Chapter XI: The Storm

Bakugo and Scatha soared through the air. The morning sun was trailing behind them as they flew the familiar route east towards Ignis. The wind cooled his face as it passed him. He couldn't lie that he wanted to make it to Izuku as quickly as possible.

He growled slightly and laid back against Scatha's thick scales, earning a soft growl from the massive dragon.

'What am I doing?' He thought, 'What will I even say to him when I get there?'

He closed his eyes slightly and imagined what could happen.

He spotted Izuku across the small clearing picking some herbs for his collection. The young wizard did not react at first, but as he stepped closer; Izuku quickly turned around and stood up.

"K-Kacchan?! What are you doing here." Izuku would ask, a soft blush dawning his cheeks.

"I came here for you, you idiot! Now shut up before I make you" He would say as he pulled Izuku closer. The young wizard's blush would deepen.

"W-What?" Izuku would ask, his brows knitting together in that way that was too cute to be legal, an excited glint reflecting in his eyes.

"I told you!" He would say before crashing his lips against Izuku's.

Bakugo shot up and ran his hands through his hair, a sharp growl escaping his lips.

'If only things would go that damn smoothly!' He leaned forward and watched the smaller villages that surrounded Ignis go by underneath them.

'Where will I even find him?' He thought before lightly tapping Scatha behind her right horn. She began to descend slowly. They landed right outside the outer border of Ignis.

He pulled his old shirt out of his supplies. Even with all the weeks that had passed, traces of Izuku's scent remained on the shirt. He climbed down and brought the item in front of Scatha's nose.

"You think you can find him, girl?" He asked as she took a deep sniff of the shirt and slowly lifted her head to sniff the air, pointing towards the vast kingdom. He quickly got back on, and she took off. It would at least be a start.

X

Izuku fiddled with the finger of his glove as he walked through the gardens with Shoto. He wasn't sure what to say. He looked around at the plants of the garden and smiled as he rushed over to one of the flower bushes, crouching down next to it. Shoto raised his eyebrow in surprise.

"This flower has been found to cure many ailments," Izuku said.

Shoto smiled, "Yeah, my father had a botanist design these gardens. He's a bit paranoid sometimes."

Izuku chuckled and leaned down to touch one of the pedals of the flower. Shoto's heart warmed slightly at the sight as he walked over and crouched down next to him.

"How long have you been training with All Might?" Shoto asked.

"Quite a while now, when I came here with him I had been training with him for six years," Izuku said, lightly running his thumb over the flower petal.

Shoto's eyebrows raised slightly, "That is quite impressive. I bet you've been all over the kingdom with him."

Izuku's smile widened as he nodded, "Yeah, some days I have no idea where we are going."

"Tell me about some of the places you've been. Besides running errands my father doesn't want to do; I haven't been out of the castle that often" Prince Todoroki slowly stood up, lightly dusting off his pants. Izuku jumped up and gently rubbed his neck.

"I would love to," Izuku said, thinking for a moment before going into a long story of how he and All Might had to fight a Troll to get a plant that aided with a rash one of the men in the village got as they walked along.

"And the worst part of it all is after all that; the rash had cleared up all on its own," Izuku said with a heavy sigh. Shoto let out a tremendous laugh, making Izuku jump slightly. The prince quickly attempted to regain his composure.

"My apologies." He said

"N-no, you have a nice laugh. You should do it more often" Izuku said, his cheeks lightly dusted pink, causing the Shoto's face to go red.

"T-Thank you, w-where else have you been?" Shoto stepped slightly closer to Izuku, their shoulders brushing somewhat for a moment.

Izuku smiled softly before continuing, 'This is nice' He thought.

X

Bakugo let out a large growl in frustration. Izuku's scent was all over this fucking kingdom! They had searched at his school, around All Might's workshop, and throughout the forest.

Scatha had finally found his house, which he searched all around for him but was nowhere to be seen. He finally knocked on the door, to which a small, round, dark-haired woman answered.

"H-Hello, may I help you?" She asked he could tell that this was Izuku's mother, their personalities almost perfect mirrors of one another.

"Is this the residence of Izuku, apprentice of All Might?" He asked, bowing his head slightly in respect.

"I-It is," She said, her hand shaking as she looked over the large man in front of her, "H-however, he is out right now."

"Do you know when he may be back?"

"I-I do not. I-I can take a message for him if you would like," she took a deep breath to calm her nerves

"Please tell him that the Dragon King is looking for him. He will understand." He bowed slightly and turned back towards Scatha, lightly petting her nose. Izuku's mother could feel the sweat collect on her forehead as she looked over the giant red dragon sitting in her front yard.

"O-O-Of course," she shakily bowed back, "H-H-Have a nice day," she slowly closed the door behind her.

'The Dragon King is looking for my son. Izuku what have you gotten yourself into?!' She said as she slid down against the door.

X

Izuku walked around the forest, the afternoon light casting shadows through the trees. He had spent most of the morning at the palace with Shoto.

'He's nice,' Izuku thought as he placed some small flowers in a jar that could be used to treat nausea, 'But, I can't be with him. Not as I feel right now.'

He sighed and threw his pack over his shoulder, beginning to head home. A large clearing broke in front of him, and he started hiking across it. Suddenly, a large, black shadow cast overhead. His breath caught in his throat. He bolted to one side of the clearing, hiding behind one of the large trees. He heard a loud thump that shook the earth in the removal and a soft hiss. His hand went to his blade as he swallowed. His heart was pounding in his ears.

'A-A demon?' He thought. He attempted to step out to escape, but a hand grabbed him and pressed up against the large tree's trunk. He tried to draw his blade, but a hand resting on the hilt blocked it.

"Damn it Deku! Do you know how fucking hard it is to find you?!" A voice yelled, he opened his eyes.

Before he stood the Dragon King, the king's hand held fast to the front of his shirt as the other rested on the hilt of his blade. His breath caught in his throat as he blinked, praying that this wasn't a trick of the light. Bakugo's face changed from a hard glare to a soft scowl, his grip slowly loosening on Izuku's shirt as his hands move to either side of the little wizard's head.

"K-Kacchan," Izuku breathed out, relaxing against the trunk behind him, "W-what are you doing here?"

"Looking for you, idiot." He said as he leaned in closer. Izuku's breath quickened. Bakugo's face was only inches away from his own, and he could feel his warm breath on his cheek. His eyes fluttered slightly as his brain scrambled with what to say as he brushed a soft breeze pass through his hair.

"I-I" he whispered, and hand lightly resting against Bakugo's chest before his gaze met Bakugo's.

"Izuku!" A female voice called out. He looked up to see Uraraka flying on her broom, searching left and right as she called out his name.

'She can't find me like this!' He thought and began to panic. He quickly grabbed Bakugo and pulled him into the forest, causing them to roll together down the short incline just within the forest's edge.

Bakugo growled once they came to a halt, getting up on his hands and knees above Izuku.

"What the hell Deku?!" He yelled as Izuku's face went bright red.

"S-Sorry, I saw one of my friends pass over. S-She doesn't know you and I-I didn't want her to find us." Izuku said as he covered his face with his hands.

Bakugo let out another harsh growl before grabbing Izuku's hands and pinning them up above his head. Izuku attempted to pull them free, but Bakugo had the advantage on top. Bakugo leaned down, so his face was inches from the wizard.

"So you would rather her find us like this?" He whispered in a husky growl. Izuku froze, a shiver shooting up his spine.

"H-Hey it wasn't like I planned this!" Izuku yelled, steam coming off his face as he glared at Bakugo. Bakugo let go of his hands and placed them on either side of Izuku's head.

Bakugo's eyes scanned over his face and his clothes, his eyebrows furrowing together.

"What's up with your outfit?" He asked.

Izuku glanced down at his clothing. He had forgotten that he was still wearing the clothes from meeting with the prince.

"P-Prince Todoroki requested my presence at the palace this morning," Izuku said, "It's customary to wear Ignis colors whenever meeting with anyone of the royal family."

Bakugo clicked his tongue and got up, sitting next to Izuku. Izuku slowly sat up, looking over at Bakugo for answers. Bakugo stared off into the forest and shoved the list that Recovery girl had given him in Izuku's direction. Izuku took it and looked it over.

"W-what is this?" Izuku asked. Many of the ingredients on the list were herbs that could be found around Ignis, but why would Bakugo have a list like this?

"You know where to find them, right?" Bakugo would not meet his gaze.

'Of course, that damned half-and-half is trying to court him!' Bakugo thought.

"Yes, some may be a little difficult, but I am certain we can find them," he said, "D-do you need them?"

"Recovery Girl sent me here to find you to get more herbs for her," Bakugo stood up and held out his hand to help him up.

Izuku took his hand and stood up, "I-I can help with that," he said, and Bakugo nodded and began hiking into the forest. He looked down at the list and sighed softly.

'Was a wrong about his intentions again?' He thought as he gazed at the blond as he walked into the forest.

"Deku!" Bakugo ordered, and he shook his head of his thoughts and ran ahead of him.

X

They searched all afternoon, finally finding all the requested herbs before heading back to Scatha. The air suddenly cold and clouds had begun to fill the sky.

"A storm is on its way," Bakugo said, giving Scatha a light pet before turning to Izuku, "We need to get going now."

Izuku's eyebrows furrowed, and he looked down at the ground, "W-we?" He said

"Yes, Recovery Girl requested I bring you back to the village with me."

He sighed, "I-I can't."

Bakugo stepped closer to him, "What?" His voice a harsh growl.

Izuku flinched back slightly, "Kacchan, I have a life here. I have responsibilities, I-I can't be running off all the time."

"My people need you Deku." Bakugo's fist tightens slightly.

'And my heart can't take it!' Izuku thought and turned away, "I'm sorry Kacchan."

Bakugo let out a loud growl, "Damn it, Deku." He yelled

As Izuku began to walk away, he felt two strong arms wrap around him. He felt his heart stop in his chest. Tears gathered in his eyes.

"L-Let me go Kacchan," he said, his voice shaking as he spoke.

"I need you, Izuku," Bakugo whispered, his grip tightening. Izuku's breath hitched in his throat.

'How?!' Izuku's mind screamed at him, 'How does he hold this power over me?! He says anything, and I'm putty in his hands. Why?!'

"Please," Bakugo whispered, placing a light kiss on the back of Izuku's neck, "Please come with me."

Izuku swallowed, shutting his eyes tight, "I-I will." He whispered, trying to prevent the tears from falling.

Bakugo turned him around and lifted him, carrying him over to Scatha and helping him up before settling in front of him. Izuku buried his face in his back, holding him close. Bakugo looked down and lightly placed his hand on Izuku's as he gently tapped Scatha, causing her to rear up and take off.

I hope you enjoyed the update! Please let me know what you think.