Work Text:
“Wake the fuck up Y/N!”
You woke with a startle as big hands were desperately grabbing you by the shoulders, violently shaking you awake. You blinked around confused, your eyes meeting wide crimson ones, as Bakugou was pulling you upright and flinging the comforter off your bed as he pulled you up, his large hand wrapped around yours tightly.
“Katsu? Wait… what’s happening?!” You asked alarmed, stumbling after him as you headed towards Deku standing at your door looking equally terrified. What were they doing over on your side of the dorms? The Hero Course dorms were at least a 5min walk away from the Business Course Dorms.
“He’s here, they… they got in somehow.” The Green hair boy looked at you with pained eyes and you felt your breath hitch. “We need to get you to our dorms. He’s here for you. “
You felt yourself sobber up immediately at the words and reality of things as the sound of the alarm suddenly reached your ears, you hadn’t noticed the alarm system going off, you would have slept right through it, after all, you’ve been given sleeping pills to help you sleep better the last few weeks.
“Less talking, we need to hurry,” Bakugou snarled as he took off sprinting down the hallways pulling you after him. You weren’t sure you could keep up pace with them under normal circumstances much less when you were sleep deprived and in Pjs. That much was evident in how you stumbled, barely staying upright as you tried your best to match their quick pace, the urgency as the rest of the students all yelled and scattered to various checkpoints for safety making your head spin and your feet tangle as you near fell.
“Fuck, just hold on or something,” That was all the warning you got before Bakugou lifted you like you weighed absolutely nothing and set off running again with Deku at your side, you wrapped your arms around his neck as your heat beat furiously in your throat.
You had just exited the back doors when a wall of blue flame rose from the opposite side of the building, the breath knocked out of your lungs as the air suddenly heated up. You knew that flame all too well. You’d watched him on the videotapes so many times, there was no mistaking it. They were on campus.
The flames danced around the building, avoiding the side you knew your room was on and you felt a pang in your heart, he must have told him where your room was… he was really here for you. It made your heartache. You swallowed hard, almost wanting to tell them to turn back and help your fellow student but you knew that they’d be in more harm with you there. They had evacuation and safety procedures set in place, most would be hiding in a secure bunker under the school by now with at least two pro heroes with them. After all, once he knew you weren’t inside, he’d definitely come looking for you in the Hero dorms.
You watched as brighter flames rose behind the blue flames and you clutched desperately at the sleep shirt Bakugou was still wearing, the sound of an explosion cutting off as the three of you made it into the hero dorms before Cementos stepped up and a wall of cement blocked your view from the burning buildings.
Bakugou carefully set you down, your legs gave out as you crumpled to the floor. You heard talking around you, but your mind was spinning, the face of Kirishima, dressed in his hero suit blurred in and out in front of you, followed by the soft scent of Momo’s perfume as two hands helped you up and pulled you to sit on the couch.
Mina slid in next to you, her hand grabbing your own shaking ones as she looked at you with concern. Your eyes darted around the room to see all of Class A and B suited up and on high alert, everyone looked ready to fight. Eraserhead kneeled in front of you, his bloodshot eyes looking softer than you remembered them being as he sighed, after giving you a once over before he stood up and spoke to some of the other teachers.
“The other classes are all being evacuated right now or locked in the security bunkers. She’s likely their only target so they’ll cause minimum harm to the rest of the school’s students. Alert for more back up, they’ll come for her, knowing she’s here.”
The lump in your throat grew bigger as you thought of your fellow students possibly getting hurt. You turned to look back at Bakugou with teary eyes as he stormed his way over to you, halfway dressed, busy pulling on his gauntlets as he looked you in the eyes.
“He won’t hurt anyone, and no fucking way is he getting to you,” He snarled “I won’t let him.”
“We’ll protect you Y/N,” Kaminari said as he sat down next to you.
“Yeah, we’ve got you, you’ll be safe,” Mina said curling into your side to hug you.
You looked around the room at all the young heroes you’ve come to admire and known as friends. You nodded as you closed your eyes curling your arms around yourself thinking back to when things seemed so much more simple than this.
This assignment was a lot more than anyone in your class had expected it would be. You would be paired up with 2 heroes in either Class A or Class B for the assignment. You had to figure out a way to boost their popularity and possibly make a solid marketing plan for them to rise in future hero rankings after their debut. You were a business course student, and you were beyond nervous about it. You got into UA after studying exceptionally hard, working to get to the top of your class, and acing the entrance exams. You’ve been doing really well in school and had been keeping an eye on some of the hero course students for future jobs or applications, your future career success would depend on how well you could assess and help a hero brand and market themselves after all.
The assignment was simple, market two heroes as a team, come up with a full marketing strategy to make them seem like the perfect duo, everything from their social media to merch and press conference ideas, prep for interviews and suggestions on what to alter and change. You had to make them look good and admirable. You had your eye on working with Deku since the sports festival had rolled around, he was adorable, a bit nervous and clumsy but he was selfless and kind and would be an amazing hero to market to the public, then there was also Creati, she was a given to be a fan favorite from her looks alone, not to mention her charm and amazing quirk. You’d definitely not have been opposed to working with Uravity either, she was bound to be a favorite of the general public with little added help and branding after graduating.
However, you got hit with the shitty end of the stick, drawing the names of the unlikely duo of Bakugou and Shoto as your hero pair. Two completely different heroes both with a history of not getting along. It was a rocky start at first, a lot of yelling at Bakugou, even more yelling from Bakugou in return, getting frustrated with the nonchalance Todoroki had shown when asked for his input and the way he brushed of suggestion with a curt ‘no’. You’d ended up crying in bed a few nights from the stress and frustrations of trying to find a somewhat middle ground to work on between the two. Your classmates were growing worried, and you could tell so were their assigned heroes from the sympathetic looks you were getting during the joint classes.
Then one day after Bakugou had stormed out of yet another meeting about marketing and getting them ready for the mock press interview they’d have to take as part of the assessment, you had a breakdown right in front of Todoroki. And not just a little crying, you had been full-on wailing your eyes out, the heaps of physical and emotional stress getting the better of you as your emotions went haywire, feeling yourself on the verge of having a full-blown panic attack you’d been surprised to have him pull you into a tight hug and managed to soothe you through it. Talking calmly and even apologizing for his lack of support in the project, saying he hadn’t realized how much it meant to you. After you explained that it was the deciding factor for internships at agencies and also counted for 40% of your end-of-year mark, he looked shocked. He apologized profusely and had spent the last few minutes of the scheduled meeting reading through your rough draft of ideas and plans.
You’d been too tired and mortified to even care about the whispers on campus as he’d insisted to escort you back to your dorm room, all the way to the front of your bedroom door. You had the suspicion he was afraid you’d break down again. He’d left with a sworn promise of having Bakugou at the next meeting and you’d crawled into bed wondering if it was too late to drop out of UA and transfer to another hero school. By some small miracle, he’d managed to do exactly what he had promised and Bakugou was gruff and annoyed but at the next meeting and listening to your proposal for once. After a few much more amiable meetings you’d started to look at both him and Bakugou in a different light, both were extremely stubborn and hot-headed in their own way. You’d sat in on practice matches and been allowed to attend their heroics classes hen they fell on your free periods after requesting it from their teachers, soon you were quite a regular around Class A and you’d like to say you’d become somewhat kind of friends with them at least. Bakugou also seemed to lighten up after you’d praised his fighting style and complimented a few of his victories in class.
By the end of the project, you could safely say that you were now very well acquainted with both Todoroki and Bakugou's respective friend groups, more so than with other students in your course. Midoriya really loved to share his analysis of all the students in his class with you and you’d compare casual hero observations during lunchtime while after training and meetings you’d always end up in Mina’s room with the boys scattered around playing video games together.
You’d passed your assignment thankfully, but had missed out on the top mark, a lucky classmate with Deku and Uravity as their hero pair had won the top spot with flying colors. You’d thanked both Bakugou and Todoroki for how much they helped and how hard they tried, inviting them out for a celebratory dinner all on you. That afternoon you’d sat through the obscene amount of cursing and grumbling from Bakugou about how stupid they were for not giving an assignment with him in it the top marks especially after all the effort you’d gone through to make Todoroki look good next to him. You’d laughed and walked home between the two boys with a bright smile and fondness in your heart, knowing that these two would be amazing heroes in the future. Society was definitely going to be in good hands.
A week later, to your complete surprise, Todoroki had shown up outside of your classroom, egged on by some of the class A girls, with a bunch of flowers in hand as he asked if you’d want to go on a date with him. You could hear the squealing from your fellow classmates, knowing very well that you’d be the talk of the school after this. Of course, you said yes, honestly who wouldn’t? One date had turned into several more and a few weeks later you were having lunch with Kirishima and Bakugou when you broke the news to them first that you were now officially dating one Shoto Todoroki. Bakugou grumbled about your “piss poor taste in men” but seemed happy for you nonetheless.
And it was good, dating Shoto Todoroki was oh so good. He was a picture-perfect gentleman, he treated you like royalty, took you on a bunch of cute dates thanks to the help of the Class A girls. You’d slowly learned about his history, his family, and his father, supporting him when he told you about Endeavor's newfound attempt at reconciliation, even if you’d much rather have seen the man burnt to a crisp. You visited his mother, joined them for family dinner, and even been invited to apply for the intern marketing position at Endeavor's agency after Todoroki had shown his father’s management team your marketing proposal assignment. Things were good, despite the issues in the world around you and in hero society, you felt happy.
Then everything changed when the war happened.
You don’t remember much of the days before it to be honest, except being terrified, not for yourself but for your newfound friend’s lives and especially for Shoto. He’d told you countless times how often he hated thinking about having to leave you behind one day if he ever got hurt or how he wasn’t sure what he’d do if the Villains ever came for you. How he wasn't sure he could even imagine life without you in it anymore. Your heart had thudded against your chest. You’d thought about how he’d told you in whispered kisses late at night how he wouldn’t survive without you, how he’d never let anyone or anything take you away from him, not the villains, not his father, not another man, nobody and nothing could do so. It had seemed romantic and beautiful, and you’d cried happy tears into his chest, but looking back at it now, at the way he’d been talking, that should have probably been your first warning sign about how unstable and obsessive he was getting.
The final blow came as you watched with millions across the nation as Dabi revealed his identity to the public. You’d been camped out around a TV set with your classmates, switching between keeping tabs on the raging battle from a surviving security camera feed one of your classmates had managed to hack into and checking on the news for more indications of the swaying public opinions on heroes and hero society in general. You dropped your phone and shot up, your heart was hammering so hard and fast in your chest that you practically taste it. Your first thought was to call his sister, she’d become a close friend in the time since you’ve started dating and she was someone you often turned to for advice and guidance, but you thought it would be inappropriate. You’d chewed your bottom lip raw in worry, your mind reeling, and had eventually been sent to bed by a teacher concerned about your distressed behavior.
You didn’t sleep well at all, your phone clutched in hand as you waited to hear back from him, he always checks in after fights or when anything happened, he’d always let you know that he was okay or what hospital he was in, so you’d be able to visit him. However, you received no such message that night. The pit of dread forming in your stomach only seemed to grow as the next afternoon a knock on your door made you crawl out of bed. Only to find five pro heroes at your door, escorting you to the hospital where a badly injured Bakugou had been yelling about getting you to them as fast as possible. That was odd.
You sat in between a bandaged Eraserhead and Bakugou as the police investigators came to talk to them, you were confused and scared, if Midoriya and Bakugou both were here then where was Todoroki? The sound of Dabi’s manic laughter pulled your thoughts back to the screen in front of you, the man laughing and revealing his identity to a horrified-looking Shoto and Endeavor, your heart-shattering at the look on Shoto’s face as the realization fully set in. The next part was a blur, the waves of flames from Dabi and Endeavor nearly bocking out anything, your head throbbing and eyes stinging from the intensity of the flames shown on screen, and then the pro hero had him pinned to the ground, a flaming hand around his neck and you were certain Dabi was going to be captured or killed at this stage. He’d have to relent, or he’d be killed, Endeavor would kill him, you knew in your soul he'd kill him. Your breath hitched as a rush of ice swiped the pro up and away from the patchwork man lying on the ground, coughing up blood as he righted himself. With a smirk curling his lips he turned to look at a figure coming from between the flames, the white and red hair swept in the wind and his eyes looked nothing like the soft kind eyes you knew from your boyfriend, instead he looked deranged, you watched as the pair of brothers stared at each other, Endeavor screaming something before Shoto shot two ice spears piercing right through his shoulders. With a pat on the younger's head, Dabi turned towards the entrapped Endeavor, your tears spilling over your cheeks as you watched while he extended a handout, Shoto moved in next to him, mimicking it with his right hand, and then before your eyes the figure of Endeavor went up in blue and red flames before the screen turned blank.
You were in shock, you knew it. You hated Endeavor, you really did, and you had more than once thought the world would be better off without him, but you had never expected Shoto to kill him, to willingly work with a villain – even if it was his own brother – to kill him. You felt a bandaged hand curl around yours as you stared at the black screen with confusion and terror, you barely registered as the investigators asked you all sorts of questions about him, like if you’d heard anything from Shoto, if you knew where he was. The only thing that stuck out to you was Eraserhead telling them that Midoriya had relayed a message before having passed out. He’d heard before leaving with Dabi, that Shoto had said that he’d be coming back for you.
Bakugous grip on your hand tightened as he looked at you with the same pain-filled eyes, but a resolution shining in them as he held onto you as you curled into his chest to cry the first of many tears as the investigator announced that Pro Hero Endeavor was dead and former UA student Shoto Todoroki was now wanted and on the run. Your boyfriend was now a villain.
The sound of glass shattering shook you out of your memories. Class A and the pro heroes around you jumped into action like a well-oiled machine, they immediately formed a wall around you as Bakugou pulled you up and into his side, now fully suited up and in hero mode. Kirishima took your other side with Tokoyami and Sero stepping up behind you.
You could hear a needle drop in the silence that followed, the hammering of your heart so loud there was no way the guys around you wouldn’t be hearing it. Then everything went to hell as a burst of flames filled the common room, and you shrieked as some of class A just barely dodged the mix of deadly blue and red flames, your eyes growing wide as from the broken windows and doors spilled various villains from the Paranormal Liberation front, the start of fighting echoing around you as Bakugou cursed viciously under his breath, his hand curling around your waist pulling you tighter to him to keep you closer to his side.
A bloody scream to your right followed by an icy chill in the air made you snap your head in the direction of where at least four of the class B students were frozen to their spots. Your eyes wide as the figure stepping forwards made your heart both race in longing and fear. He looked calm and collected with His brother and some white-haired boy in step behind in him and you reluctantly had to admit to yourself that he looked definitely still as attractive as ever. He’d changed up his look in the weeks since you’d last seen him. He looked dangerous… and delicious.
His usually long fluffy hair that would occasionally fall into his eyes was pulled up into a bun on top of his head, the sides of his head had been shaved off. He looked better than ever, dressed in a black turtleneck with a black jacket, his eyes rimmed in black. His usual stoic face that he reserved for the public was gone, now he had a dangerous smirk dancing on his lips as his eyes scanned the room before landing on you.
Your breath hitched at the intensity of having his eyes on you again after so many weeks. His eyes lighting up like when he would see you before, but now they had a certain madness dancing around in them, you couldn’t tell from so far, but you were certain his eyes had never seemed that bright before. It was like they were dancing in the light of his flames.
“There you are Princess,” His smooth tone reached your ears, his lips curving into a smile. You heard the breath you sucked in at the intense look he was giving you, only breaking eye contact when glanced down as you felt the hand around your waist tighten in pulling you closer.
Darting your eyes back up you saw the grin turn into a scowl as his eyes also strayed down to the hand around you. The way his right side smoked, giving you a good indication of how he felt about that. He wasn’t happy. He turned a snarled lip upwards as his eyes narrowed in Bakugou’s direction.
“Katsuki, you should know better than to touch what isn’t yours,” he ground out, voice clipped and ice-cold, you felt a shiver run down your spine. Holy shit, that was terrifying but also surprisingly… sexy?
A low whistle from Dabi made you snap out of the trance staring at him had caused, as you looked at the patched up older Todoroki. The older laughed heartily as he raised an eyebrow in your direction, “That’s a lot of emotion from you Shoto.” He huffed out a laugh as he eyed you up and down. “I can see why you want to keep this one, she’s cute.”
“She’s perfect.” He snarled giving his bother a side eye, Dabi raising his hands up in defense. “And she’s mine. Only mine. She belongs to me.”
You felt a dark blush raise to your face and your eyes widened. How come him saying something like that still affected you so much? Sneaking a glance away from Dabi you saw the soft look in his eyes as he smiled gently back at you. Your heart was wildly leaping in your chest. WHAT THE FUCK.
“She doesn’t belong to anyone!” Kirishima yelled back looking mortified at what Todoroki had said.
“He’s right, she’s no possession! You especially should know that Todoroki!” you heard the shout as the green hair flash past and one Midoriya was perched right in front of you in a battle crouch.
“Midoriya, “ He said with a sigh, “Please get out of the way. We really are not here to fight anyone, but we will if we must. “
“We are not handing her over to you bastards, especially not you, you fucking nutbag!” Bakugou yelled at him. It was still for a second before Shoto started laughing. It sounded so off, nothing like the soft chuckle you’d grown used to or the deep exasperated but still humored laugh that had slipped out once or twice before in your presence. This was creepy.
“Have it your way, “ He said shrugging before he sprung into action. His reflexes still lighting fast as he took on Midoriya.
You were so caught up in watching the two of them you shrieked when Bakugou yanked you to the side suddenly, belatedly realizing that the other two had descended upon the group protecting you, and Bakugou has started pulling you towards the hallway in the back.
“I need to keep you safe and away from him until backup arrives.” He ground out as he carefully made his way around the fighting, clearly taking the opportunity of having them all busy and not paying attention to get you away from their sights.
You felt a moment of pride at just how much he had grown. From the Bakugou who wouldn’t listen to a single suggestion you had for improving his image, how to handle a situation and avoid unnecessary conflict that would damage his hero career and rankings, into a hero that had flung himself in the way to safe Deku, the same hero that was now carefully guiding you down the hallways towards a very familiar room to keep you safe, instead of jumping into the battle himself.
You squeezed his hand tightly, something warm in your chest blooming at all the potential he was showing to be such an amazing future hero. You knew that your close friendship and getting to know him better was all spurring him on to be better and you felt proud of him for choosing to do so himself as well.
You turned the corner when the sound of the wall being blown to pieces, you both spinning around to watch as Midoriya was now up against Dabi, an uncomfortable feeling of dread building in your stomach as you tried not to think about what had happened to your other friends who were up against him before you left.
You didn’t get to think a lot more as Sero was flung into the hallway, a sudden spray of ice freeing his unconscious form to the wall. The image of Shoto stepping out of the hole and into the hallway with angry eyes zeroing in on you and Bakugo made you start to shake. His hair was falling around his face as pieces pulled from the bun, left hand defrosting as it came up the push the stray strands backward before he looked at you again.
“Bakugou, kindly let go of my girlfriends’ hand,”
“Go fuck yourself, you bastard.”
“I’m asking nicely out of my respect for your friendship with her. Let her go so we can leave, and your friends can all stay alive. Kirishima and Sero will not last too long in those blocks of ice. I would hate to see them freeze to death because of you. “ He said casually pulling his jacket back into order and brushing some ice off his shoulder.
“Shoto,” You breathed out in fear. “How could you?” His eyes snapping in your direction immediately. He didn’t seem to like what he saw.
You felt the tears streaming down your face as your heart was beating fast and your breathing turned uneven. Your body shaking violently as you now turned to clutch at Bakugou’s arm for support. For the first time all evening you were now completely terrified of him. The Shoto you knew, and love would never have done anything that could lead to someone freezing to death. No even the villains he’d fought before. You let out a sob as you realized, he was not the Shoto you loved anymore.
“Y/N, darling, don’t cry. I promise everything will be alright. Come with me so we can stop the fighting and I can take you home with me. “ He said gently as his eyes held yours. “You know we are meant to be Princess, I can’t leave you here alone. “
You were shaking your head from side to side, watching as his fire side smoked and the ground beneath is left foot froze over. He was getting angry, and you were shaking so badly that you could barely keep your legs from giving in beneath you, the smell of burnt caramel the only thing grounding you from having a full-on panic attack right at that moment.
“Listen up Y/N. As soon as I go for him, run for my room and don’t stop until you are inside. Lock the door and don’t come out until I come to get you. No one else. Just me or Aizawa. “
You turned your head to look at Bakugou with horror on your face. He wasn’t going to be able to fight off an unhinged Shoto for too long and he definitely didn’t stand a chance if any of the other villains decided to join the fight and gang up on him.
“Katsu don’t… just… just let him hav- “
“Shut the fuck up, don’t say that. I’m a hero and heroes do not give up people to become hostages. You told me good heroes don’t compromise on the safety of those around them, they never give. Don’t you fucking dare give up and let the villains win here. “
Before you could argue with him, he launched forward as Shoto sprung into action, probably trying to take advantage of the momentary distraction. However, Bakugo was never unprepared and always ready to fight. You stood watching in horror as the two boys you cared most about were hurling themselves at each other. You’d watched them fight before, you’d seen them spar and train together, but you’ve never felt so afraid for Bakugou’s safety before. The way Shoto was fighting now was different, he was fighting now without anything holding him back, his smile growing as he zeroed in on Bakugou with deadly precision.
“Y/N!” Bakugou shouted as he skids past you from a blast of his explosions knocking him backward, skilfully maneuvering himself upright and right back into Shoto’s face in seconds “Now!” He shrieked as he let off an array of explosions in Shoto's direction, blocking out his figure completely in a flash of light and smoke.
With feet that felt like lead you stumbled backward and turned tails to run up the stairs and into the direction of his room, clutching the wall desperately as a series of explosions rumbled and shook the ground. Your vision was blurry and unclear, sprinting towards his room on the muscle memory alone, finding the door and flinging it open. Locking it from the inside and pulling his drawer in front of it as fast as you could, the sounds of the battle shaking the building as you slowly sank down in front of the dresser, sobbing into your arms as you listen to the sound of the battled downstairs growing distant as the pounding in your ears started to grow louder, you were crying so hard, body shaking and nearly hyperventilating causing you to clutch at your ears, desperately trying to block out the chaos of the fight.
You were sobbing for what could have been minutes or hours, you weren’t sure but suddenly everything around you felt extremely quiet. The goosebumps crawling over your whole body as you pulled your hands from your ears, surprised to hear nothing but silence. You wrecked breathing and stuttered gulps of breath sounding harsh and loud in the now quiet.
The adrenaline in your body kept you from noticing the drop in temperature until you were shaking, your hands wrapping around your bare arms, you regular summer sleeping clothes consisted of oversized t-shirts and shorts, but you felt like it was the start of winter with the sudden chill wrapping around you. You let out a shaky breath, watching as the breath fogged up in front of you, concern growing. Then your ears finally picked up the sound of footsteps in the hallway, sounding loud and thundering in the silence.
You immediately knew it wasn’t Bakugou, he stomped his way everywhere, footfalls irregular and loud. Your blood ran cold, this was sure, steady and loud. They didn’t pause, they didn’t stop, and they didn’t waver. They were heading right in your direction. Shoto was coming.
Panicking you scurried away towards the closet Bakugou had, pulling the doors closed just as the room door started freezing over. With a hand slapped across your mouth to stop yourself from letting out the shriek that was building in you, you watched as the door was yanked from the sockets. Tears streaming down your hands as you saw Shoto sign looking at the drawer that did absolutely nothing to prevent him from entering as he just hopped over it with unbelievable grace. His eyes roaming around the room, like he was taking it in for the first time.
His eyes slid over the memo board you’d bought them both initially as part of the project, to keep them reminded about things they had to improve and while you’d expected him to be the first to chug it out the window once you were done, Bakugou had kept it. He now used it for small notes and reminders, some photos and to hang up an all might keychain you’d bought him for his birthday. You watched as he walked over to the board, his fingers tracing along a picture, you instinctively knew which one. It was the picture of the three of you in your formal clothes, the photo was taken before they had their final mock press conference to do for the project. Both had been dressed up in a suit and tie, you in your favorite grey dress, your arms curled through both of theirs, a nervous but bright smile on your face. He softly traced the picture with a soft smile curling onto his lips, your heart squeezing uncomfortably tight at the look on his face, before sighing.
His eyes zeroed in on the closet immediately and you had to use every part of your breath to keep from letting out another sound. As his scuffed-up black shoes took steps towards the closet, you pressed your back farther against the wall, holding your breath as he crouched down in front of the doors.
“I know you are in there Princess,” He said softly, his hand resting against the door, a finger curling into the little gaps in between the wood, “please open up the door for me.”
You tried your best to not let any sounds slip out but the whimpering pushing past the death grip on your mouth was loud enough for him to hear in the deafening silence. His finger curled around the wooden bean before it lit up in a small flame, burning a hole where his finger curled around it, the beam snapping as he pulled it back. You nearly shrieked as he softly placed his head against the door, the soft thud causing you to cry, and the sobs were openly leaving you now.
“I know you are scared; I was scared at first also, but I can’t leave you here with them. I can’t stand the thought of you being in the academy without me, being surrounded by Pro Heroes that would overlook his abuse for years. I promised you that I would never let you go, and I never will. I’m never leaving you behind again. Never. “ He said as he curled another finger into the wood again, repeating the process and snapping off another.
“ Please open the door for me, Baby,” he sounded so frustrated, his ling slender fingers now being able to curl into the closet space as he gripped onto the wood, his hand could easily reach in and yank you forward, he could easily extend that hand and let his fire out, but even if you were terrified a part of your mind tried to tell you he would never hurt you.
“Y/N… please don’t make me ask again.” He said visibly gritting his teeth, the grip of his fingers tightening on the wood, his knuckles turning white. “I don’t have time to waste, there is backup heading our way and I don’t want to scare you by having to yank you out myself. Please just come with me. Please, Princess.”
“What about our friends? Your friends? Midoriya, Tenya, Ochacco… Bakugou?” Your voice was horse from all the crying and your tears were still spilling down your cheeks in streams. “What did you do to him? To everyone else in your class?”
“They aren’t my friends anymore. Bakugou was… persistent. He’s injured but alive. The orders were not to hurt anyone, we only came for you. I came for you. They won’t intervene anymore.”
“Why? Why-“ Your sentences got blocked by the sobs leaving you. You wanted to ask him why he was doing this, why he would hurt his friends for you, why was all this happening because of you. But you were struggling to breathe thinking about how hurt your teachers and friends could possibly be all because of you.
“Princess?” The sounds of your gasping must have alerted him. “Open the door!” He asked louder and a bit more frantically, but you just shook your head, curling tighter into yourself. His patience snapped.
The closet doors were yanked open, his face laced with concern and fear, his hands reaching out for you. You started screaming as his hands touched you and you were crawling at the clothes, the door, the wall, trying your best to stay inside but he pulled you out and lifted you up like you weighed nothing like your resistance wasn’t worth anything at all. His hand wrapped around your waist as he pulled you into his embrace, your hands trying to push him away, but he either didn’t feel anything or ignored them as he gripped your chin in his hands, looking at your eyes before crashing his lips against yours. It was a rough kiss, clanking teeth, and a tight grip on your chin keeping you from pulling away. Your fists balled and hit against his chest, but you were no match for him, your body growing flush and warm against his familiar one, his warmth seeping into you, the cold air from before not even noticeable as he held you firmly against him.
You felt the fight start to leave your body as his grip on your chin loosened as instead curled up to caress your wet cheeks. Your body working on autopilot as you started to kiss back, balled first loosening to curl into his shirt, legs shaking. You knew deep down inside that you had never even stood a chance. A part of you knew you’d follow him wherever he led you.
When he pulled away you felt the shivering start up again, whether from the cool air or the fight and adrenalin leaving your body you weren’t sure but suddenly you were shaking. His eyes softened as he took off his jacket, helping you into the warmth of it, your mind short-circuiting, a soft gasp leaving your mouth when you saw that he was wearing a black sleeveless turtleneck. His eyes shot to yours immediately, your face bright red as he looked at his arms, you couldn’t remember them looking so toned and big before.
“I’ve been training hard with Dabi. You can see the results of that later in my bed. “ His voice low and dark, before he bent to grab the back of your knees, shifting you in his grip so you were against his chest, his hands supporting you. “Now let’s get you out of here. “
Your teeth still clattered together as he kicked the dresser out of the way, carrying you back to the common room, your heart clenching painfully at the sight before you. The students of class A were scattered around, either unconscious, hurt, or frozen in blocks of ice. You felt yourself cry silently as you spotted a mass of green curls matted with red, knocked out cold, and lying face down a few feet from the doors. The other villains spotted you and started to file out of the hole in the wall, Dabi lingering back to eye you curiously.
Your eyes searched the students, desperate to find the one you were looking for before your eyes landed on him. He was crushed against the wall, a big block of ice holding him up, his body completely frozen, just his eyes the only thing that was moving in your direction, tracing you with an angry furrow, his hands looked angry and bright red, now devoid of his gauntlets, as they were frozen in blocks of heavy ice.
“Shoto, please defrost his hands! Defrost all of them, they’ll die. “ You whimpered clutching into his chest desperately. His gaze hardened as he looked over at Bakugou and then back at you.
“Be thankful, “ He snarled at him before the temperature in the room started to heat up on the side Bakugou was still trapped. “You’ll have melted down completely in the next 12 minutes. Make sure to get your friends out of the ice with that quirk of yours in under 20 minutes. If you come after us there will be no one here to safe them and some of them will die before backup even arrives.”
He looked livid; you could see the emotions rage over Bakugou’s face. He must have been raging viciously internally, his eyes hard and angry, before they looked at you and turned concerned. You knew what he was busy thinking, he was thinking about coming to save you somehow, but Shoto had no reason to lie. He’d done A LOT of research with you to determine just how long things could survive being iced and cut off from oxygen by his quirk before they were in danger of dying or any sort of lasting harm. He wouldn’t be lying now.
“Katsu… don’t come after me.” You said loud enough for him to hear, tears streaming down your face. “You’re a hero, a very good hero and I know you know he isn’t lying. Good heroes don’t compromise on the safety of those around them for selfish reasons. The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few. Katsu I just... Thank you. “ You said before you started sobbing again, pressing your face into Shoto’s chest to try and hide the shameful way your eyes were burning and how terrified you felt.
You knew if he saw you, he’d see them begging, begging for him to save you, to help you, and show just how afraid you were. You wanted him to save you, oh how you wanted to be rescued right now but you couldn’t place that emotional burden on him. Not again. He had enough from previous events. Surely, he would already feel enough guilt and anger over this as it is. You'd like to think you knew him and know how he thought regarding winning and failure to do so. You didn’t need him to have that image burned into his mind as well. As much as you wanted to be saved, you also wanted to be able to save him from that at least.
You desperately curled your hands into the black fabric in front of you, pulling at it tightly, hoping to signal what you wanted, something he could usually pick up on, hoping desperately that you would be granted this and both you and Katsuki would be spared more pain.
Shoto mercifully nodded and turned his body away from him, hiding you completely from his view. He gently placed a hand on your head, stroking it before walking out the hole in the wall. You continued to cry into his chest as you realized the life you had was forever gone. His hands continued to stroke your head, as he carried you forward, the sounds of the other villains talking around you, the smell of ash and burning wood reminding you that the building had been set on fire, probably most of the school also by now.
In mistaken ignorance, if not sheer stupidity, UA hadn’t changed much if any of their security measures since Shoto had left at all. He knew exactly what they were, what their weaknesses were, and when would be the best time to strike. Once again the Hero society had failed yet another student again due to their hubris. If Shoto and the others had really come to fight, had come to do anything other than just to get you, the thoughts of what could have happened made you shiver.
You cried for your friends, their injuries, their safety, and their hurt. Not just physically but how they would hurt knowing that they couldn’t protect you from this. You cried for your family, knowing you’ll never get to see them again. Your heart ached and you felt like your life was ripped away from you unfairly.
His fingers curled under your chin, lifting your tear-stained face to his. Strangely he always knew what you were thinking. His eyes were glinting in the blue and red flames, they seemed almost entirely maniac, dangerous and giddy. His eyes lighting up as he raked over your face, lingering on your lips before shaking his head slightly as if refraining from his wants at the moment. His lips instead softly kissed the top of your forehead, before he smiled down at you softly. It was so pure looking that you had a momentary reminder of the Shoto you’d fallen in love with, your heart softening in the face of the familiar comfort.
Until one hand left yours as he placed it flat against the main campus building, the wall beside you shooting up in red flame, with dread and ice-cold realization you watched as the classrooms you’d spent hours learning, making friends, studying, and building your life in slowly, now shot up in flame, joined the other buildings that were busy burning down around campus. The eyes that locked on yours afterward were nothing like the man you fell in love with, a cold dread settling in the pit of your stomach as your heart thundered and your eyes stung.
“Welcome to a new world, Princess.”