8

Katsuki sat in the room three days later alone. The breeze coming through the windows nice and pleasant.

Kasaya and him the next day, after the forced camping trip in the 4th floor lounge, after classes that day, moved the stuff back around, cleaned the walls and floors together, both with masks over thier faces, door open, windows open, letting out the fumes of cleaning supplies.

Some passerby's gawked into the room as they walked by, because the door had been propped open, but not a word from neighbors, and not a word had happened between them either.

Now three days later, everything was back to normal. His side of the room completely blank as it had been, everything organized and perfectly placed back in his closet as before, thanking that his nice clothing hadn't gotten damaged, but something hadn't happened.

The duct tape.

His bed bottom's right post had scraped across it under a few inches of water and ripped it up.

The roll of duct tape just sat out on his desk top now, and Bakugo idlly stared at it. He'd been thinking all day that he had to get this taken care of again.

But now that he had it out... It just sat there.

Almost a full roll of silver, and instead than moving to action, once again, he found himself letting the events that happened take up his head's circumference.

He was supposed to be working on himself by not allowing people live around up there like renting an apartment, but this Kasaya.

He. What was he? He just wasn't... average.

Katsuki had that rule for retards, people that bugged the piss out of him. People that drove him insane, like half n' half bastard, and how he'd not even fought with him fairly in the tournament.

That damaged him, and he let it sink deep into him, into his skin, into his head, but that was just an example of the type of things that he was working on trying to control from ruling his mind.

But not Blue Bun.

It irritated him that he felt that way.

Then what the hell was he saying to himself internally?

That he was OKAY with now allowing his head to be filled with him? 'Why?!'

He slammed a fist down on his desk, causing the duct tape to bounce a bit.

Because the idiot didn't bother him at all! Because the navy shit had saved their crap!

Because he was unlike everyone else.

Unique. Perseverant. Considerate.

That's why.

Bakugo sighed and slammed the tape back in his top drawer. 'Damn it.'

He couldnt fuckin' do it.

And that was when he heard a knock at the door.

What the hell was this? 'No fuckin' visitors!' The blue dip wasn't here though, then, it probably was Iida. That four eyes! 'How annoying!'

Bakugo slammed up from his desk, throwing his chair into the desk rashly, and literally flung the door open.

"What fuck face?!"

But. His mind suddenly blacked.

Not Iida.

He felt his face fizzle in a weird fashion at the image of the person standing in front of the entry way. He felt his nose that was curled and lip upturned drastically fall.

Certainly not Iida.

He felt an instance where he wanted to excuse himself for the accident, but he instead clammed up.

Damn it. Yes. Accident. It was an accident. Dire.

A decorated military personnel, in full dark dress blue, sharp cap, tailored jacket with shoulder cuffs and sharp edges, huge metal buttons. White gloves. Dress shoes. Square jawed. Shining sword in hilt. Clean shaven. Short hair cut, so short that it looked black, but it wasn't... it was navy, the same deep navy as his uniform.

Bakugo felt spit actually start the slowly trickle down his throat. He'd just cussed out military! 'Shit!'

That was flat out disrespectful.

It was one thing he abided. Nobody fucked with the police, federal, or the military. Come 'on, it was just plain stupid of someone to do so!

"Satoko Kasaya. He here?" It was crisp. A quick salute, heel click, soles of boots heavy and loud.

He wanted to scream yet again, 'I don't speak for the idiot!' Iida cornering him coming to mind. But he didn't. Instead his response was rude, as usual, but didn't suggest or imply anything he was thinking, trying to keep on the good-ish side of this person, his status was ranking, he had so many metal bars on his left jacket breast.

"No." Bakugo's mind fizzled. "Why?"

What the hell. 'Why?' He had to ask why?! Such an idiot! 'I'm such an idiot!' He was mentally biting himself, he should of just said 'No' and shut the door!

"Satoko Hisashi. His brother." A right hand came up and it went to his hilt to rest on the sword there. The other hand had a large package in it. "Figured he'd be back from class by now."

His brother, was military? Bakugo stood silently in the doorway, and they were just staring at each other.

He had a brother. Okay. Military. Okay.

The blonde had no idea what to do! Strained! What were the formalities again? He'd had to do what now? Police you didn't bow. Or did you? What about the military? He seen everyone bowing to them in public. Was this public? The dorms?

Technically, it was right?

Hisashi was so confused. He thought Kasaya had said this guy was loud and overbearing, so far he'd gotten a bit of that, but nothing will ever be as bad as the drill sargeants. Nothing.

He felt that this blonde probably would make a great one. Ha. And he just stared at him, deep crimson eyes, he'd realized, exactly as Kasaya texted, clearly scattered, as they travelled all over his uniform. Like he was unsure what even to do. Hisashi then took the lead, getting the cue. "I want to wait here."

Thank the fuckin' Gods! Bakugo had been frozen. He suddenly bowed a quick, snappy bow and opened the door. "Fine." Perturbed.

He felt heat under his skin. Keep it cool, keep it cool, no explosions. Military, this was military. Decorated military.

Slinking back over to his blank desk, he didn't want to look like he'd been sitting there doing nothing (which actually was what he had been doing), so he opened a book and began to lay out his homework for geography.

The military man stood in the corner silently by the cement block, but then after five awkward minutes of standing, Katsuki sweating bullets at the presence at his back, mentally cussing right and left, the man came over and sat the package down on Kasaya's desk, and let his arms cross behind his back staring out the window. Commanding, his presence.

It was a nervous wreck to Katsuki. He swore this was one of the only damn things that rattled his cage!

Not only did Blue Bun's brother have a demeanor about him that was sharp, the attire he was in was full formal and stately. They never wore the formal wear, unless it was for special events right? The swords were so mideval, and it was shined to sparkle, and he knew in a seconds time, that sword could be slid from that hilt and used.

Japan's military had traditional swords used by samurai during the times of Bushido practices. They were cutthroat and precise, even a small needle like hash would leave guts spilling out of it, and someone bleeding to death.

"So." Bakugo heard the soldier say. "You're his roommate?"

Bakugo eyed him with slits. He was watching the larks outside fly around, the clouds, the nice day. A statue that was speaking.

"Yes." He wanted to jam a 'Sir' on the end of that, but didn't. He couldn't let his pride drop that far. Come on! The words on the pages below him on the desk were mushy unfocused blobs once again, why'd this always happen? When his head swam, reading became impossible.

"Okay."

'Okay?' Just okay? 'What?' Katsuki speculated, spaced.

"Does Kasaya do anything, that you've seen, that's strange?"

Katsuki crunched his eyes looking further into to the blobs. 'What?!' How the hell was he supposed to know!? The idiot was a crazy hedge maze, hypocritical at every turn, everything was strange! What did he want to know? He had to answer the man!

You never denied the uniformed ones when they asked questions.

"He smokes." Bakugo blurted, fizzling under the skin, trying to keep smoke from starting to billow out of his palm, so far he was doing only okay at keeping composed. He felt like he was 'telling on him' of all things! Like the gabbers he hated in elementary school, middle, high. There were snitches in every grade. Honestly.

He heard an audible 'hmnpf' in the other's throat. "That I know. Anything else?" The solider pulled out the desk chair and sat down in it, slowly adjusting as the crisp, starched uniform barely bent at the waist for him to move at all to sit.

It looked uncomfortable, Bakugo noted a wince on his face out of the corner of his eye. He'd never join the military. Never. The decoration and heaviness of clothing was enough. "No. I don't care." False. He felt a twinge of that internal burn, knowing he was lying. Lying. How he loathed it.

And his brother didn't care that he smoked? He shouldn't of even told him that! Shouldn't of even told the dignified one there that he knew that.

But he didn't want to refuse his question.

He hated the aura in the room right now, like 20 questions, and he was victim. It pissed him off. He wasn't a victim damn it!

A key in the door slid. And in an instant, the door swung open on it's spring, and Kasaya slipped in, carrying a bunch of new notebooks (his had all gotten water damaged), backpack loaded, school uniform tidier than normal Bakugo saw, entreating himself to quick glance, the idiot. Finally he was here. Bakugo internally was calling out for him to just calm the room and quick, before he lost his nuts!

Just in the knick of time, Kasaya had arrived. Suki's left hand fizzling down just seeing his presence. 'Let the idiot deal with his brother! As long as he gets him out of the room!' The tension was too immense, and making him so angry!

The door shut on the hinge behind Kasaya, and he looked up from his notebooks, genuine smile crossed his face. "Hey."

Hisashi the same. "Hey."

Bakugo was floored.

He'd NEVER seen his face like that. Kasaya's fuckin' face, from the slit of his eye, unlike his brother's, more heart-shaped but still sharp in the jaw, the smile was a smirk, narrow, but it was a smile, the cheeks did lift. Unusual it was to see some emotion spell out there.

Hisashi stood then, and walked over, sword and all, and with as much movement as his uniform allowed, took the heavy backpack off his younger brother's shoulders and tossed it on the bed, Kasaya followed suit and tossed the new notebooks from the campus store he'd bought there too.

And without a further word, Hisashi grabbed him up off the floor, laid him partially over his broad shoulder, Kasaya's feet completely off the ground and shook him to death, shaking him back and forth like someone would a child, laughing ridiculously.

Kasaya coughed out a laugh too in the tight bear hug, but then after about twenty seconds of it, began beating on his brother's navy jacket, words between gasps, "Put me... down... you... fuckin' idiot!"

"Nope." Hisashi squeezed him tighter and started poking his sides with white gloved hands, spurting bits growls out of the long haired one.

"Fuckin' asshole!" Kasaya grr'ed loudly slamming his fists, beating on his brother's back. Hisashi by sheer size was much more dominant, bigger.

The two were completely oblivious that Bakugo had been watching the whole time, looking away, then looking back, then away, then back. At first the loud noise pissed him off, getting under his skin, but then as Blue Bun started spitting obscenities. It was actually becoming... entertaining. Like listening to that conversation he's had with that girl on the phone.

The younger screaming at the other reminded Bakugo of himself! 'Fuck.' He hated affection! His grandma worrying, 'Oh! Suki are you okay?' 'Yes Grandma! Shut up!', Deku crying miserably all over him, eh, 'Yuck! Nasty. Get off me!'. Kasaya had given in for a bit, but then started raising his voice, obviously done with it. Exactly what he did himself when he was tired of something, yelling to set the mood.

Plus it was military, because of that, Katsuki kept his mouth shut. He could of told the brother about Kasaya leaving every damn night at midnight. But, yet again, it wasn't confirmed what he was even doing.

Or... where he was going. The biker cut's lashes batted quick. He had no idea. He still had no clue.

Finally the taller one put his brother down haphazardly, throwing the shorter off balance a bit, and ruffled his hair. "What's it been? Two months?"

"Stop. Yeh."

His brother grabbed Kasaya's uniform tie and straightened it up even more, yanking it up tight around his neck.

Bakugo heard an audible sigh from the long haired one and a slight gagging noise. His brother. Hisashi. He was affectionate in not necessarily the worst way, like his grandma and Deku, but in a very masculine way. Kind of 'dad like', kind of not. Katsuki didn't have parents, well didn't have anymore. He'd never gotten the experience of what it was like to have a dad, or a brother.

He was an only child.

"What the fuck's that shit on your head?' Bakugo heard the soldier say. So. He cusses too, he felt his tension loosening a bit. So, he isn't as formal as he looks. Bakugo, as a matter of fact, had been wondering the same shit. Ugly ass hair style.

Hisashi grabbed for Kasaya's bun, and it shook his head a bit viciously while he'd grabbed it.

"Let go! How th'fuck else am I supposed t'put it? It's growing out." Kasaya spoke in full sentences. Not broken up into small one to three words. Bakugo took in the tone, it not high pitched, but his voice was smooth when calm. Again, unlike when he'd chewed out that chick on the phone.

"I don't know. I don't care really, but father would lay you out though knowin' you'd let it get that long."

"Yeh. Well, I don't give a fuck what he thinks." Kasaya breathed out exasperated. 'Shit. He's in here.' He just noticed the blonde was sitting quiet seemingly reading, and not screaming out loud at the disturbance. 'Oh. Fuck.' He bet underneath his skin he was just about to explode.

They had to evacuate and fast!

"So ugh." Kasaya grabbed the package on the desk. "This for me?" His full intention was next to say: 'Let's go get some dinner.', a perfect fire escape sentence, to sprint for the hills, run off somewhere else, and not get blown up, even though the blonde hadn't used his fire against him at all, actually, Kasaya hadn't even seen it, he figured, he would of at least seen it by now, but instead, all he's come across were just stories in B Class, musings of his attitude blow-ups.

Hisashi was insisting that he open it now. 'Ugh no.' He really didn't want to. Not in front of him. He'd texted him about Katsuki. Did he not know if they didn't leave it'd result in an actual 'Explosion Fire Death'? He wanted to be considerate now that the room normalcies were re-established after the flood and broken pipe accident.

Hisashi seemed uncaring though. Was there something that happened? Kasaya wondered, eyes glancing at the spiky haircut then back to the package on the desk. 'Unusually quiet.' The long-haired teen was perplexed.

"Well come' on." Hisashi urged, gloved hand motioning and pointing at the desk. He was leaning against his bed frame, formal still, one leg crossed over the other.

"Alright." Kasaya shrugged, grabbing the long boxy package on his desk, sitting down in his chair, making sure not to let the package go over the line.

Spatial separation.

He scanned quick and looked to the floor, and what was there caused his face to go hot: Nothing.

Bakugo noticed Kasaya noticing.

Crimson eyes shifted to the tiled floor, the same type of cast as before in the lounge when he'd grabbed the first paper of the essay, body unmoving, but only the orbs moving, like a panther, to look for a reaction of some sort. Then he simply looked back to his pages. All blotchy words, not meeting that gray eyed's quick glance up as it moved to wade across his form.

It didn't steam Katsuki up like it usually did when he realized someone was gawking at him. Not with this idiot. The worst was probably girls. Their oogles grossed him out, he'd gotten bigger since he was younger, and more defined, and his body attracted them, yeh, he got it, and that was why he relied mainly on his attitude then to keep them away from him. He was sure they probably thought was a looker, as Bakugo knew he was, but as soon as he'd open his trap to start screaming, they'd run! he almost chuckled.

Hasn't failed him yet!

It wasn't the tape there yet? 'Why?' Kasaya forced himself to look away from Katsuki who was blankly staring into a book with maps, flipping a page. It'd been 3 days since! Kasaya quickly found himself thinking. But it was snapped away as older Satoko cleared his throat. "Kasaya. Birthday present?"

So it was his birthday? Today? Bakugo's mind babbled. He was an older student in his class then. Bakugo had turned 17 about 4 months ago, April.

"Yeh two weeks ago." The long haired one started peeling the paper. "Could you of wrapped it in anything uglier?"

It was ugly as fuck. Pink and yellow polka dots. Bakugo seen it, funny. It was funny. He found himself trying not to smile. There was no, 'I love you sooo much!', or, 'Aww you're so nice, thank you thank you!' between these two.

It was F this, F that, F you. Kasaya, he was... actually sarcastic. So the paper, it was ironic.

Bakugo could apply that to the definition. It still wasn't anything he was pissed over, that he couldn't live with, that he could pin as negative. The blonde was slightly sarcastic himself. His mom, and the code sentence he formulated from her bit of realism... there still was not a single thing Bakugo could apply to Blue Bun's definition and outline that would make him unable to live with.

"The fuck is this bullshit?" He heard Kasaya turn to this brother. "Wrapped with clear tape and another layer of wrapping paper? Are you fuckin' serious?" It was light though, not laced with grimace.

Hisashi suddenly burst out in a chuckle. "Yeh. Figured you'd hate that. All for you my lil'dipshit bro."

Bakugo turned then in his seat, soundlessly, attention full on what was going on, and Kasaya looked up at him as he was unwrapping it still, struggling. The next layer of wrapping paper under the tape was a bright fuschia.

And while Bakugo's orbs and his gray eyes met, Kasaya found his mouth moving, not speaking to Suki, but just at him, yet again, feeling surging, strong tug of an emotion sweep. It was embarrassment. "This god damn paper's so fuckin' bright it's gunna burn my fuckin' eyes out. It's like a highlighter."

Suki looked to the package and opened his top drawer, pulled out a pair of scissors, and held them out, handle facing younger Satoko.

Everything stopped. The rustling of paper. Kasaya mumbling swears. Him shifting in his seat trying to get a better grip on the long package.

The room was soundless.

Bakugo witnessed what it was like. To have observe him deliver words, mouth moving. It wasn't addressed to him, just a statement, but his direction.

Hisashi noticed the tension. No words. 'I get it. They only kind of get along.'

Kasaya took them, careful not to touch his fingers that gripped the closed blades of the scissors. 'Hah?' Was he doing something non-selfish? Like he'd written out that a paper? Was that even... not selfish or was it? Maybe his roommate was just getting sickened of them being in there. Had to be. That had to be it. He felt a swirl of knowedness inside.

The intent. Whatever was it though. Never crystal.

No matter, he gripped the scissors and Bakugo's grip didn't let go for a second, just staring into Kasaya's face.

Was he? Inspecting? Testing? Red eyes shot intensely, moving ever so slightly across his face, across his cheeks, nose, chin. Around. They barely twitched up and down, it was slightly terrifying. Like an animal. A lion.

Bakugo seen pink show up on the cheeks, that's when he let go. Kasaya's hand had been tugging with consistent force and so when he let go, the other's hand with the scissors kind of lunged back towards his body, leaving gray eyes blinking.

Kasaya's chest pounded. What the hell was that about? Like Ashley did! Sizing him up! But... no evil was there. No menacing look, it was just the sudden strength in the orbs that gripped him, then the loss of it, thank Gods, it put him back at ease. He hoped he wouldn't stare at him like that ever again.

"Don't owe me." It came out of thin lips.

Somehow, the uniformed one found that funny and chuckled. Setting Kasaya to snipping.

"Fun ruiner." Hisashi snorted out.

Kasaya noted that Bakugo shrugged, going back to work reading, but letting his eyes glance over to the package here and there.

Finally it was stripped open. Kasaya closed his eyes taking in a huge breath, letting it out slow. "Why?" He said.

It was a gleaming Japanese sword. Perfect and exactly the same as his brother's except inlaid with cherry blossom metalwork towards the hilt.

Bakugo almost lost it. A sword? His brother gave him a sword? Who does that? He let himself gaze. It was really, very crafted. Slight beautiful. Old. Who the hell were these people?! It wasn't samurai central in Japan anymore!

"You need to start using it, that's why."

"Did father let you have it... to give to me?"

"No. I just took it out of your room."

"Hn." Bakugo heard the long haired one, whose bun was messy from having his brother grab it and wiggle it around, throat. There was a slight 'hopefulness' in his tone, but it died when the other said that last bit. So, his roommate and his dad don't mesh. He wondered why. It was sort of answered but not really by the soldier:

"He's going t'be away on ship for a year now." Hisashi sighed, scratching his face, shifting his posture. "Navy's got him on tour in the Indian Ocean. Left a week ago. Figured you wouldn't care."

"You're right. I don't."

'Damn.' There is was. That dark, demon sounding tone. It was vile. So different then his normal, which he'd now, just today heard, it was better than flatness. Katsuki knew that everyone had different voices, for different things. Was it sick to say that Bakugo felt he perferred both? 'Oh fuck.' What the fuck kind of thought was that?

What also he acknowledged... His father, their father, also military. Japanese Navy. He bet high ranking.

Kasaya. The black sheep. Obvious.

"I brought my sword. Practice, it'll happen later." Hisashi smacked his hilt. "Got your gear?"

"Yes. You were the one that packed it in my shit." Kasaya's tone still laced with dark tone.

What was going on? Bakugo was enthralled. Normally he wouldn't give a damn, didn't want to learn anything, didn't want involvement, yelling to 'get out!', but with his new acception that he'd ONLY allow Blue Bun in his headspace, he'd let himself absorb.

Not that it sort of had been occurring naturally already. He knew it had been. Slowly slowly slowly he'd just started paying attention more and more. But after a few months and with the water flood drama under thier belts, he'd finally threw up his hands and admitted to himself that he WAS watching.

Attention, Kasaya shifted in his seat. Calm attention. Bakugo wasn't saying anything, but that was what he was doing. Watching, he was watching!

Shivers went up his spine. And he bet that he was listening too! Why'd it stir him?

"So, after dinner. We're going to spar. I would have got you a baseball mitt and brought your bat, but..."

"It's fine." Kasaya dispiritedly cut his brother off. He wasn't interested in letting Katsuki hone in. Just what the hell. 'Shut up Hisashi, you fuckin' loud mouth!' Stop dredging up the past, making shit apparent!

Hisashi got it. Instantly.

He shouldn't of mentioned baseball at all. Not with the injury.

She'd broke his arm, albeit injured him in many more awful ways, like the inside of his legs, his groin, that he had to patch up with gauze for months, leaving a nasty scar, they feared going to hospital for that cutting.

If Ashley had known that Hisashi had broken the DEPRESSION control emotion off him, and taken him to the hospital... they probably wouldn't be here.

Her family's eyes were everywhere. She would of snatched him back up.

"Dinner. Where?" Kasaya blurted, slamming the lid down on the package, changing the subject. Not only did Diasuta have a large store of fencing and swordsmanship up there, among so many other things inside his head, but after Ashley, his brother insisted that he learn swordsmanship even more so, with him, as protection. He taught him to shoot hand guns and rifles too. It was chivalrous of the soldier, but Kasaya hated it.

It reminded him so much of the bad shit he'd done, that stuff that was just so unavoidable. Stuff he would drown out with liquor.

Baseball would be never again though. Baseball was useless, it couldn't even defend him.

"You coming? On me, whatever." Hisashi smirked to Bakugo.

Bakugo turned in his chair again. Him accepting that he was after information about his roommate made things easier.

The stuffed rat. He reached up and like a cat, he clawed it down. Finally crunching it on lock between his teeth.

Kasaya's breath halted. A large 'WHAT' almost slammed out of his mouth, but instead he bit his lip closed, glaring at his brother. 'What are you doing?!' His glare implied. 'Don't! You want him to punch me upside the head?!' His mind stuttered.

"Sure." It was quiet.

Kasaya froze. A shiver again shot down. His back to Bakugo. 'What?!' His face burned! 'Hisashi you fucktard! You dumbass you did it now! You idiot!' He said nothing, glare daggers. What was Hisashi doing? What was he thinking?

Katsuki now accepting that he'd play along, felt like a predator through and through. Unmoving, his eyes sized up Kasaya's back. It was tense.

Unusual, and not similar to his general uncaring attitude, laid back attitude, lounging around, like he had on the couch in the lounge, shirt off.

'How... fun.' He'd got him pinned. He didn't like it when home stuff was brought up.

He'd figure it out after awhile, nevertheless. Only a matter of time. Then, he'd be bored.

Swordsmanship though. Bakugo hadn't expected that. Out of his brother, due to being military, but not the black sheep.

Ashido and Midoriya were in the foyer's open lounge playing a game of Go.

The foyer to the dorms, each one had one, was a huge grand area with columns, colossal TVs lining the walls, billiards, tables, couches, chairs. It was on the first floor.

"So, what happened to Art History class again?" Midoriya shyly looked up at his opponent, still not okay with letting his eyes leave the board. Ashido was good! Strategic! He'd have to write that about her on his hero studies notebooks.

"I had to drop it. It had me up all night. I never slept! All I did was just sit around and memorize slides of paintings and sculptures."

Midoriya wiggled his stone in his hand, thinking about his next move. So, she'd joined a Japanese Traditions class instead. Very cool. He could dig that, cultural. "Ha!" He played his stone picking up three off the board of hers.

No response.

"Huh? Ashido? I took out three of your peices." Midoriya realized, she wasn't even looking. She was speechlessly staring, and Deku he got it. 'What was she?' He turned.

Far to the right of the grand Hero and B foyer, behind some tables, there was a man. One of gleaming uniform.

Midoriya was struck. What was a military student doing here? Not many were allowed on campus at all, due to villains being at large and UA's students being prime targets. The walls of UA and the dean's decisions protected them.

He began to jumble words, mumbling, the usual, just watching the decorated scholar, sword and all, just waiting. He breathed that maybe, and probably, that it was because he was military that the dean allowed him to get on campus at all.

It took a lot of paperwork.

He heard Ashido slowly saying 'Uh huh. Mm hmm.' In agreeance to his thoughts becoming mumbles, gaze never leaving the pristine gentleman.

Of course. A man of rigidity. The girl. All girls. Swooning over a man in uniform. It reminded him of thier reaction to Satoko when they'd first met him. Gods. Girls. It never ended.

But like the devil himself, there he was, just as Midoriya had just been thinking: Satoko Kasaya.

Ashido squeaked.

'Yep. Oh my.' Midoriya's head blubbed, the grapevines she'd slip over to Uraraka later!

And to top it off, he met with the navy uniformed one and the military student grasped his shoulder, Kasaya shoving him off with a disgruntled looking smirk. But a smirk nevertheless, leaving the decorated one laughing.

It wasn't loud. But he heard Ashido suck in a breath, completely taken, the laugh brawny. Never as brawny as All Might's, in Midoriya's opinion.

The guy was... good looking! Ashido whizzed. And he knew Kasaya! Crazy! Internally she was screaming. Screaming!

Then Midoriya suddenly was the one whose brain whizzed. His turn... as he watched Mina's face go blank and white.

Bakugo... Trailing the two.

Not too far away, but close enough for both of them to 'get' that he was with the party.

He was walking slowly, in that slacker slumped posture, fingertips on his smartphone's screen. Midoriya felt himself rub his eyes, and somehow a hand landed on his shoulder, Ashido's, as if trying to grasp whether the weight of what they were seeing was being shared.

Midoriya and Mina. Both jaws awry, realized, Yes! They were having it was the same thoughts! And instantly, they jumped up, running after them.

"We can't let them see!" Ashido hushed, suddenly stopping and backing up against a column. Midoriya slammed up against her back. "Who do you want to know about?"

"Kacchan." He swallowed. Ugh. Oops. Mina stared out at the trio. "Katsuki. Sorry."

"It's okay. Knew what you meant." She whispered watching them walking away, a group of girls staring the military man down and giggle while they walked past. "I'm more interested in military guy."

"Yeh. What's the connection you want to know?"

"Ya got it." Ashido fummed.

Midoriya watched the three stroll. Katsuki lagging. Quiet.

"I bet I know who he is."

"Who!?" She grabbed Midoriya and shook him half to death. "That's Satoko's brother. Has to be."

"Seriously?!" She squeaked even louder, letting herself now, because the small group was far enough away not to hear. "Oh my Gods!" She yelled. The screech stirring faces to look around in the lounge.

It brought red to Midoriya's cheeks. Holy smokes! This girl! Naive! "Think about it, I mean, remember? Kasaya had a camo bag... it's a military bag, afterwards, I realized. When Uraraka brought stuff in, I seen a 'Satoko' patch on it. He said his brother was in a different high school. That's a uniform for Shiro. It's the military school close to here. That bag was his brother's then."

"Holy crap! Deku! I love you!" She slammed her arms around him hugging him very strong and girly. It brought fog to his eyesight. He felt, welp, it all. Then she rashly let go. "You and your overworking mind!" With that she ran back over to her Go board and dumped all the peices back in the side and run off back inside the dorms with it rattling.

'Yep. Going to find Uraraka. No doubt.' Midoriya slightly rolled his eyes, peaking back out. Watching thier backs, far away now. 'What are you doing Bakugo?'

He couldn't place it, that back of his, under that V-neck black tee, Kacchan's. It had gotten so wide, he'd gained so much muscle mass, that his form looked hyper male.

It moved, walking, and underneath the shirt he wore, he definitively could see the muscles moving, the lower back one's indicating a stride. His hair was growing out a bit, gotten longer. Things like that he noticed. He'd been around him so long, that he knew, soon Bakugo would go get it cut. In a few weeks. His hair grew fast.

He shook his head. That didn't matter! Midoriya stared. What was perplexing was that Bakugo, he was with them. He was about 100% positive now, as they'd rounded the fountain far off and he was still trailing.

Bakugo had been lying. And walking around, late at night Ashido had said! Now paired with the fact that Ibara had told him about the incident a few days ago...

Iida never came up to badger Bakugo about yelling at Ibara either. He just let it be. Explained as best he could what'd happened to Deku, then Ibara went on explaining it further. In detail, and Midoriya? His ears were fully peeled, completely open.

Information. It was what drove him, he wanted #1, and Bakugo's musings he'd listen to in the most explicit detail.

"I'm telling you Midoriya..." She cut Iida off, pressing a hand to his chest, quieting the tall new Ingenium. "He slammed that door open down there." She pointed, as if her fingerpoint could go through the room's walls, it was general direction point. "It was with so much force that not only did it scare me half to death, but it scared Kasaya too!"

"Yeh. That's him." Midoriya mumbled.

"I'd been asking what he thought of Uraraka, but he wasn't saying much actually, just kind of mumbling. Looking nervous. I started to feel kind of bad. That maybe I shouldn't of taken that route. And, I was gunna say that I was sorry for saying it like that, but so fast that door slammed open! I didn't even have a chance to apologize!"

"I see." Midoriya mumbled back.

Iida handed Ibara some tea. "Thank you!" She smiled earnest and looked at him. He smiled back.

'These two.' Midoriya even smiled. Something was going on. It was really the only thing that he approved of lately. Iida and Ibara were good people.

Ashido and Uraraka competing over Kasaya like he was meat? Not so much.

Even though it was a 'hush hush' little war, and he sided with Ibara, much rather wanting to see Uraraka getting to go on a date with the guy, he just couldn't grasp Bakugo's actions.

"I literally watched his scary red eyeballs work me over. You weren't kidding when you said they had to muzzle him up!" She piped over the tea. "I legitimately think he's nuts! Some screws are loose up there."

"Yeh. I've thought that for years." Red came to the green headed one's face. He felt his throat hitching up. He swallowed to calm it. Why was it when he talked about his ex-childhood friend, that this happened?

"Bakugo looked... and I don't want to say this to poor Uraraka..." She took a sip of hot tea, blowing.

"What?" Deku grabbed the cup of tea handed to him now by Iida. "Thank you. You didn't have to."

Iida just smiled, sitting back down finally in his computer chair.

"Okay you two, no word to Uraraka or Ashido."

Iida turned in his chair, facing them. Leaning in. Them all in a huddle now inside the SA room. "Is it something pertaining to roommate problems that I'll have to deal with?"

"No no." Ibara shrugged. "I don't think." She continued. "So, no Ashido or Uraraka in this trio loop okay? Not with this event or thought. Don't tell either of them. Okay? It'll make it harder on them, I think."

Both boys nodded. "You've got my word."

"Mine too."

"Okay." Ibara blew on the tea. "So this is what I can't say to the competing girls. It'd kill them. But Bakugo, in his screaming, it was only one line really, and that's not strange at all, yelling about the flashlight that Kasaya was holding and about the dark, but it was that look."

"What?" Iida said.

"He wasn't looking at Kasaya at all Midoriya. Just at me!" She squeaked, unusual of her motherly demeanor. She pushed a strand of ivy behind her ear. "His eyes were wild, crazy, and unfortunately for the girls... Bakugo looked possessive!"

"What? Possessive?" Deku almost dropped his tea. So Ibara, She was the go-to! For sure! Absolutely!

Maybe this actually had less to do with Bakugo driving to be #1 and Bakugo selfishly beating him out 'hero-wise', and more to do with... Uraraka and Ashido's actual words.

Bakugo. Kacchan. Midoriya drew a line there back to the 'girls only' convo. "Did you two overhear any of the conversation the girls were whispering about on the floor on movie night a month ago?"

Both I's shook their heads no.

'Of course they didn't.' Midoriya smiled. Remembering they were taken with each other. Talking.

"Well, let'me fill you in." Midoriya sipped. "Mina saw him looking for someone late at night, about 30 past midnight? And he was. He came from his floor and walked all the way across, only to stop and stare into the lounge. Well, Ashido caught him on accident, and from what she whispered to Uraraka, she said she felt that he was lying when he told her he'd come down to get a soda."

Iida chimed, right as ever: "There's vending areas on all floors, if that's any consulation."

"Then that's it! That's more evidence that he was out of place there on the floor Mina was on." Ibara's voice sing song, but authoritative.

"Do you think?" Midoriya whispered. "Do you think he was looking for Kasaya?"

"Well, who else could it be?" Ibara. "My quirk deals a lot with reading between the lines. I have to calculate moves very early or my ivy won't be able to grab someone in time, I can't compete at all without this type of thinking. Read between the lines guys."

"Hm." Deku mumbled. His mind scanning.

"Who does he hang out with? Bakugo?"

"Nobody." Midoriya mumbled.

"And you know this, accurately?"

"Of course he knows, and I can confirm." Iida mouthed, lip biting in thought, he pushed glasses up on his nose. "All last year, all this year so far, he's come to class alone, left class alone, every time I've seen him in public on campus, he's alone. In the dorms, the only person I've ever seen him even half share a glance at is Satoko, and I'm not talking the one's where he looks rabid and mouth-foamy."

"So the only close-ish contact to anyone at all, aside from Hero Class? Is Kasaya?"

"And his grandma. Has her as his emergency contact on the log for the dorm."

Ibara jokingly smacked Iida's knee at that one. "Yeh! But does his grandma live in the dorms? I bet it's a NO! Wouldn't be looking for her up late at night!"

"Hah. It's a no." Iida laughed, breaking up the seriousness.

"What about ladies?" Ibara sucked on tea.

"He hates them." Midoriya, grave.

"What?" Both the I's turned to face him.

Midoriya's cheeks flushed. How he knew, it was a slight bit embarrassing. "He's never had a girlfriend, I guess there's no reason why that can't change." He swallowed. Imagining the blonde dating a girl, it swirled a strange fear inside him. How terrible! He swallowed again, poor lady. "Once, when we were younger, we were about 13, it was when I was still openly calling him Kacchan and thinking he was the best..."

Iida nodded, he knew all about that. Ibara silently listened.

"I asked him... just asked him, 'Kacchan, do you want a girlfriend?'. It really was childish, I guess. But he grabbed me up by the collar and hoisted me up, smoke was coming out of his hands! He demanded why I'd asked him such a stupid question."

"And why did you?" Ibara.

"He just seemed so disinterested in everything except blowing crap up! I was gettin' to be that age... you know. I was thinking about girls, and I wanted to know if my childhood friend, was you know..." Midoriya gulped. "Coming of age? Gods this is embarrassing! I don't have a brother, and my dad's not around! I was raised by my mum!" He blurted suddenly.

"Midoriya it's okay! I get it." Ibara chimed in again. Somehow her next words calmed him down. She had that way about her. "You guys we're both pre-teens, and stuff like that starts up around that time. Health class. We've all had it."

Iida nodded. "So, what happened next?"

"Well, Katsuki was so mean! It was kind of personal, and because of that, I got an earful. He said girls pissed him off. That they were stupid and annoying, that he'd put it off marriage as long as possible. Forever if he could! That they were gross, their emotions overbearing and ridiculous. He told me he thought all girls were batty and insane."

"Well." Ibara wasn't offended. She just sat there contemplating again. "I'm surprised, that's such an adverse reaction! And, how long was he there, badgering you like that about it?"

"Probably half an hour."

"Damn." Iida grimaced feeling bad for his friend. He never cussed, but this? Did Bakugo really have to do that? 'Of course he did, he was Bakugo.'

"That's some strong feelings right there. He really does dislike girls! Reading between the lines here, but if someone takes that long amount of time to cuss you out, those feelings are solid. So, got it. No ladies." Ibara babbled. "He was up looking for Kasaya then. No doubt in my mind."

What in the world?

Midoriya put a knuckle to his lip. Watching the back of Katsuki striding, far away now across campus, the size of a tiny toy soldier, slinking away in that slack posture, he even remembered when he's started wearing his uniform's pants baggy as a teen. He remembered everything. But this, and without contact with him, he just was lost.

"Whatever are you thinking? Possession?" Deku mumbled. "What's going on in that head Katsuki?"