kats-fic-recs

[kats-fic-recs]

Best Haikyuu Fics I've Read in 2025 (Part 1)

something old; something new

You want to head out?” Shouyou asks as soon as Kageyama is redressed and refreshed as well.

“Out?” Kageyama repeats, looking slightly confused.

Shouyou gnaws at his lip, a little bit of trepidation starting to sneak in under the excitement. “Yeah. We could go watch another sport – uhh, if there’s space – or go see the village, anything! We just won, don’t you want to go feel the buzz of being a winning Olympian?”

Kageyama hums, eyes still trained on the clock, before he shrugs a shoulder. “No,” he says simply, in that usual blunt way of his, “it’s too noisy.”

-

In which it's Hinata's first Olympics and he's so ready to experience it all with Kageyama right by his side, but it seems as though Kageyama is a little over the novelty of being an Olympian.

somnambulism

“Is everything alright?” Tobio demands the next morning, when they’re making breakfast together.

Hinata blinks at him over the rice cooker. “… Yes?” he tries, looking extremely confused.

“You’re playing volleyball in your sleep,” Tobio states, deciding to just dive right into heart of that matter.

Hinata stares at him. The rice cooker beeps, and he presses the button to pop open the lid without breaking his gaze. There’s a long period of silence while the smell of freshly cooked rice fills the flat and the gears in Hinata’s head visibly turn.

“That’s kind of cool, actually,” is what he decides on, once he’s finished thinking.

Tobio nearly flings a spatula at him.

-

In which Hinata has always had a habit of sleepwalking, but has recently added sleep volleyball to his repertoire.

no time for rewrites (we couldn't help it)

"I'm not a stranger," Hinata asserts, "I'm not dating anyone right now, and we hang out all the time. I could be your rebound."

Tobio tries his hardest to wrap his head around that thought but it's all getting a little fuzzy with Hinata straddling his lap all of a sudden. "Th—that's crazy."

Hinata has that stubborn shine in his eyes, the one which always means Tobio is in trouble. "Tell me one reason why not."

or

Hinata offers to be in a rebound relationship with Kageyama to help him get over his ex. The rest is history.

shoulder surfing

It appears that the set has ended – though there’s no scoreboard so who knows who’s keeping track – and Hinata turns to his beach volleyball partner, removing his sunglasses with one smooth movement and- oh dear.

Tobio might need to go and lay down on that smooth rock a few feet away to try and calm down.

Because Hinata is smiling – bright and wide and infuriatingly perfect – and Tobio had kind of forgotten what it was like to be burnt by sunbeams.

Hinata Shouyou stands there, on the beach, with a cap that his new, shorter hair pokes out the sides of in tufts, with fitted shorts and a beautiful smile and-

Arms.

Nice arms.

Very nice arms.

-

In which Kageyama sneaks onto the beach in Brazil to watch Hinata play, and becomes just a little, just a teensy bit obsessed with his new shoulders.

No Angels Could Beckon Me Back

Hinata laughs quietly, his eyes seeming to glow in the dark as he grins in Kageyama's face. "Make me."

Kageyama and Hinata wind each other up. They sling insults, pick fights, and challenge each other every chance they get, both on and off the court. It's just how they are. It's what they do.

But when the tension between them leads to an impulsive action neither of them expected, Kageyama has to question whether this is all a normal part of rivalry, or if what's between them runs deeper than that.

Kiss With A Fist

"I thought—" Hideo stopped, gathering his words. He felt betrayed somehow. "The magazines all said they were best friends, but it looks like they don't even like each other!"

"Oh, they like each other," Tsukishima said dryly. "Just look."

Hideo and the others realized the sounds of fighting had quieted down, and as they turned to look at their upperclassmen, they were met with a surprising sight. Hinata was sitting on top of Kageyama, his hands fisted in his teammate's gym shirt, and Kageyama still had a tangle of Hinata's hair in his grasp, but they were now kissing. Passionately.

The newest Karasuno Men's Volleyball Club first years are eager to begin their journey, and especially eager to meet their new upperclassmen and idols: Kageyama Tobio and Hinata Shouyou. Upon arrival to the gym, though, they're surprised to find the supposed friends fighting and are blown away when they learn that the third years are actually dating.

It makes them wonder how Kageyama and Hinata got together in the first place...

going for gold

“What are you trying to say Hajime?” Oikawa urges, holding his breath.

God, is this it? Is it happening now? Are they doing this right now? On the cardboard bed in Block 905 of the Olympic Village? Will he finally be fiancé of Iwaizumi Hajime (27) Athletic Trainer of the Japanese national volleyball team on the eleventh day of the Tokyo Olympics?

“I’m saying—I love you so much Tooru, I—”

The doorbell interrupts him mid-sentence and Oikawa whips his head in the direction of the offending sound.

Someone should tell Oikawa that this is only the first of a series of unfortunate events.

Share my life, it's yours to keep

But this particular quirk persists, long enough that Hajime picks up on it. At some point, Oikawa had started deliberately matching his clothing to Hajime’s own outfits whenever they went out. They are never quite the same outright, but once Hajime starts noticing it, it’s hard to not see how Oikawa’s choice of clothing complements his own, enough so that one could safely pronounce them a matching set.

Iwaizumi discovers that he and Oikawa appear to be wearing couple-clothing whenever they go out, due to Oikawa's determination to match his own outfits to Iwaizumi's. He decides to test the extent of that determination.

the boy is mine

“You do get it, right?” Oikawa asked once more. His expression was bright, like there was a joke only he knew, like Oikawa was thinking up something fucked up and all Iwaizumi could do was laugh and hang on for the ride. It was a constant in their lives, and Iwaizumi couldn't bring himself to hate it. Oikawa continued. “I don’t like it. I have to know everything you do or else I think I might go crazy.”

Or: Oikawa and Iwaizumi don't like to share.

taurean truths

Tooru licks the icing from his pointer finger and looks over his shoulder at Hajime, pouting. Coy. Twenty-eight definitely isn’t thirty—the way Hajime’s body reacts to the sight makes him feel seventeen all over again. “I really don’t know why you still play nice with him.”

Hajime laughs at that, breathy. God, he loves Tooru. “Come on, baby,” he says. It’s not just placation when he admits, “You know I don’t like him either.”

Nocturnal Creatures

“You never asked me the question,” the vampire says. “Are you that confident of yourself?”

Kuroo knows better than to engage with his prey. He’s been hunting the little vampire prince for months now; he has him under his gun. He should take the shot and leave. He should know better than to reply. He is too veteran to hesitate.

“What question?”

The vampire’s smile widens.

“Whether I let you catch me.”

*

It starts the way it ends: with Kuroo chasing a shadow.

i took the stars from our eyes, and then i made a map

"Kenma’s a grad student with the design department. I met him when I was trying to get one of them to help me add some flair to my syllabus, and he was the only one willing to help – even if he said it was just so I would leave their office in peace.”

“That’s why he looked familiar,” Daichi piped up with a snap of his fingers. “Asahi’s in the design department too, and I think they’ve worked together on some assignments.”

“Has this guy just been hanging out with everyone in our mutual circles except me?”

“Sounds like it.”

-

Or, Kuroo is an overworked, underpaid, and almost out of his mind TA. Seeing Kenma a couple times a week makes it all a little easier.

the shift

A box slams on the rest of the prep table to his right, shaking the whole thing. Underneath the label, he can see the fragmented letters of ‘Pork shoulder’. He looks around, eyes skirting over Suna, back behind him.

“Where’s the rest?” he asks, finally looking at Suna’s blank face.

“This is the rest,” Suna replies.

Osamu and Suna have had many rough shifts at the restaurant. This shift might actually tear them apart.

curry udon (and other compromises)

“We should see other people.”

Look, Osamu’s never claimed to be the most emotionally intelligent crayon in the box, but he’s aware this is a loaded statement for a breath before eight a.m. The kind of statement that requires uncomfortable, prolonged eye contact and un-fidgety hands. He holds his spatula in a death grip as he stares down Suna across the kitchen.

To his credit, Suna barely blinks as he looks up from his phone where he’s perched precariously on the back of a chair at Osamu’s bistro table. “You couldn’t wait to break up with me until after I drank my coffee?”

surfacing

Keiji’s boyfriend has been cheating on him. During their public confrontation, he ends up walking out with the other man - Bokuto Koutarou. They strike up an unlikely friendship born from the bond of heartbreak, and, eventually, help one another to heal parts of themselves they perhaps hadn't even known were broken.

Alternatively: Bokuto tries to set Akaashi up with a rebound to make up for being “the other man.” It both does and does not go according to plan.

[kats-fic-recs]

Best Bkdk Fics I've Read in 2025 (Part 1)

Note: Hi everyone! I'm sorry about not being super active for the last few months, but school has been slowly crushing me from the inside out lol. My chosen form of coping lately has been bkdk fics. Shout out to all the fanfic authors out there! I love you muah <3<3<3<3<3

Part 1: You kiss me in a way that's going to screw me up forever (Fluff)

the world froze around us (you kissed me good night)

“...okay,” Kacchan’s lip twitches, like the smallest mini-smile.

“Wait. Okay to what.”

Kacchan stares at him like he’s the biggest idiot in the world, which, to be fair, Izuku often suspects that he is. “I’ll go. On the date.”

or: Izuku summons up all the courage in his earthly body to ask Kacchan out, he isn’t prepared for Kacchan to say yes though.

Why Do Birds Suddenly Appear?

Midoriya doesn't think he'll make it to the end of the semester if his Quirk keeps going haywire around Kacchan.

Or: 5 times Midoriya accidently used Blackwhip on Bakugou, + 1 time he used it on purpose.

i think that it’s best if we both stay

Listen, dumbass. If we wanna break up for real, we’ll do it. Otherwise, we’ll stay together. End of story.”

Izuku perks up. “That’s a great idea. We’ll try to make ourselves sick of each other by the end of the month, and if we make it, it’ll prove we’re meant to be together.”

“That’s not what I—” Katsuki huffs, picking up a slice of toast. “Fine. You’re on thin ice anyway.”

It turns out breaking up is easier said than done.

Part 2: In another life you still would've turned my head (AU Fics)

miss you a latte

Izuku wishes he felt annoyed but it’s far from that. Instead there’s laughter ringing from his throat, loud and unhinged. He can’t stop the ripples that undulate through his stomach, the bright warmth that explodes like a firework beneath his sternum.

Most of all, there’s yearning, an ache that plucks at his heartstrings. But maybe it has never left. Maybe it’s an old wound buried so deep inside him he’d forgotten it was there. The bitterness of coffee rekindles the ache.

He thinks he could get used to the taste.

thinking about deku who enters a cafe to find his ex bf kacchan working as a part time barista there. anyway he orders a coffee with three extra pumps of vanilla syrup but receives a plain latte instead, w/ a note attached to it saying 'I TOLD U NOT TO DRINK SO MUCH SUGAR U FUCK'

got those baby blues

Today, Izuku was the guy on the plane everyone hated – the guy with the screaming baby. Luckily there was someone willing to sit next to him. Huh, he wondered why those red eyes looked so familiar.

***

They meet on a plane, they fall in love. That's it. That's the fic

love at first bite

Kacchan tests in the highest percentile for soulbond-type strength augmentation. One of the highest percentiles on record. And when they tell Kacchan that he scowls and denies it.

It basically means that whoever Kacchan’s soulmate is, they love him a whole lot.

Izuku doesn’t find that surprising.

or: A soulmate’s love is supposed to make you stronger, but Izuku’s known Kacchan forever, and he seems so strong already.

the needle's eye

In ancient times, the lands and humanity were protected by animal-human hybrids, Legends, that carry One For All’s spirit. Being a Legend taking the form of a ram, Midoriya Izuku travels town to town and uses his powers to weave his magical wool into healing cloth items for humans.

One day however, when hopelessly lost and injured in his ram form during a snowstorm, he's rescued by a hunter, Bakugou Katsuki. To repay his debt, Izuku shapeshifts himself as a human and presents himself at Katsuki’s door as a traveller seeking refuge from the storm.

Izuku’s plans to weave his gifts of gratitude for Katsuki and leave by morning goes awry when the storm, his sustained injuries, and the townspeople already struggling with sickness unexpectedly forces Izuku and Katsuki to cohabitate... indefinitely.

Loyal to his duties, Izuku dedicates himself to weaving for the village to help them combat the sickness. But now, by living with Katsuki and the townspeople, he’s forced to grapple with what it means to be a human, have a home, and maybe even fall in love.

Or: A loose adaptation of the Japanese folklore, 'The Crane Wife.' Made for the Ever After Bang.

Imperial Retrograde

Tired, feeling safer in his captor’s arms than he’d had in months outside them, Izuku drifted into a dreamless sleep.

And Katsuki carried him home.

---

Raised on a continent at the brink of war, Katsuki and Izuku's sides were chosen the day they were born. But now, as Katsuki's birth right is stripped of him and handed to a foreign prisoner, as Izuku's stolen from his home in the dead of night to fight for an enemy nation because he was at the wrong place at the wrong time, the two are forced to find common ground with each other, and end a war heading towards total annihilation.

Part 3: Everyone else in the room can see it (Outsider's POV)

fingers claw your skin (tear your way in)

Love was a new feeling for you, but you found yourself enjoying it. You found yourself willing to go to war for the boy that glanced at Midoriya Izuku with so much tenderness when he thought he wasn't looking, always looking but too afraid to make the first move, filled with too much history and broken promises and harsh words to wade through.

Love was a new feeling for you, but you, Bakugou Katsuki, Kacchan—you were easy to love, if only people saw through your veneer.

Midoriya Izuku and Bakugou Katsuki's relationship, as seen through Blackwhip's eyes.

The Snaps from the Same Little Breaks in Your Soul

"Seeing the way you two are with each other, it helped me realize what I was missing from my own relationship. Let’s just say you’ve raised the bar considerably. I don’t want to be with someone unless they look at me the way you both look at each other.”

She’s confused when Bakugou’s and Midoriya’s faces both pale while Shinso starts snickering and Kirishima’s eyebrows go up cartoonishly.

“I-I what do you - we’re not” Midoriya is now stammering and blushing, looking to Bakugou who just looks down silently.

Or

The one where Katsuki is such a good boyfriend to Izuku that someone sees this and is inspired to dump their own shitty boyfriend. Even though he's not actually Izuku's boyfriend.

AKA

The post-canon fic where Izuku is a teacher at U.A. and Katsuki still takes care of him.

Part 4: Forever & Always (Post Canon Fics)

Tomorrow's Sound Bite

"There's no such thing as always, Deku. If Dynamight is still hearty and hale, then he's going. I think the public will get a kick out of seeing him hold his own against Hirano and Merry. Stop pouting."

"I'm not pouting," Izuku said with a pout. "I just—Kacchan—"

"Dynamight is an adult and a pro-hero. He is more than capable of answering questions about himself for an hour. Get some rest. I want you in tip-top condition for your talk at the museum opening next week. Now, please give the phone back to Dynamight."

Izuku mumbled a goodbye and mouthed Sorry as he handed the phone to Kacchan.

Kacchan groaned. "Yeah, I'll do the interview, goddamn. But if they want me to talk for an hour, then they'll get me for an hour, got it?"

An hour of pure, unfiltered Kacchan.

Izuku was sure that they didn't know what they were getting into.

---

Izuku and Kacchan always do their interviews together, but with Izuku home sick, Kacchan has to weather it alone. Izuku is worried, especially when a rude guest starts needling Kacchan about their relationship

Deku-Dynamight Divorce Rages On!

Pro Heroes Deku and Dynamight, joint owners of the top hero agency in Japan, have always been known for their relationship, which dates back to their high school days. However, things were clearly different than they looked like from the outside, because the couple shocked the nation when they announced their divorce.

Almost a year later, the battle hasn’t ended.

After over two decades of marriage, Izuku and Katsuki call it quits. However, that's easier said than done when it involves two teenage kids, a ton of interfering friends, and a hell of a lot of petty, escalating attempts to annoy each other.

Part 5: I Can Do it with a Broken Heart (Post Canon Fix-it Fics)

Shouldering Dreams

"Want to be roommates?”

Shouto blinks, processing the question. He sounds skeptical when he asks, “You sure you want to spend that much time with me? You used to say being around me makes you lose brain cells.”

Katsuki snorts. “And being around me that much might make you more of an asshole. I’m a major dick, sometimes.”

Shouto huffs a small laugh, and then he smiles. Quiet falls into the night, and Katsuki almost thinks Shouto thought he was joking. But after several minutes, he speaks again.

“Sure, Major Dick,” Shouto says, “Let’s be roommates.”

---

In which Katsuki is in love with an idiot, Shouto is the greatest best friend of all time, and Izuku is just a little bit oblivious (but he'll figure things out, eventually).

And your bird can sing

Is a twisted bond really so twisted when it once felt like everything? What is happiness, anyways? What kind of hero can Katsuki even be in this sort of society?

Or,

“I mean to say…well, do you see Izuku as a person?” Shouto Todoroki had asked him, "I think you see him as a symbol to strive towards. To chase."

…And promptly turned the next 4 years of Katsuki Bakugou's life upside down.

"What kind of hero are you without Izuku Midoriya?"

And just what is heroism, anyways?

OR—Izuku insists he has everything he wants. Katsuki can’t say the same about himself. So, he’s going to find his birds and make them sing, even if he has to force them, dammit!

profit like it's hot

Nothing. Izuku stood on his tiptoes. “Are you alright? Did something break? I can get you a broom if you… Kacchan?!”

There he was. Crouching behind the counter in tracksuit pants and a black tee, a bottle of pills upended around him, the tips of his ears and what Izuku could see of his face tomato-red and steaming. Baffled wasn’t a big enough word. Shocked wasn’t quite right, either. It was more the, what on earth? feeling you might get if a lion suddenly wandered into a grocery store. Izuku rubbed his eyes.

“Kacchan! It is you! What are you doing down there? Oh my goodness, are you stealing pills?!”

***

Or, five times Izuku finds Katsuki working extra jobs, and one time he finds out why.

***

Alternate titles include:

Amex? more like kiss my assets.

Fairy Godmother Kacchan

chronicals of Deku, the unwilling sugar baby

P.S. I know there are technically two parts for Post Canon fics, but trust me, there is a difference between Post Canon and Post Chapter 431 and Pre Chapter 432 Release fics.

[kats-fic-recs]

Best Haikyuu Fics I've Read in 2025 (Part 1)

something old; something new

You want to head out?” Shouyou asks as soon as Kageyama is redressed and refreshed as well.

“Out?” Kageyama repeats, looking slightly confused.

Shouyou gnaws at his lip, a little bit of trepidation starting to sneak in under the excitement. “Yeah. We could go watch another sport – uhh, if there’s space – or go see the village, anything! We just won, don’t you want to go feel the buzz of being a winning Olympian?”

Kageyama hums, eyes still trained on the clock, before he shrugs a shoulder. “No,” he says simply, in that usual blunt way of his, “it’s too noisy.”

-

In which it's Hinata's first Olympics and he's so ready to experience it all with Kageyama right by his side, but it seems as though Kageyama is a little over the novelty of being an Olympian.

somnambulism

“Is everything alright?” Tobio demands the next morning, when they’re making breakfast together.

Hinata blinks at him over the rice cooker. “… Yes?” he tries, looking extremely confused.

“You’re playing volleyball in your sleep,” Tobio states, deciding to just dive right into heart of that matter.

Hinata stares at him. The rice cooker beeps, and he presses the button to pop open the lid without breaking his gaze. There’s a long period of silence while the smell of freshly cooked rice fills the flat and the gears in Hinata’s head visibly turn.

“That’s kind of cool, actually,” is what he decides on, once he’s finished thinking.

Tobio nearly flings a spatula at him.

-

In which Hinata has always had a habit of sleepwalking, but has recently added sleep volleyball to his repertoire.

no time for rewrites (we couldn't help it)

"I'm not a stranger," Hinata asserts, "I'm not dating anyone right now, and we hang out all the time. I could be your rebound."

Tobio tries his hardest to wrap his head around that thought but it's all getting a little fuzzy with Hinata straddling his lap all of a sudden. "Th—that's crazy."

Hinata has that stubborn shine in his eyes, the one which always means Tobio is in trouble. "Tell me one reason why not."

or

Hinata offers to be in a rebound relationship with Kageyama to help him get over his ex. The rest is history.

shoulder surfing

It appears that the set has ended – though there’s no scoreboard so who knows who’s keeping track – and Hinata turns to his beach volleyball partner, removing his sunglasses with one smooth movement and- oh dear.

Tobio might need to go and lay down on that smooth rock a few feet away to try and calm down.

Because Hinata is smiling – bright and wide and infuriatingly perfect – and Tobio had kind of forgotten what it was like to be burnt by sunbeams.

Hinata Shouyou stands there, on the beach, with a cap that his new, shorter hair pokes out the sides of in tufts, with fitted shorts and a beautiful smile and-

Arms.

Nice arms.

Very nice arms.

-

In which Kageyama sneaks onto the beach in Brazil to watch Hinata play, and becomes just a little, just a teensy bit obsessed with his new shoulders.

No Angels Could Beckon Me Back

Hinata laughs quietly, his eyes seeming to glow in the dark as he grins in Kageyama's face. "Make me."

Kageyama and Hinata wind each other up. They sling insults, pick fights, and challenge each other every chance they get, both on and off the court. It's just how they are. It's what they do.

But when the tension between them leads to an impulsive action neither of them expected, Kageyama has to question whether this is all a normal part of rivalry, or if what's between them runs deeper than that.

Kiss With A Fist

"I thought—" Hideo stopped, gathering his words. He felt betrayed somehow. "The magazines all said they were best friends, but it looks like they don't even like each other!"

"Oh, they like each other," Tsukishima said dryly. "Just look."

Hideo and the others realized the sounds of fighting had quieted down, and as they turned to look at their upperclassmen, they were met with a surprising sight. Hinata was sitting on top of Kageyama, his hands fisted in his teammate's gym shirt, and Kageyama still had a tangle of Hinata's hair in his grasp, but they were now kissing. Passionately.

The newest Karasuno Men's Volleyball Club first years are eager to begin their journey, and especially eager to meet their new upperclassmen and idols: Kageyama Tobio and Hinata Shouyou. Upon arrival to the gym, though, they're surprised to find the supposed friends fighting and are blown away when they learn that the third years are actually dating.

It makes them wonder how Kageyama and Hinata got together in the first place...

going for gold

“What are you trying to say Hajime?” Oikawa urges, holding his breath.

God, is this it? Is it happening now? Are they doing this right now? On the cardboard bed in Block 905 of the Olympic Village? Will he finally be fiancé of Iwaizumi Hajime (27) Athletic Trainer of the Japanese national volleyball team on the eleventh day of the Tokyo Olympics?

“I’m saying—I love you so much Tooru, I—”

The doorbell interrupts him mid-sentence and Oikawa whips his head in the direction of the offending sound.

Someone should tell Oikawa that this is only the first of a series of unfortunate events.

Share my life, it's yours to keep

But this particular quirk persists, long enough that Hajime picks up on it. At some point, Oikawa had started deliberately matching his clothing to Hajime’s own outfits whenever they went out. They are never quite the same outright, but once Hajime starts noticing it, it’s hard to not see how Oikawa’s choice of clothing complements his own, enough so that one could safely pronounce them a matching set.

Iwaizumi discovers that he and Oikawa appear to be wearing couple-clothing whenever they go out, due to Oikawa's determination to match his own outfits to Iwaizumi's. He decides to test the extent of that determination.

the boy is mine

“You do get it, right?” Oikawa asked once more. His expression was bright, like there was a joke only he knew, like Oikawa was thinking up something fucked up and all Iwaizumi could do was laugh and hang on for the ride. It was a constant in their lives, and Iwaizumi couldn't bring himself to hate it. Oikawa continued. “I don’t like it. I have to know everything you do or else I think I might go crazy.”

Or: Oikawa and Iwaizumi don't like to share.

taurean truths

Tooru licks the icing from his pointer finger and looks over his shoulder at Hajime, pouting. Coy. Twenty-eight definitely isn’t thirty—the way Hajime’s body reacts to the sight makes him feel seventeen all over again. “I really don’t know why you still play nice with him.”

Hajime laughs at that, breathy. God, he loves Tooru. “Come on, baby,” he says. It’s not just placation when he admits, “You know I don’t like him either.”

Nocturnal Creatures

“You never asked me the question,” the vampire says. “Are you that confident of yourself?”

Kuroo knows better than to engage with his prey. He’s been hunting the little vampire prince for months now; he has him under his gun. He should take the shot and leave. He should know better than to reply. He is too veteran to hesitate.

“What question?”

The vampire’s smile widens.

“Whether I let you catch me.”

*

It starts the way it ends: with Kuroo chasing a shadow.

i took the stars from our eyes, and then i made a map

"Kenma’s a grad student with the design department. I met him when I was trying to get one of them to help me add some flair to my syllabus, and he was the only one willing to help – even if he said it was just so I would leave their office in peace.”

“That’s why he looked familiar,” Daichi piped up with a snap of his fingers. “Asahi’s in the design department too, and I think they’ve worked together on some assignments.”

“Has this guy just been hanging out with everyone in our mutual circles except me?”

“Sounds like it.”

-

Or, Kuroo is an overworked, underpaid, and almost out of his mind TA. Seeing Kenma a couple times a week makes it all a little easier.

the shift

A box slams on the rest of the prep table to his right, shaking the whole thing. Underneath the label, he can see the fragmented letters of ‘Pork shoulder’. He looks around, eyes skirting over Suna, back behind him.

“Where’s the rest?” he asks, finally looking at Suna’s blank face.

“This is the rest,” Suna replies.

Osamu and Suna have had many rough shifts at the restaurant. This shift might actually tear them apart.

curry udon (and other compromises)

“We should see other people.”

Look, Osamu’s never claimed to be the most emotionally intelligent crayon in the box, but he’s aware this is a loaded statement for a breath before eight a.m. The kind of statement that requires uncomfortable, prolonged eye contact and un-fidgety hands. He holds his spatula in a death grip as he stares down Suna across the kitchen.

To his credit, Suna barely blinks as he looks up from his phone where he’s perched precariously on the back of a chair at Osamu’s bistro table. “You couldn’t wait to break up with me until after I drank my coffee?”

surfacing

Keiji’s boyfriend has been cheating on him. During their public confrontation, he ends up walking out with the other man - Bokuto Koutarou. They strike up an unlikely friendship born from the bond of heartbreak, and, eventually, help one another to heal parts of themselves they perhaps hadn't even known were broken.

Alternatively: Bokuto tries to set Akaashi up with a rebound to make up for being “the other man.” It both does and does not go according to plan.

[kats-fic-recs]

Best Bkdk Fics I've Read in 2025 (Part 1)

Note: Hi everyone! I'm sorry about not being super active for the last few months, but school has been slowly crushing me from the inside out lol. My chosen form of coping lately has been bkdk fics. Shout out to all the fanfic authors out there! I love you muah <3<3<3<3<3

Part 1: You kiss me in a way that's going to screw me up forever (Fluff)

the world froze around us (you kissed me good night)

“...okay,” Kacchan’s lip twitches, like the smallest mini-smile.

“Wait. Okay to what.”

Kacchan stares at him like he’s the biggest idiot in the world, which, to be fair, Izuku often suspects that he is. “I’ll go. On the date.”

or: Izuku summons up all the courage in his earthly body to ask Kacchan out, he isn’t prepared for Kacchan to say yes though.

Why Do Birds Suddenly Appear?

Midoriya doesn't think he'll make it to the end of the semester if his Quirk keeps going haywire around Kacchan.

Or: 5 times Midoriya accidently used Blackwhip on Bakugou, + 1 time he used it on purpose.

i think that it’s best if we both stay

Listen, dumbass. If we wanna break up for real, we’ll do it. Otherwise, we’ll stay together. End of story.”

Izuku perks up. “That’s a great idea. We’ll try to make ourselves sick of each other by the end of the month, and if we make it, it’ll prove we’re meant to be together.”

“That’s not what I—” Katsuki huffs, picking up a slice of toast. “Fine. You’re on thin ice anyway.”

It turns out breaking up is easier said than done.

Part 2: In another life you still would've turned my head (AU Fics)

miss you a latte

Izuku wishes he felt annoyed but it’s far from that. Instead there’s laughter ringing from his throat, loud and unhinged. He can’t stop the ripples that undulate through his stomach, the bright warmth that explodes like a firework beneath his sternum.

Most of all, there’s yearning, an ache that plucks at his heartstrings. But maybe it has never left. Maybe it’s an old wound buried so deep inside him he’d forgotten it was there. The bitterness of coffee rekindles the ache.

He thinks he could get used to the taste.

thinking about deku who enters a cafe to find his ex bf kacchan working as a part time barista there. anyway he orders a coffee with three extra pumps of vanilla syrup but receives a plain latte instead, w/ a note attached to it saying 'I TOLD U NOT TO DRINK SO MUCH SUGAR U FUCK'

got those baby blues

Today, Izuku was the guy on the plane everyone hated – the guy with the screaming baby. Luckily there was someone willing to sit next to him. Huh, he wondered why those red eyes looked so familiar.

***

They meet on a plane, they fall in love. That's it. That's the fic

love at first bite

Kacchan tests in the highest percentile for soulbond-type strength augmentation. One of the highest percentiles on record. And when they tell Kacchan that he scowls and denies it.

It basically means that whoever Kacchan’s soulmate is, they love him a whole lot.

Izuku doesn’t find that surprising.

or: A soulmate’s love is supposed to make you stronger, but Izuku’s known Kacchan forever, and he seems so strong already.

the needle's eye

In ancient times, the lands and humanity were protected by animal-human hybrids, Legends, that carry One For All’s spirit. Being a Legend taking the form of a ram, Midoriya Izuku travels town to town and uses his powers to weave his magical wool into healing cloth items for humans.

One day however, when hopelessly lost and injured in his ram form during a snowstorm, he's rescued by a hunter, Bakugou Katsuki. To repay his debt, Izuku shapeshifts himself as a human and presents himself at Katsuki’s door as a traveller seeking refuge from the storm.

Izuku’s plans to weave his gifts of gratitude for Katsuki and leave by morning goes awry when the storm, his sustained injuries, and the townspeople already struggling with sickness unexpectedly forces Izuku and Katsuki to cohabitate... indefinitely.

Loyal to his duties, Izuku dedicates himself to weaving for the village to help them combat the sickness. But now, by living with Katsuki and the townspeople, he’s forced to grapple with what it means to be a human, have a home, and maybe even fall in love.

Or: A loose adaptation of the Japanese folklore, 'The Crane Wife.' Made for the Ever After Bang.

Imperial Retrograde

Tired, feeling safer in his captor’s arms than he’d had in months outside them, Izuku drifted into a dreamless sleep.

And Katsuki carried him home.

---

Raised on a continent at the brink of war, Katsuki and Izuku's sides were chosen the day they were born. But now, as Katsuki's birth right is stripped of him and handed to a foreign prisoner, as Izuku's stolen from his home in the dead of night to fight for an enemy nation because he was at the wrong place at the wrong time, the two are forced to find common ground with each other, and end a war heading towards total annihilation.

Part 3: Everyone else in the room can see it (Outsider's POV)

fingers claw your skin (tear your way in)

Love was a new feeling for you, but you found yourself enjoying it. You found yourself willing to go to war for the boy that glanced at Midoriya Izuku with so much tenderness when he thought he wasn't looking, always looking but too afraid to make the first move, filled with too much history and broken promises and harsh words to wade through.

Love was a new feeling for you, but you, Bakugou Katsuki, Kacchan—you were easy to love, if only people saw through your veneer.

Midoriya Izuku and Bakugou Katsuki's relationship, as seen through Blackwhip's eyes.

The Snaps from the Same Little Breaks in Your Soul

"Seeing the way you two are with each other, it helped me realize what I was missing from my own relationship. Let’s just say you’ve raised the bar considerably. I don’t want to be with someone unless they look at me the way you both look at each other.”

She’s confused when Bakugou’s and Midoriya’s faces both pale while Shinso starts snickering and Kirishima’s eyebrows go up cartoonishly.

“I-I what do you - we’re not” Midoriya is now stammering and blushing, looking to Bakugou who just looks down silently.

Or

The one where Katsuki is such a good boyfriend to Izuku that someone sees this and is inspired to dump their own shitty boyfriend. Even though he's not actually Izuku's boyfriend.

AKA

The post-canon fic where Izuku is a teacher at U.A. and Katsuki still takes care of him.

Part 4: Forever & Always (Post Canon Fics)

Tomorrow's Sound Bite

"There's no such thing as always, Deku. If Dynamight is still hearty and hale, then he's going. I think the public will get a kick out of seeing him hold his own against Hirano and Merry. Stop pouting."

"I'm not pouting," Izuku said with a pout. "I just—Kacchan—"

"Dynamight is an adult and a pro-hero. He is more than capable of answering questions about himself for an hour. Get some rest. I want you in tip-top condition for your talk at the museum opening next week. Now, please give the phone back to Dynamight."

Izuku mumbled a goodbye and mouthed Sorry as he handed the phone to Kacchan.

Kacchan groaned. "Yeah, I'll do the interview, goddamn. But if they want me to talk for an hour, then they'll get me for an hour, got it?"

An hour of pure, unfiltered Kacchan.

Izuku was sure that they didn't know what they were getting into.

---

Izuku and Kacchan always do their interviews together, but with Izuku home sick, Kacchan has to weather it alone. Izuku is worried, especially when a rude guest starts needling Kacchan about their relationship

Deku-Dynamight Divorce Rages On!

Pro Heroes Deku and Dynamight, joint owners of the top hero agency in Japan, have always been known for their relationship, which dates back to their high school days. However, things were clearly different than they looked like from the outside, because the couple shocked the nation when they announced their divorce.

Almost a year later, the battle hasn’t ended.

After over two decades of marriage, Izuku and Katsuki call it quits. However, that's easier said than done when it involves two teenage kids, a ton of interfering friends, and a hell of a lot of petty, escalating attempts to annoy each other.

Part 5: I Can Do it with a Broken Heart (Post Canon Fix-it Fics)

Shouldering Dreams

"Want to be roommates?”

Shouto blinks, processing the question. He sounds skeptical when he asks, “You sure you want to spend that much time with me? You used to say being around me makes you lose brain cells.”

Katsuki snorts. “And being around me that much might make you more of an asshole. I’m a major dick, sometimes.”

Shouto huffs a small laugh, and then he smiles. Quiet falls into the night, and Katsuki almost thinks Shouto thought he was joking. But after several minutes, he speaks again.

“Sure, Major Dick,” Shouto says, “Let’s be roommates.”

---

In which Katsuki is in love with an idiot, Shouto is the greatest best friend of all time, and Izuku is just a little bit oblivious (but he'll figure things out, eventually).

And your bird can sing

Is a twisted bond really so twisted when it once felt like everything? What is happiness, anyways? What kind of hero can Katsuki even be in this sort of society?

Or,

“I mean to say…well, do you see Izuku as a person?” Shouto Todoroki had asked him, "I think you see him as a symbol to strive towards. To chase."

…And promptly turned the next 4 years of Katsuki Bakugou's life upside down.

"What kind of hero are you without Izuku Midoriya?"

And just what is heroism, anyways?

OR—Izuku insists he has everything he wants. Katsuki can’t say the same about himself. So, he’s going to find his birds and make them sing, even if he has to force them, dammit!

profit like it's hot

Nothing. Izuku stood on his tiptoes. “Are you alright? Did something break? I can get you a broom if you… Kacchan?!”

There he was. Crouching behind the counter in tracksuit pants and a black tee, a bottle of pills upended around him, the tips of his ears and what Izuku could see of his face tomato-red and steaming. Baffled wasn’t a big enough word. Shocked wasn’t quite right, either. It was more the, what on earth? feeling you might get if a lion suddenly wandered into a grocery store. Izuku rubbed his eyes.

“Kacchan! It is you! What are you doing down there? Oh my goodness, are you stealing pills?!”

***

Or, five times Izuku finds Katsuki working extra jobs, and one time he finds out why.

***

Alternate titles include:

Amex? more like kiss my assets.

Fairy Godmother Kacchan

chronicals of Deku, the unwilling sugar baby

P.S. I know there are technically two parts for Post Canon fics, but trust me, there is a difference between Post Canon and Post Chapter 431 and Pre Chapter 432 Release fics.

[kats-fic-recs]

Kat's Ultimate MUST READ All time Favorite Ushiten Fic Rec Extravaganza

I don't know what it is about these two that has me in a chokehold, but I'm so in love with their relationship. I love a good weirdo x weirdo dynamic, and Ushiten checks off all the boxes for me. I feel as though I've read every single Ushiten fic on Ao3, and so I figured I'd put all of my favorites together in one list for easy access. I've read all the fics below multiple times, and yet they continuously haunt me because of how well written they are.

Canon High School Fics:

1. An Unremarkable Proposal

It's a completely unremarkable Thursday afternoon, and Tendou would have been happy passing the day making out with his boyfriend and never remembering a single thing about it. You know, if Ushijima hadn't suddenly declared that he wanted to marry him.

2. For Luck

the squeeze of a shoulder before a match becomes the brush of hands becomes the soft whisper of lips on a cheek becomes the wet warmth of lips sliding against lips.

“For luck.”

Or, the lie that the kisses are for luck can only last so long.

3. Tending to a Wounded Heart

"Now, Iwaizumi-san, while I am flattered by your interest and must admit you’re very attractive, I must inform you my heart belongs to another, and I’m not sure your dear captain Oikaw-“ Satori wasn’t even able to finish his jest, as a fuming Iwaizumi interrupted him. A blush blooming from his hairline down to his neck.

“I’M NOT HITTING ON YOU, DUMBASS!”

...

After being discovered in the midst of breakdown in the bathroom of Seijoh, Tendou Satori strikes up an unusual friendship with Iwaizumi who seems keen on helping Tendou navigate his own unrequited feelings, despite ignoring his own.

All the while Tendou's teammates are becoming more and more concerned with their blocker's new behavior and mysterious texting buddy.

4. Unforgivable Acts

All Ushijima has to do is apologize for punching a rival school kid in the face, and everything will clear up. Unfortunately, that would require him to admit that defending Tendou was wrong, and he will not do that.

5. Monster

First year Tendou has braces and a lisp. Ushijima is very gay.

6. rainwater

If rain brings Tendou joy, then Ushijima’s happy for him. It’s not something he’ll ever come to personally understand, and he’s certain that he’ll never share the same enthusiasm for water falling from the sky. Rainwater serves a few good purposes, namely helping plants grow and offering moisture to dry land. But Ushijima doesn’t need to be watered. Maybe Tendou does, though that wouldn’t necessarily make sense to Ushijima.

Unsurprising, because not much about Tendou makes sense to Ushijima in the first place. He supposes it doesn’t have to; he appreciates his friendship regardless, but he does wonder sometimes what it must be like to occupy the same headspace as him.

7. Imperfect Facial Symmetry

Tendou Satori has learned to live with the fact that he doesn't have what anyone would consider an attractive face. This wouldn't normally bother him, except now detail-oriented, perfect Ushijima is analyzing his face and producing every overly apparent, crooked flaw in precise graphite strokes.

Ushijima has learned to live with the fact that he doesn't have the ability to read faces, attractive or not. But there's something about Tendou's that he can't put his finger on. He simply cannot get the drawing right.

8. You're really pushing it (but you're going much too slowly)

"Ow, my fingers." Tendou's face contorts into a mock expression of anguish, but there's too much amusement in his brows for Wakatoshi to be fooled. He doesn't let go and instead half-drags the blocker off to the side. But Tendou is not so easily thwarted.

"Wakatoshi-kun! Ow! That hurts!" he squawks evilly, playing dirty by getting Coach Washijou's attention.

"Ushijima! What are you doin' over there?"

Wakatoshi lets go like Tendou's hands are on fire. "Nothing. Sorry."

Post - Canon:

1. bonjour, notre paradis

“You’re telling me,” Tendou says, once Wakatoshi finally gets him on a video call, “that you got drunk as hell, asked Hinata Shouyou—of all people!—if you should go to Paris immediately after announcing that you used to hate him, somehow managed to correctly book a flight despite your clearly impaired decision-making, and then shut your damn phone off after texting me?”

Wakatoshi nods. “That about sums it up.”

//

Japan loses to Argentina in the Olympics. Ushijima Wakatoshi loses—and finds—his way forward.

2. Just Wanna Get A Little Bit Closer

When Ushijima agreed to the photoshoot for a sportswear brand he favors, he didn't think he'd be modeling with his ex. They haven't seen each other in years, not since he broke up with Tendou in an airport and sent the other man back to France, both nursing broken hearts.

(He also didn't think he'd end the day fucking his ex in a bathroom, but no one ever called Ushijima a prophet.)

3. The Elusive Blush of Ushijima Wakatoshi

The first time that Tendou made Ushijima blush was before they started dating.

The second time that Tendou made Ushijima blush was two years after his unplanned confession.

The third time that Tendou made Ushijima blush was on accident, half a decade after his previous success.

.........................................................................

In the entire time that he had known him, Tendou Satori had only managed to make one Ushijima Wakatoshi blush a total of 5 times.

A story of the 5 times that Tendou made Ushijima blush + 1 time that he didn't need to.

4. All For the Love of An Energetic Redhead

Hinata is in Brazil. Tendou is in France.

Kageyama and Ushijima get drunk and make bad decisions about it.

5. polaroids & proposals

Wakatoshi pauses with the huge gift in his lap, hand hovering above its crudely tied bow.

“Wanna guess what it is first?” Satori rocks in place, cross-legged on the floor.

“Hmm,” Wakatoshi looks down at Satori from his spot on the chair, then back at the gift. His eyes are narrow in deep thought, “is it the set of luggage we saw at the store last week? I believe I mentioned needing a new set.”

“Oooh, maybe~” Satori bites his lip, anticipation giving him a slight stomach ache, “guess you’ll find out!”

It’s definitely not a set of luggage. Not even close.

6. the language of belonging

After the camera crew and interviewer bids them goodbye, Satori takes them back to his apartment.

“Why do you feel bad?” Wakatoshi’s hand settles against Satori’s thigh. Jesus. Fucking. Christ. “You have many friends, Satori. To you, our friendship is likely not as important. To me, you were the first person who wanted to know me, save for, perhaps, Sakusa. You made me feel …” He seems to struggle with his words for a moment, before he dips his head a little. Satori marvels at the clear sign of embarrassment. “You made me feel less weird. I never had many friends, and I still don’t. You were my first best friend.”

Suffice to say, Satori is speechless.

Outsider Pov:

1. The Mystery of Ushijima Wakatoshi’s Chocolate-Making, Paris-Living Boyfriend

Ushijima having a boyfriend who lives in Paris and makes chocolates isn’t impossible.

But it is a little unbelievable.

Or, five times someone asked about Ushijima’s love life, and one time no one needed to.

2. The years shall run like rabbits

Ushijima’s mother is not sure what to make of the man her son brings home: he’s too loud, too particular, too fond of her son in a way she thinks is rather inappropriate.

Or, Ushijima Akemi watches her son’s relationship with Tendou change over the years and finds herself changing with it.

Alternate Universes:

1. a lesson in vulcan mineralogy

Tendou is sitting in the captain’s chair.

2. died in my dreams

If anyone asked Ushijima how it came to this, he wouldn’t be able to formulate a proper answer

Or, Ushijima likes his quiet, his order, and his solitude.

That is, until a loud, talkative and a little chaotic cyber tech convinces him that that's just plain boring.

3. Executive Excursion

Tendou is fun, quirky, and interesting.Ushijima is none of the above.

It's no surprise that Ushijima is drawn to Tendou's magnetic personality. What's surprising is that Tendou seems to like Ushijima, too.

With a little support from his coworkers, Ushijima decides to take a chance and ask Tendou on a date. The results are better than expected.

4. Tendou's Bakery for Wayward Soulmates

According to common knowledge—and quite a few highly reputable textbooks—there exist in the universe three kinds of soulbonds: those that manifest spontaneously, those that people are born with, and those that stay hidden until their potential is revealed.

Some soulmates connect easily and instantaneously. But other soulbonds prove to be more stubborn. These bonds require a bit more effort…a certain amount of coaxing before they finally appear.

For those unruly, obstinate souls, there is Tendou’s Bakery for Wayward Soulmates.

5. say what you mean (I wanna be with you)

Good morning, Wakatoshi-kun! Isn’t it such a beautiful autumn day today?

They chatted every day before class; Tendou vivid and excitable, Ushijima muted, but still enjoying himself. Except today, when Tendou had sprinted into class just moments before the lecture began, his cheeks flushed with exertion. He flashed Ushijima a bright smile as he slid into his seat, opened his mouth to say something, and was promptly cut off by the start of the lecture.

Not to be deterred, Tendou had written a note instead.

Ushijima feels silly. It takes him a while to decide on a response that doesn’t make him feel even sillier.

Yes, it is a nice day.

Or: 5 times Ushijima couldn’t make sense of the notes Tendou wrote to him in class + 1 time when it finally clicked.

6. The Tendou Incidents

“Where...have you come from?” Ushijima manages.

“Paris.”

It’s not the answer he expects. Though, somehow Paris seems to fit his expectations of the man standing in front of him. “Mm. That is very — ”

“ — Exciting? Glamorous?” the redhead prompts, obviously proud of his globetrotting accomplishment.

“ — Far.”

The man falters for the first time, like he finds Ushijima’s answer odd — despite being even odder himself — and laughs, infectious and hearty, like Ushijima has made some sort of joke.

One fateful day, a colorful, painfully extroverted young man named Tendou Satori moves into the unit above Ushijima's apartment. He's odd, presumptuous, and — most egregious of all — he's shockingly noisy. And the quiet, scheduled routine Ushijima Wakatoshi lives is forever altered.

7. Consecutive Failures

The moment Tendou presents as an omega he knows Ushijima is the one for him, he just has a few issues telling Ushijima that.

Or

The five times Tendou fails to confess and the one time Ushijima does.

8. everything was red

Ushijima brings it up to his mother exactly once, the strange boy who appears in his room at night.

She tells him that it sounds like he has an imaginary friend, and that at nine years old isn’t he a little bit old for this kind of thing?

He doesn’t bring it up again, though later that night he tells Tendou and Tendou’s eyes go bright, his smile sharp and pointed like a shark.

“Do you think I’m imaginary, Wakatoshi-kun?”

9. Don't bother checking my work (i've never cared for math anyway)

It isn’t until Shirabu’s back at LOCCENT that it really sinks in. Forty-eight wins? An impressive number, true, and a definite sign of Ushijima’s strength, especially compared to Tendou. But in anyone else, an unbalanced score like that would indicate a depressingly low chance of drift compatibility.

Drifting with Ushijima was simple statistically, but potentially deadly realistically. And drifting with Tendou? A veritable nightmare. If not for Washijou’s insistence, Shirabu would have dropped him long ago.

Still, something is calling to him. Something beyond numbers and data projections.

Because Ushijima may have knocked Tendou down forty-eight times. But that means there were forty-nine times he got back up.

10. Day Shift (Night Shift)

Every day, Ushijima Wakatoshi sits down at his nondescript, generic grey cubicle, ready to do sports education work for the JVA.

Every day, there is a letter waiting for him from someone who works on the night shift.

Ushijima doesn’t know who it is. But he always writes back.

11. ENDINGS/BEGINNINGS

New beginnings come only at the cost of other endings. The two cannot survive together. It is not a symbiotic relationship; it is a mutually destructive one.

On the cusp of achieving all of his dreams, professional volleyball player and one time Olympic medalist Ushijima Wakatoshi goes down. One wrong landing, one torn ACL.

In the blink of an eye, his future collapses. His volleyball career ends.

His coach tells him: it’s all over.

His father tells him: Nothing is meant to last forever. Once you learn to let one door close, another will open.

Now Ushijima, aged 24, has to somehow learn how to begin again. He doesn’t know where to start, or if he even wants to. That's where Tendou Satori comes in.

If you've reached this point, I am very impressed lol!

[kats-fic-recs]

Kat's Ultimate MUST READ All time Favorite Ushiten Fic Rec Extravaganza

I don't know what it is about these two that has me in a chokehold, but I'm so in love with their relationship. I love a good weirdo x weirdo dynamic, and Ushiten checks off all the boxes for me. I feel as though I've read every single Ushiten fic on Ao3, and so I figured I'd put all of my favorites together in one list for easy access. I've read all the fics below multiple times, and yet they continuously haunt me because of how well written they are.

Canon High School Fics:

1. An Unremarkable Proposal

It's a completely unremarkable Thursday afternoon, and Tendou would have been happy passing the day making out with his boyfriend and never remembering a single thing about it. You know, if Ushijima hadn't suddenly declared that he wanted to marry him.

2. For Luck

the squeeze of a shoulder before a match becomes the brush of hands becomes the soft whisper of lips on a cheek becomes the wet warmth of lips sliding against lips.

“For luck.”

Or, the lie that the kisses are for luck can only last so long.

3. Tending to a Wounded Heart

"Now, Iwaizumi-san, while I am flattered by your interest and must admit you’re very attractive, I must inform you my heart belongs to another, and I’m not sure your dear captain Oikaw-“ Satori wasn’t even able to finish his jest, as a fuming Iwaizumi interrupted him. A blush blooming from his hairline down to his neck.

“I’M NOT HITTING ON YOU, DUMBASS!”

...

After being discovered in the midst of breakdown in the bathroom of Seijoh, Tendou Satori strikes up an unusual friendship with Iwaizumi who seems keen on helping Tendou navigate his own unrequited feelings, despite ignoring his own.

All the while Tendou's teammates are becoming more and more concerned with their blocker's new behavior and mysterious texting buddy.

4. Unforgivable Acts

All Ushijima has to do is apologize for punching a rival school kid in the face, and everything will clear up. Unfortunately, that would require him to admit that defending Tendou was wrong, and he will not do that.

5. Monster

First year Tendou has braces and a lisp. Ushijima is very gay.

6. rainwater

If rain brings Tendou joy, then Ushijima’s happy for him. It’s not something he’ll ever come to personally understand, and he’s certain that he’ll never share the same enthusiasm for water falling from the sky. Rainwater serves a few good purposes, namely helping plants grow and offering moisture to dry land. But Ushijima doesn’t need to be watered. Maybe Tendou does, though that wouldn’t necessarily make sense to Ushijima.

Unsurprising, because not much about Tendou makes sense to Ushijima in the first place. He supposes it doesn’t have to; he appreciates his friendship regardless, but he does wonder sometimes what it must be like to occupy the same headspace as him.

7. Imperfect Facial Symmetry

Tendou Satori has learned to live with the fact that he doesn't have what anyone would consider an attractive face. This wouldn't normally bother him, except now detail-oriented, perfect Ushijima is analyzing his face and producing every overly apparent, crooked flaw in precise graphite strokes.

Ushijima has learned to live with the fact that he doesn't have the ability to read faces, attractive or not. But there's something about Tendou's that he can't put his finger on. He simply cannot get the drawing right.

8. You're really pushing it (but you're going much too slowly)

"Ow, my fingers." Tendou's face contorts into a mock expression of anguish, but there's too much amusement in his brows for Wakatoshi to be fooled. He doesn't let go and instead half-drags the blocker off to the side. But Tendou is not so easily thwarted.

"Wakatoshi-kun! Ow! That hurts!" he squawks evilly, playing dirty by getting Coach Washijou's attention.

"Ushijima! What are you doin' over there?"

Wakatoshi lets go like Tendou's hands are on fire. "Nothing. Sorry."

Post - Canon:

1. bonjour, notre paradis

“You’re telling me,” Tendou says, once Wakatoshi finally gets him on a video call, “that you got drunk as hell, asked Hinata Shouyou—of all people!—if you should go to Paris immediately after announcing that you used to hate him, somehow managed to correctly book a flight despite your clearly impaired decision-making, and then shut your damn phone off after texting me?”

Wakatoshi nods. “That about sums it up.”

//

Japan loses to Argentina in the Olympics. Ushijima Wakatoshi loses—and finds—his way forward.

2. Just Wanna Get A Little Bit Closer

When Ushijima agreed to the photoshoot for a sportswear brand he favors, he didn't think he'd be modeling with his ex. They haven't seen each other in years, not since he broke up with Tendou in an airport and sent the other man back to France, both nursing broken hearts.

(He also didn't think he'd end the day fucking his ex in a bathroom, but no one ever called Ushijima a prophet.)

3. The Elusive Blush of Ushijima Wakatoshi

The first time that Tendou made Ushijima blush was before they started dating.

The second time that Tendou made Ushijima blush was two years after his unplanned confession.

The third time that Tendou made Ushijima blush was on accident, half a decade after his previous success.

.........................................................................

In the entire time that he had known him, Tendou Satori had only managed to make one Ushijima Wakatoshi blush a total of 5 times.

A story of the 5 times that Tendou made Ushijima blush + 1 time that he didn't need to.

4. All For the Love of An Energetic Redhead

Hinata is in Brazil. Tendou is in France.

Kageyama and Ushijima get drunk and make bad decisions about it.

5. polaroids & proposals

Wakatoshi pauses with the huge gift in his lap, hand hovering above its crudely tied bow.

“Wanna guess what it is first?” Satori rocks in place, cross-legged on the floor.

“Hmm,” Wakatoshi looks down at Satori from his spot on the chair, then back at the gift. His eyes are narrow in deep thought, “is it the set of luggage we saw at the store last week? I believe I mentioned needing a new set.”

“Oooh, maybe~” Satori bites his lip, anticipation giving him a slight stomach ache, “guess you’ll find out!”

It’s definitely not a set of luggage. Not even close.

6. the language of belonging

After the camera crew and interviewer bids them goodbye, Satori takes them back to his apartment.

“Why do you feel bad?” Wakatoshi’s hand settles against Satori’s thigh. Jesus. Fucking. Christ. “You have many friends, Satori. To you, our friendship is likely not as important. To me, you were the first person who wanted to know me, save for, perhaps, Sakusa. You made me feel …” He seems to struggle with his words for a moment, before he dips his head a little. Satori marvels at the clear sign of embarrassment. “You made me feel less weird. I never had many friends, and I still don’t. You were my first best friend.”

Suffice to say, Satori is speechless.

Outsider Pov:

1. The Mystery of Ushijima Wakatoshi’s Chocolate-Making, Paris-Living Boyfriend

Ushijima having a boyfriend who lives in Paris and makes chocolates isn’t impossible.

But it is a little unbelievable.

Or, five times someone asked about Ushijima’s love life, and one time no one needed to.

2. The years shall run like rabbits

Ushijima’s mother is not sure what to make of the man her son brings home: he’s too loud, too particular, too fond of her son in a way she thinks is rather inappropriate.

Or, Ushijima Akemi watches her son’s relationship with Tendou change over the years and finds herself changing with it.

Alternate Universes:

1. a lesson in vulcan mineralogy

Tendou is sitting in the captain’s chair.

2. died in my dreams

If anyone asked Ushijima how it came to this, he wouldn’t be able to formulate a proper answer

Or, Ushijima likes his quiet, his order, and his solitude.

That is, until a loud, talkative and a little chaotic cyber tech convinces him that that's just plain boring.

3. Executive Excursion

Tendou is fun, quirky, and interesting.Ushijima is none of the above.

It's no surprise that Ushijima is drawn to Tendou's magnetic personality. What's surprising is that Tendou seems to like Ushijima, too.

With a little support from his coworkers, Ushijima decides to take a chance and ask Tendou on a date. The results are better than expected.

4. Tendou's Bakery for Wayward Soulmates

According to common knowledge—and quite a few highly reputable textbooks—there exist in the universe three kinds of soulbonds: those that manifest spontaneously, those that people are born with, and those that stay hidden until their potential is revealed.

Some soulmates connect easily and instantaneously. But other soulbonds prove to be more stubborn. These bonds require a bit more effort…a certain amount of coaxing before they finally appear.

For those unruly, obstinate souls, there is Tendou’s Bakery for Wayward Soulmates.

5. say what you mean (I wanna be with you)

Good morning, Wakatoshi-kun! Isn’t it such a beautiful autumn day today?

They chatted every day before class; Tendou vivid and excitable, Ushijima muted, but still enjoying himself. Except today, when Tendou had sprinted into class just moments before the lecture began, his cheeks flushed with exertion. He flashed Ushijima a bright smile as he slid into his seat, opened his mouth to say something, and was promptly cut off by the start of the lecture.

Not to be deterred, Tendou had written a note instead.

Ushijima feels silly. It takes him a while to decide on a response that doesn’t make him feel even sillier.

Yes, it is a nice day.

Or: 5 times Ushijima couldn’t make sense of the notes Tendou wrote to him in class + 1 time when it finally clicked.

6. The Tendou Incidents

“Where...have you come from?” Ushijima manages.

“Paris.”

It’s not the answer he expects. Though, somehow Paris seems to fit his expectations of the man standing in front of him. “Mm. That is very — ”

“ — Exciting? Glamorous?” the redhead prompts, obviously proud of his globetrotting accomplishment.

“ — Far.”

The man falters for the first time, like he finds Ushijima’s answer odd — despite being even odder himself — and laughs, infectious and hearty, like Ushijima has made some sort of joke.

One fateful day, a colorful, painfully extroverted young man named Tendou Satori moves into the unit above Ushijima's apartment. He's odd, presumptuous, and — most egregious of all — he's shockingly noisy. And the quiet, scheduled routine Ushijima Wakatoshi lives is forever altered.

7. Consecutive Failures

The moment Tendou presents as an omega he knows Ushijima is the one for him, he just has a few issues telling Ushijima that.

Or

The five times Tendou fails to confess and the one time Ushijima does.

8. everything was red

Ushijima brings it up to his mother exactly once, the strange boy who appears in his room at night.

She tells him that it sounds like he has an imaginary friend, and that at nine years old isn’t he a little bit old for this kind of thing?

He doesn’t bring it up again, though later that night he tells Tendou and Tendou’s eyes go bright, his smile sharp and pointed like a shark.

“Do you think I’m imaginary, Wakatoshi-kun?”

9. Don't bother checking my work (i've never cared for math anyway)

It isn’t until Shirabu’s back at LOCCENT that it really sinks in. Forty-eight wins? An impressive number, true, and a definite sign of Ushijima’s strength, especially compared to Tendou. But in anyone else, an unbalanced score like that would indicate a depressingly low chance of drift compatibility.

Drifting with Ushijima was simple statistically, but potentially deadly realistically. And drifting with Tendou? A veritable nightmare. If not for Washijou’s insistence, Shirabu would have dropped him long ago.

Still, something is calling to him. Something beyond numbers and data projections.

Because Ushijima may have knocked Tendou down forty-eight times. But that means there were forty-nine times he got back up.

10. Day Shift (Night Shift)

Every day, Ushijima Wakatoshi sits down at his nondescript, generic grey cubicle, ready to do sports education work for the JVA.

Every day, there is a letter waiting for him from someone who works on the night shift.

Ushijima doesn’t know who it is. But he always writes back.

11. ENDINGS/BEGINNINGS

New beginnings come only at the cost of other endings. The two cannot survive together. It is not a symbiotic relationship; it is a mutually destructive one.

On the cusp of achieving all of his dreams, professional volleyball player and one time Olympic medalist Ushijima Wakatoshi goes down. One wrong landing, one torn ACL.

In the blink of an eye, his future collapses. His volleyball career ends.

His coach tells him: it’s all over.

His father tells him: Nothing is meant to last forever. Once you learn to let one door close, another will open.

Now Ushijima, aged 24, has to somehow learn how to begin again. He doesn’t know where to start, or if he even wants to. That's where Tendou Satori comes in.

If you've reached this point, I am very impressed lol!

[kats-fic-recs]

Operation Olive Branch is a project to help Gaza families to safety. Egypt is charing displaced Palestinians to get into the borders unless they are an Egyptian citizen. These Palestinians can't afford food and water, let alone the thousands they are charing. Operation Olive Branch has posted a sheet with all the family's GoFundMes for those who are able to donate. If you cannot, please spread awareness to make sure these families get to safety!

[kats-fic-recs]

It's always Deku and Kacchan against the world : The Fic

see no evil

Izuku presses his face into Bakugo’s neck and the fabric of his sweatshirt. For a split second, Bakugo looks at Ochako over Izuku’s shoulder. His gaze is hard. Cold. The red color of his irises has cooled from a raging fire to stained glass. His eyes drill into her. It’s unmistakably a challenge. Try me.

Nothing less than absolute victory.

Ochako looks away.

In the end, Izuku will always choose Bakugo – and that’s fine. Ochako and Tenya are fine.

[kats-fic-recs]

It's always Deku and Kacchan against the world : The Fic

see no evil

Izuku presses his face into Bakugo’s neck and the fabric of his sweatshirt. For a split second, Bakugo looks at Ochako over Izuku’s shoulder. His gaze is hard. Cold. The red color of his irises has cooled from a raging fire to stained glass. His eyes drill into her. It’s unmistakably a challenge. Try me.

Nothing less than absolute victory.

Ochako looks away.

In the end, Izuku will always choose Bakugo – and that’s fine. Ochako and Tenya are fine.

[kats-fic-recs]

Incredibly Niche Fic: Catholic School Girls hunt down and beat a clown to death

There are no wolves left in Ireland

Orla raises her hand higher. “I’ve been possessed.”

Erin rolls her eyes. “No, she hasn’t, Sister Michael. Orla was iron deficient last year- she got a swimmy feeling in her head every time she stood up and she thought that was demons.”

“It was demons.” says Orla, evenly.

“Oh, and iron tablets made the demons go away, did they?”

Her cousin shrugs and thumbs the side of her nose. “Well, I felt better after I took ‘em, didn’t I?”

Another Derry, another time, same old Pennywise. Armed with friendship, faith, an encyclopaedic knowledge of Catholic heresy and a pitchfork one of them got out of the garden shed, the Derry girls do battle with a clown who really should have known better than to try this shit in Northern Ireland.

My thoughts:

I love Derry Girls and this story captured their general vibe so well.

[kats-fic-recs]

In Another Castle

Kenma feels his face go hot. People have to be looking at them. They’re having a fight in front of a real estate agency. But he doesn’t look away, and musters the courage to say, “Kuro, I want you to live with me.”

The Whole Of The Moon

Tetsurou has never thought about it before, but right now, he is absolutely and thoroughly terrified.

Because he’s so, so in love, and he’s always known that Kenma is it for him, but what if he’s not it for Kenma?

Or: a Kuroken soulmate AU in which both of them suffer and there's communication in all the wrong ways

Not For Nothing

Kuroo-san never says no to you,” Shouyou says

Not Your Mother's Hot Toddy

Kuroo always knew he would eventually end up killing someone for Kozume Kenma, he just thought he would have a lot more time to prepare.

Or: Kenma's hungry, Kuroo's bad at thinking on his feet, and Shouyo just wants to make friends in the city.

Live From the Lonely Hearts Club♡

(Kodzuken lets out a sigh that cuts so deep, it nearly startles his cat off his lap.)

I think I’m being obvious. I probably don’t need to spell it out for you guys. It’s clear as day, isn’t it? I’m fucking in love with my best friend. And I have been for a very long time.

So it pains me to say that I think I’ve made the stupidest mistake of my entire life. Because a week ago, T asked me if I wanted him to be my fake boyfriend.

(Kodzuken drags his hands over his face.)

And I’m pretty sure I said yes.

*

Kenma is so stupid. When did he become so stupid? He’d always thought he was kind of smart, but maybe he’s been stupid this entire time.

five snapped heartstrings

“From the day you are born, you have a countless number of strings wrapped around the ring finger on your right hand. These strings extend out to all of your potential soulmates. As you grow and make choices in life, one by one the strings will slowly begin to fall away until you’re left with one. At that point, your one true soulmate will be waiting for you on the other side.”

-

Kenma was seven, and he was certain of one thing. He wanted Kuroo Tetsurou to be his soulmate.

it's like a summer shower

Kenma’s breath catches at the memory, and then he’s blurting out, “Do you still have it?”

“Have what?”

“…the recipe,” Kenma replies haltingly. A pause. “And maybe some pictures for how it looked all set up.”

“Kenma…” his mother says breathlessly, and he’s honestly not sure if she sounds awed or horrified. “Are you going to attempt to make it?”

-

It's Kuroo's and Kenma's anniversary and Kenma wants to do something different - cook him dinner. He regrets the decision pretty much immediately.

crushed little stars

When Kenma was 13, he swore to himself that he would never, ever get star tear disease.

Three years later, he met Hinata Shouyou.

A purrfect match

"Hi Uncle Tettsun!” Nozomi says without moving an inch. “There's a kitty cat under here."

Tetsurou sighs, adjusting the heavy bag on his shoulder. There's been a dramatic increase in the number of cats hiding under homes or dumpsters or in trees lately, ever since the Kozume family's latest announcement. People have been chasing them down, knowing that whoever takes the key from the royal cat's collar will be allowed to marry the crown prince.

[Five times Tetsurou meets a cat, and one time he meets a human instead].

The Space Between Thinking and Feeling

“She might have assumed that we were dating and I might not have corrected her, yes.”

Kenma’s eyes are caught in a frenzy. Tetsurou isn’t sure why he’s that upset about this specific part of the story. “Why?” Is all Kenma asks.

Tetsurou shrugs. “I don’t know. She invited you to the wedding. I want you to come. It just seemed easy.”

“Dating me seems easy?”

“Pretend dating.”

(OR Tetsurou doesn’t want to go to his mother’s wedding alone. Good thing he has fake-boyfriend Kenma to tag along.)

Wallpaper Heart

Tetsurou walks into their apartment, aware of his feelings for the first time. It’s a weird sensation, like remodeling a house, and finding out there was a hidden door to an extra room behind the old yellowed wallpaper in the hallway. Now that he knows it’s there, he wonders how he ever missed it – wonders when the wallpaper went up in the first place, when it started keeping him out.

(OR Tetsurou's adventures in pining)

even if you're ahead for a bit, i will catch up

Kuroo first confesses when they're sticky-fingered, wide-eyed kids, and subsequently every day after that. Kenma takes a while to come around.

The Ghost Of The Future Is Awake In The Attic

Sika stags have a whole repertoire of courting behaviour that does not overlap with a human’s flirting one bit.

This, perhaps, should not come as a surprise to Tetsurou.

Or: The one where Kenma is a sika deer shifter, Kuroo isn’t, and Kuroo decides the logical thing to do is to court Kenma. The deer way. Despite the fact that he has no idea how deer shifter courting works.

When the Stars Threw Down Their Spears

"It’s hard to understand the hierarchy when a school like Nekoma exists, putting them all together like they belong, but by the time Kenma enters high school he understands the difference. Kuroo is a black panther, rare and precious; a large predator stronger than most any other foe.

Kenma is a calico housecat. His coloring is uncommon, but he is not special."

Shapeshifter!AU. Kenma struggles with a culture and the rules of courtship.

Ad Astra Per Aspera

The important parts of his life aren’t stored in the cement where he bled out, or among the familiar backdrops of his hometown. Home is curled up on a secondhand couch a few cities away, probably bitterly cursing his guts but still waiting for him to walk through the door.

The city has long since forgotten what happened to Kuroo Tetsurou.

…But Kenma didn’t. Kenma never would.

Kenma’s soul recognizes Kuroo Tetusrou even when his eye does not.

He’s been waiting an eternity for him, after all.

route 51 to your heart has been delayed by 20 minutes

The hottest man Kenma has ever seen shares the bus with him regularly. Under no circumstance is he ever going to do anything about it.

Not intentionally, at least.

Speak Easy, Lie Gently

Kenma’s invited back home to celebrate Christmas. Unbeknownst to him, his parents had invited a guest: his ex-boyfriend.

[kats-fic-recs]

My favorite Kuroken fics <3

In Another Castle

Kenma feels his face go hot. People have to be looking at them. They’re having a fight in front of a real estate agency. But he doesn’t look away, and musters the courage to say, “Kuro, I want you to live with me.”

The Whole Of The Moon

Tetsurou has never thought about it before, but right now, he is absolutely and thoroughly terrified.

Because he’s so, so in love, and he’s always known that Kenma is it for him, but what if he’s not it for Kenma?

Or: a Kuroken soulmate AU in which both of them suffer and there's communication in all the wrong ways

Not For Nothing

Kuroo-san never says no to you,” Shouyou says

Not Your Mother's Hot Toddy

Kuroo always knew he would eventually end up killing someone for Kozume Kenma, he just thought he would have a lot more time to prepare.

Or: Kenma's hungry, Kuroo's bad at thinking on his feet, and Shouyo just wants to make friends in the city.

Live From the Lonely Hearts Club♡

(Kodzuken lets out a sigh that cuts so deep, it nearly startles his cat off his lap.)

I think I’m being obvious. I probably don’t need to spell it out for you guys. It’s clear as day, isn’t it? I’m fucking in love with my best friend. And I have been for a very long time.

So it pains me to say that I think I’ve made the stupidest mistake of my entire life. Because a week ago, T asked me if I wanted him to be my fake boyfriend.

(Kodzuken drags his hands over his face.)

And I’m pretty sure I said yes.

*

Kenma is so stupid. When did he become so stupid? He’d always thought he was kind of smart, but maybe he’s been stupid this entire time.

five snapped heartstrings

“From the day you are born, you have a countless number of strings wrapped around the ring finger on your right hand. These strings extend out to all of your potential soulmates. As you grow and make choices in life, one by one the strings will slowly begin to fall away until you’re left with one. At that point, your one true soulmate will be waiting for you on the other side.”

-

Kenma was seven, and he was certain of one thing. He wanted Kuroo Tetsurou to be his soulmate.

it's like a summer shower

Kenma’s breath catches at the memory, and then he’s blurting out, “Do you still have it?”

“Have what?”

“…the recipe,” Kenma replies haltingly. A pause. “And maybe some pictures for how it looked all set up.”

“Kenma…” his mother says breathlessly, and he’s honestly not sure if she sounds awed or horrified. “Are you going to attempt to make it?”

-

It's Kuroo's and Kenma's anniversary and Kenma wants to do something different - cook him dinner. He regrets the decision pretty much immediately.

crushed little stars

When Kenma was 13, he swore to himself that he would never, ever get star tear disease.

Three years later, he met Hinata Shouyou.

A purrfect match

"Hi Uncle Tettsun!” Nozomi says without moving an inch. “There's a kitty cat under here."

Tetsurou sighs, adjusting the heavy bag on his shoulder. There's been a dramatic increase in the number of cats hiding under homes or dumpsters or in trees lately, ever since the Kozume family's latest announcement. People have been chasing them down, knowing that whoever takes the key from the royal cat's collar will be allowed to marry the crown prince.

[Five times Tetsurou meets a cat, and one time he meets a human instead].

The Space Between Thinking and Feeling

“She might have assumed that we were dating and I might not have corrected her, yes.”

Kenma’s eyes are caught in a frenzy. Tetsurou isn’t sure why he’s that upset about this specific part of the story. “Why?” Is all Kenma asks.

Tetsurou shrugs. “I don’t know. She invited you to the wedding. I want you to come. It just seemed easy.”

“Dating me seems easy?”

“Pretend dating.”

(OR Tetsurou doesn’t want to go to his mother’s wedding alone. Good thing he has fake-boyfriend Kenma to tag along.)

Wallpaper Heart

Tetsurou walks into their apartment, aware of his feelings for the first time. It’s a weird sensation, like remodeling a house, and finding out there was a hidden door to an extra room behind the old yellowed wallpaper in the hallway. Now that he knows it’s there, he wonders how he ever missed it – wonders when the wallpaper went up in the first place, when it started keeping him out.

(OR Tetsurou's adventures in pining)

even if you're ahead for a bit, i will catch up

Kuroo first confesses when they're sticky-fingered, wide-eyed kids, and subsequently every day after that. Kenma takes a while to come around.

The Ghost Of The Future Is Awake In The Attic

Sika stags have a whole repertoire of courting behaviour that does not overlap with a human’s flirting one bit.

This, perhaps, should not come as a surprise to Tetsurou.

Or: The one where Kenma is a sika deer shifter, Kuroo isn’t, and Kuroo decides the logical thing to do is to court Kenma. The deer way. Despite the fact that he has no idea how deer shifter courting works.

When the Stars Threw Down Their Spears

"It’s hard to understand the hierarchy when a school like Nekoma exists, putting them all together like they belong, but by the time Kenma enters high school he understands the difference. Kuroo is a black panther, rare and precious; a large predator stronger than most any other foe.

Kenma is a calico housecat. His coloring is uncommon, but he is not special."

Shapeshifter!AU. Kenma struggles with a culture and the rules of courtship.

Ad Astra Per Aspera

The important parts of his life aren’t stored in the cement where he bled out, or among the familiar backdrops of his hometown. Home is curled up on a secondhand couch a few cities away, probably bitterly cursing his guts but still waiting for him to walk through the door.

The city has long since forgotten what happened to Kuroo Tetsurou.

…But Kenma didn’t. Kenma never would.

Kenma’s soul recognizes Kuroo Tetusrou even when his eye does not.

He’s been waiting an eternity for him, after all.

route 51 to your heart has been delayed by 20 minutes

The hottest man Kenma has ever seen shares the bus with him regularly. Under no circumstance is he ever going to do anything about it.

Not intentionally, at least.

Speak Easy, Lie Gently

Kenma’s invited back home to celebrate Christmas. Unbeknownst to him, his parents had invited a guest: his ex-boyfriend.

[kats-fic-recs]

Everything is a Competition When it's You

“Shou-chan, I feel like this is a bad idea,” Izumi said, sitting with Shouyou at the hairdresser. He was currently waiting to get the dye rinsed out of his hair. “What colors did you pick, again?”

“Hot pink and neon green,” Shouyou replied, not looking up from the magazine he was reading. He was taking a quiz to find out what kind of dog he would be. Shouyou tossed the magazine down angrily when it told him he was a Pomeranian. Shouyou hated how small and cutesy everyone made him out to be. He was fifteen, for goodness sake.

Izumi frowned. “Yeah, I’m sorry, but that sounds insane.”

“No, it’s perfect,” Shouyou replied. “Because even if my soul mate can pull off orange streaks, there’s no way he can get away with this.”

[kats-fic-recs]

Everything is a Competition When it's You

“Shou-chan, I feel like this is a bad idea,” Izumi said, sitting with Shouyou at the hairdresser. He was currently waiting to get the dye rinsed out of his hair. “What colors did you pick, again?”

“Hot pink and neon green,” Shouyou replied, not looking up from the magazine he was reading. He was taking a quiz to find out what kind of dog he would be. Shouyou tossed the magazine down angrily when it told him he was a Pomeranian. Shouyou hated how small and cutesy everyone made him out to be. He was fifteen, for goodness sake.

Izumi frowned. “Yeah, I’m sorry, but that sounds insane.”

“No, it’s perfect,” Shouyou replied. “Because even if my soul mate can pull off orange streaks, there’s no way he can get away with this.”

[kats-fic-recs]

The Best Stranger Things Fics I read in 2022

Common Cents

Making a will at eighteen seems incredibly morbid. The lawyer stares at him long and hard the entire time. She acts like he's contagious, like she might catch her death from him or maybe he'll ruin her rug by dropping dead in her office. Steve figures she has nothing to worry about. If anything's going to kill him, it's probably going to be a monster from the Upside Down.

-

In which Steve hunts monsters, becomes a deputy, makes a will, and finds a family. Among other things.

darlin’ you give love (a bad name)

The first time he hears Dustin and Mike mention the name Eddie Munson he almost walks into a VHS display at work.

Steve wants to ask them how Eddie’s doing but then his face from that last party flashes into his head and he always clams up. If he was Eddie he’d want nothing to do with him and rightly so.

Instead Steve teasingly complains about how much time they spend with Eddie and that’s as far as it goes.

To Be Loved For No Reason At All

It all starts with Steve finding Eddie Munson in Alison Brown’s bathtub.

Or, how one night leads to a conversation, leads to shotgunning, leads to confessions, leads to The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Steve's just along for the ride.

sub-culture

“Is he whining about Eddie being mean to him again?” Robin is leaning in the doorway, eating a leftover slice that’s probably cold by now. “You talk about him more than you talk about girls, Steve, it’s getting concerning. Anyone would think you had a crush.”

or, steve is pretty convinced eddie now hates him. turns out eddie has the opposite problem.

get you back (by my side)

Eddie hasn't spoken to Gareth and the others since whatever went down with Chrissy Cunningham, now Gareth sees him playing basketball with Steve Harrington and a bunch of kids, what the fuck is going on?

Sinclair sighs longingly.

“Okay, man, I can get behind you on the sweet and salty,” says Gareth, “but New Coke?”

“He was crazy for it,” says Harrington, grinning all fond at the back of Sinclair’s head like he’s retelling the story of his toddler’s foray into the world of art and talking Gareth through all the monstrosities in pride of place on the fridge. “Weird kid.”

Eddie is smiling at the side of Harrington’s face and Jesus Christ, Gareth never wants to meet another gay man in his whole life if their taste is Steve fucking Harrington.

our house (in the middle of our street)

He's in the market for a house, it's not his fault the Creel Murder House is the cheapest place he can find. It's kind of the perfect house, really, Steve's got a big family.

Eddie fumbles in rolling the blunt. They’re sitting in Eddie’s room while he rolls on the tray balanced on his knees. “You’re — you’re giving me a key?”

“Yeah. I don’t know if you want to move out of here but uh… option is there if you uhm, need it?”

He stays staring at Steve, fingers paused over the tray like the ridiculous caricature of a stoner caught red handed by the cops. “For real? What about rent?”

“Yeah man, of course. I know you haven’t been sleeping great here for obvious reasons and like, a new place isn’t going to help that much but…” He shrugs. “Got more rooms than I know what to do with, so fuck rent. I’m getting keys for you and Rob next week and maybe some for the kids, I don’t know if I trust them with keys to my house.”

when you need me, call me (no matter where you are)

Steve isn't having the best time of it but he's trying to make time for his kids. Then everything goes to shit again. At least he gets a fugitive boyfriend out of it.

When it all starts happening again Steve mentally blames Tammy Thompson’s singing, probably woke Vecna up and he was all like “these people need to remember their favourite songs, because if that’s the musical talent in this town… boy are they fucked” or something along those lines. Or maybe he’s just feeling a little bit insane because he just saw Max — little Max with the red hair who scared him a little bit and saved him from Billy that one time — floating up in the sky like, like an angel. And he couldn’t do a thing but hope Max really, really likes Kate Bush.

strung through the tether

The talk explained how it all worked, why his pain was her pain and vice versa, but it didn’t answer any of the questions Robin would come to formulate in the following years.

Questions like: what makes someone your soulmate? Questions like: why do so many people get married even if they aren't soulmates? Questions like: who ever said it was a boy?

your shadow's red (like a film i've seen)

Three days after Vecna, Robin tries to kiss Steve. Tries to be something he deserves. Someone who can fuck him, be with him. Something better, a good person like she isn't. She tries to not be fucked up. Steve doesn't let her.

If only for a moment they are wild and cold, faces up to the unreflective sky, just a boy and a girl holding hands watching the stars as the wind tugs and pulls them, kindly cruel in a way that mends.

Maybe they don’t need anyone else, she thinks, maybe they can stay there until the wind strips them to their bones. She wouldn’t mind dying if it was with Steve.

He turns to her and she thinks he might kiss her but then he’s just holding her against his chest and it feels like such an impossibly mean thought to have about Steve, to even think that he might do that to her, that she starts crying. Sometimes she thinks she doesn’t deserve him and he doesn’t deserve how she thinks about him. He’s just so much good sometimes Robin thinks something must turn for the worst, surely King Steve isn’t all gone, surely at some point he’s going to reveal himself: he was making fun of her the whole time, trying to make her normal.

feel the magic (there's something that drives me wild)

Robin is drunk and not for the first time wishes she could fall in love with Steve Harrington. Wishes she was 'normal'.

It’s dumb, really dumb, that she still wants to crow to the whole of Hawkins High that she knows what Steve looks like in the morning, in his boxers, coming out of the shower. She still wants to be normal, and it stings sometimes so harshly she thinks she might cry, that she’s never going to swoon over Steve’s arms or his stupid hair.

i wanna make a supersonic man (out of you)

Lucas is the man of the group, he knows this. He's got to be the man, like Steve, and wear polos and khakis and come between evil and the weak and be a lady killer and a charming, funny, sweet guy. Like Steve who has started hanging out with Eddie Munson and getting piercings and wearing eyeliner and not being the man Lucas thought he was.

“Steve is that an earring?” says Dustin, at one of his highest pitches, slap bang in the middle of one of Eddie’s tirades.

Everyone pauses. Number one, you never interrupt Eddie, especially not during D&D. Number two, what? (Lucas has strong suspicions he can’t let Max ever find out about this, or she’s going to break-up with him and become a full-time Steve admirer.)

They all lean forwards.

Steve shifts slightly uncomfortably, but he looks amused. “Yeah.” He shrugs. And there it is, a single tiny silver hoop in his left ear. Lucas stares, amazed.

“You’re a guy,” says Lucas, without thinking about it.

Steve only laughs. “I am aware, Lucas, thank you.”

lover boy pizza

A follow-through to the idea “fuck it make em all gay” ft the addition of: no no no jonathan and argyle as a couple but they don’t know everyone else is also coupled up and they’re high as shit trying to act normal on this now-quintuple date they think is just-bro-time.

(The Real) Stranger Things Season 3

(Because after (gestures at what Netflix gave us), we really needed a rewrite.)

It's summer vacation, 1985.

After everything that's happened in the past two years, Will just wants to go back to the way things were - and the Party seems to be racing on ahead, leaving him behind as they get swept up in the new adventure of being teenagers. But when something darker threatens to reenter their lives, the Party has more to deal with than just dating and summer shenanigans.

Joyce knows that something is wrong - she can just feel it. And Hopper knows by now to trust her instinct. Together they set out to find answers - and find that not all is as they assumed.

Unappreciated and heckled at her internship at The Hawkins Post, Nancy picks up the phone to a strange call. Sensing a story, she grabs Jonathan and chases the lead.

El isn't sure who she is - or if she has the strength to defeat the evil that's rearing its head in this once-quiet town.

Dustin picks up a strange code on his ham radio.

Steve hates his Scoops uniform.

Something strange is stirring in Hawkins - something that wants to get back in.

One summer can change everything.

kiss it better

Of course Will is here. They take care of each other. It’s what they do.

or: Mike and Will, through the years and in between the lines of friendship and something more.

I Never Find Out 'Til I'm Head Over Heels

Wherein Mike believes he’s being obvious, Will doesn’t know what he believes, and the pair of them could use a lesson or two in effective communication. Somehow all of this has both nothing and everything to do with five years' worth of school dances.

The Dad Who Stepped Up

Hopper’s many attempts at bonding with his youngest unofficial stepson over the course of their first year in Hawkins.

Sometimes it goes well, other times he’s trying to see if he’s unlocked his daughter’s ability to glare someone (Michael Wheeler) to death.

i’d love to see me from your point of view

Now that Will’s sitting and Mike’s the one that’s standing, he looks impossibly tall. Tall and lanky, and huge. He should sit back down, Will thinks, lay back down next to Will and stay in their own secluded little bubble.

“I really want to kiss you,” Mike says, and Will’s eyes snap back up to his so violently he thinks he hears his own neck crack with the force of it.

“Don’t,” Will croaks, before his brain has even processed the words. “Don’t say that.”

“Okay,” Mike says easily, still staring. And what the actual fuck is going on? Is Will hallucinating? Is the weed making him hallucinate? “So sausage and pepperoni?”

Will stares dumbly at him. “Um - yeah. Yes.”

“Cool,” Mike replies and then just turns around and leaves Will sitting dumbly in his own room.

or

Mike and Will get high on Jonathan’s weed and Mike has an amazing idea.

you rearrange me 'til i'm sane

Will has never had a girlfriend (or a boyfriend) before. There may or may not be one person behind the reason why.

i hate accidents (except when we went from friends to this).

The first time it happens, Will classifies it as a little accident.

When he wakes, the morning sun is burning through the window onto their faces, and Mike’s cursing as he stands to close the curtains, stumbling all the way.

“Scoot over,” he grumbles, voice dry, and for a second Will can’t do anything other than sigh like a lovesick idiot. It’s a second too late for Mike, because he grumbles more words Will doesn’t catch under his breath and then physically pushes Will towards the wall to lay beside him, arm over Will’s middle. A second of silence passes, then Mike sighs, only to whine: “Fuck, my head hurts.”

Will can’t help it: he breaks down laughing, much to Mike’s offense.

---------------

Alternatively: five times Mike kissed Will, and one time Will kissed back.

all this time (how could you not know?)

Mike sighs, looking down at his hands. "I always thought I would end up with someone more similar to me, you know? Someone I can talk about, like, hobbies and music and stuff with, without them visibly losing interest halfway through.”

You have more in common with him than El, says the voice in Will’s head. He wonders, briefly, whether it would be weird to shove his face back into the pillow and scream.

Will is definitely not qualified to be giving out any relationship advice. For one, he's never actually dated anyone before. Second, one of the people in said relationship is his sister. And third, the other person is the guy he's sort of in love with. There's no possible way this could backfire. Right?

sealed with a kiss

“Dude,” Dustin says, sounding kind of horrified but also kind of delirious with elation. “Oh my God, you like him. You like Will. Will. As in, our Will. Our best friend Will.”

“I do not–” Mike tries, even though he’d kind of just admitted to accidentally kissing Will Byers, a little, so maybe that’s an entirely fruitless road to go down.

Listen. No one should ever let Mike make decisions right after he wakes up from a nap, okay? Especially not decisions where Will is concerned. This is so not his fault.

keep glowing (come back)

And despite this, he will gather the pages and leaf through them. Read the words he didn’t want to think about during the daytime because they were wrong and awful and shitty. Half-scribbled confessions and outbursts and meltdowns, memories and stray thoughts and promises that he’d nearly forgotten to keep.

Skip through them after the first few, skim the bottom of the pages in a move just like El’s, see what she always wanted to see: Love, Mike scrawled at the bottom of every page.

-

or: mike & will through the years

people like you find it easy (naked to see)

Will sees these people. These pink people and these blue people. He sees the way they fit together and hates the way he doesn't ever want a pink half of his soul, he wants something blue, something wrong.

Will still remembers that ice cold shock in the rain that started in his bones and reverberated outwards until the edges of him were static, fizzing and unreal, and the only thing about him that was fact, immovably and intrinsically true, that it wasn’t Mike’s fault, it wasn’t anyone’s but his own, that he didn’t like girls. The bike ride, the rain slick on his face like a membrane, his whole body burning and freezing all at the same time, still blurry at the edges, and the only thing, the only thing, he knew about himself to be true was that he liked boys, he liked boys in a way he wasn’t supposed to. He was broken, a freak like Jonathan had said, but not a freak in a good way, he was bad and rotten.

He had wanted to blame it on the Upside Down, back then. He had wanted it to be something out of his control. But he knows, knows like Lonnie knew when he was just a kid, that he has always been this way. He’s always been wrong in some unfixable, innate way that will stay with him until he dies.

home is where the heart is

“It’s a good thing,” Will reassures, and his thumb swipes over Mike’s cheek. Mike thinks he might explode. “It means you’re nice to look at. Artists would love you.”

Mike’s heart feels like it’s about to burst out of his chest. Will is still looking at him, and he swallows, throat dry. “Yeah?”

Will’s own face reddens, like he’d just thought about what he said. “Yeah,” he answers, and Mike grins.

Living in a shared apartment with Will is all Mike could ask for, except for the part where he keeps thinking about kissing Will in the middle of their kitchen.

i'll find myself in the moonlight

He looks up at him, eyebrows drawn together. “Do you not love her?"

Mike shrinks back. “What?"

He hadn’t meant to say it. He wouldn’t have, if he’d stopped to think about it for half a second. But it’s too late to take it back, and he can’t breathe until he knows the answer, and he looks at him resolutely and says, “Do you only love her because of what I said?

Something darkens on Mike’s face, twisting it into a shape Will’s never seen. “Get out.”

It’s not a no.

or: Mike and Will share a room, and Mike finds out the truth about the painting.

mike wheeler's guide to falling in love with a superhero

“Uh-huh,” Mike says faintly, and he yelps when they narrowly avoid the edge of a shining skyscraper, and his hands clutch onto Spiderman instinctively. “Oh – my fucking God, that –”

Spiderman’s fingers press a little firmly into Mike’s shirt. "Just – hang on!"

"What do you mean just hang – was that a pun," Mike sputters, clutching onto Spiderman for dear life as they swing through the city, and he can hear the superhero laugh through the racing wind in his ears, the rumble of it under Mike’s arm wrapped around his middle.

In a city of superheroes, Mike keeps running into Spiderman, much to his dismay.

On a completely different and unrelated note, Mike also attempts to woo and charm his neighbor into a date.

Heavy Hopes

Mike walks in on his roommate making out with another guy, and gets really upset about it. For all of the normal, straight reasons.

[kats-fic-recs]

The Best Daredevil Fics I read in 2022

How to Make a Family by Matt Murdock

Step 1. Have a dad.

Step 2. Lose your dad. Be miserable. Great job, everyone. We’re doing amazing so far.

(Matt's arduous journey towards being a functional person, with many stops and starts along the way.)

Candy Land

Matt is having fun with this, at least in some way. Sucking on Life Savers and smirking, and no guilt at all. If Matt could feel guilt, none of this would be happening. Things might be okay again.

But he doesn’t, and this is what Foggy is left with: a candy-stained mouth and a creature that’s more devil than man.

And Foggy still loves him

Invisible Ink

“Hello, welcome to Josie’s, I’m Foggy, what are you looking for?”

“Uh, nothing,” the guy replies, and Foggy is nonplussed for the nanosecond it takes to put together glasses, cane, and the way Hottie McHotFace is gazing absently over his shoulder.

“Oh, oh, you’re blind, dude, sorry. But, uh, this is a tattoo parlour?”

“I know.” The guy sighs. “I lost a bet?”

Or: The One Where Foggy Is A Tattoo Artist And Matt Is The Worst

Just to Listen to Your Breath

After the events of Season 2, Matt and Foggy aren't speaking. But that doesn't mean Matt's not hanging around.

Knock Three Times (On the Ceiling If You Want Me)

Matt's downstairs neighbor sings showtunes (badly) at all hours, eats weird-smelling food, and never stops talking.

Matt falls in love long before they actually meet.

Rowan and Red Oak

Foggy meets a man with a red oak wand and a sweet smile. Over the next eight years, Foggy makes a lot of coffee, reads a lot of tea leaves, breaks a lot of rules and casts a lot of charms. He also spends a good amount of his time pining over his perfect partner and trying to keep his wild outbursts of emotional magic to a minimum.

Stupid Cupid

Foggy plays karma bingo and wins a cupid.

His cupid is possibly the worst matchmaker in the world.

Other People's Blood

Foggy finds himself reminiscing on the ten years he's known Matt Murdock - son of and assassin for the Kingpin. The things they've learned about each other and the violence they've wrought together. Something sharp, and twisted, and beautiful.

A love story written in other people's blood.

The Constellation of Touch

Months after Fisk is put away, nothing's right between the partners at Nelson and Murdock. But Christmas is here, and Matt is still expected at the Nelson house.

darling you're stars

Matt wanted only Foggy’s purple flannel and if he could not have that, then he would have nothing. He would go cold.

(Foggy tries to understand the underlying causes of Matt's bizarre relationship with clothes.)

just meant to smile

“So we agree that Matt is still an Elle, though?” Foggy said.

The current working theory among their cohort was that there were Elles, Emmetts, Vivians, and Warners and if you weren’t one of them you were an extra and you were doomed to fail.

“Yeah, no. He’s still an Elle.”

“Okay, so at the risk of sounding desperate, does this make me an Emmett yet?” Marci gave him a pitying look. She reached over and squeezed his shoulder.

“It’s gonna be okay, Vivian,” she promised. “The plot will go on once we get our internships.”

(The Legally Blonde AU that no one asked for.)

Take All The Courage

When what should have been a straight forward mission in Hell's Kitchen goes pear shaped due to lack of communication, teaching his teammates sign language seems like a logical step to Clint. Communication when their comms are down - great plan! And including the local vigilante, who's been working closely with them on this, is a real no-brainer.

Until it turns out said vigilante is an asshole that thinks sign language is beneath him, judging by the way he's stubbornly refusing to learn it.

(Conversely - Matt's trying, he really is but damn it, those two signs are exactly the same... what do you mean they mean completely different things?!)

None So Blind

They say when you assume you make an ass of you and me.

Matt wishes that the Avenger's assumptions about his seeming inability to read the written word did something as benign as making an ass of him and them. Being called illiterate shouldn't hurt, not when he knows he's not, and it's not like he can tell them the truth.

Not that the truth would make much difference. He's just going to have to grin and bear it.

If he can.

Speyeria Cybele

Matthew's not the first Murdock to tell Father Lantom he had the Devil in him. Only Jack's Devil was nothing like the one Matthew sees in himself.

Jack's Devil was magic. Literally.

(Or a history of Father Lantom's relationship with magic, the Devil and the Murdock boys)

anthropomorphism

Matthew Michael Murdock was a person who had been taken, killed or next to killed, and turned into a droid.

Foggy sobbed as quietly as he could into the toilet.

Like a Handprint on My Heart

The day Foggy’s supposed to start working at Hogarth, Chao, and Benowitz, he wakes up, walks into the bathroom, starts to take a leak, glances down to check his aim, and freezes when he sees black letters on the inside of his right elbow.

His bladder forgotten, he brings his arm up, closer to his face and horizontal, as if he couldn't tell what the word was immediately. As if he'd somehow misread it, even though it's only four letters.

Matt.

Look Around, It's You I Can't Replace

Matt handles his separation from Foggy after the breakup of Nelson and Murdock a bit less well than he anticipated. As in he doesn't really handle it at all.

What All This Time Was For

On the rare occasions he reminisces about high school Foggy kind of wonders if he isn't just filling in the worst parts of teen comedies.

Foggy goes to his high school reunion.

[kats-fic-recs]

Best Naruto Fics I read in 2022

SNS

The sun is too bright, it hurts.

The first time Sasuke sees Naruto, they are six years old. Sasuke is not stupid, he learns fast, and there are three basic things about Naruto you can know after being five seconds in the same room as him: first, he’s noisy. Second, he talks a lot. Third, he’s annoying.

Years later, Sasuke thinks the same, but Naruto is much more than that to him.

Love is Just Another Word for Understanding

Maybe it’s because Naruto doesn’t know when to quit, because he’s always there in the periphery, because he’s loud and obnoxious and pushy. Maybe it’s because Naruto is the only one who’s been able to land a hit on him in a spar for months now. Maybe it’s because Naruto is the only one who’s not afraid to make him bleed.

Regardless, Naruto is Sasuke’s rival. And as such, Sasuke watches him.

And watches.

And watches.

---

In which Sasuke finds many aspects of Naruto's life objectionable, and as a result more or less abducts--I mean, adopts him.

Gaalee

All the Grain of Babylon

Sunagakure is an outpost’s outpost, the most hidden of the hidden villages. Situated deep in the bowels of the planet Kaze, aptly named for the devastating windstorms caused by its thin atmosphere, the village is mostly nomadic. Under attack, the entire village can close off its tunnel structure and relocate in less than twenty-four hours, so long as the location of the Seed Bank isn’t discovered.

With Gaara as its leader and a code of strict cultural mores, the small underground society has survived, perhaps even thrived. But their safety and stability is put at risk when a ship crashes on the surface of Kaze, a ship whose crew claim to be the last known survivors of the long-abandoned planet Earth. And what the outsiders bring with them causes Gaara to question everything he's ever known ...

not creepin', just stuck

And now here they were, squeezed into a cozy little corner booth at the real coffee shop just up the street. The one with the blackboard menu and overstuffed upholstery on the mismatched chairs and a barista who, Gaara noticed with no small amount of jealousy, was neither required to wear a nametag nor recite a pithy canned slogan before each order.

Or, the inevitable consequences of being stuck in a donut case together.

On My Way Home

There is nothing now that Gaara, the man, can do to heal the wounds caused by Gaara, the monster. He cannot bring murdered villagers back from the dead. He cannot un-traumatize the children he terrorized in his youth. He cannot even repair the desert ecosystem that he disrupted during his massive, sand-filled rages. All he can do is be a safe harbor - level, and steady, and reliable as the sunrise - for his village, for his family, and for his friends.

Return to Sender

For nearly a decade, Rock Lee and Gaara have written each other, like clockwork. Their friendship grew steadily over many years, and at some point, without realizing it Rock Lee had fallen completely and irrevocably in love with Gaara.

But when he realizes this, advice from his mentor gives him little hope of ever being able to confess.

And so he does the only thing he can think to do: he writes it all down in a letter he never intends to send.

Iruka fics because I love him

whatever you wish for, you keep

Iruka saves a young fox kit in the schoolyard, and is forced to deal with the (not so bad) consequences.

Maslow

The first four tiers of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Human Needs applied to Naruto’s depressing childhood. Alternatively: Iruka slowly becomes the best replacement mother a ninja could have.

a beating heart of stone

During Iruka's first year teaching — on his own, because apparently there is a severe lack of teachers — he loses his curriculum, gets into a low-key fight with Shimura Danzo and accidentally creates an army. To be fair, none of this was planned.

BONUS

One of the greatest Naruto rewrites of all time

from the corner of your eye

When a misunderstanding prompts Sasuke to take a deeper involvement in the growth of his teammates, no one is quite prepared for the way things... change. Especially Sasuke.

The question is - is it for the better?