The truth is that the weeks after Round Face joined the Lion-Dogs (name courtesy of Deku) had gone by in a flash. The science project was based on Pro-Bending, physically demonstrating the power the master had to generate in the elements in less than a second, in order to have enough force to throw someone, using almost pure videos recorded by Izuku or Mina during training. They obviously got top marks because they did an excellent job combining the theoretical parts that Deku did and all the mathematics that Kacchan did. Deku had been right, and they had all made volcanoes (although to make it up to Kacchan they ended up making a volcano in the gym just because Kacchan wanted to blow something up) so the teacher gave them extra points towards the final grade for the year for originality.
Then, with Deku helping them train, they had somehow improved quite a bit and already had strategies for working both as a team and alone. Katsuki was... happy! First he had gotten Deku back in less than two months and they were talking to each other normally! Then his team was less and less bad, and with Deku there they had improved so much. He knew they were going to win every match! I mean, before they would have already done it because they had him, and he can handle them all because he's great, but... it was good to have the work distributed a little bit. Oh, and he didn't feel so guilty anymore for calling Izuku "Deku", even if it was a bit cheesy, the nerd liked it and that's what mattered. He had already fulfilled several promises he had made to the nerd, ha! In your face, psychologists! He didn't have to go to fix his mental shit!
And Izuku, on the other hand, was getting more and more comfortable and integrated both in Kacchan's team and with Kacchan himself. He didn't feel uncomfortable anymore! This was great. As they kept meeting in the library with Ochako-chan, Tsuyu-chan, and Iida-kun he felt like he was having more friends than ever, even though they had had to reduce the days to continue with his research, and now they included Saturdays (leaving his appointments with his psychologist). They had come a long way! And now he was training the Lion-Dogs too! He was making VERY GOOD use of his time! Even Inui-san and his mother congratulated him for having so many friends now!
They both felt how little by little, everything was getting better. To the point, that day Izuku simply walked to the library together with Kacchan... Yes! Today I was going to accompany him!
"So you're coming here to do homework and to look for stuff from Auntie Inko's storybook?
"Yep!" He nodded excitedly. "And they're not just stories Kacchan, they're real stories!"
"Ha! They're just fairy tales!"
"Kacchan, there are records and information about them" Izuku pouted.
"And why don't you ask Auntie Inko about them directly? I mean. She knows the whole thing, doesn't she?"
"Come on Kacchan, you know she never told us the whole thing"
"Hmmm, right... And what have you managed to find out without Auntie Inko telling you?"
"Oh! Well, we almost found out the title they had! I know it starts with an A. There's a book that Iida-kun found that has a lot of damaged words but we've managed to decipher about a third of the damaged pages! Oh, you're about to meet my friends! Iida-kun is super serious but knows a lot of things, and Tsuyu-chan is very straightforward and doesn't hold anything back!"
"Ah..." Katsuki raised an eyebrow. He thought… He already knew them... Wait, are they the assholes who were with Squirrel face when he thought they were gonna kidnap the nerd?
"Ah! And I already have the names of all of them! From Yangchen to Senna! But I think the last one we have is Inari!"
"Who were those?"
" Inari was a boy from the fire nation who didn't have much to do because the world seemed to be in relative peace during those years and he was never called to anything, so he lived a quiet life. Apparently the spirit portals were still open, but no one was doing anything. And I think he died because of something with his mom? Something about his mom dying and he was so hurt that he died too?"
" Ha! So he was a mommy's boy?!"
" Hey, don't insult Inari-kun! " Deku puffed out his chest and cheeks. Katsuki couldn't help but start laughing even harder.
" And who was the other one? " He asked without stopping laughing.
" Oh, uh... Sena was an airbender, but she never got her tattoos. " He grimaced, looking up at the sky. " The truth is mom hasn't told me much about her and I haven't found that much information... Although I think she was the one who closed the portals to the spirit world."
Izuku was silent, thinking and trying to remember Sena's stories, but he really didn't remember that much... and Katsuki was also silent until they reached the library gardens.
" Deku-kun! Bakugo-kun! Over here! " In the distance they heard the familiar shout of the mushroom-haired girl, who was waving at them with both hands upwards.
" Ochako-chan! Kacchan, come! " Izuku automatically ran off towards the tree where she joined Uraraka before entering the library pulling Katsuki by the arm.
" Don't tell me what to do! " She said, but still followed him.
Arriving in front of the girl, she simply started walking straight to the library, and Deku followed her as if it was nothing. Katsuki assumed it was a normal thing for them, but he couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at the... coordination.
" How did it go today, Ochako-chan? " Deku asked, cocking her head to the side.
" I passed that test you helped me study for! I felt just as powerful as when we herded the fox-antelope back to its stable because I knew absolutely everything! " Ochako celebrated by clapping her hands lightly. " Thank you, Deku-kun~"
" You're welcome! " The boy smiled a little, and Katsuki couldn't help but frown a little~ "What's that about antelopes-foxes...?"
" And how did you guys do today? " She draped an arm around Deku's shoulders.
" Uh, well, I think. I didn't really pay much attention today... We did well today, didn't we, Kacchan?"
" Ha!? Why are you asking me?!"
Ochako couldn't help but laugh, letting go of Izuku and walking inside the library. They quickly passed through security, and the two boys greeted Mr. Shimano while Katsuki simply stood silently, watching in the distance.
While it wasn't his first time in this library, it was his first time inside. Inside, its white walls with shelves up to the ceiling filled with books were quite eye-catching, and so were the paintings of legends and myths in areas where books did not encroach. The pastel-colored, chess-shaped floor also caught his eyes, along with the snail-adorned staircase leading to the second and third floors. Uraraka and Izuku began to climb the stairs and Katsuki followed them the entire time.
The two of them were going up, animatedly talking, as always when they were going to train. But... uh, this time it was different because now he felt like he was left out. And he didn't like this...
But it's not like he could do anything against it. Ever since he met the girl he knew that between Deku and her there was already friendship, and well... ugh.
Though he couldn't help but want to put his arm around Deku's shoulders like Round Cheeks had done earlier.
Izuku and Ochako sat at the usual table, one next to a series of armchairs that overlooked the large glass wall where Katsuki could see the library garden, even if the large tree in its center blocked part of it. The garden was empty, until he saw two boys enter from different sides and meet, then walk towards the door. He lost sight of them after a few seconds...
" Do you have homework today? " Ochako asked, leaning back on her elbows.
" Nah. " Katsuki rolled his eyes.
" We have all day to do research! " Deku shook his arms again.
" Wow, they're already here, kero. " the three of them turned back, seeing a skirted girl and a bespectacled mastodon.
" Hey, guys! " The mastodon spoke in a deep voice.
" Iida-kun, Tsuyu-chan! " Uraraka greeted calmly. " It's good that you're here."
" Iida-kun, Tsuyu-chan! " Izuku turned to look at Katsuki, raising a hand. " Kacchan, these are my other two friends! Tsuyu-chan, Iida-kun, this is Kacchan!"
" Stop introducing me to everyone with that silly nickname! " Katsuki snorted rolling her eyes. " Katsuki Bakugo."
" Nice to meet you, Bakugo-kun. " The glasses guy said, bowing slightly and adjusting his glasses a bit. " You can call me Iida."
" Nice to meet you, kero. Call me Tsu," The frog said.
"I'll call them whatever I feel like." Katsuki thought while closing his eyes.
After the introduction, the other two sat down at the table. Glasses took out an old notebook and passed it to the nerd who opened it quickly. Frog for her part, pulled out a small laptop from her backpack. Squirrel Cheeks got up and came back from the shelves next to him with several books with different maps and a history book. The nerd, meanwhile, seemed to organize each of the books and his notebooks in order.
And Katsuki didn't know what to do.
They had everything organized.
It was as if they didn't even need him here...
"... No. No. Katsuki, get used to it. Don't think about this kind of bullshit. Just... adapt." He thought.
That is, if adapting meant invading the nerd's personal space a bit.
" Then we'll stick with Inari. " Deku said suddenly, opening his notebook... "Hey, it's one of his diaries... " Inari-kun was born in the capital of the fire nation. He had long dark brown hair in a ponytail, brown eyes, pale skin, from a middle-class family. He worked as a technician in Future Industries for some years, although he could bend the four elements, apparently he did not learn to bend the others, atleast not well. " Tsuyu seemed to write down what Deku said on her laptop while Iida and Uraraka paid attention to the notebook. And so did Katsuki.
" Uh!" Uraraka stood up from her seat, looking at the notebook. " New drawing~"
" You didn't have Inari's drawing before, kero. Where did you see the references? " Tsuyu asked, holding a finger to her cheek.
" H-hey! F-from the internet! " Izuku seemed to get a little nervous and scratched the back of his neck. " I-I found some blogs with stories about these people and-and w-well! There weren't any pictures... But there were descriptions of their physique, so I based it on that! " Deku wasn't bad at lying, but Katsuki could spot his lies a mile away. Perks of growing up with him, he supposed.
" Give me that notebook, I want to see. " She blurted out, snatching the notebook from him, and flipping through the pages quickly. It was a hundred-page notebook and the first one talked about Korra.
Katsuki remembered that when they were little, Auntie Inko had told them some stories about her. She started her journey when she was about sixteen or eighteen years old. The story the first sheet told was a continuation, it talked about Zaheer... He didn't remember this Zaheer...
" Who was Zaheer? " he asked, raising an eyebrow.
" Oh! It's on page fifteen. " Deku said while looking for the page. " He was a leader of a group that killed the earth queen and causedPresident Wu to change the earth kingdom from being a kingdom to a nation with a president.
" ... And what does that have to do with Korra? " Katsuki said while turning the pages again.
" Korra defeated him after an arduous battle in which she almost died! " said the one with glasses.
" The guy out of nowhere gained air bending with the rebirth of the air nomads and tried to use his abilities to take down world governments and public figures! Among them was Korra~ " Uraraka said moving back and forth.
" ... Okay... " Katsuki simply said, already understanding a bit more. Reading the nerd's notes, he noticed that there were some indications: 'from my mommy' written in blue, 'from internet and books' written in black, and 'from dreams' written in green ink.
Strangely, the drawing of this Inari guy had the note in green... Didn't he say he got it from the internet?... Wait. If he wrote this down...
" Deku Do you have your nightmares written down in information like this? " He asked, raising an eyebrow.
Deku turned pale.
" ... Kacchan, n-no ... I have never written down the nightmares... " He said quietly but it seems the others heard him.
" Nightmares? " Iida asked with a frown.
" No! Nothing! " Deku raised his hands shaking them and shaking his head.
" Agh, didn't you tell them?"
" Kacchan."
" What are your dreams, Midoriya-kun? " Tsuyu asked with a worried look.
" I-It's nothing!
" It's nothing? Well, no shit... Remember that you made me believe that you were dreaming about your death?"
" Kacchan, shut up! " Izuku turned to look at him with a frown, but Katsuki could see the panic in his eyes. Katsuki grimaced, why did he tell him then?
" You dream about what? " Uraraka asked scared and confused.
" Nothing! " Deku said loudly again. " It's just a recurring nightmare. And I don't dream about my death, for the seventh time this month, Kacchan. " Izuku glared at Katsuki.
" Deku, don't bullshit me. " The blond rolled his eyes.
" Seventh time? " Uraraka frowned. " Sorry, Deku-kun. But I'm confused. What's your dream? Is it the dream you told us you've had since you were six?
" I-I... " He snorted. " Yeah, it's that one but... I-It's just a kind of an ugly dream, don't-don't worry.
" If you don't want them to worry anymore, just tell them. Maybe you'll get it off your chest again and not dream about that again. " Katsuki rolled his eyes.
" K-Kacchan that nightmare makes me sick...
" Why, is it ugly? " Round Cheeks asked, looking at him regretfully.
Deku just nodded.
" Hmm... " Iida adjusted his glasses. " I don't want to be nosy, Midoriya-kun. If you don't want to tell us that's fine. But maybe Bakugo-kun is right and it will help you get it off your chest.:
" ... Okay... " Izuku settled in his place, closing his notebook, and looking at his hands, playing with them a bit. The others put their things aside.
" Dream... " Deku hugged himself a little. For some reason he felt more insecure telling it to them than when he told it to Kacchan when he was little... Maybe it was because something went VERY wrong that time and he was afraid one of them would wander off again or something. What if they wandered off and left him alone again? What if Kacchan did it again? He told her he was scared but what if?
Katsuki ran a hand down Izuku's back, stroking it a little after sensing the green-haired man's insecurity (he knew him so well that he was surely already in a thought spiral again, exaggerating everything as usual). He watched him out of the corner of his eye, in hopes that this action would give him the strength to speak.
" ... I dream of... Of a battle. There are... Two men, fighting. One blond and tall, with medium long hair, wearing a red colored coat, like those of the fire nation, but green pants like a noble of the earth federation, and sealskin boots like the waterbenders, and he has tattoos like the air nomads... And the other one is simply dressed in black, and I have never been able to see his face... T... They're fighting. In the beginning there were so many lights that I couldn't see anything but... The more time goes by the more things I can see, the more things I can feel... The blond one seems to be bending the four elements, but the other one does too? But when he does it's more like... As if he rather makes the blond-haired one's attacks come back to him...
Uraraka, Iida and Asui looked at each other. The frog-face raised both eyebrows watching them, to which Uraraka shook her head and Iida silently mouthed "no". Katsuki noticed the interaction by frowning, but let the nerd continue talking.
" Between the scuffle, somehow the one in black makes the blond get two ground spikes embedded in him. One in his lower back... " He brought his hands to his stomach. " And another in his stomach... Y... For some reason I feel that pain, I feel like... His organs are tearing... Then the one in black starts laughing and begins to monologue, like an anime villain, saying something about a certain Raava and the spirit of I-don't-know-what, although the truth is that I see how he talks but I don't hear exactly what he says because it's as if he comes with static... And in between the monologue, the blond makes the black guy also get two spikes of earth, one in his stomach and one in his head. Then... More things happen, but everything goes like a flash, lights come out, swirls, something surrounds me, and... I wake up. I wake up feeling this horrible pain in my stomach and my back and my chest and-and... " Deku sucked in a lot of air, as if all this time he was struggling to breathe. "I always wake up crying. If it's not because of the pain, it's because that nightmare scares me too much... Because it feels real..."
Uraraka and Iida froze after hearing that whole dream. Did Deku-kun always have such a horrible dream? How recurrent was it? Why was he dreaming about it?
Katsuki remembered what he felt when he told him about it, to the point that with what he told him, he also dreamt things about Izuku dying in horrible ways. He was thankful that at least the guy wasn't him but... Shit, already with more context, with more events... Should he have the nerd tell Mina? Maybe she could find a reason why he had the dream? Maybe... It was a good plan.
But apparently frog"ace had other plans.
" You know I don't keep quiet about anything, kero. " She blurted out, straightening up on her chair and looking at Deku in the eyes. " Midoriya, ever since we started investigating the one about the four elements I've been wondering, what is your motivation for doing this, kero? Is it because you have this nightmare, kero?
Deku stared at her and turned extremely pale.
" I-I...
" Is it because you feel that maybe with all this you will find meaning to your weird dreams? As if you will tie little by little those ties that bring back certain memories?
" Tsuyu-chan, I don't think it's a good idea" " Uraraka started to speak but frog face raised a hand, interrupting her.
" Midoriya, you dream of a battle, and those who fight do so with the four elements. And we investigated a guy who bends them and who, according to the stories, is reborn in different people among the four nations, kero. " The girl said while closing her eyes.
" What the fuck are you implying, frog face?! " Katsuki asked, raising his voice, clenching his fist while looking at her.
" Nothing, kero... Just... " Tsuyu frowned looking at Deku strangely. " Haven't... haven't you thought that maybe you...? Are...? You know... One...? Or maybe you're even Him?
" Asui-san! This is very unbecoming of you! Stop it now! " Iida scolded the girl making his typical "cut the air" hand motion.
" What's wrong with that? " Tsuyu kept her hand on her cheek. " If Midoriya-kun is a reborn person with past lives or something it could explain a lot of things about Midoriya-kun like how melancholic he is or how he says weird things, kero...
" Shut up, you fucking frog! " Katsuki was about to jump on the girl, but Uraraka stopped him.
" Tsuyu-chan, stop! " Coconut Head said, while looking at Tsuyu and Deku with concern.
" Ochako-chan , but if you think so too, kero!
" Asui-san, you're making me uncomfortable. " Deku blurted out, looking down. " Please don't go on. I've had this nightmare since I was six years old, the first time I had it, I didn't even know death could exist and my mom had to explain to me when I woke up screaming and crying and saying I had a dream. Do you think I want to investigate all this because I dream about two people dying every twenty eight days…?. " He looked up, looking into her eyes. " I'm looking for all this to distract myself. Not for this... I... I don't think it's... very fair of you to use this to accuse me of being... You know who, again."
The frog blinked and shrank in place.
" S-sorry, kero…"
" Just... Let's continue, please... D-don't ask me again about the red moon and that's it. " Deku said, picking up his notebook and hiding his face behind it...
After the awkward moment they continued with their investigation, but Deku was more serious than usual. They all felt strange seeing Deku so... quiet, uncomfortable, maybe even annoyed.
Katsuki, who had already caught up with the pace of work, couldn't help but look at the nerd's friends and then at the nerd with a frown. The truth is that the frog had really made them uncomfortable. How the fuck could she do that to the nerd? Telling him that if he is... The guy from the elements. UGH!"
Out of nowhere, he felt his stomach growl and he let the book he was holding fall on the table, causing a clatter.
" Fucking hell I'm hungry! " Katsuki blurted out.
" Bakugo-kun! Don't make so much noise, we're in a library! " Scolded the one with glasses.
" Ugh, you're going to start with your nagging, aren't you? " He raised an eyebrow, but his stomach growled even louder. " Agh, don't you eat while they're here?!
" ... Uh, no. " Deku said, shrinking in place.
" We usually arrive after already eating. When we go to Midoriya-kun at his school we eat at McDonald's, but when we don't arrive after already eating, so we wait until we leave here to eat at home. " Glasses said, to which Katsuki raised an eyebrow.
" The two of us didn't eat ",he turned to look at Deku. " YOU WAIT FROM ELEVEN O'CLOCK WHICH IS OUR RECESS UNTIL YOU ARRIVE WITH Auntie INKO TO EAT?!"
" Why have you been nagging me all day, Kacchan?! I go too long without eating! And it's not that bad! " Deku complained, sticking his tongue out at him.
" Midoriya-kun! You haven't eaten?! You must eat! " Iida scolded the nerd.
" Hey, you shut up, the only one who can scold him is me!"
" ... What?"
" Kacchan!"
After more scolding and less fighting, they ended up going to a street food stall that was near the library that Uraraka knew. On the way, Izuku and Katsuki were walking behind the other three.
" Sorry that the... meeting got weird... It's the first time you acme and... i-it wasn't fair... " Izuku said walking next to Katsuki.
" Nah, don't apologize... Your frog aced friend was to blame. What the fuck is wrong with her?! " He asked, very annoyed.
" I told you she doesn't keep anything to herself, and she said so herself... What I don't understand is why she keeps insisting on... " Izuku sighed, hugging himself a little.
" Hey... Are you feeling better? " Katsuki asked in a soft voice. Deku just nodded.
" I-it's nothing... It's not the first time she's said something about me being a magical being or something... It's just that... More than anything it was just that... Ugh. " He closed his eyes. " Like I said, that-that nightmare leaves me feeling bad. I... I-I didn't feel nice that Tsuyu used that to bring up that theory again...
" Ew, why did that sound like half-fuckin'-half?
" ... Oh, that's right! Todoroki-kun used to make crazy theories! " Deku smiled a little.
"... If that frog asks you something like that again, punch her or something. That worked on Icy Hot."
Izuku couldn't help but laugh, and he was laughing out loud.
" Kacchan, you know I'm not like that " He shook his head but didn't stop laughing.
Katsuki sighed, feeling relieved that he could at least get a laugh out of the nerd.
They arrived at the stall, ate quickly, but didn't go back to the library because they stayed playing something in the street (Izuku proposed to play tag, basically shouting "Tagged!" when touching Ochako, and from there they started and were chasing and hiding from who was "tagging" them), and after about an hour and a half they went back to their respective homes.
Katsuki arriving home took his cell phone and opened the chat with Mina.
I [06:00 PM]:
Witch.
Something happened with Deku today. I went with him and Round Cheeks to the library.
Pinky Witch shithead [06:01 PM]:
Oops, Hi Blasty! You never say hello, you dumbass 👿
Anyways
I'm surprised you talked to me first before Eiji about my hair-twin stuff 👀.
That means I already have ✨rights✨? 😳
But ok.
What do you mean by "something happened"?
I [06:03 PM]
...
Uh...
It's just that he told us more about his nightmare.
That one that I told you guys he thought he was dying?
Besides reconfirming to me that it's not even HIM in the dream, but a big blond guy, he told us more about what he dreams about.
I...
Is it worse than what I remember him telling me?
Pinky Witch shithead [06:04 PM]:
What do you mean by worse?
Me [06:04 PM]:
Well...
Katsuki stared at his screen. Was he really supposed to tell her about the nerd's dream? Maybe even tell her about the stupid thing frog face did...?
He was writing and erasing what he was going to tell him, wanting to summarize as much as he could about the nerd's dream now with more context, but it was difficult, since everything he told them sounded... Important.
Me [06:10 PM]:
The nerd says he dreams of a battle between two dudes. One blond guy dressed in green and red with airbender tattoos and water tribe boots (very specific, which is kind of weird to me), and another in black (nothing specific, he even says he can't see his face). When we were black and white he told me that he could not see the fight at all, but today he said he could see things, as if little by little the more time passed he could see more things? He also said that he FEELS how the four elements pass through him. Then he says the one in black pierces the tattooed one with earthen spikes, and Deku FEELS the spikes going through HIM. He says he feels his organs being ripped apart by the blond one's organs. Then he says that the black one talks and talks but he doesn't understand a thing and that the blond one also ends up killing the black one. And when he wakes up, the pain he felt while he was asleep doesn't disappear until a while later. And he did tell me that when he told it to me the first time, but he says that more and more things are being added and... Ugh. He says it feels too real...
And after he told that to Squirrel Cheeks, me, and two other guys who are his friends, (I don't know if you remember, they're the ones we were following when we went to McDonald's... A mastodon with glasses and a frog faced bitch. Do you remember?). The frog facesaid... something. And it made Deku VERY uncomfortable.
And well... I don't know.
We all got really pissed off...
Katsuki was expecting me to send her a message back very quickly, since Mina was typing like a speedball, but he spent a whole minute watching the "message" icon go back and forth.
Pinky Witch shithead [06:15 PM]:
I'm gonna call ya
Katsuki stared at his cell phone screen as he read that message. And although he already had the warning that the bitch would call her, he still jumped when he felt the vibration of the cell phone in his hands.
" Holy shit, bitch! What do you want to call me for?!
" Kats, no shit, you come to me with this Midoriya's dream, and you ask me why I'm calling you? " He could only imagine how the girl had pouted. But he heard her sigh a little. " Okay, just calm down. I'm going to ask you several questions. Is the dream recurring?
" Of course. " Katsuki rolled her eyes.
" Hmmm... How much?
" Uh... He said every twenty eight days, that's every full moon... I think he even gave it a name, something about a red moon.
" Ah, gee it's like the lunar cycle... And red moon... Hmmm... I wonder if that has something to do with his dream... Red moons are from eclipses."
" Is that a bad thing?"
" I don't know... I need to ask my Auntie; I think it does have to do with eclipses and dreams but I'm not sure... Hey, don't you think he might want to do a session with me? Or even come to my house for a consultation with my Auntie?
" ... " Katsuki sighed, leaning against the wall. " I don't think so. He got very uncomfortable with something the frog said to him."
" You did tell me they said something to him... " Mina seemed to be grinding something out, as you could hear even the microphone. " But that dream does seem like something beyond just something her subconscious wants to tell her, you know?
" ... Uh, I guess?"
" Can I ask what that other girl said...? Wait, what's her name?"
" Asui? I think... She has a frog face. " Katsukiheard Mina laughing on the phone. " Uh... She said... " Katsuki swallowed. " She told him that... It could be... The guy from the stories... But I doubt it! The bastard can't bend a single element! I doubt that's even possible!"
Mina was quiet for quite a while, even seemed to stop grinding, making Katsuki think that maybe she'd even cut off the call or something.
" Kats... Do you remember when we first met Midoriya I tried to see his hands?"
" ... What did you see?"
" I didn't get to see much, but I did see something strange about his past lives... " It started making that annoying noise again. " The lines were many, but I saw them half blurred. I... I didn't tell them, but I can also see if someone is or is not a master in one's hands. For example, on your hands you have a little X below the index finger, do you see it? It may be half blurred because the elemental marks are not very visible..."
Katsuki looked at his hand raising an eyebrow,
" I see it."
" Well... Well that mark is the fire mark. " Katsuki stared at the cross there. " On the index finger is the fire one, on the middle finger is the air one, on the ring finger is the earth one, and on the little finger is the water one.
Katsuki tried to see if he didn't have any of the other marks like where the witch said and just frowned upon seeing nothing.
" Non-masters are NOT supposed to have any of those Xs. None, literally. And Midoriya has... one at least, I don't remember which one but... I was surprised to see him because you said he doesn't bend a single element. Since you interrupted, I couldn't see any more to check or do anything...
" ... I don't believe you. " Katsuki started to shake his head. " No. It's not possible. No. He doesn't bend any elements, maybe you're wrong about that. I don't think so."
" ... " Mina sighed. " If you don't want to believe me that's fine, but if Midoriya agrees to let me read his hand tomorrow when we go to the gym to train, you're going to believe me."
" Tch. Yeah, sure. " Katsuki rolled her eyes. " I must go."
" It's okay Kats.:
Katsuki didn't even say goodbye properly, just hung up and took a deep breath...
... No. The nerd was normal. And nah. None of those stories were real. There was no one who could bend the four elements, Deku was just a normal guy, there were no reincarnations, no. No. Nope.
Just. No.
The truth is that what Tsuyu said, the awkwardness, the discomfort, everything...
It had left him exhausted, not like when he fell or memories came to him that he was sure weren't his (... Wait, with what Tsu-chan said... What if...? ... No! No. Hahahaha. No) but it was enough to want to become one with the blankets. So when Izuku got home all he could think about was wanting to go to bed.
" Mommy, I'm home! " he said, taking off his shoes.
" Izuku! How nice! " His mother greeted him from the kitchen. " Come help me as soon as you put your things away, please!
Izuku sighed a little, apparently, he wouldn't be able to sleep but... His mom needed help! Before going to his mom, he went to the bathroom and washed his face quickly, and as soon as he got to the kitchen, heput on an apron.
" What can I help with, Mom?"
" Please set the table!"
Izuku nodded and quickly went to set the table. Within ten minutes they were sitting down to eat: Inko had prepared five-flavor soup and some Komodo meatballs spiced with chili and cabbage (a recipe from Auntie Mitsuki. Her mom was happy because Auntie had passed the recipe on to her that morning! And of course she tried to make it instantly... And if you ask him, he liked the way it turned out better for her than for Auntie Mitsuki, but don't tell her!).
" Izuku, I want to ask you for a favor this week..."
" Uh? " he looked up from her food. " What happened?
" One of my old customers is coming back to town and I'm going to serve him again, and well... " She sighed, smiling a little sideways. She sipped some of her soup to finish. " I need you to come with me to help me set up my workspace.
" Oh. Okay... " Izuku sipped some of his soup. " Who came back?
She smiled mischievously at him.
" It's a surprise~ " She said simply. " But I need you to come with me for the whole day. I'm going to call the school to tell them about the situation.
" Oh, okay... " Izuku tilted her head to the side... " If you need me to accompany you without going to school it means that you must carry many things..."
" More or less. " She shrunk back. " Just so... Do you remember I took a chiropractic course a few years ago? How I added it to my resume? The place where they're going to put me is to do that. I think we must even paint the room. " She rolled her eyes. " But... It could be fun! Don't you think?
" P-Painting walls is fun? " She shrugged her shoulders. " I... If you're going to treat someone with chiropractic care, then it's someone who does a lot of exercise, I guess? " Izuku ate a piece of meatball and stared at his mother for a few seconds. "... Can I guess who? " He smiled a little, starting to move his legs up and down more excitedly.
" ... " His mother closed her eyes, waiting for the string of questions and analysis the boy would begin.
" Let's see... An elderly customer... " He started slurping the soup from the bowl. " Is he an old man?
" I wouldn't say older gentleman... But I think he's older than me."
" Uh... " He put a hand to his lower lip, squeezing it a little. " Is he coming alone?
" He's a family man with kids~"
" Hmmm... Have you attended... about... three family men, then that narrows down the possibilities... And if he just came back to town... you mea- WAIT A SECOND!" The boy's eyes widened like saucers looking at her.
She smiled even more, with a smile that reached his eyes, and just nodded.
The next day at the two boys' school, Katsuki arrived at the classroom and didn't see the nerd... Did he fall asleep again?
And it was time for class and... nothing. Nothing. He didn't show up.
Not even at recess.
Me [10:05 AM]:
Nerd, why didn't you come?
Katsuki was staring at his cell phone for a while... He grimaced. Is the nerd okay, did he fall asleep...?
He went to eat quickly, before his recess time ran out.
As he was biting into an apple, he felt a vibration in his pants.
Nerd [10:20 PM]:
Hey Kacchan! (・∀・)
Ah, uh... things came up with my mommy (・﹏・).
I couldn't...
In fact I'm not going to be able to go to the Gym today either.
Nor tomorrow to school.
Nor tomorrow to the library.
And neither the day after tomorrow to anywhere.
And on Saturday I have an appointment with Inui-san 🐕
I'm sorry.
I think I won't be able to reply to you these days because I'm going to be busy hehehe.
So (~ ~ ╹▽╹ )~
Sorry~
Katsuki closed his eyes...
I [10:21 PM]:
Ok.
Did that sound cut? Maybe a little.
But now he was wondering what things came up that are more important than school? Or than his research and pro-bending?... Is Auntie Inko okay!?
It has been three days since that message, and two days without receiving any information from the nerd.
He had told him he wasn't going to answer him anyway! But he couldn't help but worry.
Katsuki was walking in circles in the lobby of Denki's gym, biting his lower lip and looking at the latest messages Deku had sent him.
What was going on? Why couldn't he answer? He said he had to help Auntie Inko with something, and he didn't go to school, which denoted that... Maybe Auntie Inko was ill, sick or something. And if so, they should have at least told the old hag shouldn't they? But no. And he didn't understand why!
" Did you get anything from Deku-kun yet? " Round Cheeks asked, looking at him from her seat.
Katsuki just shook his head.
" What about you?"
" Neither did I…"
" Donkey ace?"
" You haven't answered my TikToks…"
" Witch?"
" Ah, Kats. Well, no. Not even a cute emoji from the ones he makes..."
Katsuki sat back in her place, bringing his hands to his hair, and pulling it a bit.
" It's just that it's weird that he disappeared... He's shy, but he's never left me in the dark before. " Uraraka shifted her feet nervously. " And I felt bad when I found out that he copied and pasted the messages he sent to you... He never does that... Or does he?
Being that the nerd hadn't come to school for three days and had too much homework left for him (and now that he thought about it, maybe he should have used it as an excuse to get the nerd to answer him? But he didn't), he hadn't met with Round Cheeks or his friends, or the nerd's friends. That Friday was the first day he'd had off since Wednesday (which was a good thing because they had just under a week left until their first pro-bending game), so you can imagine the situation. The first thing Round Cheeks did upon arriving at the gym was ask him about Deku, and he showed her his messages which was literally the exact same thing Deku had sent him, including the emojis.
It got to the point where Coconut Head forced him to even send him a "hello". But the nerd didn't answer... For half an hour.
And if we count that the only ones who were there were the two of them, Donkey Face and Witch, well...
They needed to practice, but without the rest of the team and the coach...
" I guess he's busy as hell... " Katsuki rolled his eyes but grimaced again. He stood up again and continued circling the lobby. " Still, this isn't typical of the nerd..."
" Especially with these things... He was supposed to help the team today, wasn't he? " Denki wiggled his feet more impatiently than the brown haired one. "It's the last week before the game..."
" Yep."
" And if they're not complete, we'retoast." Denki said, leaning back on his knees.
" At least we know that Eiji and Sero will be late... " Mina sighed, looking at the ground. Katsuki sat on the couch right in front of her. " What do we do, do we call him?
" ... Fuck his mother, I'm going to call him. " Katsuki blurted out, looking for the contact on the cell phone. When he found it, she stuck his phone to his ear.
Uraraka got up from her place and approached the blond, but he stopped her from invading his personal space by raising his arm. Obviously, the girl puffed out her cheeks, but Katsuki ignored her.
" Put it on speaker~ " Coconut Head said sitting next to him. Katsuki rolled his eyes but ended up heeding.
With the phone on loud, she only heard one, two, three... Four rings on hold...
""Who's calling?"" Answered a strange voice on the other end of the line, a low, serious voice, very expressionless. In the background, Katsuki heard voices singing along with music from a radio, probably. Strangely, though, it sounded like an artist Auntie Inko liked, that... Yuan… Hedidn't know what.
" ... Who the fuck are you and why are you using the nerd's cell phone? " Katsuki asked with a frown. The other three stared at each other, silent.
" Who do you want to talk to? '' the inexpressive voice asked. The background music continued, and he heard a female voice singing in the background as well.
Katsuki motioned for everyone to be quiet, to which they complied.
" What do you mean, with who?! With the owner of the fucking cell phone, asshole! Or did you steal it from the nerd?!"
" ... I'm sorry, I think you have the wrong number. The owner of the cell phone is not named Nerd."
" Listen, you fucking asshole-" " Katsuki saw the screen of his cell phone flash and the "Call ended" sign appear.
" Who was he?! " Mina asked, shouting as usual.
" You think I know?! I'm going to call him again! He better not have stolen the nerd's cell phone, or I'm going to find him and kill him, you are a fucking thief! He sure is a thief! " He said redialing the number.
" ... That was very gay, Bakubro. " Denki said quietly, to which Katsuki raised his middle finger at him.
One, two, three rings, and he answered that sucky voice again.
"Who's calling?"
"OH LOOK WHO'S HERE! THE FUCKING THIEF! You stole this cell phone from-"
"Oh, it's you again. Excuse me, but this phone doesn't belong to anyone called nerd. I suggest you don't-"
" Todoroki-kun! " He managed to hear a voice in the distance... It's the nerd! " Who's been calling you so much?"
" Oh, it's not mine, it's your cell phone. But they're looking for a "Nerd."
" ... Todoroki-kun, Kacchan calls me Nerd in case you're not- Wait! Kacchan is dialing me!"
" Deku?! Wait... HALF-AND-HALF?!
" ... Bakugo-kun? Oh, wow. No wonder I recognized your voice. You should ask about the person, not nicknames... I thought you were a stranger."
"Ugh you're a damn jerk... Pass me the nerd now!"
" All right, but don't yell at me... " The one with the monotone voice seemed to get up from a chair as it squeaked. Bakugo-kun wants to speak to you."
" I can't answer, Todoroki-kun. Put it on speaker please…"
" How do I do that?"
" Oh, with the button that says "speakerphone". It's next to the hang up button."
" Okay... " Almost another minute passed between the damn Icy-Hot trying to put it on speakerphone, which irritated Katsuki. He was running out of credit, damn it!
And when she was finally on speaker...
" Kacchan! What happened? I told you I was going to be busy…"
" Who do you think you are?! Fucking nerd! Don't tell me you forgot what day it is today!"
" Friday?"
" That's right."
" Hey, I don't understand. I did tell you I'd be busy today…"
" But you had an commitment with us earlier. " Katsuki snorted. " You were going to help us today with partner training, remember?
" ... Oh... OMG! E-eh... " He seemed to throw something. " Give me twenty or thirty minutes! I'll be there in a minute! " Deku seemed to start moving. He couldn't quite hear what else happened, he just heard "take care sweetie"... Was he with Auntie Inko? Wait, now that he thought about it... Why is she with Mint Stick?!
" Bakugo-kun " He heard Icy Hot.
" What do you want?"
" Can I go with Midoriya, wherever he's going to go? " He seemed to remove the high voice because now he could hear him better.
" ... No."
" But he's going to meet you, isn't he?
" What about that?"
" I want to see my old friend…"
" We're not friends! Don't come, you bastard!"
" ... I'm going anyway. Bye, Bakugo-kun. See you in twenty or thirty minutes, as Midoriya said."
" I TOLD YOU NOT TO YOU DUMB-" And the fucker hung up on him again with a bang.
" ... What was that? " Mina asked, but she started laughing loudly, looking at him.
" It's none of your business!
" Do you know the "thief"? " Uraraka asked, holding in her laughter.
" I keep saying it, that was so gay~"."
" Ugh. leave me alone! He's just a friend of the nerd! " He rolled his eyes. "... Who, by the way, is arriving in twenty to thirty minutes.
After twenty minutes, Sero and Kirishima had already arrived at the gym. So, even without a coach, they began to practice quickly in teams of two, changing places every minute. The elements went left and right from one side to the other until the bell rang, and Mina rang, and they had to change places.
And Kaminari was complaining, because, as Izuku had not arrived and they closed the door while they were there, he had to wait for the green-haired one to arrive. And as he was very impatient, he kept sending him messages.
[Chat with Midobrocoli ].
I [04:50 PM]:
Are you coming, Midobro? ️👄 ️
He sent the third message in those ten minutes since Bakugo tagged Mido and replied that "thief" he said.
Midobrocoli [04:51 PM]:
Kaminari-kun, I already told you that I'm coming.
That you wait for me for a few minutes...
I told you, I'm on my way...
ರ╭╮ರ
I [04:51 PM]:
Ayyyyyyyy
Hurry up! ಠ︵ಠ
It's just that it's well, it's boring to wait for you!
Midobrocoli [04:53 PM]:
Oh come on!
You're not waiting that long!
I'm almost there
Don't get me so upset yet ( '◡‿◡`).
And as if that was a sign from the protective spirits of "no more boredom", he managed to hear a door slam and voices about two minutes after closing the chat. He rushed up to open it and saw the green-haired boy next to a somewhat luxurious car full of white stuff on his face, arms, and red clothes (which was strange because Izuku wore water tribe clothes, but today he was wearing fire nation clothes). And next to him, there was a boy with hair divided into two colors: red and white, and a large mole on his face dressed in high altitude clothes of the fire nation. The car that brought them was gone almost instantly.
" Ah, here you are at last, Mido! " he smiled mockingly. " And you brought company!"
" Kaminari-kun!" Izuku turned to see him smiling." Look, Todoroki-kun! He's Kaminari-kun, he's one of the friends I help with the elements, although he's not part of the team I train! " He pointed to the blond-haired boy. "Kaminari-kun, this is Todoroki-kun, an old childhood friend of mine and Kacchan." He said while pointing to the strange-haired boy.
" Nice to meet you, Kaminari-kun." He bowed softly.
" Wow, you made friends with a fire-pop idol with distinctive hair and big mole face? " Denki said jokingly, playfully nudging Izuku.
" ... Fire pop?" The boy with the mole in his eye turned to look at Izuku. " Why are you telling me that, is it because of the burn on my eye? " Denki's eyes widened like saucers, to which Izuku could only smile patiently.
" No, Todoroki-kun. He's saying that because he thinks you're good looking, like the boys in the boy band posters your sister has in her room, like BTS or the Super Juniors. " She patted him on the shoulder. " And don't feel down for those things, that's how we all get along in this group, we tease each other and flatter each other in somewhat awkward ways."
" What? The-the thing about...? " Denki put his hands to his mouth. " Spirits! Dude! Are you okay?"
"... Why wouldn't I be okay? " Shoto cocked his head to one side.
"E-Eh... Because you have…"
"Oh, the scar? Don't worry about it. " He said, scratching his cheek below the scar. "I've had it for a long time, and it doesn't hurt anymore"
" ... Ah...
" I like you, here. " He said suddenly, taking out a small square of paper inside a cellophane bag from his pants and gave it to him. Denki took the thing between his fingers and his eyes widened like saucers.
" T"Thank you..."
They stood for a few seconds in awkward silence.
" Then shall we go in? " Izuku just kept the patient smile in place. " They're training already, aren't they?"
" H-huh... Yes!" Denki said and ran in, to which Izuku followed him, while pulling Shoto by the arm a little.
In the training area, Shoto and Denki went to sit in the bleachers and Izuku went straight to where Mina was sitting, not making too much of a racket so the boys wouldn't get distracted.
From his backpack he pulled out his notebook, watching the boys and jotting down a few things.
Shoto watched him from afar and then cocked his head to the side, looking at the pink haired one.
Shoto stared silently at the boys training, and then at the green-haired one along with the girl with the distinctive pink hair. He got up from his seat without saying anything to Kaminari and walked to where the two were.
When he arrived, he just sat down on one of the bleachers and looked down at the clump of green hair.
"Midoriya-kun"
"Uh?" Izuku looked up. "Todoroki-kun! What are you doing here? I thought you were staying with Kaminari-kun"
"... I got bored."
"Oh my! Who's the handsome boy? " Mina looked up too, seeing the one with heterochromatic eyes.
" Ashido-san! This is Todoroki-kun, an old friend of mine and Kacchan. " Izuku said, pointing at the boy. " Todoroki-kun, this is Ashido-san. She's another one of our friends."
" It's a pleasure... " Shoto bowed slightly.
" Not only handsome, but polite! You sure have a lot of girls dying for you!
" ... People-people die because I'm polite?..."
" ... What the…"
" TODOROKI-KUN SHE DOESN'T MEAN IT LITERALLY! " Izuku said waving his arms like crazy.
" Oh... Eh... Then what does she mean?
" N-nothing! I was just... saying that you look handsome and that's all. " Mina looked at him with a nervous smile. Todoroki stared at her and cocked his head to one side.
" ... Thanks, I guess…"
" A-and how did you two meet? " Mina asked, changing the topic of conversation.
" Oh, uh... Midoriya-kun's mother is a nurse... Uh... She takes care of my father and used to take care of my brother. So... one day they took Bakugo-kun and well... the three of us played. But I had to move away because my brother died, and we hadn't seen each other for many years..."
" Oh... " Mina blinked, turning to the side. Damn! That was awkward...
" ... I like you too, here." She pulled out another cardboard square in a cellophane bag and handed it to the girl.
" ... Oh? Thank you!" She put the bag in her shorts without reading the contents. " I like you too!"
That made the double"haired boy smile a little.
Ten more minutes passed. Suddenly Izuku simply shouted.
" Okay, I've seen enough, and I think I've got a few more little mistakes coming their way! " He walked over to the main platform and stood next to the boys but seemed to say something to Kirishima who had a slight grimace.
And apparently what he told him was to rest, because he started walking to the bleachers where Mina and Shoto were.
" Mina, do you think you can check my shoulder? Midobro says he thinks I hurt it and it kind of hurts..."
" Oh! Sure Eiji~ " She smiled at him. He sat down next to her, taking off his dungarees and shirt. She lifted some water from her water bottle and started making motions with her hands checking the boy's shoulder, though the water didn't glow as it normally had to when healing...
For his part, Shoto just stared at him, blinking... He cocked his head to one side.
Kirishima felt the gaze on him and turned to look at the boy.
" ... Hello! I'm Eijiro Kirishima! " The red-haired one said suddenly, raising his unoccupied hand to shake hands with the dual-colour haired one.
" ... Shoto Todoroki. " He said, bowing and leaving Kirishima with his hand up for a few seconds... Then he came to his senses and shook his hand gently.
" I have never seen you before. Where are you from, Todobro? " the boy asked, keeping his big smile.
" Todobro? That's not my name."
" Todoroki-kun, that's what Eiji calls all the little brown people. They are all "Bro" to him, it's nothing bad or rude. " Mina said calmly, giving him a small smile of patience. She had figured out how to treat Todoroki after their first interaction.
" Oh, thank you for the explanation, Ashido-san... " He gave a slight bow again.
" So...?"
"... Oh, right... Uh, I'm not from here. I was born in the Capital City of the Fire Nation. " He said calmly. He came a little closer.
" Wow, an outsider! " Shoto nodded upon hearing this. " And why did you come here?"
" I... My father is the new councilman of the fire nation in Republic City. " He said quietly. " Many years ago I lived here because my father was the general of the city's militia, leading the firebenders' military squadron, but we moved back to the capital for personal reasons, and then we came back here."
" Wow! And how is it there? Do you like it better here or there?"
" ... I don't know."
" You don't know? You didn't go out much?"
" No. " He said suddenly, seriously, as if it was a bad thing to go out. Kirishima felt a slight shiver. Boy were the Fire Nation weird: Denki was too extroverted for his own good, Bakubro was too angry for his stomach to take so much stress and spice aside, and now Todobro was... Like this.
" Ah, I'm sure it's because you can't bring yourself to go out. But if you join us, I assure you, you'll go out a lot!
" No, thanks."
" Why is that? " Kirishima raised an eyebrow.
" I like to stay at home. I don't like going out much".
" Oooh... " Kirishima nodded. " Well that's very manly, I like it!
Todoroki smiled, cocking his head to the side.
" ... I like you too, here. " He handed her another one of those little cellophane boxes he had given to Denki and Mina.
" Oh! Thank you! " Kirishima read what it said quickly. " Wow! And you were saying you don't like him?"
" Done! " Mina said suddenly, throwing the water back into the bowl from which she got it. She patted him on the back. " You can go back now, Eiji."
" Oh! Thanks, Mina! See you, Todobro, and thanks for this~ " He said suddenly, getting up and jumping to the platform area.
Another twenty minutes passed, between Denki arriving with Shoto and Ashido, and Ashido was holding Shoto's hands while doing something strange. The double-haired boy wasn't paying too much attention to those two, even though she seemed to be playing with his palms, just looking straight ahead while Midoriya seemed to be giving instructions to the group of boys in colorful uniforms. The one he recognized as Katsuki, from the clump of blond hair sticking out of the top of his helmet, was surprisingly serious, frowning and nodding at the green-haired one's words.
Izuku had told him that after three years, things between him and Bakugo-kun had calmed down and they were even friends again, but he hadn't expected that he wasn't yelling at them like usual... He wondered what had happened to make him calm down so much? And if he did calm down, why had it been the Bakugo-kun he already knew from the phone?
" Well~ I think that's enough for today... I say let's get going shall we? " He said standing on his toes and coming down to his heels excitedly. " Next week we'll be coming here to train every day to prepare well for Saturday's first competition! " He raised his fists in excitement. Uraraka, Sero and Kirishima imitated him while Bakugo just snorted while rolling his eyes, although he could see a small smile, but Shoto didn't know why he smiled.
The group approached where they were, and the scarred one kept looking at the blond who took off his helmet.
" ... Bakugo-kun. " Shoto blurted out to get their attention. Katsuki remained static for a few seconds...
" Oh fuck me... " He stared incredulously at the two-colored hair. " What did I tell you, you bastard? What did I tell you?"
" Not to come." He shrugged his shoulders. "But I warned you that I was coming anyway, besides Midoriya agreed, even our driver brought us... " Shoto said calmly.
" ... No shit Deku, is it true?" He turned to look at the green-haired man with a fierce look. But Izuku just smiled patiently.
" Kacchan, Todoroki-kun was excited to see you..."
Katsuki turned to look at him while closing his eyes... Todoroki-kun only blinked for a few seconds, to make a slight bow.
" Even if you don't want me here, it's nice to see you again..."
" The pleasure is NOT mine, bastard. " He folded his arms, frowning.
" Wait, and who are you?" Sero came asking, looking at the boy with the scar in his eye.
" I'm a friend of Midoriya-kun and Bakugo-kun."
" I'M NOT YOUR FRIEND! " Shouted the blond, showing him his fist in a threatening manner.
" Of course you are."
" No, I'm not."
" Yes, I am."
" No, I'm not."
" Yes, you are."
" NO!"
" Now, calm down, both of you! " Izuku jumped in, smiling a little nervously. " Please don't go fighting... Sero-kun, Ochako-chan, this is Todoroki-kun."
" And he's friends with you and Blasty, I heard " Sero smirked. Katsuki raised his middle finger to the black-haired man, and he returned the gesture.
" Ha!" Ochako laughed at their rude interaction. She turned to look at Shoto. "I'm Ochako Uraraka! I hope we get along well! " She said in a friendly manner, giving him a smile.
" Nice to meet you, Uraraka-san. " He smiled a little, bowing only his head. " Midoriya-kun told me about you too."
" Oh! Really?"
" Hey, don't leave me out! " Sero complained, prodding Uraraka's ribs. She nudged him to stop poking her.
" Oh, right. Excuse me.. " Shoto bowed. "Nice to meet you, Sero-kun.
" Wow, how polite! Did a military man educate you or what? " He raised both eyebrows.
" Yes, my father is in the military. But I don't recommend being educated by one, it's annoying."
"... Oh."
Katsuki was about to laugh at that conversation because of how awkward Horse Teeth got. But he fell silent when he saw Shoto's face. He had a strange spot above his eye, a spot he didn't remember...
" And what's that on your face? Is it paint? A mole? It looks cool~ " Sero said raising both eyebrows, hoping that would calm the atmosphere he himself had caused with his previous comment.
" Oh, no... It's... It's a scar."
" ... Oh " The boy blinked, everyone was silent...
" Sero, I think not," " Ochako was saying, but Sero blurted out.
" Did you make it fighting ten thousand ninjas?" He asked jokingly.
" My older brother did it to me before he committed suicide? " He said in a somber voice. " He wanted to do a murder-suicide on me, but I was able to get away with it before he killed me along with him. After that we moved to the fire nation to help me with treatment because I almost lost my eye.
" ... Ah... " Sero stood static, completely uncomfortable. Everyone was silent, even Denki and Mina who already knew a little about the double-haired boy.
" ... I like you guys. Here take this." He said suddenly, taking out two of those little cellophane bags and giving them to Ochako and Sero. Sero was still static, and just took the package and put it in his pants bag. Ochako, for her part, sighed, took the baggie, and quietly thanked him.
" I think that was enough introduction and talk! " Izuku shouted, suddenly approaching those two, keeping the nervous smile from earlier. " T-Todoroki-kun, why don't you give Kacchan what you wanted to give him? " He said, putting a hand on his shoulder, trying to change the topic of conversation.
" Oh, right. Bakugo-kun, come, come. " For some reason the boy's polite attitude changed a little when talking directly with Midoriya or Bakugo. He looked excited.
Katsuki closed his eyes and took a few steps forward.
" Stretch out your hand, please…"
" What for? " He closed his eyes even more, completely distrustful of that moron in front of him.
" Just do it, Kacchan! " Deku said, swaying on his feet.
" No! The last time I did, he put a fucking snail in my hand! " The blond gave a grunt.
" Kacchan, we were eight years old, and you told him to put the snail down." Izuku saw him pouting.
" Wow, you three really were friends! " Round Cheeks said, still laughing. Shit, he forgot they were still here!
Katsuki let out a snort and raised his arm.
" Don't look." Shoto said, shoving his hands into his pants pockets.
Katsuki rolled his eyes again and closed them.
Suddenly, she felt how the two-colored dumbass left a strange object in his hand, it felt like it was made of plastic, like cellophane? A cellophane bag, with something inside.
" He can open his eyes now. " When he opened his eyes, he saw that on his hand he had the cellophane bag he felt.
" ... What the fuck is this?" He took the invitation while raising an eyebrow.
" It's an invitation to my father's housewarming party. I was allowed to invite some friends, and I'd love for you to come."
" He invited us too! " Kirishima said suddenly, showing the same invitation, to which Denki and Mina also showed them. Sero looked at his invitation, as did Ochako.
" Oooh! This is what you were giving everyone! How nice! And you barely know us! " The girl smiled kindly.
It was at that moment that he noticed that their invitations were red, but his was yellow.
" Hey, you half-witted half-wit, why is it a different color? " he asked, raising an eyebrow.
" Oh, it's a numbered invitation. It's for you to sit at my table with my family and my father's future coworkers... " Said the boy calmly. " Midoriya-kun and you would sit next to me at that table?
" Yes! We'll be surrounded by boring politicians! " Izuku said jokingly, sticking out his tongue.
" Ew, politicians. " Said the black-haired one grimacing.
" Don't worry guys, during the party we can stay with you, you're at a normal guest table, but there shouldn't be a problem with that. " The one with the scar answered.
" Ugh... " He felt disgusted just thinking about it. But... he just sighed. He lifted his foot and tucked the bag into his uniform boots. " Thanks...
" You're welcome. " The dumbass smiled a little, to which Katsuki could only roll his eyes.
It wasn't long when Mina's cell phone rang, after which she said a quick goodbye. So did Kirishima, Sero, Denki and Ochako. Izuku and Katsuki started to lock up the place with Denki's keys, and Shoto was just watching them silently... Oh boy, now that they remember, that's how their interactions went many times. Shoto did nothing, while the blond and the green-haired one did the games or planned things to entertain themselves.
When they were outside, Izuku turned around, looking at the two of them.
" Todoroki-kun, I think you forgot the other thing. " He said, bouncing on the tips of his toes.
" Oh, that's right. " He checked his pants again. " Bakugo-kun, reach out your hand again and close your eyes please. " He said, even more excited (yes, he was smiling, which for how the double-haired guy was, wasn't very normal). Katsuki looked as if the candy cane looked like a little kid, making his little friends come closer to show them something that "was secret" or "cool" according to him.
Katsuki had no choice but to do it. And that's how he felt he was tying his... Something on hiswrist.
This time he didn't wait for Shoto to tell him already, in fact, he still didn't feel him finish tying it when Katsuki had already opened his eyes, looking directly at what he put on his wrist.
It was a bracelet, which went around her wrist several times because it was long. It was orange with black. And handmade.
Half-Half lifted his arm, showing another perfectly handmade bracelet very similar to his including the long one, but it was blue with red. And Izuku, who stood next to the bastard, jumping on the tips of his toes, showed that he also had one, in various green colors.
" ... What the fuck, Half-Half?!"
" Friendship bracelets, Kacchan! " He waved his arm.
" WHAT THE FUCK?! I'M NOT YOUR FRIEND!"
" Then take the bracelet as my gift as your 'non-friend'. " He said very seriously.
" Ugh, I hate you. " He folded his arms, but... Then he looked at the bracelet again.
And it had his favorite colors. It was handmade... And it was long, very long indeed. It went around his wrist at least eight times. He tugged on it a little... it was strong. It wasn't badly made, and the threads would have to take a lot of pulling to break...
" I made them myself. '' Said the dumbass. "I used the kumihimo method. Natsuo, my brother, taught me a few days ago before he came back and said to do it to relax."
" Ah. " As if he needed that much of an explanation. Although he was curious about something... " Why are they so long? " Katsuki turned to look at Shoto, grimacing. They began to walk, as they normally did when they went out. Though of course, the addition of the other boy could perhaps divert them a bit.
" Oh. " Shoto simply shrugged " I guess so that they'd have more than one use. Midoriya-kun used it in the morning to tie his pants."
" They're good presents, aren't they, Kacchan? " The nerd smiled softly, looking at the blond.
" No."
" Oh, how ugly you are with Todoroki-kun, Kacchan... " But it seemed more like a reproach than something that would have hurt him. Meh.
" There's nothing wrong with him not seeing them as pretty. Maybe he's just saying that because it's just a bracelet for now. But maybe later it'll do him some good for something else."
" Uuugh... " He rubbed his hands over his face. But... "...Thank you. I-It's not that ugly... " He said quietly.
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
HEYYA! I'm sorry I'm late! I went back to school and I got stuck for a while, but here we are, although I can't promise I'll abandon this fic, I'll try to get as far as I can because I really like it!
Anyways, what do you think? Tsuyu is really smart, isn't she? Although she did go a little too far with her insistence hahaha but that's going to pay off in the future!
And TODOROKI IS BACK! And we saw a little bit of what he did and what happened while he was gone hahaha :D But here we are!
Pay attention to those bracelets that will be a mousketool that will be useful for us next time ;P
NOW THE QUESTION OF THE CHAPTER IS!
- What would you do with a meter and a half friendship bracelet?
Ok no the real question is:
- What question would you ask Shoto Todoroki to make you uncomfortable? HUEHUEHUEHUE