Chapter Text
If Kirishima had a written list of the things that made him anxious, being told to stand aside during class would be at least in the top fifteen. It doesn’t help that whenever it happens he’s left grasping at straws to figure out why. Most of the time it isn’t so bad: an occasional word about his dude-bro attitude and excessive volume, or a grunt about his test scores. He takes the feedback but in stride and as soon as he enters the room again he’s his energetic self.
Evening home-room was oddly peaceful that day, partly owing to the absence of a certain fierce blonde. Kirishima’s heart clenches at the absence of his friend (and crush). After all, usually the two of them are inseparable-- Partners. His thoughts are interrupted when Aizawa calls him and leads him out to the hallway and any hopes of it being something trivial scream and die when he sees the acute stare he gives him. Kaminari and Sero seem equally concerned, whispering as they watch Kirishima leave.
Aizawa is a man of few pleasantries. Kirishima can count the number of times he’s seen him smile on two hands. That’s not the problem. Kirishima can deal with brusque (he doubted he would be friends with Bakugou if he couldn’t). What sends cold waves down his spine is the laser-focused stare Aizawa fixes him with, scanning his features like a doctor might a bone-saw before an amputation. Precise, methodical and with the slightest hint of guilt.
The cold wall against Kirishima’s back gets just a little colder. His fingers curl into loose fists at his side as his heart hammers against his rib-cage, threatening to jump out his throat. He fights to keep his breaths even as the heavy silence bares down on him. He’s so caught up in the tension he doesn’t hear Aizawa the first time.
“Kirishima? Are you listening?” All at once, Kirishima sucks in a breath and chokes out a response.
“Ah! Uhm, no. Sorry, Mr Aizawa.”
Aizawa sighs softly and backs up a bit, giving Kirishima more breathing room. Kirishima smiles shakily as a weight quietly lifts from his chest.
“I said— You should go to the Infirmary. Recovery Girl is waiting there for you.” Aizawa must notice Kirishima’s wide-eyed confusion, because he continues. “It’s not for you. It’s for Bakugou.”
Kirishima’s fists tighten as his heart sinks. Bakugou? Why was Bakugou in the infirmary? Was he hurt? How had he not heard about this before? Oh god, what if—
A firm hand on his shoulder brought him back.
“He’s fine, kid.” The words are firm and certain and Kirishima realises, with some embarrassment, that his fists had hardened in his near panic. He relaxes and they soften against his uniform. He takes a few breaths.
“What’s happened?”
“It’s better if you ask Recovery Girl. All I can tell you is he’s fine, but will be needing some help. And considering your relationship,” Aizawa pauses, looking meaningfully at Kirishima, “I thought it would be best to ask you.”
Kirishima processes the statement. His mind supplies him a phrase he’d heard often in the past year, ever since Kamino. It has to be you. A familiar flame of determination lights in his stomach and he nods. If Bakugou is having trouble with something, if there was anything he could do for Bakugou, anything, Kirishima would do it. He had to—it was his duty as a man, as a hero. Still, the lack of concrete information sends his mind reeling, asking every question yet gaining no answers. Aizawa sends him to grab his stuff and then go and Kirishima wordlessly complies.
Walking back into the classroom, Kaminari, Sero and Mina swarm him, attempting to find out why he was gone for so long.
“Dude, are you okay? You look a bit frazzled.” Kaminari stands beside his desk, leaning in as Kirishima gathers his books.
“Yeah Kiri, you look like you’ve seen a ghost!” Mina comments and Sero nods, agreeing with them both.
With his usual grin fumbling, Kirishima scratches the back of his neck and forces a chuckle. “It’s no biggie. I just need to go and help Bakugou with something!”
Walking into the school infirmary is a surreal experience. It’s odd. Kirishima’s been here enough to name the number of ceiling tiles and recall where each tool is kept. Being a hero-in-training did that to you. Today it felt like he was walking into the calm before the storm, where the air is stale and everything was just a touch too bright. It would be more discomforting if it wasn’t for the weathered smile of the school’s nurse.
"Ah, Kirishima dear." Recovery Girl’s filtering some paperwork, sat facing him on a rotating stool too tall for her stature. He smiles, the soft kindness of her eyes putting him at ease.
“Hey!“ A quick sweep of the room shows no signs of the blonde bombshell, but he does notice that the white curtain has been drawn across the centre of the room, hiding the bed behind it. He keeps his voice low, not wishing to disturb Bakugou if he’s sleeping. “It’s nice to see you again, Miss. I was told I could find Bakugou here?”
Recovery Girl nods sagely as she spins back to her desk. “It’s nice to see you up and about as well. I assume Aizawa sent you here?”
“Uh, yeah. He did.”
“Good. He’s right over there.” She points to the curtain. “He got caught in a bit of an accident last Sunday when he was coming back from patrol.”
Kirishima nods, a cold sweat dripping down his spine as he attempts to control any tremors.
“He’s been hit by a quirk which, far as I can tell, combines the aspects of two living things. In this case, it’s not harmful, but Mr. Aizawa had no luck negating the change.” She shifts a few more papers, making a soft ‘ah’ noise when she finds a thin package covered in brown paper. “Here you go.” She passes him the package and Kirishima quickly guesses it’s a book based on the shape. “The effects should fade in a week. You are being designated as Bakugou’s official assistant around school. Feel free to refer to the notes in there or come and talk to me or Mr. Aizawa. Do you understand?”
Kirishima nods harder, hoping that conveys his unbreakable resolve. No matter what, he knows he can do this! He has to, he thinks desperately.
“Good. Now, I’m going to leave for a moment and let you get Bakugou up and about. Classes will be ending soon so all you have to do is get him to his room. Will you be okay with that?”
Kirishima nods one last time and Recovery Girl’s smile deepens. She hops to the floor and shuffles out of the infirmary, giving Kirishima an encouraging smile before she crosses the threshold and closes the door with a quiet click.
Kirishima takes a moment to clear his head, idly thumbing the paper around the book in his hands. His body is tense, muscles wound so tight he is on the cusp of hardening, but he tells himself it’s okay. Bakugou is fine. More importantly, he needs Kirishima’s help, and being stiff won’t get anything done. He places the book on the corner of Recovery Girl’s desk. Talking with Bakugou should come first. His fingers graze the white fabric of the curtain, grasping it firmly and pulling it aside.
He breaks into a grin when his eyes fall upon the blanketed lump on the bed. Not even a lock of hair is visible from behind the confines of the thin sheets. He listens for Bakugou’s soft snoring but hears nothing.
“Bakugou?” He smiles even more when the lump twitches slightly at his voice. “You awake buddy?”
There’s no response, but the lump shifts again, attempting to move away from him. A lightness spreads through Kirishima’s chest as he chuckles quietly. He can’t help it. He’s never seen Bakugou hide before.
“Hey, Blasty.” Kirishima repeats, more assured. He reaches for the edges of the sheet. “C’mon man, we’ve gotta get out here-YAH!”
Kirishima moves too slow as part of the lump lunges forward and grabs his wrist. He yelps as Bakugou’s hand tightens around him, twisting to prevent him from moving the sheet. Kirishima winces, reflexively hardening enough that Bakugou won’t break the skin easily. A low and bestial hiss follows as the rest of the lump again inches away from him, now hampered by the anchoring point of their joint hands.
Kirishima freezes, frantically reassessing the situation. Recovery Girl told him the quirk that affected Bakugou meant he had been combined with another living thing. Only now does Kirishima realise he neglected to ask which living thing. He gazes forlornly at the book on Recovery Girl’s desk, just out of reach from his current position. He knew if he really wanted he could pull himself out of Bakugou’s grip, but his nose catches the scent of burnt sugar and chemicals and he decides against using force.
Instead, he softens his voice, letting his arm go lax in Bakugou’s grip. It doesn’t do anything to deter him, but Bakugou doesn’t tighten his hold any more.
“Baku? Hey, it’s okay. It’s Kirishima. Your best friend?” He reaches for the sheet with his other hand and a low growl answers. His hand hesitates, paused in mid-air. “I’m not here to hurt you. I’m just going to take you to your room, alright?” The growling continues, but quieter. “You’ve got nothing to be scared of, buddy. I’m here.”
The growling quietens to an occasional grunt and Kirishima takes that as a signal. His hand grabs the edge of the sheet and slowly he lifts it up just enough that he can bend down and see.
Shadows obscure Bakugou’s face beneath the sheet but Kirishima quickly picks out the important details. Bakugou is wearing casual clothes and doesn’t appear to have suffered any wounds, based on the lack of bandages. Aside from his messy shock of hair, two additional spikes poke out, almost obscured among the others. They are pressed low, almost to Bakugou’s skull, and as Kirishima watches them, they twitch and reveal a pinkish inside. Words are stolen from Kirishima’s throat as he processes that Bakugou now has an additional set of ears on top of his head. Dog ears!? Cat ears!? Slit pupils track his every movement while nostrils flare and his lips curl. Sharp incisors, beyond the limits of a normal human, bare themselves threateningly.
"Hey, hey, it's okay." Kirishima shushes the growling, keeping his hands away for now. Miraculously, Bakugou closes his mouth and goes back to glaring.
Kirishima’s mind runs itself in circles, taking in every difference. He looks in Bakugou’s eyes, but there’s no flicker of recognition there. Obviously, the quirk combined more than just physical traits. In that case, it was no surprise the creature that Bakugou was combined with is acting on instinct in such an unfamiliar place. Holding the distance between them, Kirishima keeps his voice low. "I'm a friend."
His words have an effect, as with each one Bakugou calms down more and more, his eyes returning to normal and one ear twitching away from his skull to listen.
“Can you sit up?” Kirishima asks and Bakugou hunches over, bearing his teeth again. “Not if you don’t want to! But it’s just you and me in here, so you don’t have to hide okay?”
Bakugou appears to take the time to think, before he nods and slowly sits up. The sheet pools around his waist and then he stops, looking at Kirishima. His stare is accompanied by a slight head-tilt and Kirishima gets the impression that the creature is curious now more than scared.
Kirishima doesn’t miss how Bakugou still hasn’t let go of his wrist either, though his grip has loosened substantially. His heart flutters but he stops thinking about before he flushes as red as his hair. Damnit, crush, this is not the time.
With Bakugou no longer on high alert, Kirishima takes the time to notice that there is something lower down that is also shifting. He doesn’t dare to move the sheet, but his silent question is soon answered when a thick, fluffy tail falls out, curling and twitching seemingly randomly. It’s the same colour as Bakugou’s hair, though a touch lighter in some places.
Partway through admiring just how fluffy the tail was a realisation punched Kirishima straight in the face.
“You’re a cat!?” He shouts and several things happen at once.
Bakugou face scrunches up, his ears flattening again as he hisses loudly. Kirishima notices the heat around his wrist just in time to harden as an explosion attempts to blast him apart. Though the explosion is muted, Bakugou jumps at the sound and lets go. Without the anchor to hold him down, the force of the explosion sends Kirishima hurtling back into the desk. Meanwhile, Bakugou spins around, backing away across the bed. He miscalculates, however, the edges of the bed and with a yowl and crash he lands on his back, his legs still hanging on the bed.
The room is deadly silent for a moment. Kirishima stands stock still at his awkward position half-leaning on the desk, waiting for the creature wearing Bakugou’s face to come barrelling at him. The creature never comes. Instead, Kirishima is met with a familiar voice from the far side of the bed.
“Kirishima?”
Relief blooms in Kirishima’s chest as his body almost relaxes to the point of dropping to his knees. He sighs.
“Yes, Bakugou?”
Bakugou takes his legs down from the bed and rights himself, ears flicking and tail swaying low. He glares at Kirishima and flashes a dangerous grin Kirishima easily recognises as contained rage.
“You have five seconds to tell me why I’m here, or you have two to run. Your choice.”