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The sun hasn't even set on Katsuki's worst day ever, and the next disaster ambushes him just a few blocks from his house.
His medal is rattling in his bag, because he knows that if he doesn't bring it home then his mom will absolutely blow a fuse at him. She'll probably blow a fuse anyway, but meaningless trophies and medals mean stuff to her. She can have it. At least then he won't have to hold onto it anymore.
The disaster introduces himself as Stain, but he doesn't have to. Katsuki recognizes him from the news. Tattered clothes, raggedy hair, no nose. Oddly enough, the clothes bother him most of all, both from a son of two designers and a hero in training. His stupid rag scarf thing probably gets caught in everything.
He introduces himself as Stain, but a more accurate name would be The Hero Killer. That's what the news calls him, and for good reason too. Fucker kills heroes. He's here to kill me for the sports festival.
It's not too surprising to him; plenty of people probably wanted to hurt him after that. They told it to his face, whispered it under their breaths as he walked down the street. Wrote it in the comments of articles psychoanalyzing him. Stared the harmful intent into him from their eyes.
Nobody likes a winner. Or rather, they don't like him, even as a winner. Never a better day to die, without an ally among him. No one to miss him when he's gone.
Still, he's not ready to roll over and let himself be chopped up by Stain's giant sword thing. He's tired from his matches, but he still has some fight left in him. Best case scenario, I knock him out and turn him into the cops. Maybe that'll make me a hero.
Of course, this guy kills pros for fun. He'll be a bigger match than Icy Hot for sure, even with his fire. Surviving would be nice. I'll start by surviving, then take it from there.
Katsuki doesn't wait for him to get the first move. He lunges, starting with his right hook because even though Deku calls it predictable it works. He gets a good blast in, but Stain dodges it, sliding left.
"I'm not here for a conflict," he says, but Katsuki follows with a sweeping kick and another blast upwards. He probably says that to all the heroes before he kills them. Nobody knows what he says because no one ever survived an encounter with him.
They continue for a bit, Katsuki charging and Stain dodging. He has a sinking feeling that Stain is toying with him, staying just out of reach so they both remain uninjured. He's smiling, or maybe grimacing, Katsuki can't tell the difference. His teeth are all filed flat.
When Katsuki falters, muscles aching from exertion, Stain takes a single swipe at him with his blade, nicking his cheek. Then he swipes his finger against the cut, looks at the blood, and sticks it in his fucking mouth.
Katsuki's bones freeze up. He falls, and Stain catches him, easing him to the ground.
"You should be like that for at least a few minutes," he says, apologetic besides for the note of amusement in his tone. "Sparring is fun and all, but it does get tiring after a while."
"So this is how you killed all those heroes. Not through actual combat, just by freezing them and killing them while they couldn't move. You're a coward," Katsuki says through gritted teeth. He said there's a time limit. If I can keep him talking, I can surprise him and get away. Getting out is more important than winning this fight.
"I'm no coward. I never look for a real fight with them," Stain says, unbothered. "My objective is always to kill them, and I do. Nothing more than spring cleaning."
"So you just like killing people? Figures I'd run into a fucking sociopath while walking home. Do you even know who I am, or am I just more 'spring cleaning'?" He can't make air quotes, as his hands are very frozen at his sides, but they're implied.
Stain laughs, raspy and cough-like. "'Course I know. Can't go through the streets without seeing your fucking face everywhere I look. You're a celebrity, Bakugou Katsuki."
"How did you find me?" It's been a minute, right? At least one. Just a few more to go, depending on whether he was telling the truth or not.
"You can find anyone if you have enough connections." He pauses. "You also go to the country's most famous heroics high school. It wasn't difficult to follow you home."
"Figures it'd be something dumb like that. That's what they get for broadcasting us across the country like show dogs."
For some reason, Stain's eyes gleam at that. "Precisely. It's disturbing, the amount of showboating that goes into hero work. Policemen don't have televised brawls. Isn't that what heroes are, just overpowered policemen?"
"You can be a cop with less than a year of experience," Katsuki scoffs. "Heroes take years of training, that's why they get so much more attention. They're better at stopping the villains." Usually, anyway. For some reason they really suck at stopping you.
"So you think it's right, all of the fame and fortune that comes with being a hero? The way they sop up glory, attaining celebrity statuses by doing their jobs?"
"I never said that," Katsuki mutters, but Stain goes on. He seems to be getting into a real rant, hand waving and all. Good. Perfect. Two minutes down. Maybe three.
"What really defines a hero? It's more than just a job title, isn't it? Otherwise they wouldn't be celebrities, they'd just be workers. No, heroes are supposed to represent all that is good and virtuous. Wouldn't you agree? That's what they teach you in fancy hero school, right?"
"Yeah, heroes do good," Katsuki says, trying to count the seconds in his head. Doesn't matter the time. As soon as I can move, I roll and bolt.
"But what about all of those heroes who do it for the money and fame and glory? Or the ones who fight for revenge, or just because they plain like fighting? What do we do with those?
"I kill them, of course. They call me the hero killer, but I don't kill real heroes. Only frauds."
Fuck. He's talking about me with that last one. He thinks I'm a sadist, and he's here to kill me before I even get to be a hero.
Stain runs a finger over his blade, covered in blood that isn't Katsuki's own. It looks fresh. He must've killed someone tonight. Maybe while he was following me. "I think that only those who fight to protect the innocent should be considered heroes, and everyone else is just dirt in the system. I clean them out."
"I don't want to be a hero just because I like fighting," Katsuki says, fighting to keep his voice calm. He doesn't want to look like he's bargaining for his life, even if he is. "It probably looks like that, but I don't. I like winning, but I also like saving people. I don't give a shit about brand deals or being loaded or anything."
He hopes that Stain can read the truth in his face. Growing up, it was all about winning for him. Not the fame or the glory, but the thrill of winning against a bunch of villains. Being the number one hero was more about him knowing that he was the best, rather than everyone else. He'd probably would've been just as happy as a professional boxer, except they aren't allowed to use quirks.
But after the sludge villain incident, after seeing Aizawa-sensei's face get mashed in to save his student, his motivation got a little mixed up. He still wanted to win, still wanted to be the best, but suddenly he remembered the civilians. The people he was supposed to be protecting from the big bad villains.
If there's anyone who's weak like I was that day, then I wanna save them.
Stain studies his face. "You're an odd case, Bakugou Katsuki," he says after a pause. "I can see you on your way to becoming like Endeavor. He's a prime example of someone who wants to be a hero because he wants to be the best. He fights to fuel his own ego, not to save anyone else. You could say he's virtuous, not caring about the money or the camera time, but I look at it a different way. I think he's just thick headed and self centered. I would kill Endeavor without hesitation, if I could."
He wipes his blade on his scarf thing, squinting at it in the dim light. Here it comes. He's gonna kill me. But instead of stabbing him through, he sticks it back in his sheath.
"You seem like you might be slightly different, though. You're far from pure of heart, but you're not totally black in there. I think you're telling the truth when you say that you like saving people." Katsuki breaths a sigh of relief.
"Plus," he continues, "you have experienced firsthand what it feels like to be oppressed by a society that wants heroes to be adored rather than effective. They wanted you to be framed as a monster. That's why they chained you up and forced you in front of the crowd instead of just not sending you in the first place. They were trying to make a contrast between you and Endeavor's kid. He's the hero they wanted, not you.”
His words render Katsuki mute. Sure, he thought it was shitty of them to chain him up, but he thought it was a messed up safety thing. Did they really want me to look like a monster? Shit. No. I shouldn’t be listening to a word this crackhead says.
"You're only a first year. You're malleable, subject to change. I believe you can become a true hero in this backward society, but only if you received some guidance. Namely, from me. This is why I approached you in the first place. It was never my intention to kill you, unless you revealed yourself to be truly rotten to the core."
Katsuki could laugh at that. All this time he was worried for his life, and meanwhile this guy was trying to become his mentor or something? No fucking thank you.
"What, you saw the sports festival and thought I had flexible morals or some shit? I'm not about to join up with some stupid villain, if that's what you're thinking," he says, and all at once he's able to move his hand. The tingly feeling spreads to the rest of him, and he stretches himself out, pushing himself up to a sitting position but keeping his eyes on Stain. Rule number one of being a pro hero: never take your eyes off the villain.
"I think you know just as well as I do how much the hero system needs to be reformed," Stain says, eyes glinting behind his mask. "And don't call me a villain. Villains fight and kill for their own gain. I only kill for the betterment of society. I'm a reformer, a redeemer, and you are redeemable, regardless of what the media might say about you."
"Fuck off, you're just a sadist who thinks too highly of himself." Katsuki won't buy any of his real hero shit, not while he still has blood on his face. "I don't know how exactly to become a 'real' hero, but it sure as shit isn't by joining up with a serial killer in his convoluted murder sprees. Now I'm gonna go home and rage for a while. Don't catch up." Standing is a process on his shaky legs, but he steadies himself on a light pole. "I'm calling the cops, by the way."
"I'm already on my way out," Stain says, putting his hands up. He looks a little disappointed, but not overly so. "I'll be around, Bakugou Katsuki. If you ever decide to change your mind and become a real hero, let me know."
He disappears into the shadows, and Katsuki doesn't bother calling the cops, not properly. It might be dumb of him, but he knows that nothing will come of it. Not when Stain will already be gone by the time the authorities show up. He does leave an anonymous tip about a Stain spotting in his neighborhood, though, so hopefully that'll keep anyone from being murdered.
Anyone from being murdered tonight, at least. I could've been murdered.
That's his first thought. His second thought is if I hear the words "real hero" ever again, it'll be too soon. That guy is mental.
He doesn't consider Stains offer for a second - if there's one thing Katsuki isn't, it's vigilante material - but he does think about his definition of a real hero for a bit. He compares Stain's critique on Endeavor with the shit that he heard from Icy Hot earlier today, and shakes his head hard.
That's not gonna be me. I won't be a domestic abuser or live vicariously through my kids or any of that shit. I'll save people and be a good fucking person, and if I like smashing villains' faces while I do it, then sue me. I don't need guidance from a murderer.
Although, after pondering it all night, he can't think of anyone else who's offering the help Stain thinks he needs. Not to him, at least.