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It shouldn’t hurt by now, Kacchan’s rejection. Kacchan had been refusing to spend any time with Izuku for the last eight years – unless it involved putting Izuku down or mocking him or using his awesome, hero-like quirk to beat Izu –
Izuku shook his head, tightening the grip on his overfilled basket.
It didn’t matter. So Kacchan didn’t want to accompany Izuku on a hike they’d planned when they were four and Kacchan had a phase with shooting stars and meteor falls. And they discovered that eight years later, there’d be a flood of them on one particular night. And immediately started planning to go to a mountain, miles, countries away, just for a better view of that spectacular event.
Only countries and miles were just ten train stations away. For kids, that was countries.
There was a bottle of hot sauce in the depths of the basket. Along with the two sets of bento his mom prepared before having to go to her second shift of the day. Izuku was also carrying two blankets, three bottles of Gatorade and some spicy chips she’d lovingly packed.
Before they both left, Mom smiled at him, like a waning moon. “Tell Katsuki and his parents thank you for me, ok? It’s awfully nice.”
Mom might have been under the impression that Kacchan hadn’t refused and Uncle Masaru was supervising them. Her smile hadn’t been waning when she gushed about their trip.
Since Izuku didn’t want to lie to her more than necessary, here he was, on the way to a mountain with an unobstructed view of the night sky. From Izuku’s research, there’d been a fire at the top. It had burned out quickly and afterwards new saplings had been planted. Saplings that hadn’t grown all too much.
“Next stop coming up, Sekoto Station,” the mechanical voice of a woman crackled through the train. “The door will open on the left side. Please be aware of sudden stops and don’t make a dash for the door.”
The train wasn’t empty but most people were focused on their phones or resting. Izuku didn’t have any problems getting off the train.
He also had no problems finding his way to the mountain, walking past walls and enormous estate gates. His research hadn’t told him that this was a rich people area, though. For a fleeting moment Izuku worried about accidentally trespassing but if he explained himself to any potential officers everything should be alright. And rich people loved their safety, so even at night Izuku should be safe, too.
It was hard to remind himself of that when he walked through the forest at the bottom of the mountain. City sounds had vanished long ago but the woods weren’t noisy. In fact, the only things Izuku heard was the soft gurgling of a river somewhere near and the twigs snapping underneath his stumbling.
Kacchan would have loved it. He’d always adored nature and hiking, euphoric about the adventure the unknown could be. He certainly wouldn’t be twitching and flinching at every shadow at the corners of his eyes like Izuku.
His flashlight had started flickering by the time he reached the platform he’d marked out on maps he found online.
Izuku looked around. It was a clearing seamed by saplings and a charred stone wall. The night sky was fully visible and, oh. Izuku had to hurry to make himself a nice little spot. He spread out one of the blankets and one bento. After a second of hesitation, he also put out the second bento and drinks. Just in time for his flashlight to die and plunge Izuku into darkness.
He took a deep breath and just stared up.
If Izuku really needed light, he’d be able to use his phone. It was an older model, though, and the battery would die fast. This was far from the city center the stars’ meager light was enough.
Another breath. And another. And yet another.
The world opened up. Without Izuku bumbling around, nocturnal animals scurried through the undergrowth, and the river was still calling and – it was strange.
Izuku loved the city, loved the bustle, the people, the heroes. But there was something about being all alone out in the wilderness. Your thoughts as your only companions.
It would have been better with Kacchan. Only … it wouldn’t have been, would it have? Not with the current Kacchan.
Silence was a mirror. A mirror that shattered when something – someone bulldozed through the forest. Izuku forgot how his lungs worked. Statistically speaking, someone stomping through abandoned or off-road places wasn’t a good sign.
Or maybe it wasn’t one person, maybe it was a wolf, maybe it was a pack of wolves and oh god, Izuku hadn’t taken anything to defend himself with, not that he knew how, he was going to be eaten like Litte Green Riding Hood but also no one knew where he was and no one would know if he disappeared here or was abducted or –
When distinct cursing reached Izuku’s ears, all his muscles untensed, and he couldn’t keep in a quiet groan at the unlocking of his jaws.
“What the – Deku, if you’re beating yourself off in the woods, in public, you’re weirder than I thought.”
“KACCHAN!” Flustered, Izuku’s hands flailed around before they settled on his face. It was burning. “What are you even doing here?”
“What do you think, genius?”
Peeking through his hands, Izuku looked. Kacchan was scowling, arms crossed as he approached him, goosebumps trailing across his bare forearms. Kacchan wasn’t even wearing proper shoes, just house slippers.
“Oi,” Kacchan barked, and the image of a wolf-sized chihuaha with Kacchan’s explosive hair popped into Izuku’s mind.
He giggled, triggering a loud growl from Kacchan.
“Me hunting down your stupid ass is funny, eh?”
Heat passed millimeters from Izuku’s face and he shrieked.
“Of course not, Kacchan! I just, I don’t know –“
Shock cut off Izuku’s mumbling as Kacchan sank onto the blanket beside him, close enough for their knees to touch. And didn’t use his hands to explode Izuku.
“Aunty sent me a message. And reminded me that we should dress warm while we’re waiting for the stars in the dark. And that she hopes we like our midnight picnic.”
Izuku winced. “Sorry for her bothering you –“
“Not the point, dumbass,” Kacchan huffed and there was something in his eyes, something –
Light streaked across the sky.
Both their heads jerked up as more and more lights fell.
It was beautiful and a sudden warmth was pressed all along his side, Kacchan almost hugging him.
As they watched stars fall and lights dance, Kacchan at his side like when they were small and best friends and brothers in all but blood, hope sparked back to life in Izuku’s chest.