Something wasn't right with Kacchan.

Something Wasn't Right With Kacchan.

The words rattled in Izuku's head for days after the incident with the Sludge Villain. All he could think about was how small Kacchan had looked, how terrified he was, the raw desperation filling his bright red eyes. He knew his fixation on the blond wasn't good but.. it was how he noticed it. How Kacchan didn't act quite right.

Kacchan's smiles were different. They weren't the normal mean smiles. They.. had an edge of cruelty to them that Izuku had only seen once before, the day of the Incident when his notebook got destroyed and Kacchan had said those words.

Izuku had brought up his thoughts with his mom, telling her his worries, telling her that something was wrong with Kacchan. But.. it had just ended with his mother talking to him about how Kacchan had gone through a traumatic event, and sometimes those kinds of things change people. She told him she would talk to Auntie Mitsuki and Uncle Masaru about it, that he shouldn't worry so much, let the adults worry about Katsuki okay Izuku?

And Izuku just nodded like the good son he was and that was that. Afterall he was busier now, what with training to inherit All Might's quirk and to get into UA. He couldn't afford any distractions.

So he listened to his mother and didn't worry about it.

After all, the adults could handle it.

Life kept him busy, and thoughts about Kacchan not being right were tucked away into a corner of his mind.

He didn't think back to them until nearly a year later when he's stepping through the gates of UA to attend their entrance exam and he spots a familiar head of fluffy blonde hair. Izuku is quickly distracted from the thoughts of his childhood friend (and bully) when he nearly face plants. But then a cute girl saves him and the thoughts are pushed aside once again as he makes his first friend in years.

Pushing aside these thoughts about Kacchan was starting to become a pattern. After all, if he ignores it, it isn't real, right?

The cruel looking smiles and the way Kacchan's eyes seemed almost black at times wasn't real. Kacchan was fine. His mom said so.

Right?

The adults would've taken care of it if something was wrong.

...right…?

Things continued on like this.

Izuku noticed things were wrong and did nothing about it, because what if he's just imagining it? Kacchan acted the same. He was still amazing, smart, strong, but… now his actions had an extra edge of cruelty, a sick enjoyment in seeing other people squirm.

Kacchan hadn't always been like that right?

And if he was really that bad Aizawa-sensei would stop him! It's fine. Kacchan is fine. He still calls him Deku and a nerd and insults him like normal.

It's all fine.

At least...Until it isn't.

It was their first Heroics class with All Might! Izuku thought nothing could bring down the excitement that bubbled in him, well, that's what he thought until he and Uraraka were paired against Iida and Kacchan.

It.. went as well as he could've expected. He told Uraraka the plan, what to expect from Kacchan, and how they should work around it. If there was one thing Izuku knew, it was Kacchan.

Or at least he thought he knew Kacchan.

Because here he was bracing against Kacchan's attack, and he knew that it would hurt, he could see the blonde's fingers reaching for the pin in his gauntlet, eyes black and filled with the promise of pain. Even his smile was cruel and… and evil looking.

And then it all changed.

Black eyes flashed back to those familiar yet foreign red, desperation and determination replacing the sadistic cruelty, the smile dropped and chapped lips opened to scream.

To scream something he never expected to hear again.

To scream his name.

"IZUKU!"

And Izuku's mind blanked as the blast connected, the pain sending him to the blissful darkness as he lost consciousness.

The last thought in his head was that Kacchan hasn't said my name since we were little.

Waking up once again to the faintly familiar ceiling of the infirmary wasn't the greatest feeling. Knowing that he once again disappointed his teachers by hurting himself with his quirk was worse. But... Worse than any of that, was the pit in his stomach at being right. For once in his life he wished he was wrong, but.. he wasn't.

Something Is Not Right With Kacchan.

And obviously the adults haven't noticed. Izuku couldn't help but hate himself just a bit. He trusted them because they said he could. He told them that something was so wrong with Kacchan. Yet they did nothing.

Yet he did nothing.

Izuku didn't do anything.

He had known and did nothing to help him.

Had done nothing to save him.

He had never wanted to see Kacchan with those eyes again. Filled with terror and desperation. Asking for someone, anyone to save him.

And Izuku had left him like that for a year.

What kind of hero does that?

He wished he could do something sooner.

But before he had even been able to, the USJ incident happened. Izuku would've died if it hadn't been for Kirishima knocking the hands villain, Shigaraki, away from him at the last moment.

It was odd though.

He hadn't seen Kacchan nearly the entire entire time the villains were there. He only saw him on the bus ride there and towards the end of it all, after the pros had intervened.

Kacchan had seemed almost… smug on the trip back to school. Izuku had tried to ask the other's if they had seen what happened to Kacchan when everyone got separated, but no one had teleported away with him.

There wasn't a single scratch on him.

It was strange and Izuku didn't like this.

What had Kacchan been doing while the rest of them fought for their lives?

Izuku knew what he had to do. He swore to Kacchan that he'd stop following him and making notes when they were younger but.. But he needed too. He needed to keep track of things he noticed. The things that were wrong.

Things like the odd laugh that was but wasn't Kacchan's.

The nicknames that lacked the usual creative flair.

The way he buys lunch instead of making his own.

The way there isn't a speck of spice in his food.

How Kacchan's grades weren't as good as Izuku knew they should be. Kacchan was hovering in the middle of the class rankings. That wasn't normal. Kacchan was smart. Kacchan would never settle for anything other than being the best.

And so he continued to write. To take note of the things that screamed wrong in his brain. He needed it to show someone just how wrong things were.

That he wasn't imagining it.

And then the Sports Festival happened.

Izuku isn't sure exactly what went down. They had all competed in the festival, Izuku had even made it to the last event! Even though Izuku had lost to Todoroki in the semi finals, it made him happy he had managed to convince him that his fire was his own, not his father's. The fight had been intense and once again Izuku was under the tender love and care of Recovery Girl.

He had been lucky to wake up in time for the awards ceremony.

That's what he thought.

Until he watched in horror as the podium ascended from the floor with the top three placed upon it. With Kacchan chained up to the podium, his face muzzled like some kind of rabid beast. Izuku could do nothing but watch his mind numb with horror as Kacchan thrashed about, screaming something, his eyes were so wide, just like then, he could see the fear, could see the tears. Just like that day.

He felt so numb as he saw All Might remove the muzzle only to shove the stupid medal into the blond's mouth. He watched as the tears fell down his cheeks, the raw panic turning to defeat.

Why wasn't anyone helping him?

And then, like nothing was wrong, it was over. The podium descended and Izuku could finally move, regaining control as he rushed out of the room ignoring Recovery Girl's protests. By the time he reached the winner's room Kacchan had already been unchained and seemed to be sleeping. Midnight's presence and ripped uniform explained the sleep.

He was.. Izuku was so baffled.

Why would they do this?

What had Kacchan done to ever deserve this?

Izuku knew that if he asked outright Kacchan wouldn't tell him. Kacchan was too prideful and stubborn. So he made a plan. He tracked his first opponent from the Sport's Festival. And for the first time since he spoke to his mother, he explained.

It had taken a while, Izuku showed him notebook after notebook he had on Kacchan, ignoring the little voice in his head saying he was a creep for being so obsessed with Kacchan.

Shinsou had stared at him with so much confusion at first, taken aback by all the information and theories that came tumbling out. Izuku knew what he was saying was outlandish and that his request could get Shinsou into serious trouble. Using his quirk to brainwash Bakugou into revealing what was wrong with him wasn't the best way to go about it.

But he was desperate.

None of the adults had done anything.

They've only made things worse.

Surprisingly, Shinsou agreed, especially when he recounted how much the adults had been failing the blond (Izuku may have also promised to help the other teen with working on getting into the Hero Course).

And so together they plotted.

They planned for it to happen after internships, it'd be enough time for Kacchan to relax after what happened at the Sport's Festival, he wouldn't assume anything being amiss.

Of course the universe had it out for Izuku and internships were a mess, what with the Stain incident, but luckily things ended well enough.

And the week after Shinsou and Izuku put the plan into motion.

Izuku knew Kacchan's schedule like it was his own. He knew Kacchan liked to work out at the school gym after school every Friday. He knew Kacchan stayed long enough that he was always the last person to leave.

So Friday came, and the two went to the gym.

It shouldn't have been so easy to get Kacchan under Shinsou's quirk, but thankfully it was. Shinsou had kept out of sight and with some creative insults, Kacchan responded back and fell right under Shinsou's charm.

It was eerie to see him like this, dark red almost black eyes glazed over, body lax from his spot on the bench… Izuku watched as Shinsou opened and closed his mouth several times, before settling on the first question, something easy to test his control over Kacchan.

"What's your name?"

It should've been an easy answer, but of course the universe hated Izuku, and obviously hated Kacchan as well, what they heard was not the expected "Bakugou Katsuki" but instead,

"Zankoku Juno."

Well fuck.