#exhaustion from the battle aside - it probably also says something that bakugou is the only one not saying it while everyone else is

[mettywiththenotes]

I see some people asking "when are we going to get a Bakugou moment where he encourages Izuku??" But didn't he already have it?

I believe he was the one who started the whole "do your best" thing off before 422

[makeste]

BnHA Chapter 318: On Your Left

Previously on BnHA: The Hawksquad+Lurkers were all “well this sucks” and sat around a bit talking about how maybe they should actually come up with a new plan that is actually good, but then in the end they were like “nah.” Deku was all, “THERE’S SOMETHING INSIDE ME THAT PULLS BENEATH THE SURFACE!! CONSUMING, CONFUSING!! THIS LACK OF SELF CONTROL I FEAR IS NEVERENDING. IT’S HAUNTING HOW I CANT SEEM TO FIND MYSELF AGAIN. MY WALLS ARE CLOSING IN.” Just, literally that whole entire song. All Might was all “Deku you should take care of yourself, try eating a thing,” and Deku was all “BYE, ALL MIGHT,” and just LEFT. He left!!! What the fuck!!!

Today on BnHA: Endeavor is all, “maybe if Deku didn’t listen to All Might he’ll listen to me instead.” Deku is all, “[doesn’t listen to Endeavor]” because, well, yeah. The Vestiges are all, “surprisingly, even we are a little concerned -- maybe you should get some rest, kid.” Deku is all, “((Ò ‸ Ó)).” The Vestiges are all, “holy shit.” Deku is all, “[wanders the ruined city streets terrifying the populace on account of him looking like Shelob had a baby with one of the Nazgul].” Some shriveled-up puppeteer villain asshole is all, “HORIKOSHI SAID IT’S MY TURN TO ATTACK DEKU TODAY SO I AM GOING TO SUMMON MY FRIGHTENED HELPLESS ATTACK MOB!!” Kacchan is all “WHADDYA MEAN THEY FOUND THE NERD!!! -- oh wait, that’s me, I found him. I found the nerd, you guys.” And just in time, too. I was about to owe a whole lot of people a whole lot of dollars.

so I have been super good about spoilers this week as always, but let me tell you guys, for the past 36 hours my dash filters have basically been nonstop “manga spoilers” this and “bnha 318” that, and so I’m coming in with a fair amount of hype here. your move, Horikoshi

oh, good! they got Endeavor to call Deku to try to talk him out of it. what a great and wonderful plan

“listen up kid, you haven’t slept since March and you are basically a walking biohazard right now, I’m just telling it like it is. didn’t you get shot like three times?? and there was a whole thing about how you urgently needed medical attention?? and supposedly we gave it to you, but I mean you haven’t even changed your clothes and don’t seem to have any fresh bandages or anything, so did we?? did we, really?? and also we all got blown up yesterday, so yeah.” hmm he’s making some reasonable points here you guys, but you sure do go on and on, Endeavor

oh he says foreign aid is finally on its way! I’m sure they’ll be very helpful. I mean in fairness they can hardly be worse than the home-grown heroes at this point

hey Enji, could you maybe try appealing to Deku the sixteen-year-old human boy, as opposed to Deku The World’s Last Hope? he does have value beyond his quirk. I know that’s always been an incredibly difficult concept for you to grasp, but could you maybe TRY, jesus

and also we’re worried about you as a person?? you’re just a kid and you’re pushing yourself way too hard?? you were going to say that part next, right. why the hell didn’t Hawks make this call instead

“don’t worry about me... I’m completely fine” Deku you do understand that saying it over and over again doesn’t actually make it true

and again with the rush!! all the rush rush rush!! we’re running out of time, we can’t let AFO and Tomura keep getting stronger, I have to end this now, there’s no time to rest, etc. etc. etc. just the constant pressure of this whole big countdown on top of everything else

holy shit, you KNOW it’s bad when even the Vestiges are telling him to chill

these guys are basically the walking talking embodiments of self-sacrifice; if even they’re telling him he needs to take five, then he must seriously be like half a step away from death’s door

OH SHIT LMAO

DIDN’T EVEN LET HIM FINISH HIS SENTENCE BEFORE HE SENT HIM INTO THE FUCKING SHADOW REALM WITH THAT FUCKING LOOK. HOLY FUCK. DIDN’T EVEN KNOW IT WAS POSSIBLE TO DIE TWICE. SHIT

(ETA: so I’m pretty sure this was just Danger Sense activating and so he cut them off to go do more hero stuff, but I’m gonna go ahead and stick to my original interpretation anyway lol.)

anyway so how’s everybody doing. we all good? En, you good? Banjou? Shino? I’m imagining you guys all curled up in a little ball on the floor right now lol. can’t say I blame you though, no shame

lmaoooooooooooo

“SHEESH.” sheesh indeed, lmao. “what in the FUCK was that”

see, this is why y’all need Kacchan. you need someone who’s not going to back down from him no matter what. if it’s a matter of out-stubborning Midoriya fucking Izuku, then there’s only one other person on the planet capable of that, and we all know it. don’t pretend like you don’t. I am not going to shut up about this! we’ve had our hurt so now what about SOME COMFORT, DAMMIT

“I’m afraid that he’s becoming influenced by my conscience” nah are you kidding Nana this is all 100% made-in-Japan pure original Deku right here

see, Banjou gets it. “that kid, he’s totally going on his own.” exactly. this was so inevitable it was basically scientific law

“well I for one don’t see the problem with Deku being so obsessed with saving everyone else that he pushes himself until his body and soul literally fall apart” okay, whose speech bubbles are these?? we’re about to have words

lol of course

well you always did prefer the direct route didn’t you. but even you can’t possibly think this is okay lol

dark AU!Kacchan please tell us more about your badass doomed timeline in which everything went to shit and you apparently had the same character arc that Deku is having right now except it somehow made you sexier instead of turning you into a rabid t-rex. I have so many questions

oh so now you want to help??? well -- good, actually. sorry if that sounded offended just now lol

(ETA: so at first when I got to the end of this chapter I was wondering if Katsuki B. had somehow summoned his alternate-universe counterpart through trippy OFA space telepathy lol. but in the original Japanese there’s no reference to “we”, so this appears to be a mistranslation. this line should probably read more like “if there’s something/someone out there that would be able to complement/complete the current Midoriya Izuku [it would be]…” which, oh hello, is that Horikoshi once again reaffirming that Deku and Bakugou complete each other lol. “guess what guys, the Vestiges ship it too" heck yeah. they know what’s up!)

look how admiring his boyfriends are. HORIKOSHI GIVE US THE REST OF THIS BACKSTORY ALREADY GODDAMMIT

“meanwhile somewhere in the depths of the ruined city, Deku was having a dance-off with the villains”

I like how the villains all have this “AHH WHAT THE FUCK” kind of body language to them lol. I mean if it were me, and an eldritch horror suddenly clawed its way from the shadows with its writhing glowy tentacles and pants-shitting nuclear death stare, I would probably just die on the spot. no need to stick around. only pain awaits

lol for a minute I thought this was Can’t Ya See-kun and I was like “WHAT A FASCINATING CROSSING OF PATHS” but it’s just some random girl

he seems genuinely confused lol

Deku it’s because you look like something that crawled out of a sewer drain, sweetheart

lol they just took his word for it?

so trusting. even though they’re immediately hauling ass anyway just to be safe lmao

“my appearance is frightening to others” no shit Deku it’s because you look like a fucking alien exorcism. you look like a Lich that got caught up in an oil spill my dude

NO NOT THE CHOSEN ONE ANGST AGAIN

I RAN OUT OF ESSAY JUICE FOR THIS ALREADY HORIKOSHI!! I’VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT IT FOR MONTHS NOW WHAT TOOK YOU SO LONG!! BUT ANYWAYS, GOOD!! I MEAN, BAD, THOUGH, OBVIOUSLY. BUT YES

“ENJOY THIS MONTAGE OF DEKU BATTLING A RANDOM KAIJU AND WANDERING THE WOODS LIKE A DERANGED GREEN BABA YAGA” okay yes but sir, exactly how much longer is this going to go on. if it’s a matter of you wanting to make sure we get it, let me assure you that aside from a few stray chuunis who think that Deku embracing the Darkness is the coolest thing he’s ever done, all of us here in fandom fully comprehend that this is Not Good

-- OH SO IT’S LIKE THAT

really. with the flashbacks to his loved ones’ smiling faces and everything. not even gonna try to aim above the belt, huh

AND NO KACCHAN??! NO CLASSMATES?!?! IS HE PURPOSELY NOT THINKING OF THEM??? OR ARE THEY BEING SAVED FOR THE NEXT PAGE??? SO HELP ME, IF THE NEXT PART OF THIS SENTENCE IS “CAN PROTECT THEM”, OR EVEN WORSE, “CAN SEE THEIR SMILING FACES AGAIN”, I...

WHAT DID I JUST SAY

(ETA: my man did Sero and Kaminari fucking dirty lmao. I miss their smiling faces too omg.)

the sheer, unparalleled irony of him saying this while he stands there looking like the gargoyle demon from Fantasia got crossed with an umbrella that got struck by lightning. Deku :(

oi who the fuck is this clown

is he controlling this mob with his evil hair. “what if I made an exhausted, running-on-fumes Deku battle a brainwashed mob at Ground Zero.” Horikoshi do you just have like a checklist of horrible things you want to do to your protagonist

easy there Sasori

well joke’s on you buddy because he’s apparently “completely fine”, so

“here’s to hoping that you know more about AFO’s location than the others” jesus christ Deku you really have hung your mercy out to dry huh

now he’s forcing his mob of terrified prisoners to attack Deku ahhhh. sucks to be them. at least they’re not being controlled by bees

so Deku is saying that Sasori’s control can be broken with “physical trauma.” similar to Shinsou’s quirk I guess. but so does that mean he’s gonna have to hurt them? ( •﹏•)

NO NOT MORE SAD EYES

“DEATH BY EMPATHY!!!” HORIKOSHI NO

fuck. he looks like he’s on the verge of passing out

this is what happens when you nerf a character’s self-preservation stats in favor of spamming their bone-breaking stats instead. NOW ACCEPTING BRAIN CELL DONATIONS FOR A BOY IN NEED!! with your loving generosity we can hopefully help him live to the ripe old age of seventeen

OMGFGGG

YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

[grabs your hands] ლ(*꒪ヮ꒪*)ლ [swings you in a circle] へ(ﾟ◇ﾟへ)

THASSSSSSSS WHATSSSSSSS UPPPPPPPPPP

HORIKOSHI REALLY SAID FUCK THAT MASK (ノ°ο°)ノ YOU FINALLY LEARNED!! IT’S CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT!!!!

JUST FOR YOU KACCHAN, HORIKOSHI LEFT THIS ONE BAD GUY WHO’S STILL WEAK TO FIRE. GOD BLESS

IT’S YOUR COUNTERPART, KATSUKI B!!!! HOW WE DOIN OVER THERE IN THE TRIPPY COSMIC OFA SPACE REALM LOL. DO WE BELIEVE YET, FANDOM???

LIGHTS!!!!

INSTANT RESULTS!!! IT’S SUPER EFFECTIVE!!!

(ETA: imagine what this must look like to Deku though. he’s been caught up in this dark cloud of despair and exhaustion that’s been building up over... I’m gonna go ahead and say “weeks”, because yeah. and now he finds himself here, in the place where All Might’s legacy ended and the torch was passed to him. and the world is in ruins, and he’s surrounded by frightened people who are all trying to hurt him -- because who isn’t trying to hurt him, these days -- and he’s scrambling to figure this all out, but meanwhile the weariness is finally starting to catch up to him, and so he’s basically just standing there in a fog of complete and utter misery.

and then all of a sudden through that haze, he hears the one voice that’s more familiar than any other that he knows. like, I honestly wouldn’t be surprised if he thought he was just imagining it at first. Kacchan showing up to save him right when he’s at his most desperate and feeling the most alone. Kacchan, showing up to save him.

this is the person he always looked up to as a child (to be fair he was quite a strange child lmao). the person who was even closer to him than All Might. the person he always thought was amazing. and bam, here he is now. appearing in the sky out of nowhere to one-shot the bad guy with a single blast (which, btw, that was his armor-piercing attack too lmao dslkjlk take it easy there kiddo). like, that must have felt absolutely surreal to him, especially coming at a time when he’s already half-delirious and barely hanging on to reality. he must have really thought that he was losing it there for a second.

but he’s really there. it really is him. and for this brief moment -- before the rest of the situation catches up to him, and he remembers about all of the fucked-up AFO stuff, and remembers why he was so afraid and why he was pushing everyone away -- for just this one brief moment, he’s too exhausted and stunned to do anything except to just react. just stands there, looking up at him in awe.

and you know, it almost reminds me of...

just. you guys. the character development. the freaking character development. someone who brings reassurance. someone who shows up and makes you think, “oh, it’s all going to be okay now, because [person] is here.” the role reversals. the growth. the payoff!! because who is the one person who always had faith that Kacchan would one day grow up to become an amazing hero like that. WHO IS IT. YOU ALREADY KNOW.

omg. anyways, bless you Horikoshi, my feels which have been on backorder since fucking September have finally arrived lmao. yes, good, thank you. worth the wait. it is always, always worth the wait. fuck yeah.)

“LOWFRIES” SO YOU’RE TELLING ME THE WHOLE GANG IS HERE, AHHHHHHHH (º̩̩́⌣º̩̩̀ )

BEAUTIFUL. WONDERFUL. SENSATIONAL. I DON’T EVEN CARE THAT JUMP IS ON BREAK NEXT WEEK. THIS RIGHT HERE WILL SUSTAIN ME

[bokunoheroanalysisforthefuture]

And the last chapter of the first volume! Though technically there’s after-chapter content that will be in a separate post from this, but for now, what matters is finishing up the quirk assessment and getting into the battle trial!

Honestly, it’s a good thing that I just shoved all the opening arcs from before the USJ together into one tag, because this chapter literally goes from the quirk assessment into the beginning of the battle trial stuff, and trying to separate them out would have been a mess and a half. Better to just have it all in the ‘opening arcs’ tag.

...weird title for something that only comes at the end of the chapter, but whatever, it’s not like we don’t see that happen later on in the series as well.

[No. 7 - Costume Change?]

And we immediately come back to where we left off, with All Might realizing what just happened and what Izuku did and even why! One of those little peeks that remind us that All Might is very smart! Also god, him with a small fanboy moment over how proud he is of his kid and how cool that workaround was, mmm this is the Dad Might content I signed up for. 

Izuku is still standing firm, even with his finger swollen and damaged, biting back the pain. Ochako is cheering about that record, Tenya notices Izuku’s finger is damaged and thinks back to the entrance exam, calling it a ‘strange quirk’, Aoyama says it’s stylishly done, and Katsuki is brain broke.

I’m sorry that’s just so fucking funny. He is such a goddamn gremlin, but he’s also completely shook. He thinks about how quirks never manifest past age four, but somehow Izuku has a quirk. 

He then recalls Izuku saying ‘he earned this’ and gets pissed, blasting forward to demand an explanation while Izuku freaks out-

Only for Katsuki to have his quirk cancelled by Aizawa and also get caught up in the capture scarf. 

Beauty. Grace. He’ll bite off your face. 

Katsuki notes the cloth is stiff, while Aizawa tells him that it’s a capture weapon made of carbon fibers and a special alloy wire, then tells Katsuki to stop using his quirk already. Which is interesting; can Aizawa sense when people are trying to use their quirks while under the effects of his? If so, is he sensing the aborted movement of whatever quirk factors exist, or ??? 

(All I’m saying is that that is some possible fuel for a Dad For One connection but for Aizawa instead of Izuku… you know, just in case.)

As we sort of saw from the last chapter, Aizawa’s quirk has the side effect of giving him dry eyes (he was putting eyedrops in his eyes after using his quirk on Izuku). Izuku thinks that sucks since his quirk is so awesome. Aizawa lets his quirk and scarf drop, telling the class to prepare for the next event.

Katsuki is standing where he was stopped, glaring at Izuku who is holding his hand while Ochako worries over him and his finger. He’s caught up in a flashback (which again, reminder that this is chapter 7 and we already have flashbacks), thinking about how up to then, Izuku was just another pebble in his path. We get a brief cut to a memory flashback (not a chapter flashback) to when Izuku and Katsuki were still friends, and Izuku was waiting for his quirk to come in still, and then repeats that Izuku was only supposed to be a pebble. Single track mind, much?

Discord:

Ah, that good Bakugou discourse. This is why you do this stuff in a server with friends.

Izuku narrates a short passage of time - over the rest of the events - while handling the pain of his injured finger. Aizawa tells them it’s time for the results, with Izuku thinking about how he’s going to get expelled because the only record worth mentioning was the throw, and how the endurance running failed hard because of the pain. Aizawa says he won’t explain the process behind the scoring process, just that they reflect performance.

And then he reveals he was lying about expelling someone. 

The trio’s faces. Aizawa’s manic smile. The trio’s faces. And Momo there like ‘what did you expect?’ God, I can’t help but giggle.

Izuku just fucking ascending to a new plane of existance here.

Aizawa turns to leave, saying they’re done there and that the documents about the curriculum and whatnot are back in the classroom. He then calls out Izuku, who is shaking in panic (probably about Aizawa changing his mind again - I wonder if teachers before UA pulled that sort of ‘syke’ on Izuku… yikes.)

Instead, he just gets handed a pass to the nurse’s office (not even filled out fully, incredible) and then turns and walks off.

The class is left to stare after Aizawa in bafflement, with Izuku’s narration noting that he’s safe for the moment, but still has too much he can’t do, and that he’s literally starting from the bottom - but here’s there to learn so he can get closer to his dream!

Class rankings:

And- ah, he walked past All Might, who calls him out as a liar. Aizawa either didn’t notice him watching or didn’t know it was All Might specifically who was watching, but either way calls it ‘wasting time’ - which makes sense when all the teachers know about his time limit that he’s spending there watching Izuku the kids do their trials.

All Might notes that April Fool’s was over a week ago, and that the ‘rational deception’ thing falls flat when he expelled an entire class of first years the previous year. Aizawa discards those with zero potential, but he went back on his word here, and then asks if he sensed Midoriya’s potential as well. While giving Aizawa finger guns. Have I mentioned this man is a complete dork yet?

Aizawa catches onto the ‘as well’ bit, and determines that All Might’s supporting the kid - which isn’t his usual style. He then starts walking off again, saying Midoriya doesn’t have no chance, but that’s all he’ll say on the matter. He then says that if the kid had no prospects, he’d cut him loose, since it’s crueler to let someone chase half-baked dreams. 

All Might determines quietly that it’s Aizawa’s way of being kind, but out loud states that they can agree to disagree. Meanwhile, in the background, Sero and Sato notice All Might, which probably leads to class 1a going after him and him fleeing for safety. 

We transition to when Izuku is heading home, with him exhausted because of his trip to Recovery Girl. Tenya checks in on him, and Izuku says he’s fine, with us seeing a temporary flashback to the nurse’s office. Izuku notes his finger’s better, but he’s exhausted all of a sudden (he doesn’t remember last time since he was unconscious). 

A couple of things:

Kamui Woods pez dispenser 

Oh, so if he doesn’t have stamina he’ll die! Good to know! :)

Anyways, Izuku thinks about how he can’t keep going on like this and has to figure out how to regulate his power fast. Tenya goes on to talk about how Aizawa had fooled them, making them think that was how it was, only for it to be a deception. (The irony that the mercy was actually unplanned all along gets to me.) Izuku is more relaxed around him now that he realizes Tenya isn’t scary, just super serious.

Ochako rushes over to catch up, asking if they’re heading for the station. Tenya calls her ‘Infinity Girl’ and Izuku repeats it mentally in surprise. Ochako introduces herself, and then brings up their names - though she mistakes Izuku’s name for ‘Deku’, because of what Katsuki said during the test. Izuku corrects her with awkward hand gestures, saying his real name and that the ‘Deku’ is just Katsuki being a bully. 

Tenya and Ochako both acknowledge this, with Ochako apologizing, and then mentioning how ‘Deku’ sounds like ‘do your best’, and that she likes it. Izuku goes beet fucking red and immediately replies that Deku is fine, with Tenya chastising him for not showing backbone while Izuku calls it like the Copernican Revolution and Ochako questions who Copernicus is. 

The narration takes over, noting that even if there’s a lot he can’t do, he’ll do his best, but having All Might and even some friends behind him… it’s more than he could have asked for. 

Good children. Best friends. God, these were the good days… more OG Dekucrew content please and thanks.

We get one panel of Toshinori that Izuku’s got no time to rest, and that tomorrow the real test begins. Then we’re onto the next day, aka the first day of actual classes - and oh, right, UA has clubs, that’s something that’s easy to forget when we never see it with the hero classes. I mean, considering that the actual hero training classes probably overlap the usual club hours, not surprising, but still.

Present Mic is shown to be the English teacher, trying to get the kids in the spirit of class, but pretty much everyone is finding it boring - asides from Izuku, who is actually trying to answer the question mentally, even if not out loud. The narration notes that the mornings are for normal classes, and that lunch is top-notch food for dirt cheap in the cafeteria (as cooked by Lunch Rush), and then hero training is in the afternoon… possibly after lunch? Which isn’t great when people could end up throwing up. Ah well.

These fucking dorks. Two peas in a quirkless-to-superpowered pea pod.

And of course, more meta from the class on how All Might’s drawn differently.

Anyways, All Might gets into Hero Basic Training, how it’ll mold them into heroes, and that there’s no time to waste as he shows off a card reading ‘battle’ before stating that they have battle training. 

Have I mentioned he’s a dork? There’s more ham here than in Shatner’s performances in the original Star Trek series!

Katsuki is thrilled with battle training, of course. All Might notes that for battle training, the class will need - as the wall clicks and opens several drawers with numbered cases, each with contents in accordance with the quirk registry and the special request forms fill out before admission - costumes! Which the class is super hyped about. Izuku is holding his backpack in excitement, and All Might orders the students to come out to Ground Beta in ranking order once they’re changed, to which the class agrees. 

As he takes his leave, he notes that looking good is important, and to look alive, because from today on, they’re all heroes! We also get some nice transition moments showing pieces of people’s costumes, with Izuku being the last one out as the rest show theirs off.

So cool! And what a way to end a chapter and a book! And a nice nod to the prototype costume for Izuku. Time to say goodbye to it before the end of this arc. 

Next time, I’ll try to get through all the bonus stuff for the end of the volume, and then we can get into the battle trial proper! Looking forward to that.

[once-upon-a-scenario]

Icarus: Bakugou/reader, Part 5

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 6 (Edited summary because I didn’t like the first one haha) In which Katsuki continues to despise you, but gets accused of being nice more often than he could appreciate. Things aren’t really going his way lately.

(Also there’s a title drop.)

(I might put this series on hiatus for a while, depending on how my feelings about it change (or don’t change)...sorry for how late this update is + my inconsistent as hell writing style, I kinda lost motivation in the middle because idk, I’m kinda dissatisfied with how it’s going so far ;-;  And I’ve now remembered that quirk training/sparring wasn’t a huge thing until post training camp arc, but ah well. I’ve already written it in so let’s just ignore that small defiance of canon XD Hope somebody out there can enjoy the story anyway, though! ^^;;;

-Eve)

_____

Katsuki doesn’t believe in red flags, the same way he doesn’t believe in cowering. He tears right through them and doesn’t look back.

You’ve made your stance clear, so this is a turning point. The next time your handkerchief turns up in his uniform pocket, he marches over to the washing machine and shoves it in. It’s only a generic, white cotton handkerchief- hopefully, his mother will mistake it for one of her own. If she doesn’t, he doesn’t care.

Because that’s what you said yourself, isn’t it? We don’t have to be.

He tolerates walking with you, answering your every word through gritted teeth but refusing to back down. Fights don’t have to be physical; the tension carries over from the sparring field to the classroom to the walks home, when Kirishima will later comment on his harshness, but shitty hair doesn’t get it and that’s fine.

(He can’t tell anyone that he has an extra mental image added to the film reel in his brain, that he’s now stuck on loop with you looking back at him from the left fork in the road, your smile sharp with a momentary flash of secret humor as your mouth forms the words,

We don’t have to be.

And the wording of that phrase is a needle in his consciousness, ever-present and irritating, because something about your tone, something about the way you worded it-

The only logical conclusion is mockery, and the only way to retaliate is not to give in.)

We don’t have to be (friends.)

True. You can be proper enemies instead.

_____

But there’s a method to dealing with this. New approach, new rules.

_____

So when he finds you in front of the vending machine after school, examining the drinks on display inside, he stops for a moment and greets you with a blunt,

“The fuck are you doing?”

You tap on the glass at the machine’s front. Do you think milk tea is preferable to boba?

“How the hell should I know anything about your stupid tea?” But he looks at the bottles, because whatever game of faux-friendliness it is that you’re playing, he’s decided not to lose. “Don’t get tapioca though, it’s fucking gross.”

Really? You seem to be in the minority there.

“Well I’m right so does it matter?”

You hum- neither agreeing nor disagreeing- and begin counting out coins. Clink, clink, clink. When the machine regurgitates two bottles, you fish them out and hold them up, squinting slightly as if to examine them.

Would you like one?

He glares. “Keep it. I don’t drink that shit.”

You shrug lightly, unfazed as you slip one bottle into your bag. Ah, well. I suppose Kirishima might want the boba, then.

It’s nice that you’re assuming Kirishima will be there- that you’ll be walking together. As if anybody asked for you to join in. Katsuki just sneers before he whirls around and stalks briskly away, making sure that he’s fast enough to leave you behind.

There’s a certain bitter, unfulfilled satisfaction in the sound of your footsteps leisurely chasing after him.

_____

“Is anybody actually looking forward to camp?” Kaminari groans as the students file out of class.

I am, you remark, entirely too brightly.

“What the fuck is there to look forward to?” Katsuki doesn’t like the way you’re falling into step beside him, as nonchalantly as if you do this every day, but he clenches his fist and bears it. “Also, don’t tell me you’re going to meet up with your shitty boyfriend again.” (Kirishima’s jagged elbow glances off his side. He ignores it.)

Well, you can never get too much training. But no. You hum, adjusting the strap of your backpack and checking your phone. I’m not meeting Takeo-kun today.

___ Not meeting Takeo-kun means you walk home alone. Katsuki kicks at the pavement as he whirls around, determined not to watch you go. It’s not as if he cares. You can be an antisocial asshole if you want to be; doesn’t matter to him. He wonders, though. What you do when you go home. What you do when you’re with your boyfriend. The things he knows of you- your horrible crumpled shirt collar, your insulting serenity, your grades and your quirk- don’t lend themselves to any image of a person outside of school. So there’s another facet of yourself you’re keeping close to your chest. It pisses him off. How many times do you need to fight someone before you figure them out? How much do you need to know before you really win? _____

The bus is bursting with chatter from all sides; Katsuki’s palms begin to tingle as he turns and tries to shout in every general direction, “Can everybody just shut the fuck up for one second?!”

Which just makes them louder.

The only exception is you, staring out the window on one side and watching the scenery flash by. There’s a weird look on your face, your brow slightly furrowed as you lean against the glass pane, apparently lost in thought, which is rude of you, considering that he’s about to decimate you again once training starts.

“Oi,” Katsuki begins, not entirely sure what he’s about to say, only knowing that your thoughtfulness pisses him off, but then you look up and meet his gaze.

Exciting, isn’t it? Seems like we’re going to have some fun.

“…’fun,’ my ass.”

He slouches back into his seat and glares at the floor, additional curse words suddenly dying in his throat. Doesn’t matter. There’s never been much of a point in picking verbal fights with you, if only because you just don’t talk enough to keep things going. He’ll beat you at camp. That should be good enough.

The soft huff of almost-laughter that drifts from your lips just pisses him off that much more.

______

When Class 1-A stumbles out on the other side of the forest after a long, hellish battle, he glances at you. There’s a cut on your forehead and sweat on your brow but you don’t seem to mind. You catch his eye and smile at him, shoulders still shaking with deep, ragged breaths. Like you’re not bothered at all.

He returns the look with a scoff. Same old, then.

______

Training is harsh.

Katsuki creates explosion after explosion from his palms as he stands, planted stubbornly on the baking earth beneath the midday sun, burning his skin and brining his clothes with sweat. It’s gross, but the fire’s getting hotter and the damage from his quirk is getting worse, which really means better.

He’d anticipated a fight, but maybe this is fine- grinding sparks from his hands and watching them get hotter, sharper, louder when they burst. Deku, the fucking bastard, isn’t going to catch up this time. And when he spars with you again, he’ll get the explosions strong enough that he won’t have to resort to fistfights anymore. That’s kind of the point of camp, after all.

______

“You hold back too much.” It’s Day Two. He spots Aizawa-sensei taking you aside and overhears his quiet words, spoken in a low tone under the rest of 1-A’s post-training chatter and groaning. “Your control over Reflection is highly advanced for your age, but you’ve taken it too far. That’s just stunting a perfectly good quirk.” You bow your head. I’ll work harder, sensei. Katsuki fixes his gaze on Pikachu and Mineta, both currently getting told off by Tiger for something or other, and wipes the sweat from his brow. He keeps his mouth in a line and his eyes steady. It’s not as if some cheesy teacher-student moment is anything he should be giving a shit about. He just feels half resentful, half spitefully vindicated by Aizawa-sensei’s comments- the implication that you could be doing better, maybe didn’t necessarily have to get knocked on your ass every time you fought him. As Aizawa-sensei wanders back off towards the Pussycats, Katsuki catches a glimpse of your face. It’s neutral, just the way it always is, eyes staring blankly after your teacher as he leaves, but there’s something off, maybe. Something in the line of your jaw that seems unnaturally stiff, making you look less calm and more just exhausted. Maybe even sad. (Like you have any fucking right to go around looking depressed?) When Class 1-A begins to head back to their base, he stalks up to you, glaring, and slows momentarily to match your dragging pace. It’s not that he particularly wants to talk to you, but he’s pissed enough by what he’s heard that he doesn’t want to avoid you, either. For reasons probably best known to yourself, you don’t object. ”You better fucking improve,” he hisses to you under his breath, quietly enough that Aizawa-sensei could miss it. “And get ready for me to kick your ass again once you do.” For some reason, the stiff lines of your face soften again, just a fraction. I will. Thank you. ”The fuck are you thanking me for?” You shrug with a knowing glance that makes him feel enraged all over again. It’s nice of you to walk with me. And by all accounts, that should make him immediately leave you for Kirishima or Ashido or even Kaminari, but because that would be losing, and he’s long since made up his mind to adapt to the game, he just curses again and sticks with you. The entire journey back is sickeningly reminiscent of the walks home.

_____

Later at night, he catches sight of you, sitting at one of the wooden tables used for dinner with a book held up to your face. The letters on the dark blue cover spell out Greek & Roman Mythology.

He could just go inside and leave you to your own devices, but, “Hey,” he calls out instead, loud and abrupt, just to gloat in the way you briefly tense before turning to face him. 

You inhale deeply, shaking your head. Hello. You surprised me. 

He snorts. “Yeah, yeah. You just gonna sit there forever?”

I’ll get inside soon, you don’t need to worry about me.

“Who said I was worried, you bastard?”

He glares. You’re still sitting silently, while he stands as close as he can get, hands shoved deep in his pockets and words swimming in his head but the right ones getting lost on the way to his mouth. There’s a brief moment of staring and he hates your practiced blankness, the way you act so goddamn collected when there’s clearly something hidden underneath that you won’t set free. It’s like going round and round in circles, stuck in this loop of a game that doesn’t end because you don’t seem to understand the rules. Though- whatever. He’s getting used to the rhythm. And though you make his blood boil on the best of days, there’s no worth in picking a fight when you’re wilting for some inexplicable reason. Have you ever heard of the story of Icarus? ...what the fuck kind of a non-answer is that? The look on his face must have said something, because, damn it all, there’s a hint of what might almost be amusement in your eyes now- he wonders if you’re even capable of looking amused without also somehow mocking him. “The fuck are you laughing at?” I’m not laughing. You tap the book lightly with a finger. If you’d like, I’ll tell you about him sometime. Just remind me that I owe you a story. “You don’t owe me anything. I don’t give a shit about some stupid story.” But he glances at the book again before he turns to leave. You’ve opened it to an illustrated page, bordered with designs almost like stained glass, a winged figure in the middle of the paper reaching up towards a gold-foil sun glimmering in the dim light. Looks pretty fucking useless, Katsuki decides as he wanders off, leaving you to your own devices. ______

The next morning, you greet him with a smile at breakfast. As he offers a glower in return and turns back to his food, he notes how you yawn your way through the entire meal, your hands shaking and fumbling as you reach for a mug. He’s not about to ask any more questions, because it’s not like he cares; you probably just stayed up the entire night reading your stupid book, and now you’re paying the price for it. He doesn’t owe anybody any explanation as to why he curses you out and hands you the mug instead of leaving you to suffer. “Somebody’s being uncharacteristically nice,” Icy-hot notes in his most insultingly deadpan voice. Katsuki reaches across the table and explodes his toast. ____ The third night of camp is a fairly straightforward situation. The test of courage is done in pairs; Class 1-A is composed of twenty one students; twenty one is an odd number. Therefore, either one group should be composed of three people, or one of these fuckers has to suck it up and go alone. “We should draw lots,” Iida suggests, adjusting his glasses as he turns to seek the Pussycats’ approval. “Or does anybody want to volunteer?” “Count me out of it!” Mineta, the fucking nuisance, already has his eyes bugging out of his tiny head in fear. “I’m not dying at fifteen, no thanks, why can’t I just go with two partners- ?!” Katsuki inhales deeply, feeling a familiar migraine coming on as he prepares to speak up- he can go alone just fine, unlike the majority of these fucking extras- when somebody else’s hand shoots up instead. He turns to look and immediately scowls. Of course. Invisible Girl and Uraraka are hanging off of your arms and practically fucking weeping as you glance at them with raised eyebrows. “Seriously? Aren’t you scared at all?” “Hell yeah, show B-2 what we’re made of-!” I’ll be ok, you say, the words directed to Mandalay. After all, it’s not as though there’s any real danger. _____ Someday, Katsuki might look back and pinpoint this as the moment when everything went to hell. He’s not superstitious- thinks superstition is a fucking ridiculous concept, has never believed in omens- but it’s almost funny how ironic your comment seems in hindsight. Not as though there’s any real danger. The words seem to echo in his head as he feels the rough, scarred hand of the villain close around his wrist and the cold mist begin to swallow him up, Deku reaching towards him from the other side, and he snarls, stay the fuck back you shitty nerd, do you honestly want to mess this up any more than it already is- The mist closes around him. (In the last few seconds, he realizes that though Deku’s accounted for- you’re not. If you die before your sparring rematch, he’s going to kill you.) ____ Shouta almost sinks to the ground in relief when his last unaccounted for student finally stumbles out of the forest. As it is, you’re the one who immediately slumps. He grabs your shoulders as gently as he can, hoisting you to your feet as he examines your face, your limbs, the tears in your clothing. Though there’s not much blood, only a few cuts here and there on your hands and cheek, you seem unnaturally dazed. For a tense second, he’s terrified as he searches your eyes for any dilation, or any sign of consciousness- god, if you’ve inhaled the gas- But then your gaze finally focuses on him and you speak, voice hoarse and ragged. Sensei- sensei- is everybody alright? Where’s- “It’s alright,” he mutters, steadying you as you begin to tremble. “Shh. Calm yourself.” You’re insistent, though, hoisting yourself up on wobbling legs. Sensei, what about Bakugou? “Bakugou’s...” He can’t say it, not now, not here, but you seem to understand anyway. A tear runs down your cheek. Shouta holds you steady as you begin to cry. You’re shaken- crying over Bakugou, a boy you barely seemed to like, is proof of that. Something happened in the forest, something that hurt you, even if it wasn’t necessarily physically. None of the other students have broken down like this so far. For the moment, though, he holds you, and chooses not to ask.

[plus-ultra-oneshots]

World War Dodgeball {BakugouXMale!Reader}

World War Dodgeball

BakugouXMale!Reader Oneshot

"There is nothing normal about it."

.:+:.

"Quiet down and listen up." Mr. Aizawa muttered lowly, the usual unkempt mess of a man standing before the assembled class that had, previously- been talking amongst themselves without ever realizing their Homeroom Teacher had made a reappearance. The conversation and whatnot died in instant obedient silence, everyone snapping to attention and turning toward the Erasure Hero, who grumbled at the 6 seconds too long that it took to gain their full attention- but he let it be.

Your eyes moved passed everyone else and to the front- all of you in your gym uniforms and (of course) in one of the gyms the school owned. However this gym in particular was stacked, the floor rising up in several places and sunken in in others. There were also raised bits of wall that were freestanding, some tall and short, and beams and places for cover and higher ground... Some of the walls had weird little gates in them that were closed, and several placed along the floors too......huh...

Knowing Mr. Aizawa, he had planned something exhausting and maybe even a bit unorthodox to put the class through... Or maybe it was less him personally, than it was all of the 'exercises' were just par for the course of the Hero Academia.

"Today you will be playing Dodgeball." Mr. Aizawa said simply, the class as a whole seemed to stiffen in surprise.

"Dodgeball...?!" Several people hissed under their breaths,

"I haven't played that in a long time, ribbit." Asui murmured aloud,

"That's so normal!" Kaminari trilled almost instantly with Mina saying near the same thing. You couldn't help but agree- but the strange layout gave you pause, as it did a few of your classmates.

"There is nothing normal about it." Mr. Aizawa muttered dryly, cutting off the sudden chatter that started. "You will all be split into two teams. The objective is the same as it normally would be- hit the members of the rival team out by sending the balls toward them. Any contact with a ball sent toward you by another student, without catching it- will get you disqualified. Both teams have full range of the entire gym. There's no boundaries you need to stay in, use the space in full and to any advantage you can." Mr. Aizawa continued, "In order to disqualify someone, you must 'throw' the ball- either by actually throwing them, kicking them, whatever way you want as long as it leaves you and hits them. There is no 'tagging' someone at close range. You can use your Quirks as you see fit." The older man grumbled, "The game continues on until all members of one team are hit out- or otherwise you all become too exhausted to continue." His hand shifted from his pocket, pulling out a small remote as he clicked one of the buttons on it- and there was a mechanical buzz that echoed over the whole gym. "You will also be disqualified if you get hit by any of the automated machines hidden all around the area."

You tensed as one of the many little gates in the walls and the floors suddenly popped open behind Mr. Aizawa and a red ball shot from it and toward the whole class at breakneck speed. The people in front of you scrambled out of the ball's path, flinching backwards and parting like the Red Sea before you as you stood there, seeing the coconut-sized red bullet inching ever closer by the nanosecond.

So that's what those Gates are for

Your hand shot up from being in your pocket, a resounding SMACK echoing over the gym as the smooth plastic surface made contact with the skin of your palm with so much force a painful jolt ran through your bones. You grumbled under your breath, aware that Hagakure behind you let out a relieved sigh- probably thankful you had caught the ball instead of stepping aside like everyone else and leaving her to potentially get nailed with it instead.

"Nice catch, (Y/N)!" Mina chirped brightly, you lowered your hand and the ball with it.

"I try." You smiled coolly,

"Tch, like it was hard." Came the low grumble from Class 1-A's resident hothead, and your eye twitched slightly though you didn't deign to glance his way. Your grip around the ball tightened as you kept up a small smile, and pretended you didn't hear him say a thing.

Because lord knows, once you said something, he'd say something snarky back, and then both you and Bakugou would end up at each others throats, that's how it always ended up. And you usually couldn't give a damn if you were fighting- you fell into the conflict as quickly as Bakugou did- but right now you stopped yourself. If you two went at it right in that instant it would only piss off Mr. Aizawa... And besides-

We're about to be in the middle of a dodgeball game more aimed like a warzone. I'll just kick his ass, like I'm expected to be doing so for the assignment.

"Give him a break, man." Kirishima sighed in exasperation toward Bakugou, who scowled. "You guys are always bashing on eachother over just about everything, and then you go back to being cool with eachother out of nowhere- why fight at all?"

"Shut it Shitty-Hair, it's none of your damn business." Bakugou snapped lowly, "And all you idiots are losing your minds for nothing, I'm gonna show every one of you losers who you should be paying attention to." His palms slammed together in a flurry of booming little explosions flicking from his skin and sending up smoke.

"... So it's just you two trying to one up each other over everything, huh...?" Kirishima sighed, though Bakugou never heard him say anything.

"Rivalry among comrades." Tokoyami murmured quietly,

"I'm gonna wipe the floor with all of you. You'll be dust by the end of this." Bakugou growled, both you and him oblivious to Kirishima and Tokoyami saying anything.

"You do know we're gonna be on teams right?" Jiro sighed,

"Why the hell do I care?! If any of you get in my way I'll blow you to kingdom come!" He snapped back hotly, temper flaring in no time at all. People all around either sighed, or shook their heads at him. You just stood there with your jaw clenched, biting down on your tongue to keep yourself from saying anything.

"I've never lost a game of Dodgeball in my life. This is my playing field, the rest of you idiots don't stand a chance."

You failed to keep your mouth shut this time around, and you were saying something before you could remind yourself not to.

"Oh really?" You smirked wryly, shooting Bakugou a sideways glance and your tone nothing but taunting. " 'Your' playing field, huh? You so sure about that?" You saw the vein tick on Bakugou's forehead right on cue as you casually tossed the ball in your hand up into the air and caught it again. "Never losing a Dodgeball game in middle school doesn't mean much nowadays, and especially not here."

"Oh yeah?! You think any of you idiots is gonna be challenge for me?!" He snapped back, you smirked.

"Yeah, and you're looking at him." You replied with ease,

"The hell you are!" he roared, you chuckled and it pissed him off even further. "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU LAUGHING FOR, ASSHOLE-?!"

"Enough!" Mr. Aizawa interjected coldly, scowling as his Capturing Device shot forward and latched around Bakugou and his mouth- silencing the blonde who struggled against the bonds instantly. "Save it for the exercise. Everyone come and draw a lot for which team you'll be placed on."

You shot the still gagged Bakugou a sly smirk as you stepped forward to grab a slot from the box of ribbons Mr. Aizawa had gestured to. There was a fair amount of muffled cursing around the Capturing Device that never formed full words when Bakugou caught the look you gave him- oh it was so easy to set him off.

"Heh~" you scoffed lightly, looking away from him again and hearing the muffled cursing grow louder and more angry. You ignored all of it, easily pulling a ribbon out of the box- it was blue in color, which contrasted against the other team color of red.

"We're on the same team!" Mina grinned, the girl practically bouncing up to you as you knotted the ribbon around you wrist like everyone else had.

"Hell yeah!" Kamimari smirked, "We've got in this in the bag with you on our team (Y/N)!"

"Yeah, your Quirk will be easy to use as an advantage for this game." Midoriya smiled, the green-haired boy appearing on your shoulder with Asui in tow. "Kacchan can get a lot of power and speed behind his throws, but you can do that and keep a better track of dodging incoming balls too. Plus your aim will be a lot more accurate than his, and pretty much everyone else's!"

"Oh yeah~" you smirked, casting a glance over your shoulder just in time to see Mr. Aizawa tie the last available ribbon into the blonde and bound boy's hair- it was red.

"Hehe, Bakugou isn't gonna know what hit him." You hummed, eyes gleaming as the members of your team around you smiled a bit- enthused to have you on their team, of course- their chances of winning seemed higher with you around. But some of them looked a bit exasperated anyway, because you and Bakugou were on opposite teams, and if history of habit proved constant, this Dodgeball game was about to become a battlezone between the two of you.

Team Red:

-Katsuki Bakugou

-Ejiro Kirishima

-Ochaco Ururaka

-Tenya Iida

-Toru Hagakure

-Minoru Mineta

-Kyoka Jiro

-Mezo Shoji

-Hanto Sero

-Momo Yaoyorozu

-Fumikage Tokoyami

---

Team Blue:

-(Y/N)

-Mina Ashido

"Oh man they got (Y/N) and Todoroki!" Hagakure whined,

"Yeah but we got Tokoyami." Sero told her,

"Bakugou too." Kirishima grinned,

"And we also have more people than they do." Jiro murmured, her finger twining around one of her Earphone Jacks absentmindedly. That was a common enough theme though, given the odd number of 21 students in the class.

Both teams split apart slightly, and Mr. Aizawa let Bakugou go so he could walk away and distance himself a bit.

"Come on guys, we got this!" Kaminari grinned ahead of you, shifting into a battle stance as everyone else on Team Blue did the same. You smiled, completely at ease as you kept hold of that ball that you'd caught earlier and continued to toss it up and down leisurely.

"I'm gonna destroy all of you." Bakugou growled darkly, his still furious stare landing on you.

"Take it easy on everyone will you? We're not in a full on battle-" Kirishima attempted to calm Bakugou down a bit, even though he knew well it wouldn't work.

"That's where you're wrong, Shitty-Hair." Bakugou growled, red eyes flashing as he caught yours- the air shook with the series of explosions popping off his arms and shoulders. You simply held the glare, tossing the ball in your hand up one more time, and it never came back down.

"This is war."

How very right you are

"This is an exercise in teamwork, precision- and most of all, maneuverability." Mr. Aizawa muttered dryly as he took up his post on the sidelines. "Begin." His hand moved, clicking another button on the remote as a storm of red balls fell from a container suspended overhead.

Everyone in the gym stiffened, preparing themselves to dash out and grab one as they got closer to the floor- others already jumping to grab one and get ahead of the game. Sound of a cannon firing gave indication for the dodgeball that Yaoyorozu had made even before the rest were released, and Kaminari barely missed getting hit. You watched Bakugou launch himself upward off the floor, the air shaking in his quake as he moved up among the rain of red balls, and set to work in an instant.

"DIE!"

There was a line of orange red heat and smoke that swept out overhead, the wave of pure force and explosive power ramming into the group of dodgeballs and sending them hurtling downward like bullet-rain. Team Blue stiffened, eyes wide and jaws dropping as they struggled to get out of the way. Todoroki erected a wall of ice that blocked himself from getting hit, and Midoriya only managed to avoid getting pummeled by dodging in and out of the balls at top speed, his body covered in flickering green. Asui and Ojiro were good in terms of agility, so they had little trouble getting out of the way of the attacks- no surprise there. But in the span of five seconds, Kaminari, Mina and Kouda all get hammered by a multitude of red balls and were disqualified before the game ever really started. They hit the floor from the force of being hit, groaning under the impact and the failure right out of the gate.

"Kaminari, Ashido, Kouda- Disqualified." A mechanical voice came over the speakers in the gym.

"Damn it..." Kaminari mumbled,

"That really hurt..!" Mina whined, Kouda looked on the verge of tears.

You on the other hand sighed, your other hand finally leaving your pocket as you swept them upward- palms open and fingers curling slightly as the number of balls falling fast toward you either suddenly veered around you, or halted altogether and became suspended in air. Your eyes snapped left, your hand following suit as you gestured toward Aoyoma and Sato both, your Quirk flaring and your hair shifting slightly in an invisible breeze as you saved them getting hit out by the balls they didn't manage to dodge themselves. You felt a small prickle of pain flash through your temple- you had about fifteen different dodgeballs suspended under the will of your Quirk and your mind, and light as they were, they'd been moving fast (thanks to Bakugou) and stopping them full like that wasn't as easy as you made it look.

Speaking of Quirks, yours was as simple as they came, but no less useful. 'Telekinesis'- the ability to move objects with one's mind, and for you that meant objects and people. How well you could move something, and how many depended on how heavy they were and how much momentum an object had when you grabbed it- fast moving objects were easier to alter the path of, instead of stopping it dead. And heavy objects were hard to do anything with, and get too many for your head to keep track of, the less control you had over each individual thing. And distance between you and an object, of course, that always had an affect on how well you could manipulate something.

"Thanks for the save, man." Sato called,

"Merci, monsieur~" Aoyoma called, winking at you. You nodded at both of them and shot the three who'd been disqualified an apologetic smile,

"Sorry you guys."

"It's fine..." Mina and Kaminari mumbled, Kouda simply sighed.

Your attention moved from them and toward where Bakugou was, the apology in your smile wiped away as your lips pulled in a smirk, and you swept both hands forward. Every single dodgeball you had under your control launched forward at breakneck speed- ten of them reserved for Bakugou alone while the others went for Hagakure (or at least where you guessed she was...), Mineta, Sero, Shoji and Jiro. It was little a surprise that those latter few all managed to dodge them, you weren't really focused on them to start with, and you didn't pause either.

There were red balls being thrown and shot out in every direction, the 'game' going into full swing around you and the automated gates activating as the class split apart and started moving about the whole area. People jumped in and out of cover and between thrown projectiles- scooping up abandoned balls and doing their best to hit someone on the other team out. A quick throw of a ball via Asui's tongue sent the ball slamming into Mineta's stomach hard enough to knock him over.

"Mineta- Disqualified."

You flicked your wrist and diverted the path of a ball sent out from the wall, your attention still locked on to Bakugou as he easily blew the ten dodgeballs you had launched toward him into smithereens.

"YOU REALLY THINK YOU'RE GONNA BE A CHALLENGE FOR ME?!" Bakugou roared at you, his foot slamming into a ball and launching it toward you. You spun out of the way and sent a few more out toward him, each ball arching in all different directions and coming from all sides toward him.

"Of course, I'm the King of Dodgeball!" You shot back with ease, "I'm gonna pummel you into the ground, 'Lord' Explodo-Kills!" His jaw clenched hard enough to crack teeth and a vein ticked on his forehead with a fervor. "Lords always bow to Kings!"

"IT'S KING EXPLODO-KILLS YOU ASSHOLE!"

There was something akin to a nuclear detonation that went off where Bakugou had been standing on a higher slab of floor than where you were. A massive cloud of smoke and orange rose up, dazzling you slightly- your mental hold on all of those dodgeballs you'd sent his way dissipated as they were reduced to ash.

It's just too easy to set him off

You smirked though, because as much as he could irk you- you generally enjoyed messing with him, and handling his (overzealous) anger wasn't something you were shy of. You could handle his anger issues and his potty-mouth. And the competitive side of you genuinely enjoyed the rivalry and butting heads, even if the competition was about something small. But right now the competition was real and it wasn't trivial either- you two were set up to be pitted against one another by the exercise, and you both fell into the role of rivals with ease. And in many ways, both you and Bakugou jumped in head first because you both wanted the competition. You both enjoyed it, deep down, and even if neither of you would never admit it out loud.

Bakugou didn't really seem to like other people, and you really doubted he truly liked anyone in this class (or even the school), let alone you- but despite that he did tolerate you pissing him off to some extent. You figured if he actually hated you, he'd have made it pretty clear by now and probably would have clocked you in the face with the intent of true harm... And don't misunderstand- he'd certainly punched you before, and hard- but it hadn't been outrightly malicious. You'd pissed him off, as he had you, so you two had your bout of exchanging fists, and you both stewed about it for awhile- but then the next day it was like it hadn't happened. There was no grudge, or lasting anger about it, and even if you two got into another fight, it was about something else entirely.

You let out a breath, eyes narrowing as you caught sight of the shadow that was Katsuki Bakugou coming out of the cloud and toward you, your hand waved to bring a few more dodgeballs up from behind you. He was getting close so he could throw something at you and give you less time to dodge, and less a window to Telekinetically curve the ball out of the way or simply stop it. After the amount of times you two had gone at it from the start, he had quickly figured out you lacked a bit in the close-combat category.

So you backed off again, thrusting a multitude of dodgeballs forward toward the blonde in the same instant you jumped to a lower platform and kept a good distance between you. A red blur swept passed your face by about two inches, the plastic of the ball melting from the heat in the hand that had thrown it- the ball popped as it hit the wall, and fell to the floor in a heap.

"Hagakure- Disqualified." the mechanical voice continued to announce,

You noticed Sero ducking around a corner ahead of you to avoid Asui, and with a flick of your hand, a dodgeball zoomed through air and around the corner he was behind in a 90 degree angle. There was a satisfying SMACK as the ball made contact and Sero groaned.

"Sero- Disqualified."

You heard the sound of a high-pressure blast of air that came with one of those gates hidden everywhere shooting off a dodgeball again. It was a sound that came about every thirty seconds from somewhere in the gym, giving life to the constant stream of dodgeballs flying through air in no particular direction- but frequent, fast and spread out enough anyone would get hit by one if they weren't careful.

"Jiro- Disqualified."

You couldn't see her, so you hadn't a clue how she got hit out- and it hardly mattered, Bakugou was still pursuing you even after you broke away for a few seconds to throw something at Sero.

"COME BACK HERE AND FACE ME YOU LITTLE-!" Bakugou roared, only for the last portion to get cut off by the overhead.

"Ururaka- Disqualified."

"Looks like my team is winning!" You called loudly, spinning around toward the blonde and sending off an array of dodgeballs toward him. He dodged the bulk of them and rolled, grabbing up three more balls in the small frame between being on the floor and getting to his feet again. You had to break your eyeline on him for a few seconds as you ducked under a ball coming toward you from behind,

"YOU LOSERS AIN'T WINNING A DAMN THING!"

You looked up again to find Bakugou wasn't aiming those dodgeballs he'd scooped up at you- his sights had turned back to the rest of the class and you blinked. All three dodgeballs were thrown in quick succession, and at about a hundred miles an hour toward Midoriya, Todoroki and Ojiro. You tried to mentally grab the balls before they hit their targets- but you were at too far a distance and they were going way too fast.

Damn it-

"Watch it!" You warned, but it was way too late. Midoriya got slammed in the face by the speeding projectile so hard he fell flat on his back, and Ojiro wasn't much better off as he got slammed into a wall. Todoroki tried to place an ice wall between himself and the incoming dodgeball- but wasn't quick enough to reinforce it, and the ice shattered as the ball went straight through and slammed the half-and-half boy in the gut.

-Ouch...

"Midoriya, Ojiro, Todoroki- Disqualified."

"Nice going Bakugou!" Kirishima called, wearing a toothy grin as Bakugou huffed as his only reply.

Your eyes trailed out over your surroundings- both the people and the dodgeballs littered across the floor and currently being unused- about 25 or so. You could see Asui jumping around here and there, keeping well out of the way of what was being thrown at her by the other team- mostly by Shoji and Tokoyami (or rather, Dark Shadow).

You growled a little, shooting Bakugou a look as he dodged out of the way of another machine thrown ball, for the moment still not paying attention to you.

Your fingers twitched, ignoring the small pickle of pain in both temples and behind your eyes as your reach extended out over the area in a good fifty foot radius around you. You pulled up the spare dodgeballs, fighting with gravity to lift them up and keep them in line as you simultaneously halted the few launched at you from the hidden machines close enough to be an issue.

"It's not gonna be that easy, Bakugou." You muttered under your breath, panting slightly as you brought up about 45ish different dodgeballs all at once. Relatively light as they were, that was still a lot for the range of your Quirk, and the prickle of pain in the side of your head sharpened a bit and then became something like a throb... you'd probably have a headache by the end of this.

Worth it though, if this works out-

You smirked, your eyes flashing as you lift your arms up on either side of you and the mass of spherical red all around rose in tandem. By now your actions were gaining attention, and you saw Team Red's eyes widen as their heads tilted upward.

"You're not the only one who can hit out a bunch of people all at once." You huffed, casting a sly smirk at Bakugou, who smiled wryly, tensing as his eyes glittered.

"Give it your best shot, loser." He challenged lowly, his palms sparking and smoking. Your arms swept out and down in one fluid motion, your fingers moving and twitching almost like you were playing on a keyboard. The dodgeballs rushed forward, spinning in and out of each other and making unnatural angles and paths in air as they raced out toward who was left of Team Red. Between the wave of projectiles you sent forward at impeccable speed- and the other various ones sent out by Asui, Sato, Aoyoma and the machines all- there was suddenly not near a foot of space for the other students to really move in without getting hit by something.

Momo attempted to ward off the attack with a shield, but with a flick of your wrist you sent several of the balls around and easily evading her attempts to block. They bounced roughly against her back and back to the floor in the same instant the overhead announced her disqualification. Dark Shadow was warding off your attacks efficiently as Tokoyami moved himself around- but they were both too distracted by your actions go take note of Asui. With a snap of her tongue she sent a ball hurtling at Tokoyami from above, and it made easy contact on the back of his arm.

"Tokoyami- Disqualified."

Bakugou naturally sent off an array of explosions all around him to avoid being hit by your attack, and you left him to do just that as you focused more of your attention on taking Iida out for the time being. Iida was zooming about the whole of the gym and had been evading everything with ease- mobility and speed were his two strengths, so like you- this game had played well with his skills. And you had already figured that, and knowing you couldn't possibly make the balls move any faster or even as fast as the Class President, you decided boxing him in on all sides was the best plan. The balls bore down upon Iida with a fervor, your fingers working away and mind too as you clustered them all together and surrounded the Class Pres, and then he had no way out.

"Iida- Disqualified."

Hell yeah

You rounded on Kirishima next, your hands swiping forward and coming down on him with the last of what dodgeballs you had picked up, and a few more added to the mix. They made contact with his body a bit more roughly than was needed maybe, but disqualifying a large portion of the other team was the aim.

"Kirishima- Disqualified."

"YOU THINK YOU'RE SOME BIGSHOT CAUSE YOU KNOCKED OUT ALL THOSE WEAKLINGS, HUH?!"

Bakugou gave you no time at all to move your attention back toward him before he was upon you again, and you barely managed to roll out of the way of the ball he threw at you so hard the pavement shattered under the impact and the ball popped, loudly.

"YOU DIDN'T EVEN KNOCK THEM OUT ALL ON YOUR OWN! FROG-GIRL TOOK OUT THE BIRD!"

You rolled backward over the ground, your hand grabbing hold of a spare ball and using it as a guard against the next ball he threw at you- the force of the two connecting sent you stumbling backward, but you weren't out yet.

"This is also an exercise in teamwork, remember?" You puffed, smirking despite being pushed back rather violently now. You jumped to a lower platform and picked up what dodgeballs near to you that you could. You heard the heavy sound of his feet not far behind you, so you whirled around and your hands went with you, one altering the path of a ball incoming fast, and your other hand directed several balls out toward Bakugou in all directions, attempting to catch him off guard... somewhere.

As much as you might hesitate to admit it, it had become clear that Bakugou was incredibly good at just about everything. That included fighting and dodging and school.... teamwork not so much, but that mattered little when the Team Dodgeball turned to a more one-on-one between the two of you.

"SOUNDS LIKE AN EXCUSE TO ME!"

"Oh, we are extra annoyed today huh?" You chuckled, "Is there anything I can do, my 'Lord'?" you quipped, your voice dripping with teasing and the jibe. You didn't think his face could go anymore red, and your ears rung with the sheer loudness of the explosions he set off around him in his anger with the comment.

"YOU'RE GONNA DIE!"

A waft of heat rushed upward and against your face, the dodgeballs that were still airborn got knocked backward by a wave of force and those on the floor near the raging blonde got melted. You backed off again and pushed yourself up onto a higher platform, vaulting over a low wall and then up higher still, your eyes glittering as you smiled toward the still red-faced boy behind you.

"Hehe, then who would you compete with, if I was dead?" You called easily, your fingers twitching at your sides as you pulled more ammunition toward you. Bakugou didn't garner a proper reply, he just let out an agitated yell and started throwing balls at you left and right- each one set off with a small blast formed from the palms of his hands. You could imagine the thoughts in his head as he threw each one being something like;

DIE DIE DIE DIE DIE

Any sense of the other students still in the game or their whereabouts around the gym got lost entirely as you and Bakugou went at it harder and harder. You were both dodging around and over walls and across the stacked floor, throwing dodgeballs at one another at insane speeds. Bakugou was making a complete mess of the gym- the walls, the floors, the roof even- and you probably weren't helping much either, because you were egging him on.

"Getting a little slow, Bakugou?" You called,

"SHUT UP, YOU'RE THE SLOW ONE LOSER!"

"I dunno, you haven't managed to hit me yet~"

"YOU HAVEN'T HIT ME YET EITHER YOU IDIOT!"

You grimaced, your smirk failing you as you barely managed to step out of the way of the next ball he threw at you. It passed nearly a centimeter passed your nose, and so close you smelled the burning plastic.

You were getting slower, though. You were panting and the more you used your Quirk to guard yourself and throw things, the more strained you were getting. And with it, your head was throbbing pretty badly, and you were relying less on your Quirk and more on your hands to throw things... somewhere along the line you lost track of how long the game had been going on and you were sure Bakugou had too. And even Bakugou was getting tired, you could see it in the way he was panting and the way his arms were shaking- his skin bruising slowly but surely around his hands and along his arms from extended use of his Quirk.

Another close call after what felt like years of moving and dodging, and you stumbled a bit, barely missing the next throw and grumbling as you stepped backwards and off the platform you were on without meaning to. You met thin air and lost your balance, tumbling down to the lower floor and groaning as your back slammed against the ground.

Owww...

You lost sight of Bakugou for a few seconds, coughing as the breath got driven from you with the impact, stunned. You stayed that way only for about three seconds, before you gritted your teeth and pushed yourself back on to your feet. You felt the hair on the back of your neck stand up in the same instant your heart skipped a beat, instantly aware of the shadow that cast down upon you from overhead.

C-Crap...!

"YOU'RE MINE NOW!"

You jumped backwards as hard as you could, your mind reaching out for something to throw in retaliation as you locked gazes with Bakugou in the instant he jumped from the platform you had just fallen from and into air. His arm was behind him, dodgeball in hand and it swung forward in the same second you swept your arm out toward him.

"Not a chance!" You retorted out of instinct, the sharp pain in your temple growing sharper as you willed the one ball you had grabbed hold of to travel forward at a speed you scarcely believed you could move anything.

BAM

Pain seared through your body, originating from your nose as you heard a sickening crunch and snapping sound soon after the ball Bakugou had thrown made direct contact with your face. You lost your footing and fell flat on your back, your hands moving to hold your now bloody nose and jaw clenched against the pain.

In the same instant you got hit though, the ball you threw smashed against Bakugou's jaw and sent him falling backward to hit the ground with an audible thud. The both of you lay on the floor, winded and stunned in Bakugou's case- he hadn't seen you throw anything, and you were too busy trying not to moan you didn't notice him laying there.

"Bakugou, (Y/N)- Disqualified."

Oww, owwww...! That freakin' hurt...!

You pushed yourself up slowly, sitting cross-legged and holding your nose with both hands as your shoulders hunched, eyes scrunched closed against the pain for a few seconds before you shot Bakugou a look. He was laying on his back still, staring up at the roof and quiet, and you huffed.

"Dude, I'm pretty sure ya just broke my freakin' nose." You mumbled around your hands, you saw him stiffen slightly and pick himself back up, his hands propping himself up behind him as he glanced toward you, expression neutral. Your eyes noticed the already dark, and darkening bruise stretching up along his jaw and cheek where you had hit him- but you ignored it for now.

"You could have pulled up a little, ya could have taken my head off with how hard you threw that thing."

"Tch, don't complain." He huffed, "A broken nose'll be an improvement for that ugly face of yours." You blinked, eye twitching as your teeth gritted a bit.

"Don't be an ass, you're just pissed I hit you first." You shot back lowly, his face twisted.

"Like hell you did!" He snapped,

"Oh I definitely did."

"Not a chance!!"

"Actually you two tied, ribbit."

Both you and Bakugou glanced to the side and to the new voice, seeing Asui drop down onto the floor with the two of you and the rest of the class not far behind.

"EXCUSE ME?!" Bakugou snapped hotly, Asui simply nodded.

"You two have been going at it by yourselves for awhile now, everyone else was just waiting to see who would win." She explained, "But both of the balls you threw made contact at the same time, so you got Disqualified at the same time too. It was a tie."

"THAT'S BULL-!"

"But that's how it is. Don't complain." Mr. Aizawa muttered lowly, interjecting and repeating his earlier action of gagging Bakugou with his Capturing Device- but this time binding the boy from moving for good measure too. Your teacher sighed, keeping one hand on one end of the Device and stopping at your side, exasperated as he took in the state of you, and the blood covering your hands and face. "Go to Recovery Girl and get yourself cleaned up." The Erasure Hero instructed flatly,

"Okay." You mumbled, grumbling as you removed one hand from holding your still bleeding nose and pushed yourself off the floor.

"Are you okay?" Asui asked, you smiled.

"Yeah, no worries." You assured lightly,

"Man, you and Bakugou were going at it like super hard!" Kirishima beamed,

"The whole fight was so intense! I felt like we were watching a professional event!" Kaminari grinned, the whole class looked somewhere between enthused, or exasperated.

"It was only a game you two, you didn't need to be so rough." Yaoyorozu sighed, there was some muffled yell from Bakugou but you simply shrugged again.

"Probably, but oh well." You chuckled, wincing soon after when it jostled some broken thing in your nose. "Glad you enjoyed the show, but I'm gonna go and see Recovery Girl."

"Good idea~"

"We'll see you later, (Y/N)!"

You waved a hand over your shoulder and headed out of the gym, casting a last glance over your shoulder to see Bakugou looking disgruntled as Kirihsima bent down by the blonde and told him something you didn't catch.

We tied, huh...? Guess that's better than losing...

You glanced ahead again and sighed, shaking your head at yourself and not being able to help the small smirk that passed across your lips.

... hehe... it was fun though, I haven't gone that hard in a game in a long time... totally worth a broken nose and a headache...Oooh, Lord Explodo-Kills is gonna be sore about that tie for awhile...!

.:+:.

"Alright Deary, you're all fixed up now! Do take it easy for the rest of the day, and get a good night's rest!"

"Yes ma'am, thank you."

"My pleasure."

You let out a weary sigh as you adjusted the tie to your school uniform. Tou'd changed into it after Recovery Girl had done her thing and fixed your very much broken nose. And after wiping off the muck and the blood, you'd done away with the gym clothes and cleaned up before you headed back to class, which was now. There had been some unpleasantness of popping the bone in your nose back into place before the Old Lady actually used her Quirk, and now the bone itself was fixed and the bruises faded, but there was a bandage stuck across the bridge of your nose regardless. But other than that, and the invisible, yet persistent throb of a headache, the bandage was the only outward reminder of what had gone on in the gym.

You made your way down the hallways and passed windows that were letting in orange light from the setting sun, your shadow following you on your right as you placed your hands in your pants pockets. Your head tilted back as you took in a deep breath and your eyes dropped closed, your steps slow and soft and not rushing to be anywhere. School was almost done for the day so you'd only be stopping by to check in with Mr. Aizawa before heading home.

Your shoulders sagged, weariness dragging at your heels in accordance with how much energy you spent in what absolute war made up of dodgeball that had raged, and the effects of Recovery Girl's Quirk sapping your strength. You were probably gonna black out the minute your body hit your bed... You just hoped when you woke up this headache would be gone. You maybe might have overdone it with your Quirk today... oh well.

Fresh air hit your face as you moved out of the building and headed across the empty courtyard outside and toward the building opposite. The cool breeze ran across your skin and through your hair in a perfectly pleasant sensation that counteracted the throb in the base of your skull.

"Oi, loser."

Your head dropped back down as you blinked your eyes open, jumping in surprise when something got tossed at you out of nowhere. You struggled to lift your hands out of your pockets and catch the foreign object, blinking several times in question to find what had been tossed at you was a can of soda.

What the...?

"... what's with this?" You asked slowly, your eyes moving from the drink and toward the one responsible for tossing it your way, and probably the most unlikely of persons.

"You got the Old Lady to fix your face." Bakugou mumbled lowly, ignoring your question altogether as you paused.

"Of course. You did break my nose." You muttered dryly, he clicked his tongue.

"Tch, stop complaining about it, you sound like a whiny girl." He grumbled, you let out a silent breath. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and looked away from you, the sun washing across the bruising along his jaw- courtesy of you.

Your head tilted at him, brow quirking at the sudden silence, and the very unexpected... what do you even call it, a gift? And what was with stopping you out here? Shouldn't he be in class?

"Your face wouldn't have looked much different with or without a busted up nose." Bakugou muttered lowly, his eyes dropping closed as if he was refusing to look at you. "But I guess I was wrong, it looked worse the other way. You're lucky the Old Lady fixed it, otherwise you'd be even uglier than you are just all on your own." Your jaw clenched, a vein ticking on your forehead as your grip around the can tightened.

"Tch... are you trying to start another fight?" You muttered, before you smirked, coy and mocking as your eyes flashed and you fell right back into the side of you that is always trying to egg him on and irk him (as he was surely irking you right now...). You couldn't help yourself and you didn't even pause to do it, "Cause if you are, I can give you one-"

Bakugou glanced sideways at you and what small pause worked its way into your words at the end there, and they narrowed when the sly smirk appeared on your face.

"-my Lord."

Bakugou went stiff as a board, his expression contorting and face and ears turning bright red in the span of a single second after you said that- a joke, a tease, something to piss him off- and he looked pissed, but he also looked... holy shit.

He looks flustered.

FLUSTERED

Is he blushing...?!

Your jaw snapped shut, eyes wide and rigid in your place as he rounded on you, still so very scarlet in the face and his hands balled into fists at his sides.

"ITS KING YOU GOD DAMN- Y-YOU...!" He snapped hotly, his voice breaking as he failed to come up with a proper insult, and his stammering only seemed to piss him off further. You on the other hand just stood there, blinking several times over and smiling crookedly, nearly as flustered yourself- but more stunned than anything.

"UUUUUGHH! YOU'RE SUCH AN ASS!" Bakugou snapped, "QUIT SAYIN' SUCH STUPID SHIT, TAKE THE DRINK AND SHUT UP!" You blinked, your eyes narrowing and biting the inside of your cheek when the loudness of his voice made a sharp flash of pain run through your already aching head. Your crooked smile softened a bit as you let out a small sigh, crushing the urge to laugh- lest you piss him off further and give him more reason to yell.

He's totally flustered

He jammed his fists into his pockets and turned his back on you with a huff, still fuming as you twined your fingers around the can and let out a small breath.

Did his face get all red like that earlier in the middle of dodgeball because I said 'my Lord' then too? Because I know it annoyed him... but it seems like it embarrassed him too?

You tried your best not to smile in amusement, but your lips wouldn't listen and it was painful trying to keep them from moving. Your eyes traced the line of his shoulders and his back, before dropping to the can in your hands, tapping your fingers along the edge.

"... so what is this, a peace offering?" You asked lightly, holding up the can a bit as you tilted your head toward it. You saw him stiffen, shooting a glare over his shoulder and cheeks still flushed even as he scowled at you. "Maybe your way of apologizing to me for breaking my nose, huh Bakugou?"

"I already told you to shut up!" He snapped back, you hummed and shook your head slightly. "Quit making a big deal out of it and just drink the damn soda!" He rounded on you again, pointing an accusatory finger and his anger flaring as the flush in his cheeks finally died away. "And don't go thinking you won anything today, that 'tie' was complete bull! Next time I am gonna blow you to pieces!"

So defensive... Where did all this come from, hmm, Bakugou?

"Hehe, I'd like to see you try." You quipped with ease, he let out an aggravated growl. "Shouldn't you be in class though?"

"Tch, don't be stupid- Eraser walked off to go to sleep about half an hour ago, everyone else was just sitting around in class being loud and 'talking'." He muttered sourly, you quirked a brow.

"... So you avoided talking, just to come out here and talk to me instead?" You asked coolly, you saw a vein tick on his forehead.

"Quit making it sound weird!" he shot back hotly, you winced at the sudden increase in volume again, though your smile didn't go away.

Touchy, touchy... Though maybe I am sort of surprised

"What's weird about it? I'm better company than most of them anyway." You chuckled, he frowned at the words- but didn't argue, and though you didn't react outwardly- that surprised you too. He glanced away from you again, his shoulders hunching a bit as he grumbled lowly under his breath.

"... Grr... You're at least tolerable." He muttered, your eyes widened.

Such high praise!

"Hmm, I guess you're tolerable too- even if you're so damn violent, and loud." You murmured lightly, he stiffened at the words. "And thanks for the soda. Though maybe a bit unnecessary since, even though you broke my nose, I gave you a pretty nasty bruise there huh?" You hummed, gesturing toward said bruise. "I'd say we were pretty even-"

"If you don't want the damn soda, give it back!" He muttered roughly, cutting you off slightly as you smirked.

"Didn't say I didn't want it." Was your easy reply, and his eyes narrowed at you. "And I already said thank you, didn't I? Why would I give it back now?"

"Dunno, you can be pretty dumb." Was the flat answer, and the expected sort of reply too- but it maybe lacked a little bit of the fire it needed to be a true insult, or even his regular sort of insult. In fact this whole exchange was out of the norm- if turning bright red like that had been any indicator- and even now with that gone, he was being so evasive and refusing to meet your eyes... This was a Bakugou you hadn't seen before, and you weren't sure what to make of it, or what prompted it's appearance.

And in his own way, you were entirely convinced this whole soda thing, catching you alone, and even redacting what he'd said about a broken nose boosting your appearance- was all his way of trying to apologize to you. You couldn't imagine apologizing for anything came easy to that boy, and it certainly didn't now if that was his real aim. But his attempt at it was interesting, as well as amusing. And avoiding the risk of really setting him off you decided not to press it any farther and just continue on. You had the feeling he might appreciate moving to a different topic, and for once you didn't feel like arguing.

So, just like the two of you always did, you moved on and never held a grudge even after every little fight or argument. 'forget it ever happened'

... Well, maybe I won't try to forget this part happened. But I'll still keep it between us... Probably best, if I mention it he'll get so worked up he'll give himself an aneurysm.

You smiled at the thought and Bakugou shot you a small glare when he noticed, "What the hell are you smiling at?" He asked lowly, you shook your head.

"Nothing in particular." You replied with ease,

I suppose if I'm 'tolerable' that means he likes me just a tiny bit, huh? Even with us at each other's throats all the time.... Who'd have guessed?

You certainly hadn't- even if you hid it well, this was all very unexpected- but you managed a way to roll with it, and do so with much more tact and calm than Bakugou.

"Well, if Mr. Aizawa's ditched the rest of the day, no use heading back to class." You announced, "So I'm headed home, you heading out too?" Bakugou paused, letting out a low breath as he glanced away again and shrugged- bored almost, but more calm too.

"Might as well, I ain't got no reason to stay here." He muttered,

"Hehe, then let's go, yeah?" You asked, tilting your head in the direction of the main gate and starting that way before he ever answered. He seemed to falter at the question, his eyes narrowed to slits as you kept walking and cast a smirk over your shoulder, and the fact he had yet to move. "Who's slow now, Bakugou?"

He scowled, his temper easily inflamed again as he started stomping after you. "SHUT IT LOSER!"

"Well then hurry up." You replied, he reached your shoulder in little time and kept on at a brisk pace.

"Tch... you wanna walk with me, fine. You gotta keep up though, I ain't waitin' on you." He muttered indignantly, and you smirked, casting him a sideways glance. He was more or less refusing to look at you now, and you noticed, and found it even more amusing.

I totally hit a nerve with the 'my Lord' thing.... But a different sort of nerve than usual, huh? How odd....

You glanced ahead and nodded, easily matching his pace as the two of you headed out of UA.

"Of course~"

.:+:.

Not totally sure if the Reader is ever specifically referred to as male in this one, but that was the intent. >w<

Like and Comment if ya can, feedback is always appreciated. Thank you~

.:+:.

MasterList Right Here

[hoe-doroki]

ana reads bnha ch37

previous chapter here first chapter here next chapter here

It’s so interesting that Bakugou’s so mad here. Because he didn’t seem mad during the match with Uraraka. He was focused and, just before she passed out, he even seemed…happy? As close to happy as we’ve seen him at least. But the moment he sees Midoriya again he’s like:

Original image and text are from the flawless Ngozi Ukazu’s webcomic Check Please! (Seriously, so good, so wholesome; everyone read it.) Idk, Deku gives me some Bitty vibes, particularly in bkdk stories.

Ehem, anyway. I don’t think it’s ever said here, but in other scenes where Bakugou’s talked more about his quirk and his gauntlets, I think it’s pretty obvious by this statement that Bakugou hurt himself in that last maneuver (the one that destroyed all of Uraraka’s rocks in one go). He’s ashamed that he was caught off guard by that trick of hers—but he doesn’t blame her. (Which Uraraka should probably be offended by.) He blames Midoriya. Because he fears that he looked stupid for not seeing it ahead of time, because it put him in desperate straits where he had to use a move that hurt himself, and he needs someone to blame. And Midoriya is always that scapegoat.

Okay, so he’s still mad—probably at Midoriya, even though he doesn’t have a reason for that anymore—but I do think that his respect for Uraraka just grew immensely. The same thing he was so mad at Midoriya for puts Uraraka in a decent spot in his head. I think. Unfortunately, I don’t think they go on to interact enough any time soon for us to see if that really happens or not. But I’ll keep my eyes peeled!

Also, crazy that 1-A is still antagonizing Bakugou for the match, even after what Aizawa said. I guess they just see him as villainous regardless of the reasoning. That must hurt. (Now imagine if Bakugou and Shinsou could bond over that...Mmm.)

Lol, the sparkles of a bromance. So manly!

@a-bnha-shoutorealm​ and I have talked quite a bit about this scene too! It does add a good bit of depth to Uraraka. Usually, Uraraka is a person who more or less says what’s on her mind, not seeming to care too much about it reflects on her. Like when she tells Midoriya and Iida that she wants to be a hero to make money or when she tries to give him her points after the entrance exam. But here, she shields all of the terrible things she’s feeling right now from Midoriya because he’s got a match coming up, and saves them for after he’s left. It shows that her bluntness comes from her moral compass, not from pretension, arrogance, or rudeness.

That takes a respectable amount of strength. I don’t know about you all, but when I’m exhausted—like she certainly is right now—I get kind of bitchy. Negative emotions that I could hold out when I’m feeling better come spilling out tired and frustrated. I’ll let my worst self out. But even in her worst moment, Uraraka put her friend first. That is strength even more than what she showed on the battlefield.

Ugh and then Midoriya hears her cry (which isn’t obvious in the anime). Break my heart, Horikoshi!

I bet prior to his conversation with Todoroki, Midoriya had Endeavor in high esteem. He probably had complex thoughts about his methods and abilities, as that’s how Midoriya is, but we’ve only seen him hold pro heroes up on a pedestal up to this point. He’s likely seen many of them up close, like he did Kamui Woods and Mt. Lady in the first chapter. But I doubt he’s met many personally aside from the ones at U.A. And this is probably the very first time that he’s met someone who he knows is an abuser, much less who has abused someone he knows, much less someone so famous and powerful. I think most of us fail when put in these situations where we have to have a charged confrontation for the first time, especially when it runs counter to the things we’ve practiced. Midoriya doesn’t have practice in much beyond fawning over pro heroes. But he’s able to confront Endeavor in a potent way in this moment, despite everything else he has going on internally right now.

At the same time...thank god this is fiction. Because when handling abusers…it’s usually better to say nothing. I’d like to think that, in this situation, I’d have the guts to say what Midoriya says. But. I’ve been around friends’ abusive parents before, and the best thing seems to be to be placid and try to keep the situation as positive as possible. Because you don’t want to put your friends in a dangerous situation. And I have a lot of questions about the current nature of Todoroki and Endeavor’s relationship, since Todoroki seems to have such a willingness to outright disobey Endeavor without fear of consequence. It’s very curious to me and one of the things that’s been on my mind most in this arc.

Overall: I’ll tell you what I’m not going to do. I’m not just going to sit here and squee over the fact that this is the transition to our big, huge, world-shattering battle between Midoriya and Todoroki.  So let’s not.

Basically, I love Midoriya. I love Uraraka. I LOVE URARAKA’S DAD. And, begrudgingly, I love Bakugou. And I hate Endeavor. Look, I read pwp for him, but that’s different. I know this is all fiction either way, but there’s a line, for me, between something like this that’s supposed to somewhat hold a reflection of the human experience versus something like Endeavor smut which is pure escapist fantasy--for me. But yeah, god bless Midoriya in this chapter and the next. It is interesting that we get such a huge contrast of fathers in this chapter—Uraraka’s being nothing but supportive while Endeavor just, like, intimidates a child he’s never met before. Wonder if Horikoshi did that on purpose, if that’s why he had Uraraka call her dad instead of her mom or something. Hmm, who knows?

[disarmingly]

kiribaku drabble for yuna <3 thank you for kofi i hope this is ok it’s very subtle but.....eijkflsdjfklsd 

* "but why?" the thing about bakugou katsuki is actually more than one thing; in fact it's so many things that it bears setting aside more time than most people have the patience for, bakugou himself included. so to make it simpler, maybe it should be put as such: one of the things about bakugou katsuki is that he's smarter than he looks. off hand the people who know this unintentionally well guarded truth include but are probably not limited to: aizawa shouta, midoriya izuku, uraraka ochako, and of course kirishima eijirou. it's the last of these bakugou happens to be speaking with right now across the scruffy head of a thoroughly rumpled calico cat. kirishima beams. "the strays are up in numbers," he has the cat in one curiously gentle hand, busy gesturing with the other. the blank look bakugou gives him isn't because he doesn't understand; it isn't even because he doesn't care. it's because he doesn't know what he thinks about it or feels about it, and isn't altogether certain he's going to spend enough time on it to figure that out. this, kirishima knows, so he just keeps talking. says, "i named this one katsuki." bakugou has no time to implement the mild ire he feels at that open abuse of his name before kirishima shoves 'katsuki' into his face. 

* he doesn't mean to help. they have other things to be doing; training for one, and anything else for another. but kirishima is a person bakugou finds himself spending time with more than others and not absolutely hating it. he's not sure that he likes it but everything is relative and if he's going to end up spending the bulk of the day with kirishima training anyway, starting it off throwing cat food into a handful of alleys isn't a huge price to pay. this is how he ends up spending more time with katsuki, who over the course of a week graduates from ankle twining to shin rubbing to shoulder riding in no time. bakugou can't be bothered to displace him, and his name twin always seems to know when it's time for him to jet because he jumps down soundless and smart, gives one last passing rub for the day, and darts off. kirishima always waves goodbye, says stuff like 'see you tomorrow'. if he was a different kind of person, bakugou would call that cute. but he's not a different kind of person, so what he calls it is nothing one way or the other. at any rate, it's true; they do see katsuki 'tomorrow'. * when he's not yelling at people (usually deku but in bakugou's opinion it's never unwarranted) bakugou is actually fairly quiet. it's kirishima who points this out to him one day, and it's funny because as per usual, bakugou hadn't given it much thought in either direction -- his mind a goal oriented tunnel vision sort of place bit and bridled with the occupation of Hero. "don't mind him," kirishima pets a massive gray alley cat. bakugou can hear its rumbling purr and he's at least fifteen feet away. "he's a pretty quiet guy," then kirishima laughs loud young and bright. bakugou doesn't understand why. "unless he's mad at you." kirishima laughs again. and maybe bakugou was actually going to say something about that but a bright orange cat butts its head against his leg and he finds himself otherwise occupied for a while -- this fluffy stray half biting the treats in his palm and half just biting his palm. he complains the whole time but doesn't move his hand away until the cat is done. * the orange cat finds them again the next day and the next and the next. katsuki seems to get along with him. "that one's eijirou," bakugou says, jerking his thumb toward the orange one. "why's that?" kirishima's smile seems a little softer than usual. bakugou starts to walk away, shrugging. "he just is." * in battle, bakugou is more comfortable saying he understands certain things -- people for instance. kirishima in battle is infinitely less confusing to him than kirishima on the sidewalk as the sun rises through the narrow pathways of the city buildings, crouched low and making friendly conversation with their unofficial colony of strays. 'their'. bakugou blinks the thought away...well, tries. isn't very successful. it shouldn't matter. that's what bakugou tells himself as he shoves his hands deeper into his pockets and shifts his weight from foot to foot and definitely does not stare at kirishima just straight up being himself the way he always is the way bakugou knew very early on he was is was is is is. and that. it's that maybe. because there are people who are so very themselves and bakugou respects them even while he can't stand certain things about them even while some of him wants that sometimes too -- all might and deku top that list, certainly. but kirishima isn't that; he's...this: very himself but somehow a self bakugou isn't working like a lit fuse around. he doesn't feel the inconvenient urgency to...whatever. compete? outrun? outdo? he doesn't even know the word. but it's exhausting even while it's also kind of a form of purpose and bakugou was never the kind of person to say he needed friends so much as followers but he's also not the kid he was. or rather, he is, but he's also other things. "that's just growing up," his mother tells him sometimes, unprompted and uncalled for and he does his best to ignore it even if it's true. kirishima isn't a hurdle. and he's not a follower. and he's not a toleration. kirishima is... "ready?" bakugou blinks. kirishima has his hand extended down to where bakugou has been crouched so long his legs are cramping. "uh," bakugou's hand half raises because he's not done deciding what to do. kirishima takes it anyway. * when people say they don't know how kirishima ~does it~, he replies one of two ways: laughs and moves on or, rarely, will turn to them and say, "what do you mean?" because people make all kinds of assumptions about bakugou but they can't ever seem to align those assumptions with how much kirishima genuinely likes him. which is where these questions come from: how do you do it, how do you stand it, etc, etc, etc. if he thought it was his place to change peoples' minds, his answer could be longer. kirishima has real answers to give, no mistake. but the truth is that it's not up to him to shift the world's view on bakugou katsuki. it's up to bakugou. and he'll be damned if he'd ever undermine that. so kirishima gives an answer that's just as true but not nearly so inflammatory, says, smile full and sharp, "he's my friend." * "he's my friend," he's telling a stray they've not seen before. this one is much smaller than usual, a muddy tabby that has bright green eyes and keeps trying to sneak forward for food only to back up the second one of them turns their head in its direction. "don't be scared."  

huffing, bakugou pointedly turns his back on them, arms folding; and if kirishima points it out later fondly, he’ll ignore him. since his back remains turned, he misses the sheepish and charmed smile on kirishima's face, as well as the cat dashing forward to inhale the food before darting away. *

[yaelathewordsmith]

One Moment In A Lifetime

hhhhh okay, first BNHA fic ever, hooray! No clue what the point of this is supposed to be, though, it’s just . . . words. Just ran away from me entirely. Exploring relationship dynamics, I guess? I don’t even know. Hope you enjoy anyway!

Summary: A battle goes wrong in a way it shouldn’t have, and Shouto is not happy. What he ends up receiving, though, is something precious he never expected.

Includes hurt, regret, friendship, and platonic love and care.

(reposted)

*

Shouto usually isn’t one to lose his temper. On rare occasions, yes, when he’s been pushed way over the edge or been offered insufferable provocation or has found himself in situations he can see no clear way out of. It had turned out, amazingly, that Midoriya Izuku (face like a blushing puppy, body like a Greek statue, voice reminiscent of nothing more than a shy deer, personality of an enthusiastically fanatic nerd) was one person who could actually get him furious and throw him off balance (the determination of a piranha that’s just tasted blood, too). Apart from him, though, no single person from 1-A gets him rattled. Bakugou tries - oh, does he try - but Shouto can easily deal with such overt displays of aggressiveness.

Any tendency to back down, to waver, show weakness, has been beaten out of him long ago. Now, he looks in the mirror and is reminded of a mountain lake - still and undisturbed. That’s not a bad thing, he thinks. If nothing else, it’s certainly a safe way to go through life; unaffected by little upsets, little irritations, reserving all focus and discipline for the things that really matter.

So it comes as a surprise, to put it lightly, to find that this - this - has upset him.

“You,” he snaps, whirling around, “are a reckless idiot. What the hell did you think you were doing?”

Fire sparks in his left palm - not the best idea when facing Bakugou, but he pays that thought no mind. He won’t extinguish it. If he has to, he’ll beat Bakugou with his own element. He’d prefer to do so, in fact.

Bakugou backs down, though, looks down and away with a sullen scowl. It isn’t much of a surprise - Bakugou may be many things, but he’s not an idiot, and he never refuses to face any mistake he makes head on - but it exacerbates the itch inside Shouto, the itch to break something, burn something, create some outward manifestation of the frustration and lingering shock (not fear, he tells himself, not fear at all - and hates that he knows he’s lying) that’s burning somewhere deep in his chest.

Midoriya is crouched on the ground, wide eyes, anxious, tattered hood pushed back to hang limply down his back. “Uraraka-san, can - can you rate the pain on a scale of one to ten for me, please?”

Uraraka’s helmet is lying on the ground, pink visor smokey and splintered. One of her bracers is cracked, her belt is missing, and her boots are a maze of dirty scratches. The defect that draws the most attention, though, is the large, ragged hole in her costume on her left waist, where the skin is horribly red and blistered.

Still she smiles, as much as she is able, still she offers Bakugou no hint of resentment or anger in her clear eyes.

“M-maybe six?”

Bakugou snorts irritably, edging around Shouto with a defiant glare to crouch by Uraraka, a little away from Midoriya. He’s keeping his distance from her, Shouto realizes, aware of what he’s just done and ashamed of it, and understanding that makes him grudgingly extinguish the fire that was beginning to burn steadily in his palm.

“My explosions aren’t that weak, girl,” Bakugou growls. “They don’t burn me, but that don’t mean I ain’t aware of how much they hurt. I - “

He hesitates, glances up at Shouto, who stares back unforgivingly, and sideways at Midoriya, who still looks antsy and anxious.

“I’m sorry,” he mutters, glaring at the dirt. “I should’ve been more careful.”

“You should have looked,” Shouto says, the words clipped, “to see who exactly was in your line of fire instead of blasting away because one villain pissed you off. Both Midoriya and Uraraka were already taking care of him. Do you know what his quirk is?”

Bakugou grimaces. “No, damn you, I don’t!”

“Any object, any tool, anything remotely useful will have an effect opposite to the one intended. Since you tried to roast that guy alive when Uraraka was in the way, and she used her quirk to move him, he had the opportunity to touch her and activate his own quirk. And that means no medicine, no cooling pack, not even my ice will help with the massive second degree burn you just gave her!”

Shouto doesn’t even realize how loud his voice has become until Bakugou gets to his feet, snarling.

“I already apologized, you bastard, what the hell else do you want?! Want me to go back in time and fix it? Hah?!”

“I want you to understand exactly what you - !”

“Kacchan!”

Uraraka’s soft voice cuts through the crackling air like a knife. Both Shouto and Bakugou turn instantly, watching as Midoriya helps her struggle into a sitting position.

She smiles again, weak and painful. “It’s fine, Kacchan, it really is, I swear. I know you didn’t mean to. Thank you for apologizing. And Todoroki-kun, I appreciate your concern very much, but please don’t yell at Kacchan. It’s not -” She sucks in a breath, wincing as Midoriya’s gently probing fingers touch a particularly painful spot. She dismisses his hasty apology with a slight shake of her head, and continues, “- it’s not necessary at all.”

Shouto huffs shortly, and Bakugou jerks his head away, scowling at the ground. “Whatever. I’m going to go check that the last of the fires are out.”

Midoriya looks up at that. “Kacchan, don’t forget to check on the guy with the knife quirk! I don’t think he’ll be able to cut through the rope, I don’t think they can reach his wrists from his fingers, but just make sure - “

“Shut the fuck up, Deku, I know!” Bakugou gets to his feet, hand brushing across Uraraka’s shoulder for a brief, hesitant moment, cheeks dusted light red as he does so. “I’ll check on all those assholes, you don’t have to nag me.”

He gives Shouto a glare, and Shouto gives him a cool look in return, but steps aside to make way for him. Bakugou understands, and he regrets it, and that’s enough for Shouto. For now, at least. Later, he will talk to Bakugou and demand to know what had him distracted, what had him riled up, because it’s not the first time he’s been careless like this. It’s been happening for more than a week now, and if he doesn’t get it together, they may not be permitted to work together anymore, as rookie heroes. He needs to tell Shouto what’s wrong, or he can tell Midoriya, or just anyone, but it needs to be worked out before anyone gets hurt again - including Bakugou himself.

That it’s I’ll-Crush-You-And-Any-Dreams-You-Ever-Had-Bakugou that this is happening to, of all people, is, of course, a minor consideration, no matter how worrying it is. Shouto is good at leaving personal desires out of the picture, focusing only on the final goal to be achieved.

He learned that a long time ago, too.

Freezing Bakugou into the world’s most bizarre popsicle until he agrees to talk to (to confide in) Shouto can wait until later, though. Right now -

He kneels where Bakugou had crouched, not sure if Uraraka will be uncomfortable with the idea of being around him, his fire, especially when it’s the reason that the buildings around them, in this part of the abandoned town, are scorched and soot-streaked.

“We need to get you help,” Midoriya says, all wide and earnest eyes. “Will you be okay while one of us goes, Uraraka-san?”

The corner of her mouth quirks up vaguely - it’s all she can summon of her earlier smile.

“Of course, Deku, I’ll be fine. It’s really not - as bad as it -”

Shouto reaches out without thinking, to steady her as she sways, but his touch is, of course, unneeded. Midoriya already has one strong arm around her shoulders, keeping her upright, silently urging her to lean back against the rough block of concrete that is part of a fallen pillar. Shouto doesn’t remove his hand from her arm, though. Useless as the gesture may be, it makes him feel like he’s helping somehow, providing her with some modicum of support and comfort, that he’s not entirely useless in the situation. And it - gives him some small measure of comfort.

“You’re exhausted,” he says. “You were fighting longer than we were, and using your quirk almost constantly. The burn is the worst of it, but that’s not all that needs attention. We need medical professionals, or at least transport to a medical facility.”

Uraraka makes a soft sound that’s something between a snort and a laugh, one hand brushing against her useless phone. “And we just had to run into someone with a quirk that disables electrical devices today, didn’t we . . .”

“I could carry you,” Midoriya offers. “We could be at the next town in ten minutes.”

Uraraka shakes her head weakly, brown hair limp over her eyes. “Already - nauseous from Zero Gravity. I - thank you for offering but - bounding up and down like that - “

“Right, of course,” Midoriya says instantly, forehead creasing with worry. “Then, Todoroki-kun? Is your quirk - ?”

“It’s possible, yes, I can do it. But it would be slower, it would also exacerbate the nausea, and I don’t want to take the risk of my ice worsening your injury. If even the slightest bit comes into contact, I think it would feel like - like fire, probably - “

Uraraka shrinks back at that, just a little bit.

Shouto forces himself not to clench his fist, and continues, “And anyway you’re not supposed to apply ice to burns.”

Midoriya exhales, short and sharp. “Okay. Okay, okay, then I’ll go, I’ll get them, since I’ll be faster. I’ll be back as soon as I can, okay? Todoroki-kun, you’ll stay with - ?”

“Of course,” Shouto says before he even finishes the sentence. Of course, because where the hell else would he be?

Midoriya nods and is in the air almost before Shouto can blink. The thuds of his jumps are loud, concussive, and fading rapidly. They only hear three before he’s outside their range of hearing.*

Uraaka slowly lets her head fall back, her breathing going shallow and her features scrunching up in a way that implies that she’s been trying far too hard for far too long to seem calm and composed, and has just allowed herself to break. To stop.

It hurts, in a dull kind of way, because this is someone bright and kind and good, someone Shouto has fought beside too many times to count, has trusted with his life and been trusted with hers in return, someone who is comrade and friend and just - just dear to him, he realizes, she is dear to him in a way few people are. A bond forged in battle is no easy thing to replicate. And so seeing her like this, in pain, and being unable to help feels like something is squeezing his heart, compressing it until every heartbeat is a subdued ache.

But there’s nothing he can do, so he keeps his hand on her shoulder and resigns himself to feeling jittery and uncomfortable as he waits for Midoriya to return.

There are flakes of ash floating by, the air horribly still. Stifling. The only sounds are distant crashes of rubble that’s decided to fall only now, and the faint grunts of the trussed up villains. Bakugou, Shouto can’t hear at all (for once). He’s executing his mission in unnatural silence. Shouto hopes, vaguely, tiredly, as exhaustion sweeps over him in a wave, that he hasn’t run into any trouble - or killed the guy who’d irritated him so much in the first place. That’s an odd quirk, to be sure . . . it seems ridiculous, frustrating, but are there . . . possible uses?

Shouto’s eyes snap open.

“Uraraka,” he says, softly, urgently.

She levers her own eyes open and blinks at him blearily.

“If my ice would burn you - would my fire cool you?”

Her mouth opens a little, shock sharpening the features of her face.

“I - it - it might? But . . .” She frowns a bit, getting that look of furious focus that only appears when she’s trying desperately to think. “But ice isn’t good for burns, so would it - how would it - ”

“I don’t know,” he tells her, left hand already itching to be set ablaze. “Would you - like to try?”

Her eyes flick up to meet his, and he catches a glimpse of dark fear in them before she forces it back, swallowing.

“If you don’t want to -” he says immediately. He doesn’t want to pressure her in any way.

But she shakes her head weakly, biting her lip. “I think - m-maybe we should. It- “ Her voice breaks on a rising sob. “It really hurts, Todoroki-kun.”

“Okay,” he murmurs, trying to sound as soothing as he can. “We’ll do that, then. If you feel the slightest pain, anything at all, tell me immediately and we’ll stop, yes? We’re going to take this slow.”

Uraraka nods, pushing herself upright. Shouto allows one small flame to kindle at the tip of one finger, holding it like it’s a baby bird.

“Ready?”

She nods again, eyes screwed shut. He moves it towards her side carefully, the sight of the red-gold light against her burned, angry-looking skin making him wince. But he presses on, moving closer, closer, until he’s less than an inch away, and she should definitely be feeling some heat now, even if nerves have been damaged. But she says nothing.

“Feel anything?”

She shakes her head, relaxing a little. “No heat, but there’s like - a cool breeze?” Her eyes fall open. “I think you were right, Todoroki-kun.”

He moves closer, gingerly, until it’s almost licking at her side. “Now? Is it too cold?”

“N-no, it’s - good. It’s - ohh -” She almost shudders in relief when he allows it to press against her entirely. “It’s like cool water, it’s perfect.”

Shouto sighs quietly. “Good.”

He allows the flames to envelop his hand entirely and, very carefully, lays it flat against the burn. He can feel her skin even through the fire licking at the underside of his palm, rough and puckered and blistered, and his mouth twists without him meaning to.

“Todoroki-kun, could you - here?” She points, and he moves his hand accordingly, thinking about how if he had Kendo’s quirk in addition to his own he could just enlarge his hand to cool the entire affected area. But he doesn’t, and he can’t, and so he ends up absently stroking the entire burn in controlled sweeps, taking care not to get too close to the cloth of her costume because he has no clue as to whether the villain’s quirk extends to the clothes of the affected person as well.

It’s - weird. Once the buzz of his shock and anger has worn off, now that he’s doing something useful, helpful, it’s just odd. The whole situation is odd, kneeling on ashy ground in the middle of a ruined town, stroking a teammate’s burn with a hand on fire. And it’s even weirder that he’s doing this for Uraraka, of all people, because he might not be the most attentive person when it comes to social relationships, but everyone who had been in their class knows that there’s something between Midoriya and Uraraka, something tentative and nebulous and undefined that the two of them are too embarrassed to address; something that lasted through all the years since UA till now. And so if anyone should be - uh, touching (petting, Shouto thinks, and shudders slightly, shaking the uncomfortable thought out of his head) - Uraraka’s waist like this, it should most definitely not be Shouto.

But . . . it’s Uraraka. And since it’s Uraraka (as adept at defusing uncomfortable situations, with soothing words and just the right gestures, as she sometimes is at creating them, with nervous chatter and flustered hands) the smile she gives him and the way she relaxes, peacefully, ensures that he settles down to his task soon enough, the repetitive motion soothing away the chaos of battle still churning in his mind surprisingly effectively.

It’s one moment in a lifetime, one incident among hundreds that Shouto will experience in a lifetime as a pro hero. Yet later, when he’s older and more battle-scarred, when the white has started encroaching onto the red half of his hair, it’s that moment he thinks of when he thinks of tranquility, stillness, peace - Uraraka with her eyes closed, head tipped back against cracked concrete, the rise and fall of her chest gentle and steady (when before it had been harsh, stuttering) because his hand on her waist, his flames, are washing her pain away, keeping it at bay. It’s that atmosphere that he remembers, smokey and heavy and silent but - quiet, and comforting, as the adrenaline in his blood slows to a halt and his whirling thoughts slow and settle around a centre of silence.

It’s a feeling he will only be privileged to experience a few times in his life, that feeling of true peace. And he will never tell anyone, but to himself, Shouto can admit that the reason he watches Uraraka’s back more carefully in fights after that, the reason he listens to her worry about how Midoriya might never like her back, the reason he helps her make horrible Valentine’s Day chocolate and trains with her more and reads the books she recommends and -

- and becomes something of a best friend -

- is that he’s grateful to her for giving him that, that single, precious period of peace.

Even if is just - one moment in a lifetime.

[likesugarandcyanide]

Invincible [Chapter 4] Game On [Katsuki Bakugou]

The next ten months is over before I can appreciate them, and the general entrance exam is today; this morning in fact. I wake up early, before the sun, and run the block. The cool, autumn weather freezes me to the bone, but I feel in high spirits. For the first time since I was little I am sure of myself. My will is stronger than before.

Ever since the sludge incident I have trained day-to-day with a balanced routine. But with the third term going, I didn’t get as much done with my emotional training as I would have liked. My quirk still needs practice, but I at least made some improvement. This morning I use the extra time to cram in a little more training.

I stand heal to toe on a narrow, handmade balance beam in the backyard, working on a method to improve my focus. The last time I did this was during the 5th grade for gym, when I was certain being a pro acrobat was the future I wanted. I gave it up, but the memories are still fresh. I doubt it’s something I can forget, like the years of track I endured for the sake of my parents. Muscle memory is a remarkable act. In this case, it helps me to keep my sense of balance while I use my thoughts to rotate the water at my fingertips.

I keep my head up as I slowly walk, focusing on shaping the water into a spiral. It’s not easy; the strain on my head is painful. My limit is only five minutes before the nosebleeds start and I waste two on stopping to collect myself. The liquid loses its shape once, but I focus and secure it. So far, so good.

The end of the beam takes but a steady minute to get to, and once I am done, I will the water to tumble. It feels good for the practice I have put in to work. But the exhaustion is another story. I wipe the sweat from my face and grab my workout gear, deciding that I should eat and probably grab a shower before I leave. But the minute I step into the house I am greeted with the burning smell of grilled fish and overcooked rice.

I curl my nose at this and move into the kitchen where my father is. He stands over the stove, light-colored bangs clipped back, cursing at the mess he made as he attempts to scrape the charred, unidentifiable clumps into the trash bin.

He turns to look at me with a shocked expression as I laugh. “Go ahead, make fun of me, but remember something, you won’t leave this room until you’ve eaten it all.” I laugh even louder at this, but my father only smiles. “This one is a waste, but I can make you another breakfast if you’re hungry.”

“No thank you. I appreciate it, but I will probably grab something small on the way out,” I reply. A big meal right before the hands-on portion of the exam doesn’t sound like an agreeable idea. Eating usually makes me feel sluggish and ready for a nap. I don’t want to risk it, but I still should eat.

As an alternative, I take an apple from the fruit basket on the countertop and begin munching on it while I watch my father clean up. It’s strange to see, because he doesn’t usually do the housework; mother does. But she has been sick a lot recently. I wonder if that has something with the reason why my father is doing this.

“Something wrong, kiddo?” His stern, gentle voice drags me from my thoughts. My guess is that he could sense the look of uncertainty I was giving to him. Still, I shake my head and go back to eating my breakfast.

“Don’t look so down,” he adds, returning to his work. “Bakugou may seem like he’s mad right now, but he does look after you. Give him some time.”

I hum in doubt. This isn’t exactly about Katsuki, but it’s good to know my father puts his trust in him. He used to be team Izuku; a memory that still makes me feel uneasy. I would rather not get into the reason with him, but I also would rather not give my father a reason to interrogate me about this. I hate that I can’t do anything to help mother, but I can’t change fate either.

There is a tightness in my chest that makes me feel like crying, but instead of tearing up, I smile and give my father a gentle smile. “I know. Thank you.”

After I have finished the apple, I take a quick shower, grab my gear, and leave the house. The train is a forty-minute ride to the next station, but I have time to rest. I’ve been thinking too much about all the bad things in my life these past few months that I never stopped to consider the large step I have taken into the future. Hours from now, I could may well be one step closer to becoming a real hero. It is game on from this point.

I smile to myself and stare out the window as the train moves through the city; my very own playing field.

Izuku looks much different than I remember. Didn’t he used to be thinner? I’m amazed by just how much effort he put into working out during the ten months before the start of the new term. His body looks ready to go, and his eyes seem to glow with a new-found strength that he didn’t have before the sludge man incident. Was this really the same frail boy from before?

His attention drifts in my direction, and I realize that I have been looking him over since I ran into him at the station. Things get awkward pretty quick. I attempt to cover up my slipup with an apology, but the nervous look on the teen’s face makes me laugh. He is still the same Izuku; new wrapper but the same old, timid boy.

“No need to be shy. You look great,” I assure him. It’s still a shock to me just how much muscle he gained since I last saw him. He looks so grown up now.

“Thank you, but measured up to the others, I feel the least bit prepared,” he admits quietly. His eyes return to scanning the school grounds as he tightens his fingers around the straps of his backpack. It’s a nervous gesture, I imagine, and I can’t blame him. I’m feeling rather anxious myself and because of this, I honestly don’t know what to say that might help ease him. I’d feel like a bad friend if I got his hopes up.

We move toward the entrance in silence. It’s a cold morning, and I regret not wearing a scarf, but I honestly assume the exam will be held in doors so I didn’t bother. On the other hand, U.A. High is nice. I have yet to see the inside, but the outside is huge. The pavilion we’re passing through is lined in the busts of every hero that ever graduated from the school, and while not many of the initiates are paying attention to them, I find comfort in knowing that so many have gone pro. It means that there’s a chance.

Izuku suddenly stops and nervously covers his mouth with the palm of his hand. He looks like he’s about ready to hurl. I want to help him stay calm, but before I can open my mouth to speak, a voice interrupts me.

“Move aside, Deku.” Katsuki stands behind us, glaring at the teen. His eyes move over to me briefly, but they don’t lose their intense stare. I remember the words my father left with me, and try not to seem troubled by it. He’ll come around, eventually. Even so, his arrogance brings me to feel in doubt with this.

Would it have been different if we’d have broken up that day? I doubt it. Katsuki is himself after all. He spits an insult at Izuku and quickly shoves passed him, but not before he seizes my wrist and pulls me to him. I squeak in surprise, crying out his name as he drags me away.

The blonde gives me the impression that he is annoyed. By what, I’m not sure of, but he’s being insensible with how he is dealing with it. It’s annoying, and his heated grip stings.

“You’re hurting me,” I hiss.

Katsuki immediately lets go, choosing to shove his tightened fists into the pockets of his baggy pants. He is unusually quiet, leaning his body slightly forward as he walks. I am quick to notice that he is listening for something. As we are close to the entrance of the school, I hear it. Katsuki’s name is mentioned amongst a group of male students.

I hear them make mention of the sludge incident and nearly freeze up. I see now; Katsuki is being pitied. Has it been like this for him since day one? I can’t imagine how annoyed he feels. He must hate it. His shivering body suggests bad things to come if he doesn’t calm down. The method he uses on me doesn’t work as well on him, however.

My fingers gently slide around the curve of his arm, luring him close enough that I can lean my cheek against his shoulder. “Thank you for the date last weekend,” I bring up.

Our backs are to them and inside the door before he responds. “That wasn’t a date, idiot. We hiked up a hill, and last time I checked, that’s not considered a date.”

I hum in disapproval. “That’s not exactly true. It doesn’t have to be noteworthy to be considered a date. The point is that we spent time alone together.”

“Whatever floats your boat,” he snorts. I laugh at this; typical Katsuki.

He and I remain silent, walking arm in arm as he leads us through a crown of examinees into the school’s auditorium. The room is massive, but it’s nearly filled beyond capacity. A wave of nervousness fills me. I clutch the teen’s arm and allow him to locate our seats – middle role and directly to the front of the stage. Once we sit, I notice Izuku stumble in. I wave him over and he takes the seat to the left of us. There isn’t much said between the three of us, however, and I realize there is no need for it. The exam is close to beginning.

All of a sudden, the rest of the chatter in the room is drown out. “Welcome one and all to my live show! Everybody say heeeey!” I recognize this loud and direct voice from the radio as belonging to Present Mic. He is an inspiration. I clap enthusiastically, but Katsuki grabs my wrist and pulls my hand into his lap.

“Tone it down a notch, you damned nerd. You’re doing that in my ear,” he snaps.

I quietly apologize. He knows I can’t help it.

The auditorium is silent as the grave as Present Mic continues on, explaining the low-down on the how the exam will be conducted. Each of the examinees are given a card with their picture, name, and battle center on it – labeled A through G. I am in E, but in addition to this are instructions of what each of us will encounter during the ten-minute practice run. While Katsuki is talking to Izuku I steal a glance at his card. He is in center A. I am both sad and relieved that I won’t be joining him; the latter because I would rather not be shown up by him. He’s too good – I admit to that. As I see it, I have no other option but to avoid the area traps – Present Mic explained them to us since an examinee asked about them. They rampage when crowded, but more than that, area traps cost no points. It would be a waste of time to try and fight them, and so I make a vow to avoid them and stack points by taking out the smaller targets. Piece of cake. I can do this.

I come up with a quick exchange, and tug on Katsuki’s hand to get his attention. Once I have it, I lean close to him, feeling my face heat up. “Make a bet with me. Please!” He huffs in annoyance, but doesn’t tell me no. I take this as a sign to continue. “If I score high in the practical exam, I want you to take me on a real date,” I whisper. It’s not like he’d have to go out of his way to impress me.

His eyes soften, but just as quick he narrows them. “Whatever, but if you don’t and you fail, I want you to never mention this damn hero business again.”

I almost disagree, but I understand the necessity of his demands. Katsuki is already against me attending, so this deal going south would be his best attempt to keep me from trying to be a pro hero. He would still more than likely take me on the date, however. I may have bit off more than I could chew. At least I can say I gave it a shot if I fail. “You have a deal,” I agree.

A presentation on school precepts begins on the overhead projector and as much as I try to pay attention I can’t. I am nervous. Suddenly, however my hand stings. Katsuki purposefully burns me. I pull my hand from his, giving it a shake.

“The hell was that for?”

“Focus, or you won’t be getting that date,” he growls. I see. He is trying to stir me up, keep me in the game.

But still, did he have to burn me? He is such a jerk. But he’s right, I do want that date. The uneasiness can wait, I have a game to win. Once, the presentation is over, we part. I follow the cluster of examinees that are in center E to the dressing rooms, before we are ushered out onto the field. I have no idea the struggles I am about to face. 

[sweetcloverheart]

Alrighty I’m gonna ramble about a DekuBaku roleswap because I have ideas and I almost never hear about OFA!Bakugo unless it’s a Villian!Deku AU so lets go (Probably ooc for a lot of characters and things so apologies) -

So yeah in this AU Katsuki is the one who’s quirkless

Which means a lot of bullying

Especially from kids who had at that point been practically worshiping the ground he walked on and are now basically treating him like an untouchable kids are mean

Which also means a very angry and pissed off kid Katsuki dealing with all this the only way how - being pissed at everyone and lots of yelling

But he’ll be damned if it let’s being quirkless get in the way of him becoming the number one hero

Basically, If Izuku’s desire to be a hero is fueled by pure, plain determination, Katsuki’s is fueled by pure, unadulterated spite

“Why are you trying so hard to be a hero?” “Cause fuck’em, that’s why.”

Beside’s if All Might can never lose to villains, than why should Katsuki lose to his quirklessness? Heroes never lose and neither does Bakugou.

Speaking of Izuku, his quirk takes a pretty long time to actually manifest (A whole year after his entire class developed their own), so he relatively stays in the same boat as Bakugou until a certain point

Even after Katsuki’s quirkless status was revealed, Izuku has not only stuck with him but actively stood up for him (I refuse to believe Izuku would EVER pull the stuff Katsuki did in canon if their roles were swapped. He would stick by him no matter what and he would defend his right to be a hero even if he got a punch in the face (from Bakugou) for it), 

But aside from that the initial relationship remained like it did in canon (with Izuku constantly following after Katsuki and Katsuki constantly being seemingly “better” than Izuku at everything). There’s still some tension though because the only thing squarely keeping Izuku under Katsuki and still his friend socially is this and the fact his quirk hasn’t manifested yet, and he knows it.

This is not helped by Izuku obsession with quirks either

The forrest scene is precisely where the Bakudeku friendship overturns as it’s at the moment Katsuki falls off the log that Izuku’s quirk manifests (I like to think if Izuku ever had a quirk, he’d inherit Inko’s), with him accidentally using it to try and save him

This sets Bakugou off, not just because Izuku saved him, with a quirk, but because despite now having a quirk, Izuku’s behavior hasn’t change. He’s still trying to help him; and Bakugo can’t understand why.

Especially since the other kids who were supposedly Bakugou’s “friends” up and left the moment Bakugou wasn’t worth something for them to follow anymore. 

Which leads Bakugou (with a year’s worth of bullying, societal conditioning, and questioning Izuku’s sincerity) coming to the (incorrect) conclusion that now that his quirk has manifested, he will eventually leave, joining the “winners” while Bakugou is left behind. Izuku is capable of standing above him now and has no reason to stay with a “loser”

And it particularly stings because Izuku is his friend supposed to be a “loser” too - the kid who can’t use “big kid” kanjis, who tries to skip stones but they just sink in the water, who can’t bounce balls as high he can, and constantly trails after Bakugou talking about how cool and amazing he is. Someone like that developing the power you’re told you’re never going to develop ever would maybe sting a little for a little kid.  

For the first time since hearing he was quirkless, Bakugou feels like he has “lost”. And we all know how Pre-character development Bakugou feels about losing. 

It ends as you expect - Bakugou ends his friendship with Izuku and takes every opportunity to fight him and prove himself better and has warped it around his desire to be a hero as well. He is determined to “beat” Izuku no matter what.

Meanwhile, Izuku’s best friend hates him now and he can’t understand what he did wrong. He does try to fix things, and he still tries to help out Katsuki when the bullying gets worse

Which weirdly eggs Bakugou on more for whatever reason.

Years pass. Enter: the slime incident

I imagine while he now lacks the status necessary for the teachers/adults in his life (outside of his parents) to enable the behavior that gave us Chapter1!Bakugou, all the bullying/passive agressive comments give Bakugou a lot of anger issues that he doesn’t deal with in a healthy manner. At all. He’s basically a ball of anger and hurt with none of the school staff really knowing how to deal with him. Izuku, on the the other hand, now with a quirk and no years of being bullied/abused by Bakugou has become more social/open, even if he’s still shy. He manages to just stay under the radar and fade back since he’s just really quiet and considered a “nerd” that doesn’t really need his class’s attention. Like, the only thing that gets him any semi-focus is his interactions with Katsuki

Izuku still meets All Might first, he just doesn’t get to see his real form.

Katsuki takes learning the truth about All Might weirdly...well. I mean, naturally he’d be upset and confused at first but, after letting the info settle, he gets why he did it, and then kind of admires him for it because even with a freaking hole in his stomach All Might never stopped being a hero and continued winning his fights and still helped people and - Katsuki’s just blown away by how dedicated this man is to being the number one hero for everyone.

Now you’re probably (rightfully) asking yourselves - “Why would All Might give Bakugou of all people One For All?”

Because for whatever reason, Toshinari sees an actual genuine desire to become a hero under all that cursing and undirected rage and a potential to make it real, and dammit he’s going to make it real!

He also sees a frustrated and angry kid society just left on the wayside because he can’t make his hands explode sorry Kacchan you’re getting Dadded whether you like it or not

A lot of the training also includes attempted anger management talks between them since Katsuki is an angry little shit and the last thing Toshi needs to hear is that his student punch down a building because someone bumped him

The enterance exam is pretty normal minus Bakugou freaking everyone out with his mangled arm (that barely stops him from continuing the test and only stops when forcibly removed to get medical treatment).

Katsuki manages to get a pretty high hero score, he probably waits until he finds the high point robots gathered and then SMASH!

Izuku somehow accidentally gets the highest rescue points by helping other students avoid getting crushed by debris and everyone else’s attacks

Izuku is pretty interested in how Katsuki managed to suddenly develop a Quirk but he’s also very happy and proud that his childhood friend can attend classes with him and finally achieve his dream (which Katsuki hates)

The ranking test is so wild! Bakugou spends the entire time trying to one-up everyone and Izuku is barely scraping by but trying his best and Aizawa is just exhausted with everyone let the man rest please

Katsuki barely (And I mean BARELY) manages to keep himself from simply being expelled on virtue of his being a little shit due to showing that yes - he is capable of being serious about his becoming a hero and number one hero at that, but does tells him to get his head out of his ass if he wants to succeed

The hero/villain practice battle goes...badly

teamups are as in canon, only instead Izuku and Uraraka go after Iida immediately as they deem him a higher priority target. They’re winning at first, then Katsuki shows up.

and he is primed and ready to unleash about 10 years worth of pent up feelings on Izuku and anyone who gets in his way.

The entire thing is a mess - walls are crashing, fists are flying, someone is definitely crying. It’s a back and forth of Katsuki trying to kill Izuku and Izuku trying very very hard not to die

Things don’t really seems too bad (even with everything) until Katsuki actually knocks away (and out) Iida for trying to stop him cause friend pal you’re being a little extra there it’s just a test friend.

All Might almost stops the test until Izuku barely manages to grab a win by the skin of his teeth (mainly by taking advantage of the fact of Katsuki not paying any attention to the damage he’s doing to their surroundings and Ochako sacrificing reaching the objective to help Izuku), though officially his team still loses for not “stopping the bomb”

Everyone is both thoroughly impressed and greatly terrified (Of who though - no one knows)

Katsuki’s self hatred doubles because not only did he lose (a win by technicality is no win in his book), but he brought the loss on himself by letting his anger override everything.

Izuku, to his surprise, does not hold it against him. He’s always thought Katsuki is strong and the fight proved it with how well he’s done with a quirk he’s obviously not 100% used to and how hard he’s pushing to get ahead of everyone he’s however still terrified of how close he was to possibly dying though. In actuality the fight made him realize that he’s been kind of relying too much on the fact his quirk is “weak” and has encouraged him to work harder to get on the same level as everyone

and Katsuki, in all his Katsuki-ness, is both livid and frustrated cause dammit Deku how dare you say something that...nice!? And Katsuki has renewed his goal of being number one Hero and leaving Izuku in the dust and he’s going to do it properly so he better watch out

Dadmight is, of course, proud of this self-reflection, but still has to be Dad first (”I’m not mad Bakugou my boy, just disappointed”)

And that’s all I have goodnight folks thanks for reading and ask questions if you want!