Once Again From Better Days || KatsuDeku

Chapter 17 || From Izuku to Katsuki

Instead of returning to classes, the students of class 1-A are sent to the nurse's office to be checked over. Katsuki sits numbly when it's his turn. With no major injuries, Recovery Girl finishes with him in less than five minutes. Asui lies in one of the beds behind a curtain, but she's standing by the time all the examinations are done. 20th stays by the end of her bed until Recovery Girl announces that she's fine and kicks the extra students out.

Katsuki waits at the gate of the school. He will talk to Izuku somehow or other, because there's no way he can protect him unless he knows what's going on. He can guess that All Might is involved, but there are too many unknowns. The foundations of whatever he thought was happening have been erased. Izuku is most definitely not quirkless, and the villains are on the move.

Katsuki scuffs the bottom of his shoe on the pavement as he waits. And then he sees them: Izuku and mystery boy.

As they walk toward him, he gets a good look at the other blond's face for the first time. At a glance, he looks like a young All Might, but the face is wrong. It's nondescript and round, but almost remarkable in its plainness. He's also missing the two locks of hair that stick up in a V-shape from his forehead. Katsuki narrows his eyes the two approaching figures.

"Shitty Izuku," he calls when they're within earshot.

Izuku flinches in surprise, and mystery boy looks mildly scandalized.

Katsuki catches Izuku's words as he leaves the taller boy behind. "Sorry, Togata-senpai, I have to talk to him." Togata-senpai, Katsuki echoes. The name sounds vaguely familiar, but he brushes that thought aside. He has more important things to worry about now.

"Explain," Katsuki demands the moment Izuku turns to him.

"Not here." Izuku glances around furtively. "Let's go home," he suggests.

Katsuki trails a step behind until the reach the door of the Midoriyas' apartment. He hesitates at the door. He hasn't actually been inside the apartment for a year, and while it's true that he's never purposefully hurt Izuku this time, he hasn't been the best friend either. Nonetheless, Inko ushers him in with a promise of snacks, and he follows Izuku to his room.

"This should be fine," Izuku says. He takes a deep breath. "I'm not supposed to tell you anything, mom doesn't even know, but..." he trails off. "I feel like you deserve an explanation."

Izuku folds his hands together in his lap and stares at them. He fidgets slowly, locking and unlocking his fingers, presumably trying to order his thoughts.

For the first time, Katsuki finds himself staring at the scar on Izuku's right arm. He doesn't want to look, but something pulls his eyes toward it like a magnet. The skin is pink and rough. It stands out against pale skin. Katsuki tries to fight the rising anxiety.

"You're not quirkless," Katsuki prompts. And then, at the sight of Izuku's shocked face, "it's obvious."

Izuku fumbles for a moment, his hands twisting in his lap. "That's the important part." His eyes are still directed downward, but they're unfocused. "The rest isn't important," he mutters. He runs his hand over the burn scar, realizing what he's doing halfway through and freezing.

"You said you'd explain," Katsuki says, prodding Izuku with his foot. "Do it properly."

Izuku looks up, green eyes wider than usual. At least he isn't trying to avoid eye contact anymore. "The sludge villain, it starts there." He adds that he went after the villain, with nothing more than a plan formed in three seconds and his backpack.

"You're an idiot." Katsuki resists the urge to say anything else, like why the fuck did you try to save me and of course you tried. Just like last time. "Continue," he prompts.

Izuku continues. There's apparently not much to say, just that he was saved by All Might and the other pro heroes told him it was a stupid thing to do (Katsuki thinks of a few things he'd like to say to them). Izuku doesn't mention the injury to his arm, but Katsuki knows what burns look like. He knows what his explosions can do to people when he doesn't limit their impact, and the Sludge Villain wouldn't have abided by that limit. Katsuki pushes those thoughts aside and tunes in back to what Izuku's saying.

"I talked to All Might after that, I'm not sure what I said, but a lot of things happened. And I started training with Togata-senpai after school. I didn't have–I wasn't strong enough by the entrance exam, so that's why I'm in the general department." He looks up at Katsuki. "I'm... I should've told you earlier, but I wasn't sure how you'd take it."

Katsuki flicks him in the forehead. "I'm your friend, I would've..." What would he have done? He shakes his head. "Also that is one shit explanation, what do you mean 'a lot of things happened?'"

Izuku leans away. "It's not important. I just talked to All Might a lot and..." he mutters something inaudible.

"What?"

"Uh, I cried... and showed him what I can do with a bokken."

Katsuki still has a million questions he wants to ask, but he decides to leave the topic alone for the day. They both have homework to do, after all, and video games to play. They lie next to each other on the floor, textbooks scattered about, and Katsuki can't help but be amazed by how natural it feels. It's a good thing Izuku is so focused on his homework; he doesn't catch Katsuki staring once.