers, his cheeks a bright, ruddy red. “Alright,” he whispered. He shot Yuuichirou another nervous look before lifting the fruit to his lips. “Thank you.”
Yuuichirou watched his teeth break through the persimmon’s rich orange skin and his timid expression bloom into delight. Azusa’s eyes lit up like the morning sky, a childlike wonder replacing his earlier reticence.
“Good?” Yuuichirou asked, laughter bubbling from his lips.
“It’s perfect.” Azusa’s smile wobbled slightly when he looked at Yuuichirou again. “You...you didn’t have to give this to me.”
“I’m glad you like it,” Yuuichirou said, sincere as day.
Azusa bit his lip. “Don’t you want to try some? It’s really good…”
“Hmm.” Yuuichirou glanced down at the persimmon in Azusa’s hand thoughtfully. “Sure, why not. I’ll have a taste.”
Azusa’s expression brightened. “Okay, then—”
Yuuichirou stepped into Azusa’s space and leaned in. He heard the hitch of Azusa’s breath before he pressed their mouths together and the following thud of the persimmon when it slipped from Azusa’s loosened fingers and dropped onto the forest floor.
He pulled back slightly to give Azusa a crooked smile. “Well, you weren’t supposed to drop it,” he whispered.
Azusa’s face flushed bright red. “Tajima,” he squeaked.
“Yuuichirou,” Yuuichirou corrected, leaning back in.
He felt Azusa’s fingers reach out and grab hold of his vest, wrinkling the dark-green fabric as the taller tengu tried to ground himself. Cute, Yuuichirou thought when Azusa flinched at the feeling of Yuuichirou's tongue pressing against the seam of his lips.
But then Azusa opened his mouth for him, and Yuuichirou fell in love with the taste of persimmon on his lips.
Soft, sweet, velvet. Yuuichirou sighed when Azusa began to kiss back, the curl of his tongue ticklish as it wrapped around Yuuichirou’s. The breaths they shared between them were warm and humid, cozy and intimate. They were lost in a world of their own, exchanging kisses under the midday sun, surrounded by the rich scent of autumn.
Yuuichirou cupped Azusa’s cheek, smoothing his thumb over heated, smooth skin. They were still new to this, to each other, but every touch between them made Yuuichirou’s heart flutter and soar.
What a lovely thing it was to be wanted, sweeter than the first persimmon of fall.
The kisses between them slowed, but the affection continued to linger. They moved to softer kisses, gentler ones, slow nuzzles and tender sighs. Yuuichirou’s eyes lingered on the delicate arch of Azusa’s eyelashes, the unbothered line of his brow. He was stunning like this, Yuuichirou thought, surrounded by changing foliage and the slight chill of the crisp autumn air.
Gradually, they parted, breathing quietly into the space between them. There wasn’t really a need for words, not when Yuuichirou was brushing his thumb over Azusa’s cheek and Azusa stared at him like he hung the stars in the sky. It was just the two of them, lost and yet found together.
...and then came Mizutani.
If it wasn’t for the uproarious snapping of twigs or the thunderous crunching of leaves, the bright boisterousness of his voice would’ve quickly given him away. He stumbled into the clearing with all the grace of a newborn fawn, barely muffled by the crimson mask on his face.
“There you guys are! All of us were looking for you and—” Mizutani paused, tilting his head quizzically. Just barely behind him, Yuuichirou saw someone of similar height (likely Izumi, given the length of his black hair and the exasperated hand he had pressed to his face) “You know we’re not supposed to take our masks off when we’re outside of the mountain, right?”
Azusa tore himself away from Yuuichirou like he’d been burned. “I was—he was—” he stammered, looking back and forth between Yuuichirou and their fellow tengus with his cheeks painted in a humiliated shade of red.
Ever-focused, Mizutani’s attention dropped to something on the forest floor even as Azusa continued to splutter out incoherent excuses. “Oh hey, a persimmon! You don’t usually find these on the ground floor—does this mean they’re already ripe enough to pick?”
Definitely-Izumi let out a long-suffering sigh and raised his voice. “Hanai, Shigapo was looking for you,” the masked tengu said, holding Mizutani in place by the collar of his vest. “Something about a special kind of foragable that he wants us to keep an eye out for—apparently it has a short growing season but we should be able to find some this early in the fall?”
“Okay!” Azusa squeaked. He speedwalked, stiff-legged, past their two masked friends and shoved his own crimson vizard onto his face. “I just—won’t keep him waiting, then!”
Yuuichirou bit back a smile as Azusa stalked out of the clearing, his ears the color of autumn leaves. Izumi released Mizutani when the taller tengu was a good distance away and inclined his head apologetically towards Yuuichirou. “Sorry, this guy’s an idiot. But you knew that already.”
“Ehh, we’re all good. Hanai and I were about to regroup with you guys anyway,” Yuuichirou said over the sound of Mizutani’s whining. He pulled on his tengu mask and folded his arms behind his head leisurely. “So everyone’s already grouped up?”
“We were just waiting on the two of you,” Izumi replied. He stepped closer to Yuuichirou’s side and whispered, “Better us than Shigapo or Momokan, right? They would’ve given you hell if they caught you with your masks off out here.”
Yuuichirou shivered and let out a humorless laugh. The last time Momokan had caught him without his mask on, she’d put him under house arrest for two weeks. “Yeah, thanks for that.”
“No worries. Just keep a closer eye on the time, okay?” Izumi rubbed the back of his neck as they started making their way back to where the others were gathered. “We’re lucky this idiot offered to go looking for you two,” he mumbled, nodding towards Mizutani.
Definitely dodged an arrow with that one, Yuuichirou agreed as he and Izumi slipped into the circle of congregated tengus. He saw Shigapo turn his head to do a quick headcount before the older tengu began listing off their foraging objectives for the day.
Tasks were assigned, duties given, and everyone was given the go-ahead to start working. Yuuichirou was about to set off deeper into the forest when a familiar person stepped into his space. Azusa ducked his head bashfully, whisper-shy as his breath tickled Yuuichirou's ear.
“We’ll share the next one, okay?”