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It was supposed to be a routine mission. A little side gig to get off campus and gain some experience while doing so, as if the infamous class A hadn’t gained enough of that already. Still, being able to go on patrol on their own without any real adult supervision had been great. Everyone was excited to get out there in their hero outfit and get a taste of what life would be after graduation. And if they stopped to get snacks or other things on the way back to the dorms, that was their own business. Until one of them got caught up in a villain attack and was hit with a nuisance of a quirk: a split personality ability that ripped a person apart into the different facets of themself.
And of course it had to be Katsuki Bakugou.
Izuku blinked as he stared at the four identical looking blonde guys standing at the dorm entrance. No, not identical, not exactly. The looks on their faces were all slightly different, as were the ways they held themselves, seemingly posing in front of the class as Aizawa explained what had happened. Well, some of them were posing, others wanted to get away from the spotlight as fast as humanly possible. One of them was staring at him, had been since the moment he walked in, and Izuku didn’t know whether that was a good or a bad thing. Another one avoided eye contact at all cost, and Izuku could tell his hands were trembling, even if he tried to hide it.
“Since this quirk will last a while, I advise you to find a way to discern between the different personalities,” Aizawa said, glancing down at the paper on his clipboard. “The medical check has divided them into anger, happiness, fear, and love.”
“Those are shitty names,” one of the Katsuki’s said. “And this quirk is even more dumb! How the hell am I supposed to live like this?! I’m not sharing my bed or my toothbrush with three other me’s! No fucking way!”
“Aw, come on, it’s been so long since we had a sleepover!” one of the others said, smiling brightly. He did that more often now, but even so, Izuku was still taken by surprise with how easy it came. How effortless it seemed for him to smile when he was normally more reserved about it. That must be the happy aspect, then. “We can even multitask our homework now- Think of the efficiency!”
Izuku blinked, looking away, back to Aizawa sensei, who looked about ready for a nap. It probably wouldn’t take long for an actual fight to start at this point, so Izuku couldn’t really disagree with the man. These were gonna be a long couple of days, weren’t they..?
“I’m sure you’ll figure it out,” the black ray of sunshine stated. “Or don’t. I don’t care as long as you don’t leave campus or cause any trouble.”
“We’ll look after him- them?” Yaoyorozu questioned, unsure of which pronouns to use in this situation. Izuku didn’t know which one fit better, either. He doubted Kacchan cared all that much, though.
“We’ll make sure to stay out of trouble, sensei,” Iida added, always the responsible one, even if he was making promises they couldn’t keep. Izuku was sure even he knew that staying out of trouble was an impossible task for their class. Aizawa still accepted the declaration anyway.
“Good. If you need me,” he sighed, glancing aside at the Kacchans, two of which were on the brink of fighting, and one about the cry, “Figure it out by yourselves.”
With that he left, and so did any and all self control of class A. Izuku was honestly surprised it lasted as long as it did before people flocked to the different versions of Katsuki, with the so-called Bakusquad the first one in line. He stayed back a bit, knowing better than to overwhelm Kacchan when he was already in a sour mood.
“So who is who? Do you guys even know?” Sero asked, pointing between them.
“I am not using dumb emotion names, fuck off,” one of them hissed, almost exploding his finger clean off. Ah yes, Izuku had expected that much.
“Oh, we know,” another Katsuki said. The smiley one. “I’m happiness, and that one is the grumpy angry one.”
“I am not calling myself that!” he snapped. “And if anyone else tries, I’ll fucking kill you, you understand?!”
“We’ll just call that one Bakugou, then,” Kirishima chuckled, turning around as one of the Kacchans broke free from the group, slipping past the rest of the squad. “Hey, wait up! Which one are-”
He cut himself off when the stray latched onto Izuku, hugging him in some sort of side hug, squishing their cheeks together while doing so. Izuku tensed up at the sudden contact, his mind running a mile a minute to figure out what was going on. It’s true that they were on better terms now, that they were friends, but Kacchan had never been this touchy with him, not out of the blue like this, so what-
“You look cute when you get all flustered like that,” Katsuki said with a soft smile before nuzzling into the nape of Izuku’s neck. “Then again, you’re always looking so damn cute. Sometimes I just wanna squeeze you so bad, to hold you just like this.”
“Oh. My. God,” Uraraka wheezed, and Izuku already knew she couldn’t wait to tease Kacchan with this when this was all over. Those two had a very peculiar friendship going on, built on mutual respect and destruction.
“Uhm, love, I presume?” Izuku stammered, his face flushed red. As if Kacchan’s attention wasn’t enough already, half the class was gaping at them by now as well.
“For you, always,” he said. “Your love, as long as you’ll be mine.”
“That’s- That’s definitely a confession, right?” Kaminari choked out, in complete disbelief.
“Way to go bro!” Kirishima exclaimed, pumping his fist up in the air, celebrating Katsuki’s success.
“Yeah, I thought you’d never man up enough to do it!” Ashido laughed. Wait- Wait, that meant that- Izuku’s face got even more impossibly red and he quickly brought up his hands to try and hide away in any way he could. That meant Kacchan actually liked him! That- That’s he’d liked him for a while now, if his friends knew about it. That… Izuku didn’t know what to do with that information, didn’t know whether he could answer his feelings right now, while he split, while he was not fully there- Was that the reason he confessed now? Because the other parts of him weren’t holding him back? What if he never meant to-
“Everyone shut the hell up!”
Izuku’s gaze snapped to angry Katsuki in an instant, who was standing in front of the last part of him- Fear. He was holding his hands over his ears as he looked down at the ground, his arms shaking.
“...I can’t,” he choked out, and the way he sounded broke his heart in an instant. Snapping him out of it like ice cold water being dumped on top of his head. “I can’t… I can’t tell him. Why did I tell him? He can’t know, I can’t let him find out- Why did I tell him? Why did I let-”
“Hey, it’s okay,” Jirou tried. “What’s-”
“Stay back!” Anger snapped, throwing an explosion her way as Fear cried out, falling onto his knees as he started to cry. “Nobody fucking touches him.”
“But-”
“Don’t you fucking dare!” he yelled, his hands popping as he glared at everyone in the room, protecting the part of him that was breaking down behind him. Keeping him isolated when he clearly needed help, comfort- Why was he so afraid in the first place?
“What’s going on?” Izuku asked, turning to face the love version of his childhood friend. Love sighed rather loudly at that, making him frown. What was up with the theatrics? Was that part of this aspect, too? He let go of Izuku a moment later, yet it was clear he didn’t actually want to.
“Why do you always have to ruin everything for me?” he said, turning to face Anger and Fear. “Always defending him, over and over again, and for what?”
After that, he turned to look at Joy.
“It’s not fair that we get shoved aside for him every time!”
“You don’t get a say in this!” Anger growled. “You’re never with us! Always someplace else!”
“Guys, please, I’m sure we can-” Joy tried, stepping in between them, only to get blasted away by Anger.
“See? Pushing people away is all you’re ever good for,” Love snapped, and Izuku got the feeling he didn’t only represent love, but hatred, too. But why would that be directed at another part of himself? Why hate on Anger when he was Kacchan, too? Or maybe… Maybe Kacchan hated that he got angry so easily..? Did their relationships with one another represent how he normally felt?
“I wouldn’t have to if it wasn’t for you,” Anger snapped, pointing back at Fear, who was hyperventilating on the floor, so out of it that Izuku doubted he even knew where he was. And Kacchan let it happen. The other aspects of him… They let it happen. Didn’t allow anyone else to even try and help. “He got triggered because of what you did! You’re the one always setting him off and now he’s spiralling in front of fucking everyone! Fucking fantastic work!”
This was getting out of hand real fast. Izuku looked for Joy, for someone who could help him put a stop to this, but he’d seemingly vanished from the scene. Shoved aside . This situation was a lot more complex than he’d anticipated. Kacchan’s feelings were complicated, and siding with one of them would undoubtedly offset another, but he couldn’t let this continue. If things spiraled out of control any more than they already had, there might actually be material damage.
“Let’s all calm down, okay?” Izuku tried, stepping in the same way his happy part had tried to do. If Kacchan truly liked him, his anger wouldn’t hit him, right? He sure hoped so, at least. “I don’t know what’s going on between the two of you, but this isn’t working.”
“...You’re right, this isn’t working,” Anger scoffed, turning around to face Fear. “We’re sitting this out somewhere with some peace and quiet, and you leave us the hell alone.”
With that, he scooped up the other like it was nothing, ignoring everyone as he walked towards the elevator in fast, broad steps, and vanished from sight. That couldn’t be good.
“Finally alone again,” Love sighed, a smile rising to his face again. “Now, Izuku, where-”
“Where is your happiness?” Izuku asked, interrupting him. This whole quirk incident was more complicated than they originally thought, and if his hypothesis was correct then… He had to find Joy to confirm it.
“What?”
“Happiness- Joy- Whatever. There is another one, where is he?” Izuku asked. If anyone knew, it would be Kacchan, right? Nobody else seemed to have any idea, anyway. He’d used the fight as a distraction to get away from here and Izuku had no idea where he went. And if he was feeling how Izuku thought he might be feeling then-
“Aw, I knew you’d care about him,” he smiled, wrapping his arm around Izuku’s. “You don’t have to worry though. He’s fine.”
“But-”
“I said I’m fine,” he stated, not taking no for an answer. He was intent on making Izuku stay here, not letting go of his arm as he pulled the green head down on the couch with him. Why? He couldn’t be jealous of himself, that would be absurd. No, there was something he didn’t want Izuku to see, to know, at least, if his theory was right.
“Are you sure?” Kirishima asked, and Izuku was glad he wasn’t the only one who was concerned about Kacchan’s mental wellbeing.
“Of course, Kiri! Why wouldn’t I be?” he asked with a bright smile. “I’m surrounded by the people I love.”
A love that didn’t just encompass romantic love, but friendship as well, it seemed. And so he started rambling, ranting about all the things he liked about the people in their class, his friends, their teachers- Izuku had rarely heard Katsuki this talkative. He couldn’t help but feel like it was a distraction, though. A front, a facade. To make people forget about what happened before, to make them forget about the others that were still somewhere in the dormitory, doing their own thing.
“Your taste in music is so good, that playlist you send me the other week is fucking awesome,” he told Jirou. “I’m listening to it right now, actually.”
“Oh, that’s… That’s great,” Jirou said, twirling with her earjacks, not used to being praised by Katsuki. None of them were, which was why half of the class was a mess right now. Sato had all but cried when Kacchan told him how much he liked the cakes he made, and Kirishima had cried when Katsuki told him he was his best friend. Only because Izuku is more than a friend to me , he’d said, and Izuku still couldn’t believe that sentence actually existed, nor that Kacchan was the one who said it. “So uhm, which songs have you listened to already?”
“All of them, multiple times. I love it,” Katsuki stated. “Oh, a new one just started. Hm, I don’t remember what it’s called though.”
“Wait, what do you mean?” Izuku asked.
“I’m listening to it right now,” Katsuki said, pointing at his ear. “I have earbuds in.”
He didn’t have earbuds in and there was no music playing in the common room. So if he was actually able to listen to music that way, it meant-
“Wait, you’re connected to the other versions of yourself like that? You can hear what they hear?” Asui asked, catching on quickly. “What does it feel like? Isn’t it overwhelming?”
“Yeah, what are your other selves doing right now? Can you tell where they are without-” Ashido asked, also curious. Izuku would lie if he said he didn’t want to know, too. Katsuki, on the other hand, didn’t seem keen on sharing the details.
“What does it matter? It’s only because they’re not here that I can speak my damn mind,” he huffed. “Do you have any idea how many times I’ve wanted to thank all of you? To compliment and praise you and tell you how much you mean to me? Being under the leader's thumb is the worst!”
“The leader?” Izuku asked, seeing Katsuki tense up. “Who’s that? One of your other personalities?”
“I don’t like him, and I don’t want to waste any more words on that bastard, either,” Katsuki stated as he got up from the couch and turned to face the kitchen. “I like cooking though, so I’m helping. It’s my dinner, too.”
Izuku blinked, following his gaze to see one of the other Kacchan’s standing in the kitchen. He’d changed clothes to a black sweater with a little white skull on its shoulder, and was cutting up vegetables while listening to music through his headphones. So that was the one who was listening to Jirou’s playlist? When did he get here? Izuku hadn’t noticed a thing! And which one was he looking at right now?
“We should make, like, name cards or something,” Izuku mumbled as he watched Love join up with his other self in the kitchen, seamlessly taking over a part of the cooking without even having to ask what he was making or what he could do. No, he probably already knew. They were still the same person, and Izuku suspected they still shared the same mind to some capacity.
“How about a color code, since I’m pretty sure the angry one is gonna blow our heads off if we name him that,” Uraraka suggested. “You can make colored bracelets, right Yaomomo?”
“Of course, that should be easy enough,” she said, pushing up her sleeve and creating the bracelets on the spot. “I’ll make a couple of colors so they can pick which one they like.”
“Smart!” Uraraka nodded as she took one of the plastic bands. An orange one, the same tone as the accents in Kacchan’s hero outfit. Izuku couldn’t help but stare at the ones in the kitchen, though. They were working together in perfect sync, both wearing small smiles on their faces. Not a trace from the fight before, as if it hadn’t happened at all. So the other personality was probably Joy, the only one that Love didn’t seem to outright hate. Which was a whole other problem altogether.
“Midoriya, can I talk with you for a moment?” Todoroki asked, also glancing at the two Katsuki’s in the kitchen for a second.
“Yes, of course,” he said, following the other outside, where they wouldn't be interrupted.
“I wanted to do this earlier, but one of them wouldn't leave your side,” Todoroki started. “You’ve seen how they act towards each other, right? And you know what that behavior means, too.”
Rationally, Izuku knew what Todoroki was hinting at. It was a consideration that had crossed his mind while trying to figure this quirk out. Because a split personality quirk is never just a split personality quirk, is it? There’s a reason quirks like these were used in therapeutic settings, or to better understand villain motivations. Emotionally, though, Izuku refused to believe his first thought was the right one. Because if the relationships between the different Kacchans reflected how he truly felt, Kacchan’s mental state was worse than he let on.
“I thought he was doing better,” Izuku mumbled. He was seeing a therapist, wasn't he? He was working through things! Right..? Izuku thought… He thought Katsuki was working on himself, on handling his insecurities better, learning to rely on others when things got bad-
“Opening up takes time,” Todoroki said, and it was true. Izuku knew that, but he couldn’t help but wish for it to go faster than this, without the sudden fallback they were facing right now. “He was clearly trying to mask his fear with anger before, like he used to do.”
“And the way his love talked back to the others… I…” Izuku breathed, still in disbelief. “This quirk must be amplifying these feelings, right? There’s no way he…he actually hates himself.”
“We'd have to ask sensei for the details to be sure,” Todoroki sighed. “I’m sure the others will figure it out soon, if they haven’t already, so what’s the plan?”
“Make sure Kacchan is comfortable and doesn’t share things he doesn’t want to,” Izuku shrugged. “Which is gonna be hard if his personalities don’t get along but… I think there’s more to them than the feelings they’ve been assigned. I think they’re mirrors of themselves.”
Izuku went on to explain his hypothesis then. That Love had shown hatred, both likes and dislikes. That the other personalities could have both facets within them as well. Happiness could turn to sadness, something Kacchan didn’t wish for anyone to see, which is why he suddenly vanished when things got rough. His rash anger was the opposite of his rationality, of the calm thinker and strategist within Katsuki. And fear… Well, the opposite of fear was hope, right? It had to be. And if so, if Kacchan’s emotions were mirror images of themselves, the class could make it so they stayed on their most positive side, which would in turn make the blonde feel better.
“Makes sense,” Todoroki said, nodding along to his explanation. “But how do we go about this? It’s clear there’s a complicated relationship there, and separating them when they are still connected to each other won’t-”
“Oi!”
Izuku turned around, seeing one of the Kacchan’s standing in the doorframe. He was wearing his typical black tank top now, a black band around his wrist. Oh, so Yaomomo distributed the bracelets already, huh? Izuku wondered which one picked black.
“Dinner is ready, get in before it gets cold,” he huffed, his eyes trailing on Izuku a moment longer. “I need to talk to you first.”
“Oh, uh, sure,” he said, staying in place as Todoroki walked up to the door, staring at Kacchan for a moment before whispering something Izuku couldn’t hear.
“You try doing that shit when those assholes are always all over the place,” Katsuki grumbled, ignoring the heterochromatic teen in order to make his way over to Izuku. Todoroki didn’t say anything else, either, disappearing from view as he walked inside. “Walk with me.”
“...So what did you want to talk about?” Izuku asked as he caught up with the blonde, walking by his side past the other dormitory buildings. He glanced down at the black bracelet again before Kacchan put both his hands in his pockets and stopped in the middle of the path.
“I know you’ve figured this shit out by now since you’re too smart for your own good,” he started, turning to face him. “You know who I am, don’t you?”
“You’re Kacchan’s rationality,” Izuku guessed, making the other hum. “So you’re all a duality, like I thought.”
“I’m the one they call the leader,” he stated. “I’m in charge most of the time, keep the others in check. Cover up for their asses when they try to run rampant.”
Covering fear with anger , Izuku thought. He wondered what other emotions Kacchan had been suppressing by forcing an angry facade. Love, most likely. Sadness, too. Any negative emotion, any feeling that may be seen as a weakness were covered up and stored away. That wasn’t a healthy coping mechanism, Izuku knew that, and he hoped Kacchan understood that, too.
“I’ve been giving them more freedom lately, but it’s only caused more trouble,” he sighed. So he was listening to his therapist's advice, then. He was trying to open up to them. That was good to know, at least. “And now we’re in this predicament… Look, I’ll give it to you straight, alright? Love confessed to you without permission and Fear is going crazy with anticipation cause you haven’t answered me yet. Don’t worry about Happiness or whatever you’re calling him, I can take the rejection. I just need to hear your answer so I can move on and get everyone in line again.”
“What?” Izuku asked, shocked- surprised? Undecided. Trying to take it all in. “You’re… You’re afraid of being rejected?”
Was he actually hearing this right? Kacchan- THE Katsuki Bakugou, the most amazing person in Izuku’s life, the one that did so many things to make up for his past mistakes, to earn forgiveness, to change for his sake- He was afraid that Izuku, of all people, would reject his feelings?!
“Hasn’t that always been the case?” Katsuki shrugged, as if it was obvious. “I grew up being adored for my assertive personality and quirk, only to be reprimanded for those same qualities by the people who used to sing me countless praises before. I have a hard time judging the way people think about me because of it, and yet I can’t help but get attached so fucking quickly it’s annoying. I do trust you, though. That’s why I’m telling you this, why I’m opening up even though I’m afraid to get hurt. I need an answer, Izuku. I need to be able to move on, with or without you.”
Without him? Oh no, Kacchan wouldn’t get rid of him that easily.
“Yes,” Izuku blurted out, feeling his face heat up. God, he was actually doing this! “I… I like you too so uhm… I accept? Is that how you’re supposed to answer a love confession? I don’t know- Nobody’s ever confessed to me before and you’re like one of my first crushes ever and-”
Izuku’s mumbling was interrupted as Kacchan placed a hand over his mouth, desperate to make him stop talking. Joy was literally screaming and jumping around the common room right now and Love was covering his face mumbling ‘ oh my god ’ over and over again. If Izuku continued talking, a part of him might actually spontaneously combust, and he couldn’t have that. At least Fear seemed to have settled down now, so that was something.
“It’s a good answer,” Katsuki said, pulling his hand away again.
“Oh, uhm, great! You uhm, wow, okay, I… I expected this to go over differently- I mean, for you to react differently, I guess? Because I’m the only one freaking out about this and oh my god my heart is racing and I can’t-”
“I’m overjoyed,” Kacchan stated, stopping Izuku’s rambling once more. He didn’t look overjoyed. He wasn’t even smiling! “Katsuki is overjoyed, at least. I’m currently planning out future dates and outings.”
Right, split personalities! This was rational Kacchan, he wouldn’t be able to express joy the way- Wait. Future dates and outings?!
“We should return to the dormitory before one of my other selves explodes something,” Katsuki sighed, running a hand down his face. “Ugh, it’s gonna take so long to get them settled down after this…”
“You said you wanted an answer, so,” Izuku told him, feeling kind of let down. He confessed to Kacchan! Or, well, answered to his confession- And Kacchan seemed annoyed by it more than anything. Of course there was the whole split personality thing, he got that, but it still kinda hurt in a way. Made him nervous, if that made sense? Like talking to a wall. Giving so much and getting nothing in return.
“Don’t worry, this isn’t your fault. Whatever answer you would’ve given me would’ve resulted in an absolute emotional mess,” he said, taking Izuku’s hand and tugging him along, back to the dorms. “Come, allow me to show you what I’m talking about.”
Izuku tried not to think too much about the handholding, which is why he was absolutely overthinking it. Kacchan was holding his hand! He'd reached out for it, taken it, and oh, Izuku could cry right now! It was nothing to what happened when they entered the dorms, though. Rationality was right, it was a mess. Some couch pillows had scorch marks on them, one of the Kacchans sitting in the area, squeezing another pillow against his chest as he used it to hide his smile. Another one was sitting at the table, looking even more flustered than Izuku felt, completely still and non moving. They both looked up when Izuku entered the room, though, and he was taken aback by the intensity of their gaze.
“Behave,” black bracelet Kacchan warned as they frantically scrambled up, practically running over to Izuku. They would’ve tackled him to the ground if not for the rational one standing behind him, catching him as he stumbled back.
“This is the best day of my life,” one of them stated, clinging onto Izuku’s arm as if it was a life line. “You can’t believe how happy you’ve made me, Izuku!”
There were some stray pops escaping his palms, and Izuku could hear Anger muttering something about losing control over dumb feelings behind him. The other Kacchan, who Izuku assumed must be Love then, had his arms thrown around his neck, pulling him in close and not showing any sign of letting go.
“You’re everything to me, Izuku. You don’t know how much this means to me,” he choked out. Was he…crying? Wait, was Joy crying too?!
“Oh, uhm, hey, it’s okay, I-” Izuku tried, looking back at Anger, but he seemed to have given up on trying to get things under control. Great, so it was up to Izuku to solve this mess. “Don’t cry, please, I don’t-”
“These are happy tears,” Joy assured him, wiping away the water all the same. His voice croaked a bit as he continued talking. “I’m just so happy. I still can’t believe you said yes.”
“And what did he say yes to, exactly?”
It was only then that Izuku noticed he was once again the center of attention, trying and failing to get the Kacchans to let go of him. Guess it would be kinda weird to see Kacchan react so heavily to something happening somewhere else, huh? Izuku wished he could’ve seen it happen in real time, but the aftermath spoke for itself. At least he knew he wasn’t the only one freaking out about this.
“Oh, uh, I-” Izuku stammered, only for Love to pull back, cup his cheeks, and lock their lips together in a kiss. It was unexpected, but not unwanted, and Izuku couldn't help but melt into it. He pulled back when he heard some of the girls squealing, though. His embarrassment only grew when he noticed the way Joy was staring at him, as if amazed. Love was staring, too. Looking at him like he was the most precious thing in the world, and Izuku didn’t know how to handle it all.
“Okay, yeah, that checks out,” Ashido snickered, making Anger glare at her.
“Oi, move it! We’re making a fucking scene,” he grumbled while freeing himself from the weird hug that was going on. Izuku was able to wiggle free, only to have both his hands taken by the Kacchans.
“Come, I made curry, you’re gonna love it!” Joy grinned, and it was only then that Izuku noticed he was wearing the orange bracelet underneath the long sleeves of his sweater. “Don’t try to hide your opinion, okay? Tell us what you think of it.”
He was pushed down into a chair and presented with a plate of homemade curry almost immediately. Both Joy and Love flanked him in an instant, too. So much for not causing a scene…
“So~” Uraraka started as she sat down in front of him, leaning onto the table as she grinned in his direction. “You said yes, hm?”
Izuku couldn’t help but whine as the two Kacchans next to him beamed, brimming with love and happiness. It didn’t take long for the rest of his friends to join in, congratulating him on confessing and talking about how long he’d been crushing on the blonde already, glad he finally made a move, even if he wasn’t the one to initiate. The teasing of his friends wasn’t the worst, and this curry was great! And they were right, Kacchan liked him! He confessed! Which was something Izuku still couldn’t fully wrap his head around. He liked him and- and they were boyfriends now, right? That’s what happened after a love confession, wasn’t it? You start dating and hold each other’s hand and kiss and share food and-
“It’s getting late,” Katsuki announced, the one with the black bracelet. The leader. “We still have to figure out our sleeping situation, so let’s get moving.”
“You’re no fun,” Joy whined, happy to remain among his friends as Love stayed plastered to Izuku’s side. Huh, it was past Kacchan’s usual bedtime, wasn’t it? Izuku hadn’t noticed at all. Did he stay up late because of him? Or because the squad was pestering him about the whole confession thing? If he was actually bothered by it, he wouldn’t have stayed so long, though.
“It’s not my job to be fun,” he stated, grabbing the other by the scruff of his shirt and dragging him along against his will. “You too, lover boy. Come on.”
And with that, he dragged the other one with him as well, disappearing into the elevator just like he did when he removed Kacchan’s fear from the room. Izuku wondered how things were with that aspect of the blonde since he hadn’t seen him since their internal argument earlier. The leader had told him Fear had calmed down though, and he trusted Kacchan’s judgment on this, trusted him to take care of his own needs. But now that all of the Katsuki’s were gone, Izuku was left wide open to all the teasing and gossiping of his classmates, who wanted nothing more than to know what had happened, some even asking for a word by word retelling of it all.
Izuku was exhausted by the time he finally went to bed, and yet he was still brimming with energy, unable to fall asleep. Kacchan confessed to him! He was hit with a quirk that made sure nothing was stopping him anymore, and Izuku couldn’t be happier! A part of him felt guilty to be so happy about the quirk incident, he knew this was going to rough on Kacchan- Had already been quite harsh on him by now. Izuku knew better than anyone that the ash blonde didn’t like having his feelings out in the open like that, that’s the whole reason he built up a facade to begin with. Yet Izuku couldn’t help but tremble in excitement, unable to let the bad thoughts get to him as all he could think about were the soft words Kacchan’s love spoke to him.
Katsuki was much the same, full of jitters and nerves. His different personalities had pulled out futons for everyone to sleep on and yet none of them were willing to go to bed. The leader had to put in a lot of effort to get the others to calm down enough to sleep, Happiness still brimming with joy, Love over the moon with today’s events, and Fear full of hope and anticipation. It wasn’t long after they finally fell asleep that Fear was awoken by a nightmare, breathing heavily as he clutched a hand over his heart.
“Fuck,” he whispered, glancing aside at the others, seeing they were still vast asleep. He didn’t want to wake them up, didn’t want to see or feel the disappointment, the anger, the hate- Didn’t want to be the cause of yet another issue, didn’t want to exist at all - Okay, deep breaths. Calm down. He could get through this alone, right? He could calm down and stay quiet and not be a burden! He froze up when someone else moved, groaning as he turned around in his sleep. He couldn’t stay here, though. He’d wake them up with his inner turmoil. He needed to get out of here, find someplace safe to settle down. Somewhere he wouldn’t be a nuisance.
He managed to shuffle into the hallway without the others noticing, only to come to the realization that he had nowhere else to go. That was his room, his safe space, and there was nowhere else in this building he’d be able to get comfortable enough to calm down. Maybe with Izuku, but he didn’t want to bother him with this. No, he’d only just accepted Katsuki’s love, he was not gonna ruin things by being a whiny high maintenance good for nothing wimp-
“Bakubro?”
He blinked, seeing Kirishima looking half asleep in some Crimson Riot undies and a glass of water in hand. Oh no, and now someone had seen him! He’d think he was weak and dumb and stupid and-
“What’s up man? Whatcha doing out here so late?” the redhead asked, yawning as he walked up to him. Okay, calm down. This was Kirishima. He’s Katsuki’s friend, his friend. He wouldn’t laugh in his face, right? He would listen, support him. At least, he hoped.
“Nightmare,” he forced out, watching Kirishima’s eyes widen, seemingly waking up on the spot. “Don’t wanna wake the others. Don’t…want to be a bother.”
“You’re not a bother, bro! Come, let’s chill in my room for a bit, yeah?” Kirishima suggested, opening up the door for him and letting Katsuki inside. Okay, maybe this wouldn’t be so bad. Maybe Kirishima would understand and not make a fool of him… “Wanna tell me what it was about?”
“...Promise me you won’t make fun of me,” Katsuki asked.
“What? Dude, of course not,” Kirishima gasped. “I swear on my honor as a man.”
That wasn’t something to take lightly, even Katsuki knew that, and so he sat down on Kirishima’s bed, leaning onto the redhead as he recounted his nightmare while his friend rubbed his shoulder, trying his best to comfort him. He told him about his fear of being choked, of drowning in a sea of murky water and sludge, of being so completely helpless that all he could do was lay there and get killed, with no one around to save him. A fear of being useless, of being unable to move as the world around him continued and nobody cared whether he vanished or not.
And Kirishima had reassured him that there were so many people who were willing to help him, that he had friends and family that cared about him, that he wouldn’t have to face anything alone. That everyone here would stand by his side, ready to jump into danger with him- for him whenever the need arose. And that even if he was alone, which wouldn’t be for long, he was strong enough to face any adversary, strong enough to stand and fight. Strong enough not to fall.
“I don’t think there’s ever been a point where I thought of you as helpless or useless, Kat,” Kirishima told him. “You’re crazy strong! Not just because of your quirk or your smarts, but because you keep going even though you’re afraid. That’s what makes a hero, right?”
“You’re just quoting one of those dumb motivational books sensei had us read,” Katsuki huffed, knowing it didn’t take a genius to figure out that Kirishima knew which part of his friend he represented. That was probably the only reason he used that dumb quote anyway.
“Ha, you got me there,” he chuckled. “But did it make you feel better?”
It did, surprisingly enough. He felt comfortable here, felt at peace after airing it all out. He could feel himself start to drift off again, too, his eyes getting heavier by the second. Kirishima didn’t tell him off, didn’t make him leave, and allowed the blonde to fall asleep on his bed. It wasn't until one of the other aspects of Katsuki’s personality came knocking the next morning that Fear returned to his room, accompanied by a big thanks from Joy and an apology from the leader.
“I’m sorry I bothered you on a school night,” he said. “I would’ve been fine on my own.”
“You’re never a bother to me, bro. School night or not,” Kirishima assured him. “Come to me any time!”
“I’m not doing that,” he said, brutally honest, as always. “But I’ll keep the option in mind.”
“I’ll take it!” he grinned, swinging his arm around his shoulder as they made their way downstairs. Breakfast was a lot less hectic than dinner had been the night before, even if the usual table of the Bakusquad seemed to have doubled in size. Izuku was glad his fear aspect was feeling good enough to make an appearance. It was nice to see his trust in their class validated like that! Yaoyorozu was sure to make some extra uniforms for the three extra students, which made Izuku wonder what other things they’d have to change to fit Kacchan in their classroom in his current condition.
“Izuku, walk to class with me!” one of the Kacchans demanded, holding out his hand to him, a dark grenade green band around his wrist. Ah, Love, of course.
“You’re gonna have to share with us, Blasty,” Uraraka stated, pulling Izuku close to her just to tease the explosive blonde. Unfortunately for her, this Kacchan wasn’t capable of anger.
“Oh, sure,” he shrugged, taking Izuku’s hand anyway, completely ignoring the way Uraraka clung to his side. “You’re welcome to join if he doesn’t get you first.”
“What? Who?” she frowned, her eyes getting impossibly big when Katsuki pointed behind him, where his actual anger was seething, glaring daggers at the girl.
“Please don’t actually kill my friends,” Izuku asked, chuckling a little as Uraraka let go of him, taking a step back under Anger’s watchful gaze.
“Only because you asked so nicely,” Katsuki smiled, leaning down to place a kiss on his cheek. “And because you’re finally mine. My Izuku, my love.”
“Who knew Blasty would be so corny in a relationship?” Kaminari snorted.
“Oi, I don’t want to hear any comments from the likes of you. Your flirting fucking sucks,” Anger pointed out, earning an offended ‘ Hey! ’ from the electric blonde. Joy was quick to intervene, swiftly settling things within the squad and laughing it up with his friends. Izuku noticed the leader let him, just like how he let Love say whatever sappy things he wanted to say. Kacchan wasn’t controlling his feelings right now, he was simply being himself, out in the open. Izuku couldn’t be more proud!
That quickly changed when they arrived in the classroom and there was only one desk for Katsuki to sit at, with the other three having to stand in the back if they wanted to follow the classes. It was kinda shocking how long it took for a fight to break out, to be honest. Not that it was a real fight to start with, just a big argument, really. Nothing compared to the shouting match from the day before. It was even less surprising that Anger was the one who won in the end, right as Aizawa sensei entered the room and ushered everyone to their places.
They ended up taking turns taking notes at Katsuki’s desk, switching between lectures as the remaining three stood in the back of the classroom. Izuku could hear them murmuring things to one another a couple of times, which made him wonder just how connected they were. If they still had to talk to one another, they might not share the kind of hivemind Izuku thought about at first. Maybe it’s more of a physical connection and less so a mental one? He’d have to ask the different versions of Kacchan to describe it after school and add it to his research notes!
At least, that was his original plan. Except Izuku was overthinking and overanalyzing and already overflowing with questions by the time lunch rolled around, ready to interrogate the blonde on the spot.
“Hm, I guess it’s sort of like a hivemind?” Joy said when Izuku asked on their way to the cafeteria. “I mean, I can feel what the others are feeling as if we’re still one person, but I can’t really express it in words.”
“We can’t read each other’s minds, if that’s what you're asking,” Anger sighed. “It’s more empathic.”
"Fascinating," Izuku gasped. “Do you think your thought processes are all the same? That if asked a question, you’d all come to the same answer? Or do you think that the different personalities would-”
He continued to talk and gush over the various aspects of the quirk, and Kacchan let him. Everyone in class A was used to his excited quirk ramblings by now, so nobody bat an eye as he muttered up a storm while they were waiting in line to get food, even if some people gave him weird looks as they passed by. That might’ve been because there were four Katsukis standing around him, though. They were getting some stares as they were making their way through the cafeteria, too, looking for a place to sit and eat.
“If it isn’t class A’s trouble magnet!”
Izuku could see one of the Kacchans roll his eyes before he could see the owner of the voice. Of course Monoma couldn’t let this opportunity slip by…
“Getting hit with a quirk by a random villain is a rookie mistake, you know?” he grinned, poking the chest of the first Katsuki he came into contact with. Izuku had a quick look at his bracelet, seeing it was the orange one. Joy. “Can’t say I’m surprised! Class A is a class full of reckless fools!”
“Weren’t you hit with a quirk on patrol like a month ago?” Sero asked.
“Irrelevant!” he exclaimed, making Izuku roll his eyes. “Explosive Bakugou, always attracting villains wherever he goes and causing trouble for everyone! I heard a local hero had to come and save you! How many times does that make it now? Seems like a pattern to me!”
Save was a big word. It was true that some local hero had come to assist him when Kacchan had called it in, as was the normal procedure because they weren’t licensed pros yet. The fact they showed up right after he got hit with the quirk was purely coincidental and Monoma knew that, too. Izuku would never understand why he always tried to badmouth them with lies like that, not when the whole hero course already knew he was spouting nonsense anyway. That’s why Izuku hadn’t expected Kacchan to react to it.
Oh how wrong he was.
Because suddenly Fear was trembling next to him, his plate shaking with him as he stared at the ground- or, well, at his food. Before Izuku could try and comfort him and ask what was going on, he heard a sob from in front of him. His eyes widened, and so did Monoma’s as he took a step back in shock. Seems like he didn’t actually think he’d get a reaction, either. Only a second later, the two other Katsukis had dropped their plates somewhere and simultaneously tackled Monoma to the ground. Explosions rang through the air as Izuku shoved his plate on the nearest table, quickly trying to intervene, not wanting Kacchan to get into trouble for starting a fight at school.
Not that Monoma didn’t deserve it. Oh hell no, he more than deserved to get his ass beat, definitely when Izuku saw how broken Joy looked and how scared Fear was. He shifted his priorities when Kirishima and Kendo jumped into the fray, leading the two Kacchans somewhere more private, away from the scene that had attracted quite a lot of attention. Ashido followed, clearing a path towards the hallway, where Joy’s silent tears turned into outright sobs and Fear fell through his knees, pulling at his hair as his breathing got louder.
“I’ll take orange, you take white,” Ashido said, using the color coding as she pushed Izuku towards Fear. Izuku immediately knelt down in front of him, taking Kacchan’s hands in his own to make sure he wouldn’t hurt himself.
“Hey, Kacchan, look at me,” Izuku said, trying not to flinch at the small sparks that popped up from his palms. “It’s okay, you’re okay, you’re safe.”
“I’m only in the way,” he choked out, tearing up as he looked at Izuku. “I’m useless- I always have to be saved by someone else!”
“That’s not true,” Izuku said, trying to put as much conviction into his words as possible. “Monoma was just trying to get under your skin, you know that.”
“I’m a loser,” he breathed. “Can’t do anything right- Can’t be a hero-”
“Kacchan is amazing!” Izuku exclaimed, making Katsuki’s eyes widen. “You’re the best! You’re the one that taught me it’s okay to ask for help, that you don’t need to do everything by yourself. To win is to save, and to save is to win, remember? That goes both ways.”
“...I don’t deserve you,” he breathed.
“Well, you’re stuck with me anyway, whether you want it or not,” Izuku smiled, pulling him into a hug, and Kacchan let him. “Everyone needs help sometimes, so please don’t be afraid to rely on others. Getting rescued doesn’t make you any less of a hero.”
With that, he pulled back, taking out a handkerchief to wipe away Kacchan’s tears.
“Besides,” he continued as he cupped Kacchan's face, “Monoma was talking out of his ass. We both know you took down that villain before that other hero showed up, and getting affected by random quirks is an occupational hazard in this field. You’ve got nothing to prove. Say it.”
“What?”
“It’s a trick All Might taught me,” Izuku explained, scratching the back of his head as he let out a nervous laugh. “Self validation and all that stuff, you know? You gotta say it out loud. Say you’ve got nothing to prove, that you have no reason to be afraid. Say it and mean it.”
Katsuki frowned, obviously skeptical, but Izuku wasn't gonna let him go until he said it.
“I… I’ve got nothing to prove,” he sighed. “I have nothing to be afraid of.”
“That’s right,” Izuku smiled, turning to face Ashido, who was sitting down on the other side of the hallway with Katsuki slumped next to her, still sniffling but looking a bit better. “What happened back there? I’ve never seen you react so heavily to Monoma’s bullying before.”
“He normally has to go through all of us.”
Izuku’s head whipped around to face yet another Katsuki, and this one looked pissed. At first he thought it must be anger, but the green band around his wrist told him otherwise.
“This whole split personality shit leaves me wide open and I fucking hate it,” he hissed, small explosions popping from his hands from the stress of it all. “This whole situation is fucking hell!”
Izuku flinched when he punched the wall, leaving a slight scorch mark on the otherwise white surface. Hopefully Nezu wouldn’t be too mad about that… And maybe Kacchan shouldn't have come to school at all today. Or maybe just one of them.
“Where is your last one?” Ashido asked as the third leaned against the wall, sliding down to the floor on her other side.
“Arguing with the teachers about what happened,” he huffed. “Probably gonna get in trouble for finally bashing that bastard’s head in. Ugh, I fucking hate Monoma. Why the hell is he even in the hero course?”
People said the same thing about Kacchan sometimes, but Izuku knew this wasn’t the time to point that out. He didn’t want to cause another breakdown if he could help it.
“We should move from the hallway before people start leaving the cafeteria,” Izuku said, getting back up again. Kacchan wouldn't like people seeing him like this, definitely not some noisy teens without any tact or understanding.
“Oh, I can text the others and we can eat in the classroom?” Ashido suggested, already taking out her phone.
“You don't have to- Not because of me, I-” Fear started, and Izuku knew those were Kacchan’s insecurities talking. Not wanting to take up too much space, afraid to ask for what you need. Yeah, Izuku recognized the signs all too well. He’d lived like that for a long time too.
“It’s not a problem,” he said, smiling. “It’ll probably be nicer, too. Less people, less noisy.”
“We can turn the desks and make a big table,” Joy said, forcing a smile. It was fake, Izuku could tell, but it was a start. “Jirou can pick some music to put on in the background.”
“That'd be nice,” Love hummed, having calmed down considerably as well. “I’d like that.”
“It’s decided then,” Ashido smiled, tapping away at her phone. “I’m gonna go to the classroom and set everything up! Wanna join me?”
“I think I’m gonna go back to get our food,” Izuku chuckled, glancing at the Kacchans. “You guys can go with her though, I’ll make sure your plates make it to the room.”
“I’ll come with you,” Love said as he stood up. It was clear Fear wanted to get out of here, and Joy was excited to plan this impromptu little indoor picnic. Love wasn’t looking forward to entering the cafeteria again, Izuku could tell, but he said he was going so the green head didn’t argue. Kacchan knew what he could and couldn’t handle, he needed to remember that. It was a good thing Izuku went back in, too, since Anger was still making quite the scene. He wasn’t the only one arguing with the teachers, though. Quite a lot of people from class A were there to defend him as well, and Izuku couldn’t help but smile. Yeah, Kacchan really did grow on them, didn’t he..?
“Monoma was asking for it! You know how he is!”
“Yeah, that fucker deserved to get beaten!” Katsuki snapped, lunching at said fucker, only to be held back by both Sero and Kirishima. “Let me at him! He needs to die!”
“Hey, hey, hey, easy now,” Izuku said, quick to step in. “Remember, you can’t be a hero with a criminal record.”
Katsuki growled, but didn’t try to attack him, so he counted that as a win.
“I fucking hate that you’re right,” Love grumbled.
“I still wanna fucking murder him,” Anger spat.
“And I understand that, but please calm down,” Izuku pleaded, ushering him away from Monoma as both Iida and Yaoyorozu continued to argue with the teachers about who was at fault. “Come on, just take a deep breath- You don’t want to trigger the other parts of you, right?”
“Are you actually trying to manipulate me by using me against myself right now?”
“Depends, is it working?” Izuku asked with a small, nervous smile. Katsuki frowned, glaring at him before letting out a long sigh.
“You’ve always been too smart for your own good, nerd.”
That was Kacchan speak for yes! And it worked, too! Kacchan’s anger turned to rationality as they collected their previously abandoned trays and moved to their homeroom classroom with some other classmates. The others had already rearranged the desks when they arrived with the food, which meant they just needed to sit down and start to eat. It was fun to be away from everyone else for a while. To just eat and talk and ignore whatever had happened a couple of minutes before.
Well, until Aizawa sensei walked in, giving them a lecture for disturbing his lunch nap, and taking all of Kacchan away to have an even longer lecture, presumingly.
Katsuki returned for hero training in the afternoon though, already dressed in his sports uniform while waiting at ground beta together with Aizawa sensei. Izuku could imagine their teacher giving Kacchan some spare uniforms to avoid any argument over who was going to wear the hero outfit. Maybe that’s why they had been told to wear their sports uniform, too. To avoid any unnecessary drama. Izuku was sure Aizawa would make up some other excuse in the guise of training, though.
“As a hero, you won’t always have all your equipment on hand when called upon during an emergency. It’s important you don’t get too attached to your hero outfit and all its technological advantages,” Aizawa started. Yep, there it was, the rational reasoning behind their outfits. “We’ll be training in this cityscape to simulate being called up during a villain outbreak. I’ll be dividing you into groups of heroes and villains. It’s the heroes’ task to stop the villains from escaping the city with their bounty by arresting them, and the villains’ task to find a hidden object and pass through the gate at the other end of the city. Heroes also need to keep property damage to a minimum and keep the robot dummies safe from harm. We’ll be switching things up so everyone gets to fight on both sides. Two groups per round, as soon as one of the teams reaches their objective, it’s over.”
“What about comms?” Hagakure asked.
“No comms, and the heroes start dispersed across the city,” Aizawa added. “The ones who aren’t fighting will watch everything from the control room with me, where we’ll debrief and review each round. Any other questions?”
“Does Bakugou count as one person?”
Everyone turned to look at the blonde, at the four identical people representing four completely different personalities. Each of them had their strengths and weaknesses, Izuku was sure, but getting one or the other in your team made quite the difference strategy wise.
“They’ll be a team of their own,” Aizawa stated before they started drawing lots to see who was teamed up with who. Izuku wasn’t up in the first round, so he followed the others to the control room. Kacchan was fighting, though. His team started as the villain group together in the center of ground beta, and man, the phrase one man army had never been more applicable to the guy. Izuku had always been impressed by his quick thinking, had always admired his close combat focussed fighting style, and yet he seemed to take that to a whole other level once again.
Kacchan was quick to take to the skies, scouting the area for the heroes that were spread around the area, always falling back before he got spotted. Izuku didn’t know how, but he was sure they were talking to each other one way or another, even if words couldn’t be mentally transferred. Maybe it was communication based on emotion? Maybe they could sense certain things- knew how the different parts of him would feel and act accordingly? Not the most reliable strategy, but seeing as the other team had no comms at all, it was giving him a big advantage. And since structural damage wasn’t important to the villain team…
Well, let’s just say Kacchan had the opportunity to really let loose during the exercise. Happy to simply mess with the heroes (Joy), facing them head on in combat (Love) or leading them into an ambush (Fear and Anger). It didn’t take him all that long to find the object he was looking for: a bag labeled ‘ Villain’s bounty ’. Kacchan wouldn't be Kacchan if he didn’t go for a complete victory, though. So of course he had to beat the whole hero team before leaving through the overly decorated exit gate. It was no surprise when he was selected as the match’s mvp.
“You were amazing out there, Kacchan! That moved you pulled by luring Uraraka into a fake sense of security by sending out your Fear aspect and then ambushing her from behind with Anger was genius!” Izuku gushed.
“I am a genius, nerd,” one of them grinned.
“Winning is the best!” another exclaimed.
“Fuck yeah!” a third yelled, holding up his hand for a high five, which the second one provided. “I love winning!”
“We still have another round to go, though.” the fourth one, Fear, Izuku assumed.
“And we’ll win that one just as fast, you’ll see!” the second one said with a beaming smile. Joy, presumably. The fact he ended up having to face Izuku’s group a couple of rounds later only fueled his competitive spirit even more. Izuku couldn't help but get fired up as well, always happy to test his skills against Kacchan during training. Since he was part of the villain team this time, he and his group started in the same location. A group consisting of Kaminari, Ojiro, Tokoyami, and himself.
“Not to be a downer, but Midoriya is the only one who really stands a chance against Bakugou in a one on one,” Ojiro pointed out. “I mean, we can hold our own, sure, but Bakugou has the quirk advantage over all of us unless Kaminari can ambush him and take him out with a big shock before he can react.”
“Impossible,” Kaminari grumbled. “That guy’s reflexes are insane.”
“We’d be a big target if we stay together though,” Izuku frowned, trying to think of a plan. “Searching for the bounty will go a lot slower, too, giving Kacchan more time to prepare and ambush us.”
“I think teams of two should suffice,” Tokoyami said. “Kaminari and I can go south and you two north. We should agree on a signal if either one of us gets in trouble.”
Everyone could agree to that, and so they set out before Kacchan was able to find them. Izuku was on high alert the whole time, scouting the surrounding area as Ojiro looked for the bounty bag. That was, up until Izuku spotted the distress signal a couple of streets down. A bright lightning bolt shooting straight up into the air.
“The others are in trouble! We need to move before-” Izuku yelled, jumping down from his vantage point to get to Ojiro, only to find he was not where he was supposed to be.
“Before what, Deku~ ?”
His head snapped around, lying eyes upon Kacchan. Which one was it? He was alone, didn’t have Ojiro, so there must be another nearby. He had to get out of here and regroup with-
BOOM!
Izuku yelped, leaping away from a blast as he jumped up a fire escape, using it as leverage to climb as Blackwhip’s tendrils spiraled around the metal, hoisting him upward, away from the barrage of explosions Kacchan was throwing his way.
“Oh, I don’t think so.”
Crap. There was another one waiting for him at the top, grinning at him as he held his arm outstretched, holding him at gunpoint. If there were two of them, it might be a Fear and Anger combo again, although neither of them acted anything like Fear did, so- Izuku was able to dodge the first blast, skidding to the side as he ran towards him, punching him in the gut.
“I’m not giving up so easily, Kacchan.”
He coughed, yet he was able to grab his arm, gripping his like a vice when Izuku tried to pull away.
“I wouldn’t have it any other way,” he grinned, twisting Izuku's arm and firing an explosion to his face at point blank range. He knew Izuku would be able to block it, knew Izuku would be able to free himself and turn things around on him. “Took your time getting serious.”
Izuku frowned, clenching his hands as he steeled his heart, controlling Blackwhip as he readied himself for another attack. Was this his plan? Was he the bait? Izuku got separated from the rest of his team, was alone facing Kacchan- There was a second one somewhere on the ground, too, probably dealing with Ojiro- There was no way he’d gotten that far away in such a short amount of time.
“Too long,” Kacchan added, popping his hands and taking a couple of steps back before he blasted off the roof, propelling himself towards the spot where Kaminari’s distress signal came from. Damnit! The goal hadn’t been to capture him at all! It was just a distraction! Izuku had fallen right in his trap!
“Now it’s my turn!”
His eyes widened and he was quick to step aside, dodging yet another blast as Kacchan’s hand blazed past him. Was this the one that had been on the ground? Had he dealt with Ojiro already? No, Izuku spotted the handcuffs in his pocket. He hadn't used them yet, which meant-
“Come on and fight me, Deku!” he yelled, taking out the cuffs as he swirled around. “Face me head on! Show me that beautiful determination I love so much!”
Izuku’s only option was to run. He had no other choice. He was alone and Kacchan had to upper hand. This was all part of his plan! He needed to get out of here, regroup- rethink his strategy, try to figure out what happened to his teammates- They might still be in battle for all he knew. Yes, getting to them should be his top priority. If they’d disappeared, he’d switch his plan to a solo act.
So he ran, and Kacchan followed.
Dodging his attacks, fending off any and all attempts at capturing him, and keeping himself oriented and focussed on his goal were not as easy as one might think. Definitely not when he kept getting flustered by the complementary taunts this Kacchan threw his way. By now he was certain this one was the love aspect, not that that helped him in any way.
“Fuck yeah, use those strong fucking legs, Deku!” Katsuki yelled from behind him as Izuku jumped from one building to another. “Run! You’re giving me the best view in the house!”
Was he actually trying to bait a fight with him right now? With those words? Well, guess they had the desired stunning effect, at least, because before he realized it, he was tackled mid air and thrown into a building. They tumbled through the broken glass, both hissing as the shards penetrated their uniforms. Right, no protective gear, that was the whole point of this exercise. They’d definitely have to stop by Recovery Girl later.
“Remember this place, Izuku?” Katsuki asked as he crawled up, grinning at the green head. And yeah, Izuku did remember it. Knew this building better than any other here at ground beta. “You won’t win this one, I’ll promise you that.”
“We’ll see about that,” Izuku said, flinching when he pulled a larger shard from his arm. It wasn’t the worst he’d experienced, but that didn't mean it didn't hurt. He didn’t have a lot of time to recover as Kacchan started firing shots at him again, forcing Izuku through the building. They’d patched it up nicely after the damage of their indoor battle training, he noted, holding onto the top of a door opening, using the leverage to swing upwards and over Kacchan, kicking him in the back as he barged through.
Izuku landed on top of him, using Blackwhip to restrain him as he tossed the handcuffs away. Kacchan struggled in his hold though, so Izuku was forced to straddle him, holding his hands pinned above his head as both of them were panting, out of breath from all the fighting.
“Fuck, this has no right to be as hot as it is,” Katsuki grunted, making Izuku’s face flush red. Guess their position could be mistaken for something more, uh, intimate.
“It’s my win,” Izuku grinned, quoting Kacchan’s declaration of when he held Izuku in a similar position.
“Then come and claim your price,” Katsuki teased, and Izuku could feel him relax under his hold. Izuku couldn’t resist, leaning down to take the kiss Kacchan was offering. Aizawa sensei would probably lecture them about this later, grumbling something about teenage hormones before letting them off the hook with a warning. At least, that’s what he thought before he was yanked off Kacchan and handcuffed by another. He hadn’t even noticed he’d dropped Blackwhip until he was smashed face first onto the floor and the cold metal wrapped around his wrists.
“Ha! Couldn’t keep it in your pants, Deku?” the one who cuffed him taunted. “Should’ve thought twice before engaging with your enemy like that.”
“Oh my- That was dirty, Kacchan!” Izuku whined, yet he stayed limp on the ground, knowing when to admit defeat. “You're supposed to be the hero team!”
“And heroes always use a villain’s weakness against them,” he stated. “You should feel flattered I wasn’t able to exploit any other weakness to take the win.”
“It was my idea!” Love exclaimed, flopping down next to Izuku, still grinning at him. “I’m glad you’re as into me as I am into you, or it wouldn’t have worked.”
Izuku couldn’t actually disagree with that… In the end, this was all his own fault. He walked right into Kacchan’s trap and didn’t even realize it. Unbelievable.
“Kacchan really is amazing,” he sighed in defeat, rolling over and crawling up so he was sitting with his hands tied behind his back. “I take it you’ve taken care of Ojiro, too?”
“And the others. You were the last one,” the one that captured him said. Oh. Well, at least there was that. Katsuki was once again proclaimed the mvp of the match, and Izuku got a thorough lecture on keeping up public appearances and to not let his private life interfere with his future hero work. Which got the rest of the class snickering and giggling.
“It might seem like a joke now, but relationships between heroes and villains are more common than you think, be it familial, friendship, or more,” Aizawa stated, silencing the class in an instant. “Keeping your cool in a crisis and not let personal feelings sway your decision making are crucial traits you need to develop in order to be a professional hero.”
After the afternoon training, the whole class had to go visit Recovery Girl for a quick heal before walking back to the dorms, some more tired than others. Most of them were discussing the battle simulations and how to improve on newly exposed weaknesses. So of course the whole flirting thing came up, too.
“Please tell me you’re not planning on flirting during all our training sessions from now on?” Kaminari groaned, already imagining what sort of sappy and cringy pickup lines she’d be exposed to.
“The whole point is not to do that,” Izuku pointed out. “Although… I do wanna get payback on Kacchan for using me like that, so maybe one time.”
“I heard that, nerd,” one of the Kacchans called out. “You’re on!”
“You just had to say something,” Uraraka groaned, dragging her hands down over her face.
“Oh come on, it won’t be that bad,” Izuku said, shutting up when she gave him a deadpan look.
“Oh, it’ll absolutely be that bad,” one of the Kacchans grinned. “No, even worse. ”
“Just wait until you’re back to normal and I can hold all these sappy little moments over your head for the rest of your life,” Uraraka said while pointing at him. That wouldn’t be for another week, though. A week filled with less drama than Izuku anticipated. Love and Ashido got along surprisingly well, gossiping and doing each other’s nails every other day. Seeing Kacchan with black nail polish was something else, let me tell you. Joy was happy to hang out with his friends, setting up game and movie nights with the Bakusquad and other members of class A.
Anger had become something akin to a second vice class president, helping out with some issues as they arose and assisting Yaomomo with class tutoring sessions. Fear tended to keep to himself, yet Izuku found him being dragged along to various activities the other personalities participated in. Izuku was happy to see Kacchan open up to the class so obviously, to see everything he learned through therapy come to fruition as he allowed himself to just be throughout the rest of the quirk’s duration. He just hoped it would continue to show afterwards, too, when his feelings were all mixed up again.
The next weekend, Izuku found Kacchan making pancakes in the kitchen. He yawned as he walked in, glancing at his wrist to check which one it was on his way to the fridge, only to find his arm decorated in four different colors. His eyes widened, his gaze tracking back up to Katsuki’s face, finding he was already looking back at him.
“You’re back to normal.”
“Good morning to you too, shithead,” he huffed, turning back to face his pancakes. “Don’t take out your crappy cereal, I’m making enough for the both of us.”
“Oh,” Izuku mouthed, a smile rising to his lips as he walked over to Kacchan again. “Thank you, you're the best!”
“Tch, I know,” he grinned, blushing a little as he tapped his cheek. “Show me your gratitude, nerd.”
“But of course,” Izuku chuckled, cupping his other cheek to turn his head, pecking his lips instead of his face. “Thank you, Kacchan.”
Izuku might’ve enjoyed the way Kacchan’s face flushed red. He laughed when he was shoved away by the flustered blonde, already on his way to take some plates from the kitchen cabinets.
“So, uhm, now that you’re back to normal, we can uh… We can go on a- a date, if you want to?” Izuku asked. “We didn't really talk about it while you were split, so I don’t know if that’s something you want- I mean, one of you mentioned wanting to plan something but I know going out isn’t really your thing and you don’t need to feel forced to do so! We already know pretty much everything about each other anyway and-”
“Izuku, shut the fuck up,” Katsuki snapped. “Of course I wanna go on a date with you. It says a whole lot about me that it took a shitty split personality quirk like that to get me to confess, but I’m gonna make one thing real clear off the bat. I love you, I’d fucking die for you, and that ain’t gonna change any time soon.”
“Please don’t actually die for me,” Izuku said quickly, making Kacchan snort. “I’m serious Kacchan!”
“Yeah, yeah, don’t worry. A date won’t do it anyway,” he snickered, waving it off, frowning at the bracelets as he moved the pan around. “I should take these dumb things off now, too. They’re scratchy as fuck.”
“Did they just appear like that when you fused back to normal?” Izuku wondered out loud, and Katsuki swore he saw the nerd fiddle with his hands the same way he does when he writes down in those notebooks. He wouldn't be surprised if he added this new information to his quirk analysis.
“Woke up like this,” Katsuki shrugged. “Glad this shit is finally over though. Shit was intense, more so than I thought it was gonna be. Still don’t like having my emotions so visibly on display like that.”
“You handled it really well though,” Izuku pointed out, watching Katsuki roll his eyes. “I mean it! You really opened up to the class and I’m proud of you!”
“...Thanks,” he said, and Izuku could spot a small smile on his face. “Now gimme that plate before this shit is burned.”
Yeah, Izuku couldn’t be happier with the outcome of this quirk accident.