CHAPTER 13: Burn Whatever Doesn't Break

Stubborn, proud, and fearless. These were three words that had been glued to Katsuki's image since before he could remember. His mother and father built on these, pushed him, encouraged him, challenged him to surpass every expectation set before him. And, until recently, he'd always done so.

He had allowed his pride to define him, had molded it into a thick outer shell that separated him from the rest of the world. He'd never run from his problems, but here, in the darkness, with sharp gravel digging into his feet, he ran.

He stumbled, scraping his knees and palms then pushed back to his feet and was off again, rocks spraying out behind him like buckshot. It was impossible to catch his breath but he had to keep moving as an overwhelming torrent of heat shot passed him, illuminating the warehouse for one blessed moment before leaving him more blind than before.

He could smell the smoke, though it mostly clung to the rafters far overhead. Another wall of flame burst from the center of the warehouse and Katsuki slid to a halt, hissing as something sliced open his foot. He didn't stop completely, simply changed directions to dodge another shot of fire.

He knew FireFuck was toying with him. He was weak. Weezing. The gaping holes in his body had been haphazardly cauterized and they ached. The villains must have used Twice's miracle serum on him, otherwise he doubted he'd be alive, let alone conscious and moving.

Regardless, Katsuki knew he couldn't keep this up.

He knew, sooner rather than later, his legs (or his lungs) were going to give out and he would collapse.

He knew this was for sport. Dabi could have taken him down in an instant but he was like a predator toying cruelly with its prey. A cat with an injured mouse, watching as the fight slowly drained from his victim with every desperate move toward freedom.

Curses flung from Katsuki's lips, except, for the first time, they were aimed inward. As good as the burn felt in his long neglected muscles, as much as he wanted to enjoy this new freedom, it meant nothing. It was hollow. He was entirely at Dabi's mercy, and that admission stung. He was no longer a threat.

But Bakugou Fucking Katsuki didn't know how to give up.

His body stubbornly ran. Fought. Refused to admit defeat, regardless of its inevitability. He was alive because he was allowed to be. He was entertaining but if he'd had any sense, he would have stopped dodging and let the hellfire consume him.

His heart beat frantically against his ribs, lungs hungry for air, legs begging him to stop, but he wouldn't. One single thought kept him going. "What would Deku do?" In reality, it was cheesy as fuck, and once he met with whatever end he was destined for, he'd deny the thought ever existed.

But right now, it was the only thought he had time for.

Azure flames hit the gravel directly in front of him and had he not pivoted, his feet would have paid a hefty price. He was close to a wall, the metal paneling let in tiny pinpricks of light where nails had long since worked loose. As he ran, he slid his hand across the scorching sheet metal, looking for a seam, a frame, a door, anything to give him a sense of his surroundings. Every so often he'd clip his shoulder on a support beam when Dabi would work him away from the wall.

He tracked the trajectory of the flames, where they originated, size of the blasts, intervals, and consistency. There was no pattern to follow. Dabi moved randomly, keeping him guessing but Katsuki was sure he was guarding an exit. He just had to find it…

Sweat poured from him. It was disgusting. It smelled vile. Gone was the caramel-like scent of his quirk, and in its place was the stench of some seedy brothel. Gods what he'd give for a shower and a toothbrush. To be clean… it was a small, pathetic dream, to smell like something other than a rotting corpse, or cum, or piss, or-

Katsuki tripped, his mind snapping back to reality so quick it left him dizzy. "Head out of the clouds, kid."

A flash of blue and Dabi was on him, flaming burning hand at the back of his neck as he drove Katsuki face first into the gravel below. Pebbles that didn't find a home in his skin skittered away on impact. The blond coughed, panting open-mouthed and pitifully, his body utterly spent.

Dabi watched Katsuki's muscles spasm lightly beneath his skin, worn from exhaustion and overuse. Blood mingled with saliva and dripped thickly from his lips. "Does this mean I'm it?" Katsuki gritted out, spitting blood from his mouth from where he'd bit his tongue.

"As adorable as that would be, no." Dabi grinned. Katsuki threw his arm back, raking his nails uselessly across the leg of Dabi's pants. His breath hitched between several more useless swipes until Dabi grabbed his wrists and pinned them to his sides.

"Why don't you take a moment to relax?" His knee dug painfully into Katsuki's spine, pressing the life out of him until he stopped squirming. "See isn't that better," he crooned, petting Katsuki's sweat-slicked hair almost fondly. That was, until he knotted his fingers in the blond's messy spikes and stood, lifting Katsuki by his hair. Without a shred of consideration, he dragged the growling boy across the gravel and away from the wall.

Katsuki tried to find purchase anywhere, tried to get his legs under him, dug his fingers into the scarred skin of Dabi's wrist, but Dabi's grip simply tightened until his scalp nearly split, amplifying his already screaming headache.

"So this is what's gonna happen, Blondie." Dabi purred, and Katsuki could hear his condescending smirk. Without warning, a swath of blue flame bloomed to life in Dabi's palm. It illuminated the area as he let Katsuki drop back to the ground.

He scrambled to his feet gracelessly, the action taking a humiliating amount of effort, before he crouched into a mockery of his typical fighting stance. Dabi scoffed, amused then huffed an exaggerated sigh. "You and I are going to work on your obedience. The boss would like to do this without having to screw with your brain if at all possible. It's not as fun that way, ya know?"

"Not gonna happen." Katsuki growled standing just a little straighter.

Dabi's smirk twisted dangerously and he licked over the sharp points of his teeth. "It's cute that you think you've got a shred of control here, like you have nothing to lose." He set the flame on the ground, leaving it to flicker menacingly between them.

Katsuki barked a mirthless laugh, "You've got nothin' on me, BaconBits. You can't make me do shit."

Fire glowed bright in Dabi's amused, glacial eyes as he approached Katsuki who stayed rooted stubbornly to the spot. "They weren't kidding, you really do have a death wish. You think dying will keep your precious Izuku safe?"

Katsuki's eyes flicked to Dabi's in warning, like magma meeting glacial ice. "He's got nothin to do with this," Katsuki seethed.

"You're so naive it's actually painful." Dabi took a step toward him, a dispassionate smile spread across his scarred face. "Your little Deku has everything to do with this."

Words like venom pooled in Katsuki's mouth. "You can't touch him so keep his name out of your goddamn mouth," he spat.

Dabi shook his head, "You know Katsuki, not all villains are blundering idiots. You think we don't have a contingency plan?"

Katsuki's heart stuttered and he almost missed Dabi take another step toward him. It was like his body forgot how to move.

"Have you at least entertained the possibility that your Deku was a double?"

He couldn't breathe.

"For all you know, Twice was in on it, building your trust."

"You fuckin' liar!" Katsuki roared. "Deku is safe!" All-consuming rage spurred him forward. It swallowed his pain as adrenaline flared and it felt good. His fist collided with Dabi's face and as the bastard stumbled, Katsuki followed, tackling him to the ground. From there, it was a blur of instinct and impulse, his fingers were in Dabi's hair as he bashed the man's head against the ground. He found himself wishing for concrete. He wanted this fucker's brains splattered at his feet.

Dabi's hand pressed against Katsuki's stomach, scorching blue fire lit his face from below but there was no pain as he burned, the sensation hiding behind his wrath. He screamed and pitched forward, his skull colliding viciously with Dabi's.

Pure manic joy seeped into his bones as the man went limp under him. He wanted to savor it. To bask in it. But there wasn't time. He shot to his feet and ran toward the only section of the warehouse he'd yet to search, adrenaline pumping thickly through his veins. He was shaking, the sensations under his palms barely registered, trapped with his pain elsewhere, as he found the frame of a slider.

Katsuki threw every ounce of energy into yanking it open. The door scraped along the ground and the slider mechanism screeched and squealed but it opened. It fucking OPENED.

Fresh air flooded his lungs. It was dry and hot and wonderful.

He didn't wait for his eyes to adjust to the brightness, the moment he could fit through the opening he slid through and frantically slammed it closed behind him. There was no lock to engage so he turned and shot toward the line of trees that surrounded the warehouse.

A dirt road snaked into the woods but he ignored it and moved deeper, leaping over the dense, dry underbrush. Wild blackberry brambles littered the ground and he tried to avoid them but freedom took precedence.

Katsuki spared a moment to check the position of the sun whose rays filtered through the oak leaves above him. It was early evening and was headed vaguely west but the knowledge didn't help him as much as he hoped it might. No buildings, no people, no signs of civilization.

Azure fire blazed a trail immediately to his left and he nearly collided with a tree while dodging. His calloused hands grasped at the bark, keeping his balance and he took off again.

He heard high pitched laughter to his right. Toga, his brain supplied. His heart quivered in his chest, blood roaring in his ears as his anxiety spiked. He couldn't hear beyond his pulse and his graceless clambering through the undergrowth.

He couldn't tell who else was on his trail. He didn't have time to check. Dabi had recovered far sooner than seemed possible… he should have snapped his neck to make sure the bastard didn't get back-

"Shit!" Katsuki grunted, sliding to a stop and pinwheeling his arms to keep from toppling over the steep embankment ahead. His eyes widened at the water below and suddenly he was aware of how dry his mouth was. It flowed lazily, and he ached for it.

A knife whizzed by his cheek and sunk deep into the tree trunk next to him. His mind raced, there was a chance he could slide down, the water didn't look deep so he could cross it relatively easily, and it would protect him from Dabi's fire. After a deep breath, he crouched and dropped over the side.

Katsuki braced himself, trying to ignore the brush that whipped across his face. He tried to slow his momentum, but before he could, his foot slipped under a protruding root. It held fast as the rest of him continued forward until, with a disgusting crunch of bone, it let go, allowing him to roll the rest of the way down. The blond screamed, his body missing the water's edge entirely, instead landing in a heap among the river rocks.

Katsuki gritted his teeth, biting back a pained grunt and dragged himself into the water. It was cold, enveloping his wary body with open arms. For a moment, it soothed him. Katsuki took a few desperate gulps, relishing the way he could feel it slide all the way down and into his stomach.

The spell was broken as another knife plunked into the water beside him. "Dabi~ he's in the water!" Toga called from above and he cursed, slipping on the algae covered rocks beneath him as he hobbled to his feet.

Since he was already caught, he made no move to silence his splashing. With every step he took, stars flashed before his eyes, gasping through the pain as he breached the other side of the water.

He didn't stop. A steady montra of curses kept him moving. Katsuki made a sharp turn into some thick underbrush and dove to the ground, crawling as quietly as he could. He stilled, listening.

Toga and Dabi were talking, though they were far enough away that he could hear what they were saying. They sounded… excited. Something in their tone frightened him to his very core,it sounded like they were approaching some culminating event. He'd expected them to be pissed, to be after him like bats out of hell but they seemed to be enjoying this.

With a shake of his head, he rose to his feet and stubbled away. He could quiet his panting. The way his vision blurred in and out was concerning. Nausea rolled in his stomach. Pain shoot through his leg with every step.

But he had to keep going.

Fresh tears stung at his eyes when, at last, he stumbled upon a dilapidated structure. In retrospect, it was a stupid idea to hope this would-be-shed would be a sufficient hiding place. It looked seconds away from collapse, buried under years of accumulated leaves and debris. Regardless, he ducked inside where the door hung loosely on one hinge. Cobwebs stuck to him, some were thick and audibly snapped as he fought his way in and around the jumble of nondescript equipment.

Pain washed over him in disgusting waves. His leg wasn't listening so he dragged it uselessly behind him until it caught on something. It sloshed then tipped onto its side with a dull thwump. He couldn't tell exactly what it was. There wasn't room in his head to think about it. He was sure someone was sitting on his chest with how much effort it took to breathe.

He just needed a second.

Exhausted, Katsuki leaned heavily on a shelf. With a creak and a snap it toppled sending half-empty containers and fuck-knows what else to the floor. Once everything settled, a deafening silence took its place. It leaned in with all the subtle comfort of a plastic bag pulled tight over his face.

He tried to inhale quietly, but his lungs wheezed as he waited. Then he smelled it.

Gasoline…

Slowly, Katsuki dared to look down, only now noticing the foot attached to his rapidly swelling leg lay drenched in a spreading puddle of gasoline.

There was rustling then the telltale crunch, crunch, crunch of shoes on dry grass. Whoever it was made no attempt to conceal their approach.

"Come out, come out wherever you are~" a voice singsonged. He could hear fingers running along the outside wall.

Katsuki ignored the way his lip trembled. He choked on a sob.

"Hey little KittyKat~" Toga giggled and began calling for Dabi. Katsuki tuned her out.

The gasoline fumes burnt his eyes as the can continued to leak, its trail now breaching the gap under the door. His lungs constricted and he couldn't get enough air without breathing in its stench.

"You really decided to corner yourself, didn't you? Well, we live and we learn." Dabi mocked. "In fact, I think there's a lesson to be learned here. Don't play with fire."

Scorching blue flames burst to life engulfing the outer walls of his sanctuary. In moments, the heat began radiating off the metal. It burned at his throat while he gasped. Sweat poured off his body. A tongue of flame licked through the doorway, his body reacting before his brain could and he clambered back. He didn't get far before he slipped, fell into a heap, and something heavy fell on top of him.

He tried to push it off but it was tangled on all of the other shit. His eyes snapped to the space under the door. He saw the instant the gasoline ignited.

Katsuki's heart stopped, watching in distant fascination as the flames consumed the accelerant, heading right for him. In moments, the flames were lapping hungrily at his feet, eager to devour.

He let out a strangled cry, frantically trying to bat at his feet to keep the flames from crawling up his legs but the gasoline on his skin coaxed the flames further. "Pl-please! I'm sorry," Katsuki screamed, wholly broken. "Deku, I'm so -fuck- so fucking sorry-"

It was blinding, cloying smoke mixed with the acrid scent of burnt fuel and flesh filled his lungs. Tears blurred his vision further and everything spun.

"Please…" he choked through a whimper watching as flame dripped from his legs and onto the gas can.

Then, with an Earth-shattering boom, the world went white.