Chapter 2 – Feral
Katsuki twisted his hips as he threw his weight into the punch aimed at the bag in front of him. It had been a little over two weeks since he joined the gym and he was starting to honestly enjoy training. It gave him something to focus on other than his aggravating daily life, and tonight was his first sparring match, which had him fired up.
Coach Toshinori had given him a training regimen to follow the day after he joined the gym and he hadn't missed a single workout. It was easy, boring, but the thought of getting to pummel in some poor fools' face at the end of it drove him forward. He stopped the swinging bag in front of him with a firm hand before making his way to the benches and taking a bottle of water out of his bag.
"Nervous for your first fight Bakugou-san?" The voice from next to him was light and friendly. Katsuki turned and was met with bright pools of emerald, Izuku. The scent of pure forestry wafted around him, his scent was clean and pleasant.
"Excited." He growled back in reply as he opened and closed his fist. It wasn't really his first fight; he had been in plenty of street brawls and fights at work.
Scarlet eyes pinned the smaller man, the honorifics he used were annoying him. "Don't be so polite." He snapped and instantly he realized he sounded furious, that wasn't his intention. "Katsuki is fine, or whatever." He snapped again, trying to keep is volume down at least.
Izuku looked at him strangely for a moment before he smiled slightly. "Ah…ok. You do the same, Katsuki, and good luck in your spar." The shorter man said as Toshinori came out of the staff room. The sound of his name rolling off of Izuku's tongue had sent a pleasant shiver down his spine.
"Are you ready Bakugou-san? Romero is in the ring." The trainer said and Katsuki took in the unkempt alpha who was slouched over while sitting on the mats of the ring.
It irked him that the other fighter wasn't even paying attention. "Tch, yeah. All warmed up." He half snarled while walking towards the ring.
Once inside he rolled his shoulders and waited for his opponent to get up. He wanted to snarl insults at the lazy looking alpha but bit his tongue, he would settle for just beating him half to death.
Izuku walked up next to Toshinori as he finished listing the rules for the opponents. "… be careful of eye pokes and foul hits, only three rounds." The coach finished and both fighters squared off at the center of the ring.
Emerald eyes sized up both fighters, and the scent of alpha pheromones started to leak from the ring as they waited for the bell to ring. Izuku shriveled his nose at the scent of Romero's' pheromones, the grey-haired alpha smelled like death, something rotten and sour. In the next moment, the thick smell of smoke filled the room, hot and earthy like the scent of a wildfire, it submerged every other scent in a dominant blanket, Katsuki, it was his first time smelling his scent so strong.
The bell dinged and Izuku was surprised that Katsuki didn't charge in immediately, he kept his hands low and in front of him, his scarlet eyes intensely focused. It was Romero who moved in first, swinging his legs out in a lanky kick.
Katsuki moved with purpose, he wasn't quick but he didn't waste anything. Izuku realized this wasn't his first fight, he watched closely as the two males began to move.
Romero kept swinging his legs and arms, pushing Katsuki attempting to move Katsuki towards the edge of the ring, but every time the ash-blonde alpha dodged, he circled his movements to stay near the center of the ring.
Another kick from Romero but this time Katsuki didn't dodge, his hand reached out and caught the blow as if it was thrown by a child. Scarlet eyes glinted and the scent of smoke in the room spiked before a sickening crack resounded from the place where Katsuki's fist landed against Romero's ribcage. The grey-haired alpha hit the mat with a moan a second later and Izuku wasn't surprised when the alpha laid there in defeat, that blow had sounded heavy.
"That's all?" Katsuki growled from inside the ring. The anger and frustration crossing his features were plain as day. He continued to rant loudly as another gym member pulled Romeros' unconscious form out of the ring.
"That was unexpected." Toshinori spoke up from beside him and Izuku nodded his head in agreement. "Would you finish the next two rounds Izuku?" His trainer asked him, a gleam entering the older man's eyes.
Emerald eyes flashed to his mentor and he contemplated it for only a second, he had wanted to see more of what Katsuki had to offer so he nodded his head in agreement. "Sure." Izuku said, he quickly wrapped his hands, put in his mouth guard and kicked off his shoes before stepping in the ring and beginning to warm up. He was thankful he hadn't taken off the green workout tank and black shorts he had been working out in earlier.
Katsuki turned to him with angry scarlet eyes and he could practically feel the growl in the alpha's voice as he spoke. "What're ya doin?" His speech slurred with even more frustration.
Izuku smiled and answered. "You needed a better sparring partner." He explained.
Scarlet eyes flashed to Toshinori and the coach nodded his head, holding the bell as he waited for them to get ready.
"Finally." The word seemed to rumble across the room and Katsuki quickly took his fighting pose. "Let's do this." The ash-blonde alpha snarled, but Izuku could tell the frustration in his voice had lessened, he seemed relieved.
Izuku took on a serious tone and nodded back to his opponent, taking on a similar fighting stance, knees bent and arms held in front of him with loosely closed fists. When the bell rung, he moved in with a testing blow he was sure would be blocked. He wasn't disappointed, a strong fist catching his own and he ducked low and out of the way as a hard knee whisked through the air inches from his head.
The alpha's moves were sharper than they had seemed from the ringside. Izuku put up his guard and tested his opponents maneuvering around the ring, throwing light blows and kicks to see if Katsuki would react.
Scarlet eyes pinned him with a glare moments before a heavy fist smacked into the forearm guarding his ribcage. "Quit holding back!" The words were spat in his face just as a second blow collided with his cheek and he tumbled to the floor slightly shocked.
Katsuki followed him down and a switch turned in Izuku's head, he wouldn't be pinned, his testing was over. Emerald eyes sparkled with intensity as he twisted under his opponent and snaked his legs around the alphas with practiced skill. He flipped their positions and aimed an elbow into the body below him.
Surprise flitted across his conscience as his blow was blocked and he felt the legs in his hold wrench free from his grip. He sprang to his feet and backed off of the alpha as he forced his way to his feet.
Another snarl filled the ring, spilled from lips that were pulled in a feral smile. "That's more like it!" The alpha pulled his form back together and moved in with precise force.
Izuku shook off his surprise, he held his guard while he looked for an opportunity. The alpha in front of him was in a vicious state, he could feel the excess power in every blow and his muscles ached from where he blocked the blows he couldn't dodge.
He focused his sight and aimed for the moment his opponent was stepping forward, opening his face just slightly. Emerald eyes sharpened as he ducked low and stepped into his blow, his fist soaring up towards the alpha's jaw, but the blow felt weak and he felt the air next to his face shift and he struggled to move, preparing for the impact he could sense coming. But it stopped just short of making contact, his eyes flew to meet burning scarlet and the sound of a bell ringing filtered in through the heat of the fight.
For a second, Izuku feared the alpha in front of him wouldn't be able to reign in his feral instincts to slaughter, but he pulled away without strain and retreated to the empty corner across the ring, sitting on the stool that had been placed there by Kaminari, another gym member, without a single word. Only the blazing intensity of his aggressive pheromones left in his wake.
He snapped out of his dazed state and made his way to the opposite corner where Toshinori was waiving at him. He sat in the waiting stool and took the offered drink of water, swishing the liquid around before spitting it out.
"I'm going to get serious next round." He spoke to the man next to him and the trainer nodded his head, eyeing the alpha across the ring from them.
"You should… It's rare to see an alpha so close to going feral, he either has great control or a loose will." Toshinori commented before he turned back to Izuku.
Izuku thought it over, from all appearances Katsuki seemed on the verge of losing control. But moments ago, he hadn't heard the bell ringing, yet even in his blood lusted state Katsuki had pulled his punch, obeying the rules of the ring.
"Its control." He commented back to his trainer as he stood from the stool, their one-minute break was over, and his opponent followed suit. They squared off at the center of the ring and Toshinori raised the bell and the sound rang loud and clear.
This time Katsuki charged in, his moves still sharp as he slid in close and swung his fist towards Izuku's side.
He could feel the heat running through his blood, it was amazing, thrilling, and his opponent was standing toe to toe with him. Katsuki was ecstatic, the feeling of the blows, the pressure of his opponent, something inside of him howled in pleasure as he swung his leg out to take his opponent down but was blocked and met with a harsh knee to the face.
Blood filled his mouth but his legs stayed steady as he recoiled and moved in for the next move. He didn't know how long they had left in the second round but he didn't want to waste a second, he knew he was starting to get sloppy but it felt too good to stop.
His instincts were sharp and he had never bothered to reign in his bloodlust before, it felt too good to let it out and so he rode the flow of the power running through his veins. His eyes followed his opponent and he saw his chance as the omega stepped to the side. He swung his fist into the smaller man's ribs, the impact pushing him to the side.
In the next moment, he felt a hard impact with his legs and a snarl ripped from his lips as he felt his world turn and his vision met the mats of the ring. Thickly corded muscle wrapped around his neck and shoulder, trapping his arms and constricting his breathing. He fought against the hold, pulling at his arms and trying to spread his legs for leverage.
The muscled legs wrapped around him clamped down even tighter and he could feel his vision blurring and threw all of his effort into one last attempt at freeing himself. His feet caught purchase, pushing his weight up and flipping them over, scarlet eyes met emerald and he paused for a second. The impact that met his temple in that moment from a hard punch had him closing his eyes and slipping into darkness.
"…but it was impressive."
"His control in that state seemed natural." The voice filtered into Katsuki's head along with a painful throb and he groaned aloud at the feeling.
He sat up slowly and something cold and wet fell from his forehead into his lap. Hazy scarlet eyes opened to find a damp rag sitting in his lap. He was in an unfamiliar room, the staff office he guessed from the look of the simple desk, and bookcase stacked with fighting, photos, and trophies along with the ragged brown sofa he was laying on. Reality came crashing in along with his memory of the last few moments of the sparring match, he had lost.
"Ah, you're awake." Coach Toshinori spoke as he came over and handed him an ice pack that he had been holding. "For your temple." He said and Katsuki took the offered remedy, his head was pounding.
"That was an excellent spar." The trainer continued on and he eyed the man with a calculating stare, he seemed sincere. A mop of dark green curls came to his attention as Izuku came out from behind the older blond man.
He was holding his own ice pack to a bruised area over his left side. "It really was." The smaller man pipped up excitedly, not seeming to mind his own injuries.
Katsuki couldn't name what he was feeling, being praised for hurting someone, it was truly a first. "Tch, I guess." Finally slipped from his lips as he still came up empty for the right words.
"I have a serious proposition for you Bakugou-san." Scarlet met Toshinori's steady gaze as he continued. "How would you like to go Pro?" The silence in the room lasted for a few long moments as he eyed the trainer with confusion.
"I lost." Was his simple reply as he shifted into a more comfortable position with his feet on the ground.
"Against Izuku, perhaps, but he's on the same level as the top featherweight fighters. You put down Romero almost instantly and your technique and control are naturally strong." The trainer eyed him up and down carefully as if appraising him.
His gaze went to Izuku who was eyeing him with a cheerful gaze, glimmers of hope flashing across his emerald pools in bright sparks. A sense of pride filled him, these people were impressed, they saw potential in him For the first time in his life he was being praised for following his instincts.
"On one condition." He spoke, keeping his gaze steady with Izuku's not bothering to muffle the raspy growl of his voice. He grinned a cocky smile. "When I'm a champion, I want a damn rematch." His words were rough but he was pleased when the scent of greenery filled the room as the smaller man puffed out his chest.
"You've got a deal!" Izuku said and smiled cheerfully.
He couldn't deny the heat that spread across his face at the man's cheerfulness, he wasn't used to such actions, and the omega's pheromones were so pleasant. He was truly an enigma to Katsuki and he looked forward to spending more time at the gym.
He would have to ask for fewer hours at work, but it didn't really matter, he had plenty of cash in the bank for his rent and bills. He was excited he realized, and as he rose from the couch he grinned at his new trainer. "What's first?" He grinned and eyed Toshinori expectantly, he was looking forward to the days to come.
***Thank you for reading once again. I had a lot of fun writing this chapter, look forward to the next update soon. As always, leave me a review please, I love to hear everyone's comments and suggestions.