Chapter Text
In the three weeks since Izuku had gone missing, Katsuki hadn't gotten a full night's rest. Or any rest at all, really. Not that he couldn't sleep, although, that was true too. It was his dreams that were causing trouble- dreams of Izuku. Dreams of finding him, of rescuing him, and every night, like clockwork, he found Izuku somewhere else. Bound in a villain's lair, left for dead in some ditch, writhing in pain in an abandoned warehouse. It changed every night, but the premise, or at least what Katsuki wanted to believe was the premise, was that he'd find him.
And he did.
Five minutes, the agency had said in his earpiece as he flew down the stairs, you got maybe five minutes to find him and then this whole place is coming down.
Katsuki had already blown his way into almost every room in the lower levels, each explosion more violent than the last as he grew desperate. Room after room, empty labs with glass beakers lining the shelves, musty storage closets, but no Izuku.
By the time he stands in front of the last door, he doesn't know what to expect, doesn't even know if the nerd is still alive. Christ, he hopes so.
He hesitates. Notices his hands are shaking and blames it on his exhaustion. Because of his heavy winter costume, because he's been generating explosions every 30 seconds, maybe because he hasn't been sleeping. But not because he's scared, fuck you.
Now or never, right? He squeezes his eyes shut and blasts the door off its hinges.
"Kacchan?"
As the smoke clears, all Katsuki can do is stand there and blink dumbly. Izuku looks like shit. Naked on the dirty basement floor, body covered in bruises, cuts that aren't completely closed and probably need goddamn stitches. And his voice is so weak.
"Kacchan?" Izuku repeats, pushing himself up onto his elbows, and the hope in his voice shakes Katsuki out of his stupor.
"Oh my god," he breathes, "Oh my god."
Katsuki is at his side in an instant, dropping to his knees and grabbing him by the shoulders. He wants to inspect every inch of Izuku, see exactly what the bastard did to him so he can beat his ass twice as bad, but there's no time.
"Deku, can you stand? We gotta get out of here, quickly," Katsuki says, already yanking Izuku up to his feet and wrapping an arm around his waist. Izuku winces and tries to quiet a pained sound. Katsuki feels sick to his stomach.
Izuku stumbles but seems steady enough when he stands, so Katsuki pulls him out of that room, out of that prison, and into a long hallway. Each door they pass is blown in, wood and metal splintered from Katsuki's explosions in his furious search for Izuku. The fight is still happening on the ground floor way above, rumbling the ceiling and making the lights flicker. Each thud stirs up more dust and more panic as Katsuki struggles to breathe.
No time for that, he thinks. He needs you to be a hero right now.
Izuku is gasping for air by the time they reach the stairwell, and he tugs on Katsuki's sleeve as he wheezes, "Sorry. I- I can't... anymore." He wordlessly hauls Izuku up into his arms, bridal style, and takes the stairs two at a time.
Katsuki runs hot, always has, and Izuku's body feels like ice against his. It's a miracle he didn't freeze to death down here. Katsuki swears at the idea of him curled up in that room, fingers turning blue and breath puffing in the cold.
The building is collapsing, no doubt about that now, with cracks zig-zagging through the concrete and debris falling from above. They make it up a couple flights, and the lights flicker for one, two seconds, then die completely.
"Well, fuck," Katsuki deadpans, reaching out with one hand to feel ahead of him as he goes. Izuku tightens his hold around Katsuki's neck. He feels so frail, so quiet and withdrawn and unlike his normal self that Katsuki can hardly believe it's him. This is not the Hero Deku who saved the whole damn world. He tries to focus on Izuku's breathing, hitching and uneven, as the ground shakes and he rounds the last flight of stairs. "C'mon, c'mon."
He bursts through the door and the sun is suddenly so blinding all he sees is white. He squints and it doesn't help but he just keeps running straight ahead to get Izuku as far away from this mess as possible. Izuku sucks in a sharp breath, and Katsuki has the nauseating thought that this is the first time he's seen daylight since he went missing.
He hears the villain cackle somewhere behind him, and without thinking, he sends back the largest, most destructive explosion he can manage.
He pushes his legs as hard as he can, boots pounding on the concrete, but the blast catches up in an instant. He's thrown violently into the air, and the last thing he does is clutch Izuku closer to his chest, curling his body around him to protect him from the worst of it.
The laughing stops, or maybe everything else is so loud it drowns it out. Katsuki numbly wonders if snow is falling around them, or if it's ash, and then everything goes black.
When Katsuki comes to he is, predictably, in a hospital bed, hooked up to wires and beeping machines. His whole body is stiff and sore.
He cracks his eyes open and looks down. Sees his arms wrapped up in gauze. Looks up, sees the tiny room he's in, a small window with blue curtains, a couple plastic chairs pushed against the wall. He blinks a couple times, piecing together what happened.
Realization hits him suddenly: Deku. The rescue mission, the explosion. Stupidly, all he can think of is that Izuku was stark naked, and someone else must have found him like that. Katsuki's head hurts at that, can't think too hard on why he was stripped, all that could have happened to him in the last three weeks. Has he been locked in that basement room this whole time? Starved and beaten, maybe worse?
He can't think about how once upon a time Izuku could've ripped the villain limb from limb with Blackwhip, and now he's quirkless. Defenseless. Katsuki sits up and dry heaves into the trash can next to the bed.
A nurse knocks quietly and pokes her head in. She's short, brown hair, kind face.
"Ground Zero, sir?"
"Yeah?"
Her eyes widen when she sees him ripping off his monitors and standing from the bed.
"You're injured. We need you to stay here until you've recovered a little more."
"Fat fuckin' chance," snorts Katsuki, "where's Deku?"
"Sir... um, he's in a private room. I'm afraid he's not taking visitors right now. And we really would prefer if you stay-"
Katsuki gives her a piercing glare, and the nurse snaps her mouth shut.
"I need to see him."
She eyes him warily, before slowly nodding, saying, "Alright, I guess. You can follow me."
She leads him to a room down the corridor, and Katsuki is suddenly walking down that long, dark hallway again, frantically searching for Izuku. Get your shit together, Katsuki. He steels himself and twists the door handle, glancing back at the nurse. She gives him a small, sad smile and turns away.
Katsuki clicks the door shut behind him and walks into the room.
Izuku is propped up on the bed, hugging a pillow to his chest. He looks at Katsuki for a moment, expression unreadable, then directs his gaze to the floor.
"Hey."
"Hi," Izuku mumbles, his voice coming out thin.
Katsuki opens his mouth, closes it again. They haven't seen much of each other since graduation, and this is neither the time nor the place to play catch up. He's never been good at small talk anyway.
He looks Izuku up and down, then blurts, "You've got clothes now."
Izuku's face reddens, and Katsuki cringes. Nice one.
"Um, yeah. My mom brought them." Izuku fiddles with the sleeve on his hoodie. He still won't meet his eyes.
"Good. That's good. She already leave? Shit- what time is it?"
Glancing outside the window, Katsuki notices it's dark. He doesn't have his watch, his phone, nothing. Just the scratchy hospital sweats. Izuku's hoodie looks so soft.
"Almost 10, I think."
"Jesus. My lazy ass has been out half the day."
At that, Izuku finally looks up at him, some warmth back in his eyes.
They can chit-chat a little easier after that. Recovery Girl healed some of Izuku's more nasty gashes, he's got a small concussion, his mom hugged him and wouldn't let go for a whole half hour, and they should be letting him out before midnight.
That one sticks with Katsuki. "Are you going back to your apartment?"
"I guess so. Probably. What else, right?"
"And what, go back to teaching on Monday too?"
"Oh no, no. I won't be back for another week or two. I've got a lot of, you know, things to work out and all with- with everything that... happened." Izuku trails off, going quiet again.
And Katsuki can't have that, can't stand that sad face that has never fit Izuku. Reminds him of when he used to cause that sad face, back in middle school. He'll have to talk about what happened, eventually, but Katsuki thinks that what he needs right now is a distraction. To not be alone.
Before he can overthink it, he says, "Come stay at mine instead."
Izuku's brows fly up, disappearing behind his messy hair. Katsuki plows forward.
"Your apartment is probably messy as shit right now anyway. And you need someone to keep an eye on you. With your concussion and all."
And I can't bare to let you out of my sight again, he doesn't say.
Katsuki stares at him, eyes pleading for Izuku to understand. He probably looks desperate, stupid, but in this moment he couldn't give less of a fuck. Izuku opens his mouth to respond but is interrupted by the door opening.
Best Jeanist steps in, glancing warily between the two, where Katsuki has one knee on the bed, unconsciously leaning into Izuku's space. Katsuki clears his throat and steps away.
"Boys," he says in lieu of a greeting, "Izuku, good to see you safe."
Shit. Katsuki's in trouble. He narrows his eyes as Izuku stammers.
"Jeanist. Everything alright?"
Jeanist considers Izuku for a moment, debating how much he's allowed to hear, then sighs.
"Ground Zero, you tend to break conduct even on a good day. Today was exceptionally bad. So no, everything is not alright."
Katsuki huffs, rolls his eyes. What's new?
"So? We got the bad guy, did we not?"
"The 'bad guy' is currently incapacitated in the ICU, thanks to you. You're lucky he's not dead," Jeanist says, exasperated.
Katsuki stiffens a little. "Frankly, I think I should have killed the son of a bitch. I mean, Jesus Christ, just look at Deku!"
"The agency is still liable for your actions, you know. And we're going to have to wait even longer for answers now."
They argue back and forth, Jeanist insisting on the code of conduct while Katsuki shits on the damn code. Izuku bristles, his face flushed.
"What would have happened if we were even a day later?" Katsuki barrels forward, raising his voice. "I went in there thinking he was dead. He practically was! It's not like he had his quirk to def-"
"Kacchan, stop," Izuku says sharply, "Please stop."
Jeanist looks between them as they glare at each other. He sighs, again, and pinches the bridge of his nose.
"Look, despite whatever is going on here-"
"Nothing," Katsuki hisses.
"-you need to keep your emotions out of work. And you're suspended for a week."
Katsuki's jaw drops open. Jeanist gives him a serves you right kind of look, then continues.
"You can use that time to fill out the mountain of paperwork you've caused me. And Izuku, I know you've been through a lot. The agency will probably need to have you come in to recount your experience, for court purposes. I apologize."
Izuku goes white as a ghost, but whispers, "Okay."
Katsuki splutters angrily as Jeanist says a brief goodbye and makes his exits, his gaze lingering on Katsuki.
The door clicks shut and he's left alone with Izuku again. The air is tense, weird. Is Izuku mad at him? For what, saving his life? Mad because he doesn't have a quirk anymore and Katsuki does?
Or are you mad you couldn't save him sooner?
Katsuki deflates, feeling hollow. He's too exhausted to argue anymore.
"Look, Deku. I didn't mean... I shouldn't have said that, earlier."
"It's fine. Not like it isn't true, right?" Izuku says in a small voice.
Again, with the sad face. Katsuki reaches a hand out to Izuku's face, thinks what am I doing? and drops it back to his side.
"No. No," he insists. "I shouldn't have said it. Listen, just- the offer still stands. Come back to mine. I'll cook?"
Izuku is so much nicer than Katsuki, so much more forgiving. Always has been. He gives Katsuki a small smile and nods.
Katsuki feels a strange sense of deja vu as he leans against the wall outside the hospital, waiting for Izuku to be discharged.
When Izuku saved him, all those years ago, he was so angry. Back then, he never had the heart to be grateful, never had the heart to be driven by anything other than his ambition. He couldn't stand the thought of being so weak, especially weaker than someone with no power.
In some sort of sick karmic retribution, Katsuki thinks, maybe he got his wish. Izuku is back to being quirkless. But, somehow, Katsuki still feels weaker than him.