Chapter Text
“Ok ok! I’ll show it off again!” Katsuki said to the crowd of small children forming around him. He put out his hands facing upwards and tensed, feeling for the metaphorical trigger to activate his Quirk.
A heat spread from the centre of his palms and within seconds, small pops and the occasional louder bang was emitted from his hands, accompanied by light and heat that everyone was so enticed by since he had developed his Quirk.
Six Months Earlier
Everyone knew Quirks developed at around the age of 4. The majority came through closer to 5, a couple were a little earlier but what was REALLY special were the ones that developed the same day as a person's 4th birthday. After all, what’s cooler than going to sleep as a completely normal boy, only to wake up being able to fly or create water out of thin air on the day of your birthday!? It’s like the whole UNIVERSE bent over backwards to hand deliver a gift right to your doorstep!
Katsuki was one such kid, of course, he got to skip school the day it came in as his parents immediately booked a priority visit to the doctors when he launched his blanket in excitement after waking up; but when he walked into his classroom the following day, EVERYONE knew it had come in on his special day, therefore, TODAY was an equally special day!
The blond was swarmed by fellow kids, BEGGING to tell them what he had, how he found out, or to even show it! Katsuki looked at his teacher for permission, to which the amused teacher nodded, before he turned to his best friend.
“Oi Izu! Take a guess what I got?”
The green haired three year old squinted before he answered. The boy LOVED Quirks more than ANYONE Katsuki had met in his short lifetime, and he was SUPER smart. If anyone could make a guess, it was him.
“Hmm,” Izuku drummed his fingers on his leg, emulating so many stereotypical “thinking” poses characters tended to adopt in cartoons or movies as others crowded around, curious as to what he would say. “Uncle Ma-Sa-Ru makes sparkles in his hands, but Aunt Mi-ski sweats uhm… Nimtroglycrynoryn-”
“Nitroglycerin,” Katsuki corrected his friend with a laugh, “She makes me try the big words so I don’t trip up when I’m older!”
Everyone was awed at the child reciting the difficult word, and some attempted to say it themselves. The blond smirked, he was so smart. A thought occurred to him at that moment, ‘I really AM smart! Everyone’s gonna know!’
“Thanks Kacchan! It’s Tricky! So you could have one of those! But maybe, it’s both? What did auntie say Ni-Tro-Gli-Ce-Rin do?” He thought aloud, and Katsuki noticed the exact moment his friend came to a conclusion. The gleam in his eyes was all too familiar to him.
“You’ll love this!” the blond shouted as the other kids stood back. He put his hands out facing upwards and suddenly a large BANG sounded in the room, as the sweat on his right hand combusted all at once. Some kids screamed, as others laughed, the teachers all knew what the Quirk would be as they’d read his updated file so there was no panic from them.
“Wow!”
“That’s so Cool”
“You’re the BEST Kacchan”
‘They’re right. I AM the best!’ Katsuki thought, basking in all the praise. ‘I can’t wait for you to get your Quirk and be right up there with me, Izuku!’
Present
After his little display was over, he waved off his group of friends and ran quickly towards the climbing frame at the school's outdoor play area. Other kids came and went, but most of them knew this was Katsuki and Izuku’s zone, and every other kid in their class respected that.
Respect.
Ever since he’d developed his Quirk, the amount of respect he gained doing ANYTHING had increased. He got a question right in class? His teacher pointed that out and everyone called him the smartest. He threw a ball REALLY far in PE? Someone called it out and everyone went CRAZY over it! They were all gonna learn he was simply the best around!
Now, he just needed Izuku to get into school already!
Katsuki had been a special case, though of course he was, getting his Quirk on his birthday. But he knew not everyone would be THAT great, even his best friend. So he’s been waiting patiently for Izuku to get his own power and join him at the top! After all, his father could breathe fire, and his mother could move things with her mind! Everyone kept telling him how cool Explosion was, and they were right, but even Katsuki had to admit that both of those were REALLY cool Quirks.
Now, three months after Izuku’s 4th birthday, Katsuki had been told by his parents that his friend had been taken to the doctor the previous day to check for his Quirk! Katsuki had the sneaking suspicion that the green haired boy had probably gained his mum’s Quirk, as that would be a bit harder to know for sure. If Izuku had developed Fire Breath, no doubt his mother would have been telling him about the cool fire Izuku might have no doubt spewed if his fathers emerald flames were anything to go by.
His thoughts about what kind of hero’s they would be were interrupted by the sound of feet dragging in sand and he looked up to see his friend approaching.
“Izu! Took you lo-” Katsuki interrupted himself at the sight of his friend's face. Izuku had slightly red eyes, a few stray tear streaks still rolling down his cheek. “What’s up?” He jumped up and hugged his crying friend. He’d been around the Midoriya’s long enough to know that they were all cryers, no matter the situation. You could usually tell what they were crying about, whether it was good, bad or somewhere in between. Katsuki looked at his friend and instantly knew, this was a bad cry. But why? He got his Quirk right? It’s gotta be a cool Quirk, but not as cool as his of co-
“I’m Quirkless Kacchan.” Izuku whispered, barely audible despite the relative silence present in their little corner of the playground.
“Quirkless?” Katsuki whispered back, he didn’t know the full meaning behind the diagnosis, the deeper meaning. The way it would sink its roots in Izuku's life and cause suffering at every turn, but he did understand one thing. Quirk’s were everything in life, after all, everyone kept bringing up how amazing his Quirk was! So to have no Quirk…
“Are you sure Izu?”
The child in question nodded sadly, “T-the doctor said I don’t have a Q-quirk at all…” He replied between sniffles.
A moment of silence followed.
Katsuki had no idea how to react, then again, would ANY child?
“M-maybe it’s just late?” He managed to say, breaking the silence after what felt like much too long. “Other people have developed it at 5 right?”
‘Perfect reply, as usual!’ he thought.
But the tears picked up instead, being the complete opposite effect he had intended.
“M-m-maybe. B-b-b-but the d-doctor s-said there’s NO CHANCE!”
Bakugo just held his friend tighter. “I’m sorry Izuku.”
They stayed like that for a while before the bell rang, calling them inside to their classrooms. Thankfully, Izuku’s tears had dried up so the only evidence that he’d cried was the slightly red eyes, which were barely even noticeable according to Katsuki!
‘We need to go inside, but I NEED to say this before we do.’
“You’ll be fine, no one needs to know yet. We can still be heroes together!” Katsuki said with a smile, emulating All Might to the best of his ability.
It was a small act to Katsuki, but unbeknownst to him, it meant SO much more to Izuku who had had his dream shot down by his mother once they returned from the doctors office.
“T-thank you Kacchan, thank you!”
Katsuki stroked his hair and shot his friend a cocky grin, “Ok, ok let’s get to class already!” he replied, dashing forward giggling as Izuku followed.
And that’s how Katsuki helped Izuku see that he didn’t need a Quirk to do well in this world!
Except… it wasn’t…
“Midoriya! Please slow down, don’t run, what if you trip and get hurt?” their teacher called as they neared the school door.
A simple comment, but it confused Katsuki. Why did the teacher call out Izuku but not him? Not only was he also running, but he was doing it faster, right?
“Sorry Miss Aika, I won’t do it again.”
“Good, now Izuku, I understand being in a rush to get to class but you of all people should be taking extra care not to get hurt. Right?” She continued, confusing Katsuki. However, there was something about the tone of his teacher's voice, the voice that was usually so caring and full of joy, that struck him as odd. He didn’t know what it was, but it felt so, so wrong from her. Yet when he looked at Izuku, the other boy’s face had dropped again.
They walked to class in silence, and separated only when they went to their respective seats. Izuku’s being at the front of the furthest door from the entrance and Katsukis being the middle of the closest row. The bell rang once again, and Miss Aika walked in. Class could begin, business as usual.
“Good Morning everybody!” she called.
A choir of voices called back.
“Good! Now class, today we have some important news. Izuku, could you come up here for me please?”
Katsuki glanced at his friend and watched the colour fade from his cheeks.
“Class, Midoriya here went to the doctors the other day to find out about his Quirk!” She continued, that something Katsuki had noticed earlier dripping from her lips as his classmates looked on, curious as to what the boy’s Quirk would be. People had been guessing, some thought similarly to Bakugo, that it would be a mix of his parents Quirks. Others guessed he had an intelligence Quirk since he was smarter than many others in their class.
“Care to tell the class Midoriya?”
The boy in question was pushed forwards a little, given centre stage.
“I… I…” he stuttered out.
“Come on Midoriya, you know how to speak right?” There it was again, something. Something that Katsuki would later realise was malice, belittling, as well as a mix of other nasty feelings.
Izuku swallowed harshly, “I’m Quirkless.”
Silence followed for a few seconds as their teacher grinned in an almost inhuman way, before almost everyone else in the class erupted into cackles, shouting and jeering in a way that only little kids can do.
Katsuki watched on, not joining in the laughter but also not defending his friend. The way Izuku looked at him as tears threatened to burst forth again, yet he didn’t do anything.
There was an indescribable look in his friends eyes, like a million thoughts were moving through his brain in those long minutes. Or maybe just one, one he would share with Katsuki years later.
Not all men are created equal, that was a reality they learned that day. Sure there were moments where they were, or came close to being, but they could always lose it in any single moment.
This was how Izuku fell, from being an equal, to being the dirt beneath everyone's feet for the next two and a half years. And how Katsuki made things worse in his own misguided way.