Chapter Text
Katsuki swallowed a yawn and chugged the last of his now cold coffee with a grimace. Around him, the voices of the other sidekicks mixed into one loud drone that made him twitchy and deepened the ache in his head.
The night before, the college kids that lived in the apartment below his and Kirishima’s place had thrown a party that lasted until an hour before they both had to get up and leave for their respective agencies. Kirishima slept like, well, a rock but, unfortunately for Katsuki, the bass in the music was heavy enough that he could feel it shaking the apartment. Already a fairly light sleeper, he stayed stuck on the groggy precipice just before sleep for hours before he eventually accepted his fate. Around one o’clock he had even seriously contemplated going down there and blowing up their speakers, but just the mental image of the look of tired disappointment on Kirishima’s face and the price tag on the bill he’d have to pay to replace them meant that idea was scrapped almost immediately. His alarm that morning brought a sense of foreboding that was only exacerbated by the sympathetic wince on Kirishima’s face as he handed him his travel mug.
“Rough night?”
Katsuki had only stared into his eyebag-free face, grunted, and stomped back into his bedroom to tug on his hero costume before his hindbrain got the better of him and coaxed him back into bed. Fortunately, the thought of facing Best Jeanist’s cold anger if he skipped this meeting had been enough to actually push him out the front door and into the doors of the Genius Office just five minutes before the morning briefing started. Now, he sat slumped in his seat, gauntlets at his feet and gloveless hands wrapped around his mug like it was a lifeline, staring in the general direction of where Best Jeanist was handing a stack of file folders to his assistant to pass around.
“Good morning, everyone. I hope you all had a restful weekend and are ready to get back to work.”
Katsuki rolled his eyes as he took one of the files and flipped it open. He skimmed the top page and a grin fought its way through his exhaustion when he saw the description of the mission.
“There’s been an uptick in activity in Yokohama from the villain group Hallowed and the city has deemed there to be enough of a threat that they've asked for support from both this agency and a number of other agencies, including some smaller ones like Fourth Kind’s since they're close by. As usual, you have all the available information of these villains and their quirks in the files Kashima handed out. We aren't sure exactly when or where they'll strike next, but our agency is due in the area in two hours so please make all necessary preparations and meet at the location listed on the first page of your documents. Good luck and I'll see you out there.”
Katsuki settled back in his seat as a few other sidekicks sprinted off to the locker rooms and equipment storage. Some of his bad mood trickled away when he read back over the name of Fourth Kind’s agency. That was Kirishima’s agency and they had barely had any chances to work together in the year since they’d graduated. Kirishima had almost gone to Fat Gum’s agency in Kansai, but realized he wouldn’t be able to afford living on his own so soon after graduation so he’d stuck close to home and decided to move in with Katsuki until he’d established himself. Katsuki was even more grateful for that choice now because it meant he’d have a familiar face supporting him. He flipped through the pages and landed on the villains’ information, taking in their names and quirks as he pushed down another yawn. Neatly shined shoes appeared out of the corner of his eye and he looked up to see Best Jeanist appraising him with a raised eyebrow.
“Need something?” Katsuki asked, frowning.
“I wanted to discuss your feelings on the mission, but now I'm more concerned about how you're feeling in general.” Best Jeanist gestured to the mug and to Katsuki’s slumped posture. “You seem out of sorts this morning, I would've expected the news of a potential battle to have you fired up.”
“What about my ‘feelings on the mission’?” Katsuki elected to ignore both Best Jeanist’s comment and the way something in his gut twisted at his mentor seeing him not at his best. He’d agreed to come back to Best Jeanist’s agency in part because his words during the internship had stayed with him, tugging at him to prove Best Jeanist wrong, to prove that he had every right to be a hero no matter how he came across to other people. Storming the Genius Office and slamming his hero license onto Best Jeanist’s desk had been, in Katsuki’s mind, a declaration of victory. To have that derailed by one rough night made his palms itch with the need to pop off a few sparks.
Best Jeanist clearly noticed Katsuki avoiding the subject but didn’t push. “This will be your first major confrontation with villains since you’ve been with us. I wanted to make sure you felt ready and to see if you had any additional questions.”
“What the hell is that supposed to mean? Of course I’m ready!” His palms itched even more, joined by the stirrings of what Kaminari had earned a blast to the face for calling nervous sweat, and he tried to subtly scrub the right on the rough canvas of his pants, thankful beyond belief that the support staff at the agency had adjusted them to absorb and nullify his sweat. Before, he’d walked around UA’s campus on exam days essentially wearing a bomb and, once, had to change pants three times in an hour so that they wouldn’t blow up the second they rubbed against a chair.
Best Jeanist raised a calming hand and shook his head. “I wasn't insinuating anything, I simply wished to check in with you. If you are sure there's nothing more you need from me, I'll leave you to your preparations.” He lowered the hand to rest it on Katsuki’s shoulder and the solid weight sent an unfamiliar thrum of warmth through him. “I'll see you in the field. Fight well, Dynamight.”
Katsuki grunted in response and watched as Best Jeanist strode away. The file folder creaked in his grip and he let it drop to his lap, glaring down at the embossed logo on the front that glinted in the light. Of course he was ready, he’d beat down every villain he’d been sent to face while working there. He had a spotless record and he’d be damned if he ruined that so early in the game, not when he had so much riding on establishing a solid reputation early. Hero rankings weren’t built on nothing and he could only make his way to the top by fighting more noteworthy villains. If anything, the continuous stream of muggers and petty thieves had been getting frustrating and he was chomping at the bit for something bigger, something better. Something that would get him noticed.
He shoved on his gauntlets and headed for the doors, ignoring the squeak from Kashima as he shouldered through them and jumped the few steps down into the street. He’d grab another coffee and an energy drink on the way to the train station and by the time the other heroes got there he’d be ready to go. This was his first real chance to prove himself and he was going to rise to the challenge. He was ready.
~~~
Katuski was parked on a bench in the public park designated as the meeting place and halfway through his second energy drink when a body dropped onto the seat next to him with such force the wood creaked in fatal protest.
“Hey, Bakubro!” Kirishima slung an arm around him in greeting then caught sight of his face and paused, his bright grin dimming slightly. “You feeling any better now? I thought for sure once you got to work and woke up more you’d pep up.”
“I have never ‘pepped up’ in my goddamn life, Shitty Hair. What does that even mean?”
“Okay, so we’re definitely not feeling better. Got it.” Kirishima drew out the “okay” and cautiously took his arm back as he spoke.
Katsuki sunk into his seat and pretended not to miss the comforting weight of Kirishima when it was gone. He’d throw himself into the sun before he ever let it slip that he liked the casual touches Kirishima handed out to everyone around him like it was his job. It was something he’d had to adjust to when they moved in together since casual affection wasn’t exactly his family’s MO and in the dorms Kirishima had been distracted enough by everyone else in their class that he never had the chance to really focus on Katsuki. In the apartment, however, that was a different story. They’d finally settled into a comfortable routine of good morning shoulder pats, passing arm touches, and side-to-side contact on the couch during movie nights and, while it was strictly an at-home experience, Katsuki couldn’t say he hadn’t grown attached to it.
“I’m fine.” He said. He drained the can he was holding and crumpled it into a disc before chucking it into a nearby recycling bin.
“Clearly.” Kirishima paused. “Did something happen last night? You seemed off this morning.”
“Assholes downstairs don’t know how to shut the fuck up, not a big deal.”
“How long did they not ‘shut the fuck up’ for?”
“...All night.”
Kirishima sucked in a breath. “Did you not get any sleep?”
Katsuki said nothing, glowering at a speck of dirt on his newly cleaned boots.
“Bakugou. You have to tell someone if you aren’t feeling well. You can’t fight a whole group of villains if you’re exhausted.” His tone was careful and Katsuki felt a bit like a stray dog being gently coaxed into a trap. “I know you’re fully capable of taking down your regular crowd of criminals any day of the week, but these are big time. It’s been a week of attacks and they had to call in multiple agencies. You need to be prepped for this and I don’t want to see you get hurt because you haven’t slept—especially not when you’re used to, like, ten hours a night.”
Katsuki growled but, before he could bite out a response, the other sidekicks from the Genius Office came around the corner and he shot up off the bench and headed towards them, resolutely not turning back when Kirishima called his name.
One of the newer sidekicks Katsuki hadn’t bothered to learn the name of waved. “Any activity yet?”
“No. It’s been quiet. We’ll get a call if something crops up in the area.”
She nodded and they lapsed into a tense silence, each of them keeping an eye out for suspicious movements or people. Katsuki glanced back at the bench and saw that Kirishima had left. He frowned and scanned the crowd. Kirishima’s spiky red hair stood out from the heads of civilians milling around him and the small group of sidekicks from Fourth Kind’s agency near a bus stop on the other side of the park. Kirishima caught his eye and furrowed his eyebrows as he gave him a once-over. Katsuki looked away immediately. He was fine, what kind of hero would he be if he couldn’t fight when he was a little tired?
A distant scream interrupted his train of thought and he whipped his head just in time to catch sight of a crowd of people rushing towards the park in a panic. Metal clinked and frantic shouting of commands into communicators erupted around him as Best Jeanist’s sidekicks, Fourth Kind’s sidekicks, and the other heroes who had been called in jumped into action. Katsuki shifted his weight, tightened his gauntlets, and shot up into the air with a blast, coming down in the middle of the screaming crowd just in time to meet the massive form of the villain instantly recognizable as Gorgon as she came rumbling up the side street.
A multitude of bulging eyes sat sunken into an unnaturally long and narrow face framed by writhing and twisting snakes that sprouted from her head in a mockery of hair and lined each arm. Thick scales coated her body and the tatters of civilian clothing hung limply from her shoulders. She nearly reached the fourth story of the office building she passed and Katsuki took an instinctive step back when one of her eyes locked onto him and the rest rolled to follow.
“Look, sisters, a little hero has come to stop us,” she rasped, revealing a mouth lined with rows and rows of teeth. Four women, all dressed in simple black armor with gold masks covering their eyes, came out of the surrounding alleys and circled around Gorgon in a protective formation.
Katsuki growled in response and blasted himself into the side of the nearest building which he used as a jumping off point to aim directly for Gorgon’s head. The fight was on and he could feel the familiar rush of adrenaline clear his mind and chase the exhaustion from his bones. He dodged a swipe from a mighty and clawed hand with a cackle and dove back in as the sounds of combat floated up from the street where he saw the other heroes round the corner and throw themselves into the fight with just as much vigor.
Blast after blast slammed into Gorgon’s eyes and she shrieked in pain. She reared back and batted at him again, this time using both her hand and the snakes that sprouted from her skin. Sharp fangs grazed his arms and he flipped himself out of the way before they could puncture him. He landed on a nearby roof and sprinted towards the park, grinning wildly as Gorgon took the bait and followed him with slamming footsteps. The open space of the park gave him room to play and her little room to corner him. As he ran, he looked down and saw that Kirishima and a few others had spotted him and were following suit by moving to push the other villains into the park as far as they could.
The villains were resisting in equal measure, however. A woman with long black hair gleefully bounced from hero to hero, caressing any exposed skin she could reach and laughing as they stumbled then turned to attack the heroes they had just been fighting alongside. One with purple hair shorn close to the scalp and long arms like spider’s limbs held a hero in each hand and grinned as they screamed in agony, stomachs bubbling and shifting wherever she touched. Some heroes had successfully shoved one of the masked women out of the side street and into the park, but she was armed with a bladed staff and her eyes glowed a bright white as she hit pressure points and joints with deadly accuracy. The final woman moved quickly along the walls of the surrounding buildings and, with a single touch, made every hero that approached her drop like a stone. Katsuki watched her slip into the park and head into the crowd, but couldn’t chase after her because Gorgon burst into the park with a ground-shaking roar and reached for him as he sailed off the roof of a shop and landed in a crouch just far enough away that her snakes couldn’t reach him.
Behind her, he spotted Kirishima’s group as they sprinted after the woman who had escaped the alley, Kirishima splitting off to help those fighting the villain with the staff.
“Little boys shouldn’t play with fire,” Gorgon said. She stepped forward and the impact of her foot shook the trees and sent the scrambling civilians sprawling to the ground. “They start them so young these days. It’s a shame really, no chance to grow up and decide for themselves what to be.”
“Fuck you,” Katsuki spat. He leapt up and aimed another blast at one of her arms. He managed to burn a few of the snakes but sacrificed his distance to do it and a side-swipe from one of her massive fingers sent him spinning into the window of a flower shop. He wiped grimy water and shards of glass from his face with a grimace and braced himself against the window frame. With one hand formed into a fist and the other pressed against it as support, he took a deep breath and fired an AP Shot straight through her arm. Bone snapped and blood gushed down onto the pavement as her arm bent to a grotesque angle and dangled at her side, useless.
She screamed and threw a sweeping punch with her working arm that cut through the shop and tossed him back out into the park where he smacked from tree to tree like a pinball. He collapsed into the grass with a heavy cough and stars filling his vision. He could just make out the figures around him in the park and registered that the heroes had managed to pull all of the other members of Hallowed out into the open and were fighting in as close quarters as they could. Thick strings of fabric shot through the air and something in Katsuki’s chest loosened as he registered that Best Jeanist and some of the higher-ranking pros had arrived. Bright red flashed in his peripheral as Kirishima sent the villain with the staff flying directly into the arms of a group of police.
“Brat! How dare you!” Gorgon advanced on him with a speed she hadn’t shown before and he shoved his gauntlets in front of him and sent another AP Shot through her knee. Blood poured from the gaping hole it left behind as the joint buckled and she came crashing to the ground almost in slow motion. He smirked and turned his head to call out to Kirishima when his breath caught in his throat and time drew to a syrupy crawl.
After disposing of the villain he’d been fighting, Kirishima had apparently turned his efforts towards evacuation. His back was turned to Katsuki and, subsequently, Gorgon as he shepherded a group of terrified middle schoolers away from the fight and into one of the nearby buildings. Katsuki watched as one of the kids looked up and shrieked, warning Kirishima of the danger a mere second before the colossal body came crashing down next to them. He saw the barest beginnings of Kirishima’s Hardening spread across his back as he shoved the kids out of the way and disappeared under a massive arm with a guttural cry. Other heroes rushed to help, but the blood rushing in Katsuki’s ears drowned out the sounds of the fight and the calls for assistance and he could do nothing but sit and stare blankly as they struggled to uncover what he knew would be a corpse. His vision went from star-filled to hazy and he slumped back into the grass, head still turned and eyes still locked on the place where Kirishima had been standing, even though he could barely see it through the blur of his unfocused lenses and the blood that trickled down from his hairline into his eyes. The last thing he saw before he fully lost consciousness was a splash of red hair that was quickly blocked out by the distinct blue and yellow of Best Jeanist as he rushed towards Katsuki.