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When Dabi arrived at their usual meeting spot, he almost choked at the sight infront of him, the tiny version of Hawks sitting on the dirty floor covered in his much too big clothes, surrounded by too many old needles and whatever the fuck else for Dabi's liking.
Transforming quirks weren't uncommon, but they were annoying.
Hawks was small, really small, the kind of size that Dabi didn't think a kid would even talk at.
Dabi didn't like how small he was, even for baby standards.
Babies were usually kind of chubby, full cheeks and tummies, but Hawks was just skinny, scrawny even.
His approach was slow, not wanting to startle Hawks as he glanced up at him with big, wide bird eyes and a bristling of his wings.
"Hawks?"
He didn't say anything, because of course he didn’t, just blinked up at him before wobbling forward into the pile of his clothes.
He could barely even sit up without support.
"Hey, you're not gonna freak out if I pick you up, right?" Dabi needed to pick him up and wrap him in his far too big jacket before he caught a cold or actually froze to death, the cold December temperatures starting to bite at his soft skin.
He'd feel the cold easier, being so small.
He reached towards him, and rather than letting Dabi pick him up, Hawks fucking bit him. "You little shit-"
It wasn't a strong bite, but his two sharp fangs sure left marks, a small amount of blood bubbling up.
With a deep sigh, Dabi looked back towards the baby, his wings shivering and a distressed warble being pulled from his mouth.
"I'm not gonna hurt you, just want to wrap you up." Hawks probably couldn't understand, not at this age, but Dabi had to try something. "You're getting cold."
Hawks whimpered, all pink cheeks and freckled skin as he tried to pull himself up again.
"I'm really warm, feel?" Rather than trying to hold him, he just extended his hand out and waited patiently, letting Hawks stare at it before patting a tiny hand against his finger. It was silent, save for Hawks' hand continuing to pat his own and the odd coos and gurgles that he let out.
It made Dabi notice his sharp, relatively long nails, then the multitude of feathers that sprouted from the back of his neck and below his wings.
Adult Hawks didn't have any of that.
"Can we try again now? This time without biting."
Dabi moved even slower, tucking Hawks' jacket around his shaky body and then scooping him up into his arms, successfully avoiding being bitten or screamed at.
"There...okay." The way miniature Hawks pushed his face against the fluff of his coat had Dabi forcing back a smile, at least until he thought about their unavoidable trip to the store.
He didn't know how long Hawks was going to stay like this, but a decent guess was either twelve or twenty four hours.
Babies needed things, a lot of things.
Dabi didn't exactly have much money either, especially not on him, maybe six or seven thousand yen stuffed in his jeans pocket.
The league wasn't what he'd call a well paid job, well, it wasn't paid at all.
"You need to stay still and quiet for now, okay?"
Hawks just gurgled at him, little hands grasping onto the leather of his coat.
"Yeah- quiet."
"Aaaa-!" Hawks squealed, maybe just to spite him, yet Dabi couldn't stop the corners of his mouth from quirking up.
He almost looked fascinated, each time Dabi spoke back to him, golden eyes bright as he clung onto his coat.
Dabi didn't want to think about that too much, focusing on carrying Hawks out of the warehouse and searching for the nearest open shop, instead.
The streets were quiet sans the odd person coming back from work or the homeless that the government continued to ignore, but Dabi still held Hawks a little closer each time somebody passed them.
They eventually found a bigger store that was still open, hopefully containing everything that miniature Hawks would need.
"Gotta find you some clothes.."
"Baaa..."
The selection of baby clothes was as basic as it could get, but it would do for the day ahead.
Dabi just needed to figure out what size to grab.
From the babbling, Dabi had figured out he must have been transformed into either a five or six month old, yet looking at the clothes...they were way too fucking big for him.
He had to grab a baby grow for a three month old.
Next was the issue of food, and Dabi ended up having to get some formula and bottles, as well as some disgusting looking pots of baby food, not knowing what Hawks would prefer.
He had to grab a small pack of nappies too, because yeah, that was unavoidable.
Dabi even had to take a small, soft bear, because Hawks wouldn't stop stretching his small arms out towards it.
The last thing he grabbed was a baby sling, a special one made particularly for heteromorphs with wings, because he needed his arms free to lug everything back to Hawks' place.
He didn't have enough arms or money to grab some kind of crib for Hawks to sleep in, but he could make something work.
It left him with barely any money, but he could make that up by eating Hawks' food and using his hot water.
"Gonna take you home now, okay?"
"Mmm.." Hawks went into the sling without much fuss once Dabi had figured it out, making sure that it was secure and placing him in carefully. He cooed softly and smushed his cheek against Dabi's chest while he carried him back towards his apartment.
It was cold, the wind whipping against Dabi's cheek, but Hawks didn't seem to notice, not with how cuddled up he was.
It made getting him back home easy.
At least it did until he had to try and fish Hawks' keys out of his jacket pocket and figure out his pass code to get inside.
He'd usually climb in through the window, but that wasn't possible with the baby strapped to his chest.
Dabi tried his birthday, then the most obvious codes that came to mind, before trying the date of his birthday repeated twice, blinking when the door unlocked.
Fucking hell.
Sometimes, Dabi didn't know how Hawks had made it to twenty two.
"Aah..mm-"
"Yeah, we're back." He gently patted his back while carrying him inside, then locked the heavy door behind them. The things he brought were put down on the coffee table, before he took Hawks and a few necessities into his room. "Time to get changed."
His crimson wings flapped and rustled as Dabi pulled him out of the baby sling and placed him down in the middle of the bed where he could roll and fidget without any danger.
It was only when he started to change him into the nappy, his little legs kicking, that Dabi noticed the red patches on his pale skin.
It immediately made him curse, eyebrows furrowing together.
The rash wasn't awful, but it still must have been uncomfortable.
"Stay there, birdie."
Hawks gurgled in response while Dabi made his way into his bathroom and searched for some kind of gentle cream that wouldn't irritate the rash any further.
He found out a few different pots of cream and read the labels on each one, deciding on the most mild one to take back to Hawks.
Hawks whimpered quietly as Dabi put a small amount of cream on his finger and applied it to the red skin, and it immediately made him swallow with guilt. "Sorry little bird."
"Mm..." An unhappy gurgle fell from his mouth as Dabi gently applied some more, trying to ignore the pinkness of his cheeks and the displeased wriggling of his legs.
It was necessary, even if it was only going to last for twenty or so hours.
"Nearly done."
"Gugh.."
Hawks didn’t cry like a normal baby, didn't make many noises at all, especially not loud ones. It was just another thing that Dabi didn't want to think about right now.
Once there was a thin layer of cream applied over the angry, red skin, Dabi grabbed the softest towel he could find and put Hawks on it to let everything dry.
He didn't know if he was doing anything right, didn't know anything about kids apart from what he'd picked up at home with younger siblings, but it was better than leaving him alone and defenseless.
"Do you want your teddy back?" Hawks' fists made small grabbing motions towards him, and Dabi was immediately going to fetch it from the coffee table, taking it back to Hawks and putting it in his little hands.
He held it close, then stuck the bear's ear in his mouth while Dabi grimaced. It kept him entertained, and there weren't any small parts that he could choke on, so Dabi just left him to it.
Hawks was relatively easy to look after.
After rolling around and playing with the bear for a while, the cream had dried enough that Dabi could get him into a nappy, followed by the babygrow once he'd cut two holes into the back of it, enough space for his wings to fit through comfortably.
"There, how's that?"
"Ah Mm..." He'd take that as a good sign.
"Are you sleepy yet? Or hungry?"
Hawks just looked up at him while nibbling on the bear's ear again, and fuck, it made Dabi's heart clench.
"Okay, let's try some milk." Dabi picked him back up, because he didn't trust leaving him alone for less than a minute, then carried him, the formula and the bottle into the kitchen. "Gotta feed you up, you're scrawny."
Even with how skinny Hawks was, he was a cute baby, covered in freckles and feathers, with big golden eyes and sharp black markings that surrounded them.
"You're cute." Dabi lightly bounced him while the kettle boiled. "Older you hasn't lost the baby face, either."
Small Hawks just looked back at him, then reached his hands out towards the piercings on his nose.
"You can touch but don't pull-"
His hands were gentle as he touched the shiny piercings, eyes unsure even as Dabi hummed and let him continue, busy sorting out the bottle.
"You like 'em?"
"Baa..aa..!"
"Yeah?" Dabi grinned at his excitement while screwing the lid of the bottle back on and shaking it well with one hand.
"Mmm..ah, guhh.."
"Uhuh, I agree." He carried him back into the bedroom, because after the feeding they both needed to sleep, another problem that Dabi was going to have to figure out.
It couldn't be that difficult to create a makeshift cot.
Once they were both sat on the bed, Hawks securely in his arms, Dabi held the bottle up to his mouth and waited for him to latch on.
"C'mon, little bird."
He latched on quicker than Dabi had expected, almost desperate as he suckled and drank the milk with surprising speed, so much that Dabi had to pull the bottle back. "Slow down, you're gonna choke."
Hawks grabbed at the bottle again and Dabi sighed, giving it back and watching as he eagerly drank until there was nothing left.
"You really were hungry." He made a sound close to a grumble as Dabi took the empty bottle and held him to his chest, giving his back a pat and grimacing when he spit up some of the milk onto his shoulder. "Better?"
"Ggh..."
"Alright, gonna put you on your tummy." Somehow, he'd found himself settling into the caretaking role, maybe it was to do with his younger siblings, maybe it was because he really did care for Hawks, no matter how much he tried to deny it.
"There you go." He placed him back on the fluffy towel and then took his coat off with a sigh, leaving it somewhere to the side to be washed.
His next task was figuring out the cot situation.
After looking online, because yeah, he needed to watch a fucking video to figure it out, Dabi gathered up a sheet from Hawks' wardrobe and rolled it up, creating something akin to a cot shape.
Once he was satisfied, he grabbed a blanket and placed it over the rolled up sheet, then tucked it underneath to keep it in place.
It would work until Hawks turned back.
"Bedtime little shit." Dabi placed him down into the makeshift cot with the bear tightly grasped in his small hands, careful even with his sharp talons.
"Mmggh..."
"Yeah, time to sleep." With baby Hawks safely lying down and entertained by his toy, Dabi found some more comfortable clothes to change into, then sat down on the other side of the bed.
Sleep sounded good, amazing even, but Dabi already knew that he was going to spend most of the night watching over Hawks.
Hawks seemed content watching him back with those big, curious eyes, his legs wriggling and making Dabi smile.
"It's too late for playtime." He huffed, yet still tickled his tummy and made him giggle, the sounds almost turning into happy sounding chirps.
It was cute, too fucking cute.
All of the giggling and rolling seemed to tire him out at least, his thumb stuck in his mouth and his eyes suddenly heavy.
For a few minutes longer, he tried to gaze at Dabi, only to be pulled under by sleep a moment later, too tired after all of the playing.
It was all enough excitement for one day, for both of them.
Dabi tried to watch him, tried to commit to staying awake to make sure that miniature Hawks was okay, but the pull of sleep was soon too much for him, too.
The last thing he saw was the hero's much younger, sleepy face before drifting off.
｡ﾟ•┈꒰ა ♡ ໒꒱┈• ｡ﾟ
Dabi woke up with a start, sitting up at the sound of crying almost right next to his ear.
It took him a moment to remember the previous night as he blinked over at the baby, his awareness coming back as precious sleep slowly drained away.
Dabi reached for the miniature Hawks, hesitating only for a few seconds before picking him up. "Shh, what's got you so upset?"
His face was pink, fat tears only just starting to fall which meant that he hadn't been unhappy or uncomfortable for long.
It didn't take him long to figure out what was making Hawks so cranky.
"Ugh shit." Quite literally.
"Okay, up we get." Dabi carried Hawks, the nappies and wipes into the bathroom, lying him on the counter top after placing a towel down.
"Mmh-" He whimpered and kicked his legs and arms out, toes curling up and his face scrunched.
"You're sinky." With a grumble, Dabi carefully got the baby out of his clothes and took the nappy off, putting it in the bin with a mental reminder to take it out in the morning, then gently cleaning him off - especially considerate around the still red patches. "Nearly done."
Once he was clean, Dabi put a little bit more cream on for good luck, letting it dry and then wrestling his wiggly body into a new nappy.
"Better?"
"Guughh.." His face was still wet and flushed, but there were no longer tears falling.
"Alright, back into your suit." It took a few minutes, Hawks insisting on throwing his arms around while Dabi tried to get him back into the babygrow, his eyes tired as he gazed down at him.
"C'mon baby bird, work with me." Dabi murmured, but then again, he preferred the wriggly talkative Hawks over the scared, timid looking Hawks.
"There we go." Once he was back clothed and everything was clean and wiped down, Dabi held the small baby to his chest and carried him back into his bedroom with a yawn. "Back to bed."
He whined when Dabi tried to put him back down, quiet, unhappy noises falling from his mouth.
"I'm not going anywhere, bud." Sleep wasn't important anyway, Dabi thought as he looked at the baby in his arms, settling on leaning back against the pillows and rocking him lightly.
Dabi didn't need sleep, nope.
Hawks was happy enough in his arms, blinking up at him in a way that swelled Dabi's long cold heart.
"Yeah, you can sleep here." The baby reached for one of his finger's, holding it in his tiny hand. Hawks had made him soft, and Dabi was going to die from the cuteness.
So much for him just being his fucking contact.
(Then again, Dabi knew that he hadn't just been that for a long time.)
"Mmh.." Hawks cooed, the sound dissolving into a weak chirp.
"Clever birdie."
He blinked up at him again, once, twice, before a small smile appeared on his face that was accompanied by a happy coo.
"That's a cute smile."
The baby was slowly becoming sleepy again, sticking Dabi's finger in his mouth and slobbering on it. He didn't do anything about it, just grimaced and accepted his fate.
Hawks was comfortable, relaxed even, and that was enough for Dabi.
He was asleep in a few more minutes, eyes closed and his pretty, long eyelashes resting against his cheeks.
Daylight would break in a couple of hours anyway, a couple of hours that Dabi could keep himself up during, keeping an eye on the precious thing in his arms, innocent and tiny and so unaware of everything.
Dabi didn't know what Hawks' home life had been like - probably shit from the small things he'd told him, but Dabi could give him just one day where he felt safe and happy.
He hesitated for just a second, before pressing a kiss to his fluffy head and settling back against the pillows for the rest of the night.
｡ﾟ•┈꒰ა ♡ ໒꒱┈• ｡ﾟ
Hawks woke up again just after the sun had rose, tightening his fist against Dabi's chest with an unhappy grumble.
"Morning."
"Mmh..."
"Hungry?"
Dabi gently bounced Hawks as he carried him into the kitchen and prepared another bottle, then sat down on the hero's couch as he suckled greedily on it.
He ate some of the leftovers from a previous night, the tub balanced on his knee while the baby drank, because he knew just how much Hawks tried to feed him up, to give him more than his usual one meal a day.
He had to look after himself to look after baby Hawks, anyway.
"We're gonna have fun today, yeah baby bird?" Or as much fun as someone could have in Hawks' boring ass apartment with a miniscule collection of baby toys.
Fuck whatever actually needing doing today.
Hawks just watched him as he gulped down the milk, small hands trying to hold onto the bottle.
Once he was finished drinking and had been patted on the back, Dabi rubbed inbetween his little wings with a hum, curious about when the bird started to fly.
It wasn't something he could just ask Hawks later, not when he probably didn't even know himself.
"Wanna play?"
"Aaah!"
"With your new bear, hm?" He tickled his tummy again, because each time it pulled out a cute giggle and a stretch of his limbs, tiny wings even flapping.
"Mmmuhh!"
"Someones talkative this morning." It only took him a few moments to retrieve the bear and lay a blanket down on the living room floor, placing mini Hawks onto it.
The baby looked up at him, waiting and watching as he sat down on the floor with a crack of his limbs.
He pulled the bear to the side of Keigo, noticing the furrow of his eyebrows as he tried to grab it. "Can you roll, baby bird?"
It made Dabi laugh, the grumpy huff that he let out as he tried to roll onto his side, wings flapping with the effort. The small bird got there eventually, slowly rolling onto his back and grabbing the toy with a giggle.
"There you go, good job." That sparkle in his eyes was immediately back at the praise, so painfully bright and innocent. "Yeah, you're real clever, baby bird."
"Ahah!"
"Uh huh."
He moved the toy side to side, not too far away from Hawks, and smiled as he tried to grab onto it, almost closer to a damn cat than a bird.
Watching Hawks play made Dabi forget about his issues for a while, made him forget about their limited time and the fucking war on the horizon, forever getting closer no matter how much he savoured each moment with the hero.
"How about some flying lessons?"
Dabi didn't know how birds learnt to fly, at least not past their parents pushing them out of the nest and hoping that they didn't hit the floor.
"Aaba.."
"Yeah, that's the spirit." He picked him up and then stood, the teddy being dropped onto the floor as Hawks tried to touch his piercings again. "You've gotta flap your little wings."
Hawks looked at him, blinked, and then yawned.
"Jeez." Rather than holding him against his chest, Dabi pulled him slightly away so that his legs were dangling. "C'mon, just a few."
Communicating with babies was hard.
He ended up mimicking flying miniature Hawks through the air, holding onto him securely and earning a few giggles, but equally a few flaps of his wings.
Dabi had scoured Hawks' place pretty damn well, but he really was fucked if he'd missed a camera anywhere.
Hawks would ruin him with a video where he was nearly fucking skipping around his living room.
"Well done- just like that."
Progress was slow, but it was there, the little bird starting to get the hang of flapping his wings and after a couple of hours and a good few breaks, even managing to lift himself off the ground for a few seconds.
Dabi grabbed a few photos of the progress, because he was fucking weak, remembering the time that Hawks had offhandedly mentioned not having any baby photos, or even any from his childhood.
(It wasn't as though Dabi had any either, not past the one on his alter and the rest that had been shoved into boxes. They weren't treasured, so did it really count?)
"You've got a real cute smile, birdbrain."
He'd show them to adult Hawks later, but for the time being, Dabi wanted to try Hawks with some of the baby food he'd grabbed, the baby's grumbles and whines starting to pick up again.
(Dabi still hated how thin his legs and arms were, too, nothing like how chubby his siblings had been.)
"Doesn't this look good?" It didn't, it looked fucking awful, but could mashed up apples and bananas really look appetising?
"Mmmhh-"
"Yeah, give it a try." Hawks still grabbed onto the spoon when Dabi lifted it to his lips, pulled a slight face but swallowed it down without much fuss. "That's it- so tasty."
"Mmh aaa!"
"I know- another one's coming." He happily ate the next spoonful too, bird eyes watching as Dabi moved the small spoon back to the pot of food, repeating each time.
He loved it so much that he had to grab some of it and stick it in his hair, obviously.
"..You're gonna need a bath now." Dabi could leave him, it wouldn't be too long before he turned back and could wash himself and his own problems away, but leaving the baby messy had a pit forming in Dabi's stomach.
He needed a bit of a freshen up anyway, even without the pureed banana and apple mixed into his blonde hair.
"Finish your mush and then we'll clean you up." The pot of food was relatively small, but it still left Dabi with a feeling of relief when Hawks ate it all apart from the bits smeared across his chin and in his hair.
After letting his food go down for a while, Dabi carried Hawks into the bathroom and lay him back on a towel, entertained by reaching for his own feet while Dabi filled the bath with just a small amount of water. He didn't have a baby bath, so supporting him in Hawks' very adult sized bath would have to suffice.
"Suddenly realised you have feet?"
"Feee..."
"Yeah, feet." A quiet sigh left his lips as he tested the water, swishing it around for a few moments to determine the temperature. Dabi didn't particularly trust himself with the job, but it didn't feel too hot.
"Come here then." He helped him out of his clothes and nappy again, then checked on the rash. "'S looking better."
"Mmhmh.."
Dabi lifted him up and placed him into the small amount of warm water, supporting him to make sure he didn't wobble and fall, and watching as he just put his hand into the water, and again, and again.
At least he wasn't one of those kids that hated bath time, screaming and sobbing.
Hawks even giggled, splashing the water with a gaze that was almost fascinated, little bird eyes following the drops and splashes of water.
"Hold still for a minute..gotta wash your hair." There wasn't much of it to wash, but Dabi just scooped some water up to get the curly tufts wet, before gently working the shampoo into it.
Hawks didn't seem to mind it, smiling and chirping.
He covered his eyes while washing it out, making sure that the soap suds didn't make them sting.
"Already less mucky."
"Aahh!"
"Yeah, hold still for another minute."
Hawks undoubtedly did not hold still as Dabi continued to wash him, but his splashing and giggling made him smile. Dabi probably wasn't doing everything right, in fact he definitely wasn't, but he was succeeding in giving Hawks a good day.
His wings and arms splatted water all over the place, up the walls, over the side of the bath, over Dabi, but it was only going to dry.
"You're gonna need a nap after all of this." Or at least, Dabi was going to need a nap.
Hawks cooed up at him, stubby arms reaching out.
"Whaddya want?" He looked down at the tiny bird, offering his hand out towards Hawks until he huffed, clearly not getting what he wanted. "You done? Alright, I'll get you out."
The towels were all too big, but Dabi did his best lifting Hawks out of the water and wrapping him up, just his head sticking out of the soft fabric as he softly chirped and cooed at him.
"You're real talkative today." He continued chirping and trilling as Dabi carried him into his bedroom, placing him down on the soft bed and carefully patting his sensitive skin dry. "I know, I can't make those cute sounds like you can."
"Mmgh.."
Once he was thoroughly dried, they went through the process of applying the cream again, then putting on a new nappy and finishing off with getting his wriggly body into the babygrow.
They napped on the bed together, because Hawks' chitters eventually turned into yawns and Dabi was fucking exhausted, his eyes suddenly heavy after taking care of the baby for the day.
Hawks didn't wake him until a few hours later, the sun low in the sky and a darkness starting to engulf the room.
It was probably time for dinner.
He ordered food on Hawks' phone that he'd left lying around, because making anything sounded like a monumental task with a baby on his hip, and because maybe he wanted to indulge himself for once.
Hawks suckled on a bottle of milk in the meantime, drinking it just as quickly as earlier and spitting some of it up on his shoulder again.
He could only sigh softly, patting his back until he'd gotten all of the wind up, and collecting the food from outside of Hawks' door once it had been delivered.
He'd ordered extra for once Hawks turned back, hopefully in a few hours if his calculations were right.
As much as Dabi appreciated baby Hawks and his cute, baby noises, he missed his voice.
"Can you play with your bear while I eat this?"
"Gughh.."
He placed him down onto the sofa, propped up against the pillows where he giggled and switched between sucking on the bear's ear and reaching for his own feet, entertaining himself while Dabi ate his takeout of noodles and chicken.
"Ba-" Hawks rolled onto his tummy and held onto Dabi's trouser leg. "Mm!"
"Ba to you too."
"Baba!" His eyes gazed towards the food, his excited noises accompanied by wing flutters and flaps.
"You're a chicken fiend even as a baby, huh?" The baby continued to chitter and grab onto Dabi's leg, the sounds only getting louder as he mushed up some of the noodles and chicken into an awful looking mixture, and held it out to Hawks with his chopsticks. "Go on."
He ate it up as it Dabi hadn't fed him multiple times that day, another pleased sound falling from his mouth.
"Good?"
"Mmh!"
"You can enjoy it in a couple hours without it being all mashed up you know." Despite his words, Dabi still offered Hawks some more of it. He eagerly leaned forward slightly and ate it with a wing flap, and Dabi just found himself smiling down at the tiny baby, his heart turned just as mushy as the food in his lap.
He'd stolen his heart and his damn food.
Dabi ate a few more mouthfuls and fed Hawks a little more too, his golden eyes watching each time that he moved the chopsticks, quite literally like a Hawk.
The separate tub for adult Hawks went into the fridge, before Dabi carried him back into the bedroom with one arm, his other hand occupied by Hawks grabbing his fingers and trying to stick them in his mouth.
It was better than being bitten, at least.
He sorted them both out for bed, even if Hawks was going to turn back in little time, changing him and running a comb through his tufty blonde hair, then carrying him into the bedroom.
It wasn't that late, and they'd already spent a majority of the afternoon napping, so Dabi sat down with his back pressed to the pillows and his hands gently holding Hawks up, bouncing him as he giggled. His laughs were addictive and loud, already so different to the baby that Dabi had found just a day ago.
While it could be tiring, it wasn't hard to give a kid what they needed.
He laughed with him, continuing to bounce the baby until his arms grew tired and Hawks seemed content resting on his chest, tiny, red wings tucked in.
He almost dozed off like it, at least if not for the sudden puff of smoke and a much heavier weight sitting on his lap, completely bare as he blinked at him.
"Welcome back, birdie."
"What the hell-" Hawks looked at Dabi, then at himself, then at the very tattered baby grow that had not survived the transformation back.
"Some bastard turned you into a baby for the day, do you remember anything?"
"A couple of things vaguely..it's sorta coming back to me." He didn't move, just stayed in Dabi's lap and gazed at him. "You..took care of me the whole time."
"Well..yeah, you were gonna freeze to death out there in the cold, then you couldn't have looked after yourself, you were tiny." Dabi reached up to push some of Hawks' messy hair away from his eyes. "Could barely sit up without help."
"You treated me so gently." Just as baby Hawks had, adult Hawks flopped forward onto his chest, but with his head resting on his shoulder and a shake in his voice.
"I told you, you were tiny and fragile."
"My own parents didn't even treat me like that." It was more honest than Hawks had ever been, suddenly open and vulnerable as Dabi stroked through his hair.
"And they were awful, Hawks.." His breaths came out heavy and shaky against Dabi's neck. "I know I'm a villain, but I'm not a damn monster."
It took a few minutes of shaking and sniffling for Hawks to speak again, his voice still small and weak. "Thank you."
"It's fine, birdbrain, it wasn't so bad."
"Seriously?" He pulled back just to quirk his eyebrows at him.
"You weren't much hassle." He wasn't at all, really, he was pretty easy to look after. "Cute, too."
"You've gone soft."
"Your fault."
Hawks huffed at him, still pointedly ignoring the fact that he was buck naked.
"I..took some photos while you were small."
"You..did?" Dabi nodded, already reaching for Hawks' phone that he'd left on the bedside table. "Alright, you've gone really soft."
"Shut up."
"Does this mean you were noseying through my phone for the last twenty four hours?"
"There's barely anything on it, boring as hell." It took him a couple of seconds to reach the start of the baby Hawks photos, and he passed the phone to the hero rather than showing him each one. "See, you're real cute."
The hero didn't speak, only looked down at the first picture with heavy emotion in his eyes, gazing at his own small self sleeping without a worry in the world. Dabi didn't say anything either, because it must have been a hell of a lot.
Eventually, he murmured quietly. "I remember having all of those extra feathers."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah. When..I started training to become a hero, I was told they were unsightly. They were stubborn as hell, kept coming back everytime..but in the end I guess they just stopped."
"Hawks that's..fucked up."
"Probably, but they didn't really fit the whole 'young bachelor' aesthetic that the commission were going for."
"That doesn't give them an excuse to fucking modify you." It made his skin warm, too warm, and Dabi had to take a deep breath to calm himself down.
"Yeah..I guess so."
He went back to looking at the photos, his eyes shiny and wet, but the corners of his mouth turning up slightly.
"I really was small-"
"Too small, but still crazy over food at least. You even wanted some of my takeout - fuckin' loved it too."
"You got takeout?"
"Yeah, there's more in the fridge for you."
Hawks didn't move, just hummed and ruffled his wings. "Thanks, I'll eat it tommorow..right now I just need to look at the rest of these pictures and sleep."
"Go ahead, birdie." Dabi moved his hands to Hawks' back while he continued looking at each picture, alternating between sniffling, smiling and laughing.
"Thank you Dabi..there's no way I can ever repay you for this-"
"I don't want any repayment, it's fine."
"Having me back is enough?"
Rather than confirming it through words, Dabi just leant forward and gave him a soft, chaste kiss, his hand still lightly pressed inbetween the bird's wings.
"Sap."
｡ﾟ•┈꒰ა ♡ ໒꒱┈• ｡ﾟ