Chapter Text
“Well?!” Deku demanded, stepping closer. Katsuki couldn’t help but take a step backwards, a little afraid of the Deku in front of him. He’d seen how fear-inducing he was to the gang that had attacked him, had even felt a bit of the aura. Now that it was all focused on him, he couldn’t seem to scrounge up the courage needed to stand up to the nerd. “What are you doing here, Katsuki?”
‘Oh, shit,’ Katsuki thought, swallowing. He knew things are about to get real when Deku dropped his nickname. “I- I came to get you. To bring you back.”
“I told you how dangerous my world is,” Izuku hissed, stomping up to him until he had a fistful of Katsuki’s shirt. He lifted him until the tip of his toes just barely scraped the ground, his shirt choking him a little bit. “You could have died before I ever found you! Hell, you almost just did!”
“I had that handled!” Katsuki snapped, pissed that he was being doubted.
Izuku snorted, clearly not believing him. He dropped Katsuki back onto the ground, causing him to stumble a bit. The blond only barely managed to stay on his feet. “First rule of this world, Kacchan. Until they are dead at your feet or knocked out cold, you are never safe. Don’t forget that.” He turned around, hitching his tattered yellow backpack higher up his shoulders. He began to walk away, and when Katsuki didn’t follow, he turned to glare at him. “Are you coming or not?”
Katsuki sighed, picking up his own bag with his uninjured arm. He began to follow Deku, keeping to the patterns Izuku did. There were a few times where the nerd had to pick him up and float them over a rooftop, but Katsuki didn’t dare complain. Deku’s bad mood lasted until they reached the edges of Hosu and hunkered down at one of the abandoned train stations. Once they were safe inside one of the only buildings around, Deku basically collapsed on the ground.
“Oi, what the fuck is wrong?” Katsuki asked, recognizing the signs of his friend in pain. Deku waved him off, leaning back against one of the walls of the building. His hands hovered over his thigh, before flitting again to press against his side. Now that Katsuki was looking, he could see specks of fresh blood around the area. He swore, kneeling down next to Deku. “Shit, you’re fucking hurt? We could have taken a goddamn break!”
“No, we couldn’t have,” Izuku panted, bringing his backpack to his side. He unzipped it and began digging through it, probably looking for what meager medical supplies he had left.
“It wouldn’t have-”
“Katsuki, I swear to god if you act like you know better than I do one more time ,” Deku threatened, shooting him a glare that could’ve stopped a weaker man’s heart. Katsuki snapped his mouth closed, recognizing the error in his ways. Deku took out a nearly empty bottle of rubbing alcohol, setting it aside before he began to roll up the raw edges of his hero costume. It had torn long ago just above his leg braces, so there wasn’t much to roll. Dirty bandages were revealed, crusted with days old blood. Katsuki winced at the sight, but Deku didn’t appear to notice as he carefully unwrapped them and set them aside.
The wound in his thigh was deeper than Katsuki had expected. It looked like he’d been stabbed by something large and pointy, if the shape and depth of the gouge said anything. Katsuki began digging in his own backpack for the bandages he’d brought with him from his universe. He hadn’t had to use many yet, as he’d mostly stayed out of trouble over the two weeks he’d been there.
Deku lifted one of his gloves to his mouth and bit down before he squirted half of the rubbing alcohol left onto his thigh. He groaned into his glove, thunking his head back a few times on the wall, but otherwise didn’t complain. Katsuki scooted closer to his side, holding up the gauze and bandages he’d finally found. “Peace offering?” he asked quietly. Deku eyed his offerings, nodding once with a sigh.
“Fine,” he acquiesced. He stayed silent as Bakugou dressed his wound, making sure to save some of the leftovers for what wound was apparently on his side. When he was done with Izuku’s leg, he sat back and waited. Deku closed his eyes and hesitated before he reached up and pulled the zipper of the top part of his suit down.
The wound on his side wasn’t nearly as deep, but even Bakugou could tell that it was beginning to get infected. The blond didn’t need to prompt his friend to bite on his glove, he just did it while Katsuki picked up the last of the rubbing alcohol. Squirting it on the slice in his side must have felt like liquid fire, but this time Deku didn’t make a single noise. He just held his breath until he physically couldn’t anymore.
“What happened?” Katsuki asked, glancing up at Deku’s face. His lower lip was split, small enough that he hadn’t noticed it before. He also had shadows under his eyes, deeper than when he’d first arrived in Katsuki’s universe. He probably hadn’t had a good night’s sleep since he’d come back.
“I’ve spent the last two weeks trying to find anyone who could tell me about the Virus,” Deku confessed, keeping his eyes on Katsuki’s face. When the older boy looked up from dressing the cut, he continued. “I found someone, Kacchan. He says- he says that if I haven’t contracted the Virus already, then I’m most likely immune.”
Katsuki nodded, his heart skipping. “So, what? Does that mean you’ll come back with me?”
Deku’s answering chuckle was dark and without humor. “Don’t think I’ve forgotten what you did, Kacchan. You came here with no guarantee that you could ever get back. For all we know, the Kurima-san of this universe died between the time I saw her last and now. There are no guarantees.”
“I don’t care,” Katsuki said.
“You should!” Deku yelled, sitting up straighter. He used one of his hands to grab Katsuki’s good shoulder, hard enough to leave bruises. “You could contract the Virus while you’re here, idiot! You didn’t live long enough here for us to know whether you’d be immune or not!”
“I made a guess,” Katsuki began, but Deku cut him off once more.
“It was stupid, reckless, idiotic ,” he ranted. “And then you walked right into gang territory , because you don’t know anything about this place!”
“I said I was sorry!”
“No actually, you didn’t!” Deku let go of his shoulder and slumped back against the wall, closing his eyes. Katsuki finished the wrapping on his side, sitting properly on the ground. While the younger boy was quiet, Katsuki turned his attention to his own shoulder, carefully prying out the crossbow bolt. He still didn't have feeling in his arm, but given the fact that he hadn't lost consciousness during the trek to this building, and he didn't have any other symptoms, he figured that the substance coating it was just a paralytic. He had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from making a noise, not wanted to attract Deku's attention. It was hard to clean the wound one-handed, especially since it was a through-and-through, but he somehow managed, using a bit of the medical supplies he'd brought with him to wrap it up. Once he was sure it was cleaned up well enough, he lifted his eyes. Izuku was already watching him, completely silent as he judged Katsuki's progress. The blond almost snapped at him, wondering why he hadn't offered to help, but he held his tongue lest he insight more of Deku's anger. Deku took a few deep breaths, struggling to calm himself. “You should have just let me go.”
“I can’t fucking do that,” Katsuki said, his voice trembling. The sound of it made Deku look up at him again. “Alright? I couldn’t just let you leave. Not when I knew you were out there. I know you’re not my Deku. I had to bury my Deku six feet under, just like I-” his voice cracked. He paused, clearing his throat. “Just like I always thought I might. You’re not my Deku. But you’re still Deku , and that’s fucking good enough for me. So yeah, I came after you. The fact that you ever fucking questioned that I would is frankly insulting.”
Deku looked down, using shaky hands to zip his zipper back up. “You’re right. I should have fucking known better.” When emerald met green, it was with a small smile. “Well, you’re here now. Our next order of business is to look for Kurima-san and, if we find her, try to convince her to send us back to your universe.” He moved like he was going to stand, but Katsuki reached and grabbed his wrist, forcing him back down.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” he said, getting onto his knees to have a bit of an advantage. “You’re still hurt, and so am I. We can rest for a little while longer, can’t we?”
“Let’s get one thing straight,” Deku replied, ripping out of Katsuki’s grip. He stood up like he didn’t have any wounds at all, slinging his backpack back onto his back. “You do not get to decide things here. I know where we are safe and where we aren’t. We’re on the outskirts of gang territory still. We head back to Musutafu until I say we stop.” He held out his hand for Katsuki to take.
Katsuki looked at it, his two sides warring with themselves. On one hand, he was insulted that Deku appeared to think so little of his capabilities of surviving in this world. On the other hand, he kind of had a reason to doubt; i.e., his own Katsuki’s death, and the scene that he’d just rescued him from.
So he did what he’d been waiting his whole life to do. He reached out and finally took Deku’s hand.
(x)
The next month was hell.
For the first few weeks, Katsuki deferred to Deku for everything. The two of them never let each other out of their sights unless it was absolutely necessary. They’d made it back to the heart of Musutafu and had spent most of the last month looking for any sign of this universe’s Kurima, with little luck. They’d only had to fight once, with a couple who tried to ambush them for their supplies. The fight hadn’t lasted long- the couple was half-starved, and hadn’t had the joint hero training that Katsuki and Izuku had together. They knocked them out rather than killing them.
After the first few weeks, Katsuki began to get the hang of this universe. He stopped being so shocked and horrified at the sheer amount of bodies that littered the streets, and instead started stepping around them without batting an eye like Deku did. Deku began to trust him to do more things on his own, and stopped threatening him whenever Katsuki challenged his authority. He even began looking to him for plans, sometimes.
By the time Katsuki had been in Deku’s universe for a month and a half, they had their first lead on Kurima. The two boys were picking through the side streets of Musutafu, scavenging through various buildings for any supplies they could find when Deku suddenly froze, his eyes fixed on something at the entrance of one of the alleyways close by. Katsuki froze behind him, glancing behind them to check that nobody was around. When he was sure it was safe, he leaned in closer to Izuku. “Deku, what the fuck? What’s the hold up?”
Izuku sneaked over to the alleyway, kneeling down next to the object that had caught his attention. Katsuki followed, crouching as well. Izuku held it up for Katsuki to see. It was a ripped piece of fabric, with some sort of sew-on patch attached. “This. I remember her wearing this, in both universes.”
Katsuki took a closer look. It was a Miruko patch, just her hero logo- the silhouette of her hair and her bunny ears against a purple and white background. Katsuki could also vaguely remember the Kurima of his universe having it sewn to her outdoor jacket. “So? That could be anyone’s.”
“No,” Deku replied, narrowing his eyes. He pocketed the patch, swiveling on his ankles to face Katsuki. “These patches are limited edition. I remember when they were released, they sold out in seconds. This is a real one, not a replica, just like Kurima’s was. Trust me, it’s hers.” He stood up, and Katsuki followed his lead.
“It’s so nerdy that you noticed that,” he sighed, shaking his head.
“Well, looks like I found a use for my hero obsession after all,” Deku joked, smiling a bit. He looked further down the alley, tiptoeing down silently. Katsuki trailed after him, continuously turning to watch their backs. When Deku crouched again, it was in front of what appeared to be a board leaning against the alley wall. Izuku made direct, sardonic eye contact with Katsuki as he pulled the board away from the wall, revealing a hole in the building big enough for a teenage girl to crawl through.
“Alright, alright,” Katsuki grouched, coming up behind Izuku to peer into the building. “No need to get smug.”
Deku led the way inside, quickly followed by Katsuki, who replaced the board behind them just as they’d found it. Once they were both safely inside, they stood up. All of the windows of the room had been boarded up, and the only door leading out of the small room had been barricaded with all of the furniture in the room. It was dark enough inside that Katsuki could barely make out their surroundings. Izuku quickly solved the problem by activating Full Cowling , causing a soft fluorescent green glow to surround them.
In the corner was a nest of what looked like old bedding, with a single ratty pillow, a few old books and a kerosene lantern. There was also a half empty bag of clothes leaning against the wall. Katsuki studied the scene, cocking his head to the side. Something about the place didn’t seem right.
“Something’s wrong,” Deku said, echoing his thoughts. He walked closer to the bed, leaning down to study it closer. He brought out the ripped-off patch from his pocket, studying it with Full Cowling’s light. “The lantern… its switch has dust on it, like it hasn’t been used in a few days. The books, too.”
Katsuki looked at the patch from over Deku’s shoulder. “You think… You think something happened to her?”
Izuku glanced over his shoulder, meeting Katsuki’s eyes with a grim expression. “I think, given the single bed and barricaded door, that she’s a young girl surviving on her own in the apocalypse. I suspect something very bad happened to her.”
Goosebumps erupted on Katsuki’s skin. He didn’t like what Deku was implying, but given his own experience with the pervert from the Black Dragon gang, he didn’t think the nerd was that far off. “We have to find her.”
“It could already be too late,” Izuku warned, putting the patch back in his pocket. “Kacchan, we’re going to look for her, but you need to be prepared. You might not ever get back to your universe.”
“I don’t care about that right now!” Katsuki snarled, gesturing to the place around them. “She’s a fucking kid, Deku! If you’re right and some sick bastards took her-” he stopped, not daring to finish that sentence. “We need to at least try to find her.”
Izuku nodded once, gesturing to the entrance. Despite the horrible situation, he had a small, proud smile on his face. “After you.”