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Blond hair shifting in the light summer air. The sun reflecting off of the strands making the normal dark blond a bleached white. His eyes sharp, the black lining around them that everyone has gotten so accustomed to absent. Simmering vermilion irises complimented with the smooth fair skin. If you got close enough you could see the light wrinkles that covered the expanse of his features, barely noticeable but still a memory of the crackle of smiles lighting his face.
Katsuki Bakugou stepped out on the polished stage, adorned with a custom suit created by his own father for this emotional occasion. Next to him was the love of his life. Their relationship is deeper than just an old childhood friend. The small golden rings on each of their fingers hinted into the fact. Viridescent eyes casting over the crowd with a lining of tears. Izuku Midoriya closed the gap between him and his husband by linking his arm through the blond's.
The civilians and hero's alike both snapped into silence, each of them knowing what was about to come next. Hundreds of cameras filmed every aching second that stretched on as Katsuki took his time walking up to the single microphone stand in the very center of the stage. The greenette was dressed in a matching suit, an orange tie complimenting the blond's green one. His face, more prominent than his lovers, had smile lines that matched the male beside him.
Letting out an exasperated sigh, Katsuki began the long awaited announcement.
"I'm sorry to announce that Pro Heros Ground Zero and Deku, both sides of the Wonder Duo will finally be retiring from duty." The crowd went ballistic.
"Why?"
"Are either of you injured?"
"Did you lose your quirks?"
"You both are ranked at number 1, why would you want to retire!?"
"You guys are still so young! Endeavor retired in his 70's! Even then it was due to a major injury!"
Izuku shook his curls, eyes locked with his husband's. He whispered a few helpful words to hopefully lower the blond's temper. Katsuki stretched his lips into a thin line and motioned for Izuku to step towards the microphone.
"We are both proud of each other for where we are in the rankings. It's been years of work, but this has been coming for years." Izuku paused, sucking in a deep breath as he leveled his gaze with his son's in the front of the crowd. He felt just a bit more at ease as he gave him a thumbs up and a smile.
"We've saved millions of people. Lost people." A picture of Red Riot flashed before his eyes with his accepting smile and sharp teeth. Even though the memory of the redhead in a hospital bed still rotted his brain, IV's running up and down his arms and a large mask covering his mouth and nose, Kirishima Ejiro was so much more than that. Memories of the greenettes and Katsuki's wedding reminded him of that. Standing beside Katsuki, excitement bursting through his skin, was Kirishima, his man of honor. Over the years he had become more of a brother than a friend. Just a few hours before, him and his husband had laid a new arrangement of flowers on his grave.
"Some we will dearly miss and never forget for the rest of our lives." He nodded his head towards Katsuki, rubbing gently against his shoulder. Izuku knew that Kirishima was closer to him than to Izuku and he knew that Katsuki was still struggling now, three years later.
"We wed, one of the best memories in my lifetime. It'll be the first thing that comes to mind when I'm on my deathbed." The greenette glanced back down at his son. "We adopted our son, an absolute blessing." Tears welled up once again in his eyes. It was Katsuki's turn to wrap a supporting arm around his husband. No words were passed between them before Katsuki continued on where Izuku left off.
"Our agency has been a dream come true, and we are proud to be passing it down to Katsumi." His gravely but clear voice rang out over the crowd, years of yelling commands and attacks leaving his vocal cords a bit more strained than they were in highschool. Scars littered his body, showing what he has overcome over his lifetime.
He fully took over the microphone now, pushing Izuku to the side a bit as his face blazed into a striking smirk. "My family is my biggest accomplishment and is put above everything else. If Endeavor was here to speak he could tell you all how much he regrets that he never retired with his wife. His retirement was the best thing that has ever happened to him, even if it left him without a quirk." Izuku gaped at him, so did the rest of the crowd.
"I had a good talk to him before his passing. He explained to me how much he regretted that he never settled down. Sure, he had a wife, he had kids. However the life he lived with them was nothing of what he wished to have. He showed them the side that was riddled with insecurities and broken down due to hero work. It was corrupted with the image of winning. He never got his chance to make himself a better man for his kids while working. Only after his retirement was he able to rekindle that relationship he had prayed for all his life.
"I don't want that."
Katsuki remembered the first time he met with Endeavor after his injury. He remembered the look of happiness that had never been there before, never been able to settle into his eyes. People knew him as such a terrible person and Katsuki knew better than anyone what it felt like for people to hate him. He glanced over at his husband. A smile spread over his lips as he remembered all the times Izuku had corrected Katsuki's behavior. He was a blessing. Katsuki has been blessed and he wanted to give the greenette everything in the world if it meant he could wake up to him every morning. Which now he could. They wouldn't have to worry about their schedules, he could spend all his days with the man he loved.
"I want to have that time that was stripped away from Enji Todoroki all those years ago. Even if we are still 'young' I want to make sure I can still be the best me I can be." Years of being the worst he could be still tormented his brain. He wanted to be better. He knows he is better.
"We still have our life to live and I don't want to waste it." They were in their 50's, some adults their age would be planning their retirement. However, in the hero world, people were so accustomed to heros retiring at an older age. Society was built up on heros being stronger than the average human in every aspect that when they saw even an ounce of social norm circle around the top 10, they set off in chaos.
This time seemed different.
The crowd cheered.
Loud applauses vibrated onto the stage as the couple turned to leave, still connected by their interwoven arms.
"So what do you say, home?" Katsuki whispered, a large grin sprung forth onto his thin lips.
"Sounds lovely," Izuku's husband pulled him up lightly into a kiss. One of his arms wrapped around the greenettes waist as they walked away.
"I love you, Deku."
"You know I love you too, Kacchan."
In the background they swore they could hear the voices of their deceased friends whispering their appreciation.