“So you’re saying… that was on purpose?” Takumi asked, staring at a copy of himself. Or was he the copy? Technically it was neither and both, but that really wasn’t the concern right now. Askr was all kinds of confusing, simplified by the fact that he had found his Leo relatively quickly, expounded upon because he had found another Takumi and Leo in a much stranger situation.
“Yes, completely on purpose,” the other Takumi said. He was in his traditional New Years outfit, the only difference being the Nohrian crest stitched into various sections of the outfit- the collar, the scarf, even alongside the hem of his kimono. “What you have to understand is, our war has been over for years. Nearly a decade. Leo and I are married in every way except on paper, and that’s just because we were making sure our the peace between Nohr and Hoshido wasn’t going to be broken so easily.”
“No, I understand that,” Takumi said, shaking his head. He went quiet as a few other Heroes passed, watching them closely before leaning in and whispering to himself- his other self, “I just don’t get how he got so… so big. I’ve seen Heroes with post-war bodies here, but he’s…”
“He let himself go? I assume that’s the nicest way to put it, but… I was wondering that myself, too,” New Years Takumi muttered before setting a hand on the shoulder of his younger self, “why don’t you come and see for yourself. I’ve also got my own questions.”
“Like if this is something that all Takumi’s like?”
“Exactly. And if it’s something all Leo’s like, or if I just got extremely lucky,” He smiled, patting Takumi’s shoulder, “We can keep it tame, if you like- just some light stuffing and Leo whining about how full he is.”
When Takumi sputtered, face red and eyes wide, his older self knew this had to be a shared trait. So embarrassed over such a small idea… maybe this was why Niles liked to tease him so badly- it was a little fun.
“Y-yeah,” Takumi finally spit out, “yeah, just… light stuff… tomorrow?”
“Tomorrow. Out near the picnic grounds,” New Years Takumi explained, “Leo has a pretty good barrier spell to keep out any unwanted guests, and I’ll be sure we have a good sized lunch packed. Not that it’s necessary- Leo knows how to conjure food as well.” Seeing the wide-eyed look again, he snickered, “You’re right, he didn’t get that size just from a few extra feasts. I’ll see you tomorrow, alright?”
“Y-yeah…”
--
“You invited another version of yourself… out here?” Leo asked with a grumble, his arms wrapped around Takumi as they slowly made their way to the picnic area. He was thankful for his horse, but also for the strange bit of static magic that Askr had cast upon them during their summoning. Leo and Takumi had already had a few excursions like this, but Leo hadn’t seemed to gain a single pound. No matter, he had spells for that, but it was nice to know he could afford to abuse his capacity for binging more frequently.
“Yes, why is that so hard to understand?” Takumi asked, leaning back against his husband, “I’m curious to see if it’s just a me thing, or a… ‘me’ thing, I guess. He seemed pretty into the idea when I brought it up.”
“Great, another persistent set of hands to shove food into my mouth,” Leo was grumbling, but the blush on his cheeks was strong enough he was certain Takumi could feel it. He was going to love this.
They reached the picnic area soon enough, thankful to see it empty, and continued on lesser worn path to their own little private spot. It was a small clearing, enough for one set of bodies and their picnic basket, but Takumi liked the cramped space. It was an excuse to get closer to Leo.
