Level Pair (Haikyuu!! Winged AU)

Level Pair; Day Six 1/3

I can't promise to fix all your problems, but I can promise you won't have to face them all alone. ~Anonymous

Shouyou is busy collecting berries with more cheer than he probably should given the circumstances, but he is hungry and he is sure the gods put raspberries on this planet with him in mind specifically. He likes most sweet things and berries are no exception... and of all the different types, raspberries are his favorite.

He had woken earlier than normal this morning, his eyes drifting open to the large black wings that circled them and in the gray of early morning, they appeared to reflect the first rays of light with a deep blue hue. They looked so sleek and awesome and when he'd glanced up he was surprised to find Kageyama hadn't been up yet. It was a first since... well since.

Shouyou had glanced up at him still drowsy himself, and he couldn't help but flash a lazily fond smile. He knew Kageyama had been pulling late nights and early mornings so he could sleep sound, so seeing how he'd finally crashed himself out after what—five days—of deprivation gave him relief on some level. He'd carefully wiggled out of his grasp and thought he'd nearly woken him when he'd rolled to the side, but when he'd just pulled in a deep breath and resumed a rhythmic pattern, Shouyou had sat back to look at him.

He'd seen Kageyama sleep before—they did share a barracks now that they were in formal training as a sentry unit, but Shouyou had never really paused to take in the sight. With his wings wrapped around him like a cocoon to conserve any last tendrils of warmth, one arm had curled up under his head in lieu of a pillow. His wispy black hair stuck up in tufts but what Shouyou had to marvel at was his expression.

Kageyama's waking expressions consisted, in order of most used: frowns, glares, scowls, and a rare and decidedly unsettling grin that could still be somehow argued as a grimace. He didn't have a serene one. The expression on Kageyama's face while he slept would only appear when Kageyama wasn't conscious. There was no tension in the taller boy's face. His brows weren't pulled down and scrunched under a glower. There were no creases around his eyes because he'd narrowed them with annoyance. Instead of his lips being pursed with disdain, they were parted slightly and slack. Seeing such a look of mellow calm, Shouyou didn't have the heart to disturb him.

So he'd determined that since Kageyama had been doing most of the foraging for the past few days, he'd return the favor while the black haired boy caught up on some extremely needed sleep. He'd been careful to venture always within earshot of the river so he'd be able to find his way back just fine and he didn't intend to be gone long either; he was sure Kageyama would probably go mental on him if he woke and Shouyou wasn't around. He had spotted the raspberries and couldn't resist; his shirt is nearly full in front of him and he can't wait to bring them back to Kageyama.

He withdraws from the berry canes and steps back. Straightening up, he gingerly stretches as tall as he can, noting that his back must finally be doing a little better since he doesn't get a stab of pain with the motion. Kageyama had been religiously checking it every night before they sleep and he'd said just yesterday that the wound had pretty much closed over. It's still very much there and sore and achy and he still jumps when Kageyama prods it here and there during his inspections, but on the whole it seems to be healing well and fast.

Now if only my mind will heal, too.

He thinks morosely and his almond eyes drift open to stare out at the sky through a break in the trees. And he goes still.

His eyes are sharp and he knows it— the sharpest in their unit and possibly all of the Karasuno sentry ranks— but he still doubts his vision. He blinks just to make sure it's not in his head. And when the figure that glides through the air in the distance remains, he sucks in a gasp. His limbs shake and he doesn't have wings anymore... but he has his voice.