***Bakugo and Izuku are going to get more interactions with each other in the next chapter. I have a big plot to build first.
Also, it's tricky to write so many characters, but I need them for the plot. I may have to add more characters in the future.
***Warnings: Language, multiple character dialogue-heavy, mentions of violence, demanding Bakugo
***Please read and comment! Let me know how I'm doing! Thank you very much!
Chapter 4: The Unwelcome Todoroki Family
Once he was away from the others, Izuku asks a kobold to help guide him back to his room. The small creature leads the way. 'I wonder what they're talking about,' Izuku wonders while following the kobold. 'I hope it doesn't have anything to do with me...but how can it not? I'm the only human here.' Izuku's mind begins to wander as he imagines himself being cut up like a raw chicken and thrown into a pot to be eaten by demons. Izuku gulps. 'I hope they're not planning a feast...with me as the main course!' In a way, it was silly to think something so far-fetched yet at the same time, he is among demons and monsters.
"Thank you for your help," he says to the tiny creature. "I hope to learn my way around soon, so I don't have to keep bothering you."
The kobold doesn't reply and scurries up the wall and into a hole.
Izuku sighs and enters his room, feeling the need to latch the door shut behind him. Not that he thinks it would keep a demon out if they wanted in. Still, it made him feel a little more secure. He notices a smell when he sits on the bed. It's him. He hasn't bathed in a long time. Usually, he'd rinse off in a river or a lake. Maybe he should ask a kobold where he can get a bath. Thinking back to the demons at the table, they were all clean and well dressed. He wondered if they're more like cats that groom themselves to keep clean?
His thoughts are frighteningly interrupted when there's a knocking at his window shutters. Izuku remembers Iida's words; if the Moat Guardian knocks, answer it. He stares at the window, his body trembling and his face pale white. The knocking continues. Three knocks each time. Swallowing the lump in his throat, Izuku gets up and slowly walks to the window. Holding his breath at the next round of knocking, he lifts the small latch and opens the shutters. He comes face to face with a pair of large, round eyes and a frog-shaped mouth. Long green hair covered in moss and algae clings to the creature's body. Izuku's bottom lip trembles as he tries to stay calm and force himself to smile.
"Hello." It says with a female's voice.
"...hello," Izuku sees that, though the form is covered with muddy water, the young woman is naked. He slaps his hands to his face to cover his eyes.
"You're the human that fell from the sky," she states.
Izuku, eyes still covered, nods. "Y-Yes!"
"I've never seen a human before,"
"I-I've never seen something, I mean someone, like you before!"
"Why do you have your eyes covered?"
Izuku gulps again. "Y-you're a girl and not wearing anything," he says, peeking through his fingers and making sure to look at her face. She didn't seem concerned or care that she's naked.
"That's a funny thing to say. I live in the moat and swim in the water. Why would I wear anything?"
"It's your choice, miss!" he says. "I guess...um...humans prefer people clothed, that's all."
"...you're odd." She says.
'Speak for yourself!' Izuku thinks to himself.
"I'm Tsuyu, but you may call me Tsu. I guard the castle."
"G-Guard it from what?" Izuku asks.
"The monsters, of course,"
Izuku lowers his hands. "M-monsters?" He tries not to let his mind wander but he begins to imagine frightening beasts lumbering around in the dark with sharp teeth and claws.
"I know when they are coming and I alert the castle," Tsu tells him. "When I knock on your window, that means a monster is coming and you should stay in your room until it's taken care of,"
"So...is there a monster coming now? You knocked on my window!"
She shakes her head. "No. I just wanted to say 'hello'. I missed meeting you last time."
"Oh. Um...well...thanks for introducing yourself? I'm sorry, but I'm a little put off by this place. So many demons and creatures and monsters...I'm a little overwhelmed. I hope I don't come off as rude,"
"No worries," she says calmly. "We've never had a human before, or none that I can recall. I'd be glad to show you around the moat and the castle grounds if you have spare time? My home is actually right under your room."
Izuku looks down at his feet. "Oh, I'll try not to make too much noise, then!" he gave a lopsided smile. "I think I'm okay for now, Tsu. I may take you up on your offer when I've gotten a little more accustomed to this place."
She blinks wide eyes at him a few times as if considering, then nods. "Ribbit." She hops from the window and dives into the moat water.
Izuku looks at the water, watching her form swim away just like a frog. He smiles softly. 'She was nice. I guess the folks living here are just trying to get through the day; just like us humans are. Maybe in some ways, we're not so different after all,' As he looks up at the sky, a massive black beast with six arms and bat-like webbing flies overhead, casting an equally large shadow where Tsu just was. Izuku whimpers and slams the shutters closed, locking them. 'On second thought...some things are better left a mystery.'
Tokoyami adds the last equation to the map of the stars and moons, preparing for the reading to present itself. He goes to the sky lift crank and, with a grunt, opens the skyway doors. He aligns all the tools just right, each one pointing to the center of the navigation table where he will read, decode, and interpret what the heavens say. There is a knock from the trap door on the floor; he knows it to be Tsu coming up from the moat. Tokoyami grips the iron loop and pulls the door open so the Moat Guardian can hope inside.
"Please, wipe your feet first," Tokoyami scolds her.
"Sorry. I met with the human, Izuku. Also, Shoji is back. I saw him flying in. He'll probably report to Lord Bakugo and then come see you," She looks at the glowing table. "Are you doing a reading?"
Tokoyami nods, returning to the map. "Yes. The Dark King, All For One, has had his sorcerers prophesize a scenario. I want to see if my readings turn up any different,"
Tsu hops over to the table, watching Tokoyami. "What does the Dark King foretell?"
"He believes Izuku is the human in the prophecy. Currently, Lord Bakugo is planning to mate and marry Izuku to bear a half breed child, born of both heaven and hell," he looks to Tsu with a questionable expression. "Something just...doesn't seem right about all this,"
She nods, placing both hands on the table and peeking over the edge with her eyes. "I'll leave you to your reading...do you mind if I watch?"
"Not at all," Tokoyami focuses his power and concentration on the table map of stars and moons before him.
Tsu watches Tokoyami's spell ignite the table in a vast wave of multicolored flames and auras. She can feel them reflecting in her eyes. She doesn't know what they mean, but the dancing colors stimulate her brain and she cannot wait to hear what Tokoyami comes up with. If the human Izuku is the human in the prophecy, then she concluded he will need friends and protection in this world. She is more than willing to help protect him.
Tokoyami finishes his reading, opening his eyes and letting out a deep breath. Dark Shadow appears from his back, swirling around to face him with a smile and a chuckle.
"What did you see?" Tsu asks.
"The future is unclear," Tokoyami tells her. "The stars tell me that Izuku is a human of great power...but that power is uncertain. The moons reveal a figure, though their features are clad in darkness and mystery."
"Ribbit, ribbit. I wonder if there is a mystery even the magic of the cosmos can't tell us?"
Tokoyami turns to her. "That may be the case. But why is All For One putting so much stock on Izuku? I can't imagine His readings are much different than mine...what knowledge does he have that I don't?"
"Don't forget that He is the Master of All Evil. He has always been here, and He always was and always will be," she says. "We can't deny that He holds greater power than the rest of us, that includes knowledge."
Tokoyami taps his fingers against the table, puzzled by the outcome of his reading. "I don't have anything different to present to Bakugo...he will be cross with me,"
"What is All For One's readings exactly? Just make a half-breed human and demon child?"
"Yes. That's all that we know," Tokoyami sighs heavily, flopping into his chair and accepting the cup of wine Dark Shadow hands him. "There is no proof of who exactly Izuku is," he rubs his forehead. "The human omega appeared here for a reason. If he is the human omega from a prophecy reborn, then that makes him the successor."
"Hm...then our only missing piece is the human turned demon, the father of the unborn successor's child,"
"That is correct. The Dark King wanted Shoto to be the father...but the stars and moons mention nothing of the Todoroki bloodline. I saw Bakugo's face, but there is no way he has anything to do with this. If anything, he is only the stud stallion."
She hops over to Tokoyami's chair, reaching out to pet Dark Shadow. "Maybe Bakugo has a part to play in the prophecy. Remember, we don't know where he came from, or the others for that matter. Kirishima, Kaminari, Iida, Sero, Shoji...even yourself." She points out. "I feel that way about me as well. Have you ever wondered, Yami, how the group of us closest to Bakugo do not remember anything of our pasts?"
Tokoyami drinks the wine. "We have always been, Tsu," he says. "Eons have passed. Whatever memories we had, if we had them, are long gone."
Tsu hops over to him and adds, "If we had memories of the past...where did they go?"
"Memories of the past?" Tokoyami takes a moment to ponder. "We're otherworldly beings, Tsu. You're a guardian, Shoji and I are gargoyles, Bakugo and the others are demons. We've always been here...but I can't remember anything other than always being here."
'I think she has a point,' Says Dark Shadow. 'Or at least, it's something to consider,'
Tokoyami sighs again. "Perhaps. Let me present these slim findings to Bakugo, and we'll go from there."
Bakugo and Kirishima return from the hunt with their kills. He tells Kirishima to take the kills to the kitchen, and then to meet him back in the throne room. Though Kirishima didn't help him solve anything, it was a bit of a relief to talk to another alpha about his feelings. He would only open up to Kirishima, but won't spill his guts to the alpha either. Kirishima offered the bizarre idea that Izuku is the successor reborn, and he, Bakugo, the alpha human turned demon. Bakugo had scoffed at Kirishima, claiming that he has always been a demon and never a human. He would remember if he had been human.
The moment he sat on his throne, a goblin comes in with a message; an annoying message that has Bakugo's tail flicking madly and his horns twitching. He can feel his blood boil and his fangs grow in length. Shoto Todoroki, the goblin says, has arrived (unannounced) and is asking for an audience. Bakugo claws at the armrests, trying to keep his eye from twitching. He has said, many times in the past, to Shoto himself, that the bastard cannot show up without advanced notice. Bakugo can only assume that Shoto is here because the Dark King went behind his back and let the bastard know about Deku. Bakugo orders the goblin to first summon Kirishima and Iida to him, and then allow Shoto entrance.
Demon Blood Lord protocol for the visit of another is a full meal and drink with flawless hospitality. Bakugo spat on that long ago, and eventually, the other Blood Lords learned not to expect it from him. Once Kirishima and Iida appeared, Bakugo gave the order to summon Shoto inside. He will need Iida to help negotiate while Kirishima holds him back from attacking the other Blood Lord.
Bakugo sneers from his throne as Shoto Todoroki enters, followed by his estranged elder brother known as Dabi. Alongside Dabi is the only female demon of the Todoroki bloodline, Fuyumi. Shoto Todoroki, as always, is dressed as a wealthy gentledemon. Shoto's clothing is made of only the finest material while the rest of him oozes with jewelry and gems. Bakugo heard that Shoto wears this jewelry in memory of his mother, though to Bakugo, it looks like a demon showing off their wealth. Bakugo may not have an equal amount of wealth that Shoto has, but he makes up for it in notoriety, titles, and armies.
Bakugo looks at each one of them with a deep frown. The one known as Dabi looks nothing like the rest of the Todoroki family with the purple maimed skin and ash blue dark hair. Fuyumi never bothered him, for a strong female alpha demon, she keeps herself and her brothers in check. Bakugo recalls a fourth sibling, but that demon's whereabouts are unknown. Only Shoto, with his half-and-half symmetrical genes, present the full power of the Todoroki Family bloodline. One side completely red, from the tips of his horns to the duel spiked tail. The other side is white, giving the illusion of purity and serenity. Bakugo knows first hand that Shoto is the only Blood Lord of the Todoroki bloodline that can wield both powers of fire and ice equally. This is how the demon alpha rose to status and power over his siblings. If there is one positive thing Bakugo can say about Shoto, it is the demon's cunning and courage to have slain his own father, Enji Todoroki, with fire, ice, and blood. Shoto even crafted the skull of his father into a helmet, which he adorns in battle. Bakugo respects that aspect of Shoto Todoroki.
The rest of the demon Blood Lords, however, piss him off; and he wants the other out of his home and off his lands.
"Blood Lord Shoto Todoroki, and honorable Todoroki siblings," Iida starts. "We welcome you to Black Ram Hall! Do tell us what we owe this great pleasure?"
Shoto politely and calmly bows his head to Bakugo, as is Blood Lord protocol. Blood Lords bow only to one another and the Dark King. "I wouldn't arrive without prior notice," Shoto says. "However, I received a curious message from the Master of All Evil about the human who has fallen from earth."
Bakugo smirks at Shoto and says, "Yes. The human fell right into my hands. Sorry if you had to make the long trip here, but the human is under MY jurisdiction. The Dark King has entrusted the human to my care,"
Dabi takes a step forward and says, "Well, we've heard differently. The Master of All Evil told us this human might be the successor in the prophecy. The Dark King is looking for a half-blood child, born of heaven and hell. My little brother is capable of achieving this." He smirks.
Iida jumps in before Bakugo could blow his top. "Perhaps you have received the message before the fact, but our Lord Bakugo was already granted permission to marry the human omega and produce an heir!"
Shoto turns to Iida. "I do not debate that. But the message I received from the Dark King states differently. It would seem that our Dark Lord wishes for the human omega to choose which alpha husband he wants,"
Bakugo's eyes turn black as they focus upon Shoto. "I found the human. I house him. I feed and clothe him. The human belongs to me,"
Shoto, ever calm in the presence of Bakugo while others tremble, asks, "And, have you spoken to the omega human about this yet? It has come to my attention that All For One wants the human to decide between the two of us,"
Dabi smirks and adds, "This is not your specialty, Blood Lord Bakugo. Allow the Todoroki's to handle this delicate matter."
Fuyumi finally speaks up and says, "The human Izuku will be well cared for at our castle."
Bakugo hisses at her. "There is no reason why I cannot provide the same hospitality for the human! None of you have any business here! I have already claimed the human omega as my married mate, so take your family and return to your territory. You Todorokis stink up the place,"
Dabi is prepared to fire back when Shoto stops him from doing so.
"Fellow Blood Lord Bakugo, you have not answered my prior question; have you spoken to the omega human about this?"
"I don't have to ask the human anything!" Bakugo shouts. "I made my ruling!"
Kirishima can't help but jump in. "Let's be honest here, and speak plainly to one another. Izuku is an omega at the end of the day; we only need a stud alpha, and a strong one at that. Both Shoto and Bakugo are Alpha Primes. In this case, I don't think marriage is necessary."
"Kirishima is right!" Iida shouts. "The goal of this mission is to successfully produce a half breed child that will grant us the ability to ascend to earth and take control of both worlds!"
Bakugo stands from his throne. "That stud alpha will be me!"
Shoto rolls his eyes and says, "Perhaps we should sit the human down and explain to him what is happening, and let the omega decide,"
"The omega will choose me," Bakugo states matter-of-factly.
Shoto blinks and asks, "What makes you so confident, Blood Lord Bakugo?"
Before Bakugo can speak, Tokoyami bursts in, unannounced. Bakugo sneers and hollers at the gargoyle. Tokoyami falls to one knee before Bakugo.
"Forgive my intrusion, but I have read the moons and stars..."
Bakugo's eyes widened. "Speak then, bird-brain!"
Tokoyami stands up and says, "I have no doubt that Izuku is the human of the prophecy. Though the sky does not say this directly, I am going on what All For One told us, and I've pieced together my reading and His."
Fuyumi gasps softly and says, "Then, the legend of ages has finally come true?"
"The future is uncertain," Tokoyami says. "I believe that the Dark King knows more than He is telling us."
Kirishima adds, "If that's the case...then we have control over the successor of earth!"
Iida clasps his hands together. "Finally...after eons of waiting...the successor is in our grasp!"
"A child born of both heaven and hell," Dabi licks his lips. "Soon the upper world will be ours again!"
"The human must not know of the prophecy," Shoto says, turning his attention back to Bakugo.
"That's not fair to the human omega," Fuyumi says. "He has a right to know the truth,"
"But we don't know the true extent of his power," Tokoyami says. "Right now, he is only human and not a threat to any of us. However, he IS the successor, and as we all know in the prophecy, the successor has the power to banish us back to the darkness."
Shoto nods and says to the others, "So, All For One wants to control the successor before the human learns the truth."
"Is anyone even thinking about the future baby's involvement in all this?" Fuyumi asks.
"I'm with her," Kirishima seconds. "Using Izuku is one thing...but using a baby as nothing more than a tool?"
Dabi says, "That's why the human omega belongs with my brother. Todorokis have strong, noble blood," He drapes his arms over his brother and sister. "And we're a better family to raise a child."
"Hey now," Iida slaps his tail on the floor while the rest of his body twitches. "Regardless of what you may think of Bakugo's parenting, the child can and will have a very rich and well-educated upbringing! We're not blood-related, but all of us would be great uncles! Myself, Kirishima, Kaminari, Sero, Tokoyami, Shoji, even Tsu! The inhabitants of Black Ram Hall would make a lovely home for a child!"
"Why are you all talking like I'm not here?" Bakugo hollers. "This is my castle, now everyone shut up! Bring the human to us right now and we'll decide this once and for all!"
"Bakugo," Kirishima steps closer to him and whispers, "If you scare the shit out of Izuku by demanding, hollering, and screaming, he's going to run straight to Shoto! You want him, and you know you do."
Bakugo growls, his eyes solid black and his claws tapping on the armrests. Kirishima is right. Bakugo waves Iida over. "What do you suggest?"
"Let me talk to Izuku about this," Iida offers. "He may not want to adapt to demon culture. We want to make him feel calm while gently nudging him towards what we want."
"It's impolite to tell secrets in front of others," Dabi's voice echoes.
Bakugo orders Iida to quickly make a decision on how to present this to the human.
Iida steps down from the dais and says, "I will bring all this information to Izuku first before any decisions are made. While we all agree the main goal is to control the successor, it's all in our best interest to ensure that Izuku feels comfortable living among us. Right now, he is scared out of his wits, and who can blame him? I suggest a private dinner with both Blood Lords here at Black Ram Hall after I carefully mention this to Izuku. Do we all agree?"
Shoto shrugs his shoulders while looking at Bakugo. "I'm content with that arrangement."
"Whatever," Bakugo stands up and begins shouting orders. "Glasses, go prepare a proper statement for Deku! Kirishima, find Kaminari and the both of you get the half-and-half family in the guest quarters! Bird-brain, go lay an egg or something!"
"May I request the night off then?" Tokoyami asks.
"Yes. Unless I call on you, which then you have no time to rest!"
Izuku didn't know he had fallen asleep on his bed while waiting for a kobold to come back and tell him that he can bathe. It wasn't the creature that stirred him from sleep but rather the strong alpha scent of Bakugo. Izuku sits up quickly, searching the room for signs of the demon. Bakugo isn't inside the room, though the smell is growing stronger. 'He must be coming!'
Izuku gets off the bed, unlocks the door, and makes sure he looks presentable. The demon both excites and terrifies him. He stands in the center of the room, hands at his side, standing perfectly still and waits for Bakugo enter. The smell is stronger now as the latch lifts and opens. Izuku's body becomes slightly heated. He's reminded of Bakugo's naked body in the bedroom. It puts a little smile on his face. As usual, the demon lord is shirtless with tight black pants and high boots; it seems to be a favorite style for Bakugo. The second Izuku opens his mouth, Bakugo talks first.
"You're going to be my omega mate and husband and produce an heir for me! If any other demon Blood Lord says anything to you, tell him 'no!' Got it? Good!" Bakugo slams the door and leaves.
Izuku just stands there, wide-eyed, bewildered, and dumbfounded. "W-What?"
TBC
