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Like Lightning After the Thunder: Chapter Three: Message from the Shadows
Fic Summary:
His breath wavered as he stared into Katsuki’s eyes. He knew he could get out if he tried. He could knock Katsuki out, hope that no one else would find them, and run back into the shadows where he belonged. Katsuki may have had him pinned down but he was in Denki’s range now and it would take little effort to send a charge through Katsuki to paralyze him temporarily.
It would take barely any additional effort to kill Katsuki.
As the sparks began to charge, lighting up the air around him, Katsuki refused to back down.
Katsuki always knew he was destined for great things.
He didn’t think he’d have to turn his back on all he’s ever known to get there.
Rating: T
Warnings: Eventual major character death, implied/referenced child abuse, psychological trauma
Other Tags: Bakugou Katsuki/Kaminari Denki, slow burn, alternate universe - canon divergence
Read on Ao3 (links to corresponding chapter) or read below
Previous Chapter | Fic navigation to read the fic on tumblr
As the reunion approached, it was becoming increasingly difficult to pretend that everything was fine.
Katsuki had been added back to the group text with Eijirou, Mina, and Hanta; he wasn’t sure if Eijirou had told them or if they had figured it out on their own, but almost all of the pictures sent after he was added back in lacked a certain pair of amber eyes. He appreciated their attempt to make things less stressful for him, but it just made him think about how the rest of the class might not share the same sentiment and that there was a non-zero chance of having to see those eyes― or worse, that damned smile― during the reunion. He didn’t say anything about it, of course, but the idea of suddenly canceling and saying he was sick was looking more and more tempting.
Ochako and Katsuki had met up a few more times at Takeshi’s, but to Katsuki’s frustration, their sparring sessions seemed to do little to help prevent his mind from wandering off to that damned smile and digging its claws in. The most recent session, his guard had slipped enough that Ochako even dared to repeat his own words against him, even if the threat of him wasting her time was empty. Despite that, she still didn’t ask what was keeping him up at night, a small blessing Katsuki was thankful for.
Work was the one aspect of his life where he had a bit of normalcy, and no one could ask about the telltale sign of sleepless nights when his mask was on to hide them. He didn’t interact with anyone else at the agency often enough for them to note any potential changes in his behavior caused by the recent hauntings and there certainly wasn’t enough time for his mind to wander off in the middle of a battle with higher stakes than an ongoing scoreboard and bragging rights. His work didn’t suffer so he was certain that he would be able to get through this… thing, without anyone at work noticing, and if he was lucky, maybe the big red bow his mind needed to finally tie the memory up and shelve it away was the upcoming reunion and he wouldn’t have to worry about anyone noticing, period.
Except his boss knew about what happened too.
It was hard for her not to know. Shion had been there that day, and while she hadn’t arrived early enough to stop Katsuki’s anger from kicking in, she had definitely seen the toll the fight had taken on the surrounding area. She had definitely seen the still smoking singes of clothing, seen the furniture and paperwork that were strewn across the room, heard the cackling of flames, of his palms, of the remnant electricity in the air, seen the―
Katsuki inhaled sharply, shaking the memory from his mind.
He’d like to assume that the main reason why Shion offered him a position at her agency was his hard work both at UA and on the field. He’d like to say that maybe it was because she saw a similarity between his explosive fighting style and her own, or maybe she noticed the quick calculations hidden behind seemingly impulsive actions. Hell, Katsuki would even be willing to say that she found some sort of sick twisted pleasure in watching his fuse burn.
Still, he couldn’t shake the idea that maybe it was out of pity.
That maybe all she saw when she looked at him was the teenage boy from that day ten years ago. That maybe he was some sort of passion project, an attempt to see if she could “fix” him. That maybe she thought that one day, Katsuki might break, and that it was best if she was nearby to take care of it.
That maybe, just maybe, Katsuki was stuck standing in that damned shadow.
Katsuki could normally easily avoid Shion asking him about his life outside of work. She only ever seemed interested in forcing him into having a life outside of work, but always left the details of what that entailed up to him and rarely pried past ensuring that Katsuki hadn’t secretly been doing paperwork or something when he was supposed to have the day off. She seemed to do the same to everyone else who worked at the agency though, so there was very little room to complain― though that didn’t stop him from taking every inch he got when he found the chance. (Not that it seemed to stop her either, especially when everyone else was more than happy to talk about their personal lives.)
But, between her knowing about Katsuki’s past and about the upcoming reunion, Katsuki was not surprised when Shion started being curious about his personal life “out of nowhere.” She asked if the reunion had some sort of plus one system and if so, if there was a lucky person Katsuki would be taking with him to formally introduce them to his former classmates; if there was a lucky person, how come she didn’t know of them yet; if Katsuki would introduce her to them so that she could get them on “Team Make Katsuki Bakugou Take a Vacation”; maybe if he took a vacation there would actually be a lucky someone; and a seemingly endless list of other questions every single time he saw Shion, even if it was in passing and there was no time to respond to it before they were out of earshot from each other.
He knew the worst of it was coming when he saw that he was scheduled to patrol with her in the afternoon. She left him alone during the morning― a small but welcomed blessing― and unlike every other time they had been scheduled to patrol together, she wasn’t waiting for him after his lunch break either. Katsuki wondered if maybe she was trying to give him space before she brought up the inevitable, or if maybe he had misread the schedule and he was going on patrol alone.
When he saw her in the agency lobby, standing at his approach, he held back a curse.
The walk exiting the building was uncharacteristically quiet, the only noises between them being the sound of Katsuki’s footsteps and Shion’s skates. Katsuki wasn’t sure what he dreaded more― the idea of a silent Shion for the entirety of patrol or the fact that when she did start speaking, it would immediately be about his personal life.
Thankfully (or not?) after a failed attempt at getting Katsuki to let her hook onto his arm and make him do the “hard work” of walking (“Fuck off, you’ve got legs,” “You walk too fast, I should be saving my energy for fighting villains, not trying to keep up with your rocket legs,” “Sucks to be you then,”), Shion started talking. It started off normally enough― Shion mentioned some workplace gossip that Katsuki didn’t particularly care about, some information about a new sponsor that was supposed to reach out later that week, how her roller derby match had gone the past weekend― but even though he was expecting something different, it didn’t prepare him for what she said next.
“The Commission’s looking into the Acolyte.”
Katsuki stopped in his tracks, Shion rolling to a stop a few feet ahead of him. Katsuki felt his throat tighten, like there was something trying to suffocate him from the inside out, his jaw clenching as he tried to hold back something between a laugh of desperation and a scream of frustration.
The Acolyte. The fucking Acolyte.
For once, Shion didn’t speak. Katsuki wished she would, even if it was an insult, even if she picked away at his shell and attacked the part of him that was still just a scared, lost teenage boy that was in over his head, anything so he didn’t have to deal with the deafening silence. Anything to jump in and distract him from the tidal wave of emotions and thoughts rushing at him, to redirect his thoughts away from the dark corner of his memory, to keep him here, in that moment, in reality.
He let out a shaky exhale as he forced the uneasy feeling back down, trying to shake it off. “Thought the Acolyte was taken care of.”
“I thought so too,” Shion paused, giving Katsuki a look over that he knew could see right through him. He forced himself to hold his resolve, waiting for her to continue. “Rumor is that someone on the outside has been in contact with Mother and is trying to prepare for her return. Recruit new members, spread their message, and find someone called the Son,”
Katsuki scoffed. “The bastards at the prison aren’t doing their job if the bitch managed to make contact with the outside,”
Shion laughed, moving closer to give him a playful slap on the arm, “I knew you’d see it my way. That’s what I said at the Commission meeting― well, in a more poetic way, of course. Those Commission workers wanted none of it though, even though it’s obvious that heroes aren’t to blame for this particular mess up. Now, come on, let’s keep walking while we talk,”
He hesitated briefly, brows furrowed as Shion started to skate ahead. Were they really going to continue patrol while talking about something like this? “Shouldn’t we be discussing this back at the agency?”
“Don’t worry your pretty little head about it,” Shion waved a hand dismissively as Katsuki caught up to her, ignoring the glare sent her way at her phrasing. “Besides, the agency is full of gossips,”
“You’re the biggest gossip there.”
“How do you think I know?” She gave Katsuki a wink and a nudge in his side, laughing when it was met with a scowl. “It’s fine. That was the most confidential part of the conversation I had to tell you.”
“Why did you tell me, anyway?”
Shion looked up at him, amused. “I’ve been asked to help find someone for their task force. You’re on the short list, Katsuki. Well, correction, you are the short list. Though, you do have the right to decline, in which case you and Hibiki will be in charge of keeping the agency in one piece whenever the Commission drags me away. Or, you know, as close to one piece as possible, so our public relations people don’t try to have our heads on a platter.” If she noticed the hesitance in Katsuki’s face, she didn’t comment on it. “You don’t have to give me your answer now. In fact, I encourage you to take your time― since the Commission’s being so rude about who’s to blame for this whole ordeal, I say we let them wait a few days before I tell them which one of us will be working with them. They have other things to do while they wait for my decision anyway― like actually finding the prison leak and getting information that heroes can actually act on, instead of acting like we’re all Divine Prophet and can find people in the blink of an eye. You know, kind of surprising that they haven’t dragged Divine Prophet into this yet either actually. They weren’t at the meeting and no one mentioned them, so I guess they’re busy doing something else for the Commission or something.”
Katsuki let her ramble on for a while longer, thinking back to the Acolyte. He had hoped he had heard the last of them, years ago when a raid on an Acolyte base resulted in Mother’s capture and the destruction of their intel. Some members had died but enough had lived and been captured that through the combined work of the police force, heroes, and the Commission, every Acolyte member had been imprisoned.
Almost, Katsuki corrected. Someone must’ve slipped past and hid until they could get a message to Mother. He could only hope that the leak had been found early enough before Mother could weave another web of misery.
Even if the Acolyte hadn’t gotten the chance to rebuild itself back up, helping take it back down would be a pretty important achievement to put on Katsuki’s hero resume. The original downfall of the Acolyte and capture of their information had resulted in the downfall of several smaller villain groups and prevented some large scale villain attacks from occurring, so while it was unlikely that whatever the Commission wanted the task force to do would be flashy and public, it was also likely the Commission would take the potential damage prevented into account when calculating the next Billboards rankings.
Yet…
Katsuki was dragged out of his thoughts when he felt a hand on his arm, his hand already gripped tight around Shion’s wrist before he realized it was her and let go.
She smiled softly, giving Katsuki a moment to reorient himself. “Just think about it, okay? You don’t have to say yes, but I know you’re the right man for the job.”
“Of fucking course I am,”
“Glad to know that you know. Anyway, let’s talk about that reunion of yours! You never did answer me about if you were bringing a special someone.”
Katsuki groaned.
Katsuki was half considering taking the last week before the reunion off just to avoid Shion’s questions by the time he finally made it back home. While the questions about the reunion had helped keep his mind off of the Acolyte shit, it took maybe half an hour before Katsuki was wishing they were talking about the Acolyte instead. There was only so long that Katsuki could deal with questions about his supposed love life (both present day and anything that might have happened back in high school) and the type of clothes he planned on wearing to show off his “post graduation glow up”, whatever the fuck that meant.
He cursed under his breath when his phone started going off while he was preparing dinner, not really feeling like talking to anyone. He let it keep ringing, focusing on chopping the vegetables instead and sighing in relief when the ringing finally stopped― until it started back up. He ignored it one more time, only giving in and checking his phone after he heard a few text ringtones.
Shitty Hair
Missed Call (2)
Well shit. Probably shouldn’t ignore him if it was important enough to call instead of text.
Shitty Hair: Katsuki!!!
Shitty Hair: Are you free bro??
Shitty Hair: I need your help for this project
Shitty Hair: I can’t figure out what I’m doing wrong and I don’t know how to put it into words so I can ask the internet
Katsuki: If you can’t put it into words, how the fuck am I supposed to help?
Katsuki: I’m cooking right now but I’m free otherwise.
Shitty Hair: Can you video call??? I’ll just show it to you
Katsuki: Sure.
Katsuki propped his phone up on the counter, making sure that it wouldn’t get in the way of his cooking and that he’d still be in frame when the call connected. He scowled a little when the call connected and the only thing he could see was Eijirou’s eyes and forehead.
“Back the fuck up from the camera, Shitty Hair, I can’t see anything. Unless you’re calling to see if there’s an eyelash in your eye, then the answer is no.”
“Just give me a sec! I dropped my phone while it was ringing.” Katsuki waited as Eijirou readjusted himself and propped the phone up. “Okay, it’s not great, but ta-da! Not bad for an amateur, huh?”
“Are you knitting?”
“Yeah!” Eijirou grinned brightly. “There’s this group near my work that’s doing like, an auction of knitted and crocheted and other handmade things for charity, and I asked if I could try making some stuff for the auction. I’m not great at it but I figure some people would love to buy something that a hero made, and the money’s going to a good cause, so why not? And I thought, maybe I could knit on the train over to Musutafu, except it’s doing this twisty thing around my needles and I don’t know why, and I need to know what’s going wrong so I know if I have to buy new yarn before the reunion or if this is salvageable,”
Katsuki paused. “What makes you think I know what the fuck is going on with your knitting?”
“Dude, I know you’re the one who knits all of the knitted gifts you’ve given me, Mina, and Hanta. I figured it out years ago.”
“And you didn’t think of telling me that you knew?”
Eijirou shrugged. “You never said it yourself so I figured you were just waiting for the right moment to tell us or something,”
Katsuki huffed and shrugged it off. Eijirou wasn’t completely wrong, after all. “It’s salvageable. Look up ‘frogging’ to undo everything. Make sure the row’s straight on the needle before you start and that you’re not accidentally holding it in a way that makes it twist on the needle either.”
“Cool, cool. And what about these random holes, like this one?”
“Probably wrapped the yarn an extra time before you made a new stitch. Count your stitches, I bet you’ve got more than you started off with.”
“Thanks Kats! Mind if we stay on the call while I try to figure out this whole knitting thing?”
“Do whatever the fuck you want.”
Eijirou laughed and started talking about his day while he worked on his knitting, stopping here and there to ask Katsuki to see if he was doing things right. After he was done with his update, he asked Katsuki how his day had gone.
“Shitty,” Katsuki grumbled. “Damned Four Eyes kept asking me shit about the reunion, the entire fucking afternoon. While we were on patrol! I fucking swear, she enjoys pushing my buttons.”
“Oh come on, it couldn’t have been that bad.”
Katsuki paused cooking to stare at his phone camera directly, silently daring Eijirou to contradict him again.
“Okaaaaay maybe it was. Do you think maybe she’ll leave you alone about getting your ‘special someone’ to join the ‘Team Make Katsuki Bakugou Take a Vacation’ team if I officially joined the team?”
“Don’t you fucking dare.” Katsuki pointed his knife at the camera, ignoring the laughter that came from the other end. “It’ll probably plant the wrong fucking idea in her head and make all this shit worse.”
“Okay okay, I won’t join behind your back or anything, but if you skip out on Hanta, Mina, and me for the reunion or the squad hangout the day after, not only will I join the team, but I will get Hanta and Mina to join too. Maybe even Midoriya and Uraraka.”
“I already said I’m going, you damned Shitty Hair! Back the fuck off already.”
“Just checking! Are we still good for rooming together?”
“Yeah. Cheeky and I should be arriving in Musutafu around one, unless shit runs late.”
“All right, I should be there around eleven, so I’ll go ahead and check in first and text you the room number―” Katsuki barely caught Eijirou’s hand suddenly reaching out towards the screen, knocking the phone over onto the ground. He heard the sounds of Eijirou fumbling with something off screen before a faint voice that sounded like a news reporter came on.
“What the fuck, Shitty Hair?”
Katsuki briefly got a screenful of Eijirou’s eyebrows again as picked the phone up, frowning when he noticed the panic in Eijirou’s eyes. “Look,” was all he said before the camera flipped to show his TV screen, turning up the volume.
It was a live broadcast, with the banner indicating that the reporter was standing in Miyazaki. In the background, dozens of police cars and firetrucks surrounded a tall fence, officers and firefighters rushing in towards what looked like a large hole in the side of a building. A few of the heroes stationed in Miyazaki were rushing in as well, all of them escorted by people who looked like―
Prison guards.
Katsuki put down his cooking utensils, hands moving to grip the counter’s edge until his knuckles turned white in an attempt to ground himself. He could almost feel the thick tar build in the back of his throat and it took all his self control to force his breathing to steady. He could barely focus on what the reporter was saying, nearly missing Eijirou’s hesitant, quiet voice.
“Isn’t that…”
“...Yeah.”
“Shit.”
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Like Lightning After the Thunder: Chapter Two: Reprieve
Fic Summary:
His breath wavered as he stared into Katsuki’s eyes. He knew he could get out if he tried. He could knock Katsuki out, hope that no one else would find them, and run back into the shadows where he belonged. Katsuki may have had him pinned down but he was in Denki’s range now and it would take little effort to send a charge through Katsuki to paralyze him temporarily.
It would take barely any additional effort to kill Katsuki.
As the sparks began to charge, lighting up the air around him, Katsuki refused to back down.
Katsuki always knew he was destined for great things.
He didn’t think he’d have to turn his back on all he’s ever known to get there.
Rating: T
Warnings: Eventual major character death, implied/referenced child abuse, psychological trauma
Other Tags: Bakugou Katsuki/Kaminari Denki, slow burn, alternate universe - canon divergence
Read on Ao3 (links to corresponding chapter) or read below
Previous Chapter | Next Chapter | Fic navigation to read the fic on tumblr
Katsuki wasn’t surprised to see one of his former classmates’ face on the news report with the tagline “found dead after hero-villain fight.” 
The reporter gave a rundown of the fight that had happened a few days earlier on the other side of the city, between a small gang of villains and Ochako. The villains themselves weren’t very high ranking― potential to be B-rank if they were more organized as a group, but C-rank individually― but they had managed to cause a decent amount of damage before Ochako had arrived on the scene. The news replayed the footage taken live from the battle, showing Ochako using her quirk on larger pieces of rumble to assist the lower ranked heroes in the area with evacuation as she charged forward towards the villain group herself. 
The footage wasn’t ideal. It was grainy from trying to capture the scene just outside of the limits of its scope and if it weren’t for the pink of Ochako’s hero costume, Katsuki was certain the camera person would not have been able to keep the camera centered on her. The footage continued until Ochako grabbed one of the villains, freezing seconds after the villain began to float. A red circle appeared around the villain’s face along with a mugshot before cutting back to the reporter.
In the aftermath of the fight, that one villain was never found. 
Ochako had been frantic when they had met up after, her gaze thousands of miles in the distance every time Katsuki looked. She denied anything being on her mind despite it being so blatantly obvious that something was, but Katsuki chose not to question it. After all, if she had wanted to talk about it, she wouldn’t have asked to meet him.
The report continued to explain the search procedures that had taken place over the past few days before describing a call on the tip hotline that ultimately resulted in the discovery of the villain’s body. While they didn’t show a photo of the body, Katsuki couldn’t help but wonder just how bad it was for the report to completely skip over the cause of death.
In the end, Katsuki supposed it didn’t matter what caused the villain’s death. Ochako was certain to end up finding a way to blame herself, for not paying better attention during the fight, for not trying hard enough to find the villain after, for being the last person who saw the villain alive. 
Even if she didn’t, there were parts of society that would make sure she would never forget.
Cheeky: can you meet up with me today?
Katsuki: Takeshi’s?
Cheeky: yeah
Cheeky: drinks/dinner on me after if you want
Katsuki: I’ll be there at five. Don’t be late.
Cheeky: got it!
Cheeky: hey wait why are YOU telling ME not to be late when I’M the one who asked YOU to meet me
Katsuki: You know why.
Cheeky: it was ONE TIME KATSUKI ONE TIME
Katsuki was at Takeshi’s gym a quarter before five, reserving their usual space and changing into workout attire before sending Ochako a text to let her know he was already inside. He started his stretches, looking up only when he saw a pair of pink sneakers approach the ring.
“You’re late,” Katsuki said, continuing his stretches. 
“By five minutes!” Ochako dumped her water and towel on the bench next to Katsuki’s, quickly joining him in the stretches. “I was outside before five, waiting for you!”
“I sent you a text saying I was inside.”
“Yeah, like two minutes before five!” She huffed. “I was totally on time.”
“Whatever. Hurry the fuck up.”
They continued preparing in silence, speaking again only to confirm that the other was ready to start. This time, only a couple of the guests flinched when Katsuki charged forward at Ochako yelling out “die!”
After the fifth time a hit landed that Ochako would have normally been able to block with ease, Katsuki stood down. Her form had been lacking for the better part of the past hour, and there were a few times that her blows hadn’t hit with the full force Katsuki was familiar with. She didn’t even react to Katsuki’s change in form until Katsuki had walked over to the bench for his water.
“Wh― hey! What gives?” She frowned but joined him for a water break when he didn’t return to the ring right away.
“Don’t insult me,” Katsuki rolled his eyes at the shock on her face, “You’re distracted. What kind of fucking spar is worth the time when your opponent isn’t giving their all?”
“I’m focused on the spar! I’m totally and completely here! I wasn’t insulting you but I am now, you’re just saying that because of your enormous ego,” 
Katsuki paused, looking at her directly in her eyes. She didn’t flinch.
But the longer he held his gaze, the more Katsuki could tell that she was holding back.
“First,” He began, “Don’t be cheeky with me―”
“Well maybe I wouldn’t be so cheeky with you if you didn’t call me cheeky all the time!”
Katsuki held back an amused smile.
“Second,” He continued, “I hit you five different times in ways that you should have been able to block with your eyes closed.”
“Is that supposed to be an insult or a compliment, because what I’m hearing is that you think I could fight you with my eyes closed.”
“Insult. You didn’t fucking block the hits, dumbass.”
Ochako huffed, crossing her arms. “Whatever. I’m going to focus on the compliment part of it.”
“Third, you didn’t even notice I walked away until after I reached the bench.”
“I― I was expecting you to come back! That it was some sort of trick to get me to lower my guard or something!”
“And fourth, you speak faster when you lie.” He let Ochako stammer for a while in response, continuing when her shoulders slumped with a heavy sigh. “You sure this is the break you need? I don’t mind wiping the fucking floor with you if that’s what you want but you better respect my time back and fucking fight me with your all,” He shifted his weight a bit before adding hesitantly, “I can try to listen if you want to talk instead but that’s not really my thing,”
Ochako didn’t answer immediately, instead taking a drink of her water. Katsuki waited as patiently as he could, although he did offer her a glare to try to speed up her thought process. 
She put her water back down and hit her knuckles together, briefly reminding Katsuki of Eijirou. “Okay! One more round. I need to redeem myself before we leave for drinks,”
Katsuki grinned, shoving her lightly with his shoulder as he walked back towards the ring. “Whatever you say, Cheeky. You’re still going to fucking lose.”
“I’ll make you eat your words, Katsuki!”
She did not, but not for lack of trying. Ochako actually paid full attention to the spar after the interruption and while Katsuki still had the upper hand on brute strength, she was nimbler and lighter on her feet. Katsuki was fairly certain that had the shift manager not interrupted to tell them that their time was up that Ochako was only a handful of moves away from finding some “barely legal in a spar between friends but completely legal in a rules free battle against a villain” opening and winning the round. While technically neither of them had won, he did agree—after some teasing and pestering— to counting it as her point in their ongoing scoreboard, adding, “But if you want me to count it as eating my words, you’ll have to fucking try again.”
Ochako seemed to be in a brighter mood when they met up again post-changing in front of Takeshi’s. She bumped shoulders with Katsuki as he approached and began chattering about work and her day as they made their way over to the restaurant they usually ate at after sparring sessions. He didn’t offer much other than the occasional “yeah” and swear when her story necessitated it, but she didn’t seem to mind. She spared him from talking until after they were already seated and ordered their food and drinks. 
“Oh yeah! I heard from Tenya that you finally sent in your response to the reunion! Do you know when you’re heading down to Musutafu yet? We should get on the same train so that the ride isn’t as boring— well, kinda, since you’ll probably not be talking,”
“Shut the fuck up, I can talk when I want to,” Katsuki scowled, rolling his eyes when all it resulted in was a laugh from Ochako. “I haven’t looked at the train schedule yet. The Shitty Four Eyes approved for both the 28th and 29th off though.”
“Nice! Well, when you figure out when you want to head down, let me know and I’ll be your Anti-Explosion Time buddy for the ride down,” 
“Oh fuck off.”
Ochako laughed again. Katsuki hoped this would be the extent of the reunion talk but she continued, “It’ll be great to see the entire class again, don’t you think?”
“You make it sound like we never fucking see anyone. I literally saw you a few fucking days ago and you spend half your weekends with Frog Face or Four Eyes or the fucking Nerd or whoever the fuck,” Katsuki pointed out. “We see basically everyone at the Billboards too,”
“Don’t be such a bore, Katsuki. Reunions are different from the Billboards. We don’t have to deal with those ‘damn extras’ at the reunion,” She put on her best Katsuki impression at “damn extras,” extending her palms outwards and adding a playful “Boom! Pow!” 
“I don’t fucking sound like that.”
“Yes you do. I’m the great Katsuki Bakugou! Die you fucking piece of shit! Boom! Bam! You fucking extra! Bow before the king! Boomboom!”
Katsuki let the faintest hint of a smile slip. “I have never said ‘bow before the king,’”
“Oh come on Katsuki, you tried to name yourself King Explosion Murder, don’t deny it. Even if you’ve never said it, you’ve definitely thought about it.”
He scowled, muttering a “fuck off”, refusing to acknowledge that yes, yes he had thought about saying it once or twice.
“So you admit that I’m right!”
“Fuck off, I said no such fucking thing.”
“You didn’t say ‘no’ either though.”
“I’m demoting you to a fucking extra, you shitty fucking extra.”
Katsuki was given a brief break from any potential cheeky response from Ochako when the server stepped in with their drinks. They raised their glasses, a silent toast to making it another day alive, to making it as far as they had come, to their friendship.
To the silent understanding that there were some struggles that were best left unshared.
He didn’t press further about whatever it was that was stressing her out, even if he had a strong feeling about what caused it. She didn’t comment on the circles under his eyes or how his mind seemed to wander after she brought up certain high school memories. They talked, ignoring their stressors, and for a while, they could pretend everything was fine.
12 notes · View notes
Like Lightning After the Thunder: Chapter One: Damned Smile
Fic Summary:
His breath wavered as he stared into Katsuki’s eyes. He knew he could get out if he tried. He could knock Katsuki out, hope that no one else would find them, and run back into the shadows where he belonged. Katsuki may have had him pinned down but he was in Denki’s range now and it would take little effort to send a charge through Katsuki to paralyze him temporarily.
It would take barely any additional effort to kill Katsuki.
As the sparks began to charge, lighting up the air around him, Katsuki refused to back down.
Katsuki always knew he was destined for great things.
He didn’t think he’d have to turn his back on all he’s ever known to get there.
Rating: T
Warnings: Eventual major character death, implied/referenced child abuse, psychological trauma
Other Tags: Bakugou Katsuki/Kaminari Denki, slow burn, alternate universe - canon divergence
Read on Ao3 (links to corresponding chapter) or read below
Previous Chapter | Next Chapter | Fic navigation to read the fic on tumblr 
--
Even years later, that damn smile haunted his dreams.
There was absolutely no reason for him to still think about the event. Everything had been taken care of when it had happened― injuries were treated, authorities alerted, information secured, and a press conference to tie it all up in a big red bow. There were no loose ends, no surprise second coming, no physical reminders of what happened lingering in his daily life. Katsuki would have labeled it as done, dealt with, and no longer relevant, shoving it aside in his memory so he could focus on actual important shit.
Except his mind had different plans.
When he was lucky, he could completely forget about the event for months. Other times, his dreams would be filled with nothing but that damn smile, taunting him with its silence. He could usually predict when the dreams would come― the anniversary of the event for example― but other times, it seemed like anything could trigger the memory. He once saw a bright yellow balloon and for the rest of the day, every time he closed his eyes he saw that damned smile, never wavering despite the curses and insults Katsuki spewed.
He wanted to forget it. He wanted so desperately to forget it. For the image to erase itself from his mind, for it to take the feelings away with it. He could deal with the anger, he could always deal with the anger, but when his memory reminded him of the wave of hurt and betrayal that nearly blinded him…
When his alarm jolted him from his sleep and freed him from the smile, he couldn’t get out of bed fast enough. He woke up drenched in a cold sweat, sheets singed and smoking lightly as he unclenched his hands, and Katsuki was, for once, very relieved that not all of his sweat was explosive. He slapped the singes a few times to ensure that all of the embers were put out before heading for the bathroom, cursing under his breath as he flinched at his own reflection in the mirror.
There was nothing particularly wrong with his appearance, if you didn’t count the dark circles under his eyes from a fitful night’s sleep or his clammy skin, but after being plagued by the smile, Katsuki could barely look at himself. His reaction to the smile made him feel weak, like he couldn’t handle himself and that there was something wrong with him. It was just a smile after all. There was no reason for him to react to it like a nightmare, no reason for him to lose sleep over it or to feel overwhelmed by emotions at the thought of it.
Yet when he saw the smile and saw how the corners of his mouth were tugged a bit too tight, how his eyes were open a bit too wide, how the only shine in his eyes were the reflections of light on tears that refused to fall…
Katsuki cursed.
The icy cold shower did little to help distract him from the memory, nor did his morning run nor the steaming shower he took after. He wasn’t supposed to head into the agency today, so he didn’t have any planned beatdowns for today, and yes he probably shouldn’t be hoping for it, but part of him hoped for a sudden emergency villain so he could distract himself by focusing on beating some villain’s ass into next week.
A few hours later when his phone refused to stop buzzing, Katsuki wondered if throwing his phone across the room until it stopped would be close enough to beating villain ass to work. He reluctantly decided that talking to people so they’d leave him alone was probably less hassle to deal with than having to replace his phone and distribute his new number (even if it would give him an excuse to ghost some of these damn extras).
A few individual texts and a group text were the cause of the buzzing. As the group text’s new message count continued to rise, he figured it would be easier to respond to the individual texts first. Just in case he changed his mind about destroying the phone.
Four Eyes (Rocket Legs): Hello Bakugou, this is a reminder about the upcoming Class A reunion. As the head of the reunion committee, it is my duty to ensure an accurate headcount for the event, and I have yet to receive your response about your attendance. Please ensure to respond via the following link by this Friday at 11:59PM. [Class A 10 Year Reunion RSVP]
Four Eyes (Rocket Legs): In case you missed the previous messages regarding the reunion, the event is March 28th starting at 7PM at the Shinjuku Hotel in Musutafu. If you need to rent a room for the night or the weekend, please alert the Shinjuku Hotel staff that you are part of the Class A reunion party by next Wednesday for an event discount.
Katsuki frowned. He wasn’t exactly looking forward to the possibility of being surrounded by all of his former classmates and even less at the idea of being socially obligated to spend the entire evening with them. At least when he met up with his friends elsewhere, he could always claim needing to leave early so he could make the last train or that work needed him to come in early the next day.
He closed out of the conversation, figuring he still had a few more days to decide if he really wanted to deal with his classmates for an entire evening.
Midoriya: Hey Katsugou! I was wondering if you’re going to go to the reunion? Tenya said the deadline to RSVP is coming soon and we haven’t heard from you, so I just thought I’d check in!
Katsuki: The fuck is Katsugou?
Midoriya: Oh sorry!! Typo!!
Midoriya: Anyway, are you coming?
Katsuki closed out of the conversation and moved on to the next one.
Shitty Hair: Katsuki! Are you coming to the reunion or not dude????
Katsuki: Fuck off.
Shitty Hair: Aww dude that’s no way to talk to your best friend, you know you love me!!
Katsuki: I’m blocking you.
He did not, in fact, block him. But he did close out of Eijirou’s texts.
Save for the newest text sent directly from Eijirou, all that was left was the backlog of texts in the group text. It had kept going off while he was reading the other conversations, so Katsuki figured it meant that everyone was either off for the day or on their lunch break.
Raccoon Eyes: guys!!!!! the reunion is COMING UPPPPPP!!!!
Raccoon Eyes: i cant wait to s
Raccoon Eyes: ee all of u guys again!!
Tape Face: lmao you saw us last week
Raccoon Eyes: yes
Raccoon Eyes: an eteRNITY ago
Raccoon Eyes: and like
Raccoon Eyes: kats left early so we didnt have everyone
Raccoon Eyes: so it doesnt count
Shitty Hair: Yeah Katsuki don’t leave early next time!!
Raccoon Eyes: we just have to hold him hostage next time
Raccoon Eyes: or like
Raccoon Eyes: AMBUSH him
Tape Face: i can always tape him up
Raccoon Eyes: YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEES
Raccoon Eyes: tape him to the wall
Raccoon Eyes: and then like
Raccoon Eyes: steal his wallet
Raccoon Eyes: cant get on transit w no moneys
Raccoon Eyes: ei and han hold him down
Raccoon Eyes: i run to hide his wallet where he cant fi
Raccoon Eyes: nd it
Raccoon Eyes: probs keeps kats tapped to the wall all night
Raccoon Eyes: free up his arms so he can have a drink????
Tape Face: explosion palms dude
Raccoon Eyes: oh u right
Raccoon Eyes: he can just have a cup w like
Raccoon Eyes: a REALLY REALLY long straw
Raccoon Eyes: make sure u tape him up w his hands behind his back
Tape Face: you got it
Shitty Hair: He’s in this chat guys he’s going to see the plan
Raccoon Eyes: whatevs we can still totally blindside him
Raccoon Eyes: ANYWAYS
Raccoon Eyes: ure all going right?????
Tape Face: ya I rsvpd a while back
Shitty Hair: Yep!! Wouldn’t miss it for the world!
Raccoon Eyes: what about u kats
Raccoon Eyes: kats???
Raccoon Eyes: KAAAAAAAAAAAAATS
Raccoon Eyes: k
Raccoon Eyes: a
Shitty Hair: I’ll text him separately
Raccoon Eyes: t
Tape Face: he probably has this muted lmao
Raccoon Eyes: s
Raccoon Eyes: !!!!!!
Raccoon Eyes: how dare u ignore us
Raccoon Eyes: after everything weve done for u!!!!
Raccoon Eyes: thought we were ur ride or die hoes
Raccoon Eyes: dont tell me ur not going!!!!!
Raccoon Eyes: im so offended
Raccoon Eyes: how could u do this to us kats
Shitty Hair: Maybe he’s at work today?
Raccoon Eyes: boo
Raccoon Eyes: how dare he prioritize wo
Raccoon Eyes: rk over us
Raccoon Eyes: his best friends
Raccoon Eyes: the suns of his life
Raccoon Eyes: the bit of happiness in the cold
Raccoon Eyes: cold
Raccoon Eyes: cold
Tape Face: coooooooooold
Raccoon Eyes: COOOOOOOOLD
Raccoon Eyes: thing he calls a heart
Shitty Hair: Lmao
Tape Face: its got a bit of warmth
Tape Face: most of it is his temper
Raccoon Eyes: boom boom POW
Raccoon Eyes: well while we wait for kats
Raccoon Eyes: help me pick some photos for the slideshow!!
Tape Face: are you doing only UA pics or some stuff since then
Tape Face: somehow iida managed to not specify lmao
Shitty Hair: The info email was like ten pages, how did he miss it
Tape Face: idk
Raccoon Eyes: ive got plenty for both!!
Raccoon Eyes: momo said pref UA pics but some new stuff is good too
Raccoon Eyes: show how far weve come n all that
Tape Face: oh cool let me get some opinions then too
Shitty Hair: Anyone have any pics of the camping trip from second year?
Raccoon Eyes: before or after todoroki and kats’ fight turned it into a icy hot springs
Shitty Hair: Both lmao but probably before it went to hell
Raccoon Eyes: image.png
Raccoon Eyes: ofc ive got us chillin in the springs
Raccoon Eyes: well most of us
Raccoon Eyes: kats u never get in the water w us :C
Raccoon Eyes: lets go to the beach next time!!
Tape Face: hed prob boil the water w you in it if you dragged him in lmao
Tape Face: spicy acid time
Raccoon Eyes: id like to see him TRY
Shitty Hair: Don’t tempt him lmao
Raccoon Eyes: image.png
Raccoon Eyes: image.png
Raccoon Eyes: image.png
Raccoon Eyes: i got like a shit ton more
Raccoon Eyes: should i send some of THE FIGHT
Shitty Hair: Maybe not
Tape Face: yes
Tape Face: well
Tape Face: depends on how many pissed off katsuki pics youre putting in lmao
Raccoon Eyes: OH
Raccoon Eyes: OHHHH
Raccoon Eyes: OHHHHHHHHHHHHH
Tape Face: ?
Raccoon Eyes: dude
Raccoon Eyes: do u have the POMERANIAN pic
Tape Face: o shit
Tape Face: image.png
Shitty Hair: I still think Katsuki should’ve taken that pup home
Shitty Hair: They’re matching!
Tape Face: image.png
Tape Face: i also have this one
Tape Face: when she tried to bite his nose off lmao
Raccoon Eyes: kats couldve named her king explosion murder
Raccoon Eyes: or just murder
Raccoon Eyes: p sure she wouldve tried to murder kats at least o
Raccoon Eyes: nce
Tape Face: lmao she basically tried when he found her
Shitty Hair: Maybe it’s for the best that he didn’t keep the pup
Tape Face: look what i found
Tape Face: image.png
Raccoon Eyes: AWWWW YES
Raccoon Eyes: LOOK AT USSSSS
Raccoon Eyes: we look FABBBB
Shitty Hair: Is that from the dance?
Tape Face: ye
Raccoon Eyes: guys what if we recreate that pic at the reunion
Raccoon Eyes: the fits?
Raccoon Eyes: immaculate
Raccoon Eyes: the pose?
Raccoon Eyes: perfection
Tape Face: hotel?
Tape Face: trivago
Shitty Hair: I’m down for recreating some pics!
Raccoon Eyes: yessssss
Raccoon Eyes: u have no choice either kats u gotta do it
Raccoon Eyes: wherever u are
Shitty Hair: Oh he replied!!
Raccoon Eyes: SWEET
Raccoon Eyes: what he say
Shitty Hair: He said fuck off
Tape Face: as expected
Shitty Hair: Lmao he threatened to block me again
Tape Face: thought he said he was blocking you last week
Shitty Hair: Yea exactly
Raccoon Eyes: HOW RUDE
Raccoon Eyes: as punishment for not paying attention to us
Raccoon Eyes: im gonna send this
Raccoon Eyes: image.png
Tape Face: LMAO whend you make that
Shitty Hair: Is that Katsuki with a cat face and ears
Shitty Hair: Dude I don’t know if he’s going to kill you for that or for the pink hair first lmao
Raccoon Eyes: lmao made it just now
Raccoon Eyes: well MAYBE if he ANSWERED us
Katsuki: Delete it.
Tape Face: O SHIT
Tape Face: you summoned him
Raccoon Eyes: NO I WILL NOT
Katsuki: Delete it Raccoon Eyes or else I’m coming for you.
Tape Face: are you coming for the left shoes and shittin in them
Raccoon Eyes: NOOOOOOO not my shoes!!!!!!!!
Tape Face: its just the left shoes tho
Raccoon Eyes: BUT THATS MY FAVE SIDE
Katsuki: What the fuck are you two going on about?
Raccoon Eyes: DONT COME FOR M
Raccoon Eyes: Y LEFT SHOES KATS IM SORRY
Katsuki: I’m not coming for your fucking left shoes. Or any of your shoes.
Katsuki: I will be coming for you if you don’t delete that picture, though.
Raccoon Eyes: FORGIVENESS
Raccoon Eyes: I BEG
Raccoon Eyes: PLSSSSS
Katsuki: Delete the picture.
Raccoon Eyes: ugh fiiiiiiiiiine
Raccoon Eyes: its deleted
Raccoon Eyes: i wont send it to momo for the slide show
Katsuki: Good.
Raccoon Eyes: IF U COME TO THE REUNION
Katsuki: Fuck off.
Shitty Hair: C’mon Katsuki!! It’ll be fun!!
Tape Face: ya it wouldnt do if we didnt have our exploding star
Raccoon Eyes: ill send momo WORSE if u dont come
Raccoon Eyes: nd u wont know WHAT til AFTER
Raccoon Eyes: so PLSSSSSSSSSS
Raccoon Eyes: PRETTY PLSSSSSSS
Raccoon Eyes: PLS COME TO THE REUNION
Raccoon Eyes: ill spam u a lot worse if u dont show us proof of rsvp
Raccoon Eyes: pls kaaaaaaaaats
Raccoon Eyes: kaaaaaaaaats
Raccoon Eyes: k
Raccoon Eyes: a
Katsuki: Ugh fucking fine, I’ll do the RSVP now then.
Raccoon Eyes: t
Raccoon Eyes: YAY
Four Eyes (Rocket Legs): Good afternoon, Bakugou! I just wanted to confirm with you that I have received your RSVP for the Class A reunion. As a reminder, if you need to rent a room for the night or the weekend, please alert the Shinjuku Hotel staff that you are part of the Class A reunion party by next Wednesday for an event discount.
Katsuki: image.png
Katsuki: image.png
Katsuki: Four Eyes is watching the RSVP form like a fucking hawk apparently.
Raccoon Eyes: YAAAAAY URE RSVPD!!!
Shitty Hair: You know him, always dedicated to his work
Tape Face: sweet
Raccoon Eyes: are u guys getting rooms
Tape Face: yea musutafus too far for a round trip
Tape Face: esp since itll prob end late
Shitty Hair: I got one for the weekend!
Tape Face: wbu mina
Raccoon Eyes: booked a room already!!
Raccoon Eyes: kaaaaats wbu
Raccoon Eyes: u should
Raccoon Eyes: we could have a brunch or lunch or s/t thats just us
Raccoon Eyes: plsssssss kats
Katsuki: I’ll think about it.
Tape Face: better than a no lmao
Shitty Hair: If they run out of space or if you decide last second, you can room with me dude
Raccoon Eyes: awww why not a yes
Katsuki: I haven’t asked the other Four Eyes for the time off yet.
Tape Face: is this four eyes no4 or no15
Raccoon Eyes: four eyes no69
Raccoon Eyes: no wait
Raccoon Eyes: no420
Tape Face: haha blaze it
Raccoon Eyes: BLAZE IT
Shitty Hair: It’s number 7
Katsuki: Fuck you, I don’t have that many Four Eyes saved in my phone.
Shitty Hair: I’d be surprised if you had 420 contacts period dude
Raccoon Eyes: would b hilarious tho
Katsuki: Yes, it’s Four Eyes number 7.
Shitty Hair: I was right!!
Katsuki: Why would I ask any of the other Four Eyes for time off? They’re not my fucking bosses.
Tape Face: dunno
Raccoon Eyes: idk maybe ure secretly dating one a
Raccoon Eyes: nd have to confirm that its ok
Raccoon Eyes: ARE U SECRETLY DATING A FOUR EYES
Raccoon Eyes: U HAVE TO TELL US IF U ARE
Raccoon Eyes: URE LEGALLY OBLIGATED
Tape Face: o shit
Tape Face: scandalous
Katsuki: Shut the fuck up, I’m not dating anyone, secret or not.
Raccoon Eyes: thats what they all say
Katsuki: Whatever. I’m not dating anyone.
Raccoon Eyes: kats n four eyes no420 sittin in a tree
Raccoon Eyes: k
Raccoon Eyes: i
Raccoon Eyes: s
Raccoon Eyes: s
Raccoon Eyes: i
Katsuki: I’ll blow up all of your left shoes when you’re not home.
Raccoon Eyes: n
Raccoon Eyes: NO
Raccoon Eyes: IM STOPPING DONT DO IT
Shitty Hair: Hey what do you guys think of this photo
Shitty Hair: image.png
Tape Face: dude yes
Raccoon Eyes: AWWWW OUR FIRST BILLBOARDS AS PROS
Katsuki: Do we really need to send them pictures? It’s not like we fucking forgot this stuff already.
Tape Face: you can be a killjoy if you want lmao
Tape Face: im sure mina will send more than enough to cover for you
Raccoon Eyes: U BETCHA
Raccoon Eyes: image.png
Raccoon Eyes: image.png
Raccoon Eyes: image.png
Raccoon Eyes: image.png
Raccoon Eyes: image.png
Tape Face: lmao why do you have a pic of katsuki throwing ei
Shitty Hair: I still can’t believe you did that bro
Shitty Hair: WITHOUT WARNING TOO
Katsuki: I gave you plenty of fucking warning.
Shitty Hair: Saying “I’m throwing you” AS YOU’RE THROWING ME is NOT PLENTY OF WARNING DUDE
Raccoon Eyes: im always ready to document golden moments
Katsuki: Shut the fuck up. We won the training exercise so what’s it fucking matter?
Shitty Hair: YOU THREW ME!!
Katsuki: Tape Face caught you before you could get hurt.
Shitty Hair: YOU /THREW/ ME!!!!!!
Tape Face: barely caught
Katsuki: Whatever.
Raccoon Eyes: im still impressed by how eASY u made that look
Katsuki: What the fuck’s that supposed to mean?
Raccoon Eyes: o look conveniently timed distraction photo spam
Katsuki sighed as he continued the conversation, commenting here and there on the photos his friends sent for judgement. In retrospect, he probably should have tried to talk to Shion first, since there was a chance she would have denied the time off for the reunion. Although, knowing her, she would have accepted just to force Katsuki into socializing. He opened up a new text message, figuring that if Shion did decide to deny the time off, he would at least have a screenshot to send to his friends explaining the sudden change in plans.
Katsuki: I need March 28th and 29th off.
Four Eyes (Shitty Shion): Do my eyes deceive me? The great Katsuki Bakugou, asking for time off?
Four Eyes (Shitty Shion): I’m amazed! Usually I have to ask you to take the day off!
Four Eyes (Shitty Shion): Nay, not ask, but force!
Katsuki: Are you going to give it to me or not?
Four Eyes (Shitty Shion): Depends! What do you need the time off for?
Katsuki: Class reunion.
Four Eyes (Shitty Shion): Oh those are fun!
Four Eyes (Shitty Shion): Fill out the proper time off paperwork and have it on my desk by Monday. I’ll approve the time off.
Four Eyes (Shitty Shion): Just keep your phone on you in case we need you to come in for an emergency, but I’ll try not to ruin your reunion with work.
Katsuki: Thanks.
Well, so much for an easy way out.
Katsuki pinched the bridge of his nose when he noticed that his phone had already accumulated another thirty texts in the past few minutes, no doubt primarily from Mina. He scrolled through the backlog, sending a few mostly empty threats when he saw photos he did not want projected for the entire class to see, freezing when his gaze met a pair of familiar amber eyes.
Shit.
In his scramble to close out of the photo, to escape the genuine smile that somehow was more haunting than the one in his dreams, he left the group text completely. He briefly thanked his past self; he’d impulse or rage quit the group text plenty of times before that this wasn’t unusual behavior. If he was lucky, his friends wouldn’t have noticed the timing of his departure and would assume he was just fed up with the notifications or the conversation.
Shitty Hair: You okay, Katsuki?
A weak laugh escaped Katsuki’s lips as he read the newest notification. Of course Eijirou noticed.
Katsuki: I’m fine.
Shitty Hair: Okay
Shitty Hair: We don’t have to talk about it
Shitty Hair: But if you want to, I’m here dude
Shitty Hair: I’ll tell the others that you left so your phone would shut up and not to add you back yet
Katsuki: Thanks. Really.
Shitty Hair: No problem dude
Katsuki put his phone down, silently praying for the smile to leave him alone.
When he finally laid down for bed that night, he repeated the short prayer, for a peaceful night’s rest free of the smile, of the hurt, of the pain, of the guilt.
But as always, the smile came.
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Like Lightning After the Thunder: Prologue: The Thunder
Fic Summary:
His breath wavered as he stared into Katsuki’s eyes. He knew he could get out if he tried. He could knock Katsuki out, hope that no one else would find them, and run back into the shadows where he belonged. Katsuki may have had him pinned down but he was in Denki’s range now and it would take little effort to send a charge through Katsuki to paralyze him temporarily.
It would take barely any additional effort to kill Katsuki.
As the sparks began to charge, lighting up the air around him, Katsuki refused to back down.
Katsuki always knew he was destined for great things.
He didn’t think he’d have to turn his back on all he’s ever known to get there.
Rating: T
Warnings: Eventual major character death, implied/referenced child abuse, psychological trauma
Other Tags: Bakugou Katsuki/Kaminari Denki, slow burn, alternate universe - canon divergence
Read on Ao3 or read below
Next Chapter | Fic navigation to read the fic on tumblr
--
It’s hard to tell when Denki started feeling this way. He couldn’t tell you when, but he could tell you the things that drew him to his classmate like the moth to the flame.
The ground trembled where he walked.
Sometimes it shook with such intensity that Denki felt like that the ground beneath them would open up and swallow them whole, dragging everyone down to the pits of hell. Other times, the trembles were much softer— as if the earth itself were afraid to show him weakness, lest his anger be taken out on it.
His voice carried like thunderclaps in the dead of night.
Sometimes Denki felt himself flinch long before he could remind himself that he would be okay. Sometimes it was so loud that Denki couldn’t focus and he wished he couldn’t hear it. Other times, it was the only sound that could reach him in the darkness, and he never wanted to let go.
His intensity was powerful like the sun.
Denki wanted to keep watching. He wanted to feel the warmth on his face, watch the world light up, and stand in the safety of the light. He didn’t care if the sun blinded him— as long as Denki stood in his presence, he’d be safe.
That’s what he told himself, anyway. That Katsuki Bakugou was such a terrifying force of nature that anything that challenged him would lose. That Katsuki Bakugou would never back down from a fight. That Katsuki Bakugou would give nothing less than his all.
That if Katsuki Bakugou could prove the villain narrative wrong, then maybe Denki could too.
That as long as Denki stood on the same side as Katsuki, not even his deepest fears could hurt him.
So when Denki found himself pinned to the ground under Katsuki’s weight, Katsuki’s palm cackling as he prepared another explosion and his eyes a fiery red filled with anger and betrayal, Denki knew.
This was the end.
There was no going back now. He should have known better, should have known to stay away, that someone so bright and powerful as Katsuki would have exposed the darkness within him eventually. The sun didn’t care what caused the darkness― it would overpower the darkness all the same. There was no reason for Denki to have believed that he could have escaped the inevitable, but he had hoped and hoped and hoped that maybe, maybe just this one fucking time, that he wouldn’t get hurt. That he could stay in this fake reality he created, that he could be happy and loved just this once.
His breath wavered as he stared into Katsuki’s eyes. He knew he could get out if he tried. He could knock Katsuki out, hope that no one else would find them, and run back into the shadows where he belonged. Katsuki may have had him pinned down but he was in Denki’s range now and it would take little effort to send a charge through Katsuki to paralyze him temporarily.
It would take barely any additional effort to kill Katsuki.
As the sparks began to charge, lighting up the air around him, Katsuki refused to back down.
Of course he didn’t.
Denki closed his eyes, bracing himself for the impact― of Katsuki’s fist or of the heat of the explosion, he wasn't sure. He stopped channeling his electricity, focusing instead on the cackling of Katsuki’s palm.
He didn’t want to fight anymore.
When the impact never came, Denki opened his eyes and looked up at Katsuki.
Katsuki’s hand was still raised, still ready to throw the next hit. He hadn’t lightened up his pin on Denki either and his muscles were still tense, his guard still high. But mixed in with the anger and betrayal burning behind his eyes, Denki swore he saw disappointment.
“Why aren’t you fighting back?”
Maybe Denki was imagining the concern in Katsuki’s voice. Maybe he was imagining the hurt and the longing for this to be fake. Maybe he was only seeing what he wished he could say, what he wished he could do, what he wished fate had let happen instead.
Denki wanted to believe that Katsuki had grown to care for him like he had, that their friendship was mutual, that Katsuki needed him even a fraction as much as Denki needed Katsuki. But then the thought of how much that would hurt Katsuki crossed his mind and Denki wished he could lift the weight off of Katsuki’s shoulders before it began to eat away at him too.
So Denki did his best to muster up a friendly smile, fighting back the flood of emotions threatening to overwhelm him. He watched as Katsuki’s resolve faltered at Denki’s answer, as the confusion and hesitance in his eyes were quickly replaced with a fire of anger and frustration that burned more intensely than before, as Katsuki raised his hand to finally deliver that blow―
Gloved hands pulled Katsuki off of him. Another pair of hands pulled Denki to his feet before roughly tying his hands behind his back. Denki didn’t bother looking to see who had interrupted them. It didn’t matter.
He kept his eyes on Katsuki the entire time as the other teen swore and fought the adult holding him back, threatening to hurt the adult if they didn’t let him go but not making any immediate actions to suggest that he would. Despite his threats, he knew the severity of the situation and knew that it was unwise to take action against the adults. As the other adult began to lead Denki out of the room, Katsuki redirected his anger towards him, for holding back, for giving up, for not taking Katsuki seriously.
Their eyes met and Denki could tell that Katsuki was silently pleading for Denki to explain, to say something, anything, in response.
Instead, Denki just smiled.
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Chapter Navigation
A pinned post to help find the tumblr post for each chapter. Or you can start reading on Ao3 here.
Prologue: The Thunder
Chapter One: Damned Smile
Chapter Two: Reprieve
Chapter Three: Message from the Shadows
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another view of Todoroki's sideways mullet because I'm obsessed with it
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a sleepy post-graduation Tododeku inspired by a friend's so-far unpublished fic that won't feature this scene
so basically just a tododeku that I felt like drawing because I love them ;o;
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Photo
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“I Can’t Let You”
I’m writing a fic and this is my official initial teaser art for it.
Find my work on: My Website | My Instagram | My FaceBook Page
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