Chapter Text
Katsuki stares at his mother's letter as if it personally offended him. It crumples between his fingers and threatens to rip in two before he puts it on the tea table with a sigh.
It didn't - offend him - neither did his mother. She has his best interests in mind and all of the speeches his father lectured him so many times already.
Deep down, and there's no way in hell he is about to admit it out loud, he knows she is partially right. It's been two years already and he is no closer to being a model father than he was when his wife was still around.
He looks over his cup to his children, playing peacefully in the yard, running around the birds with their newly gifted puppy in the tail. They look happy and healthy.
But they also look a mess. Their mother would have scolded them three and hurried to put them into proper clothes and brush their hair.
Unfortunately, she can no longer do those things for them and Katsuki doesn't even know where to begin. He had never tried hard enough if he were to be honest.
Katsuki knows they are giving their maids a hard time, they are his kids after all, and he also knows is not fair of him to expect them to take care of the kids as well as if it's part of their job.
Even if he had raised their weekly payments a good sum. And hired a governess for the house.
Mrs Momo was a force to be reckoned with and had a strict method of teaching that somehow worked well in their favour. But that was all she was supposed to be doing and Katsuki was only waiting for the day she would give up on them.
He finishes his tea and looks back at his mother's letter. He will - begrudgingly - take a look into some of her recommendations. For a new nanny.
Not for, that other thing she wants him to do.
He did love his wife, not the kind of love you expect one to get out of marriage - but they made it work. It was beneficial for their families at the time and they were good friends.
Enough they could live together in quiet bliss. He found solace in her reckless manners and the way she was an extraordinary mother to their children. She had a fast mouth on her and a mind like no other, she kept the whole house entertained and gave the staff the time of their lives.
And he supposed he wasn't so bad himself, she always had one thing or another to complain about, but it also came in the lighthearted tone he was so used to since they were children.
They grew up together, good friends, neighbours, he used to throw mud at her newly pressed gowns and she would scream bloody murder until his mother gave him a piece of his mind. It was fun, it had been fun for long years past their adulthood.
They were presented into court at 18, his season just one before hers. They hated it, made fun of the other extras' manners, and made faces at each other while they were dancing with someone or another.
Katsuki wanted to live free to expand his father's business, travel around the world and get into meaningless fights at the break of dawn.
She wanted to write and create a world where she could do all those things as well, she dreamed of a day she would be able to be just as free as Katsuki.
So, when the time limit came for both, they decided that if they did indeed need to tie the knots with anyone, together at least they could still have fun and be themselves, free of social expectations and demands.
Katsuki had no qualms about supporting her writing and even insisted she tried to publish her books under an alias, even if she never went along with it.
He bought her trousers from different countries with different genre expectations and he made all the staff swear not to tell a soul while she ran the corridors up and down in her new garments.
They were happy, and comfortable, had two children for the sake of passing down their heritage and appeasing their parents. Also because they both loved children, it hadn't been any trouble at all.
Katsuki was sure they would be the best of friends for the rest of their lives and when their children were old and out of the house, he would take her into his travellings and make her dreams come true.
Perhaps they would even - finally - be able to find love someplace else that not the high court they grew up in, who knew.
That's probably why the news of her passing hit him like a freight train on a Monday morning.
He was out of town in business and she had a small coughing when he was to initially travel, she told him not to fret, she would be back on her feet in no time. He believed her because she had always been the strongest woman he had ever met and he was Mitsuki's son.
Two weeks later the doctor gave him the news. His house with all the windows opened, fresh linen in all the beds, the clothes she wore burned down and buried in the middle of the woods.
The plague, it seemed. She never stood a chance, and never made it past 28.
Their children were fine, with his mother. It was like his wife knew. He didn't cry, he couldn't, it was too much, too sudden. She left him a letter he was never able to open.
And like that, two years had passed, Katsuki barely hanging on with all the added work. He had no idea how much food was enough to buy, or how many clothes his kids needed.
How to braid a hair, how to take care of a crying infant. He did not know any bedtime stories or silly songs to fight down nightmares.
He loved them, he really did.
But he was as much of a mess as they were on that sunny day he decided he couldn't do that alone anymore.
They had found some middle ground after some months and his children came to understand why their mother wasn't around anymore. It broke his heart to see them cry and attach themselves to him, especially because he had no idea how to soothe their pain.
He couldn't even soothe his. How could he? When his best friend simply left him behind in the spawn of days? While he wasn't around to hold her hand or try and do anything.
He should have done something, anything. But he didn't, he travelled, shook some hands and sold a few contracts just to return to an empty home.
He sighed once more, he wasn't about to enter another trip down memory lane in plain daylight. His children still needed to get dressed and he would be late for his appointment at the prefecture if he didn't leave soon.
"Time to behave you little rascals! Off to get ready so Ms Tsuyu can take you both to the park before dinner"
He heard the complaints of two incredibly spoiled children but also the pit patters of their feet after him inside the manor followed by the scraps of tiny paws with them.
Shit, the dog was supposed to only stay outside. One week in and he already managed to fumble through his house rules.
They were difficult, yes, but they still were their mother’s children and they knew when it was beneficial to just obey instead of making a scene. They were excited to bring the new puppy to the park, so obviously they would behave just well enough for that.
Katsuki managed to get them into something socially accepted before enclosing them in the maid's care for the afternoon. He would pass by the park on his return to fetch them all just in time for dinner.
The cooks would be pleased to be able to work in peace for once.
Before leaving though, he snatched the last page of his mother's letter, containing the names of three referenced nannies. It wouldn't hurt to give it a try, at least not until his mother found out he followed her advice and his pride was lost forever.
With everything on hand, he boards the carriage awaiting him and rides for the city, hoping he will be able to accomplish everything he set out to do.
---
Katsuki manages to pass through the central agency, just a few streets down the prefecture before his appointment and puts through a request for a nanny, preferably for the names his mother had indicated.
Filling out the required forms takes him a bit more time than he had available, unfortunately. They're a lot more intricated and full of questions about him, his manor and his background than he initially thought they would be.
But also, there's a specific place for him to fill out with his children's information and that gets him sweating under his coat.
It takes him a while and a few concerned looks from the office lady, but he manages to create some overall positive recommendations for them. He wouldn't say he lied on the form but he may have coloured the truth a bit forcibly.
His kids were adorable and the closest thing he would describe as angels on Earth, just not all the time or whatever time Katsuki needed them to be. On the bright side, they did love learning! About specific weird subjects, obsessively over weeks just to ignore it all together once their interest went someplace else.
Those were things the nanny could learn by trial and error, what she did need to know initially to apply for the job was their ages (six and four), their genders (a girl and a boy, respectively) and the offered salary.
Katsuki was a generous man in that aspect, there was no refusing the amount he was willing to pay.
He even added their favourite activities and the fact they just got a puppy, it felt like a nice touch and it would help if the nanny could work around a dog in the house too. Katsuki just knew the kids wouldn't want to be separated from the four-legged tiny hurricane his mother gifted them on her last visit.
He wasn't expecting much from his first try, especially after the office lady informed him he requested the most sought-after nannies they had in the agency and most probably they wouldn't be available for a few years, but he at least had something to get his mother off his case for a while.
If they were not available, the agency could send him some other prospects to evaluate, which he was not very eager to, but would consider as well.
When he finally finishes his request though, he is already running late for his appointment and it annoys him to no end. He navigates the streets on a hush, almost knocking a few people and actively pushing a young lady off his way (and curiously out of harm's way, after he manages to move her from the street) on his quest to reach his meeting place.
As soon as he gets to the prefecture, all his thoughts of his mother, nannies, letters and what's more are out of his head. He had business to discuss, properties to look after and lands under his care that deserved his undivided attention.
If there was one thing Katsuki could pride himself on doing extremely well was his job and that would not be an exception that day.
His meetings ran smoothly, as expected. His business is not hard, not anymore - his father did most of the grovelling work in his youth and Katsuki expanded it with a bit of a struggle before his children were born and now the management of it all only requested his undivided attention once every fortnight.
He only hires trustworthy, loyal people to run his lands and properties, he allows them the freedom to decide most of the day-to-day needs of the people they catered to and had had very few occasions he had to step in to avoid animosities.
His hard work in his early twenties allowed him to offer his family the best there was in the world and his heart was at peace that at least, he had provided his late wife with all she could have ever needed or wanted to live a comfortable life for the years they shared.
Now, he could not only offer his children the best there was in the world materialistic wise but also provide them with the best tutors and home nurses their county could afford.
They would be well cared for, highly schooled and entertained constantly. In his mind, there was nothing more important he could give them.
Especially not now they had no one else to rely on.
Of course, his parents and his in-laws made themselves present pretty often, but he knew nothing would ever compare to having both their parents at home. Even if their marriage arrangements used to be so... unique.
The fact they were married for the sake of it never once affected the love they poured into raising the two little rascals and thankfully, they never once noticed their parents behaving oddly in their eyes. Of course, Katsuma was too little to even understand a thing and Mahoro too much like her mother to see a fault.
With his head full of wavering thoughts, Katsuki doesn't even see his carriage approaching the park to pick up his kids, only noticing when they make a full stop. He gets excited to see them and opens the door in a hurry, not noticing a passing young woman by the curb.
The door doesn't exactly hit her, more so it scares her to the point she jumps good feet away from him.
"Hey, look where you're going!"
"Oh, I'm sorry Sir, I was daydreaming, am just on my way to... hey! You were the one to almost hit me, I shouldn't be the one apologizing here."
Katsuki scowls and looks down properly at the person in front of him. To call her a young woman was to be extremely nice, the lad couldn't be past her first season.
She was dressed in second-handed clothes, her gown stained by the dirty path she was walking on at the ends with her boots fully immersed in a mud puddle. She clutched a carry-on by her side, worn out to the point it was possible to see the stitches from previous repairs.
But all of those details would not make themselves known to Katsuki when he tried to reminiscence that moment, because what caught his attention were her eyes. Fierce, raging emerald gems glaring at him with a myriad of stars surrounding them.
Katsuki lost his train of thought for a moment, drowning in a constellation of freckles and a whole universe shining under the setting sun staring right back at him. Her wild dense green curls framing her face gave her an untamed aura and he couldn't deny it, he was... intrigued, to say the least.
He shook his head, decision made for him already.
"Indeed, I apologize milady. May I ask you where is your final destination? The sun will be soon gone and wouldn't be proper for a young lady to walk these paths alone."
The woman blinked a few times, clearly caught off guard by his sudden change and Katsuki was hoping not to have frightened her already. If he could at least deliver her safely on their way back home, he would be able to scratch the itch at the back of his mind that installed as soon as he looked at her.
"Oh, I... I'm on my way to the Bakugou Manor? I've been requested by their Lord."
"Requested by Lord Bakugou? What's the occasion?"
That question would haunt Katsuki for nights to come and as soon as it left his lips, he wanted to take it back. His answer came in the shape of a proud smile and crooked eyes.
The woman seemed to shine with a light of her own and illuminate the whole park, or at least, bright enough to blind him for a few seconds. Her excitement vibrated through her words while she joined her hands in front of her. It seemed like a simple reaction but it knocked the air out of his lungs.
"Indeed sir, I've been requested as a nanny, for his two heirs. I'm extremely excited to have been requested by his lordship personally!"
Katsuki nodded, he should check that as soon as possible, but for the moment, he had another task to fulfil. There was enough time riding his carriage back to the manor for him to uncover her story.
He requests his coachman to load her luggage at the back of his carriage amidst protests 'there was no need to' and that 'she must be on her way already'.
"It's on our way back home, let me at least give you this courtesy as an apology for my earlier rudeness."
The woman stops complaining and with a shaky smile, nods back, a blush forming on her cheeks. He found it funny, how long has it been since he last made a woman blush?
"And may I know your name?"
While they enter the park in search of his children, he could also check the veracity of her story.
"I'm Izuku, from the Midoriya house. You probably do not know us, my family is really small and I've grown up in the countryside. In one of Lord Bakugou's lands as well, so is such an honour to be able to work for him."
Katsuki hums, a small smirk forming on his lips. Izuku, that was correct, he did indeed put in a request for her name.
He wonders if he could trust his mother's recommendations now, he was hoping for someone a bit more experienced and Izuku just wasn't old enough for that.
"And you were immediately available?"
She smiles sheepishly, nodding and twirling her fingers through some stranded curls.
"Oh, yes, I've been the head nurse for the orphanage for a few years now. Have been with them almost all my life and learned all I know from them. I've been just waiting for an opportunity to work on a household for once."
"Never been requested before?"
There's a sombre look in her eyes now, she shifts her focus to the flowers around them and Katsuki curses himself for asking such a question.
"I have been, yes, just... just never adapted well to such households. Or them to me, for that matter... but that is not going to happen again! I'm certain this is my special chance to work under such an important Lord!"
Katsuki smiles, her determination contagious. He decides it will be alright to run a trial test of her work then, his children would definitely be elated to learn they will have a nanny.
"Sir... where exactly are we going?"
He doesn't look at her, eyes on his children running in their direction, having seen them for a while now. He purposely had not introduced himself to Izuku in hopes of extracting more information from her.
He stops short in his tracks when they get closer.
"Mahoro, Katsuma, come soon. Let me introduce you to your new nanny, Ms Izuku."
Izuku's eyes double their size when he finally understands the meaning of his words and then, against all odds, she laughs. She kneels to the ground in favour of getting to the same eye level as his children and smiles at them.
"Hello dear children, I'm Izuku and your father requested me to come and aid in the care of you two. I'm very excited to know you and learn so much from such incredible tiny people."
Katsuki was still stunned by the sound of her laugh, like bells ringing in his ears to notice his kids didn't even spare him a second glance, drawn directly to her presence and open arms.
Katsuma, ever the shy boy surprises him, even more, when he throws himself into her arms and hugs her neck, clearly asking to be picked.
"Oh sweetie, hello, such a nice hug you have here."
Izuku gets up with him in her arms and extends her other hand for Mahoro to pick which, with one last look to her father, she does. Katsuki is bewildered, his children were never so quick to latch themselves onto someone new.
"Mr Bakugou is a pleasure to be introduced to your lovely children."
Katsuki notices her looking at him now, a mischievous glint in her eyes and he nods. Of course, she would notice his intentions but wouldn't comment on them in front of his children.
"Dad?"
He focuses on the bundle in her arms, Katsuma already making himself comfortable within her grasp. He looks up to his father before burying his head once again into dark green curls.
"Yes, noodle?"
"She smells nice."
And with those three simple words and a blushing nanny in front of him, Katsuki just knew he was fucked.