Chapter Text
“You know if you really want to be a hero that badly, there is another way.”
Huh.
”Just pray you’ll be born with a quirk in the next life,”
Why is he saying that?
“and take a swan dive off the roof of the building.”
He doesn’t mean it. He swears he doesn’t, he never did. He was having a bad day and he knows that’s not an excuse. Deku wouldn’t listen to him though, right?
“You were right Kacchan. I would never be a hero.”
What is he saying? They were meant to be heroes together. He can’t give up, he never has. Why is he saying that now?
“Even All might doesn’t think I can be a hero without a quirk.”
Fuck All might. Who cares what he thinks, you can still become a hero. Katsuki wants to say but no sound comes out. Why can’t he talk? Why can’t he move? Why is Deku saying this? And why are they on the roof?
“I’m sorry Kacchan.”
No. He’s too close to the edge, he’ll fall. Move! You need to move or he’ll get hurt. He’ll die and it will be your fault. MOVE! GRAB HIM BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE!
”Isn’t this what you wanted.”
No. It wasn’t. He never wanted this. He thinks to himself as he watches the smaller boy in front of him fall. He forces himself to move, walking too slowly and swaying too much for his liking. He reaches the edge and braces himself for the sight below.
There’s blood everywhere. There’s blood on the floor. There’s blood on the walls of the buildings. There’s blood on him, covering his face and body. Green hair dye red.
This is all his fault. He told him to do it so why is he sad now. He doesn’t have a right to be sad when this wouldn’t have happened if it wasn’t for him. He wasn’t quick enough. He couldn’t grab him.
Sirens ring out in the distance. It’s late in the afternoon so no one would be inside the school. He doesn't even know how they managed to get onto the roof, he doesn't remember any of it.
He hears cars stop on the road next to him. Hears the slamming of doors as police officers and medics rush towards the two boys on the floor.
Katsuki doesn’t let go of Izuku. Not when the medics try to pull him away. Not when the police tried asking him what happened. He instead holds him tighter against his chest, squeezing his eyes shut as tears threaten to fall.
He feels the weight in his arms disappear and his eyes fly open. He’s alone. Izuku isn’t in his arms anymore. The police or medics aren’t here either, though the walls and grass are still stained red with the blood of his best friend.
No.
Izuku isn't his best friend. He doesn’t deserve to be friends with him after what he did. Izuku never did anything bad to him, he only ever wanted to be like him and yet he pushed him away. Bullied him because he was quirkless. No, that wasn’t it. He didn’t care that Izuku was quirkless, no matter how many times he tried to convince himself that was why. He knows it wasn’t.
He hated Izuku because he was scared. Scared that he was better than him and that he would surpass him. Izuku didn’t let anything stop him from trying to achieve his goals. Not his lack of quirk or the way he was treated differently to others or the amount of times people told him it was pointless and he should give up. He didn’t care.
Until Katsuki.
Out of all the people who resented Izuku, Katsuki was by far the worst. He was the only one who physically hurt him. He was the only one who suicide baited him. He made it his mission to stop Izuku from being near him, to stop him from wanting to become a hero.
Not because he was quirkless. The problem wasn’t Izuku. It was Katsuki. Katsuki was selfish. He didn’t want Izuku to become a hero because he wanted to be better. It wasn’t Izuku’s fault.
So why is he sad now? Izuku’s right. He wanted this. That’s what he always said, right? He even told Izuku to do this exact thing so how can he be sad now?
It was his fault.
Consciousness slowly pulled Katsuki to the land of living. His limbs ached and he couldn’t move properly. He panicked as he remembered where he was.
He shot up into a sitting position looking around to find any threat. He felt himself relax for a moment before he registered the weight in his lap. He looked down and saw a head of purple in his lap.
Suddenly, the memories of the past few hours? came back to him. He remembered Shinsou being taken, one of the kidnappers using their quirk on him and then Izuku. Tears burned his eyes at the thought of his old friend.
He unconsciously pulled Shinsou to his chest, wrapping his arms around him like he did to Izuku in his dream? He doesn’t know what that was to be honest.
He couldn’t be a good friend to Izuku like he should have been, so now he would be a much better friend to Shinsou. He’s going to protect him like he should've protected Izuku. He isn’t going to let anyone hurt him or even say anything bad about him.
He looks down to the younger boy in his arms and his eyes widen in shock. He didn’t get a proper look at him before his mind started wandering and the dim light made it hard to see him. But now that he’s closer to him it’s hard to miss the bright red lines going down both his arms.
In an instant he’s moving around the small room. He leans Shinsou against the wall and grabs his arms inspecting the wounds. They’re still bleeding so it couldn’t have happened too long ago but they don’t seem too deep. They can still get infected though, and from the state this room is in he’s surprised they aren’t already infected.
He quickly rips off his school shirt, thankful for the tank top he wears underneath it, and rips it in half. He knows that UA uniforms aren't cheap but right now he can’t bring himself to care. It’s just a shirt, he can buy more so he doesn’t care about ruining it. If he doesn’t cover the wounds and they do end up getting infected Shisnou can get really sick and if they aren’t treated quick enough, which they most likely wouldn’t, he could die.
So Katsuki tears his shirt into long strips and wraps them around Shinsou’s arms around the long gashes and makes sure to cover as much of the wound. He doesn’t know how long he sits there, leaning against the wall with Shinsou’s head in his lap, not being able to look away from him and the memories of the dream? vision? haunts him.
Suddenly, the door to the room flies open and Himarki enters the room. Katsuki can’t help but curl protectively around Shinsou’s unconscious form, not knowing if he’s going to use his quirk on Shinsou as well. Katsuki doesn’t say anything but glares at him, studying each movement he makes.
“Get up.” He demanded, not moving from his place by the door. Katsuki doesn’t move either, not wanting to leave Shinsou by himself while he’s so vulnerable. Himarki seemed to notice this as a smirk creeps across his features that causes a shiver to run down his spine.
“Get up or I'll hurt him as well.” He barks out when Katsuki continues to stay where he is. He doesn’t want Shinsou to get hurt but he also can’t trust that they wont hurt him while he is gone. He doesn’t know where Hikaru is either but if he goes with them he can make sure neither of them go near Shinsou.
Carefully, he lifts Shinsou’s head out of his lap and rests it on the floor before standing up and walking over to Himarki, his eyes not leaving him.
Himarki steps to the side, allowing Katsuki to walk out of the door before following after him and shutting the door. He is led down a hallway and into a small room.
The room is only a bit bigger than the one he and Shinsou have been staying in. The room is empty besides a wooden chair pushed up against the furthest wall with a cloth stained with old blood and dirt on it as well as a metal hoop stuck into the ceiling.
Himarki pushes him further inside and into the middle of the room, before he walks over to Hikaru who is standing in the opposite corner and holding something that Katsuki can't see.
A few seconds later Himarki walks back over to him and grabs his hands. Katsuki doesn’t fight back, there’s no point. He knows he isn’t going to be able to fight both of them without his quirk, especially since they most likely have many weapons that they could use. He also doesn’t want to risk Shinsou getting hurt because he tried to fight them.
His hands were lifted above his head as Hikaru walked over to them. He pulls a chain through the middle of the cuffs around Katsuki’s wrists and wraps the other part through the hoop in the ceiling, keeping Katsuki from lowering his arms.
His arms strain against the chains, causing an ache to run down his shoulders as his feet barely touch the floor. He doesn’t let any pain show on his face though, not wanting his kidnappers to have the satisfaction of knowing he’s hurt.
They both walk away again but only for a second before coming back into his line of vision, this time both holding a damascus knife and Katsuki would be lying if he said he wasn’t even a bit scared.
Hikaru is the first to step closer to him, lifting the knife to his chest. Katsuki sucks in a sharp breath as the knife is dragged to the spaces in between his ribs. He winces as the knife is pushed into his flesh and taken back out. He does this three more times before walking towards the chair and picking up the cloth, wiping the blood of the knife. He lets out a few deep breaths and tries to ignore the pain in his chest.
“He can handle pain a lot better, he’ll be perfect for his buyer.” Himarki says as he walks closer to him. “We might have to do more work with the other one then.” Without thinking, Katsuki bangs his head into Himarki’s making him stumble backwards, letting out a groan of pain. His glasses fall to the floor, breaking the glass and scattered over the floor by his feet.
Hikaru walks back over to them as Himarki lifts his head, wiping off the blood from his nose and glares at Katsuki. He isn't scared though. He knows they won't kill him or Shinsou and he can handle any pain they try to inflict upon him.
Himarki doesn’t say anything as he walks closer to him. He lifts the knife above Katsuki’s right eye and digs it in, bringing it down just above his lip. A pained moan leaves Katsuki’s mouth as blood drips down his face and onto the floor.
He says something but Katsuki can’t make out what he’s saying over the ringing in his ears, he doesn’t know if he’s even talking to him or the other kidnapper. The voices stop and the sound of metal clanging floods his ears, then suddenly, he’s dropped onto the floor. He lands next to the pieces of glass from Himarki’s glasses and quickly grabs a handful of shards into his hand, wincing again as the sharp pieces dig into his skin. The last thing he registers is being lifted up by his shoulders, causing the ache to expand and then unconsciousness overcomes him.
Hitoshi wakes up to a pounding in his head. When he opens his eyes everything is blurry and he can barely make out where he is. He tries to lift himself up off the floor but his arms are too weak to lift him up. He lays on the floor and closes his eyes, trying to get rid of the continuous pain in his head.
He’s used to getting migraines due to his quirk but this pain is much worse than that. The room is too bright for his eyes despite the fact that there is barely any light coming into the room. He flinches as the room is opened again and one of the kidnappers (his vision still blurry so he can’t make out which one it is) chucks Bakusou into the room, while the other walks over to him holding something that he can barely recognize as a muzzle.
7
The muzzle is strapped tightly (tighter than before) onto his face before the two kidnappers leave. He pushes himself up onto his arms and knees and crawls closer to Bakugou’s sleeping form. He’s laying on his side and Hitoshi can see the splats of blood on his shirt.
He tries shaking him, wanting him to wake up just to know he’s ok. He weakly tugs on his arms, slightly shaking him as his face scrunches up and he lets out a groan. He blinked a few times before he bolted upright, clutching his ribs as the sudden movement sent a sharp pain in his stomach.
After a few minutes he looked back at Hitoshi and sighed in relief to know that he wasn’t hurt. Hitoshi’s breathe caught in his throat as he scanned over Bakkugou’s face and sees the blood dripping down. He looked around the small room, his vision starting to clear a bit, and noticed the remaining part of Bakugou’s shirt on the floor. He shakily crawls over to it and brings it back over to him, wrapping it around his bloody eye. They sit in silence for a bit before Bakugou speaks up.
“I have a plan on how to get out. You need to trust me though, ok?” Bakugou says as he lifts one of his hands, grabbing a shard of glass. Hitoshi doesn’t know what he’s planning but he knows that Bakugou wouldn’t go through with a plan unless he had thought it out fully and knows it would have a good chance at working, especially if he is with someone else.
Hesitantly, he nods. He trusts Bakugou to protect him and he knew he would come up with a plan, but looking at him now, blood covering the right side of his face and most of his shirt makes Hitoshi worry about if they will even be able to get out.
“Turn around. I’m going to cut the straps to the muzzle.” Hitoshi obeys, sluggishly turning around on shaky limbs. Bakugou gets to work immediately, apologising each time he pulls too harshly on the muzzle, making Hitoshi whimper in pain.
It takes longer to get the muzzle off as the piece of glass isn’t that sharp against the thick straps of the muzzle but after a while it finally loosens and falls onto the floor with a light clatter. Hitoshi takes a deep breath, feeling like he can finally breathe properly for the first time since they were brought here.
He brings his hands up to his face and rubs over the irritated skin, roughly, where the muzzle was a few seconds ago. He feels hand cover his own, lowering them into his lap and he looks up and sees Bakugou crouching in front of him again.
“Are you ok? Can you talk?” Bakugou asks, not caring about the worry slipping into his tone. Hitoshi nods, coughing to try and clear his throat before choking out a hoarse ‘yeah’.
“Ok, good. Now listen, I know how we can get out of here, but you're going to have to use your quirk.” Bakugou says, not letting go of his hands and Hitoshi can feel how his hands shake. He nods again.
“I’m going to bang on the door to try and get one of the kidnappers' attention. When they come in you're going to use your quirk on one of them and we’ll take their keys.” Bakugou explained in between breaths.
“I remember seeing a staircase that must lead out of here, so we’ll go there and once we’re out in the open we can find someone who will let us use their phone and call someone from our class and get them to tell Aizawa-sensei to get us.” Hitoshi waits a moment before nodding, taking in what Bakugou just said.
The next minute, Bakugou is standing, walking over to the door and giving Hitoshi a hopeful look over his shoulder before he lifts his hand and bangs loudly onto the door. Hitoshi tries to suppress the flinch, thankful that Bakugou has his back to him. He continues to bang on the door until the faint sound of footsteps enter the room.
Bakugou jesters for Hitoshi to move further towards the wall next to the door, making sure he wouldn’t be seen. The door is flung open banging into the wall next to him and he holds his breath as Himarki walks in. Bakugou glares at him as he starts to shout, Hitoshi not being able to make out any of the words.
“What are you doing?” Hitoshi choked, his throat aching from lack of water. Himarki goes quiet, spinning around to face Hitoshi.
“How did yo-” His face goes blank. Hitoshi feels his eyes strain as he latches onto his mind, ignoring the increasing pain in his eyes.
“Give us your keys.” He whispers, not being able to talk any louder. He feels his quirk weaken and he knows he doesn’t have much time before the link breaks. Himarki hands over his keys and Bakugou quickly snatches it before dragging Hitoshi out of the room, shutting the door and locking him inside.
He fumbles with the keys before grabbing one and shoving it into the keyhole on the cuffs. The cuffs unlock and fall to the ground, Bakugou letting out small explosions testing his quirk. With a sigh of relief he grabs Hitoshi’s hand and leads him down the hallway.
“Come on. It isn’t that far.” He says, taking the lead and letting Hitoshi lean on him as his vision continues to go blurry. It doesn’t take them long before they approach a flight of stairs. Bakugou glances back at Hitoshi, giving him a nod before starting to climb the stairs.
They make it to the top and let out a few breaths before waking closer to the door in front. He tests the handle and to his surprise it's unlocked. He pushes the door open slightly and pokes his head through the gap, checking for any threats. When he doesn’t find any he pushes the door open fully and leads Hitoshi inside.
They enter a much bigger room, similar to the one they first woke up in but more cleaner and less broken. The room is mostly empty, save for a few stained furniture. His eyes lock onto a door on the wall opposite to them. They walk carefully over to it, making sure not to make too much noise.
Bakugou tries the handle, realising it’s lock and lifts the keys, trying to find the right key to open the door while Hitoshi starts clinging tighter to his arm. He finally finds the right key and shoves it into the door, unlocking it.
He feels a tug on his shirt but ignores it, focusing on trying to get out of the room. Just as he’s about to open the door a voice makes him freeze.
“Katsuki!”
He spins around at the sound of Hitoshi’s voice, sounding more terrified than he’s ever heard him before. His breath hitches and he freezes at the sight in front of him.