Chapter Text
They say to have a Fae on board will lead a ship to safety, as the Fae are connected to the forest. They will always lead you towards land.
They say to house a Fae is to be cursed, for the best treasures always lie deep in the uncharted forests, but men who have wronged the Fae will never walk within the forest without fear. For the forest remembers all who have wronged its children.”
Izuku closed his eyes as he leaned against the wall of the ship as much as his chains would allow. The iron burned around his wrists and ankles, as he was sure if he looked the skin would be all red. The iron touching his face itched terribly, and his jaw ached from the lack of movement. His captors had gotten smart after his last escape attempt and made sure the shackles were solid iron and extra tight.
Iron was the only way to contain a fae after all. Even that wasn’t foolproof, as any determined fae could find ways to wiggle out of their bindings. Izuku was nothing less than determined to be free.
He hated his captors with a passion, they were the ones who ripped him from his forest and stuck him in this ocean bound hell hole. Using him as their guide towards shore whenever they ventured out into the high seas. The Fae always know where the forest is, even those who have no forest to call home. Izuku just happened to be a forest child on an island with no other fae, making him an easy target for greedy pirates.
That had been a long, long time ago. Izuku didn’t know how long ago, the absence of trees made it hard to tell the passage of time, but it had been long enough that his connection to his birth forest had frayed and snapped. He couldn’t feel his home anymore, he was a fae without a forest. A lost one.
Izuku was so focused on wiggling and testing out the limits of his confines that he failed to notice the blonde haired boy sneaking around the belly of the ship. By the time Izuku did notice, it was too late, the boy was right next to him. Izuku stared at the human child with wide eyes, none of his captors were children or even had any children. None of the captors ever looked at him with concern in their eyes either. This boy must be a stowaway!
Izuku’s eyes lit up with excitement, maybe this boy could help him get free. He would do anything to get free. He would owe this boy a favor if they freed him, and favors from the fae were one of the best things to own.
The other boy eyed him warily, but eventually the stowaway moved closer to Izuku and started undoing the restraints. Izuku did his best to hold still, though he was vibrating with excitement on the inside. He was going to be free and this other boy didn’t look mean so he probably wouldn't abuse the fact that Izuku would owe him a favor.
Probably. Maybe. Izuku really hoped so.
Izuku shot up when he was finally free, startling the other boy. He didn’t care though, he was just so happy to be free, “thank you! Thank you thank you thank you!” Izuku trilled, though his voice sounded like birds in the trees. It was the only way he knew how to say thank you, he had learned it from the wandering birds in his forest.
The other boy had a confused look on his face, his ruby red eyes narrowed in annoyance. The boy spoke in a language Izuku didn’t understand, but it sounded a lot like the language the pirates used.
Izuku felt his body slump in disappointment, he finally had a savior and they couldn’t even talk to him. “This sucks.” He complained, grumbling like a cat.
He vaguely recalled the cats that lived in his forest and how they taught him how to pout with pride. Remembering anything from his old forest just reminded him how lonely he was. He was so far away from his forest, his home, that he couldn’t feel it anymore. He wasn’t unable to find his way to his forest. Now he he had a companion but they can’t speak to him, and he can’t talk to them. Not even mentioning the fact they were both on a ship filled with pirates who probably wanted to hurt them.
Izuku didn’t notice the way the other boy stared at him, eyes shifting from confusion to contemplation. He did however hear when the boy spoke, “what are you?” In an animalistic tone. It was almost the same language the forest taught Izuku, but some of the sounds weren’t quite right and the boy’s voice was heavily accented.
Izuku’s head shot up as he stared at his new friend before grinning widely, “you can speak!” He cried.
The other boy rolled his eyes, “yeah duh.” He said again in that strange almost forest speech but not quite, “what are you?”
Izuku grinned at the boy, “a fae!”
That, apparently, was the wrong answer as the other boy very quickly backed away from Izuku, “a fae?!” The boy yelped like a dog, “are you going to kill me?” He growled, though it almost sounded like a whine to Izuku.
Izuku stared at the other boy, “no?” He said softly, “why would I? You helped me. You are friend.”
The boy narrowed his eyes at Izuku, before snorting, “fine, fine. I’m.... Katsuki.”
Izuku didn’t fully catch what the last word the other boy said was, but it felt like a name. Not a full name, not enough for Izuku to claim as his, but it was still a name. Those were special to him, his old forest had said so.
Izuku grinned at Katsuki, “I’m Izuku! Nice to meet you Kacchan!” He said, choosing a nickname off the top of his head. He liked dealing in nicknames, everything in his old forest had a nickname. Even if he had known the creature’s name, he still liked to call them by a nickname.
Kacchan narrowed his eyes at Izuku, “you’re weird.” He said, “you’re not like the fae in the storybooks.”
“Nope! I’m me!” Izuku chirped.
Kacchan rolled his eyes, “whatever. What kind of weird fae shit can you do?”
Izuku blinked at Kacchan. Kacchan glared at him before sighing, “look. We’re in the middle of the ocean. We need to get to land. Which means we need to make this boat ours. That means we need to get rid of all the pirates.”
Izuku blinked, “can I kill them?”
“I.... you know what, yeah. Do whatever you want to them. Just make sure they’re not able to hurt us.”
Izuku gave Kacchan a feral grin, “Okay!” He said happily. He has been waiting for this moment for ages. It was finally time to get revenge and truly be free.