Just some warnings here: there is implied child abuse. Very small there, just like one sentence. Shouldn't be that bad but just be warned. I don't think there's anything else that could be triggering but if there is please tell me. Stay safe and enjoy!
"Kacchan, can I ask you something?" Four-year-old Izuku Midoriya asks nervously, standing a few feet from his friend just in case the other boy is irritated again.
"You just did, stupid." Katsuki paid the other boy no mind, instead continuing to draw. He was making a drawing for Izuku, since his birthday was coming up and he really didn't want Auntie Inko bugging him about it. Katsuki was pretty sure his friend would burst into tears if he found out he didn't get anything from the blond.
"No… I-I meant something else." Katsuki sighed as he looked up to see the boy barely holding back tears. It shouldn't really surprise him after all, Deku was always crying.
"Get it over with already, 'Zuku. I'm trying to do something." Izuku started mumbling and Katsuki sighed quietly, knowing that he wouldn't be finishing his drawing anytime soon.
"Stop mumbling, you moron! Just tell me what you want already!" Katsuki demanded harshly, trying to mirror his mother's tone whenever she wanted something from him immediately. Which was, like, all the time.
Izuku whimpered softly and a few tears slipped down his freckled face. Katsuki felt bad instantly, he hated when he made his friend sad. He considered hitting him over the head to get him to stop. That's how Katsuki's mother got him to stop blubbering like an idiot after all.
Before he could do anything however, Izuku opened his mouth a blurted out, "What did it feel like when you got your quirk?"
At this, Katsuki scoffed. How did he feel? He couldn't just say that he was terrified of himself now. Terrified of wielding such a powerful tool at such a young age. Terrified of how if he wasn't careful, people would get hurt. Katsuki guiltily looked at Izuku's bandaged arm thinking, People have gotten hurt.
He settled for a grin instead. "It felt freaking amazing, is what it felt like." Katsuki had to keep up his perfect reputation. How could he tell his friend that he hated his quirk, when he'd only had it for a few months now?
He hated how it just seemed to raise people's expectations of him. How everywhere he went, he had eyes following him, making sure he didn't make a mistake, an error. Making sure he did what was needed to be done, perfectly, without flaws. That was the only reason Katsuki's parents had him in the first place, right? To succeed in everything. To be the best.
"Why do you care anyway, 'Zuku? It's just a matter of time before you get your own quirk, then you'll get to experience the moment for yourself." The tears Izuku was trying to suppress finally pushed through and the little boy collapsed onto the floor, sobbing.
Katsuki jumped up from his seat and rushed to his friend, stopping himself before he could touch Izuku. He felt embarrassed as he realized how idiotic he must have looked rushing over like that, nearly tripping over his own two feet.
"What's wrong, stupid? Don't you want a quirk?"
Izuku's magnificent green eyes were shiny, and he looked so vulnerable. Katsuki hated it. If Deku wanted to be a hero, he couldn't be vulnerable. He had to be strong if he ever wanted to succeed.
"K-Kacchan, I-I don't have a quirk," Izuku covered his face in his hands. "I'll never have a quirk. I-I'll never become a hero."
Katsuki felt like he had just been punched. Izuku didn't have a quirk? How could he not have a quirk? Everyone has a quirk. If Izuku didn't have a quirk… then what could he do? Almost everything revolved around having a quirk. If you didn't have one, then you were practically pointless. Your entire purpose is to just take up space. If you even had a purpose, that is.
Katsuki felt his feet guiding him away from the crying boy and to the door, where he could escape. Get away from the quirkless, away from the pointless. Katsuki can't be friends with the boy anymore, if he didn't have a quirk. He couldn't give others more ammunition against him. The perfect don't associate with the flawed. And Katsuki had to be perfect.
But Katsuki still felt drawn to Izuku. He still felt the need to help the boy in any way he could.
I-I'll never become a hero.
The words echoed in Katsuki's mind, and he made himself a silent vow as he opened the door to Izuku's room. He would never let Izuku feel that he couldn't be a hero. He couldn't accomplish that if he was always there for Izuku, enough people would already do that. No, Katsuki would push his friend to the point where his only option would be to prove Kacchan wrong. To prove he could be the best hero there is.
So, as he exited the room, leaving the crying boy behind, he whispered words so softly spoken that Katsuki himself couldn't be sure if he had said them out loud or not.
"You will be a hero, Izuku. I'll make sure of it."