Safe and Sound (Katsuki Bakugou AgeRe)

Dysphoria (w/ Big Bro Shinsou + Papa Mic)

"Y-You got me!" Katsuki pants, face rosy and pleasant. Hitoshi chuckles.

"Yeah, I did." The blonde coughs again, and Hitoshi frowns a little. "Hey, are you coming down with something? You're breathing pretty heavy right now." Katsuki's face falls.

"Hm... nope!" He says, voice wavering.

"Kats," Hitoshi says in a stern voice. "Tell me."

"M'not sick," he says, shaking his head.

"Then what's wrong?"

"I-It's jus'-" he pauses to wheeze out another dry cough. "... Jus' my... y'know..." He looks embarrassed, like he doesn't want to say it.

"You can tell me, Katsuki," Hitoshi promises softly. "I won't get upset with you."

"S'cause 'm wearin..." he cuts himself off with a sharp breath, then sighs, hanging his head a little bit. "Okay... jus' look."

He lifts the hem of his baggy shirt, up past his stomach, and Hitoshi averts his gaze before he realizes this is what Katsuki's trying to show him. He hesitantly looks up and sees that Katsuki is... wearing his binder. He never does that when he's regressed, it's too restrictive.

"Oh," Hitoshi says quietly. "How long?"

"... Las' night.." Katsuki whispers shamefully, casting his eyes downward. Hitoshi starts.

"Last night?! Did you sleep with it on, too?!" He nods, eyes starting to water. "Katsuki, why have you been wearing it for so long?"

"I... I'on't like how I look wi'fout it.." he admits, letting his shirt fall back down so he can wipe at his tears freely. Hitoshi's heart pangs.

"You're having a bad dysphoria day?" He guesses. Katsuki nods, and Hitoshi clicks his tongue, opening his arms. Katsuki hesitantly crawls into his lap, allowing Hitoshi to rock him back and forth. "I'm sorry, kid. That must be awful. But you have to take your binder off now, okay? It's not safe."

"Nooo," Katsuki whines, shaking his head.

"Yes," Hitoshi demands. "I don't want you getting hurt, Kats. Come one."

Katsuki buries his face in Hitoshi's chest, sniffling for a little bit before coughing again.

"... O-Okay," he finally says quietly.

Hitoshi carries him to his bedroom, turning around while he removes his binder but staying in the room in case he needs help. When Katsuki finished, he lets out a quiet "all done" and sniffles.

Hitoshi turns around to see him with still-teary eyes, arms crossed over his chest self-consciously. He frowns sadly.

"Do you feel better now?" Katsuki shrugs. "Talk to me, bubby. Come sit down."

They sit on the bed together, Katsuki holding a pillow over his chest and Hitoshi waiting patiently for the blonde to start speaking.

"... I look like a girl," he finally whispers, so quiet that it takes Hitoshi a second to process it. When he does, his heart sinks.

"Oh, no, Katsuki. You don't look like a girl at all. You look very, very handsome," he assures him, rubbing his back soothingly. Katsuki shrugs, not looking convinced. "... How long?"

This was another routine of theirs.

"... T'y'rs.." Katsuki mumbles.

"What was that?"

"Two years," he grumbles, louder this time.

"Two years until you get your surgery. And what are those two years gonna feel like?"

"... Nu'fin..."

"Mhm. We're just in the waiting period now, right?" Katsuki nods. "Okay. Now, let's get you into one of Papa's extra large shirts, make you a cup of tea, and play for a little bit?"

"Mm... okay," Katsuki agrees quietly, nodding a little. He wipes away a few stray tears from his face. "Uh... m'binky, too?"

Hitoshi chews the inside of his cheek thoughtfully, realizing that the stress must have caused Katsuki to slip further.

"Sure, little man," he nods, standing up and offering his hand. Katsuki smiles a little bit at the nickname, but it falters when he lets out another deep cough. Hitoshi frowns. "Hey, how about I carry you? You should be taking it real easy for the rest of the day."

"Do it like Daddy," Katsuki demands, reaching his arms up. Hitoshi laughs and picks Katsuki up, placing him on his hip while the blonde rests his cheek against his chest.

"Like that?" He asks. Katsuki nods. "Alright, little man. Let's go defeat your dysphoria! It's nothing but a shitty villain, right?"

"Bubbaaaa," Katsuki giggles.

"What?" Hitoshi asks, feigning innocence.

"Y'silly," Katsuki says, bringing a hand up to play with his hair absentmindedly. Hitoshi smiles at the cute display.

"You gettin' sleepy, Kats?" He nods. "Okay. We can just snuggle and watch cartoons after we get you set up. Sound good?"

"Yeah.." he yawns, and winces. "Bubba... I gotta boo-boo right here," he whines, rubbing his ribcage. Hitoshi clicks his tongue.

"Poor boy. We'll get you some ibuprofen too."

- - -

"Hey guys, we're home!" Yamada's voice rings out when he enters. Hitoshi shushes him.

"Katsuki's sleeping," he whispers, nodding to the slumbering boy in his lap. Yamada smiles.

"Well, that's a precious sight," he says quietly, setting Eri down. "You gotta go down for a nap too after we clean you up, okay princess?"

"Okay, Mister Mic!" She chirps, skipping off to the restroom to wash her hands.

"Did you find everything for Eri?" Hitoshi asks conversationally. Yamada nods.

"Yeah. Got her a new dress and a pair of overalls, plus a couple of cat hair clips that she's going to flaunt to your dad later," he chuckles. A knowing smirk spreads across his face, and he crouches down, pulling something out of his bag. "Check this out."

Hitoshi peers down and sees... foil squares of some sort? They almost look like Ramen noodle flavor packets, and he squints to read the lettering on them. Some brand name... some science-y term that he doesn't understand... and....

Testosterone?

"No way," he breathes, grinning. Yamada nods, a smile splitting his face in two.

"Don't tell him, I want to wait until Dad is back. I finally got the okay from our doctor yesterday." He giggles softly. "You think he'll be happy? I know he'd prefer surgery but..."

"He'll be ecstatic," Hitoshi assures him.