Chapter Text
Izuku was folded over on the floor of his bedroom, sobbing into his hands over the burnt remains of the suit he wanted to wear to the ball. He’d thought it was elegant enough, though it was cobbled together from old curtains and whatever other scrap fabric he could find, but his step-siblings laughed when they saw it and threw it in the furnace, leaving him behind with nothing to wear to the ball and no way to get there. His chest felt cramped and tight, squeezing against the pain of all these years, mistreated by his stepfather, turned into a servant and forced to live in the attic, and now this, blatantly tossing away something he worked so hard on. Not just the suit he’d stitched together by candlelight, but all his dreams of ever seeing the palace and just once, just for one night, living like no one had ever hurt him. That was what the ball had meant to him: a chance to be something more, to meet new people and see new things, to forget his life for awhile, even if it only lasted a few short hours. His heart had soared when three invitations showed up at their door, the prince keeping his promise to invite every young man and maiden to his debut ball, one for each of his step siblings, and one for himself. He felt remembered, recognised, when he held that gold-embossed card, his name printed clearly across the line, formally inviting him to the palace.
Reaching out a trembling hand, he searched for the card amongst the pockets of the burnt and tattered suit, and for a moment his heart leaped up with hope when he felt something smooth and rectangular in the front, left pocket, only to cry out in a desperate sob when he pulled it out to reveal half of it was burned away.
“No!” he cried, holding it out in his shaking hands, his name only half legible, nothing but Izuku M– before it faded into the black, charred edge of the card. A teardrop fell onto the paper, sinking into the off-white cardstock and then miraculously, the burn started to recede. He gasped in shock as right before his very eyes, the card regrew and reformed, returning to its original, unburnt state.
“Wha-how?” Izuku seearched the card frantically, flipping it over and then back again in awe, when he heard a chuckle and looked up to see an older woman in a sparkling blue cape, holding a wand in the air and smiling down at him.
“Why, magic, of course,” she said, and Izuku yelped in surprise, scrambling back on the floor until his back hit his bed, stopping him.
“Oh, no, please don’t be afraid,” the woman shook her head, stepping – no, gliding – towards him.
“W-w-who are you?” Izuku stuttered.
“I’m you fairy godmother, silly,” she winked, flicking out her wand to tap him on the nose, the star-shaped tip letting out a few sparkles of magic right in front of his eyes.
“What? I… I don’t understand, why are you here?” Izuku asked, trying to wrap his brain around the glowing, magical woman in front of himself. He’d heard of fairy godmothers, sure, but he’d never thought they were real!
“Well, I thought you could use some help, sweetie,” she said, smiling softly at him. “You want to go to the ball, don’t you?” she asked, and Izuku gulped. It wasn’t like he had anything left to lose.
“Yes,” he said, the word more of a breath thand a sound.
“Then take my hand, and I can make your dreams come true,” she said, extending a gloved hand to him. Izuku let out a shaky breath, and then hesitantly put his hand in hers.
“Wonderful!” she chirped, pulling him up to stand and then circling about him, looking him over. “First things first, you need a suit!”
“I, well, yes,” Izuku nodded. “I wanted to wear this one, but… they burned it.”
“No matter, I’ll make you an even better one!” the woman clapped her hands together, and then spun her wand over Izuku’s head, sparkles showering over him in waves as fabric formed around him, an elegant gold and green suit taking shape, the fabric thick and slightly shiny, with beautiful leaf-like embroidery about the waist and gold jewelry to match.
“I… this is…” he looked down at himself, stunned, and the woman turned to pick up a small mirror from the nearby table.
“Have a look,” she insisted, and Izuku gulped before taking the mirror, tilting it up to see his face, and gasping in surprise when he saw a golden circlet in his hair, tiny, frilly gold leaves sticking out of it and little diamond-like gems scattered about amongst his curls.
“Did… did you put glitter in my hair?” he gasped, looking back to the woman in shock.
“But of course! You want to look your best for the prince, don’t you?” she winked, and Izuku felt his cheeks turn warm.
“Th-that’s not why I’m going!” he stuttered out defensively. “I just want to… have fun…” he trailed off, the woman giving him a knowing look.
“If you say so,” she chuckled. “But that’s not just what the head-dress is for. This circlet is enchanted, you see, so that now one will recognise you, but everyone will love you. That way, you won’t get in trouble with your step-father, nor will you go unnoticed,” she explained, patting him on the head before spinning around, wand outstretched. “Now! You’re going to need some way to get there, aren’t you?”
“Well, sure-ah!” Izuku started to answer, only for the woman to grab him by the wrist and pull him out of his room, down two flights of stairs, and into the front garden. “We don’t have any more horses, though,” Izuku said when she finally released him, trying to catch his breath, but she just shook her head.
“Then I’ll have to make some,” she flicked her arms through the air, sparkling dust falling from her wand in a massive spiral towards the ground, as a golden carriage took shape in front of them with two beautiful white horses that flipped their shining manes through the air, hooves stomping against the muddy earth.
“Will this do?” the woman asked, spinning around with a bright smile on her face.
“I… yes. This is amazing,” Izuku nodded, starting to wonder if he was dreaming, or if it could all possibly be real.
“It is, isn’t it… but too much gawking and you’ll be late!” she said, coming up behind him and urging him towards the carriage.
“R-right!” he nodded, clambering inside to find the seats comfortably cushioned and cabin spacious.
“Oh, and there’s just one more thing you need to know,” the woman said as she closed the door, leaning into the carriage with her elbows on the open windowsill. “You have to be back by midnight, because then all of this will disappear. Understand?”
“I–” Izuku opened his mouth to question her, but she was already backing away, arm raised to whip the horses into action. Izuku lost his train of thought as the carriage lurched to life, picking up speed down the dirt road.
“Goodbye! Have fun!” the woman waved to him as he went, and it finally hit Izuku like a ton of bricks that he was actually on his way to the ball. He turned away from the window and sat back in the chair, putting a hand over his heart to feel it’s rapid beating, and took a deep breath.
He was going to have his one night of freedom.
He was going to meet his prince.
---
When Izuku walked into the grand hall, the room stilled. People gasped in awe at the gallant, golden man, his angelic curls sparkling with gems and suit gleaming like it was woven from only the silkiest threads. He couldn’t help but blush at the attention, and for a moment he was terrified that his step-father would come running out of the crowd to drag him home and lock him back in the attic, but then a man stepped forward to meet him who was most certainly not his cruel stepfather.
He was tall and blonde with piercing red eyes, broad shoulders and a trim waist. He wore a fitted white suit with elegant gold lacing around the collar and cuffs, a red sash stripping boldly across his chest. Most notably, however, was the golden crown atop his head, inset with three small rubies and curved delicately into his hair.
Izuku almost fainted with the realization that his fairy-godmother hadn’t been kidding; it really was the prince, here, in the flesh, and looking at him.
“Ahem,” the prince cleared his throat and then extended his hand. “Might I have this dance, handsome stranger?” he asked, and Izuku felt himself get even dizier, mentally adding and flirting with me to that list.
“Of course,” he squeaked, taking the prince's hand, and the band started up again, giving them a slow waltz to dance to. The crowd started to chat again, some folks returning to dancing while some still stared, but at least, it seemed, they were no longer the complete center of attention.
The prince pulled Izuku in, putting his other hand on his waist, and led him through the delicate, intimate motions of the dance, making sure Izuku knew all the steps before he started to speak again.
“Well, you certainly made a scene,” he said, and Izuku felt his face turn red again.
“I… I didn’t mean to,” he admitted, and the prince chuckled.
“Is that so? Then what, exactly, did you mean to do?” he asked.
“I just came to have a good time. Same as anyone else,” Izuku answered.
“Hm. And now you’re the name on everyone’s lips. Except, I don’t know your name,” the prince said just as he spun him into a dip, faces mere inches apart as he gave him a pointed look.
Izuku opened his mouth, and then closed it. For some reason, he hesitated to give his real name, and settled on something similar.
“Deku. You can call me Deku,” he said, and the prince smiled, satisfied, and let him back up.
“That’s a funny name,” the prince smirked at him as they continued to dance.
“You think so?” Izuku shrugged. “Well, what’s yours, then?”
“You don’t know my name?” the prince raised an eyebrow, the dance moving them so Izuku was facing away from him, back pressed up against his chest.
“Sure I do, Prince Katsuki, but I don’t know what you’d rather me call you: Prince,” he paused, allowing the dance to move them back so they were facing each other, and then pulled them ever closer than before so his mouth was right next to the prince’s ear. “Or Katsuki,” he finished in a whisper, not sure where his sudden confidence had come from, but when he heard the prince’s thick gulp, he knew the risk he’d taken had been worth it.
“Katsuki,” he said. “You… you can call me Katsuki.”
“Hm,” Izuku pulled his face away, smiling sweetly at him. “I think I will, then.”
“Heh. You’re a coy little thing, aren’t you?” Katsuki smirked at him, and then Izuku was the one gulping.
“I just asked you your name,” Izuku shrugged innocently, but Katsuki was having none of it, his grip on Izuku’s waist tightening as he pulled him closer.
“Definitely coy,” Katsuki said, nodding to himself. “But don’t worry, I won’t let you go anywhere.”
---
True to his word, Katsuki hardly left his side the entire night. They danced for a long time, their conversation becoming more and more natural until Izuku got tired and asked if they could stop to have a drink. Katsuki eagerly obliged, whisking him away to the far side of the ballroom where decadent refreshments were lined up on a long table draped in white linen, and Izuku indulged himself with sweets since his step-father rarely let him eat much besides table-scraps. Once he’d had his fill, Katsuki took his hand and led him away from the ballroom, saying he wanted to be alone with him. Izuku bashfully agreed to follow him, and gasped in awe when Katsuki opened the door to a balcony overlooking the city, a starry sky overhead and lanterns lit along the streets below. Flowering vines curled around the metal grate fencing off the edge of the balcony and climbed up the wall behind them to hang down in the air, fireflies blinking as they flew between the fern-like leaves, the whole place something of a magical secret grove right there in the castle.
“It’s beautiful,” Izuku had said as the door slid shut behind them, the faint sound of music finally drifting away.
“Not as beautiful as you,” Katsuki answered, pulling him close with his hands around his waist before he kissed him, soft and chaste, just for a brief moment.
“Oh,” Izuku chirped and placed a hand over his mouth in surprise.
“Ah… do you not like me?” Katsuki asked, taking the reaction as a rejection.
“N-no!” Izuku shook his head, jumping to clarify. “I like you… very much, actually,” he admitted in a breathy whisper as he laid his head on the prince’s chest, and listened as Katsuki let out such a relieved, contented sigh he could hardly believe it.
“Good,” Katsuki cooed in that low voice of his, still holding Izuku’s waist in his arms, and they stood like that for a long, silent moment before Katsuki struck up another conversation.
The night flew by in a blur after that, their conversation so natural and humorous, Katsuki had Izuku giggling more than he ever had in his life, as far as he could remember. Being with Katsuki felt so perfect, like he couldn’t say a single thing wrong, and even if he did, it wouldn’t matter, Katsuki would still look at him so fondly, still hold him close and make him feel loved.
But then he heard the clocktower in the town below begin to strike, and gasped in horror, remembering his fairy-godmother’s one stipulation: be back by midnight.
“I… I’m sorry! I have to go!” he said, pushing himself out of Katsuki’s arms and rushing towards the door.
“What? Wait, Deku!” Katsuki called out, rushing to catch up as Izuku sprinted down the hall back towards the ballroom. Though Izuku had gotten a head start, the prince was faster, and he finally caught Izuku’s wrist just before he could make it back to the grand hall, the light and music and buzzing of people just beyond the grand doorway a few feet ahead of them.
“Deku, what is going on? Why do you have to leave?” Katsuki demanded, pulling him close and showing him such a broken expression of confusion and desperation that it made tears spring to Izuku’s eyes knowing he couldn’t stay and make that pain disappear.
“I’m sorry, I just do! Please, let me go!” Izuku shook his head, and snatched his wrist away, sprinting into the ballroom as soon as he was free.
“Wait!” Katsuki called out after him, voice breaking, but Izuku was pushing through the crowd by then, using the other people as cover as he sprinted across the marble floors and back out towards the door. He could hear the clocktower still chiming as he rushed past the confused guards at the entrance and made it onto the stairs, but then he heard Katsuki cry out behind him, too.
“Deku, please!” he called out. “Don’t go!” and Izuku couldn’t take it. His feet slipped and he tumbled down the stairs, eyes filled with tears, but got back up and kept running the second he was at the bottom. He ignored his sore limbs and panting breath and kept running, the final gong of midnight ringing out over the air just as he made it past the tall bushes of the hedge garden and out of sight.
He paused, gasping for breath, and looked down to see that his clothes were nothing but the dirty rags he usually wore, and knew that everything would be gone: the circlet that hid his identity, the carriage and the horses to carry him home. He sighed, and began to walk slower as he shuffled quietly through the gardens unnoticed, the muffled shouting of Katuski and the royal guard behind him, but he wasn’t too concerned. If they did find him, they wouldn’t even know who he was.
Katsuki would never recognise him again.
His prince would never come save him.