𝐖𝐑𝐀𝐈𝐓𝐇 || ᵇ.ᵏᵃᵗˢᵘᵏⁱ

XLIV

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Aeri snuck out of her dorm room just as the sun was rising on Monday morning, heading straight to gym gamma in her workout clothes, her uniform stashed in her bag along with a towel and her makeup. She planned on working on her ultimate move until it was 7:30, and then showering and getting ready using the school showers. It was a pain waking up this early, but it was necessary. She wanted to pass the provisional license exams straight after her moonstone ceremony just to impress the elders, and show them that she was the inheritor for a reason, especially with the idea she'd come up with for her ultimate move.

She halted in her steps once she reached the gym, noticing that the lights were already on. She tiptoed through the doors and peeked around the corner to see who it was, smiling happily at the familiar sounds of explosions and the tufts of blonde hair poking out behind the fallen rocks that still hadn't been cleaned up.

Aeri teleported behind him and jumped onto his back. Bakugou gasped and swore, trying to shake her off until he felt a kiss being pressed to the side of his head and the familiar scent of pomegranate and lotus flowers breaking through the smoke and invading his senses.

"Thought you were someone else," Bakugou sighed, grabbing her bare legs that were locked around his waist and swivelling her around so she was attached to his front instead.

"You go to bed early so you can come here and train in the mornings?" Aeri rested her forehead against his. Bakugou nodded before leaning in to press their lips together.

Aeri sighed happily into the kiss, moving a hand up to cup his jaw. Bakugou's grip on her thighs tightened as he pulled her impossibly closer, their lips still locked and moving together in a lazy morning kiss.

"I knew it!" Hyunjin called from the doorway. Aeri and Bakugou broke away from each other, looking over with wide eyes. Her brother was standing there with a wolfish grin, and his boyfriend, Amajiki, stood awkwardly beside him, avoiding looking directly at them. "I thought it was weird that you two were so close but now I see you were dating all along!" Hyunjin laughed evilly.

"It wasn't a secret nor was it 'all along'," Aeri rolled her eyes, unlatching herself from Bakugou and straightening up her clothes. "Don't act like you weren't about to come in here and do the exact same thing."

Amajiki flushed red, moving to rest his head against the wall out of sheer embarrassment. Hyunjin placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"I have an ultimate move to figure out now," Aeri cleared her throat, humiliation creeping up the back of her neck. Hyunjin wasn't the worst one of her brothers to find out about her and Bakugou, but he was a gossip. "Hyunjin, if I find out you told anyone about this, I will gut you. I know where you live."

"I live with you..."

"Exactly." She glared at him and then stalked off to one of the corners of the gym to figure out how she could pull off her ultimate move.

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She figured out she could do it. Though it would be near impossible to pull off with the sheer amount of concentration and power she'd need to pour into it. Who knew if she'd even be able to do it more than once?

Dalnim had confirmed it was possible and then almost burst into tears when Aeri explained her idea and the reasons behind it, though she encouraged her to experiment with the power first before she even attempted the ultimate move so she didn't wind up in another coma.

So instead of training with her brothers, Shinsou, Bakugou and Kirishima that day, she went back to gym gamma. Bakugou followed after her claiming he didn't want to train with them if he didn't get to spar with Aeri. The latter slapped his arm lightly for being rude but didn't resist when he followed after her, his hand ghosting her waist as they walked.

They met in the centre of the gym once they'd both changed into workout clothes and Aeri couldn't help but ogle at the sight of her boyfriend in a compression t-shirt—something she'd never once seen him in before. "This is new," she said, running her hands up his chest and over his shoulders.

"Pervert," he smirked, watching the way her eyes raked over his muscles.

Aeri rolled her eyes. "Are we gonna act like you don't stare at my ass whenever I'm wearing spandex?" Bakugou's grin turned wolfish, though, on the inside, he was kind of embarrassed to be caught when he thought he was being subtle.

Aeri reluctantly tore her hands away from Bakugou, stretching her arms above her head and rolling her shoulders back. "Look all you want. If it's you, I don't mind." It was Bakugou's turn to roll his eyes now.

"No other fucker will look at you, they'll see me next to you and piss themselves on the spot."

Aeri laughed loudly. "How would I ever live without you to beat up perverts for me?" She cooed teasingly, pressing a light, second-long kiss to his lips before she got started on summoning her power through Dalnim, shallowly slicing her palm open for the second time that day and drawing the symbol on her forehead. Now she knew why her mother's palms were always so scarred.

The symbol glowed white and then Dalnim appeared. The explosions a dozen metres behind her told her that Bakugou had gotten to work too.

"Ready to merge, Dalnim?" Aeri beamed at the deity, the material of her traditional clothing billowing around her.

"My power is yours, Moon Aeri." Dalnim placed a hand over where her heart would be and then moved towards her inheritor. Aeri let out a deep breath as her soul was moved to the side, Dalnim's sliding into place next to it. Serenity filled her mind and she began her usual training routine with her daggers just like Dalnim had suggested that morning.

She needed to get used to sharing her body before she tried anything flashy, so basic sparring and weapon training whilst in their merged form would have to do for now.

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