chinanigans | "I’ll prove my existence with my beast dance."

"I’ll prove my existence with my beast dance."

[Young Bakugo Katsuki, age four and a half. The boy was born with the same ears and tail that his mother had, but none of the other traits of a dog that she did. She had a snout that she was proud of, paws with sharp claws, and a bark that scared her husband whenever she saw a squirrel outside the window and broke the peaceful silence of the house. Small Bakugo thought that his own Quirk would be like his mom's-- he tried barking loud like she did only to make a pathetic squeak of a sound, he tried to make claws come out of his humanoid fingers, he tried running on all fours and ended up tripping down the stairs over his own feet... it just didn't seem like he'd have any of the cool dog abilities his mother had. He tried to lift the couch once to see if he had his father's super strength at least but that just resulted in him spraining his wrists.

It was nearing the end of his preschool year and everyone else already had their amazing Quirks. His best friend, whom he affectionately yet frustratingly called "Deku", had manifested what was probably the coolest Quirk in class. He could breathe fire out like his father-- but with a twist. The ability to bend the fire at his will. The day he found out, everyone was excited to see how cool his new ability was, especially Bakugo. Everyone else had boring things like wings, an extra eye, but Deku had something that might as well have been two Quirks in one.

Being part dog, Bakugo has a tendency to let his emotions take control in certain circumstances and that was the case here. He got a little too excited just as Deku was trying to show him how it worked, and he got too close. Deku's fire grazed his cheek, immediately singing the skin and sending Bakugo on the ground screaming from the pain, and now he has a scar that always reminds him to reign himself in. And remind Deku to not let his fire get out of control.

That night, after he had gotten home from the hospital his mother treated him to his favourite dinner that he hadn't been able to have in a few months because of the rarity. Sheep. And the moment the four year old scarfed down his dinner something happened to him. He felt pain all over his body and howled to the sky as suddenly-- fur appeared all over his skin, a snout jutted out of his face, and his hands were turned into clawed paws just like his mother's. It was scary, at first, but as his parents freaked out and fussed over why his body had changed so drastically he realized something.

It was his Quirk.

Since then he carries a pack of home-dried sheep jerky on him at all times, and he's gotten pretty damn good at switching between full-wolf form and small wolf form. In his full form, he has something like super strength. It's not exactly that, he doesn't become any stronger than he already is but it's more like while he's in that state, his adrenaline pumps through his veins faster than it normally would giving him a frame of time to go up to 130% of his body's power. Of course if he's not careful with this, like if he tried to lift a car for more than a few seconds, he could easily get carried away and rip the tendons in his arms or legs like any other physical Quirk. He's not limitless, but there's still plenty he can do in this state. On top of that he has all the abilities a dog has while he's like that-- he can hear extremely well, smell extremely well, bark loudly and as aggressively as he feels like and he has thick claws and sharp teeth. He's effectively a perfect werewolf which is why his Quirk was changed from "Dog" to... well. "Werewolf."

And today was his first day of getting to really show off his abilities.

Him and his best friend Deku had both applied to U.A together, the school their idol, All Might had went to and both were accepted. Of course they were split up during the exams they took to get in. Bakugo exclaimed angrily how he wanted to make sure he defeated more of those robots than Deku and he couldn't if they weren't in the same exam, but it was fair to make sure classmates weren't together in case of Hubris. In either case they both ended up tying, though Deku was ahead with Rescue points as Bakugo had.. zero... and they were put in the same class.

It was the first day and they were put to the test with physical fitness exams, told that the person in last would be expelled. Everyone was ready to show off what they got, and Bakugo ended up one of the top three. He can't use his Quirk too many times in one day or he'll overwork himself so he had to be picky with what tests he used it for. He used it for the ball throwing, the 100M dash, and a few others that involved strength or speed since those areas where were he excelled in and all his scores were fairly high. His ego was fairly high as well, but he wasn't satisfied only being third in the class. He wanted to be at the very top, better than all the other losers in his class even Deku. Because he wanted to be the Number One Hero, and beat out even his idol.

..speaking of, unbeknownst to anyone, All Might was one of their teachers.

They had final period with him and his appearance caused everyone to freak out. Deku was in tears seeing him, and Bakugo tried to act like he didn't care but his tail was wagging at speeds faster than it should be able to. He was in charge of teaching the subjects that had to do with being a hero-- subjects like rescue, team combat.. things like that. Of course it being day one his class was more just orientation but the students still left with excitement and a huge impression on their minds. Bakugo even snuck up to him at the end of the class and shoved his notebook and a pen at him to get an autograph, though he refused to even smile about it as if he was bothered by the Mere Idea of getting an autograph despite asking. All Might found it endearing, and signed it happily.

Now the day was coming to an end, and he and Deku were walking home together. The excitement was still fresh in both of their minds, and Bakugo felt a new sense of determination swell up inside of him. Determination to be the best. Determination to have All Might watch as he surpassed him. And after a quiet ten or so minutes he turns his face towards his friend and gives him a sharp nudge in the side with his elbow.]

You gotta stop being such a goddamn crybaby, you shit-nerd! All Might's gonna think I'm a fucking pussycat just 'cuz I hang around you sometimes!

[Despite how angry he sounds, his tail is still waggling very happy behind him.]

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[The crowd roars with cheers as Deku uses his fire to create a wall, effectively cutting the field in half. Present Mic yells with them, asking what Bakugo plans to do in a situation like this. Only a mad man would rush right through flames like that, and by that assumption he's absolutely right.

Only a mad man would do something like that. A mad man with nothing to lose. His mom was watching, All Might was watching, his teacher and classmates who look at him as if he's a crazy, untamed dog were watching and most of all...]

You think something like that is gonna stop me?!

[Once the were gets within five feet of the giant wall of fire, heat bursting against his face Bakugo pushes off the ground with his hands to get back onto his feet proper. He holds his hands out in front of his face, covering his eyes and mouth with his arms as he rushes full speed right to the flames. He expected to get burnt, going up against Deku so the idea of him running through that wall of fire was something he figured he had to do in order to win. He was determined to, no matter what happened and a wide grin is spread across his face as he charges forward.

Because he was up against his best friend. And wanted to show him what a cool Hero he could actually be.]

K-Kacchan-!?

[Izuku is stunned, shuffling a startled step backwards when Bakugou comes barreling through the wall he constructed, eliciting shocked gasps from the crowd as well. But that's why this fight was destined to be exciting, everyone knew Bakugou wouldn't let a little fire stop him.

That's what scared Izuku. He could see the flames as they singed his hair and briefly caught it on fire in places. It was alarming how he just shrugged it off, and he's caught so off guard that...Bakugou has a free opening to tackle him right to the ground.]

[It hurt, honestly. He can feel the flame lick his arms as he bursts through that giant wall, lighting some patches of his fur aflame and singing his skin. It's nothing he's not prepared for, despite the involuntary whimper that escapes his throat. He has a harder time controlling his instincts when he's in this form, but if he's a domesticated dog in his half-form then he's more like a wild, feral wolf in this form.

So he charges for Deku without break, snarling deep when he gets close to him. He can see Deku's taken aback by his stupid bravery, and he takes that chance immediately. Though rather than tackling him to the ground, he lifts a clawed paw and swipes right for Deku's face, aiming to dig them deep into the boy's cheek.

Of course one of the ways to win is to incapacitate your enemy, hold them down until they can't move any longer but Bakugo doesn't want to do that. He wants them both to fight until they're burned and bloody with him on top and Deku unconscious underneath him. That's the win he wants. He wants Deku to realize how powerful he was and realize that he's willing to do anything to achieve his dream.

...and he wants Deku to praise him when it's over.]

[Izuku just barely pivots on his heel in time, avoiding a huge gash but instead definitely taking a nick with his claws, his eye shutting as he feels the heat from the sting of the new cuts on his face.

Without thinking, he swings his hand around as if to punch Bakugou...but instead of touching him, the flames from the wall suddenly veer off course, roaring in a new column as they come crashing back towards both of them.]

[A growl deep in Bakugo's throat starts up when Deku moves out of the way, and he raises his hand in the same motion as Deku does to prepare to catch a punch-- but realizes a step too late what he was doing.

He feels the heat start to crawl up his back and turns around sharply to see the flames coming towards them closely, and in a split-second decision he decides to move out of the way to avoid getting completely charred. It gives Deku the distance between them that he wanted, but of course Bakugo won't just leave it there.

He has to think. What could he do to get close...

It's a few seconds of a pause before Bakugo suddenly starts sprinting towards him on all fours again, coming towards him from his left side with a determined look on his expression. Deku has virtually no openings with his flame, able to bend and control it to his whim easily but.. Bakugo doesn't run straight at him this time like he did last time.

He turns, and starts running around Deku instead. He can't aim for him well enough if he can't see him, so he's planning on running a wide circle around him and dodging his flame the best he can to get behind him. It depends on if Deku can catch him in time.. he's a pretty fast runner.

And he's only got about five minutes left.]

[Izuku grits his teeth, watching as Bakugou suddenly gives him a wide berth. He succeeded in getting him to back off, but it doesn't seem like pushing him away with his flames is going to work...the wall starts to dissipate, so instead of trying to bend a barely living flame, he instead breathes fire directly into the charging wolf's direction, hoping that he can force him to continually change course and- maybe- end up unintentionally running himself into a corner and out of bounds.]

[Fuck.

The moment Deku starts to gear up to take a breath, Bakugo knows it's not gonna be good. He could try to turn around and run the other direction around Deku, away from the flames, but then they'd be doing that song and dance for quite a bit he's sure. But if he keeps charging towards Deku he'll chance getting seriously burned.

He weighs the options in his mind, his eyes looking all over for any openings to slip through-- even the smallest one. It's hard when you're up against someone with such an in depth understanding of his own Quirk... and of yours. He has that notebook he carries around filled with notes about his own Quirk and how it works, which means he's probably very aware of how much time Bakugo has left in his full wolf form and is expecting him to keep charging so he doesn't waste time. That right there, he decides, is his opening.

He turns on his heel to run from the flames, away from Deku rather than continue forward to him and skids to a stop in front of the boundary next to the other side of the field across from the green haired boy. It's out of reach of Deku's flames, safe for the time being so he stands there... and he waits.

He waits for Deku to come to him instead. He can't win if he keeps charging blindly towards him, so he'll bait him instead. Even if it wastes time, he's not worried about it. If he can just get a second.. just one second where he can get close before he starts up those flames again it'll be worth it.]

[Izuku's sweating, though it's hard to say if it's due to the stress of the battle, his own flames, or something more. Either way, his brow furrows as he watches Bakugou suddenly take a detour and run away from both him and his flames. But he's smart, it doesn't take much deduction to figure out what he's doing. He's taking a risk for himself, but he's trying to bait him closer...and since he can't reach him with his flames from this far away, Izuku has no choice but to take the bait if he wants to make any ground.

Of course, he could always wait...let Bakugou exhaust his form's time. But could he? He feels like that might hurt him more than just...

...

Izuku grits his teeth and suddenly starts running after Bakugou, smoke escaping the sides of his mouth.]

It's not going to be that easy, Kacchan!

[Just as he thought-- Deku takes it. There was nothing else he could do besides wait, and Bakugo was worried he might have actually done that. Just waited until Bakugo's wereform ran out but then what kind of battle would that have been, really? He's sure Deku was just as excited to face off against him as he was towards him, and with a crowd watching it's hard to not just give it your all.

That's why, when Deku starts running after him Bakugo crouches down on all four of his limbs again, his tail swishing lightly behind him and he waits a few seconds. Three... two.... one--

And lunges towards Deku, taking huge leaps to try and get to him as quick as he can. If Deku uses his breath again, this time, he'll just try to keep as low to the ground as possible to duck under it and if he can't make it well...

We'll just have to see what happens.]

[Izuku had figured one of two things would happen once he approached Bakugou. Either he'd charge him again, or he'd try to loop around him somehow to get the upper hand. So when he's charged...Izuku tries to think of what to do. They're very close to the border of the arena now...he, and everyone here, knows that he could pin Bakugou by targeting him head-on with his fire. Bakugou is underestimating him a little, thinking he could get away from his flames so easily. Theoretically, Izuku would have a pretty easy job of waling him off with enough fire that he couldn't reasonably escape without seriously injuring himself. He could win this, right here.

But at the same time...he saw the way Bakugou went through the flames earlier, heedless of the way they scorched his fur and skin. It alarmed him and shook him to the core, and now he hesitates. He doesn't want that to happen again, but what else can he do?

He takes a breath and the crowd gasps, because it looks like he's going to blast Bakugou again.

...but at the last second, when Bakugou is nearly on top of him, he hesitates. The sparks in his mouth die, and he ends up giving Bakugou yet another opening.]

[Bakugo tensed when he saw Deku prepare to take another breath, just as the crowd gasped. He was planning on going head on anyway, even with his fire blasting towards him. That's how desperate he was to win-- he was willing to withstand the pain of a few burns if it meant being able to get close and taking the upper hand. So he tensed, and kept charging even when he saw those sparks in Deku's mouth.

...but then they stopped.

They stopped, and that sends Bakugo's blood absolutely boiling. Rather than trying to get another hit in like he planned-- he was going to punch him hard enough to make him unable to use his mouth-- he jumps at him. Clawed hands grabbing onto the front of Deku's shirt as the two fall down to the ground, him on top of Deku and he snarls right into Deku's face, glaring at him with his eyes looking quite bloodshot at this point.]

You stopped your attack when I got close-- what the fuck, Deku?! You weren't afraid to use them against me at the start!

[He's looking down on him. He thinks he can't take his flames, but didn't he prove that he could earlier?]

Gh-ah!

[Izuku chokes, his breath literally punched from his lungs when Bakugou lands on top of him, his head turned as he barks in his face. He doesn't have an answer...he can't answer him.

So to avoid having to, he turns his face so he'll miss, then spits fire at Bakugou's head, just narrowly avoiding blasting one of his ears off in an attempt to get him to back away.]

[Bakugo doesn't move. Even as the fire blasts right by, the eat causing the inside skin of his fluffy ear to redden a little bit and sting, he doesn't move. It's even more annoying honestly that he'd purposefully miss like that, and Bakugo lets go of him with one of his hands, reaching up to grab Deku's face with it instead, digging his claws lightly into the skin of his forehead and cheeks.]

I'm not that weak little puppy you keep seeing me as..! Your Quirk has always been stronger than mine-- but I'm stronger than you! And I'll prove it here, even if I end up burnt to a fucking crisp!

[As he says that, he leans more weight against Deku's face, his claws digging just a little bit more against his skin.]

So come at me with all your power, Deku!

Y-you're not...weak! I don't think...

[That's not it...he's not weak, he's just...

Reckless. What if that causes him to...

Izuku's breath hitches as he reaches up to grab onto Bakugou's arm to keep him from pushing any harder down onto him.

If he blasts him...he won't move. He won't move. What is he supposed to do?!

In a moment of wild panic, realizing that he's been made immobile, Izuku suddenly lifts his torso and catches both feet beneath Bakugou's ribs, aiming to kick him off.]

[He wants Deku to blast him with full force. He wants to head against that fire and come out of it the victor. The fire he's been jealous of since he was four years old... though he does know if Deku used it right here, with their faces so close it would probably kill him. So he's not surprised that Deku tries another tactic-- but it's not something he can just easily dodge. Deku's feet make contact with his ribs, and he lets out another involuntary whimper as he is kicked off a few feet away. He rolls, landing on his knees and coughs for a few seconds before he looks back up at Deku with a grin.

Finally, he thinks. The fight starts here.

Of course, he doesn't give Deku a chance for a break before he starts running towards him again. His eyes are a deep pink now, almost reaching his limit already. He's got about a minute and a half left, so he can't afford to wait around this time.]

[Izuku snaps around, nearly giving himself whiplash with the speed at which he moves as he throws both arms up, crossing them in front of his face to block Bakugou grabbing at him with his claws again. He'll wind up with gashes on his arms, but even then it's a small price to pay to save from burning him too badly.

He can't use his fire, not this close. He can't...]

[Of course, Bakugo does end up digging his claws into Deku's arms as he moved them just in time to save his face. But unlike his friend here, who is terrified of hurting Bakugo severely-- he doesn't care.

So while the two are face to face, one guarding as the other is holding onto his arms Bakugo throws his head back..

....and bites down right into Deku's forearm. He sinks his teeth into the skin, immediately drawing blood and the crowd gasps. How is Deku going to combat this...?!]

[The unexpected bite causes Izuku to cry out with pain, heaving out a plume of smoke that clouds his and Bakugou's vision for a moment like a smokescreen. He wasn't...acutely aware he could do that? But he's done it, and he's bought himself a few seconds to think through the pain. Bakugou's time is nearly up; just a minute more, and he'd be back to his normal self. At that point, a win was nearly guaranteed for Izuku.

But that can't happen. He knows it, and Bakugou knows it. Their fight will end in the next thirty seconds, whether Izuku has a plan thought out for it or not.

He can't wrench himself away from Bakugou, so he's really stuck here. His only option is to either use his Quirk to knock him off, or...

He grits his teeth, planting his feet into the dirt of the arena as he suddenly starts to push back against Bakugou, ignoring the pain shooting up his arm. He tries to push him back towards the line, to try and force him out of bounds...and he isn't using his Quirk to do it. It's a futile attempt, given how Bakugou is so much stronger than him.]

[The smoke shocks Bakugo, honestly. He's seen smoke come out of his mouth before, in small little trails but never like this. Was he hiding that ability this whole time? That's so... freakin' cool!!

It pisses him off more, then, when Deku starts pushing against Bakugo. Immediately, it's obvious what he's trying to do. He's trying to push him back over the edge without using his Quirk, and that makes him so goddamn angry. What kind of win would this be if he didn't even win using his Quirk? Is Deku even thinking?

Of course, he's a lot stronger in this form than Deku, able to pull out 130% of his power and so far he hasn't used that much yet because he hasn't been pushed to but now... he's literally being pushed. If he doesn't stop Deku he'll go over the line, and he refuses to let that happen.

So he lets go of Deku's arm with his mouth, and tightens the grip he has on Deku with his hands instead. He digs his heel into the ground to stop both of them, and uses all of his might to throw Deku as far as he can in whatever direction he can manage. Ideally, over the line but it'd take a lot of luck for that to happen.]

[The proverbial switch inside of Izuku flips as Bakugou suddenly grabs him and makes to throw him away as he realizes that if he's not going to be able to win this without severely hurting Bakugou...then there's no real chance of him winning it at all. It'd either end in the hospital or a draw, and one of them at least would be upset by both of those scenarios.

So as he's flung through the air, black smoke still escaping his mouth as if his flame had gone completely out, Izuku doesn't try to right himself. His body hits the ground several feet away and he tumbles until he slides to a stop on his side, heaving as he gasps for air through all of the smoke.

Mic suddenly screams out over the field as everyone gets to their feet, because Izuku's head and shoulders have fallen over the line and out of bounds.

Bakugou wins.]

[Bakugo watches as Deku rolls out of bounds, and as Mic yells the results, the crowd screaming their heads off to celebrate Bakugo's form shifts. Just out of time, it looks like. He looks at his now human hand for a moment, his brow furrowed deeply as he does. He won, like he wanted, but it feels.. terrible. It doesn't feel satisfying even a little bit, because he feels like Deku went easy on him. He's been his rival all of Bakugo's life. He's been the goal. The person he's wanted to beat wholeheartedly, his Quirk against Deku's amazing abilities that he's always yearned for and now that they finally were able to go all out... it feels like he worked twice as hard and Deku barely worked at all.

Was he toying with him? Playing around to show him that he was so powerful that he didn't need to go at him 100%? What an idiot. A stupid, horrible idiot. He looked down on him and it cost him the win, and Bakugo walks towards him as the crowd continues to cheer with nothing but anger and bitter resentment in his gaze.]

You could have won.

[His ears are pinned to the top of his head, his tail drooping between his legs limply. He looks angry, and bitter but on top of that is... something sad. Hurt.]

[Izuku pushes himself up to his hands and knees as the crowd roars, still coughing up smoke even as Bakugou walks over to him. When he looks up at him, the expression on his own face is tense...pitiful. It worsens with the way Bakugou looks down at him, his tone very clearly disappointed.

Before much else can happen, even as the nursebots start to roll onto the field to tend to Izuku's bleeding arms, he suddenly bolts. He shoulders past Bakugou and runs off the field entirely, ignoring the way the crowd murmurs and how Mic yells after him as he disappears down the corridor that leads to the field proper.

He runs, and he keeps running until he reaches an empty hallway that he can hide in, his back to the wall as he slides down to sit on the floor.

The tears in his eyes are angry, frustrated, and humiliated. What was he thinking!? Why did he just...basically throw the match like that when they both were looking so forward to it? How could he hurt his best friend that way?

Why...]

[Honestly.... he didn't expect that kind of reaction from Deku. He didn't expect him to suddenly push past him and run the other direction, he expected an answer. Something, and as Present Mic yells after Deku, Bakugo can feel that disappointment and resentment bubbling up inside of him and.. he ends up running after him as well. Even though he has some nasty burns on his arms that he needs tending to, he can feel that this fight is not quite over yet.

He's about a minute behind Deku, though. Getting a little lost on the way in but he finds him sitting on the floor and he immediately yells out at him, in a sharp bark of a tone.]

What the fuck is wrong with you?! Do you like toying around with me like that, huh? Was it funny to you? You tried to beat me by pushing me over the line without even using your Quirk-- are you an idiot, or were you trying to humiliate me in front of everyone?!

In front of All Might!

[At first, Izuku hides from it. He buries his face in his arms as Bakugou's words strike him like sharp stones that he feels like he completely deserves. Bakugou has every right to be upset for the way that fight went...but the more he says, the more upset Izuku himself starts to get. Because he wasn't looking down on him, or even underestimating him...he was afraid of hurting him.

His head snaps up when he mentions All Might, tears already coursing down his cheeks as he shouts back with smoke continuously leaving his mouth.]

Shut up! N-none of that is true, Kacchan! You kept putting me in situations where i-if I wanted to win, I'd have to really hurt you! What was I supposed to do, burn you to death!? Is that what you'd have me do so the win felt more justified or something??

This isn't some kind of game anymore! They can put us back together, but you can't come back from everything!

[The old burn scar on his cheek should remind him of that.]

I wouldn't have gotten burned! Do you think I'm so weak that I can't figure out a way out of that kind of situation?

[Bakugo yells that back at him, more desperate sounding than before.]

If you're too scared to use your Quirk then why the fuck are you at U.A? Why the fuck are you trying to be a Hero?! Are you gonna hold back against a villain, too?!

Edited 2019-01-19 07:27 (UTC)

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