A/N: Trigger warning for mentions of human trafficking. I hope everyone is still enjoying this story. I'm off for the holidays so hopefully I can post more.
..."Kacchan, did you really need to text me at 3:40 in the morning?" Deku complained, yawning as they met in the changing rooms to put on their hero costumes. They were about to meet with Endeavor and the other hero to go over the details of the team-up mission.
"I thought you'd be asleep, nerd," Bakugou replied, pulling his shirt over his head and tucking it in his trousers. Fuck knows, Bakugou needed sleep, but after finally falling asleep around 4am, he'd had to wake up at 7 to get ready for the day.
"Well, I wasn't," Deku said icily. "I was busy…" He was sitting on a bench, pulling on his boots.
Bakugou smirked. "Really? What were you doing?"
The fucking nerd's face flamed. "N-n-n-nothing! Just talking to Uraraka…it's just that your text came through at an….unfortunate time."
Bakugou folded his arms to lean up against the lockers. "Dude, were you sexting with Cheeks? Did I cock-block you?" He burst into laughter at the expression on the nerd's face.
" Don't do it again ," Deku warned as he stood up. Damned if the nerd didn't flex a bit of power, as green flashes illuminated the locker room for a few seconds. Bakugou was somewhat impressed, although still inwardly laughing his ass off.
"Which begs the question what you were doing up at that time, too," fucking Icy-Hot said in that monotone voice of his that never failed to make Bakugou's hackles rise.
"Tch. None of your fucking business."
Both the nerd and Icy-Hot shared a telling look that pissed Bakugou off even more. "What?"
"You were talking to Kaylee," Deku said in a sing-song voice. Now both bastards gave him shit-eating grins. Bakugou wanted to beat the fuck out of both of them, but managed to refrain.
"So what if I was?" Bakugou grabbed his gloves and gauntlets and began slipping them on. "The fuck do either of you care?" He popped a few explosions just to make the point that he wasn't going to discuss this any further. Amazingly, both assholes took the hint.
"She's got to be lonely at UA all by herself." Deku wondered. "It's a shame that her family decided it was best for her protection that she should stay."
Apparently the rumor that Kaylee was the daughter of a powerful Yakuza leader took off like wildfire throughout the school. Kaylee neither confirmed or denied it, which of course meant the whole thing was true. It was actually the most brilliant cover story, as most students were now either in awe of her or just completely terrified, which kept annoying asshole extras away from her.
"She's having a better time than we are," Bakugou told him honestly. "She and Eri have Aizawa wrapped around their fingers. They've been going to the beach at the USJ and watching Disney movies…"
"She must have got to my All Might selection!" Deku interrupted, jumping in excitement. "Is that why you texted me? I've honestly never thought about it before…"
"Texas is bigger than California if you go by land mass, but Kaylee said California has a larger population. And Detroit is a city, not a state."
Deku scratched his head, frowning. "If that's the case, then I wonder if there's an interview somewhere where he mentions this. Maybe he's got friends in each place and that's why he names the smashes, wasn't his friend David from California? I'm sure I saw an interview from his early period…"
Icy-Hot turned to Bakugou. "You do realize he's now going to walk to the old man's office talking about All Might and piss him off, right?"
Bakugou shrugged as he grabbed his collar and mask. "The old bastard should be used to it now. You remember when the nerd wore the All Might scarf when we first started?"
Icy-Hot let out a bark of laughter. "I thought his eyes were literally going to pop out of his head."
"Come on, let's go. We're going to be late," Bakugou grabbed Deku by the shoulder and pushed him out the door, the damned nerd still muttering under his breath about smashes and states.
…
"Goddamn it, Endeavor, I wasn't expecting you to bring fucking kids to this!" Reisu looked at Bakugou, Midoriya and Todoroki as though they were toddlers barely out of diapers. Bakugou opened his mouth to let the slimy bastard have it, but Endeavor held out a hand, stopping him.
"I told you I had interns with me," Endeavor replied in that deep voice of his. "These are some of the top students at UA and believe me, they have been through worse than whatever your pathetic mission could possibly be. I don't even normally allow team-ups but am making an exception in this case, so you can damn well deal with them or I can show you the door."
Reisu looked exactly like Bakugou thought he would. He was short, thin, with dark gray greasy hair and beady eyes that were so black, his pupils were indistinguishable. His clothes were soiled, torn, and looked like they were about fifty years out of fashion. He wore a black overcoat, which despite the unseasonably cool summer, still looked out of place in August. Definitely not someone that would have any chance on a hero ranking chart, but then, looking at the guy, it was obvious he gave zero fucks about any sort of hero chart in any case. "Look, I've spent the past three years in shit you don't even want to know about, so don't you dare think I'm going to let three preppy high school wannabe's fuck this case up for me. You were the one who suggested a team-up; I merely wanted your permission to be in your jurisdiction, so don't start this shit with me."
Fuck, he even had the voice to match his looks; all nasally sounding.
Endeavor leaned over his desk, his imposing figure making Reisu's look that much more pathetic. "Either you'll give these students this experience or you won't step a foot in my jurisdiction."
Bakugou thought he might actually get whiplash looking at the two older heroes. After spending nearly three years with Endeavor, Bakugou grudgingly respected the old bastard, despite how he treated his family. The man would never win father of the year, that was for damned sure, but he'd tried to become a better person.
The look Reisu gave Endeavor would have killed a lesser man, but Endeavor was never one to intimidate easily. "Fine," he grouched. "But I'm not responsible if they get hurt!"
"Fine! So, now that's covered, why don't you explain what you need from us?"
Reisu fell silent for a moment, then dug a crudely drawn map from his overcoat pocket, unfolding it over and over and over and placed it on Endeavor's fine mahogany desk, nearly encompassing the entire thing. Bakugou had to fight not to laugh at the disgust on Endeavor's face.
"It's taken me years to get this map complete, but it's finally done," Reisu said. "This is a map of underground tunnels left over from the war. They go all over this area," he gestured to an area on the map that appeared to be near the ocean. "And leads to this area here," he indicated what might be a nearby mountain. "The mountain hides a massive production facility that made aircraft during the war. The mountain and the tunnels were to protect them from Allied bombing."
"Some of the tunnels are open for tourists," Deku said quietly. "Mom and I visited the Yoshimi Caves years ago."
"The tunnels here have been forgotten," Reisu replied. "Well, forgotten to all but the lowest forms of criminals."
"Go on," Endeavor said.
"The tunnels have four main entrances," he pointed them out on the map as he spoke. "One in a nearby park, two leading down to the beaches, and one near the train station. My sources lead me to think that all the tunnels are interconnected to each other as well as leading up to the abandoned facility."
"What are they being used for?" Bakugou asked, wanting the old man to get on with this.
"Human trafficking."
Deku and Icy-Hot let out a gasp. Bakugou's stomach lurched at the thought of something so vile happening near his home.
"Why did you not involve the police in this?" Endeavor wondered. "Why come to me about this?"
"I suspect half the police are involved in this, or at least have some knowledge about it. I don't have any concrete evidence, so there's little I can do. Part of the tunnels and the facility are in your jurisdiction, and then there's the fact you and I worked on a similar case years ago, so I feel I can trust you."
Endeavor looked up at the guy and frowned. "I've never seen you before until this morning."
"I didn't always look like this," Reisu told him. "Back then I went by another name, Wrath."
Endeavor's head snapped up. "Wrath. I remember. We teamed up to search for that missing university student in Yokohama. You straight up disappeared after the girl's body was found."
Bakugou swore the temperature in the room dropped twenty degrees. "Yes. That's me. Glad you remember," was all Reisu said. "Now, let's talk about what I need you to do."
….
"Does this look like Momiji to you?" Kaylee couldn't help but ask the moment the call connected, showing Bakugou's confused face. She held the bunny up to the camera, rotating him to and fro so Bakugou could get a good look. Eri had installed FaceTime on her phone and Kaylee was more than excited to learn that she could both see and talk to Bakugou at the same time. Especially right at the moment when she had a serious situation on her hands.
"What the hell are you talking about?"
Kaylee sighed, trying to keep the frustration out of her voice, but what was supposed to be another fun day of vacation (or staycation in her case) had taken a dark turn that afternoon. "Momiji got out this afternoon while I was bringing in the T-Rex and I searched all over for him, but apparently there's a larger than expected white rabbit population around the campus and now I don't know if I've got the right one or not." Ok, so she sounded a little more panicked than she wanted, but damn it, this was serious!
"I love how you can mention T-Rexes and rabbits in the same sentence and it sounds like it's a perfectly normal thing," Bakugou chuckled. Has it just been over a week since she last saw him? Her phone screen was small, but she could just make out the twinkle in his bright red eyes.
"Damn it, Bakugou, this isn't funny!" Momiji–or at least she hoped it was Momiji–squirmed and she held him to her to calm him down some. He stilled and started nuzzling her throat, tickling her with his whiskers and making her want to giggle despite the serious situation.
"How the hell should I know? I never paid much attention to the fucking rabbit! Did you check to see if it was a girl or a boy?"
"Of course I did! It was the first thing I looked at, but apparently rabbits don't have obvious sex organs, and it's hard to hold a rabbit at that particular angle without help and I didn't want to stress him out any further." Kaylee sighed, feeling defeated. "It's not like I'll be able to hide this if it's not Momiji because Koda can talk to animals!" She held the bunny – which she fervently hoped was Momiji-to her face. "You're going to rat me out, you little rodent!" His little nose twitched in response and he let out a little clicking noise, which Kaylee had yet to interpret. She knew rabbits could purr, thump, whimper, and other noises. Koda had left a very detailed guide to rabbit care but neglected to list what a clicking noise was.
"He's not going to rat you out. Let me talk to him. Hold him up to the phone." Kaylee held the squirming little ball of fluff up to the phone, making sure his feet were supported, wondering what the hell Bakugou could do to help. "Listen rabbit," he said in his sternest voice. Kaylee was impressed, as Momiji stopped squirming and looked directly at the screen, his long ears flat against his head. "You will not say a word to Koda about any of this and if you do, I will go full Fatal Attraction on your ass, you got me?"
Kaylee burst into giggles as Momiji squirmed violently and she put him down. He shot off upstairs as fast as his little bunny feet could carry him. "I don't understand half of what you said, but I think it worked!"
"Tch. Of course it did. Damned rabbit." God, she missed seeing the smug look on his face, and although FaceTime was pretty cool, it was no substitute for having him actually with her. While her first full week of vacation was fun, she was starting to feel lonely, especially after having spent months surrounded by her classmates. She missed hearing the teasing, yelling, explosions, fights, and other noises that used to absolutely terrify her and keep her nerves on edge. She settled back down on the cushions and grabbed the phone off the table so she could see Bakugou better. "Where are you?" he asked, probably noticing the flowery backdrop behind her.
"Oh, I made a fort from the T-Rex float! See?" She moved the phone around so he could get a good look. She'd grabbed every extra sheet and blanket she could find, used the T-Rex pool float and another chair and made herself a nice fort in the common area, moving the table and sofas for room. Some floral sheets served as the background and roof. She had an All Might blanket tucked around her and she drew it up around her shoulders. She had the A/C turned up high so she wouldn't get hot with all the coverings.
"Wait, is that my All Might blanket?" Ash blond eyebrows rose, and Kaylee froze, forgetting she was snuggled up in the All Might blanket which was wrapped around her shoulders.
Busted . "Um, no?" She bit her lip nervously as heat rushed to her face.
"That looks like the All Might blanket that my parents sent me." Bakugou had a knowing smirk on his face.
"I found it," Kaylee told him defensively. She held her head up high, trying to bluff her way through.
" Where did you find it?" Bakugou didn't look mad, but the small phone screen didn't have the best picture.
"The fourth floor," Kaylee told him. Not a lie.
"Where on the fourth floor?"
"It… was on a bed." Kaylee couldn't help the nervous giggle that followed her response.
" Whose bed?" God, Bakugou's sly smile was doing things to Kaylee.
"Ok, ok. I was panicking because I couldn't find Momiji so I ended up going through all the dorm rooms to see if he was there. The blanket was just sitting at the foot of your bed and it was so fluffy and warm, and it smelled like you, so I borrowed it. I was gonna return it before you got back, I swear!" All of that was true. Kaylee knew it was wrong to take something from someone's room, especially Bakugou's, but she'd been upset from losing the rabbit and his room was so nice and smelled like him and the blanket was just there….and oh God, she couldn't help herself. She had every intention of returning it before he got back and no one would be the wiser.
"Oh." Bakugou grew quiet for a moment, and Kaylee thought back to what she'd just said and cringed. She just told him she went into his room and stole his blanket because it smelled like him and that probably wasn't the best idea…oh shit, now she sounded like a perverted freak.
"Wait, you thought that fucking rabbit could open doors?"
Kaylee scoffed. "I live in a school with superheroes, so who knows? I panicked and wasn't thinking clearly. I searched everywhere, even Mineta's room."
Bakugou's face paled. "You went in THERE? No one has gone near that little shit's room in the years I've been there!"
Kaylee nodded. "It's just as bad as you think. Then I turned on the lights…" she shivered.
"Oh fuck! Kaylee, did you have to call your therapist? Do you need me to send you some brain bleach?"
Kaylee burst into laughter. "No, but it explains so much about him…" She shifted in her seat, getting more comfortable and wrapping the blanket–now that she was almost sure Bakugou wasn't mad about it–around her. "So, did your meeting go ok?"
Bakugou rolled his eyes. "I guess. Tomorrow we'll be in a huge planning session and training–you know so that everyone is on board with each other's quirks and whatnot–and then the day after we'll actually do the op."
"What's Reisu's quirk?"
"It's actually kinda cool; he can sort of turn his entire body into a shadow of sorts. Like a projection, he has no physical state." Kaylee could see Bakugou was now spread out on his stomach, his head propped up on a pillow. His hair was even more wild looking than normal, like he'd been running his fingers through it. "Speaking of quirks, do you have any ideas about your other one?"
Kaylee's brow furrowed. "No, why?" She felt a little sick at the thought of her other quirk, especially since the other one caused her nothing but pain and suffering. Kaylee knew that while most people wanted quirks, and some would probably go to unthinkable lengths to get a quirk, she was not interested. She just wanted to be normal. Or normal as she could be without a quirk.
"You glow."
"Huh?"
Bakugou sat up in bed. "You glow. I first noticed it during movie night, you were glowing–hell, you're doing it now, although it's not as bright as it was then. It's like a pale yellow glow, then sometimes it's a very soft white." Kaylee held her hand up to her face, trying to see what he was talking about. She was just pale, right? "Turn the camera on yourself, like you're taking a selfie," he directed.
Kaylee let out a startled gasp as she saw a faint light. "I think the camera is probably making it appear differently," Bakugou explained. "Right now, it's like you have a halo around you, but normally it's just like…it's coming from within you."
Kaylee nodded. "I see it," she whispered, trying not to freak out.
"See?" Bakugou asked. "It's so subtle that you almost don't notice it. Do you feel anything? Like, fuck, I don't know, tingling or something?"
She turned the phone camera back around so she could see Bakugou. "No."
"Shit, it's slowly disappearing now. Are you ok?" Bakugou asked, pointing a finger at her. "See, now you've dimmed some. You're not as bright as you were a few minutes ago."
"I'm scared," she confessed. "I don't want this. I don't want to have another quirk; I didn't want the first one." She swallowed the bile that rose in her throat. "What if everyone else notices? How will I explain this to them when I don't know?" Kaylee tried to keep her voice even, but it was hard. She stared at her hand, trying to see if there was a difference. "What do I do?"
Bakugou bit his lip in concentration. "Well, it's obvious the drug they gave you has left your system. Maybe it's based on your emotions? What are you feeling right now?"
"I'm upset, scared. I don't want this." Kaylee sniffed, trying to fight back tears.
"What about earlier? When I first called you, you were glowing. How were you feeling then?"
Kaylee looked away, not wanting to meet his eyes even through the phone. "Happy. I was happy to talk to you; to see you again."
"Yeah?" She glanced back at the phone to see the biggest smile she'd ever seen on Bakugou's face. He had a dimple on his right cheek! God, he was gorgeous. She nodded, unable to speak for a second. "Just sit tight and when I get back we'll figure all of this out. I promise."
"Ok," she replied.
"Now, tell me about the rest of your day…"
…
"You ready for this?" Bakugou took the offered communicator from Endeavor, who made sure he, Todoroki, and Deku each had one. After a completely exhausting few days of planning, training, arguing,and everything else, the day of the mission finally arrived. Bakugou could feel the nervous tension pouring off both Deku and Todoroki, and knew he was probably giving off the same energy. He was a mixture of excitement and fear, and he had to keep a tight rein on both of those emotions or else he could compromise the mission.
"Yeah," the three of them replied.
Reisu shook his head when Endeavor held one out to him. "No can do. Any electronic devices on me and it'll jam up my quirk. Can't even have a watch on me."
"Fuck, do you mean to tell me you'll be going in there blind?" Bakugou asked.
"I can handle it, Kid. Question is, do you know what you're all supposed to do? I'll not have any snot-nosed brats fucking this up on me when I'm so close."
"We know our positions," Icy-Hot replied. "Each of us takes one of the four entrances, while Endeavor's group provides a diversion to flush out whatever guards are at the main warehouse."
"I don't like being used as a diversion," Endeavor said.
"Too fucking bad, you're going to do it anyway," Reisu snapped. Endeavor glared.
Thirty minutes later, Bakugou had cleared his part of the tunnels and the extras from Endeavor's agency were working clean-up. "I'm all clear here," he reported to the others. "Anyone have eyes on Reisu?"
"He took off to the warehouse, but that was ten minutes ago." Deku replied. "He should have given us the signal by now."
"Fuck. I'll find him."
"Be careful," Icy-Hot said. "This has been almost too easy. Something's not right."
Bakugou signed off and blasted his way clear to the warehouse, the tunnels large enough for him to safely fly through. Both his classmates were right, this was too easy, and Reisu should have given the signal by now. Once at the entrance, he crept up to the main gate, making sure there were no guards anywhere. Checking his surroundings, he began searching for Reisu, looking for the tell-tale sign of his quirk–a vague shadowy figure just to the left of the gate. The warehouse was almost invisible to the naked eye, there was very little indication that it was anything other than a mountain, with only a tunnel at the base which was camouflaged by trees. The four tunnels were hidden underground with only a few well-placed boulders to disguise their locations.
The main gate was really a rock wall, blended into the base of the mountain where it was almost invisible. Bakugou scanned the area, until finally, he saw Reisu, who was cornered by two baddies just off to the side. Fuck, fuck, fuck. One had him by the throat, the other had a gun pointed at him. Bakugou crept up to them, using the trees as cover, focusing on the guy with the gun. He'd focused his quirk where he could take out both guys with a well-placed AP shot, however he'd need to find the perfect moment.
From the distance, he couldn't hear the voices, but knew they were talking; he could see their lips moving. Getting his hands at the ready, making sure he had a good pile of sweat–
"AP SHOT!"
Both guys were down before Reisu could react. "Fuck, Kid!"
"You hurt?" Bakugou asked as he trotted up to Reisu, taking the gun from the downed guy and checking for pulses. Both were stunned, but not seriously hurt.
"No, but that's one serious quirk you have there." Reisu stepped over one of the bodies and began searching for the gate release. "They had me made before I could activate my quirk. Both of them came out of the shadows, I had zero chance."
Bakugou followed, keeping an eye out for danger. "This feels wrong," he said to Reisu. "This has been too easy."
"I'm sure we've got an ambush waiting on us the moment I open the doors. Tell the rest to start heading here. I want the medical teams here as well." Reisu dusted off a suspicious looking rock in the wall, and Bakugou could just barely make out the writing on it. It was the lever to open the gate.
Bakugou did as ordered.
Reisu paused and stared at him for a long moment. "You ready for this, Kid? When I open this gate, there's nothing you've learned at that fancy school that can prepare you for what you'll find."
Bakugou bristled. "I can handle it, old man."
"We're here," Bakugou heard Todoroki on the comm. Sure enough, he turned and there was the entire team–Endeavor, Deku, Icy-Hot, and the entire Endeavor agency team. Burnin's bright green flaming hair shone like a beacon.
Reisu pressed the lever and the gate opened, and chaos ensued. As Reisu predicted, an ambush was waiting for them just inside. What looked like a small army poured out from the gates, some with guns, others using various quirks. Thankfully, the two of them went unnoticed as they marched by.
"Go and help your friends out," Reisu said as he activated his quirk.
"Not a chance in hell, old man. I'm not leaving you."
Reisu looked like he wanted to argue, but dashed inside, with Bakugou following, thankful he'd worn his stealth suit for this mission as it allowed him to almost blend in with the background perfectly. Holy fucking shit…
The smell hit him like a tank and Bakugou had to bend over a moment to keep from vomiting. It was a stench of piss, shit, blood and fuck knows what else and Bakugou pulled the collar of his suit up higher around his nose, trying anything to keep the filth at bay. It was so dark inside the warehouse, with only small slits bordering the top of the ten meter walls to act as both a source of light and ventilation. The sound of flies buzzing filled his ears, drowning out everything else for a moment.
"Come on, Kid! This way!" Amazingly Reisu seemed little affected by the foul odor. "The warden's office is just to the right up here."
Bakugou followed, thankful the adrenaline now running through his system was overriding the nausea because the stench was now much, much stronger.. Now that they were past the main entryway, the noise from the battle outside had faded enough that he could hear other sounds. Moans. Cries. Whimpers.
His eyes adjusted to the darkness just enough that he could see the glimmer of metal bars, but nothing else. "We've got to get the lights on, old man."
"Not yet, gotta get to the warden's office. It's where the cage controls are kept."
"Cages?"
"Look, Kid!" Reisu nodded and Bakugou followed his gaze, mouth gaping as he finally noticed not the cages, but what was in them. A blast from up front illuminated the area for just a split second, and Bakugou finally saw them.
Humans .
Humans in animal cages, some stacked in places on top of each other, some with so many inside that they were squished against the bars. Some cages had movement in them, people rocking back and forth, some holding on to each other.
"No, Kid, not yet!" Reisu whispered, jerking Bakugou back as he'd started towards the nearest one, wanting to blast through the bars. "The only way to help them is to get to the warden's office–the system to unlock the cages is controlled there." Bakugou felt light-headed and he had to swallow several times to get Reisu's face back into focus. "Look at me!" Reisu whispered harshly, shaking him. "You're the one who followed me in here, so I need you to fucking focus and help me out."
"What do you want me to do?"
"Get up to the office, take care of the warden and blast that control panel to hell and back."
Bakugou nodded, keeping his eyes focused on Reisu, trying to mentally drown out the sounds coming from the cages. "Where are you going to be?"
Reisu's eyes narrowed. "Don't worry about me, Kid. Do your job."
Bakugou quietly opened the door with "WARDEN" on it and crept up the stairs. Reisu followed behind him, then veered off to the left to another hallway that looked out of place. "Meet me at the bottom." Reisu crept down the hallway, the light from the crystal sconces bouncing off the rich dark wood paneling
Ten minutes later, Bakugou had blasted through the warden's office and dismantled the cage controls. The warden was nowhere inside, so it was a relatively easy job to just launch a few grenades and blast the controls.
Reisu was already at the bottom of the stairs, and he had a few bruises and bloodstains that weren't there before. "You have trouble?"
"Found the warden and the head of this entire operation hiding in a closet. They won't be coming down." Bakugou nodded and left it at that.
"Bakugou!" Endeavor's deep voice came through on the comm, startling him. "Are you inside with Reisu? We're almost done out here."
"Yes, we've got the cages unlocked. Get all medical personnel ready."
"Cages?" Deku's voice came through. "What cages?"
"Deku, you and Shoto stay outside and direct medical to the warehouse," Endeavor ordered, his voice sounding slightly panicked. "Make sure all enemies are secured."
Reisu flipped on the light switch and Bakugou blinked at the brightness that flooded the warehouse. Vermin scattered. It was worse than he could have imagined. Humans, mostly women and children from what he could tell, were indeed packed in cages stacked two high, and there were rows and rows of them in the warehouse. Humans of all different races, most of them naked as the day they were born, although a few had tattered remains of clothing stuck to their bodies. The moans grew louder as they realized they weren't alone.
"Come on, Kid," Reisu jerked his arm, pulling him towards the nearest row. "They can't open the doors from the inside, we'll have to do it manually. Stay focused."
"Medical is here!" Someone shouted from the main entrance and suddenly the warehouse was overflowing with even more people as the entire medical team swarmed in and began evacuating the victims.
Bakugou began opening the cages, trying his best to reassure those inside that help was on the way. Fuck, some couldn't even walk they'd been cooped up so long. His hands shook as he fumbled with some of the doors, and cold sweat dripped down the back of his neck, despite the heat inside. He tried hard not to make any eye contact with them, as he was barely holding himself together, and needed to be strong, especially as he noticed some of the occupants weren't moving, and judging by their condition, had been dead for days. He lost all concept of time as he worked his way through the rows of cages, until he got to the last one.
The moment the door unlatched, a small figure ran straight to him, knocking him back on his heels. Tiny arms wrapped around his neck, and Bakugou could do nothing else but hold on to the small frame. The child was filthy, otherwise seemed unharmed. Judging by the strength of the child's hold on him, they'd not been in the cage long.
"Hey, hey," he crooned softly to the child, not knowing if they understood him or not. Long black hair covered their face, and thankfully a medical worker was right behind him, because both Bakugou and the child were wrapped in a warm blanket.
"You're ok," said the medical worker, gently prying the tiny arms from around his neck. The child immediately latched on to the woman, and Bakugou made the mistake of looking directly at the child, who was now cuddled in the blanket, their hair pulled back from their face as the woman assessed them for any injuries. He couldn't tell if they were male or female, but their eyes were dark, large, and almost too big for their face. The child smiled at him, and Bakugou wasn't sure how he managed to smile in return, but he did. He stared until the child was taken away.
"Here, Kid." Bakugou wasn't sure how long he stayed kneeling on the concrete floor, but it was long enough for his knees to start aching. A shadow passed over him and he saw Reisu's pale face, who now appeared even older under the harsh lights. Reisu held out a hand, and Bakugou took it, unable to hold back a small grunt of pain as he was hauled up from the nasty floor. "Come with me," Reisu said.
Wordlessly, Bakugou followed, through the masses of victims, medical workers and heroes until they reached the outside.
"Kacchan?" Bakugou thought he heard Deku's voice, but the smell of fresh air and the bright sunlight broke him.
"He's ok, he's coming with me," Reisu told Deku as he led Bakugou to a secluded area just off to the side where they were shielded by small bushes.
"Let it out, Kid," Reisu said as Bakugou immediately started vomiting. "You did good."
"Sorry," Bakugou's voice was hoarse and his throat was on fire when he finally was able to stop retching. He was panting like he'd run miles, his chest paining him with every breath.
"Don't ever apologize for reacting like a normal human," Reisu told him, handing him a flask. "I'd be worried if you were able to see all that and not throw up." Bakugou took a long draw, coughing up even more from the burn of the fiery liquid. "Hell, I've been doing this thing for twenty years now, and I still react that way." He took the flask back and took a long drink from it.
"Twenty years?" Bakugou gasped out, still dry heaving.
"Yeah." Reisu gazed out over to where the ambulances were loading up victims.
"Bakugou!" Endeavor shouted, startling the pair. "Are you ok?"
Bakugou quickly stood up, wiping his mouth on his sleeve. "I'm here."
"The Kid did good today," Reisu told Endeavor, slapping him on the back heartily. "You ever need anything once you graduate from that fancy school of yours, give me a call."
Bakugou nodded.
"They discovered the bodies of the warden and the owner of this facility upstairs in the owner's private apartments," Endeavor told Reisu. "Looks like it was a murder suicide."
"Shame, that," Reisu said, staring point blank at Endeavor, who nodded in return.
"Come, we've got a lot of paperwork to do," Endeavor told Bakugou. "This day isn't over yet."
….
It wasn't until well past midnight before they made it back to Endeavor's agency. There were nearly a thousand survivors, with nearly three hundred bodies recovered. The four of them, Endeavor, Icy-Hot, Deku, and Bakugou didn't speak until they exited the elevator that took them to their dormitories. Bakugou was numb by this time, and barely took note of his surroundings. All he kept seeing in his head, over and over, was the sight of those cages, followed by the big eyes of the child in the last one.
"You all did well today," Endeavor finally stated. "I'm proud of you." Bakugou looked up, finally taking note of his companions. Both Deku and Icy-Hot were covered in dirt and blood, their faces a sickly white underneath the grime. Their eyes were bloodshot, and Bakugou noted the tear tracks running down their cheeks, and knew he probably looked the same.
"I'll admit, I didn't know where this mission was going to go when I agreed to this," Endeavor continued as they passed his office. "It wasn't what I had in mind, but I think it's good that the three of you see just how rough hero work can be. It's not all rescuing kittens from trees and helping old ladies across the street."
They all nodded.
"You all have the rest of the day off," Endeavor said. "Get some sleep." He turned to Bakugou. "Come with me for a moment."
Endeavor's office was a massive room, with rich dark wood and a wall of windows. The lights from the city shone in, and Endeavor walked over to a large credenza, opening the doors and pulling out two glasses and a container with amber liquid. He handed Bakugou one of the glasses.
"Here, drink this." Endeavor filled the glass nearly half-way and handed it to Bakugou, who gulped it down without thinking. He held his glass out for another, and Endeavor refilled it. "This is a thirty-five year old single malt, so try to savor this one." He filled his own glass and gestured to the large wing back chairs. Bakugou sat, staring mindlessly into the glass.
"As I'm sure my youngest son would tell you, I'm the last person to offer any sort of comfort," Endeavor stated. "When I agreed to this mission, I was thinking of keeping the three of you out of whatever was going on in the warehouse. I knew it would be…disturbing. You did well though," Endeavor told him plainly. Bakugou said nothing, just took another long drink.
"I'm releasing you all a day early," Endeavor said after a long pause. "You all can go be with your families."
"Thanks," Bakugou said. He was so exhausted, but damned if that scotch was amazing.
Endeavor nodded. "Finish your drink so you can go shower and sleep."
Bakugou downed the last and rose. "Night, old man."
As Bakugou got to his dorm, both Deku and Icy-Hot were standing in the hallway. Both had showered and looked and smelled much better. "What did the old man want with you?" Icy-Hot asked.
Bakugou shrugged. He was starting to feel some of the aches and pains of the day. "Nothing much. He gave me a weird sort of pep-talk and then gave me scotch."
"Are you ok, Kacchan?" Deku asked tentatively. "Do you want to talk?"
Bakugou sighed. "Thanks, but I just want to shower and go to sleep."
"We can talk tomorrow, Deku," Icy-Hot told him. "'Night all."
Deku looked at both Bakugou and Icy-Hot like he wanted to say more, but just nodded. "'Night."
Bakugou opened his door. "'Night."
….
After showering and getting into bed, Bakugou stared at his phone, reading through the text messages. There were various ones from his classmates, all checking in on how they were doing, a few from his parents, and several from Kaylee. He checked the timestamp on the most recent from his mom. It was just thirty minutes ago, so he texted back.
I'm back and am ok .
Good to hear it. Your dad misses you.
Bakugou smiled. "Your dad" was his mom's code for "I miss you."
Are you still coming home?
Yeah. I'll be there sometime tomorrow evening. The old bastard is letting us leave a day early.
Love you, brat.
You too.
He scrolled through Kaylee's texts, smiling at the pictures she sent. They must have gone to the beach again today, as there was a picture of a smashed watermelon with the caption "I won!" under it. She also had a picture of All Might with Eri, and apparently they'd managed to bury the poor guy in the sand. She took a picture of Eri in what must be the "fort" she'd made the other day. Sure enough, it was a large T-Rex float, the tiny arms sticking out. Kaylee had draped several sheets over it, and there was a chair on the other side the sheets were tied to. Eri was snuggled underneath them, grinning at the camera. Bakugou easily spotted his All Might blanket draped over her, and his heartbeat quickened as he thought back to Kaylee telling him she took it because it smelled like him. Fuck, did that ever do something to him.
He must have drifted off to sleep, because the next thing Bakugou knew, he woke up drenched in sweat, tangled up in the sheets. Breathing heavily, he took a sip of water and tried to calm himself. He kept seeing the child from the warehouse but this time, the child was Kaylee and he couldn't get her out of the cage. She didn't say anything, just stared at him with the same dark eyes the little child had, then she disappeared. He glanced at this phone, checking the time. Shit, it was just 2:30am. Closing his eyes, he tried to go back to sleep, but the images from the day kept replaying over and over. The stench, the moans and whimpers, the arms reaching out to him, but this time it was Kaylee–they were all Kaylee.
"Hello?" came the raspy, sleepy voice. Fuck, he had her name pulled up and pressed the button on his phone before he even comprehended what he'd done. "Bakugou? Are you ok?"
"Hey," he replied, wanting to punch himself for waking her. "Sorry, I know it's late, but I…" He trailed off, not really knowing what to say. He had a bad dream? He wanted to hear her voice? It was all stupid.
"Are you hurt? Did your mission go ok?" Her voice softened.
"I'm fine. It was just a rough day. No major casualties." He was trying to calm his breathing, hoping she couldn't hear him through the phone.
"Do you want to talk about it? I'll listen."
He ran a hand over his face, wiping the sweat and fuck–was that tears?-from his eyes. "No, actually….can you just talk to me? Doesn't have to be anything special, I just …" he sighed. "I just want to hear you talk until I fall asleep. Would you do that for me?" He stretched out back on the bed, placing the phone on the pillow next to him.
"Of course. I'm sure you saw the picture of All Might I sent you. He's a really great guy–he tells the best jokes, although they're really, really bad, but they're so bad that they're funny, you know? He let Eri and me bury him in the sand. He also showed me how to split a watermelon–we all had one! It took me a moment to get the hang of it–I didn't like being blindfolded–but it only took me two times before I split it! Mr. Aizawa and Present Mic ended up trying to hit each other rather than the watermelons, and All Might let Eri split his for him. He's also a really great surfer! He calls you "Young Bakugou" and I can tell he's really fond of you. He said he heard you were doing a great job training me…"
Bakugou fell asleep, smiling.
A/N: Suikawari is the Japanese game where they split watermelons. Its pretty common in anime/manga, and it looks pretty fun. The Yoshimi Caves are actually a real set of caves, and are where I got the idea from.
