Chapter Text
DEKU
Izuku took a couple of days off of school. Some teachers visited, and he answered their questions, while his mother hovered over him. She never left his side, not even for a moment. He begged them not to tell her everything that happened but they did anyway.
By some grace of God his heat totally cleared up, seemingly beaten by the strength of his rage. After that, his heats were more regulated. Still destructive and heartbreaking, but at least they no longer appeared from thin air.
The mental healing was rough, but his determination was stronger. When he returned to school, he pushed past the concern. Pushed through the sad looks, the pats on the shoulder. He didn't want to be known as the Omega that got abused by Alphas. He wanted to be known as the best Omega hero ever. He was further determined to help those just like him, those stepped on by Alphas, and by people that abuse their quirks. He worked harder, pushed himself farther, and rested less. That first month back to school was brutal, and he still skirted around the locker rooms. Izuku isn’t sure he’ll ever be comfortable entering them again.
What he dwelled on, what lurked in the recesses of his brain, however, was not just the Alphas actions. What the Alphas did was horrible, and he still had nightmares about it, but what was truly debilitating was how weak he felt. He felt powerless, just like how he was before All Might passed on his Quirk. He knows that he fought back, that he could have defeated them in just a minute more. But all he can remember is being paralyzed at the hands of those assholes. Unable to move, weakness seeping into his bones. That is what he dreams about. The crippling fear. The endless weakness and vulnerability. Every night it jolts him awake, his body covered in sweat, heart ready to jump from his chest. Lungs working double-time. Every time he startles wakes up, jolting up in his bed; with one-word, a silent gasp on his lips.
“Kacchan” he cries for wordlessly.
After each nightmare, if he can fall asleep, he dreams of the times that Kacchan held him when they were little. Nestled together for nap time. Or when he carried him on his back home, the heat radiating off of him. He dreams of Kacchan gently playing with his hair, of tracing circles on his skin. Of light kisses on his forehead. He dreams of the warmth of his love.
Then he wakes up to the morning sun blaring into his eyes, to the pain of reality.
After “the incident” school was different. People hovered around him, the entire class became a blockade against outsiders. Even casual friends stuck up for him in the halls, growled when others spoke bad about him. Uraraka and Iida never left his side. The duo was his ever-present guards, ready to put everything on the line for Izuku. Thinking about their incredible kindness both brought tears and strengthened his desire to become even stronger.
It wasn't just his classmates; he was obviously changed as well. He was hyper-alert, his sense of smell accentuated. It was overwhelming, how many scents there were. How sensitized his nose was. He started taking breaks in the nurse office, and would all but huff her coffee beans to get some form of inner calm. It made him crazy, being able to smell everything, the sheer amount of information it gave him. He could smell so much, sense so much, and yet he never felt so isolated. His soft delicate scent was erased, washed in the ever-changing sea. He was but a small cog in a very large, powerful machine. He had never felt so lost in the mass of people on Earth. The information was too much; he wasn't able to process it fully. All he could do was narrow down other designations. But…. there was one scent that he could grab on to. And hold on for dear life.
One scent that led him home. Led him to when they were children splashing around in the river. One scent, that no matter where he was, how close or far, how many people there were, he could smell.
And he held on to that smell until he was able to better navigate the cacophony of the world. He was so aware of all the smells around him, the people, the quirks. He only let his guard down with select few, and even then only in some areas.
Many things changed about Izuku after the attacks, some of his pure-hearted innocence stripped away. But he refused to allow himself to be taken in by negativity, by darkness. He resolved to lift himself, and those around him, up.
And some other… more complicated relationships changed. Relationships that had been balls of tightly wound knotted string had started to unravel.
Wherever he went, a certain energy followed him. Distant, somewhat unseen, but there. From the instant his left his house, to the moment he arrived back to it at the end of the day. In the halls, during class breaks, everywhere. Even in-class activities, he felt those eyes trained on him. Instead of feeling trapped or scared, it felt right. Like this was always how it was meant to be. Kacchan watched him, guarded him, protected him everywhere he went. And it made his battered heart warm just thinking about it. Sometimes, Izuku would turn quickly and their eyes would clash. In Kacchan’s eyes was the surety of a tiger watching its prey. They contained heat of an Alpha ready to claim him. But Izuku never backed down, he would stare back with the same taunting confidence. Something would have to pull both of their attentions for the staring to end.
Neither noticed, but the entire classes would hold their breath in those moments. As if they were watching the romance of the decade unfold before their very eyes.
When Izuku first returned to school, the walk was long, slow and meandering. He just couldn't find it in himself to have the same pep, the same energy to learn and grow. The world had brought him down. He felt dirty, and his mind was unable to escape the actions. The path to school felt like a treacherous trail, slippery and sharp. With mud to his knees, that dragged his legs down.
But then, as he crossed trhough the local park to school, a scent so familiar and warm that it made his eyes water, started to tangle around him. It caressed his cheek with love, whistled through his hair, and settled around him. It let him know he would never be alone again. He didn't have to look behind to know who was escorting him to school.
Under his breath, a tiny tear forming in the corner of his eye, he said; “Thank you Kacchan.”
That tiny bit of support was enough for him to keep going. To persevere.
At first, when he walked home, Katsuki would just follow from a safe distance. Eventually, Izuku realized and grew tired of unnecessary distance. So he started to wait. He would walk so slow, or sit on a bench until Katsuki ran out of patience and stomped up to him and demand he go faster.
“Goddamn, if you don't hurry it up we won’t get home until midnight.” He would say gruffly, his voice like smooth gravel to Izuku.
This went on for a while, and gradually the distance between them shrunk more and more. They circled around each other almost, both trying to figure out what they were becoming. How fast to go, how slow. Izuku was still not used to Kacchan being so open, but he would never let this opportunity slip through his fingers. He would push Katsuki, enter his space. Their shoulders would be brushing each other, hands lightly touching.
First Izuku curled his pinky finger around Kacchan’s, just to test out the connection. Kacchan would freeze up, lightly grunt, and move closer to him. He would tightly grip the little finger, before completely entwining their hands.
“Just ask Deku, I’ll give you anything,” Katsuki would say with no shame.
Izuku’s face instantly went beet red, and he had to look down to cover a smile.
Katsuki grinned, “Hmm…Deku is there anything else you want? Maybe… something special?”
Izuku bumped the taller boys shoulder and started walking fast. Not that he could get far since Katsuki had a solid grip on his hand. Kacchan’s laughter flooded his ears, melting his heart even more.
The rest of the walk home Katsuki would move in closer than strictly necessary, breathing near his ear. He would rub the sensitive skin on his wrist. And sweet, sweet Izuku was overwhelmed by the feeling of belonging.
Neither fully noticed how their scents became to mingle, creating something new.
These were no silent walks either. They would talk about what they learned in class, their friends, the different teachers. They talked about each other’s quirks, critiquing each other.
They talked about everything, from the sun and stars, to their designations, to everything that was left unsaid between them. They even talked about class drama and gossip.
“You know, Kaminari and Kirishima have a thing for each other? They start blushing and leaning into each other when they think no one is looking,” Izuku says with a grin.
“Those losers?” Kacchan laughs, “They’re incapable of hiding anything, but you know, I do wish them the best. The world can be harsh to Alpha Beta couples.” He says while looking down into Deku’s eyes.
Blushing, Izuku holds his gaze for a second more before looking to the ground. “It can be harsh to Omegas too.”
All of sudden Deku is thrown back into those terrifying moments, and he freezes up. Katsuki slows down and doubles back, looking at him with stubborn concern etched into his face.
Looking off into the distance, frozen in place Izuku says in a toneless voice, “Those assholes…they got sent to an ‘Alpha correctional facility’, after being expelled. I hope they never see the light of day again.”
Turning his face up, he looks into Kacchan’s eyes, “My goal is to show everyone that Omegas are just as strong as Alphas. I want to be the role model that All Might was to me to the next generation. To become the greatest hero ever.”
Katsuki pauses for a moment before quietly saying, “You’re the strongest Omega I’ve ever met. Maybe even the strongest person, body and spirit.”
And just like that, all the tension drains from Deku’s body. Blood rushed to his face and reddens his cheeks. He stammers out “N-no way, Kacchan, did you just compliment me?”
Grinning while grabbing the other boys hand, twining their fingers together, “Maybe, dumbass. You’ll still have to beat ME to the top hero spot.”
They walked home slower that day, laughing and leaning into each other. Sharing jokes and little things that no one else knows about them. Their hands were both warm and sticky, but they never let each other go. Not until they reached Izuku’s house, and they stared into each other’s eyes. Katsuki touched his forehead to Izuku’s, and said “Tomorrow.” And lightly brushed his lips to Izuku’s forehead.
Izuku hurriedly rushed into his house, and right after he shut the door, he collapsed in the entrance. Hands covered his heated face, and he tried to find his breathing again. And even after Kacchan left, his scent surrounded Izuku.
KATSUKI
After carefully reintegrating himself into Deku’s life, he started to be more public. He knew that everyone noticed how he and Deku arrived and left together, how they all tracked Katsukis blatant movements towards Deku. How he waited for him at the school entrance and walked him into class every morning. He knew everyone noticed how the atmosphere had changed between the two. How he had started to claim his mate, ever so subtly.
Deku, that sweet boy, seemed oblivious of the moves that Katsuki was making. So, he decided to up the ante. He pushed into Deku's life during school too.
After walking to and from school together for weeks, Katsuki decided it was time. He talked to Izuku at lunch. He walked with him during breaks to get a drink. He sat by him before class started. He wants to become so integrated into Deku’s life, that the nerd doesn't even realize that they are attached at the hip.
His carefully laid plans started to finally take shape. And his desired outcomes finally started coming to fruition, he could almost taste it. He wanted to be bonded mates so bad, he dreams of it. It is all he thinks of, all-consuming thought of how to ensure that they are inseparable.
He made sure to ask Deku to study with him, eat lunch with him. He filled his time courting Deku. And made sure that the entire school knew it. In front of all the other Alphas, he would wrap his arm over the other boy's shoulder. Would lightly nip at Deku’s ear, to make sure everyone got the idea. Deku would blush and push him off playfully, but Katsuki would just move back even closer.
All this time together was doing what he wants: strengthening their ever-present bond. The bond that he had let hang and weaken for so long. He wanted to go back and scream at himself for the stupidity, for letting so many other Alphas ever get close to Deku.
Now, due to Katsuki's very consistent contact, they seemed to bonding on a physical and mental level. Katsuki craves for everyone to see him and Deku as an unbreakable pair, to be THE mated pair of a lifetime.
He starts talking with Iida and Uraraka, gaining their trust and friendship more and more every day. They love his little mate, and before, that wouldn't have mattered to Katsuki. Now, he wants them to accept him as well. To earn their respect, and hell, even friendship.
And more than anything, he wants to cut off Deku’s escape routes. It doesn't sound nice, and really, it isn’t. He wants to make sure that he is a center, for the most part, of Deku’s world. That his little mate has to come running to his arms. By integrating himself so completely, that Deku would no longer be able to recognize where he ends and Katsuki begins.
It isn’t a pretty love, but it is a love that will never burn out. Never will he let Deku be harmed, he will care and watch his mate till the end of his days. Deku is his, and no one will ever take away what is his again.
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Katsuki planned on a beautiful apology, with words made of gold and silver. Words that sparkled in the sun, and would make Deku forgive him. But when they entered Deku’s room, when it was just the two of them in that small space, the words he practiced for so long never came.
His throat tightened, the fear of losing this magnificent boy overwhelmed him, and nothing came out. Standing there in the middle of the room, his bag fell from his trembling hands, and tears started to crawl from his eyes.
Deku with his never-ending patience led him to the bed where they held each other.
Katsuki with his back pressed to the wall, and Deku nestled in-between his arms and legs. Safe. Secure.
And still, Katsuki wasn't capable of fancy words. Of pretty words meant to soothe, of grand apologies crafted with delicate, elegant words. His words would never be able to smooth the rough edges and broken glass between them. His language was quick, cutting and to the point. There was no room for frivolous words, words with no substance.
When he speaks, his words are concise, all filled with meaning.
And that day, the sweltering sun melting the house, the wind flowing through the window ruffling the sheer curtains, that day he said very little. No words were strong enough, or meaningful enough, to overcome the divide between them. None had the necessary weight of pain and time.
And so all he could do was open himself to Deku. Peel back the layers of insecurity and shame, to the raw heart of himself.
He held on to Deku from behind. Held on as if his life depended on it. And he cried. Ugly, wet tears pouring from his eyes. His breathing was uneven and struggling. He couldn't see anything. The tears covered everything, like a never-ending well from his eyes. He cried into Deku’s shoulder for hours, only able to mumble “I’m sorry”,
“I’m…….so sorry.” He would manage to repeat occasionally.
And Deku just sat there, his back against the larger boys chest. He let Katsuki cry, and cry and cry.
He let the emotions of guilt and regret pass over him.
And eventually, Katsuki stopped. His eyes could produce no more tears, and both his body and spirit were drained. The boulder he had carried on his chest for so long, was finally gone.
Lifted by Deku’s small noises of assurance. Of how he had massaged his hand. Of how he had listened to Katsuki cry for so long. He had held him. Deku’s warmth eventually spread to Katsuki and told him all was well now.
Deku, ever so gently, turned and faced Katsuki. Cradling Katsuki’s face in his hands, he said “It’s ok Kacchan. We were children. I know you didn't mean it.”
With a small tear running down his cheek, he whispered to Katsuki, their foreheads pressed together, his eyes bright with many unsaid things,
“But thank you.”
And then, they shifted seamlessly, Deku cradling Katsuki in his arms, gently brushing his hair, leaving light touches here and there. And together they stayed, half asleep, leaning into each other. Drunk on the other's presence. They had mumbled small things, only to hear the other talk. To hear their mates voice resound into the space between them. It let both of them know this was no dream, just a blissful reality. The sun went, and even as darkest night settled into their city, neither moved. With their bond so new, so fragile, they couldn't have borne to be apart.
So together, for the first time in a long time, they slept on the same tiny bed together. Hands held loosely, arms wrapped around each other. Hearing the other’s breathing, smelling their scent.
Deku held Katsuki to his chest, and the last thought that passed thought Katsuki’s mind before they fell into a long slumber was
“I love you mate, and I will never let you go.”
=========
It was a normal hero in training exercise. That’s all it was supposed to be. Another day in the gym practically.
Expect it wasn’t.
It was the day Katsuki’s mind cracked just a little bit.
It started off the same as any other day, the teachers broke everyone up into teams and began the training. When the two teams battled each other, the rest of the class watched from above, critiquing them. Normal. Ordinary. Safe.
They had done it a million times.
Deku’s team was the last to go. Katsuki was thinking about their walk home together, hoping they could stop to get Deku’s favorite taiyaki. Then maybe, just maybe, they could sit in the park. Watch a movie. Something stupid like that. It was dumb, but it made his heart flutter a little bit, the thought of making his omega happy.
Thinking about it made him a little giddy, his heart speeding up.
But just at that moment, everything changed, he looked up to see Deku and some kid from Class B fighting. And something….happened.
Deku just crumpled. His body hit the ground all wrong. He looked like a broken bird that had flown too soon.
A visceral scream erupted from Katsuki. He was lurching towards the glass barrier before he could even register his own movements.
He was all instinct.
All the breath left Katsukis lungs, flushed out with true fear. His heart stopped, and he could hear everyone else gasp.
Growling he said “WHY ISNT HE GETTING UP”
Seeing red, he started to launch himself through the glass protecting them from the battle area. Teachers and classmates tried to stop him, reel him in, but he was all muscle and explosions. He was completely feral in those moments, growling and unhinged.
Growling, he got to Deku’s side in an instant.
His breath ragged in his throat.
He felt around for a pulse, reassured himself that his mate was breathing. He looked over his injuries, saw a broken leg and maybe a couple of fingers too. The fury didn't subside. He held the other boys head in his hands, touching his face gently reassuring himself that Deku was fine. His hands trembled and sweat dripped down his back. Keening low in his throat, he gently hovered his trembling hands all over the other boy's body, moving up and down unsure what to do. His eyes were frenzied.
Under his breath, he whined “Deku, please…open your eyes, mate. Please”
Deku, his beautiful, pure mate, said nothing. He didn't move, his breathing remained a weak hum.
His voice a storm of calm fury as he said roughly “Did you call first aid”
The other kids surrounding him bobbed their heads and meekly said yes. He smelled their fear, but he cared for no one but Deku. And Deku stayed unmoving, color drained from his face.
He heard another boy saying over and over again “I… I didn't mean it… all of a sudden he just fell… I don't know what happened”
Katsuki’s head shot up, his eyes burning with incandescent rage, “Get the hell out of my sight before I tear you to shreds.”
The boy scuttled off, dissipating into the wreckage around them.
In the next moments, the nurse arrived with her medical team, calm and efficient. They lifted the boy into a gurney and took him off in the car. Katsuki would have followed, wanted to, but his legs gave out. He couldn't get air in fast enough, his lungs finally working again. His mate, his mind reminded him, will be alright. But those moments of uselessness were not forgotten.
He couldn't move, all of a sudden his fear and relief hitting him again.
He couldn't protect his mate. When his mate needed saving, needed help, he was trapped behind a barrier of glass. He left his defenseless mate, his instinct’s screamed at him. You did this, he screeched at himself. You knew he couldn't handle this school, he was too soft, too gentle. His heart so easily wounded.
His soft gentle mate, with fluffy hair made of clouds, and eyes of pure joy. He let that mate crumble and fall right in front of him.
First, you hurt him, then you can’t even protect him. From yourself, from himself, let alone villains.
And then he screamed, the Alpha instincts in him breaking lose before he could do anything. The teachers had to hold him back from going after the other student. He couldn't see or hear anything, just the red hot blood coursing through his veins. His mind was feral with rage. Rage at being useless, of being so close and so fucking far at the same goddamn time.
He couldn't calm down, explosion after explosion going off around him, the shock finally wearing off. The teachers had to bind him and put his hands in water to calm him down. Breathing hard and struggling against the chains, he growled out, looking Aizawa in the eyes, “Take me to my mate”
“Not until you calm down.” Aizawa said firmly, “You aren’t safe for anyone to be around.”
“Boy, Midoriya will recover, he is a fast healer.” All Might tries to saying soothingly using his somewhat maternal Omega scent to try and unruffle Katsuki, “He will be good as new soon.”
It took time, but he managed to reel in his anger and find that calm inner mind he hid from most people. His breathing evened out, and his eyes lost the crazed look to them.
Katsuki, the fatigue of being so furious for so long finally setting, collapsed into himself on the ground. The chains falling around him, his knees hitting the floor, he muttered “Ok… Fine… I’ve calmed down. Please, just take me to my mate.” As one tear of pure frustration appeared in the corner of his eye.
The teachers looked at each other before giving him a small nod. They both had been separated from an injured mate before, knew the damage that can be done psychologically and physically. They didn't want to make this young couple suffer anymore.
They escorted the younger man to the infirmary, where the nurse was carefully treating and taking care of Deku. By the time they arrived, Deku’s stats were up, his breathing normal. Color had returned to his face, and his eyes fluttered under the lids. He no longer looked like a crumpled doll that had been slammed against a concrete wall. Katsuki slowly separated himself from the teachers and went to sit beside the bed Deku lay in. He fell into the chair with a loud thud, but Deku didn't move.
The nurse smiled, her voice full of time and patience, “He’ll be up in a couple of hours. These things happen, don't worry yourself too much.”
Katsuki said nothing, was barely able to hear her words he was so focused on his mate. Every aspect of Katsuki was working to convince him that Deku was ok. And for long, long minutes that stretched into ever longer hours, Katsuki was Deku’s guard. He watched his breathing, his chest going up and down ever so slightly. He gently held his hand and would touch his cheeks to make sure they were warm. All soft fleeting touches, to convince himself that his mate was fine.
He smelled when Deku started to awaken, his scent swimming delicately through the air, giving him the reassurance he needed. His smile was shaky, water coating his eyes, and making his throat tight. It stung, how much emotion was trapped in his throat, his words almost trapped within him.
“Deku……” He started to say softly before he took a deep breath and paused. Swallowing all of the fear and pain, he said
“Izuku, welcome back.”
Izuku
His eyes were hard to open, lids sluggish and heavy. They felt like weighted marbles, impossible to move and uncomfortable in his head. He was able to slit his eyes just barely open, but the lights were overwhelming and he immediately shuttered his eyes again.
“Take your time,” Katsuki said in a low soothing voice that Izuku had never heard before. Katsuki also held his hand and gently rubbed circles in his palm. It made Izuku pause, to take account of his body and his current capabilities.
His throat was dry, parched as if it was filled with paper. His fingers could move, his toes as well. He could even just barely raise his arms, mere millimeters off the bed.
This time when he reattempted to open his eyes, he was able to sustain it. He searched out Kacchan’s bright eyes, and what he found was eyes gleaming with water.
“I’m back Kacchan,” Izuku said, his voice rough from disuse. “How long was I resting?”
“Too long,” Katsuki said, all of a sudden his eyes sharp, his voice carrying the threat of anger. Katsuki was seemingly aware of this and took a deep calming breath. “About 7 hours. I’ve been waiting in the nurse's office with you.”
“Thank you,” Izuku said, and tightly grabbed Katsuki’s hand. He lifted himself a bit on the bed, positioning himself into a more proper seated position. “This was an accident, things happen in training. It was no one’s fault.”
Katsuki looked tormented, as if he knew these words to be true, but could not accept them. “Kacchan, listen to me- things like this will keep happening. Injuries are inevitable.”
“Deku…No, Izuku, I cannot see you like this ever again. It was like my entire world crashed down in front of me and disintegrated. When I saw you fall, all I saw was death.”
Deku smiled, eyes crinkling, and mouth widening “Don’t worry Kacchan, I’m going to be the best hero this world has ever seen, and no one will be able to bring me down. Just give me a couple of years ok?” Deku said, his voice brimming with confidence and charm.
Katsuki froze and took several moments to respond, “You’ll still have to beat me, dumbass. But you better get stronger or I swear to God I’m taking you out of this school myself.”
Deku’s grin turned into a soft smile, “Of course...honey. Anything for you.” And for the first time in his life, he saw Katsuki blush.
Not beet red, but a faint color that spread across the tops of his cheeks and tips of his ears.
“I love you,” Deku said, his words soft but his grip on Katsuki hand firm. “I will love you until all my bones are frail, and my hair is white and brittle, my face etched with time.”
“Damnit Izuku,” Katsuki said, his throat tight, “What did I do to deserve you, I’ll never fucking know. But I will never let you go, not even when I can’t walk, or talk or see. We will be together until the end, fighting every last step, Mate.”
Deku’s heart felt whole, their bond cemented with words of love and kindness. Their scents mingling to create a new one, one of fire laced with air, spices and gentle leaves. For so long, their scents seemed to dance around each other, intertwining only slightly, but now they were completely wrapped around each other as all mates are.
On a final note, Katsuki said, “Even with all the other people in the world, with all their scents and chaos, I would always find you. Your delicate scent that calls out only to me, I would find you even half a world away, Mate.”
For so long Deku was ashamed of himself, for being Quirkless, for being a mockery of an Omega, and for being so… lost. And despite having grown so much, and gaining so much strength and confidence, the feeling of being found and loved made his heartbreak all over again. That Katsuki had the ability to notice his fine, faint scent made him weak.
And this time Deku cried, soft broken tears of happiness, and Katsuki cradled him like the precious cargo he was. Kaccahn softly hummed reassurances into his ears and tucked Izuku into his chest.
“You will never be alone again, Izuku. This I swear to you.”
Inko
Inko was berating herself heavily for taking the business trip. She should have known something bad would happen to Izuku the moment she left the prefecture. When she got the call from his teachers, she was in such a state of panic and disarray that Mr. Yagi had to calmly tell her to stop for a moment figure out what she needed to do next. He helped her get the next fastest train back home, and she sat on the train, back hunched and clenching a tissue for hours. When she finally heard her stop, she sprinted off the train, out the station and hailed a taxi.
All she could do was chant in her mind “ My baby, my sweet child… injured again.”
Her breath hitched every time she remembered them saying broken bones, and “He is still sleeping”, on the phone.
It took forever, the traffic stop-start from the station to the school but they finally arrived. It was dark, and the school otherwise closed except for the infirmary area.
She ran through the gates, past the teachers that tried to stop her, and only slowed down when she heard her boy's animated voice.
He was laughing she realized, and she waited just a moment on the other side of the wall, listening to her son. He was talking in a chipper voice, about different classmates and all of his notes on hero’s, about his plans for the future. He talked a mile a minute, about every subject on the planet. And the other boy next to him, hummed and chimed in.
She could tell it was the spiky-haired boy from their neighborhood, who was humming and voicing an occasional opinion. His voice sounded sharp, but the words were soft. After a moment, she sighed deeply, and slide against the wall into a crouch. She could tell, form the soft looks they gave each other and the gentle voices that their bond had finally snapped into place.
Izuku and his mate had finally rekindled, were no longer estranged. Small tears leaked out of her eyes, and before she could help herself she was up and running to the door.
“Izuku!” she cried running to the bed, to bundle her son in her arms. However hurriedly it seemed, she was careful not to jostle his injuries or hug him too tightly.
And she felt his happiness, his contentedness, and his mate's love for him. All of this made her cry even harder, and Izuku laughed nervously and blushed while patting her on her back.
“I’m ok Mom", he said softly against her hair. While he left himself to be swept into the hug. “I’m ok.”
Katsuki
They didn't tell the class so much as show up standing close to each other, Deku’s face red and Katsuki wearing a triumphant grin. The entire class noticed the scent change, and all their classmate's heads tilted for a moment before bursting around them with a million questions.
Katsuki, now happy with his claim, cared not about the other alphas in the class.
However, during their P.E. class, he and Todoroki were doing a practice drill together, and Todoroki asked him several pointed questions.
“So, how long did you cover Deku’s scent with yours?”, Todoroki said, looking the other direction while practicing his icy maneuvers. “Most Alphas wouldn't notice, and would just think Deku had an insignificant scent.”
“But I know that you must have been scenting him for years, to get his scent so mild and relaxed that it didn't feel the need to call out for an Alpha.”
Katsuki grinned sharply, “He’s been my mate since he moved in down the street from me. Of course, there was never any need for any other fucking Alphas.”
“And Deku’s scent was already soft, to begin with, but it faded even more through the years.”
Todoroki looked mildly shocked but also in awe. He couldn't fathom scenting and claiming a mate from the age of four.
“Don't worry about it half and half. Deku knows deep down, but he just never really realized we’ve been weakly bonded mates this entire time.”
Todoroki scoffed and said, “Let’s get back to the rest of the class.” And after that, he never brought it up again.
Katsuki knew he was a different kind of possessive, the kind that could ruin a weak mate. That could ruin their soft bond. But Deku, now he was strong and powerful. He wouldn't let Katsuki walk all over him, would stand up and defend himself.
And there was nothing Katsuki loved more than seeing his mate so strong, so happy and so fucking his.
School went on. They got separated into different training groups so they wouldn't interfere with each other’s learning. But other than that, they stayed close. Always within each other's line of sight, only ever just an arm away. It was odd to the others, to see them so close now for such long stretches of time. But, after being apart for so long, so estranged. So angry and hurt. Being close just helped them heal the wounds of the past, helped them reaffirm their bond. It helped them both feel whole.
School went fast, they trained and trained. They fought villains and allies that betrayed them. They fought together, for each other, and apart.
There were many nights in hospitals, many injuries and too many tears shed. But, despite it all, all the stress and intensity, they stayed strong. Their love never wavered, their dedication to their dreams and to each other never failed.
And every night, they fell asleep hearing the other's voice, or in the other’s arms. Never again, would either of them be afraid, lonely or wanting. While they slept, their scents swirled together and became a new one perfect harmony. Izuku’s delicate scent of freshness and the sea, mixed into and accentuated Katsuki’s harsh burnt wood and sage. Together, they created a new scent, and a wonderful enduring love together.