I love the fantasy au so much

Fallen Stars, Frozen Hearts Pt. 7

Pairing: Prince!Todoroki x Reader ✨

Warnings: none

Word Count: 3k

After a few exhausting days of trying your best not to make any verbal contact with Todoroki, you’re dressed for bed and ready to get the week over with. You take a seat on your bed-like bay window and pull open the curtains, jumping when you see the man with the staples.

“What are you doing here?!” You whisper-shout, opening the window and letting him crawl in from the ceiling.

He jumps off and lands on your bed with a soft thud as you close the window, placing a finger to your lips to silence him.

“My mother will hear you. What do you want?” You cast a spell to soundproof your room and you put on a thin cloak, covering your exposed skin.

“I’m here to visit, obviously.” He rolls his eyes and you spray your perfume on him.

“Hey, what are you doing?”

“I’m getting rid of your scent. You said you wouldn’t come see me if I gave you my number.” You cross your arms and he raises a brow.

“To which you haven’t been responding to my texts.” He sits up and your arms slide down to your sides, remembering why.

“Why do you want to keep contact with me..? I’m not giving you anything in return for this.. You’re not gaining anything either..”

He shrugs.

“You’re interesting.”

“I’m the embodiment of grass growing..” You contrast and he snorts, taking off his jacket.

His stomach growls and he coughs to cover it, but he isn’t as quick to hide the pain.

“How long has it been since you’ve last eaten..?” You ask and he rolls his eyes.

“None of your business.”

“Ah no. You chose to stay with me so now you’re going to answer my questions or else I’ll tell a guard you’re in here, so you better cooperate with me while you know me.”

He raises a brow again.

You take a big inhale and he immediately covers your mouth, his eyes wide along with yours.

“Don’t.” He slowly lowers his hands and you blink.

“Are you going to answer my questions?”

“No.”

You take another inhale and he covers your mouth again.

“Okay, okay, I’ll answer your questions. Don’t scream.” He stares at your eyes and you nod, watching him sit down.

“It’s been like 2 weeks.” He picks at his staples and you frown.

“With water?”

“Obviously not.”

You nod and point to the bathroom.

“Hide in there.”

“What?”

“Hide, in there. I’m not asking.” You stare at him and he slowly gets up, walking into your bathroom and closing the door.

You walk out of your room and close your door, walking up to a maid on your floor.

“You just had to be interested in her, didn’t you.” Dabi rolls his eyes at himself in the mirror, leaning on your bathroom wall.

“If you get on her good side, you could become one of her guards and you’re a place and safety. She’s not as annoying as the other princess I tried to get close to, either. She’s more cooperative, and like hell will I be sharing shit with the league.” He thinks to himself and stands back up when he hears the bedroom door close.

The bathroom door opens and he hides behind the door.

“Where did he go?” You whisper and he pokes his head out from behind the door, startling you.

“Why are you hiding?”

“You told me to.”

“Not when I come back in.” You wave him over and he comes out of the bathroom, stopping when he sees a tray full of food on your desk.

“Don’t eat too quickly or else you’ll get sick.” You sit on your bed and pull out your phone.

“I’m not eating that.”

“What? Why not?”

“I don’t know your true intentions. You just told me I’m not gaining anything out of this and suddenly you’re nice to me.”

“I was never mean, just cautious.” You frown and he glances at the food, his stomach growling again.

He gets near you and sniffs your cheek slightly, making you back away and swat at him.

“Stop it.”

He looks back at the food and sits down, looking at you for a reaction but only finds you on your phone.

He starts eating and you glance at him, smiling.

When he finishes, you’re saying goodnight to the boys in your group chat and ready for bed.

“You didn’t finish all of it.” You walk up to the desk and see a few leftovers.

“I’m glad you ate what you could, though.”

“So, what information do you want from me?” He turns to you and you think, staring at the leftovers.

“I’ll think about that later, for now,” You conjure up a few to go boxes and transfer the food into them, wrapping them in a furoshiki and handing it to him.

“I want to sleep.” You smile and he stares dumbfounded at the item in your hands, holding his hands out for you. You gently place it in his hands and he continues staring at it. You give him an extra water bottle and open the window for him.

“If you decide to visit next time, I suggest you text me first. I could have friends over.” You rub at your eyes and he nods softly, standing and heading to the window.

“Oh, I don’t know your name.” You hold his jacket for him and he takes it, putting it on.

“Dabi.”

“Dabi?”

“What, not pretty enough for you?”

“I didn’t say that, I just couldn’t hear you.” You frown at him and he weighs the food in his hand.

“I don’t need to know yours. I’ll call you whatever I want.” He keeps the knot of the furoshiki in his mouth and places the water bottle in his pocket, climbing down the castle.

Once he gets to the ground, he runs away into the darkness.

“You look out of it.” Bakugou pushes your head off your desk and you groan.

“We were sending memes until like 2 am and we just had training, of course she’s out of it.” Kirishima sits in Shinsou’s seat and Shinsou sits on your desk, letting you put your head on his lap.

“I have to start preparing for it soon..” You whine and they stiffen, clearing their throats.

“Alright, who’s gonna be man of honor.” Bakugou asks and you lift your head.

“What?”

“You heard me.”

“I don’t know what that is.”

“Well, you’re not gonna know about it now. You shouldn’t be thinking about that anyway.” Kirishima punches his shoulder and you smile softly, laying your head back down.

Your mother allowed you to record the practice ceremonies for the marriage to look back on your mistakes, but you really wanted them because the boys had asked you to record so they would be kept up to date.

“And Prince Shouto will stand by the door, once the doors open, Princess (Y/n) will come through them and you will hold out your arm for her.” Your okaasan orders and the doors open suddenly, Todoroki catching the door when it nearly hits him in the face.

He glares at you and you walk forward and stop right in front of him. He lifts his arm for you and you hover your hands over it, beginning to walk towards the altar.

“You open the door like that again and I-” He whispers his threat and you suddenly grip his arm, startling him.

“Don’t complain, you’ve been moved twice and you’re still in the wrong spot. Now you’re just asking for it.” You whisper back and stare forward, your head up high.

He growls lowly and you shiver, feeling the vibrations coming from him. You grip his arm tighter and you both stop at the altar, looking up at your mother.

“Release.” She orders and you quickly do so, stepping away from him. Todoroki stands there surprised at the speed you reacted, taking a few steps away as well.

“Your unity and species will be mentioned as taken together for harmony and all things not needed to be mentioned for now. As we don’t need to know Prince Shouto’s species for the time being, we’ll have to adjust the completion of the ceremony when the time comes. The crystal and flower chain will be placed on you both and tied to your wrists, bounding you to each other for as long as the moon allows it.” Your okaasan calls over a maid and she places a soft red rope on your now intertwined hands, wrapping it around them.

Your hands begin to warm when you’re holding his, your whole body feeling warm as well. He frowns and his body begins to do the same, making a spot in his neck burn. He suddenly rips his hands away from you and clasps a hand to his neck in pain.

You stare at him.

“What’s wrong with you?”

“What does it look like, you cast a spell on me.” He complains and squeezes his eyes in pain. You scoff in disbelief.

“I did not. Come here.” You walk towards him and he steps back.

“Get away from me, call a witch or something.”

“Calling an herb or medicinal witch will take too long, I’ll do it.”

“No.”

“Do you want it to get worse?” You step closer and he rolls his eyes, taking a seat on a nearby bench and you push his head away, looking at his neck.

You place your now cold hands on his neck and he stares at you as your fingers push into the spot into his neck, making his eyes roll back.

You cast a soothing spell on the spot on his neck and the spot on his neck begins to glow a soft red, disappearing soon after.

“Is it gone now?” You ask, stepping away from him and he nods slightly, standing up.

“Let’s..just get this over with.” He goes back to his position and you follow, holding the rope in between.

“Just hold it, no touching.” You hold up the other end for him and your mother continues explaining how the ceremony will go.

“You will have to get each other temporary rings, showing your future for the bonding of the kingdoms and two different worlds, along with yourselves.” She mentions and you nod. He tries his best not to roll his eyes in front of your mother and you both let go of the rope, a maid taking it away.

Both your mothers leave the room and you begin to leave as well but he grabs your arm and pulls you close to his chest.

“What was that?”

“What?”

“What did you do to me?”

“I didn’t do anything.” You push him off you and begin walking away until he grabs you again.

“Don’t lie to me. I’ve never had pain like that when touching someone.”

“Then you must have never touched a woman before.” You push him off and take your camera and walk out of the building, walking to your castle.

It’s a long walk from where the ceremony is being held, since both your parents had agreed to have it somewhere in between both kingdoms. The night was nice and you could always just call your carriage when you decided you didn’t feel like walking anymore. Or you could just fly back, but you couldn’t miss out on the opportunity of being alone and getting to experience the night sky full of stars. 

You hum a few songs along the way, enjoying the sight of the few houses around you and the forest you were never allowed to explore growing up.

You hear a growl behind you and you freeze, slowly turning around.

‘Don’t let it be a bear..’ You look down and see a wolf, a little bigger than what you thought they’d be.

It suddenly snaps at you and you smack it in the nose when it does, making you gasp.

It starts whining and shaking its head and its fur.

You crouch and let out your wings just in case.

“Sorry, you scared me.” You sense it was just coming to you to scare you off instead of hurt you. It would have done so already if it wanted to, easily.

You hold out a hand and it starts sniffing you, getting closer when it realizes you’re not a threat. It knocks you over and begins rubbing its head on your neck, making you laugh.

“Your fur tickles.” You smile and begin petting its long white fur.

“You’re so pretty, I’ve never seen a real wolf before.” You scratch behind its ear and you giggle when it suddenly sits, getting even closer to you.

“If only Todoroki were this nice, maybe we wouldn’t fight so often..” You pout and it suddenly huffs, knocking his head into yours.

“Ouch. I’m sorry if I offended you, I hope you don’t know him personally. If he treats me the same as his father, I wouldn’t want to know how he treats you.” You continue petting him and he shakes his body, a bit of fur spreading through the air.

“I wish we could have been friends, he seems lonely. He reminds me of when I was stuck in my castle for the past 18 years, alone and scared and probably even angry.. But he clearly doesn’t like me and yet here we are, soon to be married..” You huff and lay your head on his, causing him to stiffen.

“Hopefully it’ll get better, I don’t want to keep arguing with him the entire time I know him..” You sigh and stand, dusting off your dress.

“I hope I can see you again when I come to practice.” You ruffle his ears and wave him off, flying to your castle.

The wolf stares as you leave until you’re out of sight, going back into the forest. He shakes his head and feels your earring stuck in his fur, growling at having to see you again.

“He really acted like he could demand for answers.” Shinsou rolls his eyes as he sits on your bed, your hamsters immediately heading toward him.

“I met this really nice wolf afterwards.” You tell him, turning off the projector and taking a seat next to him.

“A wolf?”

“Yeah, it was kinda big and white. It scared me at first but it was nice to me after.”

“Where?”

“A couple miles away from the building.”

“You didn’t touch it, did you?”

You freeze, then suddenly taking off into your kitchen.

“Vampy!” He shoots up, careful of your hamsters and chases after you.

“Vampy did you touch it?!”

“I had to! It was like a big fluffy dog and I’ve never touched or had one before!”

“You have hamsters!”

“They’re not big enough!” You pout and run back into your room about to hide in your bathroom until he grabs you by the waist, picking you up and tossing you on the bed. He stands above you to keep you in place.

Bakugou stops at the door when he sees what’s happening.

“What did we tell you about stranger danger?!”

“You didn’t say anything about dogs!”

“That wasn’t a dog! It was a wolf!”

“That either!!” You suddenly pull his ankles and he falls backwards on your lap, making a loud ‘oof’.

You wiggle out from under him and spread your wings, picking him up by the ankles and flying around the room.

“Vampy put me down!” He tries swatting at you and you’re cackling loudly and evilly, suddenly stopping when you see Bakugou with his phone in the doorway, recording.

You slowly put Shinsou down and dive for Bakugou, your wings disappearing. He jumps and begins to run but is too late when you catch him and roll with him on the ground.

You pin him down and hold his wrists to the floor, sitting on his chest.

“I win!” You announce proudly.

“What, are you doing?” You all jump when you hear Todoroki’s voice, scurrying away from him.

“Fuck man, the fuck is wrong with you?” Bakugou curses him out and helps you up, dusting himself off.

“What are you doing here?” You say out of breath, fixing your hair and clothes.

“My- Can we have some privacy?” He says to a glaring Bakugou, currently burning holes in his skull.

“No.”

“Katsu, it’s fine. I got it.” You smile softly and pat his shoulder. He growls and walks to your room, purposely bumping into Todoroki’s shoulder. He lets out an annoyed sigh and waits for the door to close.

Once it does, he dusts off his shoulder.

“You’re dressed inappropriately for having guests over.”

“It’s my, living space. I don’t need to dress appropriately unless it’s important. And you showed up unannounced and uninvited.” You cross your arms and he huffs.

“I’m here to give you this.” He holds out a small ice blue box wrapped in a silver ribbon.

“What’s this?” You ask, taking it.

“The ring.” He rolls his eyes and holds out his hand. You stare at his hand.

“What?” You ask again.

“My ring?” He says and you blink.

“I don’t have it.”

“What?”

“I said I don’t have it.”

“Why not?” He seems upset he actually got you a ring the very next day but you hadn’t gotten one for him. ‘How unprepared’ He thought.

“It’s still being made.” You reply, about to open the box but he snatches it away before you can.

“Hey!” You reach out for it but he raises his arm higher away from you.

“What do you mean still being made?”

“I wasn’t going to just give you a ring from a book or a simple band. It’s temporary but I still want there to be at least one good thing in this arrangement.”

He scoffs and hides the box in his pocket.

“You brought it here, why aren’t you giving it to me?”

“Because I changed my mind.”

“Then get out.” You get away from him and he holds out his closed hand.

You hesitantly hold your open one under his and he drops an earring in your hand.

“My earring?”

“You dropped it at the hall.” He looks away from you and you see a small white hair on it.

“Did you put it on?” You ask and his face pales.

“What? No.” He makes his way to your stair doors and you grip his sleeve.

“What are you doing?”

“Can I have the ring? You came all this way and I don’t think it was because of my earring, which I’m thankful for that you returned it.” You whisper, trying not to anger him and he pulls his sleeve from your grasp, turning and seeing your big, shining and innocent eyes. His heart strings suddenly pull at him and he sighs, roughly pulling out the box from his pocket and pushing it into your open palm.

You remind him of a baby wolf when you make that face so he couldn’t say no, not that he’s happy about it.

You unwrap the box and gasp slightly, pulling out the ring. It’s an icy blue opal gemstone sitting on a silver band, part of the band intertwining with itself into the gemstone, holding it in place.

“It’s really pretty, thank you.” You look up at him and smile, going to put it on until he stops you.

“I’m supposed to do that.” He rolls his eyes annoyed and takes the ring from you, putting it on your right ring finger.

His fingers shock you and you jump, pulling away from each other. He realizes what he’s done and his ears turn pink along with yours.

“I will be seeing you tonight for the practice. Don’t lose the ring like you did with your earring.” He walks out of the room and before you can argue, he shuts the door.

“See you..”

@tenkomybeloved

Fallen Stars, Frozen Hearts Pt.6

Pairing: Prince!Todoroki x Reader ✨

Warnings: none

Word Count: 3k

When you step out of the carriage, you immediately cast a spell to cover you and your mothers from the sun and the public eye, individual large black rings hovering over each of you. The rings have long spikes and a crescent moon on each end, a long curtain like lace draping from under the ring, covering your whole body until it flows onto the floor.

Cameras flash as you pass by into the gates, the guards not letting anyone but you three inside.

You look up and your face drops behind the curtain like veils, internally groaning.

Frozen Flame Kingdom.

Walking in between your mothers, a guard leads you inside, your protective veils disappear once you step in.

You keep your eyes forward instead of looking around, not having gotten the chance to look around the first time you came anyway.

When you reach a specific room, everyone in the room stands, their eyes widening when they see you and two women as your parents.

They bow and you all bow as well, walking in front of them.

“Princess, it’s good to see you again. I didn’t think you’d be a part of the main Moon kingdom.” Enji greets and you look up at him.

“It’s nice to see you again, as well.” You reply.

“I am King Enji, this is my Queen, Rei.” He introduces himself and his wife to your mothers.

“I am Queen Luna, this is my Queen, Soleil.” Your mother introduces, touching her shoulder.

“My apologies for my son, for he is running late.” Enji gestures for you all to sit and you do so.

“Should we get started?” He suggests and your mother raises a brow.

“I would much rather if he was present, for he is your heir and a very big part in this meeting.” Her red eyes bore into him and he gulps, looking down at you and realizing how much your eyes and facial expressions are very much identical to her.

“Of course.” He snaps his fingers and waves a maid over, whispering in her ear.

“Get him here now, I want to get this over with.”

You keep your face emotionless as you overhear him and she bows, rushing to get Todoroki.

“How have you been, Princess?” Rei asks and you look in her direction.

“I’ve been well, I hope your safety and health has been well as I had wished upon you.” You smile and she smiles back, her smile not entirely reaching her eyes.

“Of course, I wouldn’t like to disobey a future Queen’s wishes.”

Her finger flinches when she speaks and her face quickly goes back to usual, a sign of a lie and fear.

Todoroki walks into the room and you keep your seat as he bows to you.

“My apologies for the tardiness.” He lifts his head and his eyes widen when he sees you, not knowing you were part of the main moon kingdom as well, the same kingdom that is on the same level as his.

He looks up at your mothers and realizes you’re the rare hybrid princess everyone has been dying to know and see, the symbol of peace and unity that’s been hidden away her whole life.

“We should get started.” Your mother comments when he stares at you for a little too long. He clears his throat and takes his seat next to his mother.

“I would like to speak on the matters of trade, first. I know your kingdom suffers with the lack of magic and herbs, along with mages and witches.” Your mother begins.

“You have the trust and resources to put our kingdom back on the map, and you seem to have multiple species here in your land along with more sub-kingdoms under your name.”

“You have sub-kingdoms, as well.” Enji says.

“Crumbling, sub-kingdoms. When the princess becomes Queen, I would prefer she doesn’t start completely from scratch as our ancestors once did.”

“How long ago was that..” You hear Todoroki mumble and your head whips in his direction. When he turns back to you, your vampire mother and you are staring at him.

“I’d prefer it if you refrained from commenting on how long my family has been reigning, as I don’t even know what your species is.” You glare, alarming him.

He clears his throat once again and your mother continues.

“Of course, I believe our kingdoms have become accustomed to our ways right now, and they wouldn’t agree with just combining the kingdoms for the sake of trade and alliance.” She leans back in her seat and your brows furrow.

“What are you implying?” Enji asks and you’re wondering the same thing.

“(Y/n)? Would you like to give your thoughts?” She gives you the floor and you’re suddenly sitting more upright than before.

“Your people have been travelling to our kingdom in search of medicine, and we happen to be mostly populated by witches and doctors, something your kingdom has been known to be lacking. As my mother stated, our people won’t accept the alliance for mere medicine or supplies. With no ill will of course, people will not stay in your kingdom only because you’re their king, they have fear and fear won’t keep them alive.”

“Of course it will, my kingdom has been reigning on fear for generations.” Enji scoffs and you blink.

“And how long will that last? Why are your people moving into our lands from yours, begging for safety and resources? If you don’t give them enough, you can’t demand for more in return. Your kingdom is lovely, and I’ve only seen a small part of it, but for the people who live here, you can see they’re living off scraps and barely surviving. But they won’t change that just because you decided to become aligned with us, in fear that you’ll only make it worse.”

“Barely anyone knows your kingdom, what do you expect to get out of this?”

“You bring our kingdom out from the dark and prove your kingdom isn’t as terrible as it seems, and we’ll trade our missing resources along with safety in case of a war, of course.” Your mother looks at you in pride and Todoroki keeps his mouth shut, surprised someone who’s only been out in the real world for a few months can already plan and negotiate like this.

“Your kingdom isn’t well known, and if my kingdom is as terrible as it is, you really think people will start to acknowledge you?” He crosses his arms and your okaasan places a soft hand on your shoulder.

“She is known for being the symbol of unity between two kingdoms. No one happens to know what kingdoms she belongs to, of course.”

Enji looks down at Todoroki and he looks away.

“I wasn’t aware of this.”

“It would be good if you had her trust, since she is being seen as a good symbol by the people nowadays.” She pets your hair softly and you turn your head slightly, making her stop.

He looks down at you and back at his son. Rei slowly looks up at him and pleads with her eyes.

“You have a point when you said people wouldn’t just accept it, so how about I propose this.” He sits up and Todoroki stares at him.

“An arranged marriage.”

“What?!” Todoroki suddenly shoots up and your eyes widen, but you hide your emotions before he looks down at you, waiting for a protest as well.

“Shouto do not interrupt me.” Enji uses a tone that Rei flinches at, making her turn her head away and expose her neck slightly. However Shouto growls in retaliation, keeping eye contact.

“Like hell will I be getting arranged to be married! Especially not with her!” He points a finger in your face and you slap it away, standing.

“Do not stick your finger in my face, have some respect. This isn’t for us, it’s for our kingdoms, one of which you will be ruling over one day if you decide to stop acting like a child. We were raised to do this and this was always a possibility and you knew that. Had you really had a problem with that, you would have done something about it long ago rather than bursting out like you are now.” You keep your tone low and calm, taking a seat between your mothers and looking to Enji.

“Please, continue.” You say softly as Todoroki huffs and storms out, his mother closing his eyes in pain and Enji grunting in disappointment.

“I deeply apologize for his behavior. It truly is embarrassing and disappointing.”

“No need, please, go on.”

When you finish the meeting, you give your exit greetings and cast a spell to bring back your sun veil, hiding from the public. Stepping in and taking a seat, you peek out the window and see Todoroki staring out his own window toward you, his eyes laced with rage.

You close the curtain on him and the carriage begins moving.

In silence, you lean your head back on the carriage walls and you hear your mother make a noise of contempt.

Lifting your head, you see her smiling at you.

“I’m proud of you, my little galaxy.” She pets your hair and holds your cheek, brushing a thumb over it. Something she only used to do as when you were a child. She stopped doing it when you turned 8, the beginning of your lessons to become a queen.

“You handled the situation well and took charge when it began to escalate. You’re becoming more and more prepared to be a queen.” She takes her hand off you and you give her a fake smile you’ve perfected as a child, fooling her.

Her touch doesn’t feel the same, and you’re not proud of what you’ve done, as you should be.

When you arrive at the castle, she gives you the day to yourself and you tell her you’re going to Katsuki’s kingdom. You bring a change of clothes and get into your own carriage, taking out your phone and sending an impromptu meeting at Katsuki’s place.

Waiting in your carriage, you suddenly start shaking and sniffling, desperately trying to keep your tears in their place.

You go through a portal and hiccup when you arrive at Katsuki’s castle, both him and Kirishima waiting at the gate.

A few people catch wind of the fancy new carriage at the Bakugou castle and start taking pictures.

You bring out your sun veil and immediately hide yourself as you step out, both Katsuki and Eijirou coming inside the veil and leading you inside.

“Shinsou is coming, he got caught up with something.” Eijirou says and you don’t get rid of your veil when they exit.

“Why are you crying?” Eijirou tries stepping back and Katsuki holds his arm.

“We’ll wait until Shinsou gets here.” He watches as you make the veil disappear, your bag of your clothing in hand. Katsuki takes your bag and you follow him to his room.

Before you get to the stairs, you hear a woman call after him.

“Katsuki, your friend is waiting outside, why aren’t you- oh.” She stops in front of you and you notice she looks just like Katsuki.

“Hello, who is this?” She asks and you look up at her.

“Wait.” Katsuki says and goes outside and comes back inside after some time with Shinsou and a little girl with white-ish hair.

“This is the Queen of the explosion Kingdom. My..mom, I guess.” Katsuki rolls his eyes and you jump.

Both you, Shinsou and the little girl, bow to her.

“I’m princess (Y/n), of the Moon kingdom.” You introduce and her eyes show worry and confusion.

“Ah, you’re the girl that’s been popping up everywhere recently..” She mentions and you stiffen, standing back up.

“Yes, I guess so.” You glance away and Shinsou introduces himself.

“And this is my little sister, Eri.” He says and you all look at her, who’s shyly hiding behind Shinsou.

“It’s nice meeting you all.” She doesn’t look at you and you turn away, taking your bag and standing next to Eijirou.

“Take them to my room.” Bakugou tells Kirishima and he nods, leading you away.

When you turn the corner, you hear him yelling at his mom for making you uncomfortable.

“They always fight like that. I’m surprised he called her his mom, he usually only calls her old hag or something.” Kirishima opens the door to Bakugou’s large room, taking your bag from you.

“You can sit, if you want.” He gestures to the bed and you gently take a seat, taking a deep breath.

Eri walks up to you and stares at your dress with big eyes. You stare at her long bunny-like ears and Bakugou suddenly bursts in, shutting the door.

“Okay, what the fu-”

“Hey!” Shinsou covers Eri’s ears suddenly and you look at Bakugou.

“Right. Anyway, aren’t you going to change?” Bakugou waves an arm to his closet and Shinsou picks up Eri and places her on a chair next to the bed.

You stand and take your bag, walking in the closet and closing the door.

When you can’t take off the dress, you walk back out and point to the ribbons tying your dress.

“I got it.” Kirishima walks up to you and begins untying the ribbons, the boys staring at him.

He gives you a gentle nudge once he’s done and you go back into the closet. When he turns back around, he jumps.

“W-what?”

“Those things are complicated as hell, how did you undo it for her?”

“I have sisters. You know this.” He points a finger at Bakugou and he scoffs.

“That doesn’t explain anything.”

“The maids would tie their corsets a little too tight and they were uncomfortable, but the maids wouldn’t loosen it for them because they needed to keep their posture. So, they would ask me to loosen it for them so they could breathe better and I was confused at first but I now know how to undo even the most confusing knots and corsets.” He places his hands on his hips proudly and both Shinsou and Bakugou snicker.

“What’s so funny?” You come out in a more comfortable dress that doesn’t reach the floor and take a seat next to Eri, who’s admiring your (f/c) dress with white long sleeves.

“You wanna tell us what happened instead?” Bakugou crosses his arms and brings out a bean bag chair, dropping himself on it.

Eri begins playing with your lantern like sleeves and Shinsou glances at her.

“The kingdom I went to visit was the Frozen Flame Kingdom..”

The mood immediately drops and they are already mentally preparing for the worst.

“The meeting went, well.. We talked about what we needed each other and I was even allowed to put in my thoughts.”

“That’s big for you.” Kirishima mentions and you nod slightly.

“It is.. But you guys know our kingdoms won’t agree with a random alliance with kingdoms that have never been together before and they have their own reputations and all that stuff..” You rub at your hands and sigh.

“King Enji, proposed an, arranged marriage..” You cover your face and they all stand, scaring Eri.

“A what?!”

“Of all the things he could have mentioned?!”

“Guys, guys! Stop it!” You stand and pull your hair away from your face.

You cast a spell towards your eyes and hold out your hands, a projection like vision coming from you.

“Like hell will I be getting arranged to be married! Especially not with her!” He points a finger in your face and you slap it away, standing.

Everyone flinches when they hear the slap, afraid it could have turned out worse for you.

“Do not stick your finger in my face, have some respect. This isn’t for us, it’s for our kingdoms, one of which you will be ruling over one day if you decide to stop acting like a child. We were raised to do this and this was always a possibility and you knew that. Had you really had a problem with that, you would have done something about it long ago rather than bursting out like you are now.”

You make the projection disappear and take a seat, grabbing one of his blankets and covering your lap when you go to lay back.

“Why didn’t you reject the proposal?” Kirishima walks to you and Bakugou pushes him away.

“Her kingdom is desperate for help and recognition. She doesn’t have a choice. If anything, her mom probably didn’t let her give an input after that.” Bakugou crosses his arms and you sniffle, quickly wiping away your tears.

“I just, I don’t know if I’m mad or upset or, I don’t know.” You cover your face and Shinsou sits next to you.

“Well, maybe you’re sad. You were only just let out to be alive and you’re already about to get married. Maybe you’re sad you think your life is over before it started.” He rubs your arm and both Bakugou and Kirishima open their arms in a ‘What the fuck’ motion.

“Or, you could look at it this way.” He helps you sit up and you don’t look at him.

“You can be like Bakugou’s parents who go out and have fun whenever they want, or like Kirishima’s parents who run a kingdom full of amazing creatures and beings and have so many friends because of how fun carefree they are. Or like mine, who run a kingdom with felines and are partnered with people who don’t fit into just one category. There’s so many things you can do now that you’re probably going to get married, it doesn’t have to be all bad.”

You nod slightly and lean your head on his shoulder, everyone giving you sad and worried expressions.

Eri scoots in between you two and you glance down at her.

“Seems she already likes you.” Shinsou whispers and you put down an open hand for her and she takes it, squeezing it softly.

@tenkomybeloved

Fallen Stars, Frozen Hearts pt.5

Pairing: Prince!Todoroki x Reader ✨

Warnings: none

Word Count: 3k

You take out your phone and look at the screen as you pass through a portal, seeing a few messages come in.

You turn off your phone and lean your head on the wall of the carriage, opening the curtain to your window slightly and jumping when you see the man upside down, hanging from your roof.

“Be a darling and open the window for me, I’m getting nauseous.” He knocks on the window and you shake your head.

“What do you mean no? Open it.”

“This carriage doesn’t have that option.” You say and he seems surprised by your casual tone.

You don’t sense much ill intent on him, considering the fact that if he just wanted to kidnap you, he could have the second he kissed your hand.

Stupidly, you open the carriage door and he slips in, raising a brow when you close it and take a seat. You gesture to the seat behind him and he slowly takes a seat.

“Something’s wrong with you.” He suddenly says and you frown.

“That’s rude. I just let you in my carriage when you’ve shown you’re a threat and then you insult me.” You throw at him and he tilts his head.

“You know I’m a threat, and yet you still let me into your carriage?”

“If you wanted to do something to me, you would have done so already the second you got close to me.” You raise a brow at him and he crosses his arms.

“How do you know I’m not waiting for the perfect moment?” He smirks, thinking he’s won.

“You had multiple perfect moments and yet here you are, casually having a conversation with me. In fact, I gave you the perfect moment when I let you in here, and you have your guard down.” You cross your arms as well and he wipes his lip with his thumb, staring at you.

“Fuck, that’s hot..” He mumbles and you blink.

“What?”

“Nothing.” He disregards his comment and you peek outside again.

“You seem new.”

“To the kingdom?”

“The world.”

You let out a small laugh, closing the curtain.

“I guess you could say that.”

“I’ll tell you what. You keep letting me talk to you like this and contact you, and maybe you’ll get something in return.”

“And what would that be?”

“Information.”

“On?”

“Everything. The other kingdoms, everyone’s secrets, the villains.” He leans his elbows on his knees and you sit up.

“Why would I care about any of that when I have my own kingdom to worry about.”

“Come on princess, you can lie to everyone’s face and pretend, but you can’t lie to me.” He smiles and you look to the ground.

“How would that benefit you? You’re telling me about something that you’re involved with. What would you want in return for all that?”

He chuckles and looks you up and down again.

“Smart girl.” He leans back and places his left ankle on his right knee, exposing one of his scars.

“You give me resources and provide a roof over my head.”

“I don’t have the power to do that. And I wouldn’t want my people to find out I’m helping a villain for information, much less providing for one when I should have put you in jail.”

“Well-”

“And what makes you so sure I’d do so when I become queen? And you can’t threaten that you’ll come for me once I become queen, because I can have you taken away the second you come near me once I do.”

He stops talking.

“Didn’t think far ahead, I see.” You smile and he chuckles, rubbing the back of his neck.

“You’re lucky you’re a smart princess or I would have fucked you already.”

“What is that?” You ask and he laughs.

“You’ll figure it out.”

“Can you show me?”

“Absolutely not. I may be a villain but I’m not gonna do that shit when you don’t even know what it is.” He picks at his staples.

“Just stay away from that kid, he’s not good for you.”

“Says the villain.”

“Hey, I have morals.”

“Concerning ones.” You smile and he huffs.

“You’re lucky I don’t feel like killing you right now, either.”

“How lovely.” You retort.

“Give me your phone.”

“No.”

“Relax, I’m only going to put my number in.”

“All the more reason not to give it to you.”

“Would you rather I send you letters or come to you in person like this? Because I don’t plan on leaving you alone.” He plays with the end of your dress and you pull it away.

“You’re asking for a death sentence if you keep this up, you know that?”

“I’ve already been deemed worthy of that sentence since I was born, princess.” He holds out a hand for your phone and you hesitate.

“Remember, it’s either me talking to you privately on your phone, or being seen by your kingdom and given a worse image. Your call.”

“It’s not my call if all options are bad.” You toss your phone into his hands and he puts his number in, placing it back into your open hand.

“I’m only a call or text away, princess.” He bows and kisses your hand, looking up at you with his icy blue eyes.

When he lets go of your hand, he calls someone and falls through his purple portal, immediately closing when he’s gone.

You sigh and close your eyes, waiting to get back.

“I’m sorry I didn’t contact you right after the ball, my parents were so worried I didn’t get the chance to.” Momo apologizes and you wave off her distress.

“It’s alright, I was okay. He didn’t hurt me.The guys came over to make sure I was okay last night anyway.” You smile and Shinsou places his chin on your head.

“Whose place are we going to today?” He asks and you slap a hand to your forehead, startling him.

“I completely forgot I have something to do after school.” You whine and Bakugou groans while walking in the classroom.

“I’m not getting another dragon, I have enough.”

“But-” Kirishima tries saying something but Bakugou turns to him.

“If you want more dragons, keep them on your side of the kingdom.”

Shinsou sighs and sits down and you sit on his desk.

“I’m sorry, I’ve been so busy lately. I’ll try to make time for us to hang out soon, yeah?” You ruffle his hair and Todoroki walks in, all eyes on him.

“You’re fine. You’re working hard on your kingdom and I get it. We just happen to be in preparation season.”

“Why do you say that?”

“In the ages of 20 to 23 we’re being more prepared for courting.”

“A-ah..” You scratch your cheek and Todoroki takes his seat.

You play with your skirt and think back to the note Queen Rei gave you.

“Pick your allies carefully, Princess. Some villains will pick you as a good target to get what they want, and some will help you. I don’t recommend it as I don’t know your kingdom’s customs, but if you can, use your magic in order to figure out their intentions. I don’t know how your coming of age works either as I am only an ice fairy, but I hope you don’t have a mate, it doesn’t always end well. I will be here for you if you’ve any questions.”

“Mate..?” You whisper and Todoroki suddenly drops his phone, clearing his throat.

“I probably shouldn’t be asking you this, but what’s a mate?” You ask Shinsou and he gives you a raised brow.

“Why the sudden interest?”

“I’ve, been hearing that a lot lately.”

He scratches his cheek and clears his throat to Bakugou and Kirishima when they sit by you.

“You guys have mates don’t you?” He asks and they both shake their heads.

“Okay, well, it’s like someone is premade for you.”

“Don’t say it like that.” Bakugou rolls his eyes and you pout.

“Like, a soul mate?” You ask and Kirishima slightly nods his head.

“Something like that. Just, more to it. If you cut off your connection to your mate, they either suffer for life or die. But from what we know of, only wolves have those. Of course, there is the off chance that you would get a second chance at a mate if or when rejected. Not many people get that.” Kirishima explains and you all look at him, surprised at his knowledge.

“I’m not even gonna ask.” Bakugou leans his cheek on his hand.

“I assume they’re under the care of the moon.” You say and Kirishima nods.

“Must be a different Moon Goddess then.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Why would a goddess potentially make you suffer with your first mate, make you cut off the connection which would hurt both of you and then find the right one? My goddess wouldn’t do that.”

“I hate to break it to you, pup. But we don’t know our gods and goddesses like that.” Bakugou reminds you.

“That’s fair.” You shrug and Shinsou places his head on your thigh.

“Maybe they did something bad in their past life?” He asks as he starts closing his eyes and you nod, agreeing.

“I guess that makes sense.” You play with his hair and he yawns.

“Do you have a mate, Bun?” Kirishima asks and you shake your head.

“Not from what I know of, no. We’re not known to have mates.” You twist Shinsou’s hair and you frown in thought.

“What, why are you making that face?” Kirishima asks.

“Now that I think about it, I never talked about that with my parents. So, I genuinely don’t know.” You brush Shinsou’s hair and his cat ears pop out as he begins purring. You smile and Todoroki stares at your smile, becoming upset.

He starts growling and you all turn to him, stopping your movements.

“What the fuck is that?”

You notice he’s staring at your hand and you lift your hand away from Shinsou. He stops.

“Ew.” You suddenly say from what Shinsou has taught you and Bakugou starts laughing when Todoroki’s eyes widen once he realizes what he was doing.

“So, what royal duties will you be completing today?” Shinsou asks, his arm wrapped around your shoulder as you all walk to the school gates.

“I have to meet with another royal family to discuss an alliance for the kingdom’s benefit and how we can help each other. How we plan to do that considering we’re off the map, I have no idea.” You smile and he sighs.

“When I become king, we’ll already be in alliance.” He smiles at you and both Bakugou and Kirishima agree. You smile and lean your head on his shoulder.

“Thanks.”

“Ah, that’s my carriage.” Shinsou stops at the gates and you let him go.

“Text me after, yeah?” He climbs in and you nod.

“Always do.” You smile and wave him off.

“Better call us before you go, too.” Bakugou pushes your shoulder and you roll your eyes playfully.

“Oh? Rolling our eyes now, are we?” He puts his hands on his hips sassily and you giggle, attempting to hold his hands as he swats you away from the physical affection.

“Wonder where she learned that from..” Kirishima comments, his hands behind his head as he whistles away nonchalantly.

“What did you say?” Bakugou starts his attack toward Kirishima and you laugh, grabbing a hold of his waist and hugging close from behind.

“Hey, hey. Relax.” You calm him down and he swats you away again.

“Back, back I say!” He keeps his distance and you make yourself look bigger, leaning forward and making your hands into claw shapes.

“Oh, my god no-” He starts swinging at you when you chase after him to tickle him.

“Pup, get the hell away from me!” He yells, running away around Kirishima.

Kirishima smiles at the way you can make him become playful after a long day, knowing he doesn’t get the chance to do so too often because of his image.

“Ah, Bun! Your carriage is here!” Kirishima yells after you and you run towards him, hurriedly giving him a hug and launching yourself into the carriage.

“I’ll see you two later!” You say laughing, out of breath.

“I’ll get your ass next time!!” Bakugou says out of breath as well, making you laugh.

Kirishima smiles down at Bakugou who is currently catching his breath.

“What.”

“I’m happy she makes you have fun. I know you don’t get to do that anymore.” He pats his back, transforming into a dragon.

“That,” He points to your retreating carriage.

“Was not having fun. That was a competition.”

“Yeah, sure, whatever you say. Just get on.” Kirishima says and turns his head away, ignoring Bakugou’s complaining as he climbs the dragon’s back.

When you get to your castle, you rush inside and compose yourself when you reach your mother’s door.

Knocking softly, you quickly fix your hair and collect your breath.

“Enter.” You hear her say.

You walk in and bow, her attention never leaving her work.

“Hello, mother.” You announce and she stops, placing down her pen.

“What is it?”

“I would like to know what colors you’d prefer I wear today.” You keep your eyes on her face and she stands up, her blood red cape fluttering above the ground. She always wore suits since you could remember. She didn’t like to wear any type of dress often, only thin ones to bed you suppose.

She stands in front of you and you keep your eyes forward on her stomach.

“Eyes up.” She says and you look her in the eye.

“I told you, you could look me in the eye.” She reminds and you blink.

“Yes, mother.”

She circles around you and nudges the center of your back, making you stand up more upright than you already are.

“Wear the puff sleeved gray one, with the heart neckline and layered back ruffle. Wear the red jewelry set I gifted you on your 15th along with the 10 pointed black and red jeweled crown tiara I gifted you for your 16th.” She tests your memory and you nod, keeping your composure.

“Of course, thank you.” You bow your head and head to the door, but stop when you remember your conversation with the boys.

“Mother?”

“Hm?” She’s already sitting back down.

“Do we have mates?” You ask and her movements pause.

“Why the sudden curiosity?” She asks slowly, her movements careful.

She does this when she hides something. For newcomers, they might just think she’s startled over the question, or she is giving you her full attention. But for you, you know she’s already coming up with multiple lies. You never left the castle for whatever reason, but whenever you stayed near your parents, you studied them.

You learned all their ways of manipulating people outside the castle and out of their interest. But you always keep one lesson in mind.

Be careful what you show your children, or else they’ll learn your tactics and perfect them in ways you never even thought could be possible.

“I’ve been hearing about it often recently. This was never mentioned in my studies and I’d like to know about it for my people.”

Twist your words from their true meaning for your benefit. If your heart doesn’t race, they won’t be able to tell you’re lying.

“We don’t. Not anymore at least.” She answers.

“What was your marriage with Okaasan based upon?”

“We chose each other as couples would.” She doesn’t blink when she says it. A lie.

“When did we last have mates in our blood line?”

“Your grandmother was the last one. The moon decided it wasn’t a blessing when their people began to suffer for those who had lost their mates. They would sometimes pass due natural causes and the one left behind would be in pain for their remaining days as if rejected. But of course, that depends on the goddess they follow. I’ve been getting recent reports on our kind having mates once again, it skips a generation every now and then. That, and it appears out of thin air sometimes.” She sifts through her sheets and you glance at them, looking back at her face just in time.

“But sometimes one half of the couple won’t have a mate bond and the other will. Which of course, complicates things at times.” She picks up her pen and you nod.

“Thank you for answering my curiosity.” You bow and leave the room, walking to your own.

You quickly get dressed and call the boys.

“Finally! We’ve been waiting too long.” Bakugou crosses his arms and you roll your eyes, letting a maid in to do your hair and make up.

“I like the dress, haven’t seen you in a dress that color yet.” Kirishima compliments and you take a seat, facing them.

“Have you been told the cause of your event?”

“No, I just know I’m meeting another family, is all I know.” You feel your maid slow her movements and you slowly turn your head towards her. She startles and continues doing your hair. Tossing your hand up in her direction, you make her temporarily deaf.

Shinsou’s eyes widen slightly in surprise and you turn back to them, an apparent scowl on your face. Bakugou laughs and Kirishima blinks, turning away as if he didn’t see anything.

“That’s one way of avoiding spies.” Bakugou leans back in his chair and Shinsou clears his throat.

“I asked my mother about mates.” You drive away from the current topic.

“What did she say?”

“She said the last one to have a mate was my grandmother. But says she’s been getting recent reports of our kind getting mates again.” You try your best not to slouch and Bakugou frowns.

“Again? Why did they disappear?”

“Because the moon decided it wasn’t a good idea.”

He makes a distasteful face and you smile.

“Doesn’t make any sense now that they’re coming back, does it?” You say and he throws his hands up in the air exasperatedly.

“Obviously the fuck not! Is that shit coming back when people are born or is it just coming up whenever the fuck it wants?”

“It’s coming ‘out of thin air’ as my mother puts it.” You make quotation marks and begin to put on your rings along with the rest of your jewelry. Your maid finishes your hair and begins doing your makeup, turning you to your side so the boys can still see you and her back isn’t to them.

“So, there’s a chance you’ll end up getting a mate?” Kirishima asks and you shrug.

“If I haven’t been born with it already, probably.”

“Why probably?”

“Because she said it skips a generation.”

“I-” Bakugou stands with his hands in the air and leaves the camera view.

“How do you know when you have a mate for your kind?”

“I’ll have to study on that, but I don’t want to talk about that right now. Toshi?” You call his attention as he takes a drink of his coffee.

“Yes?”

“When did you plan on letting us meet your parents?” You ask and he hiccups, choking on his coffee and coughing aggressively.

“Toshi!” You lean back away from your maid and stand, rushing over to his hologram window.

Bakugou takes a seat with his glass of water and looks at Shinsou’s hologram window in his room.

“The fuck happened?”

A maid quickly helps Shinsou and continuously pats his back until he gives her a signal to stop, letting her leave.

“Are you okay?” You hold your hands as if you could hold him and he takes a couple deep breaths, holding his chest and waving you off.

“Princess?” Your maid calls out and you take a seat again, keeping an unoccupied eye open to see him.

“Speaking of things I don’t want to see again,” Bakugou speaks up.

“The old hag said you guys could come over to meet them whenever you’re free.” He rolls his eyes and you smile.

“Your mother sounds lovely.” You say and he scoffs.

Once your maid is done with your makeup, she puts on your crown and you stand, releasing her from the spell and letting her leave.

You twirl in front of them and they all whistle lowly at the same time, making you blush.

“Hey!” You turn away from them and they laugh.

“You never fail to surprise me with your looks, pup.” Bakugou crosses his arms impressed and you face them again.

“You’ve only seen me like this twice.”

“And everytime I get surprised.” He smiles and your face turns red at his smile.

“I should start gifting you dresses, too.” Bakugou tilts his head and Shinsou smacks his hologram.

“Yo, quit flirting with her.”

“I’m literally not.”

“Alright, I have to go. I’ll text you guys later, okay?”

“Yes, ma’am.” They all respond in unison and hang up as you take your phone and hide it in your dress pocket, putting on your black heels and walking down to meet your mother. 

When you meet them both downstairs, they both silently approve of your attire and lead you out to the family carriage, probably three times the size of your personal carriage and step in after you.

You sit across them and keep your eyes closed, posture perfect and hands on top of one of another.

“You are to sit and listen, only speak when you are spoken to. You still have much to learn.” Your mother says and you nod, opening your eyes and looking up at them.

“I understand. May I ask something?”

“Go ahead.” Your witch mother interrupts and you inhale.

“Why was I kept inside for so long?” You ask and they seem taken aback.

“Pick a different question.” Your vampire mother demands.

“Why was I only let out now, expected to do all this at once when I should have been learning this since I was a child?”

“DIfferent question.”

“Is there a reason you don’t want the public to know about me?”

“Different question.” She says again and you close your eyes.

“I retract my request.” You turn your head from them and Queen Soleil looks up at her vampire wife who is as stoic as ever.

She looks away when she realizes, once again, she won’t comply.

When you feel the carriage shake slightly, you think of the possible kingdoms you’re going to meet.

It could be Momo’s kingdom, or even Tsuyu’s kingdom. You’re only hoping it isn’t the kingdom you least want to be at.

@pleasehurryleavemeicantbreathe

Fallen Stars, Frozen Hearts Masterlist

Pairing: Prince!Todoroki x Reader

Chapter Key: ☁️=Fluff; =Smut; =Angst; =Suggestive

MAIN LIST

BNHA LIST

Summary: The world you live in is filled with thousands of supernatural beings with multiple kingdoms to keep peace. Mixing supernatural entities is against the rules, but only now are people learning to be okay with it because of you. You’re seen as a blessing but also a curse, and only few kingdoms are willing to connect with yours, meaning you will have to whatever it takes to restore the trust in your kingdom, even if it means getting married with one of the worst and most dangerous kingdoms known to man.

Part 1

Part 2 ☁️

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5☁️

Part 6☁️

Part 7☁️

Part 8 ☁️

`Some things never changes`

A redraw of my old fantasy art, it’s from over a year ago ✨

IM LATE BUT JUST IMAGINE ITS STILL HALLOWEEN

I didn’t get to say this earlier but thank you sm for over 1K OF YOU BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE ❤️❤️ LY

Shigaraki as Jason Voorhees, Dabi as Freddy Krueger and Toga as a female Chucky

➡️IGTWTTR

()

(part one)

(part two)

pairing:king!bakugo x fem!reader

genre:slowburn, royalty au, strangers to lovers to haters, angst, smut

summary:what is katsuki supposed to do when you come back when he thought that you were good as dead? how is he supposed to live on with his life when the love of his life has returned?

warnings (mdni 18+):angst, cheating, smut, soft sex ish, (characters are aged up to 20’s), fingering (female receiving), cum eating, corruption!kink, loss of virginity

note:comments and reblogs are always appreciated! also, this is the last part i will be writing so please don’t ask for a third part!

word count: 10.5k+

mha masterlist

There was a sense of grief, hidden in that unspoken quietness.

In which two lost souls stared aimlessly at each other, fingers etching to hold on another, to have skin touch skin, just barely, until each other’s hearts were intertwined just as they weren’t meant to be, written in the by the strings of fate.

One sat up, one arm steadying his body as his duvet fell, revealing his marked-up chest, heavy with years of battle scars, the hand that lay atop it sliding off as he looked straight ahead.

Solemn eyes widen a bit, one foot taking you back as you step behind, hands nervously wringing together as you look up at the soldier who had brought you here, silently asking him why he thought that would be a good idea judging by the ring on his finger.

His lips moved in the shape of your name, hands shaking as he blinked once, twice, rubbing at his eyes as he glanced at the soldier behind you, slowly swinging one leg over the other as he rose from his bed, taking long strides until he came face to face with you.

In all your dreams and nightmares, you never imagined yourself in this position. There was a bit of embracement that came with it, knowing that you had finally given up, but what more could you do? They would have burned you once they found out you were dead.

But he seemed like he had seen a ghost. Face pale, eyes shining a brilliant red, swimming with various emotions as he took you in, the face of somebody he told himself repeatedly he’d never see again. Perhaps in another life, but never here. Not when he was alive and living with his title.

A gentle hand raised up, slow and delicate as it made contact with your face, a small sound of pain, perhaps regret, coming from his lips as your head dropped into his hold, eyes watery as you shut them, taking one step closer as his other hand was quick to bring you to his chest.

Was this a new paradise? Had he died during his sleep? He wouldn’t be opposed to it, not ever. If it was you that was truly in front of him, the woman who plagued his mind with every waking moment he lived.

“Katsuki?”

The two of you snapped away from each other at the voice, and it seemed as though he remembered just where he was, that the ring on his finger wasn’t just for show and that the woman in his bed wasn’t just another late night fuck.

“Is everything alright?”

And you looked worriedly over his shoulder at the woman that hurriedly put her robe on, fixing her long hair as she took padded steps to her fiance, a hand on his shoulder as she glanced at you.

“Do we have a visitor?”

Your lips pressed into a wobbly line, looking over to the soldier once more as he gave the two royals a grim stare.

You cleared your throat, giving her a small smile you hoped wouldn’t give your true feelings away as you shook your head, trying to smooth out the wrinkles in your old tunic as you gave them their well-respected bows.

“Your majesty,” You handed them a piece of paper, charred at the sides with burns, smelling of distant smoke as your house was so many ways away, “I have come asking for asylum.”

—

Beneath the star-scattered sky, the party flourishes with true delight and splendor.

Loud yells of excitement come from different people, women fanning their faces as the men lean in, listening intently to what they had to say, large smiles on their faces as they twirled around, the music growing some noises out as the violinists play in perfect harmony with their piano counterpart.

You watch happily from above, leaning over the stone railing as you’re cleverly concealed by a large bouquet of flowers, glad that you’re here and not in a ditch somewhere far away.

“Are ya’ not going?”

You glanced to the side, ducking your face down at the fact that you were caught, looking at the scene behind you as you let out a quiet sigh.

You were glad, however, that it was only Izuku. Out of all the knights of the seventh men, you were more than elated. It was the freckled green-haired man you had come to know over the past couple of months. Anybody else, and they might have kicked you out.

“Sorry for scarin’ ya,” He said sheepishly as he made his way towards you, almost testing the waters, but seeing that you were too distracted by the party below, you didn’t care all that much.

“It’s quite alright,” You answered, glancing at him for a second before you went back to looking down below.

“I can admire the view from up here,” You say, making some room for the man as he moves to stand beside you, “’S not so bad, you know,” It was true, really. It was deserted, but it was a sanctuary nobody seemed to realize was there.

“You’ll certainly be missed, then,” He said, more to himself, under his breath, and was almost glad you missed it with the roar of party-goers applauding Katsuki and Kō twirled around, his fiance’s magnificent dress shining a multitude of colors, illuminated perfectly by the candles that were perched on every wall.

You felt his shoulder gently bumping yours as you let out a soft breath, shyly glancing over as you assessed his uniform, noting that he had shed his usual chunky armor and had chosen to wear a more flexible and breathable piece of clothing.

“Are you not standing guard tonight?” You asked and watched as Izuku shook his head, fingers tracing the carved patterns of the rails as he looked down below.

“Denki and Kirishima are the ones on duty, thankfully,” He added, giving a melodramatic sigh as you giggled, noticing how his shoulders were still heavy from the weight they were used to carrying, how he seemed to grip the railing as if his feet would give way from beneath him.

He, along with many of his comrades, was spectacular at hiding his true exhaustion, you had come to learn over the past couple of months. They had ways to fight, families to protect, grounds they had to patrol, and they did an astonishing job at masking it all with a happy facade.

You didn’t say anything for a couple of minutes, the silence comfortable enough to allow you to search below for a particular shade of blonde, scanning, and scanning until you found it, twirling his lover around as she said something, and you watched as Katsuki leaned down, his lips brushing over her ear as he looked around, shaking his head as they continued to dance.

You didn’t know him well, and vice versa, but he had seen you around sometimes, had the pleasure of making conversation with you, and had been able to observe well enough to read the silent emotions that you did well of hiding from most people.

Looking away, you balanced your back on the railing, hands over your chest as you pouted, and Izuku had to control the urge to coo at just how cute you seemed to be when irritated.

“You really should go,” You spoke, and Izuku looked behind his shoulder at you, his eyebrow cocked as he waited for you to say more, “You just came back from the trenches, right?” You waited for his response, and he nodded slowly.

At that you laughed, truly, for the first time, enjoying just how lost he seemed to be when it came to human interaction that didn’t involve talks of battle.

“Then go enjoy yourself!” You gave his arm a slight nudge, but he stayed put, shaking his head as he bashfully looked into the crowd, hoping it would hide the embarrassing blush that overtook his cheeks.

“I’m not a fan of condensed masses,” He admitted, “Ya’ never know when something’s about to happen,” And you supposed that given his background, he probably wouldn’t be a fan out loud noises, either.

“Well,” You looked down at your shoes, “Thank you for joining me. It does get awfully quiet sometimes when it’s just me most of the time,” You gave him a small small, and he reciprocated it, waving you off as if it was nothing.

But it was more than nothing, to you. Ever since the night you had come asking for asylum, Katsuki was swift in giving it to you, no questions asked as he made the southern palace yours. Albeit, a little bit confused because you seemed intent on never speaking to him again the last time he had seen you.

Of course, people aside from him were curious as to who you were, wondering what you had done to convince their cruel king to quickly give you anything you asked for. The woman by his side, Kō, you had come to learn, the very one who had become the bane of your existence, felt more so threatened by the way her fiance seemed to drop anything he was doing to aid to your needs.

And you guess you should blame yourself for part of it. Instead of leaving the moment he gave you your freedom, you stayed. The beds seemed too warm and the food so well made that you caved, living in your imaginative land of bliss as he worked at your beck and call.

As word floated around the palace, more people seemed to take their to-be-queens side, looking down on you from their noses as you walked by, whispering things to one another as you ate quietly on the side, and had decided, almost indefinitely, that you were to be the concubine once Kō was made a true royal of the south.

So, given the fact that you knew how in demand Izuku seemed to be with the women down below, with just how many people wanted to talk to him at all times, and with the probability of being most likely aware of the negative buzz that surrounded you, you were grateful that he came and rid your mind of all your swarming thoughts, even if that wasn’t his initial intention.

“I’m happy to be here,” He said and you grinned to yourself, looking away to hide the certain giddiness that filled your little heart. How long had it been since somebody had been this kind towards you? You hated how your mind immediately went to the cave and Katsuki and his gentle hands.

You opened your mouth to say something, but your gaze focused on something behind him, shutting up when the figure got into view, heart beating rapidly, blood roaring to your cheeks as you saw him, his eyes focused on yours as he walked towards you, his crimson cape, the shade of shed blood, swayed behind him.

Izuku noticed your divert of attention, looking behind him as he instantly stood straighter, one fist curled over his heart, the other behind his back as he folded at the waist, the way knights were supposed to greet their kings.

“Your majesty,” He scrambled to find words to say, “Is there any way I can be of aid to you?” The expected reaction, but Katsuki waved it aside, flicking his hand away, and Izuku easily got the hint, giving him a swift nod as he walked away, peeking back at you as he gave you a tilted smile, his green hair fading from view as he walked down the spiral stairs that led to the party.

Once he was sure he was out of sight and earshot, Katsuki was swift in his movements, moving closer to you as he pulled your hand into his, nuzzling his face into your neck as he wrapped his arm around your waist, lips hovering over the skin of your jaw, not knowing the way it played little tricks on your mind, forcing you to forget just where you were and just who you happened to be.

“Did'ya not like the dress?” He pulled away, and you wholly abhorred the way your body moved in sync with his, with just how much you longed to be held by him, even though it was he who you laid awake at night because.

But you resisted the urge to pull him deeper into yourself, to smell his warm cologne, to feel his lips against yours, but you shook your head, taking a step back as you looked anywhere but him.

“The dress was most undoubtedly beautiful,” You admitted with a wrinkled nose, heat burning under your skin as he enclosed your hand in his, his searing lips finding purchase on your arm, planting little kisses as he trailed upwards, stopping just as your collarbone as you pulled away once more from him.

“Then why didn’t ya’ wear it?” He finally got the hint, moving away as he gave you some room, his decorated chest full of medals of honor and military recognizations, the same necklace you remembered him wearing many nights ago still hanging around his neck.

You looked at him as if he had gone mad, and you truly wondered if he had, if those nightshade berries he had eaten had messed with his way of thinking, but he seemed confused at your perplexed expression.

“What?” You scoffed at him for even asking that, for wondering like he had done nothing wrong, “Did'ya want another dress?

You squeezed your eyes shut, your lips pinched together as you shook uncontrollably, pain seizing you when you felt his calloused hands rest atop your cheek, just as they always seemed to do like they were tailored perfectly so that your face would fit perfectly in his hands.

"Go back to your wife, Katsuki,” You warned, pushing his hand roughly away, but he didn’t budge, resilience in his stance as his jaw ticked.

“She’s not my fuckin’ wife.” He snapped and you rolled your eyes, glancing at the engagement ring on his finger, and he heaved a heavy sigh, wringing it off as he pocketed it.

But he knew it was more than that. Knew that she was the person who put a rift between the two of you, and could only guess that it was salt in the wound when you returned to find her splayed over him as if she was the owner of his heart.

If only you knew just how much you had a grip on his reality, on his every waking moment, of the fact that every second he was alive he was worried about you, discreetly glad that he could worry about you, that you were here in the flesh and he could hold you just as he longed to do.

“Why her?” The words barely made it out as you choked on them, the question that weighed on your mind ever since you had seen her that night, wondering what he had to be thinking to go back to the woman that left him for his rival only to come wailing back when even he didn’t want her.

And he didn’t know what to say. Why her? He truly didn’t know. Was it because she was so beautiful he couldn’t resist it when she pounded on his chest, crying as she begged to be accepted back to the life she threw away? Was it because in those scarce moments he could see the old girl she used to be?

But how could he say that he imagined it was you every moment he was with her? How could that be fair to you if you heard he only imagined, but never cared enough to actually go to you, to apologize, to be with you once more?

So as the party below continued with endless dancing, as his fiance looked around aimlessly for where her partner was to no avail, he could only pull you into his chest, his hand running up and back the slope of your back as he rested his chin atop your head.

He was a fool, but even he was going towards the point of no return if he continued going on like this.

—

With every nasty side-eye you got, you decided it is best to stay away from the majority of people and venture out when it got closer and closer to nighttime.

You tried to find work outside the palace, but it seemed that word of you even trickled down to the common folks, how somebody was lurking around the halls waiting to pray upon their king, so no matter how much you pleaded and told them you meant no harm, they slammed the door on your face once they realized who you were.

You strayed far away from Katsuki, though it was a rather difficult task seeing that this was his home and he had the liberty to go wherever he pleased.

But despite all that, you were rather good at avoiding him, hiding behind corners when he passed by or pretending to be asleep whenever he came knocking in the dead of night.

Deep down, you truly longed to see him.

To be where you were a year ago, where it was just the two of you in that cave, where he helped you pick your berries and hunt your fish and the days blend into each one another. It was a peaceful time, although it didn’t seem so long ago.

And in all honesty, you swore to never go looking for him again, really, you did. But then the fires started to burn, most likely set aflame from the north in retaliation to the east, and everything around you began to burn, and you had to run before they found you alive.

Your situation could have been worse, you try to tell yourself, you could be starving and without a place to sleep, this wasn’t the worse it could have turned out to be.

But you never expected to come back to him and that girl, the very one he’d talk in his sleep about and the very one who tore your heart to pieces when he whispered her name when he held you close to him.

So, you stayed away. It was the least you could do from splitting your mind apart in frustration whenever you saw him walking around.

And, you preferred to stay awake regardless. It reminded you of your days back in the forest, when you stayed up to see the stars, the occasional shooting one flying through the onyx sky as you watched them form into your own constellations that you had named for yourself.

The garden, despite its marvelous size, was never fully appreciated, let alone the time you visited it. You weren’t aware there were so many different types and shapes and smells of flowers before, and you took your time as you ducked your face into the endless array of bushes, catching a big whiff of them as you leisurely stroll through, fingers hovering over their leaves as you burned them into your memory.

“D'ya always like to hide in difficult-to-find places?”

You jumped at the voice, whipping around as your erratic heart stopped its frenzied thumping, placing a hand over your chest as you settled slightly, seeing that it was only Izuku and he seemed rather guilty for scaring you for the second time.

“I wouldn’t say this is the most difficult place to hide,” You taunted and he rubbed the back of his neck, grinning as he looked around, noticing that you had strayed far from the palace, almost nearing the large meadows that separated it from the rest of the world.

“Though it certainly isn’t the least concealed, either,” He joked and you laughed softly, a gentle twinkling sound as you began your pacing around, feeling a little bit safer now that he was here.

“I like these flowers,” You stated, gnawing on your lips as you touched a violet one, shining brilliantly in the moonlight, “And unfortunately this is the only time I can admire them.” You looked back at him as you winked, going back to your flowers quickly enough to miss the way his face blushed red.

“Do ya’ sleep durin’ the day?” He questioned gently as he began walking behind you, respectful as he gave you some space between your bodies, his hands behind his back as he looked at the wide exhibition of bushes.

You shook your head, shrugging as your fingers grazed over the delicate petals, careful not to drag them down and potentially ruin them.

“I just prefer being by myself,” You said, but quickly added, “Most of the time.” When you noticed him looking worried as if he had barged in.

“I hope I’m an exception?” His eyes shined a brilliant green, darker than the stems of the flowers in front of you, but likewise an emerald color as it caught in the light of the moon.

You almost got lost in them, forgetting to answer as you stuttered, glancing at the roses in front of you as you quickly nodded.

“Of course, you’re always an exception.” You stopped walking, giving him a teasing grin, now noticing just how much he towered over you as you both paused.

The stillness came back, but you welcomed it. The cicadas that chirped to the breeze that came in and played with your little wisps of hair, it was a gentle night.

“How’s the palace treatin’ ya’?” Izuku glanced at you from the corner of his eyes, a hint of worry lacing through his tone. He had sent the way you refused to anywhere where most people seemed to be.

“Better than it should be,” You cheekily divulged, but there was something more in your voice, a hint of gloom that he was able to pick up on.

“Ya’ sure?” He hoped he wasn’t pressing too hard, losing you when you had just started getting comfortable with him.

You gave a stiff nod, crossing your arms over your nightgown as you shrugged again, waving it all aside as if it was of no worry, nothing to fret for him.

“Most indefinitely,” You said, your voice joking, and a part of him relaxed hearing it.

You looked at his scarred hands, noticing a small ring that adorned his fourth finger.

“Do you have somebody waitin’ for you?” You jutted your chin to his hand and he followed its movement, quick to shake his head as he hid his hand behind his back.

“No! Uh, no, actually,” He gave an awkward laugh, “I used to have somebody waitin’, but,” He trailed off, and you could pick up on his obvious discomfort about the subject.

“Sorry for asking,” You said, slightly ashamed for butting in on his personal life, but he immediately perked up, upset in his eyes as he waved your nervousness aside.

“It’s nothing! Promise,” He chuckled, something deep and throaty, a sound that you had never heard before but was certain in setting a part of you to ignite, “No harsh feelings.” He wanted to kick himself for just how inelegant he made any and every situation he seemed to be in with you.

But to his surprise, you laughed, throwing your head back as you poked his side, your finger barely making a dent in his armor, but you still did it anyway.

“For a knight, you seem awfully friendly,” You were now looking up at him, eyes full of novelty and inquisitiveness.

Gods, he wondered to himself, this must be why his king was so enamored by you.

“I take that as a good thing, hopefully?” You nodded, giving him a kind smile as you looked back to the grand palace behind him, to the way the stars twinkled so brightly, and gave out a slight yawn, rubbing your eyes as you made your way back in.

“More than a good thing,” You assured him as he followed you back, his clanky armor making you giggle as he sighed in annoyance, something he had to, unfortunately, deal with on a regular basis.

As you neared the grand doors that lead to the courtyard, you realized that this is where you parted ways, as Izuku had to rotate to the back now as he shifted his routine with the men over there.

You cleared your throat, looking back as you glanced over to him, giving his uncovered hand a small squeeze as you grinned.

“Thank you for sparing a bit of time for me,” You balance your weight on the balls of your feet, having to crane your neck a little to truly see him.

He waved his arm, rubbing at his undercut as he shrugged bashfully, glimpsing at you from under his long lashes and he gave you an extensive and friendly smile.

“Anything’ for ya’, m'lady,” And you didn’t have time to notice as he brought your hands to his lips, giving it a tiny kiss as he winked, waking away as he meets with his other friends, earning some suspicious glances as they looked at you and then to him.

You rubbed your skin where his lips last were, and though you wanted so deeply to feel giddy at the gesture, all you could do was look at the palace, at the large balcony that extended into the king’s quarters, and wish he were someone else that placed the kiss there.

—

Three thumps that sounded from behind your door startled you awake.

You glanced at the clock, the two hands telling you that it was too early in the morning, far too early for anybody other than the servants and knights to be awake, and as you groggily rubbed at your eyes, tiredly making your way to the door as you cracked it open to check what was happening, you gasped.

To your surprise, there was an abnormal amount of guards, some running, others shouting to each other, maids screaming as they ran down the stairs, and as you went out to see more of what was happening, two large hands pushed you roughly back into your room.

Looking up you were met with two eyes, shining a bright vermillion as his chest heaved up and down, raking over you as he assessed your features, clearly not thinking anything unusual of his sudden intrusion.

“What the fuck is happening? Katsuki, what..” You watched as he awkwardly shuffled next to you, slamming his palm over the door, pressing the side of his face to it as listened, content with what he heard as he left, locking it instantly.

“Hurry. Don’t speak.” He warned, holding a finger to his lips to shush your frantic rambling.

He went to the corner of your room, opening up the small wardrobe that stood in the corner, feeling for something as you heard a small click, and he pointed to it, the backing behind it slamming open as you walked slowly towards it, quickly looking back to the door when you heard loud yelling, and Katsuki was quick to grab you, pushing you inside as he followed in behind you.

The doors to the wardrobe closed as he followed in behind you, the door to the hidden alcove shutting in unison as you squeezed inside.

“What is happening? Katsuki-”

“Raid. Northern rebels.” Is all he gave as an expansion as he pushed you in deeper, a small little room coming into view the more you ventured.

You felt your heart stop at his words. Undoubtedly he had to be jesting for cruel amusement.

It was them who burnt the forest down, ruined your life, and you wanted to gauge their eyes out that now they had decided to set flame to the utopia you were just beginning to build up again.

“Wh-what?” You looked behind you but he shielded your eyes as he pushed you into the opening, a little mattress situated in one corner, cans of food in the other, and he quickly got to work in shutting the door that led into the tiny room.

Despite it being closed off from virtually everything, there was a surprising amount of airflow, so much so that you shivered, your thin nightgown doing nothing to protect you from the icy wind.

“Katsuki!” You shouted, gripping his arm as he turned around, and he paused his movement, slowing down as he glanced over at you, waiting for you to speak again.

“Where are we?” Is all you could say, still looking around despite not having much to look for.

“Bunker,” He grunted, “The only way to get out is from the inside. Safe as shit,” He muttered, looking everywhere as if this had been his first time in this. Maybe it was.

You stuttered, eyebrows drawing together in bewilderment as you touched the cold stone walls that surrounded you.

“Has,” You sighed, shaking your head in confusion, “Has this always been here?” You almost wanted to look somewhere else for how ridiculous the question sounded.

It had been weeks since you had actually seen him like this, so close, and talked to him for so long, but it felt like it used to, and had you not been in such a situation you almost would have smiled fondly at the old memories that flooded through you.

“F'course,” He murmured, situating himself on the old mattress as he leaned his back against the cold wall, “Gave ya’ one of the safest rooms we have,” He groaned again, this time louder and sounded to be of more distress.

You scrunch your nose up at the smell, rubbing your tired eyes as you look back at the sealed door.

“How bad is it?” The question came out in a whisper.

How was Izuku? You shuddered at the thought. He had to be fine, you knew he could carry himself well.

Katsuki shrugged, but he lamented at that too, and you sighed as you began walking over to where he sat as you glanced over his shaking form.

“They’re holdin’ ‘em off from last I saw,” He noticed your worry, “Izuku’s on the upper level, he’s fine,” Your cheeks heated when you realized he had picked up on your budding relationship with the soldier, but it quickly vanished when he groaned again, “And-fuck,” He scratched at his clothing, “Help me get this off…” He could barely finish his sentence as he hit his head against the wall with a thud.

“I,” You stammered, “I don’t-” He cut you off, shaking his head as he could already tell what you were thinking.

“’S not what'ya think,” His fists clenched, “Just help me get this coat off,” His words slurred together and you dropped to your knees, grasping at his shoulder to hold him up, but reeled your hand back in horror when you saw that it was coated in a thick layer of blood.

“Katsu, what..” You quickly began unbuttoning his suit, your hands fumbling as they flew together, shrugging it off, the material almost sticking to his skin with the blood that glued it together.

You peeled his coat and white tunic, now stained red, off, some relief flooding your senses as you realized the cut wasn’t as shallow as it seemed to be from the outside, and it was only near his shoulder, so you should be able to clean it up with not too much difficulty.

“There should be an aid kit near the can,” He pointed to the other corner and you quickly shuffled to your feet, sifting through the cans as you found the red metallic box, running over to him as you found some gauze and alcohol in its little compartments.

You had to admit it had been a while since you had actually used any of these things, as the forest could only offer so much for medical assistance. But you recall once long ago how your brother used alcohol to clean a minor cut of his with just patting it on, so you prayed you remembered how to do it in the correct manner.

You quickly patted it only, reeling back when he breathed harshly through his teeth, eyes wringing shut as he banged a closed fist on his thigh.

“W-what did I do? Are you okay?” You worriedly looked at his paling face but he bit his lip, shaking his head as he motioned for you to continue.

“Stings,” He muttered and you gnawed on your thumb, looking back on his wound as you patted the alcohol on some cotton pads you found near the gauze, no slow and careful in your movements as you dabbed it on.

Once you were sure it was as clean as you could get it, you raised his arm as best as you could with his help as you wrapped it in the flimsy material, doing it several times to make sure it was safe and secure.

His breathing evened out and he eventually cracked an eye open, another one after that he relaxed his legs on the ground, his shoulder covered in white as he rested it carefully on the stone wall behind him.

You glanced at your hands, seeing that they were still covered in red and you shuddered, whipping them on the ground, anywhere but yourself as you controlled the urge to gag.

You truly hated the sight of blood.

“Caught the backhand of a sword,” He explained, “Sorry for always pushin’ this shit on ya’,” He grumbled through his lips, peeking over at you, noting your slight queasiness, then looking over you as he made sure everything was intact, “Yer not hurt, are ya?”

You slowly shook your head, walking away as your bare feet thudded against the floor, looking over at your corner as you sat down, trying to shut him out of sight.

Katsuki watched you intently, now fully awake as you snuggled deeply into yourself, curling into your body as you shivered, refusing to look him in the eye as you tried your best to sleep.

“I can move over if ya’ want,” He declared quietly, as if not to disturb you if you were already asleep.

You weren’t, but you ducked your head deeper into your chest, pretending that you were.

—

Your eyes snapped wide open, but this time it wasn’t from loud noise or a nightmare,

It was because you couldn’t sleep a couple of minutes before having to move without feeling your tailbone crush under the rough texture of the floor.

You grumbled something, not realizing that you had awoken Katsuki in the process.

Though you guessed it was most likely sometime during the day, thanks to the lack of lighting, you could barely see anything, but you could make out a rough shadow as it came closer and closer to you.

In your state of tiredness, you could barely argue as he wrapped an arm under your knees, one behind your back as he effortlessly picked you up, acting as if he was never hurt, to begin with.

“Katsu, stop,” You whined and he snorted at your weak attempt at pushing him away, your hand just falling weakly on his chest as you subconsciously nestled deeper into his warmth.

“Yer shiverin’ like a fuckin’ leaf,” He grumbled out and you pouted in your groggy state, feeling a gentle drop as he set you on the mattress, not sensing just how much you longed to be held by him as you climbed away from his hold.

He paused, different questions he had been longing to ask you since the moment he saw your face resurfaced in his mind, but only one made its way through.

“Why’d ya’ come back?” He whispered a voice lost to the night as your eyes lay wide open staring at nothing as you asked yourself the same thing.

“I don’t know,” You admitted truthfully as you shut your eyes.

Katsuki watched your back to his fall with gentle breaths, and he smiled gently, trying his best to fall asleep as your little puffs of air rocked him to sleep.

—

You don’t remember how it came to be, but you felt a gentle hand running up and down your neck, fingertips barely there as they carefully hovered over your skin, but you couldn’t really be one to point fingers as you felt yourself sleeping deep into the comfort of his chest.

Looking up you saw that his eyes were closed and he was most likely asleep and subconsciously doing this, so you pulled carefully away, only to realize that he had an iron grip and refused to let you go.

“Katsuki,” You whispered, poking gently at his good shoulder, “Wake up, come on,” And it felt just as though you were back in that cave, waking up in his arms as his eyes slowly opened, his hand stopping as he pulled away.

He groaned as he sat up, rubbing a hand down his face as he gave a loud yawn, peeking at the door, contemplating deep on his train of thoughts.

“Mornin’,” He said with another yawn, though you even doubted it was near the actual time.

“Morning,” You greeted, stomach rumbling as you gradually moved toward the tower of canned goods, sifting through them until you found some fish you guessed would satiate your hunger as you came back, giving a slight tug on the top as it opened up.

It smelled fine, great, even, and you held it out to Katsuki as you picked one out, eating slowly to make sure it tasted alright.

“Ya’ got a thing for fish of somethin’?” He asked as he nibbled on it, looking at you from the corner of his eyes as you laughed peacefully, shrugging as you pulled out another one.

“Are you gonna’ complain?” You watched as he quickly shook his head, going back for another one as you snorted softly.

The two of you ate in silence, an uncomfortable feeling washing over you as you looked intently at the door.

“Where’s Kō?” It was a question you had to ask, not because you wanted to ruin everything or because you were nosy, simply because he was his to-be-wife and you truly wondered where she was, if not the safest place in the palace.

You glanced over at him, watched as his jaw ticked, red eyes swimming with fury as he glimpsed down at his lap.

“In another bunker with her maids,” He explained, not looking up as you scooted closer to him, your shoulders almost touching as you turned the can over to him once again.

“Then why were you here?” His eyes skirted up to yours, searching for what your true intentions were, only to be met with the curiosity and kindness he had fallen in love with, his heart beating erratically in the limited space of his chest, coming short on air as your lips puckered into a little pout, waiting for him to answer.

“Was wakin’ around and happened to be here,” He lied to his teeth and you rolled your eyes at how obvious it was.

“Ya’ sure that’s the truth?” You poked his left arm and he gave in easily, picking out another fish slowly as he chewed for a couple of seconds.

“Came to make sure you were okay,” He conceded, not meeting your glare as you hastily set the can of fish aside, astonished at his admission.

“Katsuki,” You dropped your hands, going to close around his as you squeezed them tightly, “You have to stop, what about Kō? She’s your fuckin’ fiance! This isn’t-” He cut you off, writing his hands out as he stood up, blonde hair looking crazed as ran a hand through it.

“Isn’t what, huh? Good? Healthy? Gonna’ tell me what is better? That now I gotta know that you’re alive 'n healthy and yer here and I can’t do a fuckin’ think about it?” His red eyes bored into yours, full of an emotion you had never seen, his chest heavy as pain seared in his left shoulder.

You slowly stood up, walking carefully towards him as you placed a soothing hand on his bandage, trying to get him to stop from potentially hurting himself even more.

“Katsuki, please, sit down,” He gripped onto your hands, not roughly by any means, but holding them as if they were his lifeline, his anchor between reality and fiction. His were much larger and easily enveloped yours as he took a step forward, closing the gap that was between the two of you.

“STOP,” He snapped, fury traveling all through his body as he seethed, “Stop pretending like you bein’ here is normal. For months I see ya’ walking around, actin’ like nothin’ ever happened. A-and I know, I know I fucked it up, I know that, but Y/n…” He trailed off, choking as he pressed his fist to his lips to keep them from trembling, taking advantage of your silence to continue.

“I came lookin’ for ya’,” He said, staring at the ground, “Took a couple of my men and went to the forest. Knew it all by heart,” He gave an expressionless laugh, “And ya’ know what I saw?” He finally looked up at you, eyes filled with tears, fat tears that fell down the slope of his face as they splattered on the floor.

You could barely shake your head, let alone speak, as you stared at him, eyes wide, innocent hands trying to reach out for him as he controlled a sob.

“All of it,” He motioned with a hand as if it was right there, “Burned to the fuckin’ ground. None of the trees were left, creek was all dried up. N’ you were nowhere. Not in your fuckin’ cave, or in any of the towns, no-fuckin-where,” His voice jolted again, breath lodged up in his throat as he looked directly at you, “Do ya’ k-know,” His voice shook with heavy emotions, “D'ya know what I thought when I saw that shit? Though you were fuckin’ dead. Never thought I’d see your face again,” He bits the inside on his cheek, looking away in shame, a twinge of embracement as you slowly made your way towards him, not fast enough as he resumed.

“Then I wake up one night to knock on my door and yer there. Breathin’ and smilin’ and made me think I had finally made my peace with whatever fuckin’ god there is up there. That finally I could have ya’ all to myself again. Gods, Y/n, d'ya have any idea how fuckin’ happy I was? Felt like I could carry the world on my shoulders and you in my hands if ya’ asked me to. Hell, I’d do anythin’ you ask my t'do…” He trailed off, rambling more to himself as you dropped your hands to his shaking ones, weaving your fingers through them as you brought another careful one to his cheek, directing his face back towards yours as your lips wobbled in unison with his.

“Did you really come back?” You whispered, words sticking on your tongue, barely passing out as a proper sentence, but Katsuki understood, nodding in your hands, leaning into them as he gave a small kiss to your palm.

“I’ll always come back for ya’, Y/n,” His words carried themselves around you, working as a magnet as you felt your lips crashing onto his, searing as he was quick to pull you into his body, one large hand on the purchase of your back, the other behind your neck as his lips moved in furious tandem against yours.

Unlike the last time, it wasn’t hot or swift, you felt as his lips moved slowly against yours, savoring their taste as his tongue slipped in, his hands warm against your body as he pulled you into his chest.

There was longing and pain, full of desire and heartbreak, and you felt your eyes water up, tears slipping down your cheeks as they fell into your lips, their salty taste flooding into your mouths.

Katsuki instantly pulled away, looking over your face to see if he had hurt you, had gone too far, but your head fell on his shoulder, hiding all your emotions from view.

“Darlin’,” He started, a steady hand on your back, not realizing just how much it felt like an anchor you so desperately needed, “What’s wrong, huh? Ya’ hurt? Want me to stop?” His calloused fingers lifted your chin up, cooing quietly as his thumb wipe those tear marks away, eyes the color of rubies picked deep from the earth’s surface shining with a newfound dread as they bored into yours.

You slowly shook your head, lips wobbling as your hands snaked around his back, squeezing him, hoping he’d never let go.

“It’s been so long,” You whimpered, voice shaking as some more tears fell, “So long,” And he couldn’t ask for what because it had been so long since you were held like this, looked at like you mattered, kissed as if you meant to be loved, so long since you felt whole again that you didn’t know what to do.

“Oh, darlin’,” He pleaded, pulling back as he kissed your cheeks, your nose, the corners of your eyes as he gave you a gentle smile, “Stop yer cryin’, yeah? Hate seein’ that pretty face of yours all miserable like this,” He gave your thighs a small squeeze and you gave a wet laugh, pulling him closer to you as you nestled your head into the crook of his neck.

“I missed you so much,” You said against his skin, sending shivers down his spine, “Was so lonely without you,” You muttered as you pressed little kisses along his collarbone, trailing up as they turned needy, sucking on his neck as he let out a guttural groan.

“Shit, Y/n, yer gonna leave a mark,” He could barely speak, lips caught between his teeth as you looked up with that innocent gaze, bottom lip smeared in spit as you pouted, pressing another kiss near his lips as you tugged on his fingers.

“But I want to,” You whined slightly, “Wanna mark your neck up so fuckin’ much that Kō knows you’re mine,” His eyes were blown out, pupils enlargened as he let out a soft moan, his hand rough as they pushed you roughly into him, lips attacking yours as you moaned into his mouth.

“Yer just a bitch in heat aren’tcha?” His hands slipped under your nightgown as he tugged on your nipple, twisting it as you whined, head falling down as you panted, “Some fuckin’ attention and you turn into a moanin’ mess?” He easily slipped the rest of the tunic off, licking and tugging on your nipples with his teeth as tears made their way into your eyes.

“Katsu,please, just” You let out a breathy moan, “J-just fuck me already,” You pleaded, guiding his hand down south as he smirked, palming your pussy as your head fell onto his bandaged shoulder.

“You fuckin’ whine so much,” He muttered, a hand slipping into your pants, another two fingers forcing their way into your mouth as you chocked around them, the pads pressing down on your tongue as spit formed around your lips.

He watched in awe as he roughly pulled your underwear aside, eyes wide at the way you dripped down messily on your thighs, your glistening essence shining brightly on his fingers as he gently hovered a finger over your dripping hole.

“Ya’ always gotta make a mess for me, yeah?” He could barely contain his own moans as he plunged a finger in, almost forgetting at how well you sucked him in, the way he had to control himself from plowing into you the second he started pumping his fingers in and out.

You were a whining mess on his thighs, letting yourself be ravaged by the man beneath you, mouth falling open in a silent scream as his other hand, wet with your spit, traveled down to rub furious circles on your clit, only adding to the tightening sensation you felt in your tummy.

As he quickens his movements you almost scream at the way you see white, eyes closing tightly as your release comes quickly, coming all over his fingers as your chest heaved, making even more of a mess of his pants and your thighs.

You saw through blurry vision as he slowly pulled out of your folds, licking you off his fingers as he moaned at the taste, his forehead lining with sweat and arousal as he watched you panting on tip of him.

“Katsu, lemme,” You went for his zippers, pulling them down weakly as you tried to recover from your orgasm, but he gingerly gripped your wrist, giving you a small peck on the lips as he put a hand over your knees, one behind your back as he carried you back to the mattress.

“Nah darlin’, today’s your day, we’ll do that another time,” He promised, kissing away your tears as you whined as your back hit soft material, squirming around as you watched him take his pants off, tugging his underwear down as quickly as he could as his cock sprang out, hitting his stomach as you whined at the sight.

He watched as you parted your thighs, your arousal dripping down as you pleaded for him to come closer, trying to grab his dick with your little hands, but he could barely think straight as he crawled atop you, pressing tiny kisses on your lips, letting you taste yourself on him as he parted your legs more with his knees.

“Shit, yer so fuckin’ gorgeous,” He muttered to himself, eyes rolling back as your dainty hands worked up and down his shafted, tugging slightly on the tip, pressing your thumb on it as you smeared his precum around, “Fuck, just like that darlin’, shit,” He panted, and almost wanted to cry as he pulled you away, knowing that this was a mean for his atonement, he had to show you just how much he cared.

He could barely hear through the blood roaring in his ears as he aligned himself with your abused hole, and the two of you let out moans in unison as he slowly sank in, bit by bit, your pussy sucking him in deeper as he placed two hands on your hips to steady himself.

“Katsuki…please…more,” You whined, head lolling to the side, tongue slipping out as your eyes rolled to the back, the stretch painful but you loved it, loved the way his veins felt as they dragged against your tight walls.

“Darlin’, stop, shit, yer so fuckin’ tight,” He bottomed out, holding the position for a couple of seconds as he let your get adjusted to his length, knowing this was the first time you had ever felt something like this before.

You cracked an eye open, looking at him as he shuddered, his hands finding yours as they intertwined, his other hand groping your tits as he pulled out slowly, just enough to slam back down into you, making you scream as he continued to pound into your tiny hole.

“Katsu, yes! Please, faster…ugh…” Your toes curled at the way he refused to stop, at how the tip almost hit your cervix, at how the little hairs at his base tickled your clit, making you gush even more around him, sucking him deeper into your velveteen walls.

“Gonna be addicted to this shit, fuck Y/n, yer amazin’,” His hips slammed at a rhythm, your tits jiggiling with his every move as he continued to fuck you as roughly as he could, and you knew that even know he was controlling himself from going all out on your virgin pussy.

His hand slipped down to your clit as he began to rub little circles on it, his finger quickening in pace as he felt himself getting closer and closer, his thighs tensing up as he felt himself about to come, your moans telling him that you were close too.

It only took another couple of seconds of more rubbing until you gushed all around his length, his pink tip shining brightly in the little light the room offered as he pulled out, cumming all over your stomach and tits as he let out a guttural groan, falling on his elbows as he gazed up at your fucked out expression.

“Yer so fuckin’ sexy darlin’, did amazin’ for yer first time,” He said, a comforting hand on your face as he raked his hands through your hair, kissing your forehead gently as he let his lips blend with yours once more.

You whined as he pulled away, a string of saliva connecting your lips as he sat back upon his knees, looking back at your chest as you watched a guilty expression fall over his face.

“M gonna go look for a towel really quickly, alright darlin’? I know there should be some water canteens with the food, can you stay put while I do that?” He searched your tired eyes, falling back to your aching hole as you nodded limply, curling in on yourself as you felt sleep washing over you.

It felt as though you had only blinked and he was back, just as he promised, wetting a small rag he found with water, slowly moving your body as he dabbed gently at the skin or your stomach, your breasts, cleaning up any residue he left on you.

You watched through half-lidded eyes as he carefully brought the towel to your pussy, cleaning away, careful not to make it more sensitive as it already was, pressing a small kiss to your tummy as he looked up, giving you a small smile as you gave him a lazy one.

“Ya look so cute right now, hope ya’ know that,” He muttered finding your tunic as he unfolded it from its wrinkled position, carefully moving your back up with his steady hand as he put it back on you.

“You’re pretty, too,” You mumbled and he gave you a playful grin, pinching your cheeks as you groaned, rolling into his warmth as he chuckled, careful not to disturb you as he cleaned himself off, throwing the rag aside as you fell into a deep sleep right on his chest.

He looked down at you adoringly, as if you had pinned the moon and the stars and let the world spin sound with just a swipe of your fingers. He loved the way your skin felt against his, the way you moaned when his hands brushed against your well-spent thighs, at the way your brows furrowed in your dreams. He loved how you fit so perfectly into him as if the two of you had been molded from the same piece of clay and were finally back where you two meant to be.

But most of all he loved how you held onto him as if he was your lifeline, not the other way around. And as he himself nodded off to sleep, he wondered if this is what the gods were doing to pay him back for all his sins.

—-

The two of you groggily awoke to loud slams reverberating off the door.

Katsuki quickly snapped up, pushing you behind him as he blocked you with his body, standing to his feet in an instant as he inched closer, inspecting the sound.

Another one came, but you were too tired and delirious to even realize you were awake and not dreaming.

“Katsu,” You yawned, rubbing your eyes, “Is everything okay?” You peeked around his large frame, jumping slightly when you heard the loud boom, now fully awake as you shakily stood up on your legs, not knowing just how much of a daunting task it’d be after last night’s activities.

Katsuki whipped around to you, quickly putting an arm around you as he hoisted you up, worry on his features as his attention jumped between you and the door.

“Ya feelin’ alright?” He asked, his thumb rubbing small shapes into your waist, and you cheekily grinned, nodding as you winked at him.

“Never better,” And he had the audacity to blush, acting as if he wasn’t the root cause for your trouble of standing up.

He went to say something again when the loud booming sound came back, this time, the two of you were fully awake and fully aware of where it was coming from.

Three bangs came and then stopped.

Katsuki watched intently as another set of knocking came, until he gently set back on the mattress, kissing your hair as he slowly walked to the door, raising his fist as it hovered over the metal framework, contemplating for a second until his fist came down, one knock ringing through the tiny room.

The two of you waited until two more knocks came.

Katsuki knocked another three times, eyebrows drawn as he gnawed on his lips, debating on whether or not he should act on his instincts.

He didn’t give it much after though as his nimble fingers got to work, undoing the locks, the door groaning as it got released from its tension, swinging wide open as it revealed two shadowy figures.

You backed into the wall, squinting as you tried to make them out, your chest flooding with relief when you saw his face grow in size, his freckled cheeks, and bouncy green curls coming in, followed by a wash of red as the second man embraced Katsuki in a tight hug.

Izuku smiled widely, quickly rushing over to you as he helped you up, and you were grateful he was such a dotting person because you didn’t know how to explain it to them that your legs didn’t seem to work correctly anymore.

You watched as Katsuki and Kirishima talked in hushed voices, his red eyes sometimes ending yours as Izuku checked for any injuries, and you could tell that even though he was supposed to put up a rough persona, even he seemed to be happy to hear that the news of fighting was over.

“Ya’ always hide in difficult-to-find places, don’tcha?” Your head snapped over to Izuku and his teasing tone, giving him a wavering grin as you shrugged, feeling his hands stop their examining as his worried eyes searched yours.

“This isn’t the most difficult place to hide, you know,” You joked, shoving his arm playfully as he snorted, rolling his eyes as he saw that you were perfectly fine and that the bruises littering your hips and neck weren’t from what he initially thought they were. If only you could feel the way his heart stopped when he finally understood where they came from, with one glance to his king and his cocky grin and then back to you.

“Well,” He rubbed the back of his hair, tugging on his curls as he wished he could just rip them out, “Can’t say this was the easiest to find, either,” Your doe eyes crinkled around the edges, laughing softly as he recited the words, and if only he could just stop the shooting pain that traveled through every nerve in his body.

“Listen, Y/n…” He trailed off, instantly shutting up when he watched Katsuki usher you to the side, and you gave him an apologetic smile as you quickly promised you’d come back to hear what he had to say.

“What about Kō? And the others?” You whispered as you neared him, glancing worriedly at Kirishima and what he could think of his king’s reaction.

“She left,” He snorted, not bitterly, a sense of peace washing over him, “With the rebels. Probably goin’ back to the half-n-half bastard,” Your eyes widened at the words, understanding that this was part of what Kirishima had briefed him on.

“The others?’ Katsu, I’m not of royal blood o-or anythin’ fancy, your people are gonna look down-” He stopped you instantly, kissing your palms as he closed it around his fist, shrugging as he pulled your deeper into the tunnel that led you out.

“Don’t give a fuck about them darlin’, just want you,” He said into your hair as he kissed your head, leading the way back out, back into a world that would now be yours.

“From the moment I met’ya I knew I’d make ya’ queen,” He said as the two of you crawled out of the wardrobe, the two knights followed shortly behind.

You contemplated, looking at Izuku, at Katsuki, the open door, and then to his hands, walking into his open chest as he breathed a sigh of relief, his comforting hands finding purchase on your bac, motioning for his two guards to leave as they exited the room.

“I’ll be yours any day you ask me to, Katsuki,” You pulled away, looking up at him as you smiled gently, “Till the universe stops expanding and the stars die out, I’ll always be yours to love.”

And he kissed you like there was no tomorrow, kissed your lips as passionately as could, trying to get his silent message across as his hands traveled up and down the expanse of your body, trying to tell you his own promise of no words.

You were his and he was yours, and no matter if the sun crashed into the earth and burned everything in its path, Katsuki hoped you knew he’d be right there next to you, watching as the both of you passed the point of no return.

—-

There was a sense of stillness that washed over the southern kingdom when their king announced their new queen.

The throne to the right of him was now occupied, and whenever he’d look over you’d be there, giving him affirmative nods as you gave him the very push he needed in order to be a proper king.

There were wars that still needed to be fought, and greedy people needed to be dealt with, but now, it was done in a proper manner, with two people who wholly cared about the wellbeing of their nation.

Yet perhaps the most melancholy part of this all was the lone knight who stood in the background, twirling the little ring around his finger as he pondered on the life that he could have had if he had been royalty, and had he not been just another pawn in the grand scheme of things.

He never knew if he truly loved you, or had it just been a blooming relationship he cared too much about, but there were only a couple of regrets he had in his lifetime.

Though Izuku would say that the biggest one was when he decided to leave you behind in that forest all those years ago, playing along with the roll your village made him do, watching quietly as you began to forget all about the green-haired friend you had made as a child, as he faded from your mind, the image of gold hair the color of woven silk and ruby eyes replaced him instead.

—

Taglist (bolded couldn’t be tagged): @ssplague,@butterflyhallucinations,@zonting,@shnaa7,@theamericanjewitch,@spookyskeletonlady,@requi-escence

Word Count:2110

Fluff, Humor, Fantasy AU, Barbarian!Bakugo, Dragon!Kirishima

Summary:While out on a hunting trip, barbarian Katsuki Bakugo comes across a dragon egg. His attempts to cook it, however, lead to him hatching the thing! And now the darn thing won’t leave him alone!

Howdy! Here is my story for the Barbarian Bakugo Reverse Mini-Bang! Please check out my partner’s awesome art as well! :) 

The thick layer of dead leaves and soil crunched under Katsuki’s boots. He was crouched slightly, his finger resting on the red fletching of the arrow that was knocked in his bow. His steps were slow and deliberate, aimed for the patches of forest floor that had the least amount of twigs and dried leaves. He knew these hunting trails so well that he didn’t even need to look as he crept along, his gaze instead fixated on the oblivious deer grazing a dozen yards away. 

Katsuki approached as close as he dared before halting. He slowly sank into a firing stance, one knee pressed to the cool, damp earth. He brought the bow up and pulled the arrow back, the string stretching to its limits as his bulging arm muscles pulled it with practiced strength. The tip of the arrow did not quiver a bit as he took aim at the animal. He inhaled, then exhaled. 

The air rang with the sharp thwang! of the arrow being released. The deer jerked, startled at the sound. But it barely had time to escape the shrill whistle of the arrow before it punched into its side, burying itself into its flesh. The deer let out a strangled scream before its legs buckled and it collapsed in a heap. All was still except for the pollen and dust now swirling in the place where it had serenely stood, but the little particles would soon join it in its stillness, too. 

With a snort, Katsuki stood. He secured the bow onto his back while he stomped over to the corpse. His crimson eyes roved over its form, and then he gave himself an approving nod. A fine buck, with mounds of rippling meat. It would feed his village well. 

But I spent too long hunting, he thought, tipping back his head to squint up at the forest canopy. Though the sun could not be seen through the thick blanket of emerald leaves, he knew that the sun was growing low based on the golden hue of the light streaming through the gaps. He wouldn’t make it even halfway to the village before night fell and the true beasts came out to play. It was better he made camp; it would be easier to defend his prize in one place, with the benefit of flickering flame to dissuade the more cowardly predators. 

As he hauled the deer’s carcass onto his shoulders, he caught the barest gleam of light out of the flicker of his eye. He immediately followed it, craning his head despite his hunched position, to his left. And there it was—a large ruby-red egg resting in a hollow beneath a bush, the fading sunlight playing over its smooth surface. It seemed the deer’s spasming legs had disturbed it, as it was lying on its side, the nest of leaves on which it had been resting now scattered about. 

The deer’s elegant, bony horns scoured lines in the detritus as Katsuki hauled it over to the bush. He lunged down to scoop the egg up, cradling it in one big hand as he held it up to the light. It really was a pretty thing, like a giant ruby. 

Too bad that Katsuki was going to crack it open and eat it. 

Katsuki tracked his way back to a clearing that the tribesmen often used to make camp when the sun crept too close to the horizon for their liking. He deposited the deer next to the fallen log that would serve as his seat for the evening, then set about picking up loose twigs and branches around the camp to make a campfire. He was strangely possessive of the egg, holding it close to his chest as he went about his business. It almost seemed more alive than an egg should be… It pulsed in his hand with a thrumming heartbeat and radiated a gentle warmth. But that could only be his imagination, right? 

He dumped the branches into the charred circle of earth encircled by stones, the evidence of countless fires past. After building up a warm, crackling fire, he arranged some thicker branches over it to serve as a scaffolding. He then gripped the egg between his knees and unsheathed the dagger at his hip, preparing to punch a hole in the shell of the egg so he could get at the succulent, gooey yolk within. 

Katsuki jammed the knife against the egg, and the steel blade immediately snapped in half. 

“What the—? What kind of egg from Hell is this?!” he ranted and jerked the egg close so he could angrily inspect it. It seemed like your normal, run-of-the-mill unidentified beast egg. It wasn’t like the shell was scaly or ridged or anything. But it had just broken his knife! Katsuki growled under his breath, pondering how he was going to crack this egg open. He sure wasn’t about to go at it with his sword and break that too. 

“Fine. Guess hard-boiled it is,” Katsuki huffed before plopping the egg onto the fire. 

He watched the way the light from the flames danced over its ruby-red surface. As he stared into its depths, it almost seemed like it began to glow from within, an orange light pulsing in tune with the heartbeat-like sensation he had felt earlier. Such a strange little egg, Katsuki thought idly as he gazed at it. 

Just as he was beginning to grow a little sleepy from staring intently at it, there was a pop and a hiss. 

Katsuki jumped as a piece of the egg shell broke off the top-right side of the egg and went shooting off into the woods. Steam hissed from the small opening, while the egg began to rattle and shake against the wood. Katsuki gawked at it in disbelief; he’d never seen an egg do something like this before! Fuck, was it going to explode?! God, he would never hear the end of it from his ancestors if a goddamn egg killed him!

The top half of the egg cracked open as two tiny, clawed paws forced their way out, followed by a red, reptilian head. The tiny lizard-like thing blinked blearily as it shook its head to break free of the stringy membranes of the egg, revealing eyes as red as its shiny scales. It opened its mouth in a squeaky yawn, showing off its rows of tiny, needle-like teeth, and then awkwardly stretched out a pair of bat-like wings behind it. 

A dragon. Katsuki Bakugo had just hatched a dragon.

Katsuki blinked at the dragon. The dragon blinked at him. Then, it let out something reminiscent of a purr and began wildly clawing its way out of the egg, chirping at Katsuki all the way. 

“Whoa! Hey, hey, hey, no!” Katsuki yelped as he jumped to his feet and crossed his arms over his chest in an X. “I ain’t yer mama! You were supposed to be my dinner!” 

The dragon stopped tearing the eggshell apart to blink puzzledly up at him. It then shimmied its way out and began clumsily stumbling over the arrangement of twigs and sticks in an effort to get to Katsuki. The flames licking at its ruby-red hide seemed not to bother it the slightest bit. It reached the edge of the fire, then gave Katsuki a pitiful look before chirping sadly. 

“What? No. Go away,” Katsuki grumped, turning around to present his back to the reptile. However, he couldn’t help the way his heart clenched in guilt as the dragon cooed miserably. His eye twitched as he repeated to himself, Don’t turn around, don’t turn around, don’t turn around. But he did, and as soon as he clapped eyes on the pouting baby dragon, he knew it was over. 

“Ugh, fine,” he sighed, then stooped down to pick the dragon up. The best way he could think to do so was like a puppy; he scooped it up underneath its scaly armpits and held it up. The dragon began to wag its tail not unlike a dog, and its forked tongue lolled out of its mouth while Katsuki held it up to squint inquisitively at it. “What’re you lookin’ at?” 

The dragon blinked, then craned its neck forward to affectionately lick the tip of Katsuki’s nose. It felt strange, the little spindly forks of his tongue flicking over his nose, and Katsuki couldn’t help but recoil. The dragon’s expression immediately fell, punctuated by a depressed croon. 

“Oh, stop her gripin’, ya just surprised me, is all.” Katsuki wasn’t sure why he even felt compelled to reassure the little dragon, but he did feel a small sense of satisfaction when the dragon perked up and began wagging his tail so intensely that it thwacked back and forth against both Katsuki’s elbows. 

“Tch,” Katsuki said and then set the dragon on the ground. Dragons supposedly were on their own from the time they were born, so he expected the little lizard to eventually wander off. Katsuki started walking around his small encampment gathering materials to make a snare trap. His initial plans for dinner had been ruined, after all, so he needed to get something. He couldn’t cut the deer open before bringing it back to the village. 

However, much to Katsuki’s chagrin, the dragon did not leave. Instead, it toddled right at Katsuki’s heels. If he got more than a foot away, he would begin to growl and chirp and snarl until Katsuki stopped long enough for it to catch up. Then, it would nuzzle affectionately into Katsuki’s boots and peer up with him with round, adoration-filled eyes. 

“Gross,” Katsuki would grunt, even though it was totally notgross, and he even kind of enjoyed it. 

After constructing a trap, setting it, and snaring a hare, it was quite obvious that the dragon would not be wandering off. It sat beside Katsuki as he turned the filleted rabbit mean on the fire, curled up at his feet. It was trying its best to stay awake, bleary eyes fixated on the roasting meat; however, its body was betraying its desires. Its head repeatedly bobbled, slowly falling down to its chest before snapping back up. It would stare at the meet, and then its eyes would droop as the process started again. 

It growled in protest when Katsuki nudged it with its toe. 

“Oi. Lizard brain. Just go to sleep.” 

The dragon growled again and turned around to nip at the toe of his boot. It grew tired in the middle of chewing on it, blinking sleepily as it drooled on the leather. Katsuki sniffed disdainfully and leaned over to scoop the dragon up. It wiggled apathetically in a faint attempt at disobeying, then fell limp in his arms, too exhausted to put up a fight. 

“What are you, anyway?” Katsuki asked and flipped the dragon over. It took a minute to figure out—dragon anatomy was not his strong suit—but he eventually riddled out that the dragon was male. The dragon just lolled in his lap, purring at the comfortable heat of his lap. “I guess you need a name… How about… Eijirou?” 

He seemed to like the name, as his purrs jumped in volume until he was practically vibrating. 

“Eijirou it is,” Katsuki chuckled. He peeled off his cloak and bundled it up, placing it on the log and patting it into something reminiscent of a nest. He set Eijirou in the middle, and the dragon immediately curled up in the warm cloth. Smoke poured from his mouth, seemingly in contentment. It didn’t take long for his eyes to slip closed and his purrs to turn into soft snores. 

Katsuki found himself watching him sleep with a soft, sappy smile. Ugh. Guess he was a dragon mama now. He’d never hear the end of it. 

“But I bet you’ll be a big ol’ badass when you grow up, eh?” he laughed to himself while he pulled the cooked meat off the fire. He wrapped some up in some leaves to give to Eijirou when he woke up, then held the other on his makeshift leaf plate, waiting for it to cool. “A barbarian chief with a dragon at his side… Sounds like a legend in the making, yeah?” 

He reached out to scratch the dragon on the underside of the chin. Though he was still sound asleep, Eijirou let out a preening purring sound of happiness. Katsuki’s smile turned lopsided, unable to not feel just a bit of affection for the creature. 

Guess I should be glad you didn’t end up being my dinner, little guy. Now sleep well…

<- PREVIOUS

Chapter 1: Izuku Midoriya of Emershire

A howl echoed through the forest, deep and long. It seeped through the gloom of the trees, winding around the trunks and branches and leaves to fade deep into the earth. Yet there were no answers to the wolf’s call, just an eerie silence. As the lonely call warbled in Izuku’s ears, he used the sleeve of his tunic to wipe his sweaty forehead with a huff, then once again grabbed the hilt of his shortsword that was buried deep into the corpse of the dire wolf sprawled onto the ground. 

“Upsie-daisy!” he grunted, planting his foot into the wolf’s matted fur and yanking hard on the sword. With a squelch of flesh and a weak spurt of blood, the blade finally pulled free of the wolf’s thick body. Huffing, Izuku crouched down to wipe the red liquid from the steel blade. He looked around as he did so, mentally counting the dead dire wolves littering the clearing. 

One, two, three, four, five. That’s all of them! He thought with a smile. He sheathed his now-clean sword into the scabbard strapped at his hip, then put his hands on his hips to survey his handiwork. 

“Five dire wolves!” he preened to himself. It was the most impressive feat he’d accomplished yet, and admittedly a welcome change to the daily grind of running off curious bears and retrieving wandering livestock. Much more befitting a burgeoning knight like himself! His sense of accomplishment made him swell with pride, his chest pushing out a little. Wait until he told his mentor about it! He might even compliment him for once. 

“All right. Better go report in to the farmer!” he told himself. It seemed a shame to leave the dire wolves lying around, but he certainly couldn’t haul them all back to his village by himself. He’d let the farmer know their location—he had to facilities to butcher and skin them, and he’d be able to sell the furs for a pretty penny. The dire wolves had been hunting his livestock, after all, so it would be a welcome reimbursement. Izuku set off down the path, whistling a jaunty tune that the songbirds took up in symphony. 

Izuku Midoriya was a knight-in-training—well, as much of a knight-in-training as one could be in the quaint little village of Emershire. Just a cluster of farmsteads and small village abodes in the rolling green hills south of the illustrious capital city of Yuuei, it certainly wasn’t the most exciting place to call home. But it was home, and a home that Izuku defended most ardently. “Defended” being a loose term, of course; really, the only threat came from the occasional roving pack of beasts venturing in from the great forest lands to the east. Who would want to attack a little settlement of retirees and farmers? 

As Izuku passed the threshold of the forest and stepped out into the sunshine, he looked up at the sky with a slight frown. Part of him wished that he had been born someplace else—someplace where he could really be trained as a knight! After all, what hope did a little guy like him from podunk nowhere have of becoming All Might’s successor? 

All Might… he thought, his heart fluttering at the mere thought of his hero. Everyone knew the story, even in a little place like Emershire. Fifteen years ago, the great king had led an alliance of many kingdoms to confront the evil sorcerer All for One. They had battled in the crags of Elmorta, a blackened and forsaken land far to the east. He had sustained a grievous injury, however, and many had perished in the long struggle against the wicked entity—including all of the Priestesses of Uravity. With the guardians of their world lost forever, All Might had realized that he would need a particular strong and just heir to lead Yuuei and the allied nations into the next era. For fifteen years, many had tried to win the honor of being chosen by the king… but all of them had been turned away. 

Ahh, it would be so amazing! To be trained under the great All Might! Even if he wasn’t chosen as the successor, just having the opportunity to learn from the legendary knight would be a dream come true. But only a dream, Izuku thought with a small groan. Only the best of the best were selected to travel to the capital city and be put to the test. Someone like him would never be noticed… 

“Don’t think like that!” he scolded himself and slapped his cheeks a few times to forcibly banish the thoughts. “As long as you work hard and be an honorable knight, you’ll get there!” Hard work and virtue—when the doubts started to creep in, he always reminded himself that was all he needed to achieve his goals. “All right! There’s still plenty of daylight left—if I hurry to go report in to the farmer, I can get some sword training in before sundown!” 

He took off in a jog down the path, his old and worn shortsword thumping at the side of his leg. A smile spread over his face as he considered that he was running towards a grand adventure, one that would begin very soon as long as he just kept at it…

“Mom! I’m home!” 

Izuku used the heel of his boot to kick the door behind him, too busy wiggling out of his cloak. He hung it on the hook in the entryway, then sat down to begin tugging off his dirt-caked boots. As he was pulling his right one off, his mother tottered into the entryway looking a fright. 

“Izuku! Oh, I was so worried about you!” she cried as she came over. Though he was still sitting on the ground, she leaned over to wrap him up in a tight hug. “When you weren’t home by sunset, I was just so concerned—”

“Mom, I’m okay!” he laughed, his voice muffled by her arms wrapping around and squeezing his face. “I told you that I might be a little late today since the farm was on the edge of the village. But… I also stopped on the way home.” 

Inko stepped back to look at him inquisitively. Smiling, Izuku pulled out a small paper-wrapped round object from the inside pocket of his tunic, then held it up to her. Her eyebrows slowly cinched as she took it and began to gingerly unwrap the parcel. 

“Is this what I think it is?” she gasped, delight bleeding into her tone of surprise. 

“Yep!” Izuku confirmed. His heart fluttered at the sheer joy that blossomed on his mother’s face. “The farmer paid me well, so I thought I would stop by the bakery and get your favorite dorayaki!” 

“Oh, Izuku,” his mother sighed, reaching down to give him a gentler but no less loving embrace. “You shouldn’t have! You’re saving up all your money for your adventure. There’s no need to spend it on me…” 

“Of course there is!” Izuku laughed while reaching up to hug her back. “You’re my mom. I know it’s hard on you and you worry, but you support me in my dream. I want to thank you any way I can. If that means buying you your favorite snack every now and then, then so be it!” Truth be told, Izuku had saved up a lot of money doing these odd jobs around the village. He had a feeling that soon he would have enough funds to embark on his quest—his journey to Yuuei. If he could just establish himself there and earn All Might’s attention, then maybe—!

Best not to get himself too excited, he thought, derailing that train of thought. He knew that his mother would be sad and lonely when he finally set off, so he wanted to fill the little time he had left with as many good memories and feelings as he could. He couldn’t give her fancy dresses or jewelry or other niceties that she deserved, rare and expensive as they were in Emershire—and besides, his mother had always been the type to appreciate a gift from the heart much more than a fancy present she had little use for. 

“Well, this will be a nice dessert after dinner,” Inko said, standing up and wrapping the package back up. “You and I will split it.” When Izuku began to protest, she gave him a stern glare. He smiled wanly; there was no use defying her. He stood up, and he could tell from the way that Inko’s eyes swept up and down his form that she was considering how tall and broad he’d gotten in the last year. He had been training intensely since he turned fifteen, the official age that young men could undertake squireship—and it seemed that Izuku wasn’t the only one who’d noticed his progress. Smiling, he pulled his mother into a one-arm hug and propped his chin atop her head. 

“All right, Mom. Is there anything I can do to help with dinner?” 

“No. Everything is ready.” 

Just as they were pulling out their chairs and getting ready to eat, there was a knock at the door. 

“Now, who could that be?” Inko frowned. She set her napkin, which she was about to place in her lap, back on the table and hurried to the door with a shout of “Coming!” Curious as to who would come calling at this evening hour, Izuku followed after her, standing a distance back in the entryway. His mother opened the door, and he frowned; the person was clearly smaller than his mother, since he could not see them around her short and plump form. When she stepped aside, however, he grinned. It was no stranger!

“Master Sorahiko!” Izuku greeted his mentor enthusiastically, rushing up to take his cloak and hang it on the hook alongside his own. “What brings you here?” 

Sorahiko Torino was the ruling lord of Emershire. The Torino family had ruled the quaint country since its inception, which was relatively recent in the age of the continent. Sorahiko Torino was no stuffy aristocrat, however; he was a knight, through and through. As a young lad, he had apprenticed in Yuuei and earned such respect from the king that he had been chosen to train the heir—All Might himself! Of course, Sorahiko had participated in the campaign against All for One, leading a small force of Emershire men in a valiant battle against monster hordes that were sieging the countryside while All Might battled the evil sorcerer far to the east. Though they were hopelessly outnumbered, Sorahiko’s tenacity and tactical prowess led him to conquer the monsters without a single life lost! He had been offered a position in Yuuei afterward, but he had elected to retire and train an heir in Emershire since he was unmarried and childless. 

And he had chosen Izuku as the person to inherit his lordship and land. 

Of course, that was a long time coming. Sorahiko Torino was no spring chicken, but he was a grizzled old coot with plenty of life left to live. Which is why Izuku was surprised by this unexpected visit. 

“Lord Sorahiko! We were just sitting down for dinner. Please, join us at the table! I’ll get you a bowl of stew!” Inko cried, flustering about. After all, even a lord of a tiny country was a lord. 

“Thank you, Inko. Much obliged,” Sorahiko grunted. He toddled into the kitchen and hopped into a chair, and Inko placed a steaming bowl of soup and a spoon in front of him. She quickly followed with a tankard of ale. “Thank you,” he said, then spooned a bit of the soup into his mouth. “Mm, this is very good.” 

Inko preened under the praise, sinking into her chair with her hands plastered to her reddening cheeks. 

“Ah… Master, about why you’re here…?” Izuku pressed as he sat down. He didn’t want to be rude, but he was itching to know why his master had come. Had he heard about the dire wolves and come to praise him? 

“Mm!” Sorahiko said, as if he suddenly remembered why he was there. “Ah, yes. I heard from the farmer that you had slain the pack of dire wolves that had been killing his livestock. Seems like that sword I gave you isn’t just useful as a letter opener after all.” It was as good a compliment that Izuku had ever gotten from him, and it made him light up in happiness. Sorahiko raised an eyebrow at him when he opened his mouth to speak, indicating that he was not yet done; Izuku obediently snapped his mouth shut. “You have been doing very well defending this village from threat… The troupe of robbers last month and the beastly bear before that, and now these wolves. You have come a long way.”

“Thank you!” Izuku grinned broadly. So his efforts had indeed been noticed! But Sorahiko could have told him this at his training session tomorrow. Why come all the way to his home? 

“You have learned all you can learn from me. The rest you must learn on your own, and from better masters. It is for this reason I have recommended you to study under my pupil, All Might, and petition to be his successor.” 

Izuku’s eyes nearly bugged out of his head, and his mother fainted. 

Art was done by Pluto for the BNHA Fantasy Bang! Link here!

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Foreword

Light and darkness—two sides of the same coin, two forces forever locked in conflict. Their collision is the subject of timeless tales passed down through the generations, legends and myths ingrained deep within our consciences. Yet within every myth is a grain of truth, and behind every legendary hero and wicked villain is a true struggle hidden within… This is but one of those truths preserved in time.

It began, like many tales do, with a great king of men. 

On the western coast of the continent stood the Kingdom of Yuuei, a glimmering city on the sea. Merchants from all across the continent flocked here to exchange goods of all kinds, taking with them riches to supply their own lands. Presiding over this glorious capital city was a young but accomplished king—Toshinori Yagi, wielder of the legendary greatsword One for All . Above everything, Toshinori valued compassion, honor, and justice; he ruled fairly and justly, and the kingdom of Yuuei entered an unprecedented era of peace and prosperity. Never before had the lords of the continent united together in an effort for all to share in wealth and comfort and security…

Yet in the east, a shadow began to grow. Amidst the black crags of lands once scorched by dragons’ breath, cursed by black mages, wrought by giants’ hammers in countless wars of old, a sleepless malice emerged. A mysterious sorcerer known only as All for One gathered evil forces from across the continent and established a kingdom of darkness: Elmorta. He launched a war for dominion of the continent, centered around a singular goal: claiming the power of the Priestesses of Uravity. 

The city of Uravity sat upon the Angel’s Fist, a plateau overlooking the city of Yuuei. The Priestesses had watched over the continent since the early days of civilization, as charged by the gods. Gifted with incomparable magic power despite being few in number, the Priestesses guided the fate of the world by offering council to lords and kings and providing their power in battles against forces of darkness. Yet, there was one power in particular that All for One coveted. It was the gift given to the High Priestess, the greatest of their order—the gift of foresight. 

All for One’s evil spread across the west, hordes of monsters and beasts and evil creatures invading all corners of the land. With each kingdom locked in turmoil, All for One’s march to the Angel’s Fist was uninhibited. All hope seemed lost. The future seemed destined for darkness, an eternity under tyranny…

Yet it when the darkness is the strongest that the light shines brightest. 

Toshinori Yagi rallied the other kingdoms, creating a continent-wide alliance that had never before been seen. He and the High Priestess led the charge, eventually driving All for One’s forces back into the crags of his wretched kingdom. And it is there that one story ends, and another begins…

It was hard to breathe. It had been hard to breathe ever since they marched upon this desolate land, the ash and dust choking the air filling their lungs with poison—but the gaping wound in Toshinori’s side certainly didn’t help things. He could feel his innards squishing between his fingers as he pressed his hand into the gash in his chainmail. Was that one of his ribs that he just felt brush against his fingertips? Blood loss was already making his head spin, so it was hard to discern what was reality and what was delusion. 

He wasn’t sure when he fell, but now here he was, sitting on his knees on the jagged rock. Every inhale sent pain spiderwebbing across his nerves, making his body crackle with electricity. Or perhaps it was the lingering effects of the black magic that had scorched his skin and gouged his flesh. 

All for One, he remembered, and adrenaline rushed through his system once more. The last few moments had all been a blur; a tumultuous collision with the dark sorcerer that had left him kneeling amongst this ruined earth. Had Toshinori managed to best him? Had the man slipped away like the snake he was to hide in the cracks and wait for his chance to strike? Groaning, Toshinori groped around the rock for his sword. He felt immense relief as soon as his fingertips brushed across its gilded surface, and strength returned to his bones as he wrapped them around its leather-lined hilt. 

“Be at peace, All Might.” 

Yes. All Might, that was what they called him; a paragon of strength and honor, a king among kings. Toshinori looked up, peering through the bloody tufts of blond hair falling into his eyes. Amidst the scorched earth and whirling dust began to grow a soft, pale pink light. The dust swirled away, as if so tainted by evil that it could not occupy the same space as something so pure. The light grew, and grew, and from it emerged the form of the High Priestess, her pale pink robes trailing behind her and glowing with ephemeral light. 

“You are unharmed,” Toshinori breathed, his body sagging in relief. He then tensed up again as she came closer and her hazy form began to come into focus. The priestess he knew was a mature woman, tall and graceful; yet what stood before him was… a young girl, round-faced and rosy-cheeked. “Ochako…?”

“I have spent much of my magic power,” Ochako explained, then looked down, “in order to obtain this.” From within the folds of her clock came a dark tome, bound in black leather and pulsing with violet light. She had it encapsulated in a bubble of her pink magic. The black magic within the spellbook crackled like lightning, zapping each time it collided with the barrier of her white spell. 

“All for One’s spellbook!” 

“Yes. He has retreated within the ruins of his kingdom, but I have taken the source of his power,” Ochako said. She set the bubble aside, letting it float beside her while she kneeled before him. She reached out her hands, resting them over the gaping wound in Toshinori’s side. “For now, we have achieved victory, my young Lord Toshinori.” Light spilled from her hands, flooding into the wound. Toshinori breathed a heavy sigh of relief as a cool, soothing sensation washed over his irritated flesh. He was so euphoric from the effects of the spell that he didn’t catch it at first. 

“… For now?” 

“Yes,” Ochako murmured. She did not look up at him, her gaze instead trained on his grievous wound. “All for One’s malice and cunning is greater than I ever could have imagined. He has evolved beyond a mere mortal… We obliterated his body, yet he remains.” 

“How is that possible?” Toshinori grunted, falling back on his behind. He stretched out his legs on either side of Ochako, relaxing as she continued to use her magic to stitch his own rent body back together. He could feel it, though; her magic lacked potency—she was weak. 

“An ancient and dark magic used by evil sorcerors far before your time, servants of dark gods long sealed away. They developed a spell that could bind their life force into an object.” 

Toshinori followed her gaze to the spellbook suspended within her bubble of magic. The black magic seeped out of the pages, swirling within the sphere like poisonous fog. 

“His spellbook?” 

“Yes. Unless it is destroyed, All for One will endure. He will bide his time, regain his strength, and unleash destruction upon our world once more.” As Toshinori reached for his greatsword, Ochako sighed. “Do not bother, Toshinori. No mere weapon of men can undo the evil that has been woven into those pages.” 

“What about your magic?” Toshinori cried. “We cannot allow this to come to pass. It took all we had to defeat him this time! And I…” His voice faltered as he looked down at his side. Ochako’s gift had never been healing. “And the other Priestesses…” 

“Yes,” Ochako murmured. Toshinori looked up, realizing how choked her voice seemed, just in time to see the tears drip from her tear-laden lashes. “They are gone. I am all that remains, and my magic is spent. Even I cannot destroy the book as I am now…” 

“Then… is there no hope?” Toshinori whispered. His entire body went limp as the shock of it seeped in. All the effort… All of those that had perished and suffered… Would it all be in vain? 

“Toshinori,” Ochako said, her tone scolding. He looked up at her to find her smirking. “Did I say that?” 

“You have foreseen something?” 

“Yes. We have time to prepare… Fifteen years, to be exact. The old alliances will fail, and a tremulous peace will befall the land… But All for One will be working his influence in the shadows. He will rise again.” She looked back to the spellbook. “But without his spellbook, he can never again threaten us as he has now. We have the benefit of preparation. You must find a successor worthy of wielding your great blade, your hope. When the time comes, he must gather an army unlike any this world has ever seen, and he must journey here to make our last stand. It was within the catacombs of Elmorta that this book was made, and it is only within its caverns that it can be undone. That is what I saw.” 

“Do we succeed?” 

“Alas, even my eyes cannot pierce a future so uncertain,” Ochako sighed, her eyes falling shut. “Even now, they grow clouded… My magic is too weak to see as I once have.” She sighed, her body slackening; her hands fell away from Toshinori’s barely-healed body. Still, he lunged forward to catch her, and was amazed to see her growing younger before his very eyes. A teenager to an adolescent to a child small enough to be cradled in his muscular arms.

“Toshinori…” Her high-pitched, sweet voice sounded so foreign to his ears, but the wisdom swirling in her deep brown eyes was more than familiar. “I must sleep. Take me back to the ruins of Uravity and place me within the crystal pool you find there. I do not know if I can regain the power necessary to contend against All for One again… But I must try. For the sake of our future, our world… and the hero yet to come.” 

She yawned, and Toshinori couldn’t help but smile at how childish she looked, her eyelashes fluttering and her lips smacking. The world truly was a mysterious place. He ran a hand over her wavy tufts of silken brown hair. 

“Sleep in peace, Ochako. I will watch over the world until you awaken. No matter what… this dark future will not come to pass.” 

Itmust not… for the sake of us all. 

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Hello, everyone! I am happy to present the story that I started for the BNHA Fantasy Big Bang! Please be sure to check out the art done by my artists, LeighandPluto. This is a story I’ve been wanting to write for a long time, so I hope you’re all as excited as I am to see what develops! :)

• Foreword
• Chapter 1: Izuku Midoriya of Emershire