Timeloop Trouble

Chapter 47 - A Not-Date Date

"You being here and doing this is way more selfless than how I treated you in the past couple of timelines... I'm a selfish brat," Izuku grumbled, pulling one of his legs up on the bench so he could lean on his knee. "Can't believe I actually accused you of being selfish and messing up the timeline when-"

"Oh shut up, enough with the self-deprivation crap," Katsuki said, getting up so he could look down on Izuku. "Comfort food? They're selling waffles and ice cream at the gate over there."

He threw his thumb over his shoulder, not even looking in the direction of the little parlor on the other side of the park. They walked past it when they were strolling around before, so Izuku wasn't surprised Kacchan had somehow memorized its location.

"Or we can go play hero with those guys over there," Katsuki said, looking over Izuku's head to some other kids playing around in the park. They were younger than them, but then again, so was everyone else in this world. "I know we're not actually kids but it could be fun, right?"

Kacchan would never suggest something like that if it wasn't for the fact he knew Izuku would be up for playing hero no matter how old he got. He was being so kind and nice and here he was, sulking and being negative about everything. Come on, positive thinking! Izuku knew how to disable the rewind machine. He knew Jikan's patterns, their designs, their way of thinking, strategizing- everything. And he'd saved Eri. He'd started doing good in this reality, helping those who needed saving. Things were going well! And he deserved to be kind to himself, too.

"You really wanna play hero? Like when we were kids?" Izuku asked.

"We are kids," Katsuki deadpanned.

"Hmm... Only if I get to be All Might," Izuku grinned, getting up from the bench as well.

"Oi, you're always All Might!" Katsuki complained, yet there was a smile on his face.

"First one there gets dips!" Izuku called out, already breaking out in a sprint.

"Cheater!"

They laughed as Katsuki chased him, quickly mingling with the other kids and starting something akin to a playground war, dividing them up in two teams which tried to destroy one another with imaginary quirks and powers. They made up their own or mimicked the quirks of pro heroes, going around making wild hand motions and yelling out moves to hit their opponents. It was honestly kinda fun and also freeing to be able to let go like that. Izuku hadn't know how much he needed this until Kacchan had shown him what it felt like to finally let his guard down again.

"I let the hag know I'm dropping you off at home before going back home," Katsuki told him as they approached his apartment complex later in the afternoon. "She's surprisingly okay with all of this..."

"She knows you're very responsible for your age," Izuku told him, swinging their intertwined hands back and forth between them. It wasn't a romantic thing, just a safety measure. Two kids could easily be separated on a busy street, after all. Izuku wished it had been romantic, though.

"Ha, as if!" Katsuki barked out. "It's probably just cause she wants you to get home safe. You were always her favorite."

"You're her son," Izuku deadpanned as they entered the building. As if that fact was more than enough to debunk what Kacchan had just told him. It should've been, if Mitsuki Bakugou wasn't...well, a Bakugou.

"And you're her favorite," Katsuki repeated. "Can't exactly blame her for it. You're my favorite, too. Even if you act like a giant fucking asshole."

"Kacchan!"

They laughed and snickered as they ran up the stairs, Izuku chasing after the blonde this time around. They almost missed the right floor, only stopping when they stumbled against the wall as they ran into the hall. Katsuki instantly fell silent, Izuku following suit when he saw what he was looking at. His front door was standing open. Not by much, just a tiny crack. Most people wouldn't even notice if they walked by, but for two trained pro heroes, an unlocked door was something to be wary of. A possibility of danger, a trap, a hidden attacker, another person that could pose a threat.

"Mom never leaves the door open like that," Izuku mumbled, feeling his body tense up. Something was wrong. Very, very wrong.

"I'll open the door and go in first," Katsuki said, slowly stalking towards the door, Izuku in tow. "If someone is in there and attacks me, you can surprise them. If it's just Auntie Inko, I'll greet her loud enough for you to hear, okay?"

He opened the door ever so slowly, too slow for Izuku's liking, and slipped inside as silently as possible. There was no sound for the couple of seconds Izuku waited in the hallway, hoping to hear Kacchan greet his mom like nothing was wrong. There were no signs of an attack or an ambush either, but Izuku couldn't just sit still and wait around for who knew how long when his mom could be in danger! And so he walked inside, almost bumping into Kacchan, who'd apparently only taken a few steps into the apartment.

"What is it?" Izuku asked, quietly, not wanting to alert anyone else. Kacchan didn't answer, didn't move, and for a moment, Izuku feared he was under the effect of some type of immobilization quirk. But then he... He saw. He looked past Kacchan and he saw and suddenly he couldn't breathe. Because there she was, his mom, a person he loved more than himself. Mangled, deformed. Her body distorted in a way that wasn't human, a way that could only be quirk induced. And the blood... God, there was so much blood. So much so, that whoever did this had used it to write on the living room wall.

Give Eri Back

Izuku felt Katsuki's arms around him before he realized his legs had given out beneath him. Eri... The Yakuza. Overhaul. Overhaul did this. Overhaul killed his mother. He-

"It isn't real," Katsuki said, trying to keep him from falling into a downward spiral. "It's not real, Izuku. Our reality is being manipulated by Jikan, we can't actually die, and neither can she. It's not real, she's not dead."

"She's not dead," Izuku repeated in a shaky tone.

"That's right," Katsuki nodded, guiding him so he couldn't see the mangled corpse of his mom. "Inko isn't dead."

"The consequences-"

"She's alright," Katsuki interrupted. "Do you understand that, Izuku? She's alive and well."

"I saved Eri and now-" Izuku sobbed, breaking off his own sentence as he hid in Kacchan's chest.

"You'll see her again," Katsuki promised. "But for now, we're gonna need to deal with this mess, okay? I need you to stay with me while I call Aizawa sensei. Can you do that for me?"

"We'll look after him."

A few of the vestiges manifested around them, Yoichi holding onto Izuku as Katsuki guided him to the floor, pushing him up against the kitchen counter.

"Don't let him look at her," he ordered before taking out his phone and closing the front door. "Really hope the damn geezer still has the same number..."