#MISSILE NERF!!!!!!!!!!! FUCK THOSE THINGS

[slicksquid]

wait this is kinda based

[fungisteri]

Live Fungi Reaction: Splatoon 3's 5.0 patch notes

It's late and I'm not in a great mood, so let's just get done with this. Been told they're mid... Surely these fuckers aren't about to make my night worse, are they?

Still disappointing it's only 8, by the way! Especially since it's the easiest part of the game to code!

Supported gear... it's going to be a t-shirts exclusive just like with folding clothes for your locker, isn't it? I swear, sometimes it feels like they're not even trying with these half-baked additions.

3 songs... now that's interesting!

On the two new main weapons- I'm not like, thrilled about either of them, but I am looking at the Dread Wringer with interest.

I'm in a rush so I won't go in depth.

Only kits I'm looking forward to are the Sorella Brella (which I probably won't play) and the Blobblober Deco (which I will 100% play- Deco just keeps dropping banger after banger, huh? truly the superior weapon brand!)

I really wish they could've given us splat bomb booyah on dynamo, but allegedly this might work as well.

Everything else is a major disappointment, ESPECIALLY the inkline tri-stringer, as a tri-stringer user myself. That said, I'll try the kit anyways because it's the first thing the weapon class comprised of TWO WEAPONS has gotten in an entire YEAR. Reeeeeaaally below rock bottom in here.

By god they are really pushing it with these.

Brellas need buffs, they heard- So they're getting the most inconsequential changes possible! Literally beyond parody. These weapons struggle killing, not regening their shields! And even then, your non-existent netcode we pay 20$ a year for makes those useless anyways! Come the fuck on, man!

And why the reeflux nerf? That thing's fallen out of use a WHILE ago, this was so uncalled for. Why did they create a missile spammer that struggles to get kills and then just bury it further?! I swear, Nintendo hates these two weapon classes specifically.

These sound interesting!

They're fairly toning back cooler meta (RIP, you were incredibly fun while you were here for a whole month or so) and making some changes to Killer Wail 5.1 I cannot understand. But that thing definitely needs changes anyways, so I'll welcome there. Zipcaster might also be interesting... Not the damage buff it needed, but could still be interesting.

Ohhhh, that's fun!

Tenacity has been irrelevant for a while, especially with the existence of Last Ditch Effort, which has been needing nerfs since the previous game. This looks promising!

Good on them for finally taking care of n-zap. Annaki really didn't deserve that though, that thing is already underused. RIP

No idea what any of this means. Cool! 👍

I've been grinding SR a lot lately due to terrible rotations in other modes, so I'm definitely keeping my eyes on this 👀

New songs... fun 👀

Only thing I care about is the last item. I mean, everything else is cool, but HOLY SHIT. THEY ACTUALLY FIXED THAT. THANK YOU NINTENDO FOR GIVING US THE BARE MINIMUM WE DIDN'T EVEN THINK WE WOULD GET LET'S GOOOOOO

I can already spend hours customizing my locker, so this is gonna be a BLAST.

It's late so I won't be looking at bug fixes.

A mixed bag of a patch, but I will say, I do like some of the changes being made. Hopefully after the pre side order drought we'll get all the things we REALLY need. But until then, I will probably be fine with this. Time to grind the upcoming catalogue whenever I have the time, I guess!

[vespertine-legacy]

Critty actually had a full roster last night, so I got to watch them prog R4, and let me tell you, R4 is going to absolutely murder my computer since every boss has huge visual tells for the mechanics and huge graphical “you are now getting your shit obliterated” mechanics, but it looks very fun. Though if I ever need to dps it, I am probably going to have to learn to play a ranged spec better than “trash” (I can kind of faceroll some of the ‘slinger/sniper specs, and I’m kinda picking back up facerolling the sorc/sage specs, but I have never even tried to play merc/commando dps).

The person streaming didn’t have the quest for the storyline, so those of us watching didn’t get any of the dialogue/cutscenes for what’s actually going on (which is fine, I’m kind of excited to see that for myself, but still mad I need to run like 20+ more toons through Dxun to get them eligible for the mission, I do at least have it on 3 of them lol).

Tons of opportunities to fall to your death, to get lost, to get stuck in weird things. 10/10 environment.

Thoughts on the fights, from what I saw on stream:

First boss didn’t seem too complicated, but there’s definitely a benefit to having some strong rdps, and I’m worried about what my lag is gonna be like with all of the animations. I’m glad that the symbols to break the shields have different colors and shapes, so it’s at least a little more accessible (although it was funny to watch the stream chat yelling about “it’s not an octagon you idiot, it’s a hexagon). All of the mechanics are pretty clearly telegraphed (and it’s very “I warned you I was gonna do that, if you didn’t move out of it, it’s your fault you’re dead”), it’s immediately apparently which terminals you need to click in order to break the shields. The boss’s cast in the final phase is probably a dps check - beat it or you’re dead.

Second boss looked like it had some elements of the Ancient Guardian Droid from Nathema (not just in the design of the boss itself, but in the mechanics for the tank), but again, I’m worried for what my lag will do. Looked like some opportunities to blow each other up if a pull is going badly. This fight is all about positioning, because you need to keep certain circles and get the fuck out of others. Probably a good idea to stack on pull to keep the field clear of the first missile launch. There’s some fun red light/green light bullshit where if you’re a certain color and you move, you die. Then there’s a point where the tank has to hide behind someone who has the opposite color of the beam the boss is charging at them (it looks to me like hiding behind the Hunter Probe during the Nathema guard dog fight) in order to not take any damage, but at least in SM, it can almost entirely be mitigated by a sorc bubble if no one gets there in time. I couldn’t hear all of the ARIA dialogue during the fight, but it sounded like she was giving pretty good directions.

Hell Hallway is a bit like the hallway in the Seeker Droid final mission where you’re trying to do the batteries for the generator/bomb thingy and the enemies keep coming and it’s easy to get overwhelmed, only it’s Worse and Red, but you can Divide and Conquer for clicking the panels, kill the big glowy thing that is attracting more of them, and ez peazy. (everyone re-spec’d to dot spread for the Hallway, and even with Shatter Burst getting nerfed, they just smashed the bajesus out of everything; sidenote, now that Shatter Burst has been nerfed, I’m wondering if I can keep up with juggs on lethality on trash...).

Third boss looked kind of like if Tyrans took a lot of drugs? I talked with one of them for a really long time about ways the mechanics could better be controlled (based on what I saw on stream that he hadn’t seen from his pov and what seemed reasonable to be able to do because of one of the achievements for the fight). It seemed to me like the group can somewhat control where the rot is appearing/hardening to ensure they have more of the field still available (and to keep the corners clear for the achievement). We also talked about, but they didn’t try, whether or not the Fire Probes can be moved by friendly movement abilities like the PT/Vanguard tank grapple and sorc/sage pull, to reposition them rather than waiting for them to doot along into a good position (I feel like they have to be, because they move so slowly, and you can’t just wait for them).

They ended up not clearing third boss, so I haven’t actually seen last boss.

[its-love-u-asshole]

Intricacies of Heart Ceremonies [fic]

Pairings: Iwaizumi Hajime/Oikawa Tooru

Summary: Hajime couldn't believe he was actually here standing in this store, but with Oikawa Tooru as his boyfriend, he probably should've expected it. 

Rating: T

Word Count: 3,964

Warnings/Tags: fluff, established relationship, rants about stuffed animals, sfw

Note: Hello! This is my secret santa for @memekon <3 Thank you to @haikyuusecretsanta for holding this event! This fic was super fun to write, so I hope you enjoy it! Big thanks to @emeraldwaves for reading this over for me! 

AO3

"I'm not doing this."

Hajime stared down at the navy countertop, the sounds of screaming children and holiday music blaring in his ears. Still, none of the chaotic sounds of the store around him could rival the internal crisis he was currently suffering with.

Damn Tooru. Damn him.

"No," he repeated again to himself, aware that people were starting to stare at him now. Granted, the sight of an angry eighteen year old, all alone in a Build-a-Bear Workshop, probably looked out of place.

He'd already been approached by two workers asking if he was alright, like he'd maybe gotten lost in the store on accident on his way to murder someone. Hajime had politely declined their help with checking out, given that he wasn't sure whether or not he actually wanted to walk out of the overly bright store with this...this thing. Much less so if he had to put it in one of those childish looking boxes...

And the worst of it all, before all that, he had yet to decide whether or not to put any clothes on the fucking thing.

He'd reached a new low.

"No, no. It's fine," he reasoned, lifting his head to stare at the large wall in front of him, already mildly blind from all the sparkly skirts and shoes he was greeted with. Fuck. No.

But of course, he stayed rooted in place, contemplating shoes next.

If he could've punched something, he would've.

To his left, he watched as a little girl with pigtails ran up in excitement, pulling on her father's hand, and grabbed a bright purple tutu for the bear she'd just made. Huh, that might be cute...

Tooru didn't really like purple though, not that dark anyways. He preferred blues and teals, so maybe--oh my god, what are you doing?

Hajime shook his head furiously, expelling the thoughts as a blush consumed his face. He was thinking way too much about this, about Tooru, but how could he not? It always seemed to come back to him in the end, no matter how annoying the task was for him.

They'd only been together a few months, if that. Of course, Hajime had known Tooru his whole life, so he was more than up to date on the other's likes and dislikes. All his petty grudges, goals, and ambitions. If Tooru adopted a new one or altered an opinion, Hajime probably knew about it. They told each other everything, always had, up until it came to the feelings between them. Eventually though, they'd shared those too, like the idiots they were.

Looking back, Hajime had freaked out for nothing. It was a no brainer to everyone around them; they were going to end up together, and gladly so.

Essentially, Hajime was a weak man when it came to his overzealous boyfriend, and his current predicament was a prime example.

See, it had all started the day before, right after volleyball practice...

--

"Going to the mall will be murder right now," Yahaba said, voice a touch too ominous given he'd just been chatting happily a few seconds earlier. The rest of the team turned to him, shocked, even Kunimi.

His grim stare was directed right at Hanamaki, who had stopped dead from the voice alone. Hell, even Hajime had paused.

"It was nice knowing you Hanamaki-san," Yahaba finished, turning back to stuff his remaining clothes into his gym bag.

Hell.

How someone with such lively eyes and fluffed hair could look so intimidating, no one knew.

Hanamaki collapsed in agony onto the club room floor, the few mall catalogues he'd been holding now falling in every direction.

Hajime sincerely hoped he'd be picking those up.

"It can't be avoided though! My mom wants me to buy my little cousin a toy because she forgot," Hanamaki explained, waving around one of the brightly colored pages. "I don't even know what she wants! And now I'm probably going to die in the holiday crowds."

"Yeah probably," Hajime muttered, and Tooru hummed right beside him, giving way to a chorus of affirmatives from the rest of the team.

"That's what you get for not doing it earlier," Matsukawa said, and Hajime did his best to cover up his laugh.

"Et tu, Issei?" Hanamaki's weak voice was nothing short of crushed, certainly not laced with the confidence needed to brave hundreds of shoppers. As Yahaba had said, it was nice knowing him.

Hajime shut his locker, eager to head home. He could sense Tooru staring at him out of the corner of his eye, and it sent a pleasant shiver up his spine. They had the house to themselves for the night, and Hajime was itching for the alone time. Already his hand was aching to reach out, link their fingers together...

And then it happened. The conversation which would eventually shatter all his self-control.

"I'll pay one of you to do it for me," Hanamaki groaned, crawling like a dying man in a desert, clawing at the pant legs of his teammates. "Please...I beg you...I can't go on..."

Oh no. No. Hajime could see Tooru open his mouth, prepared with a scolding or witty retort, but Hajime wouldn't allow it. Any acknowledgement, any word, and Hanamaki would home in on them like a missile, delivering them to destruction.

The last thing Hajime wanted to do was get conned into going to the mall when he could be making out with Tooru in his bedroom.

Hajime nudged Tooru, and the brunet shot him a confused look, but oh well. He'd explain later, and the small blip of silence gave someone else just enough time to speak up instead.

"But...is it really that hard to find a gift for a kid? It would be quick. There's tons...right?" Kindaichi tried cautiously, and the pitying looks he was given all but sealed his fate.

Hanamaki squinted at him, grabbing a few of the fallen catalogues for good measure. "Oh? You think it's that easy huh?" He waved the pages in Kindaichi's face, and the other had the good sense to flinch. This would not end well, but maybe not in the way Hajime originally thought.

"You think you can just...pick any old action figure or nerf gun off the shelf and call it a day?" Hanamaki went on, ignoring Kindaichi's attempts to save himself. "Tell me Kindaichi, what is a perfect, yet heartfelt gift? Since you seem to be such an expert..."

For whatever reason, the club room went silent, and Hajime wished he'd left sooner.

"W-well," Kindaichi began, pointing meekly to the yellow colored page in Hanamaki's hand. "You...you have some Build-a-Bear coupons in your hand. That's pretty personal I think. What kid doesn't like stuffed animals?"

Hanamaki stiffened, looking to the paper in his hand. And indeed, it was a ten percent off coupon to Build-a-Bear Workshop. Hajime sighed under his breath, turning to Tooru in hopes the other would look just as fed up as he was.

Instead, what he saw was trouble.

"Psh, really?" Hanamaki continued, eyeing the coupon with too much scrutiny, like it was obviously a scam. "Who wants one of these deer things?"

Yahaba snatched it from the senior's hands, his grim demeanor from before completely melted away in favor of childlike wonder. On the page were a few promotional toys, some holiday bears, bunnies, and of course, reindeer.

"Aw, they have reindeer! That's so cute!" Yahaba exclaimed, squeezing the paper to death. At this point, the coupon would be too torn up to be accepted.

"Lame," Kyoutani muttered from the corner, silent up until this point. Maybe it was Yahaba's exuberance which caused him to speak, or maybe this toy thing really was getting too out of hand. Even Kunimi stopped in his exit to watch the conversation play out.

Not that Hajime was all that fixated on anything but Tooru. Not now.

The brunet's hands were balled up in fists, his eyes tracking the coupon like it was a volleyball on the court, his eyes shining with a force all too familiar to Hajime.

Now, Hajime knew most of Tooru's...faces. He had his determined expressions, his excited ones, his fake ones, and at least three variations of each depending on the circumstance. There was the 'I'm about to school someone' face, the 'I've had it up to here with your shit' face, and every kind of face in between. But this, this was quite simply, Tooru's 'I'm about to rant' face.

And there was really nothing Hajime could do about it. It was in the universe's hands now. This face in particular was so rare yet so specific that there was no mistaking it. Many of their elementary and middle school classmates had cowered in fear before this face. In fact, the last time Hajime had seen it had been in their last year of elementary, where some punk on the playground tried to insist unicorns weren't real.

Tooru had gotten detention, but as far as any of the other kids had been concerned, he'd won the fight, so who was the real loser there?

Tooru was a master arguer when he got heated enough about something, so all Hajime could really do was lean back and watch him end lives. And he usually didn't mind, in fact, he could see these rants coming more often than not. Mostly because he knew Tooru so damn well. His stance on political matters, his preferred snacks and restaurants, and his general beliefs. Basically, if someone dared contradict a known Tooru fact, Hajime could anticipate a rant.

This time though, he was completely blindsided.

What was the big deal about Build-a-Bear?

"Why would I get her a reindeer? That's the dumbest thing in the world," Hanamaki said, snatching the now wrinkled coupon back into his hands.

It must've been the final straw for Tooru. Hajime could practically hear his boyfriend's patience crack in half. Tooru breathed in quickly, stepping forward, and it went all downhill from there.

"Why would you--why would you get her a reindeer?" Tooru scoffed about three times after his question, looking around the room in disbelief. Oh yeah, this would be interesting alright.

Tooru dropped his gym bag to the floor, and immediately he had everyone's attention. "Listen up fools, the establishment known as Build-a-Bear Workshop, or Build-a-Bear for short, is a paradise of personalized gifts and sentiment. If you can't see that, then there's no hope for your filthy soul when it descends to the underworld," Tooru sniffed. He wiped at his eyes, but they were still ablaze behind the fake tears.

God, Hajime really was a goner. Even as obnoxious as Tooru was being right then, Hajime couldn't help but find some aspect of it cute.

Tooru suddenly pointed an accusatory finger at the page in Hanamaki's hand, and the other third year actually stepped back from the intensity of it.

"Now," Tooru began, breathing in slowly for a measured four seconds. "Build-a-Bear only has those reindeer, the ones you're outright lampooning, around the holidays. That is two measly months, three at most. They sell out so fast. Everyone and their peers want one. And why shouldn't they? They're adorable!"

Compelled, Hanamaki looked again at the pictured reindeer, squinting in his re-analysis. All the while Tooru's voice climbed in volume, his tone of disbelief amplifying by the second, as if he were talking about warfare and not stuffed toys.

Kyoutani looked torn between captivated and outright terrified. Kunimi looked checked out, and Kindaichi was the only one taking all of Tooru's crap seriously. Everyone else probably mirrored Hajime, who was currently slack jawed and sixty percent sure this was all a dream.

"Hundreds of kids around the world have celebrated with heavy hearts because of their inability to acquire one of these reindeer, and you sit here in your arrogance, acting like they're too good for your cousin? Shame on you sir, shame on you," Tooru finished, kicking at some of the other miscellaneous catalogues for good measure. Brat. Hajime was going to have to clean those, he knew it.

Tooru and Hanamaki stood at a standstill for what felt like hours, not just ten seconds of awkward silence. And then Hanamaki grinned, slow and sure, a direct declaration of war as he waved the coupon around.

"Why Oikawa-san, if I didn't know any better I'd say you wanted a reindeer all to yourself. Seeing as you obviously love them or something..."

All heads turned to Tooru, expecting a quick defeat, but again, they underestimated him. When it came down to it, Tooru had all the possible angles and counterarguments of any rant mapped out in his head. And alongside that, Tooru was, and always would be, utterly shameless.

"Oh Makki, sweet Makki," Tooru chided, his smile sweet and razor sharp in a way Hajime couldn't help but be weirdly proud of.

It was a strange day.

"You think you've humiliated me? Hm? You think I'm scared to admit past injustices done to me? Because I'm not," Tooru said with an air of unrivaled confidence, his smile now a full on smirk. Hanamaki's straight posture noticeably crumbled out of confusion, and there was nothing else he could do. "You ask how and why I care so much about these reindeer, well the answer is simple. I was one of the many children deprived of them as a child! And I can't sit and watch more of today's youth suffer what I suffered!"

And of course, in classic Tooru fashion, the brunet crumpled to the floor, face twisted in anguish. "Oh and if you go, maybe get me one too while you're there," he tacked on sloppily, erasing any shrivel of seriousness he had before.

Hajime didn't know where to start, but the worst part of it all was that above the annoyance he felt, he mostly was...upset. How had he not known about Tooru's weird reindeer plush obsession? He knew all of Tooru's petty grudges and childhood wants. Hajime had been along for the ride for each one. Tooru's Lego fixation, his massive space toy wish list, the one year where all he'd wanted was volleyball gear....everything. But Hajime hadn't known about this. What the hell.

He did the only thing he could think to do. He glared at his boyfriend, like it was somehow his plan to keep this fact top secret. It was far too late to try and forget it though. The seed had been planted, and the plan slowly and involuntarily formed in Hajime's head.

The clubroom went silent again, everyone trying to comprehend the fact that they'd never get the past ten minutes of their life back.

Hanamaki and Matsukawa exchanged looks of uncertainty, before doing the only thing which seemed appropriate. They both started to slow clap. Tooru was still stretched out on the floor.

"You know what, that was the best one yet. Four stars," Hanamaki said, and Matsukawa hummed beside him. "Maybe even four and a quarter."

Broken from the trance, everyone began to mumble to themselves, filing out of the clubroom with rushed goodbyes so as to not be caught up in another.... whatever that was.

Eventually, he managed to get Tooru up and out of the clubroom too, admonishing him for wasting people's time. He wasn't even that pissed about it though, it happened all the time. Sometimes it wasn't even Tooru's fault.

No. Hajime was just pissed. He was pissed because now he had a mission, one that only intensified with each kiss he and Tooru shared later that night.

--

And that's how Hajime ended up here, at the local Build-a-Bear, newly stuffed reindeer in front of him.

Oh, the things he did for Tooru...

Hajime had endured every moment of humiliation. From walking through the damn doors, to spending fifteen minutes deciding on the perfect reindeer (because there was a surprising amount of options), to performing the painful heart ceremony.

Yes. That is right. Iwaizumi Hajime had picked a heart for the reindeer, kissed it, spun in circles, and regretted his life just a tad more after doing it.

He will also never admit he rubbed it against his heart to ensure "lots of love," because he was going to take that moment to the grave.

God he hoped no one he knew happened to walk by this store today. He'd nearly gotten a voice box for the toy too, but knowing Tooru, the brunet would only abuse it.

He could practically see it, his boyfriend sitting on his bed, legs swinging in the air as he squeezed his plush over and over again. No matter how endearing the image, Hajime didn't think he could handle the fluffy, thirty-dollar reindeer yelling "I love you" over and over again. He might end up stabbing his own ears, so that was a negative.

Hajime reached forward, picking the reindeer up to examine it closer. It was fairly plain at the end of the day, especially compared to the accessorized stuffed animals the other customers were getting. The reindeer was extra soft, his limbs more flexible since Hajime hadn't given it too much stuffing. He knew Tooru would like that, being able to make the damn thing talk and nag with its hooves. The fur was chocolate brown to match Tooru's eyes, with white patches of coloring on the chest and tail. With its big hazel eyes, it was the definition of adorable. A child's (or in this case Tooru's) dream really.

At the thought, Hajime grinned, ruffling the reindeer's fur. Tooru would love the damn thing whether it came with accessories or not. Hell, he would've loved and cherished any gift from Hajime, but Hajime just had to go above and beyond to get his boyfriend exactly what he wanted.

He used to wonder how he'd gotten so whipped, but nowadays he had to accept the cold hard facts. Hajime had always been crazy about his best friend, indulging him in whatever he wanted, though he masked it with complaints and glares.

But still, Tooru got what he desired each time. And really, so did Hajime.

Hajime sighed, acknowledging his defeat, and looked up at the wall of accessories one last time. As he was about to decide against any additional costumes or crowns (because seriously, it would only make his reindeer look gaudy, and he was damn proud of the thing deep down), something caught his eye. Something so perfect, so necessary, it made him grin even wider. The risk of looking like a madman was definitely there, but screw it, he couldn't help but be ecstatic.

Bingo.

It had to be destiny, and he sure hoped Tooru agreed.

Smiling softly, Hajime picked up the accessory and the reindeer, heading for the checkout, and tried his absolute best not to look at the price.

--

"Hey, why did you never tell me you wanted a reindeer?" Hajime asked randomly a few days later, his fingers carding through Tooru's hair while they lounged on his bed. He could feel Tooru's glasses dug into his leg a bit from how they were positioned, but Tooru just looked so damn good in the things he didn't care.

"Hm?" Tooru asked, confused, and he tilted his head slightly to meet Hajime's gaze. God, Tooru's eyes would be the end of him. Blown wide and communicating nothing but contentment, Hajime thought he could stare at them forever. "What do you mean Iwa-chan?"

"When we were kids growing up, we always shared wish lists," Hajime informed, trying his best not to twitch in excitement. The box in his closet felt like it would burn a hole through the door. "But I don't remember that one."

"Oh," Tooru said with a soft laugh, snuggling further against Hajime's stomach. "I guess it just didn't seem cool back then. And I never wanted to ask you or your parents for it because it was expensive. But I don't know...no one in my family ever got it for me either, which by the way, I'm very bitter about."

"You don't say..." Hajime laughed when Tooru pinched his side, and for a minute, he let himself sit like that. There was nothing better than this, being lazy with his boyfriend, making each other happy...

He hoped he could make Tooru even happier in just a few moments, and that he'd always make him feel as loved as Hajime did. Maybe it was a bold thing to think at the naive age of eighteen, but some things he could just feel in his heart, in his soul. Tooru had been his constant throughout his whole life. It would be damn hard to change that now, or ever.

Ugh, I'm getting sappy again. How did that happen?

Maybe he'd always been sappy. He was surprisingly okay with that.

"I can hear you thinking you know," Tooru teased, and Hajime rolled his eyes fondly. "Are you thinking about how wonderful I am?"

"More or less," Hajime admitted, too relaxed to deny anything. Not like he ever truly denied that though. He was lucky to have his boyfriend. Plus, this gave him the perfect opportunity for his plan to come together. He kept waiting for the right moment, but before he knew it, it was delivered to him. "You are wonderful..."

Tooru buried his face further into Hajime's stomach, but he could still see the red flush which colored the tips of the setter's ears. "Hajime, we need to really work on your abrupt sappiness. It's going to kill me one day. I don't deserve it."

And there it was, the usual touch of insecurity which Tooru kept locked away in the depths of his heart. The likes of which Hajime wondered if he'd ever be able to fully extinguish. He would try though, one step at a time, as long as it took.

"I think you more than deserve it, just like you deserve a stupid reindeer from Build-a-Bear," Hajime said, a grin already threatening to light up his face.

At that, Tooru lifted his head, squinting in a way far too innocent. "Huh?"

Hajime kissed his boyfriend's head before pushing it away from his laugh, and Tooru yelped in protest. Whatever, he'd forget all about it in a few seconds.

Hajime opened his closet, pulling out the oversized box which held his embarrassing, fluffy creation. Part of him was pretty damn proud of himself, and it probably showed, but oh well. It was just the two of them.

Tooru's eyes were wide now, tracking the box in Hajime's hands in shock. He must've figured it out by then, Tooru was far from stupid, but his expression stayed rooted in pure disbelief. But Hajime knew he'd already begun to realize it when his eyes began to water, and Hajime pulled out the reindeer.

The dam finally broke when Hajime pointed out the glasses he'd put on the reindeer, ones with a striking similarity to Tooru's own. Tooru hated how he looked in glasses, but he also hated contacts with a fury. He endured the pain every day to avoid wearing the basic frames, but Hajime loved them, and this was his tiny way of saying so.

He only hoped that they actually worked in conveying--ah and yeah, there's the waterworks.

Hajime laughed as Tooru tackled him onto the floor, the reindeer squished between them, and he gladly met every kiss he received.

--

Needless to say, Tooru kept that damn reindeer for years, until the point where it was discolored and missing an eye. Even still, Hajime couldn't help but smile every time he saw it sitting on their shared dresser, as loved as the day he first made it.