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Ibuki broke into a grin as she bent into a deep bow, long hair brushing the stage floor as she dipped forward. Even Hiyoko pouted slightly less than usual as Mahiru and Mikan both erupted into applause.Even after all that time strapped down in a pod, she still had it in her after all.“That- That was incredible, Mioda-san!” Mikan shouted over the ringing in her ears.“Shut up, Pig Breath,” Hiyoko snapped. “If you make her go deaf, she won’t be able to sing anymore.”“She’s right,” Mahiru agreed with Mikan, ignoring her other friend. “You’re still pretty good. What are you calling this one?”Hands planted on her hips, Ibuki declared proudly, “’I Woke Up From a Long Nap and Now I Can Hear a Chunky Hunky Babe’s Thoughts’!” People had lost things, before having been placed in the pods. Kuzuryuu’s eye, Komaeda’s hand….Once the class had awoken, however, there were gains to be found as well. A second occupant had taken up residence in Hinata’s mind, although he wasn’t quite ready to discuss the details with the rest of the class yet.Maybe some wires had gotten crossed between their pods, or maybe some line of code that should have been in one place had scooted over into another, but for whatever reason, something unexpected had happened between Ibuki and the wider of the two Togami Byakuyas upon their return to reality.She couldn't say that she deserved such a gee whiz, holy moly big deal of a gift after all that she had done back then. Yet still, Ibuki allowed herself to enjoy it all the same. That’s what life was all about when you really got down to it, right?“Byakuya-chaaaaan!” Ibuki squealed upon spotting him traveling toward the ship’s mess hall, taking a flying leap to wrap her arms as far as they would go around him from behind. Hot dang was he warm and soft. “Ibuki bets that she can guess what you’re thinking!”“Oh?” He adjusted his glasses, the smallest hint of amusement hiding in his voice. “Let’s hear it then.”“You want to hear Ibuki’s latest song! Byakuya-chan’s ears just ‘y-EAR-n’ for the sweet caress of Ibuki’s tunes!” She crowed, giving his sides a pat. “Kya-ha! Nailed it!”"You’ve got that wrong," Togami intoned, continuing on his way with Ibuki still attached quite literally at his hips. "I enjoy having eardrums, thank you.""Okay-dokey-artchokey, then. What's Ibuki thinkin' 'bout, Mr. smarty pants?" She countered."Hmm…” Togami pretended to think for a moment, stroking at his chin. “How about 'Time to bother this unsuspecting man, who is simply attempting to go about his rehabilitation'?"Sometimes, Ibuki forgot that her gift didn't run both ways.“Ibuki thinks that Byakuya-chan’s got a whole flurry of worries filling up that big ol’ brain of his! A lil’ snow on the roof!” Ibuki said as they entered the mess. As late as it was, there was no one else around. Everyone trusted one-another now, so there had been no need to enact curfews upon the ship.While it was obvious that Togami was after a midnight snack, Ibuki had only awoken because his thoughts had been ringing in her head as loudly as one of her guitar riffs blasted from an amp.Seeing as Hanamura couldn’t be expected to be on-call twenty-four-seven, it was to up to anyone out foraging at this hour to create his own snack. Flipping on the lightswitch in the kitchen, Togami began to browse around.Reluctantly, Ibuki dislodged herself to follow suit.“I don’t have the slightest idea what you’re talking about, Mioda,” Togami said, frowning at the meager contents of the fridge before closing the door. They’d likely have to make landfall soon, in order to replenish their supplies. While Togami wasn’t as skilled in disguising others as he was himself, the collection of wigs and makeup he had replenished his collection with during their travels was enough to pass the group off as something other than the terrorist organization who had destroyed the entire world.Either way, Ibuki always felt like like someone was playing air guitar with her insides when broad hands would apply her makeup, sturdy fingers steadying her chin. It had been one of the few instances in Ibuki’s lifetime in which she had forced herself to be totally quiet.Hopping up to sit on the counter as Togami continued to browse, Ibuki’s voice fell unusually soft. “Ibuki wonders…. If Byakuya-chan is really okay with still being called that or not.”Togami paused, and Ibuki thought that she could hear the tension in the room as loudly as his thoughts. Slowly, he shut the cabinet he had been browsing, turning on his heel to face her.“Why wouldn’t I be?”‘ It’s not as if I have a name that’s solely my own…’ It wasn’t that Ibuki could hear the words exactly. It was more like when you listen to the acoustic version of song, and the back of your brain supplies the words that go along with the beat.Uncertainty. Worry. The emotions buzzed through Ibuki’s brain“Well, everyone’s grown so much since school, ya know?” Ibuki pointed out, taking on a more serious tone as she allowed her feet to kick out her excess energy as she perched on the counter. “And Ibuki thinks that maybe Byakuya-chan has too. It’s like that time Yukizome-sensei had us all grow big, tall lima bean plants from itty-bitty little beans.” Ibuki clapped her hands together, moving them upward in a snaking motion.While not all of their memories from their stay at Hope’s Peak had returned, Ibuki hoped that they at least shared some of the same ones. She couldn’t help but grin as a brief flash of warmth in her mind told her that he remembered too, how Hiyoko had snapped Mikan’s plant’s steam when she wasn’t looking; how Souda had attempted to give his plant to Sonia; how Gundam’s hamsters had eaten his seed before it had time to sprout...
'Indeed I do remember!'
“Oh? Have I now?” Togami asked, raising a brow. “Or are you perhaps just attempting to call me a ‘bean sprout’?“Oh no! No no non! Byakuya-chan is no bean sprout!” Ibuki announced, launching herself into another hug.He was happier now, Ibuki could feel it, and not just because his own arms returned the gesture, wrapping her in a reassuring embrace.“Hey, um… If Byakuya-chan ever wanted a new identity,” Ibuki suggested casually--albeit muffled--into the front of his cotton shirt, “Usually Ibuki is the only one who puts the ‘Me’ in ‘Mioda’, but she thinks that she would be willing to share!”“Is…” He took a breath. Oopsie-daisy, he’s nervous now! Has Ibuki blown it? She wondered, apprehensive upon feeling the quivering sensation flash through her mind. At least it was still an improvement over how he had been feeling before...“Is that so?”Guiding her back up onto the counter, Togami removed his glasses, tucking them into his breast pocket. Smoothing stray hair away from Ibuki’s face, he leaned in.It was over in an instant--or maybe a lifetime--but as Ibuki scrambled to read his thoughts on what they had just done, she found that the connection had gone quiet. It was just as well, seeing as it wasn’t hard to guess what the gesture had meant.“Even so… Byakuya-chan will always be Byakuya-chan to me. Is that really alrighty? Alrighty as rain? Because Ibuki think that it must be sprinkling in here, because her cheeks are getting wet!”The man known for now as Togami Byakuya smiled, plump cheeks more rosy than ever. “I wouldn’t have it any other way, Mioda.”