and though nothing's changed and i'm next to you

[icyhot]

Who: Shouto ( icyhot ) & Izuku ( fullcowl )
When: September ... 20? Yes
Where: Aidos' Nemesis' Temple
What: After months of being in the Far Shore, there's been a bit of a... change in management.

[ Generally speaking, Shouto is not the first one awake.

Usually, Izuku wakes up. Makes breakfast. Does other things. And then he'll lure Shouto out of bed, in whatever way he decides for that day in question. Food? Affection? Picking him up like he weighs absolutely nothing? Whatever he's in the mood for, in an attempt to wake up someone who isn't necessarily not a morning person, but simply - just does not like to wake up, no matter the time.

It's a dream that has him waking up with a start, jolting upright and covering his mouth as if he's holding back a retch. Because it's just so much to process at once, even for someone as cool and collected as Todoroki Shouto.

He remembers.

He remembers everything.

His father. His mother. Attending UA. He remembers Iida and Bakugou and Yaoyorozu. All Might. Aizawa. He remembers Stain, and failing to save Bakugou. He remembers failing.

He remembers Izuku dying, and that makes him the most nauseous above all else. It leaves Shoutot shaken, in a way he doesn't think he's been in a while, his quirk having a hiccup that he has to push down and control again. And then he turns with a start, to look to the side, to see if he's there, if he still exists - ]

Comments

[fullcowl]

[He is still there. He still exists.

But this isn't their world. This is where people go when they die. And Izuku is most certainly dead now. Though he looks fairly alive, breathing gently in his sleep.

All the memories that they've shared, all the connections that they've made have been rendered down to nothing. It's a harsh reality of his sudden switch to shinki, but it's something that they'll both need to deal with.

Izuku shifts a little in his sleep before slowly opening his eyes.

This isn't home.

He's not even sure where home is. But he's fairly sure it's not supposed to be with a stranger in his bed. (Is this his bed?)

He stares wide eyed at Shouto like a deer in the headlights, completely frozen.

And when he opens his mouth, the only thing he manages is a feeble, ]

... What...?

[icyhot]

[ Shouto's wide-eyed stare could probably be attributed to the same kind of deer in the headlights feeling that Izuku is experiencing, given the fact that he's got his mouth covered like he does. But it's - a lot. This is a lot, and he's not sure how to process it. His entire life has been completely turned upside-down, and then shaken to the point that he's disoriented and unsure of what to do.

He hates that. He hates this, the realization that months upon months together have been completely forgotten. The little festival that they met at, the first prayer they took when it was three of them, the subsequent prayers and time they spent together, Izuku's confession -

He knows it's all gone.

And he knows he has to lie. And he hates it. He hates it more than he's ever hated anything here in the Far Shore.

So he swallows the truth down with the knot of anxiety the concept of it causes, and slowly moves his hand from his mouth. ]

I don't know, either. [ He hates how the words feel coming out of his mouth, but he has to say them nonetheless. ]

[fullcowl]

[Izuku looks even more lost now. Is it better or worse that they're in the same boat? Izuku doesn't know who this person is and he doesn't know why he's in bed with him...

There was probably a reason, something- but when he thinks about it too hard there's a prickle of dread creeping up his neck.]

Uh...

[How does he start this...]

My name is Midoriya Izuku.

[... Yeah, that works. That's all he can remember though.]

[icyhot]

[ It'd be better, Shouto thinks. Because he wouldn't have to lie. But he reaches up and smooths his hand through his hair, trying to fix it, even if they figured out a long time ago it'd take more than this to fix his bedhead. ]

Todoroki Shouto. [ God. God this is awful. ] I might... be able to find out what's going on. But we should probably get out of bed?

[ Because they're not going to get anything done, here, and it's probably weird. ]

[fullcowl]

[Unfortunately, Shouto's in the position Izuku was in back when they were first partnered up. It's not a great place to be, even if Izuku has completely forgotten everything about it.]

... Yeah, that's probably a good start.

[He'll get up... Should he look for more day appropriate clothes? This is probably Shouto's bed, isn't it? He just looks uncomfortable for a moment before he opens the door.

It's a dorm? Or some kind of apartment?]

Do you know where the kitchen is?