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"Have a nice day, Momoi."
"You too, Aoyagi!" The pink haired girl waves as she walks out the door, the overhead bell ringing as the door closes.
It's a lovely winter morning, just like the morning Toya had an encounter with the rogue that calls himself Akito.
An "encounter" was a very light way to put it, he basically got kidnapped.
The last thing Toya remembered before getting knocked out cold was the sound of the river gushing. He'd gone there to take part in his hobby of foraging, but in the very next moment he found himself conscious, he was tied to the trunk of a tree with a rag in his mouth.
And the first thing he saw was a ginger man with his satchel in his hands.
Oh great, a thief. Not a major threat at the moment, considering he didn't have much other than his map and a collection of various mushrooms, plants, a flask of water, and a couple of cookies in case he got hungry. He only had a moment to wonder why he'd been kidnapped instead of having a grab-and-run performed on him instead before the man noticed him awake.
"Ah, good morning!" the unknown ginger man pat a gentle hand on his head.
Toya attempted to say something akin to a 'Where am I?' or a 'Who are you?', but it proved to be ineffective with the rag still in his mouth.
The somewhat attractive mugger of a man giggled to himself shortly before removing the cloth that gagged his mouth.
"Well, I trust you to be more of the sneaky, silent type over the loud, screamy type anyway. Thus, I'm going to keep you tied while I scavenge your belongings. Or should I say, my belongings." He grinned as he removed the secure clasp of the satchel.
"I've got to say, despite your lack of belongings, I can tell by the satchel itself and your well-kept attire that maybe I should've stalked behind you 'till you got back home to your residence. Smart of you to travel light, I guess. What do you do for work anyway?" He popped one of the cookies into his mouth.
"I- well- I'm... a gardener--"
"You're a terrible liar, too. So, what do you actually do?"
Toya let out a sigh of defeat, "I'm the local apothecary for the nearby town."
"Ooooh, I take it that's why you're all the way out here then. Maybe you can do something for me instead. If so, I'll return your stuff."
Toya cocked his head to the side, staring judgingly at the ginger.
"Don't give me that look, I consider connections to be much more valuable than coin. Either way, it'd be more profitable in your case."
"Alright then," Toya then asked warily, "what do you want from me?"
"For you to keep me in your care. It's been rough trying to get back on my feet, especially with my snatching habit. It's why I've had to stake out here for the past couple of days, or weeks. Unfortunately, not a lot of people tread through these parts."
"So, you're asking me to help you rob the townsfolk--"
"No, not at all! I don't require much to live. As long as you keep me around, I won't need to resort to thievery, and you get to live and keep your things! The only downside is that you'd have another mouth to feed."
"How do you plan to keep yourself and me from being pursued by guards?"
"I'll stay within the premises of your home, I promise! As for getting there, I have my ways."
"Fine, deal."
The morning is quiet as he reminisces on that fateful encounter, only disturbed by the sound of the birds and the crackle of the fireplace -- in front of which that same man, who he now knows as Akito, lays on the floor. Toya thinks he looks at peace, his hair splayed around his head, and his clothes (that he "borrowed" from Toya) ruffled, the top layer almost shuddered off his shoulders. Akito infamously enjoys sleeping in, contradicting his want to watch Toya work. It's become a routine, of sorts.
Until the stiffness of the floor gets a little too uncomfortable.
Toya hears Akito awaken with a groan, then a yawn, prompting him to look in his direction.
"Mm, Toya..." Akito crawls over to where Toya sits (the floor is level with his desk), wrapping his arms languidly -- kissing Toya's cheek before nuzzling his face into the space between Toya's neck and shoulder.
"Good morning. Sleep well?" Toya brings a hand up to stroke through Akito's bright orange hair.
Akito only chooses to respond with a combination of "That feels nice..." and more sleepy groaning, unintelligibly mentioning something about his hairpin.
Not so secretly, it's actually mornings like this that Akito truly enjoys. The first rays of sunlight peeking through the window, the quiet ambience, the faint smell of herbs, and the comforting presence of his partner.
Toya pets him for a few minutes more, before he turns around, moving him onto his lap to cuddle him directly. Fortunately, the sun is still rising, so they could afford to stay like this just a little longer. He chooses to pepper Akito's sleepy face with a few kisses, before he stands to carry him back to the fireplace. The movement wakes him up a little more.
"..?"
"Still got work to do. Go back to sleep."
Akito only responds with another groan, remembering that he's not quite ready for a public appearance yet.
Toya coos at him, wrapping him up in warm blanket discarded prior, and giving him one last kiss and ruffle of the hair before he leaves him to fall back asleep.
He makes a mental reminder to stop by that bakery to buy more cookies and a small cheesecake.