Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Katsuki was tense, but that was nothing new. He’d been uptight and rigid most of his life, holding himself to quite frankly ridiculous standards. It wasn’t easy being the only omega pro hero in the top ten and it’d been even harder over the last four months.

But who could blame him? When his alpha went missing, kidnapped by some stupidly powerful villain syndicate, it felt like everything had fallen apart. New villain organizations popped up every couple of years, trying to recreate the success of the League of Villains. But none of them ever succeeded.

Until the latest one.

132 days ago Izuku was taken by The Forsaken.

Katsuki hated their name. It was stupid as hell and fake as shit like they were trying to be ominous. But really, they were just another group of shitty people who wanted to take their own hardships out on the rest of the world.

Izuku used to tell him to be understanding and sympathetic, to consider what other people had gone through. But Izuku wasn’t here anymore.

His alpha was gone, and Katsuki wouldn’t give any fucking leniency to the assholes who took him.

He was going to find them. He was absolutely fucking certain of it. And when he did, he would rip all their throats out and take Izuku home where he belonged.

Not everyone agreed, though.

Sure, the hero community was doing their best. But no one was as desperate as Katsuki. He’d been so bloodthirsty that he had to be pulled from the case after he “accidentally” beat someone into a bloody pulp so badly they had to be hospitalized. He regretted it and knew right away that he shouldn’t have done it. He was supposed to be better than that. But he’d gone feral.

And the Hero Public Safety Commission ordered his removal. It was a huge fucking mistake. He’d learned his lesson, but all things were off the table when a mate was involved.

It surprised him, seeing as how they weren’t even officially mated yet. They were waiting until they could open their own agency, wanting to make sure everything was fair. If they’d done it before, the outdated laws would have restricted Katsuki’s ownership of the agency.

So, they put it off.

Looking back, Katsuki regretted it.

If they had been bonded, he would be able to feel Izuku. Then he would have absolute and conclusive proof he was alive. He’d kill for that because even though he knew that his alpha was out there, others didn’t agree.

Katsuki would be a fucking millionaire if he had ¥100 for every time someone looked at him with pity in their eyes as if Izuku was already dead.

He knew the truth, though. It was only a matter of time before they found him. His alpha was out there somewhere, holding on and fighting back. Even without a mate bond, Katsuki could feel it in his bones. And his Izuku was not a quitter. It took a long fucking time to admit he was the strongest person Katsuki had ever met, but he knew the truth. There was no way in hell some half-rate villain group could kill the number one hero.

The waiting game was shit, though. Even after Katsuki weaseled his way back into the investigation, he barely felt any saner. Thankfully, he got to ride along on a few undercover missions in the van or heard whispers from Mirio and Keigo, who always tried to fill him in.

If they weren’t there to help him, he would have disregarded the morons at the commission entirely. The problem was, his omega was restless and angry and practically always on the edge of being feral. Their apartment didn’t smell like Izuku anymore. His nest only barely contained remnants of his pheromones, making Katsuki’s skin crawl. Every second he went without his alpha made him feel murderous.

So, when the call finally came, Katsuki was prepared to do anything to get him back.

He was in the locker room, getting undressed after a fairly quiet patrol. Nothing more than a bank heist with a few weak villains. They had cowered under his scent of cinnamon and smoke, smelling enraged and vengeful in the face of villain scum. It had been an easy fight—Katsuki didn’t even get a single scratch on him.

It would have been a good night to finish up his paperwork, go home, and secretly scour the dark web for any information he could find. He would get stuck staring at it for hours after Denki and Hitoshi set it up for him. He never found anything useful, but it made him feel like at least he was fucking trying.

Instead, his phone rang just as he was tugging his suit off. Katsuki wasn’t even going to answer until he saw who it was.

Endeavor.

His boss—who almost never called him unless it was urgent. Katsuki could see his quiet night disappearing right in front of him.

With a sigh, he answered the phone. “What do you want, old man?”

Endeavor’s gravelly voice came through the phone…

“We found Deku.”

Suddenly, the world stopped turning. Time slowed. And nothing mattered but Endeavor’s next words.

“The information is time-sensitive, and the raid is tonight. Normally, we wouldn’t allow you to participate for reasons that should be evident-“

“If you try to keep me away from him, I will fucking kill you,” Katsuki growled out, panting between words from the overwhelming rush of emotion that raced through him. It was taking everything in him not to go fucking feral on the spot, his inner omega raging and clawing at him to run to their alpha. His knees almost gave out at the intensity of his instincts, but he held a tight grip on his sanity.

“I’m quite aware. And there were some disturbing reports with our intel that made us believe we should at least have you at the raid.”

“What is it? Is he alright? Don’t fuck with me right now, Endeavor. I will run upstairs and kick your ass.”

“If you would allow me to speak,” Endeavor growled.

Katsuki responded back with a growl—impatient and desperate as he started to pace around the locker room. His inner omega was murderous, wanting to destroy the villains that took his alpha. But at the same time, a very small, very weak part of him was shaking with fear. He was terrified for his alpha—and for how he'd find him.

Endeavor paused and gave him a moment before he continued. “Our intel included the report that Deku is feral. We don’t know how long he’s been like that, and having you nearby could be one of the only ways to safely rescue him. Tactically, though, we will have you on the front line fighting the Forsaken. You will only be called in for the rescue if you’re needed. Understood?”

“Bullshit. I want to be there.”

“No, Dynamight. If Deku is feral, your scent could only worsen the situation, especially around villains. Your presence will be requested only if there is an emergency or you risk the safety of everyone. Do you understand?”

“Fuck. Fine, sir. When do I need to be ready?”

“We leave in four hours. Debrief in the conference room in two.”

Katsuki nodded to the empty locker room. “I’ll be there.”

“Good. You better prepare yourself for any eventuality, Dynamight. This will probably be the hardest raid of your life,” Endeavor said, almost softly.

The omega didn’t even give that an answer; Katsuki wasn’t about to be patronized by the old alpha, even if he knew the man meant well. Endeavor had really cleaned up his act over the past few years, softening and caring maybe a little too much after he’d ended up with Hawks. But Katsuki got it. After he’d started to settle in with Izuku, he’d gotten that way too.

The instincts he’d suppressed for years reared their ugly heads, turning him squishy and omega-like in a way he never thought he’d want to be. But some of the things he liked quite a bit. He’d started nesting a lot more, his instincts forcing him to do it to impress Izuku. But after a while, he began to notice how much it calmed him down, helping to rein in his anger and stress.

It was one of the many things that Izuku had helped with, making a difference in his life he didn’t even know about.

Fuck, it made him miss him, though.

He slowly collected himself, slipping his hero costume back on before walking back up to his office. Once inside, he locked the door and grabbed a couple of the blankets lying around, getting himself comfortable on the couch to relax

It was the only thing that kept him from storming into Endeavor’s office and stealing the information to save Izuku early. It curbed his impulsive tendencies to make his best attempt at a nest. But despite the temporary comfort, the moment his alarm went out he was storming out of his office to the meeting.

Katsuki barely paid attention, only hearing the two things he cared about—where Izuku would be in the compound and where Katsuki was supposed to start the raid. He’d be going into the front door, being most of the group’s main firepower, while other groups swept in and took out other villains to rescue Izuku.

He didn’t love the plan. He’d race in and save his alpha himself if it were up to him. But he knew this was the safest plan for everyone involved. Didn’t mean he had to like it.

It was nearly impossible to stop fidgeting on the drive to the compound. Katsuki was sandwiched in the armored truck between Shouto and Eijirou, both of whom were just as on edge and fidgety as he was. But Shouto had reached over, rubbing their wrists against each other. He was emitting a calming scent, his omega pheromones always calming Kastuki as he stayed close. Eijirou’s alpha musk was heavy with anxiety, but Katsuki ignored it well.

Scents didn't bother him much anymore with years of training on his side. The only person whose pheromones really affected him was Izuku’s.

The only reason Shouto was able to help Katsuki at all was that they were actually scenting each other. It always made Katsuki feel better when his scent was on the shitheads he cared about. It sent a tiny shiver down his spine, imperceptible to anyone but Shouto and Eijirou. They both chuckled at him, prompting Katsuki to elbow them in the ribs.

“If you two don’t shut the fuck up, I will kill you myself.”

“Come on,” Eijirou teased, bumping their shoulders. “We’re just trying to help you relax. This is a big raid.”

“Yeah, it fucking is. We’ve gotta save Deku, and you assholes are acting like it’s a joke.”

“Watch it,” Shouto whispered, anger and sadness suddenly seeping into his voice. His sweet scent turned dull and sad, making Katsuki flinch. “He’s my best friend. You know we’re taking this seriously. But we want you to relax a little so you can be at your best.”

“I’ll be at my best anyway. I’m going to explode them all to hell in a fucking second to get to Deku.”

“Yeah, well, you can’t do that if you’re off your game,” Eijirou said with an annoyingly reassuring smile.

“Tch. I’m not going to be off my game. I’m going to get my alpha back, and those Forsaken fuckers aren’t gonna know what hit them.”

“Good. Because we’re here,” Shouto said, just as the truck pulled to a stop a few blocks down the street from the abandoned warehouse district. Their intel said all four warehouses at the back were being used as the group’s base, but the last one is where they had Izuku. So, one group was attacking from the rear, and the rest from the front and the sides. The villains didn’t stand a chance.

The moment everyone unloaded and got to their marks, Endeavor’s voice blared in their comms.

“Everyone moves at the top of the hour. Remember the procedure if we have a feral alpha: all omegas stay back until further notice. We get Deku out, and no one stops until all of the trash is dealt with.”

Katsuki could feel the energy thrumming in him, the pep talk being just what the group needed as everyone checked their equipment for the final time and waited until their synchronized equipment buzzed.

Then, they attacked.

Everyone moved as one. Katsuki’s explosions rattled the building as he blew a massive hole in the wall for the rest of the heroes to begin their assault. As soon as he saw a villain, all the blood lust he’d been suppressing took over. His eyes turned to slits, and he went half-feral almost immediately. The first villain had a lightning quirk not dissimilar to Denki’s. Seeing them spiked all his rage, imagining a fucker like that torturing Izuku with electricity, his body convulsing in pain while he was tied down and hurt over and over.

Good thing Katsuki had been training against Denki for years; he could take him down blindfolded, even while feral. He swept in close and then blasted away until they discharged their electricity. Then he burst back in at top speed, hitting them with a massive explosion that sent them careening against the wall and slumping over, unconscious.

Katsuki let out a victory yell, his omega howling along with him.

It took every ounce of self-control he had to keep himself moderately level headed and not kill the guy. He had to keep attacking the other villains—every one of these pieces of shit needed to suffer in Tartarus for what they’ve done to his alpha.

So, he blasted onto the next one, taking villains down left and right. He barely noticed anything around him, only paying attention enough to stay out of the way of the other heroes. They quickly moved through the first warehouse, taking down nearly 30 villains before the police moved in and the heroes moved onto the next building. But with the other teams, they were almost cleared out as well.

Katsuki was running out of people to destroy, and it was getting harder and harder not to go find Izuku himself. But he was fighting. Katsuki knew it could really fuck everything up if he went in now. If Izuku was too deep, he would kill anyone that got too close, and throwing his omega in the mix would only add more unpredictability.

So, he did his best to stay away…

But then a massive boom echoed throughout the district, and Katsuki knew that sound immediately. It was Izuku punching something at nearly 100%. His entire body almost gave out, his omega screaming and crying to make it to their alpha—to be by his side. The overwhelming intensity of his instincts felt like it would rip him apart.

He just wanted his alpha. He hadn’t seen him in months, and staying away was killing him.

Katsuki thought he might actually pass out from fighting his omega so badly. He didn’t even notice when Shouto rushed over to him, trying to scent him and calm him down.

Until Endeavor’s voice rang out in his ear.

“Everyone evacuate building four temporarily! Heroes Mindjack and Eraserhead are the only people who can subdue the target. Hero Deku is too feral to approach. Again: everyone leave the area! Hero Deku will kill anyone who approaches.”

Katsuki broke.

He couldn’t imagine his alpha like that. Sure, the nerd was an alpha. But he was beyond docile, never once displaying any of those toxic alpha traits that so many knotheads boasted about. He couldn’t stomach the thought of Izuku hurting anyone—uncontrollably attacking anyone who came near him.

His omega wouldn’t allow his alpha to go through that. Katsuki couldn’t fight his instincts any longer as he stood up and blasted right out of Shouto’s arms. He didn’t hear Shouto’s warning that Katsuki was moving in.

When he got there, he saw only Izuku.

All he could think about was how stupidly beautiful his mate was.

Izuku was standing in a fucking crater, wearing nothing but torn apart pants from a set of scrubs. His chest was heaving, his muscles trembling with every harsh breath spilling from his lungs. Katsuki wasn’t close enough to see his eyes, but from the scent of enraged, scared, feral alpha, he knew his pupils were wild slits.

Katsuki dove down into the crater, landing about twenty feet from his mate. The alpha immediately moved into a fighting position as if he was about to attack. But it only took a second for him to collapse down on his knees instead.

It made Katsuki’s heart shatter.

All the rage within his omega poured out of him—the adrenaline keeping him together leaving with it. Izuku was beautiful, the most gorgeous thing Katsuki had ever seen. His eyes were stunning, even if they were hazy and glassy. His green curls were so achingly familiar that Katsuki wanted to run his fingers through them despite being matted and messy. And the look on his face was hauntingly ethereal. He looked broken and desperate but so relieved as Katsuki’s scent hit him.

But despite all that beauty, Katsuki noticed other things even more. There were so many new scars littered across his body, and his muscles were so much smaller than they used to be. Izuku wasn’t quite skin and bones, but he was much thinner than when he’d been kidnapped.

Katsuki hadn’t even moved close enough to inspect him yet, but the differences were painful. A sign that he’d failed his alpha, that his mate was alone for so long.

He finally ran over to him when the alpha let out a sad croon, begging for Katsuki as he started to whimper, trying to crawl to him. He was so slow, his body getting weaker with every second. Katsuki could see the adrenaline and the fight draining from him.

Waiting a single second more felt like torture once Katsuki was finally in front of him, stumbling over his own feet and then throwing himself at his alpha.

The second they touched, it was like fireworks. The empty numbness in Katsuki was suddenly washed away, replaced with all the loneliness and depression that he'd pushed away while Izuku was missing.

The repressed pain came back in a moment, his omega crying out as he started to sob. Izuku reacted perfectly, wrapping himself around Katsuki and immediately pressing their scent glands together. Shivers ran down their spines, trembling in each other’s arms.

Katsuki only cried harder.

It had been so long since Izuku’s scent had been on him. The smell of mint and freshly chopped grass was heavy with so many emotions. But despite the agony and fear in the alpha’s pheromones, it was still downright euphoric to be scented by Izuku again. It had been far too long; his omega started to purr despite Katsuki’s cries, but he couldn’t help it. He was sure he was a fucking mess, but this reunion was more important than the feelings of any of those bullshit extras.

He didn’t care if he looked weak. He’d been alone for four fucking months and kept it together for almost all of it. He was allowed to fall apart in his alpha’s arms. Katsuki had earned that.

But their moment was cut short far too quickly. Katsuki could smell a very familiar pair of omegan scents as he looked up to the lip of the crater, seeing Shouta and Hitoshi watching warily. Izuku’s eyes followed Katsuki’s and he immediately started to growl, barely mustering the strength to stand up with Katsuki in his arms.

As much as Katsuki’s omega purred at the show of strength and protection, he knew Izuku would attack them if they got any closer.

He ran his hair through Izuku’s curls and rubbed his wrist to Izuku’s neck. “Calm down, nerd. They’re only here to help.”

Izuku couldn’t respond, too deep into his feral state to be able to speak.

Hitoshi shouted down, “You alright, Izu?”

Izuku growled at Hitoshi and Shouta. The sound echoed around the crater with so much power, as if he’d rip them apart if they even stepped in the circle.

Shouta apparently had a death wish as he knelt down and slid into the crater. He was roughly 40 feet from them, but Izuku tensed up, holding Katsuki closer to his chest.

“It’s fine, Deku,” Katsuki whispered. “He’s practically your dam. He’s not going to hurt us.”

Shouta moved forward a few steps, pouring out his scent as he started to purr. “Izu, it’s just me. We’ve got to get you out of here. Somewhere you can be safe with Katsuki. Do you understand?”

Izuku’s glare just intensified when Shouta moved closer, but he didn’t attack, shocking Katsuki beyond belief. Still, Shouta slowed down, crouching to the ground and sitting down.

“Can you nod for me? We need to know how feral you are.”

“He’s too far gone,” Katsuki said, tears stinging his eyes as clung to his alpha, but he still tried to save face as he sighed. “You guys will have to sedate him.”

“Is that a good idea?” Hitoshi asked through their comms.

“Probably not,” Katsuki sighed. “But I can scent it on him. He’d probably attack anyone who gets too close right now. Just get Hypnos in here, that sleep-quirk extra. She can knock him out.”

Hitoshi nodded and took off at a jog. Then, it was only the three of them. Izuku’s scent calmed down again, and eventually, he sat on the ground with Katsuki in his lap. The omega let himself soak up the affection as the alpha went to town possessively scenting him, spreading his pheromones everywhere. Izuku usually hated doing that, constantly advocating that Katsuki didn’t need to stink like him to keep people away because Katsuki didn’t like people anyway.

But it was a blessing now, sating Katsuki’s instinctual need to be with his alpha.

Izuku became the only thing in the world in those moments. He didn’t even notice how close Shouta had gotten, sitting right next to them. Izuku growled once or twice but allowed Shouta to reach out and scent them both.

Katsuki would have laughed at him any other day. Shouta rarely gave in to his instincts—he was even less “typically omegan” than Katsuki was. But the moment was nice. Almost perfect. Katsuki felt relief filling every ounce of his being, his eyes getting heavy after his explosive crying.

And when Hypnos came over and knocked out Izuku, Katsuki felt the relief set in as he passed out, slumping to the ground with his eyelids fluttering closed.

Chapter Text

When Katsuki woke up, he slammed right into consciousness. He knew exactly where he was, but not how he got there, being perfectly accustomed to the noises of a hospital. But he also knew immediately that he was not with his mate. Izuku’s scent was only on his skin, nowhere in the room at all, and it made Katsuki’s omega cry out. He couldn’t help the tears of frustration that welled up in his eyes as he sat up to tear the IV out of his arm and stood up on shaky legs to walk out of the room.

He knew exactly where he was going. The hero wing of Musutafu General wasn’t massive, and there were only a few rooms that could handle a feral alpha. He stormed down the hall, his smoky scent more like a bonfire of hurt and anger from being separated from his mate again. A few nurses tried to call out to him, but he was growling at anyone that tried to stop him.

Katsuki almost collapsed when he saw Izuku through the giant glass door to his room. He was in Critical Alpha Care, with no privacy, and strapped down to the bed. Katsuki knew it was procedure for feral alphas, but he couldn’t fucking take it. He grabbed the door to wrench it open, intent on throwing himself into that bed and unstrapping Izuku.

But the door wouldn’t budge.

“Someone unlock this fucking door,” Katsuki whispered, his voice deadly as he started to shake...

Nurses and doctors rushed over to him, babbling in their fake, placating voices as they tried to explain all at once. But Katsuki wasn’t having it, grabbing the collar of the closest person and reeling them in until he was growling in their face.

“Listen here, you pieces of shit. My alpha is in there, and I’m not, so you better let me in right now before I fucking blow the door open.”

“D-Dynamight, sir, we can’t do that! Feral alphas are too dangerous. He needs to remain in isolation for a little while.”

“Abso-fucking-lutely not. I know you’ve gotta follow your dumbass rules, but it’s a bad idea this time. He’s probably the strongest alpha on the planet, and he was tortured and kidnapped for four months. If I’m not in there, no restraints will make any fucking difference.”

The man trembled, pushing Katsuki away to fix his shirt before letting out a sigh. “I’m sorry, but the hospital can’t do that. The liability would be too much. You could sue.”

“Then let me sign a fucking waiver. You’re not keeping my mate from me.”

“Wait, he’s your mate?”

“Yes, moron. Why else would I stink like him?”

“S-Sorry, sir. We can allow you in then.”

“Fucking better,” Katsuki growled before looking around the group. “Which one of you idiots is his actual doctor?”

“That would be me,” another man said. “I assume you want to know his status.”

“Obviously.”

“First, this will sound bad, but he should make a full recovery. He’s severely dehydrated and malnourished, and we had to put him on an IV and feeding tube for the moment. His hormone levels are… erratic at best. It seems like he’s been feral for at least the last 6-8 weeks. He’s mostly uninjured, although there are records of several new injuries that aren’t in his medical reports. Several healed broken bones and new scars indicating he’d been electrocuted.”

“F-Fuck,” Katsuki stuttered, his knees feeling weak. Imagining any of that made him want to puke. And the fact that Izuku had been feral for almost two months? It was a fucking wonder he even recognized Katsuki’s or Shouta’s scent.

He let out an accidental whine, grabbing the door and whipping around to the doctor. “Let me in. Now.”

The doctor nodded, scanning his badge so the door would open as Katsuki slipped inside. The scent was heavenly; Izuku’s pheromones were mostly calm in his sleep even if Katsuki could still smell a hint of stress and fear. But his omega purred, and it only took a second before Katsuki was undoing the restraints and crawling right into the bed.

Fuck procedures. Fuck this hospital. Fuck all of it.

He wanted to be close to his alpha, and he didn’t give a flying fuck about rules. And he knew Izuku. If Katsuki wasn’t right there when he woke up, and he was still feral, the alpha would tear the hospital apart. If that happened, Izuku would probably feel guilty for years once he came back to himself.

So sure, maybe Katsuki was being a little selfish as he buried himself in the bed, pulling the blankets around them to wrap them up in the shittiest nest he could make. But he was trying to protect Izuku, too. Plus, he wasn’t lying. Katsuki knew what it was like to be kidnapped. He still didn’t like anything tied around him. Even wearing a tie with a suit made him uncomfortable. And that had been years ago and only for a few days.

Izuku would have so much more trauma, and Katsuki wouldn’t let a bunch of shitty, dumb doctors mess it up even worse.

He would just bask in the cuddles and shove his nose into Izuku’s scent gland while the alpha slept. Katsuki was determined to enjoy the peace with his mate until everything went to shit later.

All that mattered was right there on that bed.

Izuku woke up. He was alert for the first time in who knew how long. The cold cement had become all he knew, haziness his only constant with all the awful scents and drugs pumped into that damn room. He hated it.

Hated the scents of other alphas. Hated everything.

But this was different. And different was never ever good. Anytime he woke up somewhere other than his den cell, something horrible always happened. And he knew what it would be this time.

The beeping was a universal sound. Once upon a time, it meant hospitals, a heart rate monitor strapped to him and his family bustling around. But it only meant pain these days. Experiments, sedation, trying to take One For All. He only knew pain and anger and fear. Nothing else.

Everything inside him was begging him to run and flee. He wanted to tear these people apart and make it back to his omega. That was the only person he could trust. The only scent that hadn’t been tainted by all the pheromones they pumped into his cell. He needed to get home to his Kacchan.

Fleeting images of killing and running ran through his head, with no real thoughts. Only pictures of a future his feral mind was desperate to reach.

He flexed his arms and realized immediately that he wasn’t restrained. Izuku let out a massive roar of victory, ready to attack anyone and everything. He threw the person on top of him off the bed-

Wait.

Bed? Soft? Warmth?

Those weren’t things Izuku got anymore. This was entirely new, and he didn’t know what it meant. Couldn’t figure it out. The beeping was too loud, the room smelled too much like antiseptic, too much like the place where they cut him open.

And then something else hit him. The sweet aroma wrapped around him, burnt cinnamon laced with something soothing and smoky. It was like his Kacchan. And when he heard a whine and a groan that sounded so familiar, he tensed up.

Was it his omega? Was this another game? Izuku didn’t know. He was angry and terrified, and he couldn’t fucking handle it.

But then, a few short, disjointed memories from the day before fluttered through his head. He remembered alphas, so many of them trying to hold him down and pull him somewhere. He remembered suddenly being able to use his quirk and bringing a whole building down around him.

And he remembered his omega. Beautiful Kacchan in his arms, sobbing but real.

Or at least, Izuku was pretty sure it was real. He didn’t care either way. Even if it was a trick or a dream, he wanted his mate.

So he scurried off the bed in the direction he’d thrown the person and found his omega, standing up and looking at him. Kacchan was talking, but Izuku didn’t know what he was saying. Nothing made sense, but it didn’t matter because Kacchan was there.

He immediately grabbed him and carried him back to the bed, rumbles erupting through his chest as he scented his omega. Kacchan smelled like him but not enough. He needed to drown out everything else. Everyone needed to know Kacchan was his, and they couldn’t be apart ever again. Izuku was desperate for something, anything to tie him to his mate. Then he realized the lack of a mating bite on his omega’s scent gland was downright offensive.

Izuku immediately latched on to it, nipping and mouthing at it. He needed to claim him. His omega. His mate. The rest of the world could burn if Kacchan belonged to Izuku.

But his mate pushed him away, trying to speak to him again.

Nothing Kacchan could say would deter him, though. Izuku wanted to claim him. His inner alpha was raging inside and got worse and worse with every passing second that Kacchan wasn’t his.

But he relented when Kacchan pushed him away again, smelling annoyed and glaring at him. Izuku didn’t like it, but he gave up and went back to scenting him.

He vaguely heard a chuckle and mumbled words spill from Kacchan’s lips—it made him so happy to hear. He could only hope this wasn’t the bad place anymore. He wanted his den and his mate, and that was it. The peace was too nice, Izuku’s brain slowing down. He didn’t need to make sense of anything anymore if Kacchan was there.

Izuku could barely remember why he needed to think anymore anyway…

Until the door opened up, a doctor slowly walked into the room. The white lab coat was disgustingly familiar and the fucker smelled like an alpha. He couldn’t get near them. Izuku would kill him before letting him lay a hand on them.

His instincts kicked in, and although his quirk didn’t trigger, he didn’t need it. Izuku slammed the doctor into a wall in the blink of an eye, his teeth on the man’s neck ready to rip him apart. But a wave of calming pheromones washed over the room, Katsuki’s scent easing enough of the tension that he didn’t immediately kill the man.

Izuku felt his omega, wrapping his arms around the alpha’s middle and purring to calm the alpha. It worked a little as Katsuki pried him away, pulling him back to the bed. Izuku never once turned his back on the doctor, though. Even as he crawled back onto the bed and held Katsuki tight. The omega was still purring, but he could hear the irritation in his voice.

“Deku- … don’t attack-” was all Izuku understood.

He let out a growl and held the omega closer. He wasn’t going to listen. People were going to hurt them, and Izuku wouldn’t allow it, even if Kacchan told him not to. They were enemies. He couldn’t trust anyone anymore.

When the doctor stepped closer again, Izuku lashed out. He was quick enough to throw him to the ground, but Kacchan caught him this time. He let out a roar, trying to pull Kacchan closer to throw him back on the bed. He needed to be between the attacking alpha and the omega. He couldn’t let Kacchan get hurt.

But before he could do anything else, the room was flooded with more people. The scents were too much, beta and alphas and omegas alike. It reminded him of the place they kept him, where it always smelled liked too much. He was going crazy. He was cornered, and everyone was surrounding him. Too many people were suddenly holding him down. He heard Kacchan screaming and tried to get to his omega, but every time he threw someone else off, someone new was holding him down.

Izuku just wasn’t strong enough. He let out a pained growl, so much hatred in him as he finally found Kacchan’s red eyes filled with fury. Izuku would destroy every last one of them if it meant getting to his mate and wiping that look off his face.

He’d never get the chance, though, as he felt a prick in his neck, and then everything went black.

Katsuki was ready to commit murder.

He was going to fucking kill that stupid doctor. What the hell was he thinking, walking into a room with a feral alpha as an alpha himself? What an unprofessional moron.

He chewed him out for hours, the alpha wilting under his strong and furious scent. Katsuki wielded his pheromones like a weapon against weak alphas who couldn’t handle an omega with a scent like his. And it worked perfectly. The fucker apologized a million times and he demanded a different doctor for Izuku. This one was a male omega like Katsuki, with an earthy scent of rain and nutmeg.

“Sorry about your earlier troubles, Dynamight. I’m Doctor Watanabe, and I’ll oversee Deku from here on out.”

“You better be more competent than the last asshole.”

“I assure you I will be. I reviewed Deku’s file, and there was no way he should have taken those steps. It was clear that Deku would be hostile to another alpha.”

“Yeah, the fucker even came closer after I settled down Deku the first time.”

Doctor Watanabe sighed, reaching up to pinch the bridge of his nose. “Of course he did. I have a few better options if you’re willing to hear me out?”

“Spit it out,” Katsuki growled. He was already getting nervous being out of the room for this long. They didn’t know when Izuku would wake up, and Katsuki needed to be there. Even just standing out in the hall felt like he was too goddamn far away.

“I’d like to suggest we put him on hormone treatment to give him back some self-control. Being entirely pulled out of his feral state will require more than that, like time and space to heal from his trauma. But I think it’s our best course of action for getting him safely out of the hospital.”

“Alright, fine, that makes sense. What does that mean exactly?”

“Well, we’d keep him mildly sedated for about 72 hours while we put him on some mild hormone blockers to relieve some of the alpha aggression. Then we’d pull him off the sedation and see how he did on his own.”

Katsuki narrowed his eyes. “Sedated like what? Unconscious?”

“No. He’d be awake, just somewhat hazy.”

“You sure that’s not going to make it worse? He had a severe reaction to being in a hospital before realizing I was there. I’d bet anything those fuckers drugged him.”

“There is always a chance for adverse effects, but I think this is our best bet.”

Katsuki took a moment to mull it over. He didn’t like the sedation thing, but easing him out of his feral state made the most sense. Katsuki wasn’t sure he could do it entirely on his own. So, he reluctantly nodded. “Fine. Do it. But if anyone tries to separate us again, I’ll kill them.”

“Understood,” Doctor Watanabe said with a slight nod. “It would be unwise anyway, seeing as how you seem to help him rather than making him immediately more aggressive. I’ll have them bring a recliner into his room while he’s still unconscious for your comfort. And we’ll start hormone treatment immediately.”

Katsuki acknowledged him with a grunt and turned to go back into his alpha’s room. The stench was horrible. His own distressed pheromones and Izuku’s scent of fear and rage made his stomach turn, not to mention the stink of all the moronic hospital staff.

So, he took a moment and opened the window to air out the room. He grabbed extra blankets and made a better nest around his mate, scenting it and rubbing it against Izuku’s neck to mix their pheromones. He used a few pillows and wove the blankets around them, giving him the slightest ring of protection and comfort as he climbed in with Izuku.

He stayed awake, watching the medical staff closely as they inserted a syringe into Izuku’s new IV and left the room. Once it was quiet, he closed his eyes and let himself sleep with his alpha. Hopefully, the next time he woke up, it wouldn’t be a shit show…

Chapter Text

The next few days of Katsuki’s life were both incredibly dull and some of the most stressful of his life.

Izuku was sedated and only about half aware of everything going on around him. He still growled when anyone entered the room that wasn’t Katsuki, but he didn’t have the energy to attack. Instead, his pheromones floated around the room like he was ready to murder anyone who got near them.

But it lessened a little after a day or two. He was less aggressive and warier of the omegas and betas, but the alphas still had him wanting to kill them the moment they moved. Katsuki eventually stopped letting any alpha nurses or doctors into the room at all. He couldn’t stand the way it made Izuku act.

Mostly.

The abandoned part of his omega loving being doted on and protected. Izuku scented him almost every second that he had enough awareness for it, and Katsuki was swimming in pheromones. And loving every single second of it.

If only he could fucking leave the room for a moment. At one point, Eijirou brought him a duffle bag of stuff so he could shower in the hospital locker room. Still, Izuku wouldn’t let him out of his sight, immediately getting erratic and fighting against the drugs to get out of bed and follow him around.

It only took one time for Izuku to subsequently fall off the bed and try to attack a nurse who came to help him up for Katsuki to realize he couldn’t leave the room without the giant alpha freaking out. He’d even tried once while he was asleep, and Izuku woke up a minute later, and Katsuki had to be paged back to the room.

He loved his alpha. Really, Katsuki cared about him more than anything in the world. But dealing with a drugged feral alpha was fucking hard.

But finally, on the third day, it was time to try taking him off the sedatives. Katsuki was beyond hopeful that with some clarity, he’d be better. Maybe even verbal and ready to come home. But he was terrified.

Doctor Watanabe did his best to comfort him, but the awkward man really just patted his shoulder and gave him a smile. Katsuki usually hated that kind of shit, but the man was matter-of-fact, never beat around the bush, and wasn’t an asshole. That was enough for Katsuki to like the man.

It could change pretty quickly if Izuku came out of the drugs even worse than when he went under. If Izuku reacted poorly, Katsuki would never forgive himself. He was supposed to be making good decisions for his feral mate. He couldn’t fuck up.

That morning they didn’t give him any more sedatives. They took a blood sample while he was still asleep and left Izuku to wake up with Katsuki by his side. Every slight twitch the alpha made had Katsuki hyper-aware, watching for any signs of distress. He was tense as hell, sitting in the recliner with an unopened book in his lap as he waited.

The clock on the wall ticked by, Izuku’s heart rate monitor a slow and steady beat. The room would have felt almost serene if it weren’t for all the tension. Everything was riding on this. Katsuki didn’t even know what it meant for treatment if this didn’t work. He had to hold on to hope that Watanabe was right.

After a few hours of Katsuki’s anxious waiting, Izuku’s heart rate sped up. His eyes fluttered open, and he jerked up in a hurry, eyes whipping around a powerful growl rumbling in his chest. Katsuki ignored the way it made his heart skip a beat and tried to focus on Izuku. The alpha wasn’t jumping to run or kill this time, just wary until he found Katsuki and he smiled.

It was probably the sweetest thing Katsuki had ever seen. He may not have cried, but his scent sweetened up immediately with love and adoration. He wasn’t even ashamed. Katsuki had every fucking right to swoon a little. It’d been four months since he saw his alpha smile, for fuck’s sake. Katsuki deserved to be cheesy when he thought: he’s the most beautiful fucker I’ve ever seen.

He slowly approached, seeing no tension in Izuku’s shoulders at all as he scooted over in the bed to let Katsuki up. It felt so normal. His instincts were buzzing away happily that his mate was getting better. But then he tried to speak to him.

“How you feeling, nerd?”

Izuku didn’t respond, just kept rumbling his chest as he nuzzled into Katsuki.

“Fuck, babe, can you understand me?” Katsuki asked, pulling back to look at Izuku.

The alpha looked confused as hell, tilting his head like a puppy with his eyebrows furrowed in confusion. He was fucking adorable, but he still wasn’t understanding. He was still too deep.

Katsuki felt himself tear up in frustration, moving closer again to press his forehead to Izuku’s. “I swear we’ll figure this out. Got it?”

Izuku still showed no sign of understanding, but he cuddled Katsuki closer and scented him. The damn nerd was feral, had been kidnapped for months, and was still just trying to comfort Katsuki. It was so fucking sweet—even if it was a little sad, too.

But their moment was interrupted when a knock rang out at the door. Watanabe slowly walked in, his scent apparent and calm not to freak out Izuku. The alpha didn’t growl, but he tensed up and pulled Katsuki closer. His eyes were narrowed in distrust, but he wasn’t outright attacking.

“Well, that’s an improvement,” the doctor said quietly as he stepped a little closer but still kept his distance. “Can you understand me, Deku?”

Katsuki gave Izuku a moment to try, but the alpha didn’t even seem to notice he was actually being addressed.

“He’s not responsive, doc,” Katsuki said with a sigh.

“Well, he’s also less aggressive, so that’s good news. Still an improvement. His hormone levels look closer to normal. Honestly, he shouldn’t even be feral anymore.”

“So, what the hell is going on?”

“Medically? Nothing at this point. His alpha is still too reactive and afraid to give control back. Whatever happened was likely too traumatic, and he’s not feeling safe enough yet to leave the feral state.”

“So what the hell do we do now?”

“I think our next best course of action is to bring in other people who could make him feel safe or like things are back to normal. Preferably not alphas. Family and friends, perhaps?”

“I was really hoping this would have helped,” Katsuki whispered, pinching the bridge of his nose as felt himself sag in defeat.

“It helped, but not as much as we would have liked.”

“Fuck!” Katsuki shouted, making Izuku hold him tighter and bury his head in Izuku’s scent gland. The alpha pushed out protective pheromones, starting to growl at the doctor who showed his neck and stepped back.

“I’m sorry, Dynamight. At this point, there isn’t much I can medically do for him.”

“So what the fuck are we supposed to do if it doesn’t work?”

“He will probably have to be put in a psychiatric program until he’s deemed safe for others and himself.”

Katsuki’s scent immediately went sour. The thought of his alpha being away again was too much, and he wanted to fucking rage and cry and scream. He wouldn’t let that happen.

Izuku was still holding him tightly, a growl rolling through the room as Katsuki’s pheromones got worse and worse. But if Izuku was supposed to be getting better, he couldn’t act like this. Otherwise, how the fuck was he ever supposed to come home?

He pulled back and leveled a glare at the alpha. “Knock that shit off,” he scolded.

The alpha still didn’t know what he meant, but he pouted as if he knew he’d done something wrong. He looked like a puppy who just got yelled at for peeing in the house. Izuku was just too cute for such a fucked-up situation. It made Katsuki laugh as he looked at the doctor.

“I’ll fucking text our family to come this afternoon. Hopefully, this shit works…”

Katsuki wasn’t sure this was a good idea. Izuku had been nervous the second he picked up on the omega’s anxiety. And after texting Shouta, Inko, his dad, and Shouto, he was pacing in the hall in front of Izuku’s room. The alpha was agitated even though he could see Katsuki. He tried to follow him out, but he made Izuku stay put with a fearsome glare and some very displeased pheromones.

The alpha was reluctant to let Katsuki out of arm's reach, but while feral, Izuku was pretty weak to pheromones. Katsuki felt a little bad about it, but it was the safest option. They didn’t need an aggressive feral alpha pacing along the halls with him.

Thankfully, Katsuki didn’t have to pace for very long. Shouta stepped out of the elevator, looking somehow more rested than he had since Izuku was kidnapped, but also the most worried. His dark eye bags were better than normal, but there was a desperation in Shouta’s eyes. His scent was musty but restrained, his shoulders tight as he looked at Katsuki when he walked up.

“How is he?”

Katsuki shrugged hiding his sadness with a groan. “He’s still feral. The doctor doesn’t know what to do other than bring family around who would make him feel safe.”

“Got it. How aggressive is he?”

“Not at all to me. He’s a giant, non-verbal softy. But to almost anyone else, he’s untrusting and quick to attack if they get too close. Alphas especially.”

“Who’d you invite?”

“You, Inko, Icyhot, and my dad.”

“Not your own mother? Or Yagi?” Shouta asked with a quirked eyebrow.

“Nah, I don’t think he’d handle their alpha stink very well.”

Shouta nodded, turning finally to look at Izuku. His shoulders slumped, his eyes looking down to the ground. “Fuck.”

Katsuki knew what he was feeling. Even though it was Izuku, and his omega was content with his mate being back, it was different. It wasn’t entirely his Izuku when he was feral and out of his mind. Izuku was glaring at Shouta like he wanted to kill him, and it hurt to see. Katsuki knew his alpha was probably even closer to their old teacher than he was Inko. Shouta was practically a second dam to Izuku.

It probably hurt like hell to see Izuku barely a shell of himself—aggressive and detached and suspicious.

But the other omega took a deep breath and forced his scent into something calmer, like coffee, chocolate, and leather. Katsuki wasn’t a fan of most people’s scents, especially other omegas, but Shouta’s was less sweet like his. It calmed him even, some of the tension bleeding away as he stepped up to the door.

“He didn’t try to kill you a few days ago, so it should be better today. He’s more attentive and aware even if he’s still feral.”

“Yeah, let’s just see if I can help.”

“Let’s fucking hope,” Katsuki grumbled as he opened the door and slowly guided Shouta into the room.

Izuku’s reaction was immediate, tensing up and glaring down the other omega while he tried to scent him from across the room. He relaxed the tiniest bit once he recognized Shouta’s scent, but he still looked ready to attack at a single sign of hostility.

Katsuki knew he wouldn’t find any, though. Shouta was practically crying, a single tear in his eye as it slid down his cheek. The other omega’s scent was full of sadness and relief, nothing sharp enough to make Izuku aggressive. It seemed to work well enough when Shouta moved closer, slowly stepping to the side of the bed and placing out his wrist.

The alpha took it, sniffing at this scent gland for a moment before momentarily relaxing into the bed. Izuku was still wary, watching Shouta’s every move as he took a seat. Katsuki moved closer, sitting on the edge bed to try to chat normally. But they didn’t get very far.

“How have you been, old man?” Katsuki asked.

“The same as always. Stressed and tired and overworked because of my bratty hero-course students.”

“Hey, we were not—”

A knock on the door had them both tensing. Izuku immediately was growling, automatically acting more aggressive because Katsuki was in the room. He grabbed the alpha’s hand, trying to give a reassuring squeeze before pulling away to deal with whoever showed up. But Izuku wouldn’t let go, pulling him closer.

Shouta stood up slowly, trying not to startle Izuku. The alpha glared at him with far more distrust but didn’t move to attack. He only growled, low and rumbling but threatening nonetheless. Katsuki stroked the back of his hand. “Deku, it’s fucking fine. It’s just more family.”

Izuku still didn’t understand, though. Stuck too far in his feral mind to recognize anything but potential threats. Katsuki was worried but sagged in relief when Shouta opened the door to Inko. Izuku may not get along with her as well anymore, but Katsuki knew his alpha would never hurt her. And she was a nurse. She would know how to handle him, even if it might be weird and tense after their tumultuous relationship.

Or at least, that’s what Katsuki would have assumed.

Instead, she threw herself into the room and tried to rush in for a hug. Izuku didn’t notice the tears or how happy she was to see him. He only saw someone lunging at himself and his omega.

Izuku let out a huge roar. It was earth-shaking, the entire room freezing as the alpha started to flood the room in aggressive pheromones as he reached out to grab Inko around the throat. She screamed, trying to pry him off as her fresh beta scent turned musty and rotten.

Katsuki immediately pumped out his pheromones in response, trying to calm down Izuku to let go of his own damn mom. She was still panicking, though, struggling to breathe.

“Deku! Fucking let go! You’re hurting her!”

The alpha just growled, growling at Katsuki for getting in the way of protecting him. Katsuki growled back, brandishing his omega fangs to Izuku before wrenching the alpha’s fingers from Inko’s throat.

“You don’t need to attack everyone, for fuck’s sake. If you’re not careful, I can’t take you home. Knock this shit off!”

The alpha was still glaring in challenge, trying to smell dominant and in control. But Katsuki could smell the fear behind those pheromones. It made him want to puke as he finally got Izuku to let go. The alpha let out a growl and pulled Katsuki in close.

Inko looked horribly offended and hurt, bruises forming around her neck. Izuku didn’t even understand what he’d done. It didn’t seem like he noticed who she was at all. It broke Katsuki’s heart as he tried to reach out to Inko. But she pulled back, tears in her eyes.

“This is all your fault, Bakugou Katsuki. Y-You better fix this. That’s not my baby,” she blubbered out.

Katsuki reeled back, glaring at her. He only snapped out of his shock once she started to explain.

“If Izuku found a nice omega girl to settle down with, he would have never been kidnapped. I-I can’t believe you would let this happen and then you took so long to get him back. He never should have been a hero, and now he’s practically an animal. You said he was feral, but he doesn’t even know his own mother! It’s been days, and he’s not back to normal yet, and I want my son back!”

Katsuki was hurt. He wanted to cry because he knew she was at least a little right. Izuku wouldn’t be a hero if it weren’t for him, and he’d be doing some mundane 9-5 job where he’d be safe. But Katsuki knew that wasn’t the whole story.

“If you think he would ever be fulfilled with a life like that, then you don’t fucking know him at all.”

“At least he wouldn’t be a wild animal!”

Katsuki was about to yell back when Izuku roared again, but Shouta and Katsuki moved fast enough to stop him from hurting her this time. The alpha was reacting to the aggression, sure. But also, Katsuki’s pheromones were full of distress. Being blamed for Izuku’s kidnapping made him want to rip his own throat out.

Inko should have known better. The entire room was unsettled, Izuku still waiting to attack again to defend his omega. The tension got much worse when the door opened again to Masaru. The man was an unassuming beta, but Izuku couldn’t handle it. He freaked out, shoving Katsuki behind him and trying to even attack Shouta. He launched a punch that Shouta expertly dodged, but he was at him again with his teeth, going for the omegas scent gland.

Shouta immediately stopped him, starting to pin him down. The staff rushed in, grappling Izuku with Shouta and shoving a sedative back in his neck. The alpha went limp, and Katsuki wanted to fucking cry. He hated seeing Izuku like that, his usual soft and unassuming alpha acting like he wanted to kill someone.

It was so much worse this time as he turned to glare at Inko. His red eyes were piercing and engulfed in flames, burning with fury as he stomped over to Inko and dragged her into the hall.

“Don’t you think for a fucking second that this wasn’t entirely your fault. He was doing fine until you ran in, knowing that he was feral. You’re a nurse, Auntie. What the hell were you thinking?”

“I haven’t seen my son in months, Katsuki! I-I just wanted to hold him. But he’s not even him!”

“I told you he was feral,” Katsuki gritted out. Logically, he knew she was his mate’s mother. But she wasn’t good for him. At least not at the moment. “You need to leave, and you can’t come back to see him unless I give you permission. If you pull shit like this again and fuck with his recovery, I’ll cut you off for him until he’s recovered. Now get the fuck out.”

Inko looked like she wanted to argue, but tears were streaming down her cheeks, and Katsuki knew he’d won. She might mean what she said, but she loved Izuku, and she would make the best choice for him anyway.

And Katsuki was right, watching as she wiped her tears and then walked away.

It drained everything out of him. He was so optimistic when Izuku and Shouta got along alright, and then everything went to shit. Izuku was still a danger and not any nearer to coming back to himself.

Katsuki couldn’t fucking stand it as he walked to the nearest wall, pressing his forehead against it as he screamed. He lashed out, punching a hole into the wall as he cried. He barely reacted when a hand came up to squeeze his shoulder, his dad’s sweeter-than-average beta scent settling something in just enough to turn around and bury his head in his father’s shoulder.

He cried, clinging to his dad to keep from destroying something else. It brought him back to reality a little, Katsuki’s heart rate slowing back down and relaxing.

But the peace was broken when Doctor Watanabe cleared his throat.

“I’m sorry to intrude, Dynamight. I know this must have been startling, but we need to talk.”

“About?” Katsuki groaned back, his throat hurting from his scream.

“We need to discuss what we can do with Deku.”

Chapter Text

Katsuki could feel himself trembling—whether it was from anger or fear, he didn’t know. He was beyond pissed, his muscles contracting with fury while he squeezed his hands into tight fists. But his instincts were doing something else entirely.

He knew exactly where this conversation was headed and he fucking hated it. His inner omega was practically rolled in a ball, sobbing away as Katsuki fought to stay pissed. He only fell apart a few times while Izuku was held captive. He couldn’t do it again when the alpha needed him. Izuku was right there, and he wouldn’t let anything happen to him.

“Save it, doc. I know what you’re gonna say and it’s not fucking happening.”

“Dynamight, with all due respect, I don’t think you have much of an option.”

“The hell I don’t! I’m his mate!”

“I’m sorry, sir, but you’re not—legally at least. His medical care seems to be in the hands of your agency. We were told that Endeavor’s team put you in charge, but this puts things in question. I can’t ethically allow you to make this decision.”

“That’s fucking bullshit. I-I’m not letting you do this,” Katsuki gritted out, glaring menacingly at the other omega.

The doctor sighed, giving Katsuki a pitying smile that made his blood boil.

“I understand. But currently, Deku is a risk to himself and others. He can’t stay at the hospital any longer. He’s medically not ill. He needs to be transferred to an in-patient facility with the right doctors and coping skills to help his recovery.”

“Abso-fucking-lutely not. You’re not taking him away,” Katsuki gritted out, shaking his head at the doctor.

“It would only be temporary. They could give him the help he needs, and you could take him home when he’s recovered.”

“I don’t give a shit. He was gone for months. The last thing he needs is to be locked up in some fucking facility.”

The doctor gave an annoyingly understanding smile. “I know this is difficult, but this is the safest way for him to recover. Surely you understand that.”

“I don’t understand shit,” Katsuki spat back.

“Well, the decision isn’t ultimately up to you. We need to discuss it with his agency.”

Katsuki was ready to throttle the man. He’d been a good doctor, taking Izuku’s care seriously. Watanabe was far more confident than the previous physician, but he was wrong. Izuku wouldn’t recover better anywhere but at home. And if that meant fucking breaking Izuku out, he would do it. He simply couldn’t handle his alpha being taken away again.

So, he had to be proactive. Katsuki stomped away, finding an empty room before ripping his phone out and calling one of his two bosses.

“Hawks, here! What can I do for you, pup?”

“Not a pup, old man,” Katsuki growled.

Hawks chuckled. “Yeah, well, I’ll stop calling you pup when you stop calling me old. Now, what’s up? How’s your alpha?”

“H-He’s, fuck,” Katsuki stuttered out.

“Take a moment, pup. I’m not in a hurry.”

Katsuki wanted to punch Hawks, but he always secretly appreciated that kind of shit. He was a good boss and even a good friend. The man was an omega, closer to the “ideal” than someone like himself or Aizawa, but he still fought the stereotypes. He wasn’t delicate or soft, but he was unwaveringly kind with people he cared about—reminded Katsuki a lot of Izuku.

After a deep breath or two, Katsuki continued. He tried to mask the pain in his voice with a growl, but he was sure Hawks could tell.

“He’s still feral. Tried to attack his mom earlier.”

“Shit,” Hawks groaned.

“In his defense, they haven’t gotten along lately, and she was a moron. Who the hell charges at a feral alpha?”

“Mm, yeah. That was a bad choice on her part. I didn’t know they weren’t getting along, though.”

“Yeah, she’s been pushing him to settle down with someone who can give him a, and I quote, nice quiet life with a few pups.”

“Well, that’s fucked. Doesn’t she know you two are grossly in love?”

“She knows. And she likes me, just… not for her son. That’s a fucking different conversation, though. I called you cause I need you to conference in Endeavor. I need your guys’ help.”

Hawks was silent for a moment but sighed. “Yeah, yeah. Let me get the big guy.”

Katsuki waited on hold for a moment before the line reconnected.

“Bakugou, what do you want?” Endeavor asked.

“Apparently, you guys have Power of Attorney for Izuku’s medical care. The hospital will tell you guys that he needs to go to some institution or some shit to help, but I need you guys to say no. He needs to come home with me.”

“So, you’re asking us to go against medical advice? Bakugou, you should know better.” Endeavor groaned.

“I fucking know, but trust me. If they lock him up in some medical facility, his recovery will take even longer. He had really fucked up reactions to medical shit and syringes, and he has some needle scars all over his arms. He’d do better at home.”

“I know you want to think that, but are you sure?” Hawks asked, concern evident in his voice. It made Katsuki’s skin crawl and his heart warm simultaneously. “What if he hurts you or someone else?”

“I’ll just keep him home with me for a while. It’s the best fucking choice. Our apartment is the safest place to be. Doctor Watanabe even said his hormones are back to normal. He just needs to be safe and comfortable again. That’s not going to fucking happen anywhere but at home with me.”

“The legal liability would be too great, Bakugou. I’m hesitant to agree,” Endeavor said.

“Then I’ll take the pressure. Draw up documents if you have to, but he belongs at home.”

They both didn’t say anything, mulling over his words. Katsuki hated hesitation like that. People should go with their guts. They were rarely wrong. He understood why they were reluctant, but he was fucking right. He just needed someone to fucking get it.

Eventually, Hawks sighed. “I’m fine with it, pup. But only if Enji is. I think I’d feel the same if it was Enji taken, so I get it. But you will have to sign paperwork taking responsibility for his care.”

“That’s fine. I don’t fucking care as long as he gets to come home.”

“Fine, I’ll agree to this,” Endeavor groaned. “But you’re off duty. No hero work.”

“Yeah, yeah, old man, I know,” Katsuki spat back, but a smirk was on his face, and he was standing tall.

“Take care of him, pup,” Hawks said. “Call us if you need us.”

“Tch. I won’t. But, thanks, I guess.”

“This is not a favor. I simply agree. If safety and comfort are what he needs, especially after what happened to him, it makes sense to take him home. We’ve seen enough evidence that it looks… bad, Bakugou.”

“Don’t tell me. I don’t want to fucking know unless he tells me.”

“Understood. Good luck, Dynamight.”

“You can do it, Kacchan!” Hawks teased.

Katsuki rolled his eyes and hung up, taking a huge deep breath as if the world's weight was pulled from his shoulders. Izuku was coming home. With him. They could nest, make love, and figure this shit out without the world getting the way. Katsuki was sure that if Izuku just got to be away with him for a while, he’d recover without the interruptions and complications of the outside world.

He had a little more pep in his step. Sure, Izuku just tried to attack Inko. Objectively, that was bad. But if he was being honest, he’d wanted to tell her off for a while. He only held back because Izuku tried to handle it himself. Which was fair, even if Katsuki wanted to fucking explode her for insinuating he wasn’t a good omega. He was the fucking best for his mate, and she could suck a fat one.

Either way, seeing Izuku’s reaction to her was the slightest bit satisfying. And Izuku was okay with Shouta and only attacked the stupid alpha medical staff who clearly didn’t fucking get that Izuku was traumatized, feral, and volatile.

Katsuki would have a way easier time without all of them. This was definitely a good idea. What could go wrong?

The rest of the day was slow. Shouta left, and Katsuki told the others not to come. The last thing they needed was another episode. If he could keep Izuku relatively calm, going home the next day would be easier. He needed to get him down to his car and into their apartment. It wouldn’t be that hard.

The worst part of the evening was Doctor Watanabe trying to convince Katsuki again that Izuku needed to go somewhere. Their disagreement caused tension—immediately picked up on by the alpha as their conversations were terse and short. Luckily, Izuku didn’t act on anything more than nuzzling Katsuki closer, scenting the hell out of him, and occasionally growling at Watanabe.

He didn’t blame the doctor, not really, but Katsuki was sure he knew what was best. He might not always listen to his instincts, but he was confident his inner omega was right. Izuku needed to be with him, not stuck in some stuffy recovery center.

It was hell getting him home, though.

The paperwork was awful, and Katsuki really fucking hoped Izuku didn’t do anything to make them legally liable if something went down. Endeavor was right to make them sign it, and Katsuki was pretty confident his alpha would behave. But it was still daunting. It hurt too, though—that the alpha warranted anything like that. The thought of Izuku being so far gone that he would hurt innocent people was heart-wrenching.

But a more primal part of Katsuki didn’t mind too much.

Once he’d finished the paperwork, the hospital got him ready to go. Katsuki made the alpha get dressed in some clothes from home Masaru brought: black joggers and a blue and white t-shirt from Shouto’s merch line. The alpha quickly did what Katsuki asked, but he was like a giant baby—pouting the whole time like he didn’t want to wear clothes.

The omega started to purr as he took care of him. Some bullshit instinct thing that he usually didn’t indulge in, but it made him disgustingly happy once Izuku was dressed and flashed him a smile before pulling him into an embrace. Izuku was doing it all the time, holding him and scenting him. It was warm and safe, but after a few days of being stuck to his side, Katsuki was ready to get him home and get him better already.

Even if his instincts really just cared that Izuku was safely out of the grips of the Forsaken, Katsuki had a feeling that some of this would get on his nerves eventually. And he wasn’t exactly known for being the most laid-back guy…

Katsuki could only hope all of Izuku’s little feral habits remained endearing.

Perhaps even too endearing when he thought about it.

Once they could leave, the halls were kept pretty empty to get Izuku in Katsuki’s car, but the alpha growled at every foreign alpha scent. The omega rolled his eyes, but he couldn’t deny he almost liked it. Izuku was usually so soft, never getting protective or possessive outside of his rut, but this made him feel hot and warm in his gut at the same time.

The omega clamped down on that, practically glaring down at his stupid dick. It absolutely wasn’t the time. If Izuku smelled arousal, who the fuck knew what he’d do while feral. He could try to mount Katsuki right in the fucking elevator on their way down to the parking garage. He just had to think of the least attractive thing he’d ever seen, like when he walked in on his parents fucking in middle school. That immediately killed any sort of lust, slick practically drying at the thought.

Izuku was too focused on patrolling that tiny elevator, the alpha looking adorably ridiculous as he walked in tiny circles, never taking a hand off Katsuki. He glared with distrust at the door, but his lips were almost in a pout, and Katsuki thought he couldn’t possibly look dumber or cuter.

“You look fucking stupid,” Katsuki laughed a fond smile on his lips only for his alpha.

Izuku smiled back at him, relaxing a little and moving in to kiss the scent gland for the 100th time in the last 24 hours. Katsuki just let out a huff at him but leaned into the affection. It was the first time they’d had the chance at affection without the doctors watching, even if they were just in a damn elevator.

But the moment was cut short when the doors opened, and Katsuki had to quickly get him into the car and moving before Izuku smelled someone he didn’t like. Thankfully, the hospital's announcement extended to the parking garage, and there wasn’t anyone in sight. It was easy to push the alpha into the car, eager to make Katsuki happy and look at him with wide, confused eyes.

“We’re just going home, nerd.”

Izuku didn’t respond, but the familiarity of the car relaxed him, and Izuku watched out the window as they started to drive. His pupils were still slits, and his scent was far more musky than usual. But he looked so much like himself, wistfully watching the clouds above and buildings that passed by. He turned to smile at the omega, and Katsuki was suddenly sure he made the right move.

The look on Izuku’s face was so beautifully and achingly familiar. And it hit him that Izuku was coming home. The past few months were such hell, with the alpha being gone from his life for the first time since he was in fucking diapers. And the days in the hospital were weird, watched by others and policed by doctors. It was never just them. Their time at home would practically be fucking euphoric.

Katsuki was so relieved it did all sorts of things to him. He felt victorious, finally beating those fuckers and bringing home his mate. But the peace from having his alpha next to him was even more intense, bringing a stray tear to his eye. It almost made him happy enough that he could pretend the pain wasn’t there. He was sure their apartment smelled like pain and anger, and depression. Izuku would hate the scent Katsuki’d flooded their home with. And the alpha had been through so much unimaginable pain the omega couldn’t even begin to understand.

But once they got home, it got harder to pretend everything was alright. The first thing Izuku did once they were in the apartment was take a deep lungful of scent and start to patrol the area. He walked around every inch of the apartment, looking for danger, assessing their home. His shoulders were tense, but Katsuki could tell he was happy to be home—ghosting his fingertips against his favorite blanket on the couch or taking a moment to enjoy the view off their balcony.

Their homecoming took a turn for the worse when Izuku made it back to their bedroom, where Katsuki’s nest was.

It happened so suddenly, Izuku’s entire body going rigid. A horrible sound ripped through his lungs, which made Kastuki suppress the urge to cry and punch the wall. The alpha growled, but there was a whine underneath full of pain.

It took a moment for Katsuki to figure out what was wrong before he smelled it. Their nest had the scent of another alpha in it. It wasn’t usually a problem. Before, Izuku always welcomed pack scents, even ignoring his instincts enough to let other alpha’s scent him…

But feral Izuku wasn’t a fan as he collapsed to his knees, clenching his gut in his hands as he screamed.

Chapter Text

Izuku couldn’t deny how happy he was to be back in his den. The scents were so familiar, and everything was exactly as he left it. Katsuki was such a good omega. The best. Their home smelled so much like him, Katsuki’s pheromones sinking into him and easing so much of the stress.

He couldn’t smell anyone else, no doctors, nurses, or pesky family members. Only people he trusted, which was limited to only his omega. Katsuki would never hurt him, and Izuku would never let anything happen to him. He was his. And Izuku was a good alpha. He protected what belonged to him. Izuku would never drop his guard again if it meant keeping them safe.

Which had him walking every inch of their den. He had to make sure no one could hurt them—that they were safe. If he found anyone that didn’t belong, he’d tear them to shreds. But he detected nothing, and the entire apartment smelled only of Katsuki. It was the most delicious scent in the world, strong and inviting and warm. Izuku wanted to bathe himself in it. So he took off to patrol the final room, where he’d grab his omega and have him in their nest.

But then he walked in the bedroom and suddenly everything was just so fucking wrong.

Izuku was sent reeling, his brain giving up the fight to the instincts of his feral inner alpha.

Their nest smelled like a different alpha. The scent was earthy but moist, like the dirt on a rainy day—comforting on any other occasion. If Izuku was even slightly more himself, he’d recognize Eijirou’s pheromones as belonging to one of their best friends, a pack member even. But Izuku was anything but rational.

Not after what happened to him after the Forsaken had gotten ahold of him.

It was too much. Too much. Too much.

The scents of other alphas were all too familiar but disgusting. Izuku could feel his skin crawl—his heart racing and his stomach writhing in pain as he was suddenly back in that awful fucking place…

Three months ago…

Izuku couldn’t wrench his eyes open—the pain was too great. It was like his head was being torn apart, his blood pumping as his inner alpha screamed in agony. It was like his cells were being torn apart, his mind rupturing as he took in all the horrible scents in the room.

So far, none of their torture had worked. They’d electrocuted him, beat him till he passed out, and broken every finger in his left hand. And Izuku refused to give them any extra information on his quirk the entire time. Nothing worked. He almost broke when they started to target family and friends, a quirk user making him see horrible things. But he knew it was fake. The illusion may have looked real, and it drove him crazy to see it all, but they couldn’t recreate scents (yet)..

Izuku might have had to watch Kacchan getting torn into pieces by ten different nomus, but it wasn’t real. He couldn’t even smell his omega anymore. Katsuki’s pheromones had disappeared from his skin ages ago.

It made him cry at night. He almost always kept the tears at bay when his captors were right in front of him, but at night he couldn't help but give in to the heart-wrenching anguish he was going through. And his alpha was even worse. He was usually in total control, and even then, his alpha had always been pretty subdued.

His omega was Kacchan, after all.

Izuku knew early at twelve years old that Katsuki was meant to be his the moment he presented. He had the bestpathetic excuse of an alpha.

After about five weeks, he was sitting in his cell when they came and moved him to a different room. It was one he’d never seen before.

It wasn’t the medical room where they experimented on One For All, trying to extract it by any means necessary, whether it meant taking blood over and over till he passed out or cutting the bone marrow out of his arm without even a mild sedative. Every single time he could feel the warm blood drip down his skin, the warmest thing he’d felt in ages, and he was almost welcoming it as opposed to the ice-cold concrete of his cell.

But this room felt nothing like that. It was just another cell.

It was different, though. Completely enclosed with a massive door and no light other than a single flickering light bulb far out of his reach. The only other thing in the room was a vent nearly 15 feet off the ground.

Izuku was sure he knew what this meant.

“You’re isolating me? Trying to drive me crazy? It’s not going to work! This will be a break from everything else! You can’t win! You will never win!Izuku screamed, fury and desperation in every word as he growled and spat at his captors.

The man who threw him in the room smirked—his face contorting into something dangerous and devious, making chill crawl up Izuku’s spine as Danger Sense triggered.

“Don’t worry, Deku. We know you’re way too strong to fall to something like that. We have something much better planned.”

It was intense when all of his quirks suddenly came back, the quirk cuffs only working on his emitter quirks. He powered up One For All and punched the door as hard as possible. But after weeks of torture and malnutrition, he couldn't break it down in one punch.

But a second? He would be free.

Just as he pulled back for another hit, though, the vent opened. And gas poured in.

Izuku couldn’t stop himself from gasping, taking in way too much on that first breath that it brought him to his knees. It tasted like chemicals, burning in his throat as tears started to fill his eyes as he began to cough. Thankfully, he wasn’t outright choking. There was still enough oxygen being pumped into the room that he could manage short, shallow breaths.

But that shouldn’t have been his concern. The moment he caught his breath even a little bit, he could smell it.

Intense pheromones of hundreds of angry alphas were pouring into the room. Izuku had never smelled anything like it, assaulting his senses until he was brought to his knees within seconds. It put him on high alert, every muscle in his body tense and ready to fight an army of alphas that weren’t even there.

His instincts were going mad, his inner alpha clawing to get out as it rampaged inside his heart.

Every part of him was screaming the same thing over and over again until it actually spilled out of his lips.

Not safe. Not safe. Not safe.

Izuku had worked in heroics long enough to recognize the scent of hatred and fury and bloodlust. So many alpha villains had rotten, disgusting pheromones while they rampaged across the city. And it was like all of them were suddenly in that tiny room with him, ready to rip him apart.

He fell further, collapsing onto his hands and knees as he wretched, his stomach turning as he tried so hard to hold onto himself. Izuku did everything he could, using all of the coping mechanisms he’d ever learned. He reminded himself over and over that it wasn’t real. Danger sense was quiet. It wasn’t real.

But instincts don’t work like that. Izuku’s alpha was enraged and panicked, going into full defense mode as he tried too hard to grapple with the conflicting messages he was getting from his brain and his alpha.

It was like being torn in half, every cell in his body splitting in two as his alpha took over. Izuku had only been feral once in his life when Shigaraki skewered Katsuki back in high school, and it was nothing like that. In the past, it was like his instincts took over to protect his mate. But in that isolated room, it was more like his instincts tore away Izuku’s real safe to take over.

Izuku’s inner alpha took control to protect them both, all conscious thought leaving his body…

His only thoughts were played on repeat, all rationality leaving him as he became nothing more than a feral alpha with the desire to escape. To live.

Present Day...

Katsuki was thrown into a tailspin. Izuku’s actions in the last few minutes showed the omega how deep his trauma was below the surface of his alpha’s feral mind. After collapsing to the floor, he rolled into the fetal position. The alpha sobbed and screamed and growled—even without words, his display of agony was apparent. Katsuki didn’t need to know what the alpha was thinking to know he needed to help.

But he couldn’t act rashly. Izuku may have been a mess, his alpha pheromones that had evened out before now smelled like an entire forest on fire as if he was burning. Katsuki hated it, as he started to pump out his soothing scent, sitting on the floor near Izuku but not touching him.

“You’re safe, nerd,” Katsuki whispered softly. “It’s just us here, no one else. No one is going to hurt you. There aren’t any other alphas. Not shitty hair. Just us, baby,” he tried to coo.

He managed to purr, slowly moving closer to hold out his wrist to the alpha. Izuku whined, clenching his stomach and gagging as if he would throw up. His tear-stained face was wrecked, red, and splotchy, and his eyes were already swollen from crying. Katsuki couldn’t fucking stand the pain on his face, the way his whole face scrunched up as if he was being tormented again.

The omega stupidly realized what was going on right away. Izuku was having a flashback. The scent of an alpha must have triggered, leading Katsuki to believe it was more than just his feral alpha not liking the presence of a “threat.”

Katsuki couldn’t stop himself from moving closer. He reached out and took Izuku’s face in his hand to turn him to look at him. The alpha’s eyes were hazy and unseeing, but Katsuki could at least work with open eyes.

“It’s just me, alpha. Just us. Wherever fucked up place you’re remembering, you’re not there anymore. You’re safe in our den. No one else is here, alpha.”

With Katsuki’s wrist glands right there, the alpha started to calm down at least a little. His vision began to clear as he sniffled. It was almost cute if this wasn’t all so fucked up. Katsuki ran his thumbs over Izuku’s cheekbones, wiping away the tears and trying to ground him as he scooted closer. He held his alpha until the crying was done, and his scent cleared up from something tormented to sad and embarrassed.

Katsuki understood, didn’t tease him, and continued to keep him safe in his arms.

Until suddenly, Izuku was pushing away and scrambling to the nest. Katsuki thought Izuku would dive in and call for the omega, but instead, he started to sniff out everything with Eijirou’s scent and threw it out into the hallway.

“What the hell?!” Katsuki barked as he marched over to stop him. Omegas never took kindly to having their nest messed with, but he stopped moving when Izuku made a pitiful sound—like the world’s saddest whine and most annoyed growl mixed into one.

Katsuki didn’t—couldn’t argue further. He let Izuku fix it for them, knowing the alpha would be more comfortable without the triggering pheromones in their safe space.

But that didn’t stop him from groaning at Izuku, who eventually buried himself in the nest until only his upper half was showing, his arms stretched out and a pout on his face.

“The fuck makes you think I wanna cuddle with a nest destroyer?”

Izuku didn’t respond, still didn’t seem to have any clue what Katsuki was saying, but his pout turned deeper as he crooned at his mate. It almost sounded like an apology. And Katsuki couldn’t say no as he stripped his clothes down to his boxers and a t-shirt. He climbed in after his alpha, who immediately curled around Katsuki.

The omega snorted despite his lingering frustration, turning up to kiss along Izuku's chin. “What the hell am I gonna do with you, nerd?”

Chapter Text

Katsuki hadn't been that comfortable in his nest since the day Izuku was taken. It didn't even matter that Izuku had destroyed it, items thrown all around the room. He couldn't care less because for the first time in far too long, the scent of izuku in his nest wasn't old and stale. It was his actual mate, curled around him protectively as he held him close.

The alpha nuzzled into the back of his neck, Izuku's nose pressed right again Katsuki's scent gland. His breath tickled Katsuki, but he was so cozy all he felt was a shiver run down his spine as Izuku nosed up and down his neck.

It was a bone-deep sense of relief that came over him. Being scented by his mate, in his own nest, in their apartment, was just too perfect. A chill spread across his skin, goosebumps popping up as Izuku held him tighter. It was like they were fused together, so impossibly close that they'd become one. He couldn't help but purr, burying his head in the pillow as he took deep breaths of the scent in the room to hold himself together.

Katsuki almost considered giving into his omega entirely. He knew how fucking good it would feel to just be Izuku's omega for a bit. But he had to be present for both of them. Izuku was still clearly feral, rumbles and growls of possessiveness echoing around the room as Izuku scented him more and more.

The intensity was delicious, but it was a bad sign. Katsuki had a feeling he knew what was coming…

Izuku's tongue dipped out and licked a stripe up the column of Katsuki's neck, pausing for a brief second to pay special attention to his scent gland. The alpha's scent turned heady with arousal, and Katsuki could feel Izuku's cock getting hard behind him.

"Deku, this isn't a good idea." Katsuki insisted, knowing full well Izuku couldn't understand him.

The alpha didn't even react, continuing his ministrations on Katsuki's neck.

Katsuki tried to push him back, but he only succeeded in grinding his ass against Izuku's quickly swelling length. It was such a little thing, but it had the alpha growling. Izuku's scent skyrocketed from arousal to deep-seated lust.

But it was nothing like Izuku's usual scent when they fucked.

His scent was richer, hints of aggression and desperation that Katsuki only noticed when Izuku was in his rut. His moronic omega brain loved it even if his more logical self knew it was a terrible idea. Izuku had very little control of himself, and Katsuki was sure if they fucked, the alpha would try to claim him.

And although his horny hindbrain thought it would be very fucking hot to get claimed by his feral alpha, it wasn't their plan. Izuku wanted it to be special; he talked about it all the time before he was kidnapped. Katsuki couldn't let that get ruined after everything Izuku had already been through.

He squirmed out of his alpha's grip with a groan and pulled away, rolling over to face him. The sad and rejected alpha scent immediately filled his nose, and Izuku looked so dejected. If you'd told Katsuki that just yesterday, the sad, pitiful alpha in front of him tried to choke out his own mother, he would laugh in your fucking face.

Tears were in his big green eyes—his lips so pouty Katsuki thought he was about to throw a tantrum. He looked adorably pitiful. Katsuki wanted to give in so badly; Izuku deserved the world, and his scent in the air was awful. So instead, he compromised.

"Stupid, horny alpha," Katsuki grumbled as he climbed out of the nest. Izuku whined at him, tears coming to his eyes as Kastuki got farther away. He snorted, a small smile creeping on his lips. "Just hold on a minute," he said, pushing his scent out to be as comforting and content as possible.

At least it made Izuku stop whining, sitting up to watch every move the omega made.

Katsuki rolled his eyes fondly, but he was soaking up the attention. Izuku's arousal was tinged with disappointment still, but the little bit of hope was delightful. It made Katsuki feel like a tease, just like before everything happened. The hint of normality helped immensely as he opened up a dresser drawer and dug out a plug.

Then he dove into the bathroom quickly, the alpha letting out a sad keen.

"I'll be right back, alpha," Katsuki assured as he heard Izuku moving around, but he had to rush as he stripped his clothes and slid his fingers between his already wet folds. With a few touches to his cocklet and the reminder that Izuku was waiting for him, it was easy to get himself opened up a little, so he could slide the plugin with a sigh of relief.

At least the horny alpha wouldn't be able to fuck and claim him. This was the perfect solution, Katsuki thought to himself as he opened the bedroom door and promptly walked right into Izuku's chest.

The alpha's scent was full of lust and frustration, the look in his eyes full of hunger and desperation. His eyes widened, smelling Katsuki's slick and letting out a deep, rumbling growl.

"Alright, alpha. Take—"

Before Katsuki could finish his thought, Izuku wrapped his arms around him and scooped him into his arms.

"Oi! Put me down, Deku!"

Izuku listened, in his own way, as he tossed Katsuki back into the nest.

The feral alpha was clearly single-minded and horny, crawling on top of the omega as his fangs and lips went everywhere they could reach, sucking on Katsuki's scent glands, nibbling at his nipples. It made his body writhe with a pleasure he hadn't felt in so long.

Tears sprang to his eyes as a shred of pain echoed throughout his heart. He never expected their first time after reuniting to be so… distant. It hurt a little, but he couldn't deny that Izuku's weight on top of him still felt like home as he wrapped his arms around the alpha and buried his nose in the man's scent gland.

Izuku must have sensed the change even then, as he slowed down and pulled back from Katsuki's chest to kiss his lips. It was still full of heat and messy as hell, but the affection was there, and it soothed the ache in his heart. Which was apparently the alpha's goal because the moment Katuski's scent cleared up from sadness to want, he got right back to moving down Katsuki's body to take his cocklet down his throat.

The rumble that emanated from Izuku's throat was so deep and powerful and seductive that Katsuki gushed slick around the plug, his body trembling as Izuku sucked and sucked, circling his tongue around every sensitive inch of his skin.

But Izuku growled again as he tried to dig his fingers into Katsuki's pussy. The sound was demanding and dark—terrifying and delicious in a way that made the omega let out a whine in response as he reached up to thread his fingers in Izuku's curls.

"No, alpha. Not until you're better, okay dummy?"

Izuku clearly didn't understand, responding with another growl. Katsuki expected the feral alpha to try to pull it out, but Izuku didn't even move. He only sat up, yanking Katsuki's legs up with him to squeeze them together. Then the alpha grabbed the waistband of his clothes and yanked them down just below his balls, his thick cock popping free with the slightest hint of a knot.

Katsuki would have been drooling if it weren't for their situation.

But his lingering sadness couldn't hold up when Izuku squeezed Katsuki's thighs together and shoved his cock between them. The mix of omegan slick and alpha pre-cum smelled almost intoxicating—musky and heavy, and Katsuki could practically taste them on his tongue. He let out a moan just as Izuku started to thrust, his cock rubbing against his cute little cocklet as the pressure on the plug in his pussy shoved it into his g-spot over and over again.

He shouldn't have loved it so much; Izuku was feral and not himself, but Katsuki missed the touches. Even if it was full of lust and animosity when usually Izuku's touches were full of adoration and love, Katsuki still found himself lost in it.

"S-So fucking good, alpha. Missed you so much—missed this," Katsuki moaned.

Izuku let out a satisfied growl, using one of his huge hands to hold Katsuki's ankles together while he reached down with his other hand to caress Katsuki's cheek. It was surprisingly tender, bringing Katsuki back to earth that despite being feral, he was still Izuku.

It made it feel right in a way Katsuki wasn’t expecting. It made tears spring to his eyes, even if the pleasure was basic at best, the emotional side was overwhelming. Gritting his teeth and letting out an omega growl as he started to thrust back, fisting the blankets as he got more and more into it, trying to match his alpha's energy.

"Don't stop, Deku. Fuck—please, I—I'm gonna cum, alpha!"

Katsuki thought Izuku might have understood when he sped up, growling out wild sounds that meant absolutely nothing to Katsuki. The only thing he could understand from the alpha was the arousal and neediness in his scent. The mint was sweet, and the smell of grass was heavier as if it was a whole forest. But it was intoxicating, reminding Katsuki that no matter what, Izuku was right there.

That thought, and a single hard thrust into Katsuki's thighs, had him tipping over the edge as his little cocklet twitched as he came. His whole body writhed with pleasure, all of his nerves on fire like he'd never felt anything so incredible.

Izuku came immediately after, covering Katsuki's body with cum. There was so much of it, the smell of sex and content alpha filling the room, making Katsuki's inner omega dazed and fuzzy but in the best way. It was easy to forget some of the stress when they were like that, full of endorphins and ecstasy.

The alpha collapsed on top of him, holding him tight and rumbling in his chest as he bathed Katsuki in love and cuddles. Izuku beamed at him, perfectly happy as if the ghost of his past hadn't brought him to his knees just the other day.

It made Katsuki feel all… gooey.

Usually, he hated any kind of sappiness or cheesy feelings. But there were times when Izuku made him feel butterflies in his stomach or buzzing in his brain. The alpha could be so warm sometimes that he melted Katsuki's heart easily.

The feelings were nice, though, after everything they'd been through. It was exactly the peace they needed to get Izuku back to himself. Katsuki was worried about it all still, but the alpha was so relaxed compared to the past few days that it almost felt normal and pleasant.

It had Katsuki feeling soft, vulnerable, and malleable in a way he never was as he ran his fingers through Izuku's curls and held him close for a few minutes while Izuku scented him furiously. It was comfortable and serene, but it was also dull. Katsuki was hungry, and he was covered in cum. As much as he loved cuddles with Izuku, he needed to get up.

Izuku was happy to go along with whatever Katsuki wanted, though. He happily followed him into the shower, doting on Katsuki as he washed his hair and scrubbed his back while staying as close as possible.

Katsuki couldn't even be annoyed because he knew Izuku would be needy. And he didn't mind having the alpha in his line of sight nearly constantly. But he didn't expect Izuku to be quite so dependent.

He wouldn't do anything for himself.

"Shitty, alpha," Katsuki grumbled. "Won't even wash yourself."

Izuku didn't even notice the complaint, happily smiling away as Katsuki conditioned his curls. Once the shower was over, Izuku still didn't do much for himself. He stepped out and dripped all over the floor until Katsuki got around to drying them both off and trying to brush their hair. Izuku happily let him do it but messed up Katsuki's hair the moment he started to spread his scent all over him again, rubbing his scent glands all over Katsuki's skin and into his hair until he had the alpha's musk all over him.

Any other time, it might have been annoying. But Katsuki couldn't help but think it was adorable and ridiculous as it happened throughout their entire day together…

Katsuki was walking into the kitchen to make breakfast after their very eventful morning, ready to scrap together at least some miso soup and tamagoyaki, maybe some grilled fish if they had any. But the entire time he had a shadow.

Izuku followed him around, every single step he took. He was a cute, giant, annoying little duckling following him from one side of their kitchen to the other. It would have been annoying if he wasn't so cute.

Katsuki walked over to the fridge? Izuku wobbled along, beaming at him the whole time.

He went over to grab a knife from the knife block? The alpha was never more than a step behind.

A laugh bubbled up as he watched Izuku smiling like he didn't have a single care in the world.

"You're ridiculous, you big, dumb alpha."

Izuku must have thought it was a compliment because all he did was smile bigger and rub his scent all over Katsuki again. It was so painfully endearing that he didn’t even give a shit that Izuku was in his kitchen. He would usually swat him out, and Izuku would pout, complaining that he just wanted to help his Kacchan.

It hurt his chest a little that his alpha couldn't even get that across, but he was happy to let Izuku follow him around like a cute, oversized puppy. And it was worth it when Katsuki served them both breakfast. Izuku beamed and ate it down so fast, his scent happy and pleased like it should be.

The morning went by seamlessly, so Katsuki tried to keep it going. Maintaining a routine similar to their old one should help, right? Which brought them into their home gym. Katsuki had on workout clothes as he got up on the treadmill and started his warm-up run. He didn't know exactly what he expected the alpha to do, but he figured he should have seen it coming.

The entire time Katsuki worked out, Izuku patrolled the room. He would walk in a circle in the whole area, a pretty massive room in their penthouse apartment with a lot of workout equipment. He scented the walls even, marking his territory and occasionally looking to check on Katsuki.

It was so fucking weird.

Katsuki felt like prey being circled by a predator as he moved on to working on his arms and back, lifting weights, and using some of their equipment. Eventually, he got in the zone, feeling oddly protected by his feral mate, who continued to mark his territory.

But at some point, he stopped noticing Izuku, and the alpha struck. Suddenly, he was walking up to the bench he was lifting on, dropping to his knees between Katsuki's legs, and letting out a rumble before hiking up Katsuki's workout shorts and licking the scent glands in his thighs.

Katsuki squealed.

"W-What the fuck, Deku?" he rasped out, setting down the bar and sitting up to glare at the alpha whose tongue was lathing over him.

The alpha looked up at him with a smirk, almost like he understood, as he went back down to suck on Katsuki's sensitive skin. The omega growled at him and reached out to bop him on the head.

"Knock that off, idiot. I coulda dropped that and died."

Izuku then had the gall to roll his eyes while licking up the sweat on his skin. The alpha seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the moment, far too excited about Katsuki's post-workout body than he should be. But the wild look in his eye was sexy and dangerous, so Katsuki put his foot down. Literally. As he shoved Izuku away with his foot.

"Dumb alpha, I'm working out. Go back to your territorial bullshit."

Izuku growled, but less angry and more exasperated as he stood up and instead loomed over Katsuki. He was never out of arm's reach from the alpha, and Izuku kept watching the room as though he was guarding Katsuki.

It was sweet, and Katsuki did his best to push the dark thoughts of out his mind. Like, What happened to him that he's still so on edge?

Sad thoughts were easily ignored—he instead focused on how cute Izuku was, being all possessive and protective. He could get used to this level of attention. Katsuki had a feeling it could get annoying, but his previously abandoned omega was loving it, desperate for the attention after four months of hell.

He would deal with it when it got annoying…

Unfortunately, Katsuki was always surprised by how little patience he had. Sure, he'd gotten better over the years, but he still had a short-fuse. And after just a few days of Izuku's hovering and doting behavior, he couldn't handle it anymore.

The straw that finally broke the camel's back was when Izuku tried to patrol the goddamn bathroom while Katsuki was taking a shit. The alpha was more at ease and showed more understanding of his omega, either hearing his words or picking up on hints and body language better.

It was all great, and Katsuki cared so fucking much about his mate getting better. That was his only real focus. But he couldn't handle the lack of personal space anymore as he wheeled around and grabbed the collar of Izuku's shirt.

For a moment, he thought he really fucked up when the feral alpha's scent spiked with fear and aggression, but it ebbed away into surprise only a moment later. It was fantastic progress already, just from their quiet days at home.

Katsuki shouldn't have dismissed it so quickly. And he would regret it later. But at the moment, he dragged Izuku into their nest and pushed him in before crawling in next to him. He held the alpha's hands, but they didn't cuddle as he let out an exasperated groan.

"Alright, you needy alpha, let's see if you can fucking understand me 'cause this hovering thing is driving me insane."

For a second, Katsuki thought he might have seen an imperceptible nod. But he chalked it up to his imagination as he dismissed it.

"So, this is what we're gonna do…"

Chapter Text

Katsuki felt like a dick, lecturing his feral alpha for just going along with his instincts. He was about to lay down the law. Even if Izuku only partially understood, Katsuki refused to be followed into the bathroom to take a shit anymore.

But the pout on Izuku's lips made it so hard.

"Fuck, you're too cute," Katsuki grumbled as he rolled over in their nest and looked at the ceiling. "I can't give you a lecture if I'm lookin' at ya, so you've gotta deal with this."

Of course, the alpha didn't respond. Katsuki wasn't expecting him to, but he couldn't help but talk to him like normal.

"I need some goddamn space. The following me around thing was cute and all—shit, it still is—but I need to be able to poop in peace, Deku. And you can't be on my heels at every second. And if I'm working out, you can't just come lick my sweat up like an animal!"

When Izuku didn't respond, Katsuki turned to look at him again. The alpha wasn't pouting anymore, at least. But he did look confused and a little bit like a sad puppy who was just told he couldn't tear apart his momma's shoes. It made Katsuki chuckle, rolling back over to face Izuku.

"I'm not mad, Deku. Not mad," he repeated as he scented the alpha. Izuku immediately smiled again, pulling him close and taking away all of his personal space again. Katsuki didn't mind so much in their nest. He kept reminding himself he was still recovering too. His therapist told him time and time again while Izuku was missing that it was understandable to worry, but Katsuki was going through something traumatic too.

It was easy to forget with his alpha following him like a lost little duckling. Still, he remembered it easily when he turned to burrow into Izuku's chest and closed his eyes to feel his heartbeat and match his breathing.

The alpha scented him happily, rumbling and putting out his comforting pheromones, sensing the omega's distress. Katsuki soaked it up for only a minute or two, enjoying the silent cuddle before he pulled away to kiss him—slow and sweet, Katsuki's scent lighter after their moment together.

He snorted when Izuku tried to deepen the kiss, sitting up to laugh at him. "We can't just fucking have a moment, nerd? Who knew feral alphas were so damn horny all the time. Aren't you supposed to be aggressive?"

Izuku's brows furrowed in annoyance as he tried to pull Katsuki back down to him. But the blond gently pushed him away.

"Stay. I'm going to go take a shit in peace, and then I'll come back, and we can scent more, okay?"

The alpha just glared at him, pouting again as he tried to crawl out of bed and follow him. Katsuki stopped him with a gentle hand on his chest. "Sit your ass down, and just wait. It'll only be for like ten minutes."

Izuku still didn't look pleased, his eyes growing wide and lips getting poutier as Katsuki walked towards their ensuite bathroom. But this scent was still pretty typical, nothing too worrying. So Katsuki figured it was fine as he stepped into the bathroom, even leaving the door open just a crack.

After he sent off a few emails in peace, Katsuki finally went back to find the alpha in the same position, watching the door with glassy eyes and a scent dripping with loneliness.

It made Katuski's heart pang. He felt like an ass, but he needed the personal space; he could only handle so much before snapping, and he really fucking didn't want to take it out on Izuku. But it was easy to crawl back into the nest with him after that, comforting Izuku with an excessive amount of scenting so intense that Katuski thought the stink of mint and forest would be on his skin till the day he died.

But it was worth it because the alpha got better with it throughout the day. He sat at the kitchen counter and watched Katuki cook instead of following him around. He watched All Might movies while Katsuki ran on the treadmill instead of patrolling their house. It felt like such a good step in the right direction. Izuku seemed to understand, even if it took Katsuki reminding him and making him sit still.

Katsuki almost thought he was getting nods from the alpha, but Izuku still seemed hazy and unaware of most of the shit he said. Katsuki was so excited about the progress, though, he didn't notice the shadows that came over Izuku's eyes as that night approached.

All he could think was that he hoped Izuku kept improving…

Izuku didn't like being alone. The rooms felt too small, and it was too scary. It was easier to grasp reality when he could feel his omega. Katsuki's scent kept him grounded and made it easier to think, even if it was only brief thoughts like Mate. Home. Safe

They were separated. Nothing felt complete. But Katsuki was a light in the dark, leading him somewhere tangible and real.

But unfortunately for Izuku, the omega wasn't always there anymore. He kept pushing Izuku away, making him stay in rooms where Katsuki just wasn't. And it made him so painfully sad. He knew it was obvious from his scent, the loneliness taking over. It made him feel detached and cold, as if the dark of night was creeping into every corner of his mind that was already such a grim place to be, even with the lights that Katsuki kept illuminating.

He handled it, though, because he was a good alpha. And his omega still rejected their basic urges. Izuku could tell the omega was keeping them from fucking, and Izuku wanted that connection badly. The claim, the bond, the realness of being inside his mate that he missed terribly.

Izuku hated it, but even like this, he would never do anything to upset his mate. Katsuki was the only piece of happiness left, and the alpha would follow all of his instincts to keep him feeling happy and loved.

So, he kept it up all day. He stayed when he was told to, never pushed back too hard, and accepted all the love and cuddles when Katsuki returned to him. But as the sun went down and Katsuki left to shower on his own, the shadows descended.

Every creak sounded like someone walking into their den. Every sound from the apartment below reminded him too much of the footsteps of the guards who used to hurt him. It made him twitch, his skin getting itchy, his heart racing, and his inner alpha whining and growling.

He fucking tried so hard to sit still, hanging out on the couch and waiting for Katsuki to finish his shower. But he couldn't do it anymore as he stood up and ran towards their nest. He immediately dove in, burrowing under layers and layers of blankets, clothes, and pillows. He grabbed the thing closest to his hand. He didn't even notice it was Katsuki's boxers and ground his nose into it.

The scent brought him back down to earth as he slowly forgot about the scents they used to pump into his cell. It was easy to focus on Katsuki's pheromones above everything else. The sweet scent got into his nose and into his soul, slowly soothing anything as he lost himself to the stress.

It could have been hours past, or it could have been minutes. At that moment, it was all the same to Izuku as flashbacks ran through his head as nothing more than scents and pain, everything else feeling far too complicated for him to even understand.

But he was brought out of it quickly when he heard the bathroom door slam open.

Izuku jumped so high, letting out a deafening growl. Was he under attack? Was it a guard ready to tear into him until he was torn to shreds? His alpha raged in fear—his scent suddenly more like a forest burning away than the pleasant scent of fresh-cut grass and mint.

However, everything slowed down once he saw Katsuki rushing over to him. He was naked and dripping wet, his eyes blown wide with concern and his pheromones pumping out the sweet and comforting scent of cinnamon and campfires.

Katsuki was immediately holding Izuku's face in his calloused hands, the scent glands in his wrists gracing over his skin to wipe away the smell of terror and fury. Izuku felt a shiver run down his spine—comfort and warmth feeling like it was dripping into his entire building as he came down from his feral panic and back to the numb, safe, haziness of his feral mind.

Izuku fell into it easily, pulling Katsuki into the bed with him, only barely hearing the comforting words from his mate.

"Fuck—'m sorry—left you alone—safe—"

The words were sweet, even if Izuku got so little from them. The apology and the word safe were enough for the alpha to stop worrying and bury himself into Katsuki's body, curling around the omega and stuffing his nose right up against his mate's scent gland. The unfiltered scent brought his heart rate back down as his body got more and more tired.

He was lulled off to sleep with Katsuki's gentle, nonsense words and the hands threading through his curls…

Izuku was alone, curled in a ball on the cold cement ground. The scents for today were a bit different. The smell of distressed omegas on top of angry alphas. The mix was wrenching his alpha apart. His instincts were demanding that he had to save these unknown omegas from terrifying alphas who were surely up to no good. His heroic spirit was dying with nearly every breath that he couldn't just help. Izuku was sure he was about to crumble.

But then sweet relief came in the horrible grinding sound of the cell door dragging along the floor. Fresh air filtered in, the smell wafting out of the room just enough to give Izuku the reprieve he desperately needed as he took in a breath of fresh air.

It was so nice for a brief second, but then the air soured again with the scent of the alpha guard who stepped into the room with the electrified leash he attached to Izuku's collar. He knew wherever he was going was bad, but he couldn't help appreciating the reprieve from that damn scent room.

He regretted the relief the moment he stepped into the other room. There was an alpha he didn't recognize and a bed.

And Toga Himiko.

"Izu! I'm so happy to see you!" she squealed.

"Wh-What are you doing here?"

"The Forsaken helped me escape from Tartarus! Just to see you again! Isn't that great?!"

"No," Izuku choked up as he crashed down to his knees, his scent becoming rotten to the core as he turned to the guard to bed. "N-No, not her. Please just take me back to my cell, please."

"Shut up, hero," the guard growled, kicking Izuku. "We've got a show for you that should surely break you for us. We'll get that shitty quirk of yours."

"Never! I don't know what bullshit you've got planned, but I won't!"

The guard laughed. "Don't worry, this will really do it. And just remember, stay fucking still. We'll go after your pretty little omega if you don't."

Another villain sneered at him, kicking him in his ribs. “Yeah, dog. Stay.”

Izuku's alpha nearly ripped control away from him right then and there, letting out an earth-shattering growl. He almost climbed to his feet to rip the guy's throat out, but the collar on the leash acted as a constant reminder that he couldn't act out. Instead, he imagined how good it would feel to just rage and destroy all of them, just to get back to Kacchan. He often found himself focusing on his mate in times like this, just so he could forget the fucking pain he was in.

But nothing could stop it this time.

Toga waved at him to get his attention. "Don't worry, Izu! You'll see him right now!"

Then she took a vial from another guard and chugged the blood. Izuku wished so fucking bad that he would have been surprised when he saw who she had become.

Ruby red eyes, beautiful naked skin, and a sneer that was so disgustingly accurate Izuku wanted to vomit. She looked so much like him, and it made him ill, his body revolting against him so harshly he thought he might faint.

But then it got worse.

Kat—No, Toga—pushed the random alpha onto the bed and climbed on top of him. Izuku could see her pussy, looking so much like his omega's that his alpha couldn't take it even though she smelled nothing like him. Only scents of betas and alphas were in the room, no omegas.

It should have helped, but it didn't.

She pressed the head of his cock to her folds and sunk down on him. She moaned, and it sounded so much like his Kacchan—too much like his Kacchan.

Izuku couldn't help it.

He broke.

His thoughts shattered, everything exploding inside him all at once until the only thing left was a feral alpha, enraged and broken, as his screams echoed around the room.

Katsuki knew he fucked up. Finding Izuku like that in their nest was a slap in the goddamn face. He didn't think telling the alpha to stay for a bit would be that bad, but he was so wrong.

Guilt bubbled up inside him, and he couldn't even sleep, crawling out of his nest and walking out to the rest of the house to stress bake or watch some tv. Anything to get a little relief from the distressed scent in their room.

But an hour later, right as he turned the oven off and took his cookies out, Izuku screamed.

Chapter Text

Katsuki was terrified when he heard the sound. It was the most painful and agonizing thing he'd ever heard, practically shaking the entire damn apartment building. It dug into his heart, ripping it to shreds as he desperately tried to stay on his feet. It nearly dropped him to his knees from his own pain, images immediately flashing through his head on what the hell could have brought that sound out of Izuku.

But his desperation won out over the pain as he nearly sprinted into their bedroom. Katsuki almost threw the door open, but he didn't want to startle the alpha, so he cracked it first and focused on his scent, forcing it out as comforting as possible to reach Izuku, who was whimpering in their nest.

He slowly stepped in, still pouring out his pheromones as he approached the side of the nest. He almost rushed to Izuku when he smelled how broken and hurt he was, his scent smelling like rot and death as he shivered.

Katsuki kept himself settled, though, walking up to Izuku slowly.

It didn't work that well.

The second his knees hit the bed, though, the alpha bolted up in bed, a growl ripping through his throat as his wild eyes assessed Katsuki. For a moment, Katsuki thought Izuku might jump him.

But the alpha came back to himself quickly. Izuku's eyes, although still feral, recognized Katsuki nearly immediately. Once Izuku sniffed the air, he let out a sad cry, tears bubbling out of his eyes as the tension in his shoulders bled out, and he was immediately bursting into full-fledged sobs, replacing Izuku's screams of agony.

Katsuki's hesitation was broken when Izuku made grabby hands at him like a giant toddler.

He dove into the nest and pulled Izuku into the crick of his neck. The alpha immediately burrowed into his scent, grappling at Katsuki's clothes to pull him impossibly closer while Izuku cried and cried. It wasn't anything like his episodes the other times.

Izuku's scent was completely different. His cries were nothing like the sounds he'd made before.

Something in his pheromones was laced with relief. The pain was still so sharp, and the fear was potent. But there was something calming in his scent, lighter almost amongst all the other shit that was inside him. Like he was pouring out the devastation that was slowly being replaced with something cleaner, more like his fresh, grassy scent. It made something inside Katsuki melt. alm

"It's alright, Deku. It's all over. You're safe," Katsuki mumbled, mostly to himself.

But then Izuku nodded.

It wasn't just a nuzzle. It wasn't his imagination. Izuku really nodded.

Furiously, in fact. Like he was so desperate to convey it to him.

"Hey, hey, settle down, dumbass. You're alright. You're awake. Nothing is happening, alpha," Katsuki soothed, his voice rough with the emotion he was trying to hide.

Was Izuku finally coming out of his feral state? How much could he understand? That scream sounded like he was getting tortured. Was he even alright?

Katsuki had no fucking clue. He felt lost, completely unsure of what he was supposed to do. Everything felt so straightforward before. Izuku was either a giant, sad puppy dog—following him around the house and being adorable. Or he was falling apart and unrecognizable, like when he smelled Eijirou's scent in their nest. The alpha was easy to handle then. Katsuki could deal with it.

But what the hell was he supposed to do when Izuku was clearly overflowing with too much?

A new wave of emotion crashed down on the alpha with every breath, his scent smelling relieved and fresh one moment and then destroyed and rotting the next. Katsuki just really had to hope that Izuku really understood as he pulled away and gripped the alpha's head in his hands to make their eyes meet.

Izuku's face was red and splotchy, his eyes swollen and his voice rough as he tried to stifle his sobs. He looked shattered, but there was hope in his eyes as he looked at the omega.

Katsuki smiled at him and moved in for a kiss. It was sweet and small, just a brief meeting of lips that spread a satisfying warmth over them. He took a deep breath when he pulled back, letting their foreheads rest against each other.

"Do you understand me, Deku?" Katsuki asked hesitantly.

Izuku just groaned and turned to bury his head in Katsuki's chest again.

"That's not an answer," Katsuki chuckled, wiping his own tears away.

The alpha didn't really respond, but he let out a relieved sigh and maybe nodded to Katsuki again. It made the omega's heart settle even if he wasn't entirely sure Izuku was understanding. It was still forward progress despite whatever happened.

"I'm going to go get you something to drink, okay? Stay here. You don't have to get outta the nest. I'll be right back, alpha."

Katsuki thought it was straightforward. He didn't want Izuku to have to leave his safe space in the nest. But it was apparently the wrong thing to say because Izuku's scent immediately shifted again. The pain was back, and the heartbreaking whimper from the alpha made him want to cry as Katsuki darted back to the bed.

"Fuck, what is it? Is it the stay thing?"

Izuku flinched at the word stay, and Katsuki was immediately cursing himself. He'd been telling Izuku to stay ever since their talk. Of course, he was cracking. It must have triggered a nightmare, or Izuku just freaked out when he woke up alone.

Katsuki wasn't usually one for self-deprecation, but sometimes he really fucked up. He should have noticed he was messing up. Izuku was fucking feral, he couldn't hide anything, yet Katsuki didn't even notice enough to do anything about it.

Immediately he burrowed himself back into the nest, holding Izuku close. "Fuck, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you. You can go wherever you want, okay? If you need to follow me around, then just do it sometimes, alright?"

The only response he got was sniffles from Izuku, but the alpha calmed down. The tears started to dry after a few more minutes of cuddles, and his scent evened out until Katsuki's comforting pheromones were practically blanketed across the entire room. It even made Katsuki himself calm down. Just having his alpha around to comfort him was such an improvement from just two weeks ago that he couldn't help but feel relaxed while they were in each other's arms.

Usually, Katsuki would drag their asses outta bed to start their morning. He read somewhere that a routine was important. But he figured they had a hard enough day, and Izuku would have to handle another challenge this afternoon.

They deserved a lazy morning in bed, sleeping away the tears wrapped in each other's warmth. Katsuki could figure the rest of the shit out later.

Izuku was pacing around the room furiously. He knew something was wrong. Katsuki was clearly trying to prepare him for something.

It made him uneasy. His skin itched, and his heart raced, but he had no idea what was happening. All he knew was that this afternoon was different.

They'd spent the day lazying around their den, Izuku slowly feeling better about practically everything. In their home, it was only their scents. He didn't need to worry about how someone might hurt him next. All he needed to worry about was keeping their den safe and staying with his Kacchan. His omega was safe. Nothing bad would ever happen if they had each other. So, he desperately followed him around, only stopping when he could sense his omega was unhappy.

He never really knew what was bothering his omega, but he could smell annoyance leak into Katsuki's sweet cinnamon scent sometimes. So, Izuku gave him a little space, keeping them safe from a distance and instead patrolling the apartment. Especially after his horrible nightmare that morning.

Izuku was happy he wasn't being told he had to stay anymore.

It didn't totally help his nerves, though. Katsuki was clearly preparing for something, tidying up around the place and making Izuku scent him a lot. The omega was practically drenched in Izuku's pheromones. The alpha loved it. His chest rumbled with the thought that no one could even smell his omega. But that didn't change the fact that this was a break from routine, making him feel uneasy. His palms were sweaty, and he couldn't stop pacing.

Izuku would be ready for it.

But then the doorbell rang, and he nearly split in two. Part of him wanted to break the door down and eviscerate whoever dared to come near their den. The other part wanted to grab Katsuki and hide in their nest.

The war in his heart must have been clear because Katsuki came up to hold his cheek. Izuku didn't catch most of what he said except a name. "—Shouta—"

It was enough. Izuku knew that name, and all it did was settle him down. He was reasonably sure he knew who that was: his temporary mom back in his school days. Shouta was a good man. He trusted the omega with his life. His alpha was soothed at the prospect that the upset in their routine was at least someone he could trust.

But when the door opened, he still went rigid. It sounded nothing like the cell door that used to grind across the cement floor. The scent wafting in was nothing like the putrid hatred that used to pour off the guards.

He still flinched, though. And he still felt himself get into a position to attack, ready to defend himself and his omega at a moment's notice.

The scent that met his nose had all of that slowly melting away. He was still tense, and his eyes narrowed at the man who stood in the doorway. He could feel his skin prickle, but Danger Sense was quiet. The only thing Izuku was dealing with was alpha instincts that told him he didn't want other people in his den.

Still, he couldn't help but slowly approach. Shouta was standing in the doorway with groceries, looking unamused by Izuku's aggression. It made him want to challenge the man, especially in his own den. Who the hell was this omega to just enter his home, family or not? He wasn't his mate, and this was their home. Their nest was just a few rooms down, and this person was invading his territory?

And Shouta didn't even seem to care? His posture was relaxed, slowly walking into the room and slipping off his shoes, groceries still in hand. Izuku could feel himself get more and more angry, ignoring Katsuki who looked like he was ready to jump between them. Izuku wouldn't let him. He would defend their home against someone who cared so little about respecting them.

Before he could move more than a step, though. Shouta cocked his head to the side, set the groceries down, and pulled off his scent patch. The omega's scent got so much stronger after that. The smell of coffee, chocolate, and leather was overwhelming, washing over him and easing into every fiber of his being.

Izuku knew that scent so well. And smelling it, unfiltered and pure, was like a restart to his system.

Katsuki was the best smelling person in the world—like home and love and forever. But Shouta smelled like safety and familiarity. Something comfortable and protective, like a parent should. Flashes of thoughts came through his head, memories of his past with the man, every time Shouta had ever protected him before in the nearly ten years they'd known each other.

And suddenly, all the fight was gone as he let out a whine and stumbled over to Shouta. He immediately buried his nose in the man's scent gland, making sure it was actually him, the final check even if he could smell him from across the room.

Izuku's knees nearly gave out once he was certain it was Shouta. Another safe person, in a safe place. He knew he'd seen him at the hospital; Izuku could remember his scent there just before someone tried to attack him and his mate. But no one else was here. It was just them.

Izuku didn't need to be scared.

The fear and aggression were gone entirely as he dragged him to the couch and slumped down on it, turning to tuck his nose into Shouta's neck. He could feel the older man start to purr and calm words being spoken over him.

He couldn't tell what Shouta and Katsuki were saying, but their scents were happy, and their words sounded sweet. It made something unravel a little more in Izuku. The coil in his gut waiting for everything to go wrong was gone, and it was replaced with a growing anticipation to get better.

His alpha was pacing in the back of his head, nervous and afraid of what that meant. Izuku could feel it was the best to defer to instincts still, but he could almost understand them.

"—is he?"

"Better, I—nightmare last night," Izuku heard Katsuki say.

"—expected—improvement going well—I'm not dead."

Izuku let a rumble out of his chest when he heard Katsuki's laugh for the first time since his breakdown that morning. He felt like a lousy alpha after that—he was so bad at listening, but he needed to be with Katsuki. Izuku was sure that his mate would understand as he pulled away from Shouta.

The man ruffled his curls, Izuku letting out a shuddered breath when the omega grazed his wrist scent gland along Izuku. It made him smell like the older omega, making something deep settle in his heart that felt a lot like safety. It made him all bubbly, happily beaming at both of them. He stood up and followed Shouta when he got off the couch and followed him into the kitchen.

He didn't even notice when Katsuki slipped away for a little alone time. Instead, he followed Shouta around the kitchen like a child following their mother. The omega just snickered at him while he put away all the groceries he'd brought them. Izuku immediately tore into the junk food, no self-restraint as he happily snacked away.

Eventually, though, all the groceries were put away, and Shouta started to do the dishes. Izuku just sat on the counter and watched. It made him feel oddly satisfied and taken care of in a way Katsuki couldn't do. It was nice, warm, and soft in his heart until Katsuki showed back up.

Izuku didn't even pay attention to their conversation. All he cared about was the pheromones of two people who were so perfectly safe—Shouta and Katsuki. They were family in the best way, two men who would never put them in any danger. It made him feel floaty, hazier, and clearer in a way he hadn't for so long.

He had one of the first clear thoughts he could remember in a long time.

I can't wait to feel better again.

The omegas didn't notice, though. They were talking, Izuku only catching the word "friends." It wasn't enough to alarm him. He was still just standing in the kitchen and enjoying the smell of his den and the way his heart felt a little more glued back together. He couldn't stop himself from marching over to Katsuki and scenting him more, happily rumbling away and smiling brightly. The omega laughed at him, light and free, and it only made Izuku feel even better.

He was so out of it that he didn't even notice when Shouta slipped away. Instead, Katsuki pulled him back to their nest for a nap, Izuku melting into it, the memory of his nightmare so far away from the bliss he was feeling.

Before passing out, Izuku could feel his omega melting into the nest with him. The serenity was heavenly, and the alpha fell asleep almost immediately.

It was the best rest he'd had since he was taken.

Chapter Text

Katsuki was fully prepared for huge setbacks. After introducing a new person into his environment and dealing with the nightmare, he expected Izuku to regress. He could slip back into his feral alpha state, just like when they saved him two weeks ago.

He did everything he could that morning to prepare himself for it, for the haziness to return to Izuku's eyes when he saw him wake up.

But when Katsuki woke to see Izuku looking just like he had the day before, he nearly cried with relief. The alpha's eyes were slitted, clearly still feral, but there was still that layer of understanding he'd had over the last two days.

"Hey," Katsuki whispered, his voice still heavy with sleep.

Izuku didn't speak, but he answered with a rumble, nuzzling into Katsuki to give him his morning scenting. The omega couldn't help the shiver; even without Izuku having said anything, he could tell the alpha understood it was a greeting. Katsuki was even starting to realize that they understood each other perfectly, even without words, as he responded with his own purr.

It must have been precisely what Izuku was looking for as he suddenly pulled away with a beaming smile, distress nowhere to be seen on his face. For a second, Katsuki could almost imagine none of it had ever happened if it weren't for the new scars all over the alpha's body. The little pink lines had a great way of reminding Katsuki that even if Izuku was safe, even if he was recovering from being feral, there was still so much shit he didn't know.

What exactly did they do to him? What did they want from him? How'd he survive? What would his new nightmares be like?

Katsuki could admit he was terrified to hear the truth. In some fucked up way, he almost liked living in ignorance of the shit that happened to his mate.

But an even bigger part of him was desperate to know.

At the moment, Izuku was basically locked in his own head with his demons. His only solace was the feral alpha inside him, protecting him from his own brain. But Katsuki knew that was bullshit. It was less protection and more of being held captive in his own mind. And Izuku was an overthinker on the best of days. Katsuki could only imagine his reaction when he came back to himself.

And the worst part of it all? While being locked away, he was alone. Katsuki couldn't share this burden with him. He had to shoulder all of the stress and fear on his own.

It went against everything Katsuki believed in as a mate. Maybe he wanted to carry all the weight himself once upon a time, but he'd been with Izuku long enough to know that they handled everything better together than they did alone.

Which was exactly why they had promised to do it together—to open up about their struggles and fears so no one had to shoulder their burdens alone.

And Katsuki could see it, too, behind those emerald eyes. It was like he could see a fucking cell door in those slitted pupils, keeping his Izuku locked away from him. Alone. It made him seethe with fury. But it wasn't as if Katsuki could break down the door himself. There was nothing he could fucking do about it. Izuku had to find the key and let himself out.

But patience was never Katsuki's strong suit, as he laid in that nest and fisted his hands so tight he could feel his fingernails pierce his skin. It stung, but not as much as the tears of frustration that started to pool in his eyes.

He tried to roll around and hide it from his alpha. Izuku didn't need to see more pain. But even while feral, Izuku was observant and always in tune with Katsuki. He let out a sad and confused whimper—his concerned eyes reflecting Katsuki's own pitiful state back. It made him look away and bury his face in the pillow.

Izuku only pulled him closer, lacing his fingers into Katsuki's hair and pulling him to the alpha's scent gland. It was such a protective and caring hold, only making Katsuki feel somehow worse than his feral alpha, who'd been tortured and kidnapped was suddenly the one taking care of him.

But really, what did he expect? Izuku had always been that kind of person.

It didn't stop him from enjoying it, though, as the alpha rumbled so deeply it seemed to ooze into Katsuki's very soul, relaxing away at least part of the tension.

Izuku was clearly pleased, letting out a snort of pride as he pulled back to smile at Katsuki again. It felt so much like his Izuku that the little seed of hope that his recovery was still going fine was blooming.

"You're fucking ridiculous, you know that?" Katsuki chuckled.

The alpha cocked his head like a giant confused puppy, making Katsuki snort again.

"Taking care of me after all the shit you've been through, what a typical Deku thing to do."

Izuku still didn't understand, but his scent grew with pride as he just continued to beam down at the omega. Katsuki couldn't help but feel better despite the storm warring in his heart, Izuku's smile bringing out the sun amidst the gray rain clouds in his head.

The thought made him roll his eyes, inwardly cursing his sappy alpha for even bringing the image into his head. But it was still accurate, and he could feel warmth spread across his cheeks in what was probably the world's most embarrassing blush.

Thank God Izuku wasn't aware of him enough to make fun of him. But he still couldn't stop himself from groaning into the pillow. "I hate you."

The alpha paid no attention, though, and dove back in to scent him, nuzzling all over Kastuki's neck and chest to spread a pleased and possessive alpha scent all over his skin. Izuku looked annoyingly happy with himself when he pulled away and shocked Katsuki by crawling out of the nest by himself.

Katsuki's brows furrowed in confusion, but he climbed out and followed Izuku's lead, who immediately walked out into the rest of the apartment in just his sweats. To Katsuki's fascination, Izuku went into the kitchen and started to grab food. Nothing he needed to cook, just some fruit and snacks, a pack of onigiri from the fridge that he threw on a plate while Kastuki watched dumbfounded.

Izuku grabbed him once he'd collected all of it and dragged him right back to the nest, and immediately started to hand feed him. It was… fucking weird. But Izuku looked happier and more put together than he had in days. He couldn't help but praise Shouta internally for coming over.

It gave Katsuki ideas, though. If Shouta helped this much, maybe their other friends really would too?

He had a few obvious options: Shouto, Eijirou, Hitoshi, Round Face, and Glasses.

Glasses and Eijirou were immediately a bad idea, no fucking alphas. Even ones Izuku usually trusted with his life. Eijirou's pack scent being in their nest was clue enough, even if that was already a week ago.

Round Face was probably out of the question, too. She would smell too much like Glasses; the alpha scent would probably still be an issue.

He wanted to say that was true for Shouto too, but he and Izuku were the closest. Sometimes, Katsuki even thought they could have been perfect mates in another life. He'd smell like omega, and safety, maybe even home in the same way Shouta had. Perhaps if he cleaned himself up enough, it could work?

Hitoshi was an obvious choice, an unmated omega who was close with both of them and had no reason to smell like an alpha.

Katsuki continued to muse while being hand-fed, Izuku happily shoving a strawberry in Katsuki's mouth. He hated to admit he enjoyed the pampering, especially after catering for Izuku for over a week while he was more temperamental.

He deserved a break for a few hours, he convinced himself. Especially if he was going to try to expand the number of people Izuku was comfortable with. It would probably help, and he was fucking on board with anything that got Izuku back to himself sooner rather than later.

So, he dug his phone out and texted Shouto and Hitoshi.

Katsuki: Come over tomorrow. He did fucking great with Shouta, probably could use some more familiar faces.

Mindfuck: I can come when I wake up after my night shift. 3pm maybe

Icyhot: I have morning patrol, but I can come around 4pm. We can stagger our arrivals for Izu's comfort. How is he?

Katuski: Better.
Katsuki: (Image of Izuku holding a piece of pineapple to Katsuki's mouth and smiling)

Mindfuck: ASDFSFES
Mindfuck:Aren't you a good omega

Katsuki: Fuck right off with that shit he needs it

Icyhot: You both look much better.

Katsuki: Yeah, yeah. Just make sure you don't smell like alpha when you get over here. You especially icyhot.

Mindfuck: You got it

Icyhot: I’ll be careful. See you both tomorrow. ♥

Katsuki simply rolled his eyes but sent back a heart anyway. So maybe he was a fucking sap, but he had every right to be, damn it. And he knew they would only pick on him a little, and he wasn't a coward. He could handle their shit.

However, he'd forever deny the comfort and happiness that seeped into his bones at the feeling of things going back to normal. Their friends visiting, Izuku smiling and at home—it felt so much easier to hope again. And Katsuki figured they sure as shit needed some of that.

Unfortunately, he was too blinded by his rare bit of optimism to question things. Izuku's sudden need to feed him was a good thing, as far as he was concerned. And the alpha was even taking care of the nest. Katsuki couldn't help but soak up a good thing.

But really, he should have seen the signs…

Izuku felt different. Everything felt more important, and it was so much easier to focus on Katsuki and give his omega everything he needed. Izuku felt much better as an alpha, too. His instincts rumbled with pride as he spent an entire day providing for his mate. Everything in his body told him to take care of him, feed him, fix the nest, clean and groom him. And it satisfied an ache so deep he couldn't help the warm, fuzzy haze he was in.

But something else was different too. Just like when his not-mom came over, Izuku could tell something about the day was different. Katsuki was preparing the house again with an undertone of anxious excitement.

Izuku figured they would be having guests again as he patrolled their den, waiting for someone to pop up. He was hopeful it was Shouta, but he wasn't necessarily disappointed when Katsuki opened the door to someone else.

The scent was very familiar and similar to Shouta's—bitter coffee, sweet vanilla. He knew immediately it was someone he could trust, and he could vaguely place their scent as someone who helped Katsuki rescue him.

But it took a few seconds to actually recognize Hitoshi standing before him. Once he did, though, he slowly approached. He walked across the room with timid steps, not afraid of Hitoshi but ready to protect himself or Katsuki if anything should happen. And he couldn't stop the rumble of a growl that spilled from his lips as Hitoshi walked in.

The other omega walked with an annoying amount of confidence as he marched right into his bubble.

Izuku barely heard Katsuki warn him. "Watch it—still feral."

The alpha wasn't sure if it was a warning for him or Hitoshi, but he wanted to please his omega as he stepped back, forcing some tension out of his shoulders as he sniffed the air.

Hitoshi's voice was the final push he needed. "Izuku—just me."

Izuku had always liked his voice. Normal Izuku would ramble for hours about how he theorized the omega's voice was probably more soothing because of his quirk. But feral Izuku didn't care why, only that it put him at ease. He stepped forward and walked around him, checking him out one last time before stepping up to scent him.

He liked Hitoshi's comforting scent. It made him feel even cozier in his own den, like coming back to an old friend he didn't know he missed so much. But another part of him recognized that this man was an unmated omega that Izuku cared for deeply. He couldn't be going around smelling like that. People needed to know that Hitoshi had a strong alpha in his pack to protect him.

Izuku couldn't bear it if someone tried to hurt him, his alpha suddenly taking control and throwing Hitoshi over his shoulder.

"—The fuck?" Hitoshi gasped out.

Izuku ignored him, though, because his omega was laughing and Katsuki sounded and smelled so sweet, amused, and content.

He could only barely make out any of Katsuki's words. "—you're pack now!"

But truthfully, Izuku didn't care as he also dragged Katsuki along with him until he threw both omegas into the nest and crawled in to scent them both. Hitoshi pouted at him, but Izuku happily beamed at him as he spread his pack scent all over his friend. Izuku could hear the grumbles, but he was far too happy to care. He felt warm with the knowledge that he was safe, and so was Kastuki, and his dumb alpha brain was convinced Hitoshi was safe.

Eventually, Hitoshi stopped grumbling and just took it, whispering to Katsuki about something Izuku couldn't understand. He positioned himself on his back with the omegas casually cuddled up to his side while they chatted. Their scents were comfortable, and Izuku couldn't help but feel like such a good alpha.

But after about an hour, they started to stir. Izuku pouted and growled at them when they both got out of the nest, but he followed after them like a big, brooding puppy. He wasn't about to be far away from them after feeling this much better being around his pack.

He recognized the tension almost immediately, though. Someone else was coming over, too, based on how they were hanging out by the front door. But Izuku knew something was a little different this time. They both seemed nervous like Kastuki had the first time they had someone over.

It had Izuku tensing up, his body feeling rigid and his alpha pacing in his chest. He nearly growled when someone knocked on the door, stepping forward to put himself between them and whoever the new person was.

But his omega glared at him. "—knock it off."

Izuku wilted but listened, still keeping a careful eye on whoever was about to enter his den. But the moment it opened, all of that tension bled away.

He recognized them immediately, almost as fast as he had Kastuki when they rescued him. Shouto's smell of smoke and snow and mint was so similar to his omega's and something that had comforted him almost since the moment he met the other omega. His scent was always better than everyones' except Katsuki's.

It was easy and intimate, their bond. Shouto was something unexplainable, not a mate but more than a friend. Second only to Katsuki himself. And Izuku was immediately elated to see him. His alpha practically burst forth with happiness to have three of his favorite people all here, all safe, somewhere he could scent and protect them—far away from pain and anguish.

Izuku couldn't help but rush over to him. Katsuki and Hitoshi tried to get in the way, and Izuku recognized they were worried, but they had no reason to be. He just scooped Shouto into his arms, rumbling with happiness and possessiveness as he immediately buried his nose in Shouto's scent, desperate to get as much of it as possible as he spread it all over him.

And he could feel the omega giggling in his arms. It was such a pretty sound, Shouto's laughter. It was carefree in a way Hitoshi and Kastuki's weren't as Shouto hugged him back.

"—is better, huh?" Izuku hears Shouto say.

"—getting there."

But Izuku ignored their talking for the happy feeling bubbling up inside him. He never wanted to let any of them go. His mate and his pack omegas were right there, and it made him feel complete, his alpha bursting with pride that he was such a good alpha that all of them smelled pleased and happy. He couldn't be happier.

He quickly grabbed all three of them, green lightning buzzing around his body as he threw them over his shoulder and stomped through the house to keep him in the nest for a little while. They needed to be somewhere safe, and they needed to smell like him immediately.

Izuku didn't make it very far, though, when suddenly he smelled something else.

It was so faint, but he recognized it as the scent of another alpha on Shouto. Somewhere in his head, he recognized it. He could almost feel an inner argument that told him not to care. That it was the scent of a friend and Shouto's mate.

But he didn't care. His scent immediately spiked with irritation and rage. His alpha was no longer rumbling with happiness but instead growling with possessiveness. The omegas noticed right away, all of them tensing up and further setting off Izuku as they started to squirm and pull away.

"—wrong?" Shouto's voice said

"Fuck—need space—get out," Katsuki urged.

"—happened?"

"Eiji's scent—bad reaction."

Izuku nearly ripped apart the world when he heard the slightest whine from Shouto's lips. He could smell the regret and remorse, but he couldn't determine what was hurting his friend, so instead, he would destroy it all.

He immediately tossed them in the nest and let out the biggest growl he had in over a week. He was demanding that they Stay. Be safe.

Izuku wasn't even out of the room yet when they jumped for him. Katsuki held his face, trying to scent him and sounding desperate, pleading with him. Izuku was sure he was scared for him. But they had nothing to worry about. He would defeat everyone for his pack if he needed to. He would always win for them.

He let out a growl and tried to tell them that, prying them off of him with Black Whip and holding them still as they pushed against him. Izuku didn't understand why, though. They were safe here, and he would make sure of it. He'd destroy whatever alpha put his scent on Shouto and then the rest of the world if he had to. Any good alpha would do that for their pack.

They just needed to understand as he tried to whine at them, pleading with his eyes and growls. They just listen to him, and stay in the nest.

But it didn't work as Hitoshi started to almost beg him to do something that Izuku couldn't even begin to decipher. "Izuku—please—to me."

Izuku whined back, desperate to tell Hitoshi that he didn't understand what he wanted. He just needed them to get it. His sounds were cut short, though. His whimpers faded out as a comfortable haziness suddenly encompassed his mind as if everything went away. He didn't really know what was happening, and by the time he wanted to fight against it, he was already back in the nest, falling asleep.

Chapter Text

Katsuki couldn’t stop himself from punching the wall the moment Izuku was out. He wanted to scream and blow shit up, but he couldn’t risk waking him and triggering him again. But he was doing better than Shouto, who looked utterly frozen.

He was standing in their hall, staring down at the ground with blown eyes and silent tears streaming down his face. He looked like hell, and Katsuki’s stupid instincts practically begged him to go to Shouto. Hitoshi must have felt the same draw because they were both wrapped around him only a second later.

Hitoshi started to purr, making his sent as comforting as possible even if there was fear and frustration just under the surface. Katsuki was sure he smelled the same, unable to hide how fucking mad he was. But for Shouto’s sake, he tried to hide it.

Apparently, he failed as Shouto eventually pulled away and fixed Kastuki with a serious face, his brow furrowed in frustration and anger in his eyes.

“I fucked up. Punch me.”

“I’m not gonna punch you, idiot.”

“You should. He seemed so good for a moment, like himself. He acted just like he did when I left on that trip last year for a few months. He was clearly happy with both of you and me at first. I let myself put out too much of my scent. I got overwhelmed by how much better he seemed, and it’s my fault.”

“Stop your rambling. You sound just like Deku. We should have known this shit would happen. It’s on me more than it is on you.”

Shouto shook his head insistently. “No. It was my scent and lack of control that’s to blame.”

Hitoshi snorted derisively, waving his hand to dismiss Shoutou’s concerns.

“Don’t be stupid, you have the most control of all of us. It’s just a shit situation.”

“The shittiest,” Katsuki growled out as he skulked through the house with the others on his heels. He immediately crashed down to the couch, practically bending in half as his hands went to grip the back of his hair as he bent over himself.

Hitoshi and Shouto both came with him, taking a spot on either side of him. They didn’t reach out to hold him. They both knew him well enough to know only Izuku could get away with touching him much while he was angry. But they pressed their thighs up against his, a solid presence by his side while he got himself under control.

It took at least a few minutes, the silent peace of the apartment slowly returning as their scents started to cover up Izuku’s alpha pheromones. It slowly made it easier to breathe, his head clearing of all the bullshit he was slinging at himself for being a shitty mate and an awful omega. But eventually, he quieted down his intrusive thoughts and slumped back on the couch.

Katsuki was still thinking about it, though. Izuku smelled so possessive, locking them away in the nest and trying to just… keep them. It didn’t make any sense. His previous actions while feral were all full of fear and anger for himself, not other people. Even with Katsuki, he was more afraid…

Part of him thought it could just be the progression of his recovery. But Katsuki knew something else was going on.

“This doesn’t make any sense. With the feral shit, he’s just been aggressive, but not whatever that was. There’s something else going on.”

“What? Really?”

“Are you sure?”

Katsuki groaned and wiped down his face. “Pretty fucking sure… I can just feel it.”

Hitoshi gave him a look. “It could just be that he’s getting better, so it’s different?”

“Nah. It’s something more than that, and I-I’m worried. I’m going to call the doc.”

Shouto suddenly stood up, fear in his eyes, as he reached out to grab Katsuki’s arm. “Are you sure? What if he’s worse or something, and they try to throw him in a facility again?”

Katsuki barely suppressed a growl. “I would never let that happen. I’d kill them first. But I can feel something is off.”

Heterochromatic eyes peered back at him—Shouto’s grip tightened on him for a moment before a sad smile spread on his face. “I trust you, sorry, I shouldn’t have questioned you. He’s your mate. I just… worry, I guess.”

“It’s fine. I know you didn’t mean it like that. And uhm, he was really fucking happy to see you both. So even though it went to shit real quick, thanks or whatever.”

Hitoshi rolled his eyes at Katsuki. “Stupid. You don’t have to thank us, just call the doc and make sure he’s alright.”

“Yeah, yeah, I will. You two should get outta here before he wakes up, and we have to do this all over again.”

Shouto stood with a nod, and Hitoshi hoisted himself up with a groan. Katsuki saw them out, giving them both a hug that he would forever deny needing, even if it felt great. But they didn’t need to know that as he pushed them out the door, only to fall against it and slump to the floor. After a deep breath, he pulled his phone out to stare it down.

“Fuck, this better be the right move…”

Katsuki knew the alpha was suspicious as hell. Izuku was prowling around and patrolling the apartment again, his pheromones possessive and on edge. It was still different from his normal behavior—less fear and aggression and more like Izuku was just doing what he thought he had to do.

He still seemed like he understood fairly well, sometimes responding to yes or no questions or grunting back when Katsuki addressed him. It was a relief that whatever the hell happened with Shouto the day earlier didn’t set them back on his progress. Katsuki would have been even more upset, and he was already struggling to deal with whatever new thing was going on. He just really hoped the doctors could fucking help.

The only issue was getting them into the apartment without Izuku trying to kill someone.

It was decided pretty quickly that bringing Izuku back in was unnecessary. All they really needed to do was some more bloodwork and a few scans of his brain and maybe his scent gland. Doctor Watanabe immediately suggested that he would come over with a nurse and another physician with a quirk that would let them take their own scans.

Katsuki was so fucking relieved he wouldn’t have to haul Izuku back to the hospital. He was sure that would fucking ruin everything.

But he wasn’t looking forward to keeping him calm when the random people invaded their den. His own instincts didn’t even like it, let alone Izuku’s. And Katsuki’s worried scent was helping as Izuku got more and more concerned, splitting his time between comforting Katsuki and trying to scent the whole damn apartment.

Unfortunately, he didn’t come up with a good solution before they got there. They knocked on the door, and immediately Izuku was falling into a defensive position, his scent pouring out aggressive, dominating pheromones.

Katsuki reached out and pulled him close before answering the door. “Safe, Deku. You’re safe. These people are safe.”

Izuku must have at least slightly gotten the gist because he relaxed a little, his body looking less like he was ready to kill whoever stepped through that door. He was still worried, but he didn’t have much choice as he grabbed the door handle and turned back to Izuku one last time.

“You’re safe, and don’t freak out. I need you to be calm and not murderous, alright?” He felt like he was talking to a brick wall, but he opened the door anyway.

The alpha immediately tensed up, his nose flaring as he took in their scents and Kastuki showed them in.

“Good afternoon, Dynamight. Thank you for calling us with your concerns,” Dr. Watanabe said with a bow and a flash of his scent gland.

The other three did the same, keeping their postures submissive as they slipped off their shoes and set down their bags.

“Thanks for coming. He’s been better, but we had a different incident yesterday.”

“Yes, you said on the phone,” the doctor nodded. “Tell me more about it?”

“Yeah, sure,” Katsuki said, moving into the house and dragging Izuku over to the couch. The alpha was growling but went anyway, not moving to attack one yet. He pulled him down to sit with him and turned back to the doctor.

“It wasn’t like blind, feral rage or fear. He was angry and possessive with a purpose, I guess? Fuck, I don’t know if that makes sense, but that’s what it felt like.”

“And what triggered it?”

Katsuki’s brows furrowed. He’d been asking himself that too. He knew it was obviously Eijirou’s scent on Shouto, but he wasn’t sure exactly what about it did it.

“Our friends came over two male omegas like me. They’re basically pack. He was fucking happy to see them, not upset at all until he smelled one of their alpha mate’s scents on him. Then he tried to keep us in the nest and made for the door like he was on a goddamn warpath. He smelled… possessive and protective, but not really angry or afraid or even confused.”

The doctor nodded along, taking a few notes here and there.

“That definitely seems less like typical feral behavior and more indicative of something else. I have my suspicions, but I don’t want to alarm you unnecessarily. If I’m correct, we should only need to draw blood.”

Katsuki’s eyes narrowed. “Nah, you’re not keeping anything from me. What do you think it is?”

“I’m not in the business of speculating, Dynamight. I will tell you what we find, and until then, you can stay as you have been.”

“I don’t like that shit, doc.”

“I understand,” the doctor nodded. He even smiled at him, annoyingly understanding as he started to open up his medical bag. “Please trust that I would tell you if I thought it was serious. But alarming either of you would be unwise.”

“Fine,” Katsuki growled, still displeased but not arguing anymore. The doctor hadn’t really steered them wrong before, and something about the certainty in his voice made Kastuki give in as he closed his eyes and groaned. “How are we doing this then?”

Suddenly, the other doctor spoke up. She was tall and thin, pretty like most omegas but taller. She was nearly as tall as Katsuki when she stood up and looked around the room. “Let’s start with the imaging before he gets aggravated over the blood draw.”

“You’re the imaging doc?”

“Yes. I’m Doctor Himuro. My quirk is simple, but I’ll need him to be standing, and he’ll need to be alright with me stepping into his personal space. I don’t have to touch him, but I need to be within a meter.”

Katsuki nodded, standing up off the couch and dragging Izuku back towards the foyer. The alpha had relaxed some with the doctors seemingly uninterested in doing much, but once she moved closer, he went rigid again. Katsuki could feel the alpha’s grip on his hand tighten as a low warning growl bubbled up out of his throat.

“It’s alright, Deku. Safe. She’s not going to hurt us.”

Izuku turned back to look questioningly at Katsuki as if to say ‘are you sure?’

Katsuki couldn’t help but roll his eyes. “Big, dumb alpha,” he grumbled while reaching up to scent Izuku’s neck with his wrists. The alpha shivered and settled just enough for her to walk over and make a full loop around them, her eyes glowing blue before she slowly backed off and went to sit down.

“The images look fine to me, as we’d expect, other than some noticeable improvement from the scans when he left the hospital. At a minimum, his brain activity seems to be less intense and more regulated.”

Doctor Watanabe nodded. “Good. Excellent news.”

“Then it’s probably whatever the doc thinks it is?”

“Probably. You shouldn’t be too concerned, though. I assure you we will figure it out. We just need to get the blood sample and run some tests back at the hospital. We should be able to call you first thing in the morning with the results.”

Katsuki pinched the bridge of his nose. “I really don’t like the fucking secrecy.”

“I understand. But your alpha is reactive, and the more you smell angry or distressed, the more likely he is to hurt someone. I assure you this is the best course of action.”

With a nod, Katsuki dragged Izuku back over to the couch. He quickly moved them into the same position that worked at the hospital earlier when they needed to run tests. It usually went pretty smoothly. However, Izuku was on a mild sedative then.

He wasn’t sure it would work this time, but he climbed onto his alpha’s lap and shoved Izuku’s head in his neck as he poured out his pheromones. Izuku sunk into them immediately, although Katsuki could still feel the tension in the alpha’s muscles, ready to move at the first sign of danger.

The medical staff was fast, though, immediately pulling out a needle and a few small vials. Izuku went more rigid, so Katsuki started to purr. He buried his face in green curls, ignoring his own display of vulnerability in front of a bunch of strangers. But it seemed to work as Izuku melted into him. He let the nurse get close, eyeing her closely as he held Katsuki tighter as if he was the one in danger.

Then the nurse slowly reached out for Izuku’s arm. The alpha immediately snapped at her, making Katsuki almost lose balance on his lap. Izuku was growling, vicious, and low. But the nurse slowly tilted her head and pulled back the sent patch.

She had a sweet scent, like hundreds of flowers in a grassy meadow. It reminded Katsuki a little of Round Face’s pheromones, so he wasn’t surprised when Izuku calmed down. But it was enough for Katsuki to take his arm and practically hand it over to the nurse.

To Katsuki’s shock, she let out a purr right before she put it in. It was small and kind, almost parental in nature, as Izuku let her do it. She quickly filled the first vial and started on the second. But she moved too fast, and Izuku got agitated. She began to fall over on the couch, reaching out for something to grab onto—it was the wrong thing to do.

She reached out to Katsuki, and Izuku reacted immediately. Black whip activated, reaching out to grab her arm and yank it away. It was too fast for Katsuki to stop him, and she immediately screamed.

Her scent started to reak of distress after pulling her scent patch off. Panic and concern, mainly for Izuku, but it still drove the alpha crazy. His pheromones were suddenly full of anger and mistrust as he scooped up Katsuki and vaulted over the couch to let out a spine-chilling roar.

Katsuki was almost shocked at their reaction speed. It was almost on par with pro heroes as they immediately prepared for whatever Izuku was about to do. But Katsuki supposed it made sense; medicine was just as life-or-death as heroics. And fuck, he was glad for that, as they all immediately let out soft scents and made slow and obvious movements to grab their things and head for the door.

“Dynamight. Are you alright?”

“Yeah, you guys?”

The nurse smiled. “I’m fine, kid. I’ve seen worse.”

Katsuki only nodded, watching as they made to leave, putting their shoes on and slipping out of the door. Izuku didn’t stop growling the whole time until the door latched, finally calming down once they were gone. He quickly dropped Katsuki on the couch and ran to their door to lock it before returning to Katsuki and moving through the motions.

After much scenting, and a slightly frenzied patrol of their apartment, Katsuki dragged Izuku back to their nest.

That was enough excitement for one day, and he could use some rest. He figured he should prepare himself for whatever bomb the doctor was preparing to drop. Katsuki had a feeling it was going to be a doozy…

Chapter Text

Katsuki woke up the next morning just like he had been every day since Izuku came home nearly two weeks ago. The alpha had him in a tight grip, their bodies wrapped around each other in the nest. The morning sun spilled into the room, and warmth poured with it. The birds were chirping, Izuku snored a little, and everything felt good and right.

In those moments, it was so easy to ignore everything else. With Izuku sleeping soundly, he could even pretend his mate wasn't feral. It always made for peaceful mornings, where Katsuki could smile softly at his mate, tuck an emerald curl behind his ear, and count his multitude of freckles.

He tried not to be gross and sappy. But he didn't mind so much in the morning light when no one was around. He could even admit he loved Izuku more than anything in the world even. Those moments kept him grounded when the rest of his life was so chaotic it nearly drove him crazy.

But despite all of that, the world always came back to bite him in the ass just as he heard his phone vibrate. Katsuki would have groaned if he wasn't worried it would wake up Izuku.

Katsuki rolled over, looking at the caller ID to figure out who he would spend his morning murdering. Reality sent a shock through his system like a lightning bolt when he saw it was Doctor Watanabe.

At first, it seemed too early. If the doctor was calling already, it must have been an emergency. Katsuki flew off the bed, skittering out of the bedroom in his boxers so he wouldn't wake up Izuku, when he hurriedly answered the phone in a thinly veiled panic.

"Doc? It really doesn't feel like a good sign that you're calling this fucking early in the morning."

"Dynamight, sir, please calm down," the doctor said, keeping his voice even in the face of Katsuki's panic.

"I'll calm down when you tell me why you're calling!"

"Sir, it's already 10am."

Katsuki's brows furrowed in confusion, whipping around to check the clock on the stove. Sure enough, it was 10am. Katsuki couldn't help but swear under his breath—he'd never slept in so late. He hadn't even realized the past few days had taken so much out of him as he let himself crash down on the couch.

"Shit, sorry."

"It's fine. Totally understandable, to be fair."

Katsuki nodded to the man who wasn't even there. "Yeah, thanks. You've got results then?"

"I do. I'll be frank, it's not great, but it's not the end of the world. However, it may elongate his recovery a few weeks."

"That sure as hell sounds like something to worry about," Katsuki growled out, suddenly sitting up and getting over his half-asleep, half-panicked brain.

"I can assure you that in the long run, this is nothing more than an inconvenience."

Katsuki pinched the bridge of his nose, barely keeping himself from exploding the phone with his other hand. "How about you stop fucking avoiding it and tell me what is happening to my mate."

"Right. Of course. Hero Deku is in pre-rut, and based on his hormone levels, I expect his full rut to arrive in around 3-5 days."

The omega pinched his eyes closed and just took a moment to wrap his head around the news.

His alpha, who already had some pretty fucking wild ruts, was going to have to have a rut while feral. That was definitely an inconvenience. Katsuki could already picture it. His pussy would get destroyed, and he would get brutally fucked over every single inch of the apartment.

He didn't feel ready for it, but he had no other options. It sucked, but looking back, Katsuki really should have figured it out already. The hand-feeding, the protectiveness of his pack, the horny mornings. He was blinded by Izuku's recovery, assuming it was just his way back to sanity.

But he'd overlooked such a big fucking thing he wanted to smack himself.

Katsuki let out an annoyed groan, punching the couch with the hand not holding the phone. "Shit. Thanks for telling me, doc, but the timing is sucky."

"No problem. I understand it's difficult to leave your alpha during such a hard time. But there are many options for rut houses that can help, several of which can probably handle a feral alpha if that's the route you choose to go. Alternatively, the hospital here has a rut room for him that you'd be able to monitor him from. And of course, there's always the Feral Alpha Rehabilitation Facilities."

"The fuck you talking about?" Katsuki asked, his face distorting with confusion.

"Your options? Surely you're not considering spending his rut with him."with me."

Katsuki was on his feet in seconds, furiously pacing around the room. "You can't seriously think after every time we've talked that I'm going to send him somewhere? Fuck that. Sure, he'll be hard to manage, but we still don't fucking know what they did to him, and I'm not making him go through his rut anywhere but at home with me."

"Sir, to be blunt, that is the worst decision you could make. I understand Deku is comfortable with you, but feral alphas are unpredictable. And even worse in rut. You will end up injured and probably forcibly taken without your consent. I cannot responsibly allow you to make that decision," the doctor argued back, getting more heated than Katsuki had ever heard him before.

He understood where their doctor was coming from. Really, he did. Izuku would probably be super fucking dangerous, and it was probably a bad idea. But his omega told him he couldn't let them get separated. Everything inside him was practically screaming in agony at the thought of Izuku going through his rut alone.

There was no he could let that happen.

"With all due respect, it's not up to you. My decision is final."

"I don't want to have to do this, sir," the doctor sighed out.

"You're not doing anything," Katsuki gritted out.

"You give me no choice, then. I will have to reach out to Endeavor and Hawks again. They may have signed partial control over to you, but legally I have to notify them."

Katsuki rolled his eyes, but his voice was venomous. "Do whatever you have to do, but Izuku isn't going anywhere."

Then, without a second thought, he hung up.

The beep from the phone brought him back to the real world, suddenly feeling everything a little too much. His heart was racing, his head pounding, and it felt like he was trembling. The idea of Izuku being taken away again made him want to blow shit up and cry. He felt weak, but he knew he wasn't. He'd be as strong as he needed to keep Izuku by his side. He wasn't about to let this hurt Izuku.

But still, he felt like shit. He knew he'd soon be getting calls from Hawks and Endeavor. Endeavor would probably tell Shouto, and then Shouto and Eijirou would be calling him too. Shouto would tell Shouta, and then Shouta would tell Hitoshi. And of course, Hitoshi would tell the nerd squad, and then Round Face and Glasses would be fucking calling too.

Katsuki really didn't want to deal with all of them. They would all tell him the same thing, that he should listen to the doctors. But he wouldn't. He flat out refused to let them send Izuku away.

So instead, he did the responsible and rational thing and threw his phone on the couch. Then he walked back into their bedroom and crawled into the nest. Izuku didn't wake up, but he stirred a little, sniffing the distress in Katsuki's scent and instinctually pulling him into a tight embrace.

With a sigh, Katsuki melted into it. Eventually, he'd drag himself out of the nest… But at the moment, Katsuki couldn't help but think, 'fuck it, we're hiding from the world.’

The next time Katsuki woke up, it was far less peaceful. No more birds were chirping. The sun was high in the sky for the afternoon, no longer leaking into the room with soft light. Katsuki was instead woken up to a growling alpha.

For half a second, he was about to panic about what the hell was making him growl. His first thought was a nightmare. His second thought was an intruder. But then Katsuki felt the alpha's boner against his thigh and noticed Izuku's insistent humping against him. The growls were low and burning, and the scent of arousal was thick in the room. It smelled good and heady, and Katsuki would have loved to drown in it under any other circumstance.

But reality was not quite so pleasant as he was reminded that Izuku was days away from his rut, feral, and being straight up fucking ridiculous as he humped him.

Katsuki was about to push him away, but the alpha whined. Whimpers filled the room, and Katsuki couldn't make himself do it at the sad sound. Izuku almost sounded like he was in pain. Really, he probably was. Katsuki was well aware that Izuku often got horny during pre-rut. The fact that he hadn't done it earlier was an incredible testament to Izuku's willpower, even while feral.

He couldn't help but smirk.

Fuck these people who think Izuku will be too dangerous. He's a fucking softy even when feral.

So, he turned and let Izuku keep doing it, planting kisses on his face and purring out with sounds of pleased omega to help his alpha along the way. The rumbles in Izuku's chest grew louder, smelling proud and happy until suddenly his body started to tremble, and Katsuki felt the alpha's cock twitch, cumming in his boxers until he let out a sweet sigh of relief.

It was a delightful sound, and Izuku nuzzling into his side was just as fucking precious.

But the moment passed once he remembered the cum that was currently messing up their clothes. Katsuki crinkled his nose at the feeling of his wet boxers; he was practically gagging at the thought of the mess as he tried to roll out of bed. Izuku wanted to hold him there, whining and nuzzling harder—flashing a pout and puppy eyes for good measure.

Katsuki snorted. "Not gonna work when I feel this gross. But you can come shower with me."

Izuku perked up, following Katsuki out of bed and into the bathroom to take a shower. The warm water ran down their skins, washing away at least a little of his stress. It all came rushing back once they got dressed and made their way into the kitchen.

He could hear the persistent buzzing of his phone on the couch, but he ignored it as he stomped into the kitchen to find breakfast. Izuku was back on his shit, collecting finger foods and dragging him to the couch this time. Katsuki really wished Izuku had pulled him into the nest instead, but he wasn't that lucky.

Even worse, the alpha noticed. Izuku cocked his head and furrowed his eyebrows, his gaze questioning and confused like he was trying to understand why Katsuki pointedly ignored his phone. Eventually, the alpha grabbed the phone and thrust it at him. The worst part was that it kept ringing. He didn't think it was that big of a deal to call him a million times.

But Izuku was getting increasingly frustrated and confused, and Katsuki hated seeing him like that. The alpha was trying to understand, but he looked more and more furious at himself that he couldn't quite get there. Katsuki couldn't let that happen as he eventually let out a groan and grabbed his damn phone.

He had nearly a million notifications from everyone he could imagine. The messaging app only had a 99+, which was already foreboding enough, but he had at least 30 missed calls and 10 voicemails.

Suddenly, Katsukit thought that maybe ignoring the issue in the first place wasn't a smart move…

He ignored most of the texts, only opening the ones he cared about. The only relevant opinions were Endeavor and Hawks, really. They could probably force him to let Izuku be taken into a facility, or at least they could try. Katsuki would normally consider kicking their ass or even finding a damn lawyer. With only 3-5 days before Izuku's rut, he didn't have the time.

Hawks texted him repeatedly, all of them frantic questions about what Katsuki was thinking and why he thought it was a good idea to spend a rut with a feral alpha. Katsuki ignored them, rolling his eyes as he opened Endeavor's text.

He would never admit it, but the text made him gulp, his hands growing clammy as he fisted at his pants to wipe the sweat away.

Endeavor: Call me immediately to discuss this ridiculous notion of spending Deku's rut with him.

Katsuki tried to fake his own confidence, rolling his eyes despite the way his heart was racing and the churning in his stomach. Somewhere in the back of his head, he couldn't help but think he and Izuku really should have fucking mated before all of this. Then he wouldn't have to deal with anyone else, and there was nothing Katsuki hated more than depending on extras.

He pushed the weak shit away as he hit the call button and held the phone to his ear, barely masking the way his hand was shaking.

Everything could tumble down with this one fucking phone call.

Izuku could basically end up taken away and locked in another fucking cell, away from Katsuki.

The thought made him want to puke, feelings bubbling up that he would absolutely pretend he wasn't having. Instead, he screamed. Izuku jumped from his spot on the couch, suddenly aware of the turmoil in his mate. The alpha's eyes were full of concern, wide and shocked at Katsuki's sudden mood switch as he immediately grabbed Katsuki and pulled him into his lap.

It was soothing but also distracting. It took him an embarrassingly long time to hear the voice on the other side of the phone.

"Bakugou. If you don't address me without screaming in my ear, I will hang up this phone, and I will make a decision without you."

Katsuki did not scramble with the phone, wrenching it up to his ear so fast he nearly hit himself. It absolutely didn't happen. He was strong. Nothing shook him, damn it.

"Fuck, sorry. I'm here."

"Good. Now, what's this I'm hearing about you spending Deku's rut with him? Against medical advice?"

"That I'm fucking doing it no matter what you say?"

Endeavor sighed, clearly exasperated and already done with this conversation. "What the hell could possibly make you think that's a good idea?"

"Because I'm not a moron? He's fucking getting better. I think he's understanding at least half of the shit I say, he's not as aggressive, and he's doing things mostly on his own. He's probably so close to breaking out of his goddamn head, and you all want to lock him up again!"

"I understand your frustration, but do not act like a pup throwing a tantrum, Bakugou. I am still your boss."

"No offense, old man, but I could not care less. My mate is more important than my goddamn manners.”

"That still doesn't change the fact that this is a horrible idea. It may put back his recovery, but so could you spending his rut with him. Have you even considered how he'll react if he hurts you and he has as much awareness as you say he does?"

Katsuki hated it, but he was suddenly speechless. He turned in Izuku's lap to look at the alpha and imagined how bad it would be if he hurt Katsuki. Izuku would never forgive himself even after he got over being feral. But during? It would be hell. He'd struggle even worse to process everything, and Katsuki wanted to cry every time Izuku had to sit there looking confused and angry.

Could he really risk that? Katsuki didn't even know.

But then something miraculous happened. Izuku reached up and took Katsuki's face in his hands. His calloused fingers wiped away his tears, and he smiled. It was soft and sad and so weirdly understanding. Katsuki almost thought for a minute that Izuku understood what was happening, but he knew that wasn't right.

Izuku was just that soft, so reactive to Katsuki's emotions and taking care of him because he's the best damn alpha out there.

Katsuki would never doubt him. Even feral, in a rut, Katsuki was certain Izuku would never hurt him except for maybe a rough fuck. Even then, he knew it wouldn't be that bad. His alpha was too attentive, too perfect.

Suddenly, he didn't have a care in the world.

"Look," Katsuki rasped out, his voice thick with emotion he hated showing to Endeavor. "Izuku isn't fucking going to hurt me. Not once has any of my omega-instinct-bullshit felt even a little unsafe with him. He's the best goddamn alpha, and I'm not worried. You shouldn't be either. You've known him long enough."

”No. I’ve known the real Deku. When he's feral, he's a different man, Bakugou.

"You won't fucking convince me this is a bad idea, and I'm not leaving his side. If you try to remove him from our den, you'll have two feral pro heroes to deal with, asshole."

Katsuki could hear Endeavor swear under his breath "Such a fucking pain in the ass…"

"Trust your two best heroes."

The silence was heavy, and Katsuki could feel Endeavor's irritation through the phone. He could practically smell his very-common scent of permanent annoyance at everyone who isn't his family or Hawks. Usually, Katsuki got a lot of amusement out of fucking with the old man, but he sure as shit wasn't enjoying this.

But then the man sighed, a sound of resignation and understanding that already had Katsuki smirking. "Fine. I will allow him to stay home with you, but you must check in with someone every six hours. I don't care who, but we need to know who it is."

"Fuck yes, I told you this was the right call. I'll just text someone, probably your kid. And, fucking thanks, I guess."

"Don't make me regret this," Endeavor gritted out before hanging up the phone.

Katsuki sagged in relief, plopping his phone on the couch and going in for a kiss. Izuku may not have understood what was happening, but he responded perfectly anyway. His lips were soft and comforting, reassuring in a way only Izuku could be with Katsuki wanting to fucking murder them.

It made him feel so much better, letting out a shaky breath when he pulled away. Katsuki was disgustingly relieved.

It didn't matter what anyone else said. The rest of the annoying texts were irrelevant, and everyone could take their unsolicited opinions and shove them up their ass. He couldn't stop himself from checking anyway, and he was immediately annoyed. No one was on his side except for Shouto and Shouta.

Sometimes he hated omega bullshit, but those two made him feel better about nearly everything, even if he'd rather die than admit that. But they knew, and he quickly texted them back his version of a thank you, a middle finger emoji, and an orange heart.

Then, he tossed his phone away and ignored all of it.

Izuku needed his full and undivided attention if they were going to get through the next few days. Katsuki was going to do everything to ensure it went as smoothly as possible.

So, he spent nearly the entire day cleaning every inch of the apartment, even washing everything in their nest and scenting it again with only their scents. In a rut, Izuku was already sensitive to other pheromones, even their pack members. Katsuki could imagine it would be worse as he diligently took care of the whole apartment.

He tried to keep his scent even, but Katsuki was never good at that shit. Everyone who didn't know him thought he was just angry and reactive, but really he was fucking emotional as hell. Everyone else was just too stupid to pick up on it.

Except, of course, Izuku. He always picked up on the nuances of Katsuki's cinnamon and smoke scent.

This would be their downfall when finally, Katsuki stopped ignoring calls from the one person he was actively trying to avoid.

Katsuki had a feeling the rut would start at any time, and he figured he should probably answer the phone before Eijirou got so panicked and worried that he showed up at their apartment. He figured he would just tell him he was fine and to leave him alone. He knew the alpha was just a worried mess of panicked alpha whose pack omega was "in danger."

Maybe he was annoyed, but he couldn't blame the guy. Eijirou had always been the worrier of their pack.

"Fucking hell, I'm here. Are you happy?" Katsuki asked as he answered the phone.

"Come on, man," Eijirou whined. "Why do you do this to me?"

"Torturing you is funny."

"So mean! I just wanted to check on you! And I guess convince you not to do it. I really think it's a bad idea…"

"Yeah, I don't really care. He'll be fine, I'll be fine, and it's the best way to get him better faster."

"Shit, don't kill me for saying this, but… Is it that big of a deal? So maybe he has a setback, but you should take care of yourself, too, Katsuki."

Katsuki knew Eijirou would say that. It was the same thing he'd heard for days. It hurt the worst from his best friend. Their other friends? They didn't know him as well. His parents? They were morons, and they didn't get it.

He didn't think it would bother him hearing it from Eijirou, but he was so wrong.

"Don't you ever say that shit again," Katsuki seethed. "You fucking knew what I went through when he was gone. Fucking kidnapped and missing, and now you want me to do something that will make it take even longer before I get my Izuku back?"

"I-I know, Katsuki, but there are so many unknowns with a feral alpha, and I don't want either of you to get hurt!"

"What? You think I'm not strong enough? Or that he's some violent asshole who's going to hurt me?"

"You know that's not what I meant! Izuku is one of my best friends, it's not like I think he's some wild animal! Just listen for a sec and—"

"No. You listen, you asshole. I know what I'm fucking doing!" Katsuki yelled, standing up from his place in the nest as he stomped around the room. Izuku was half-asleep in their nest, blissfully enjoying the moment while Katsuki raged at their friend.

He was just about to hang up when he smelled a shift in the air.

Katsuki quickly whipped around, and Izuku was no longer buried in the pillows. The alpha was up on his feet, his body rigid and his eyes burning. He was naked, Katsuki vaguely registering the ripped-up boxers on the ground. His scent was thick, heavy with aggression and arousal.

There was no mistaking it. The pheromones were intense and overwhelming, and Katsuki's body reacted immediately. He dropped to his knees, his pussy suddenly throbbing and leaking.

Izuku was in rut.

And Katsuki's anger had just triggered it.

He was already slipping into his instincts, his mind foggy with only thoughts of his alpha and making sure his rut was perfect. There was one last moment of clarity when he choked out a response to Eijirou.

"I-It fucking started. He's in rut. Text Shouto and Shouta."

Then he dropped his phone on the ground and crawled to his alpha. Distantly in the back of his head, Katsuki really hoped Eijirou hung up before hearing the sounds that would soon be echoing through their apartment.

But really, he couldn't care less.

There was really only one word echoing around his head: Alpha.

Chapter Text

Katsuki was ready to serve himself up on a silver platter.

He wasn't expecting to be so disconnected from reality, struggling to keep things straight in his head as he stopped in front of Izuku, still on his knees and probably looking like a desperate whore. Somewhere deep in the corners of his mind, he wondered what he must have looked like to a feral, rutting alpha—slutty, desperate, and ripe for the taking.

But he couldn't care less. He knew his alpha loved him, could smell it in his scent. Izuku smelled even more heavenly than normal, the strength of the rut pheromones balancing deliciously and almost completely irradicating the lingering hints of feral alpha.

It made him smell more like normal Izuku. Katsuki was familiar with his alpha's rut scent, which was always so much stronger than anything else. It was overpowering the feralness in his pheromones, making Katsuki practically dizzy. If he wasn't already on his knees, he happily would have dropped to them again.

Katsuki may have hated this part at the beginning of their relationship, but it never bothered him anymore. The one place he could give in to everything, the only time he was willing to be vulnerable, was when Izuku was in front of him. It soothed his omega in a way nothing ever had, allowing Katsuki to take a mental step back.

Such a delicious reward for having the best alpha on the whole goddamn planet.

Fuck, Katsuki loved him.

He couldn't wait any longer, crawling over to the alpha until he was right in front of him. Katsuki could practically feel the heat emanating from Izuku's body that close. It was intoxicating from that distance. Katsuki's omega was nearly purring at the scent of their alpha alone. But he was an absolute goner when he looked up into Izuku's eyes—glowing green and pupils blown wide with lust.

Katsuki fucking whimpered.

"A-Alpha. So strong. Smell so good."

Izuku growled in response, reaching down to run his fingers through Katsuki's blond hair and pull him closer. Katsuki thought he knew exactly where the alpha wanted him, moving with him and sticking out his tongue to drag a sweet little kitten lick against Izuku's cock.

He anxiously awaited for Izuku's grip to tighten, for the rutting alpha to fuck into his throat with reckless abandon.

But Katsuki was wrong, and Izuku kept slowly guiding him until Katsuki was forced to stand up, slowly following any direction from his alpha. He was rewarded with a deep rumble from his alpha, Izuku bending down just a little to nuzzle their scent glands against each other. Katsuki thought he was fuzzy before, but having Izuku's rut scent on his skin made his knees go weak again.

He nearly fell to the ground, but Izuku caught him and pulled him into his arms. Izuku breathed for a moment, a forced little thing that almost sounded like a snort. Katsuki would have normally smacked his alpha, but he was far too satisfied to be annoyed as the alpha continued to scent him.

Katsuki enjoyed it for a moment, but then Izuku started to walk away from their nest.

The omega grolwed. “No. Nest, Alpha.”

Izuku growled back, flashing a glare at Katsuki that demanded his patience. But Katsuki was not and would never be a patient man. He started to squirm in Izuku's arms, wiggling an arm around until he had at least a small range of movement.

The alpha still looked annoyed, but Katsuki was on a mission. He wanted it too badly to wait any longer, and he knew in the back of his head that it would be a good idea. Izuku would never intentionally hurt him, but he was still a feral, rutting alpha. And Katsuki's omega was nearly begging him to make sure he was ready for his mate and anything he might want from him.

And Katsuki just felt so painfully empty.

Ever since he brought Izuku home, he'd kept the alpha from fucking or mating him, and finally, he could give in. It made Katsuki's cravings for Izuku's cock impossible to ignore. He couldn't hold back any longer.

Katsuki snaked his fingers down his own body, reaching his wet folds and sliding two fingers between them. He toyed with his little cocklet, pleasure driving up his spine until he started trembling. It felt delicious—better than he remembered since he'd done anything like this with Izuku.

He couldn't help the whines and words spilling from his lips.

"A-alpha, feels so good. You smell so good. Back to the nest, alpha, please. W-Wanna fucking feel you. Need you to fuck me, please!"

Izuku rumbled low in his chest, satisfied and possessive. But he wasn't deterred as he started to walk the edge of their apartment, spreading his territorial rut scent everywhere, checking every nook and cranny for any threat to their den. Being feral, he was far more territorial than ever before. Katsuki could only remember him doing this once during his rut, and it was only when they'd first moved into their new den. Izuku had wanted his scent everywhere that first time.

But this was different. Katsuki barely recognized it in his lusty haze, but the alpha was tense with fear, triple-checking the whole apartment that they were safe.

Katsuki let out a whimper of sadness, his walls broken down by the heady pheromones. "Alpha, please, we're safe. Promise. So safe here with me. Gonna take such good care of you."

Izuku didn't listen, though. He kept circling the apartment—doing his third lap and making Katsuki feel painfully teased. The wait was killing him, and playing with his throbbing little cocklet wasn't enough anymore.

Plus, he'd be such a good omega if he got himself all stretched out first. Then his alpha could just slide right in, split him open on his fat cock and take him however he wanted. It made his insides burn with need, his pussy quaking at the idea with slick dribbling down his thighs, dripping on the floor below.

He couldn't help how wet he was, absolutely leaking at the thought while Izuku's scent clouded his thoughts even further. The alpha was growling and rumbling more, looking down at Katsuki while he walked with such a beautiful glow of desperation behind his emerald eyes.

The omega couldn't take the wait anymore as he slid his hand farther down and shoved two fingers into his trembling pussy. They were practically sucked in, Katsuki purring with utter delight that he finally had something inside him.

"F-Fuck, so good," he breathed out, turning his head to bury his nose further in Izuku's scent while he started to pump in and out of himself. It wasn't long before two fingers weren't enough, quickly shoving in three fingers, scissoring himself open the best he could. Every movement felt delicious, his walls sucking them in and giving way to make room for something so much better.

But fuck, it made him hungrier for cock. The scent of his rutting alpha, the hints of wild, feral scent below, and the fact he hadn't been fucked in five months was driving him crazy. He wanted so badly to help and be good, to make sure Izuku was safe and didn't suffer any consequences from a feral rut.

Katsuki just didn't expect his own need to be so damn intense. He couldn't bear it any longer as he started to thrash in Izuku's arms again. The alpha tried to growl at him, but it didn't deter Katsuki. If anything, it riled him up. The strength and aggression turned him on even more. He craved all of it from Izuku as he finally got out of his arms, landing on his feet.

He couldn't stop himself from issuing a challenge.

With a playful growl and a smirk, Katsuki took a step back. "Catch me, alpha."

Then he took off, running through their massive apartment while the alpha hunted him. It was exhilarating—wild and frenzied and new. Izuku growled, but there was mischief in his eyes, amusement glowing as he beamed at Katsuki while they ran around the living room furniture.

"Come get me, alpha," Katsuki teased, Izuku on the other side of the couch. The alpha tried to vault it, but Izuku was uncoordinated. Toppling over the sofa instead of landing on his feet and giving Katsuki the perfect opportunity to run for their nest.

It felt euphoric, both of their scents so happy, satisfied, and horny. Izuku's aggression and possessiveness were gone, and Katsuki felt like he had no reason to be worried. He practically giggled while he ran back to their room, making it just in time to land in the nest as Izuku tackled him.

The alpha let out a victorious growl, aggressively scenting Katsuki as he chuckled darkly. It was a real laugh, and it was music to Katsuki's ears. Izuku sounded almost like himself, amused and in love, despite the undertones of dark satisfaction from winning their little hunt.

But Katsuki didn't care all that much. If it was Izuku, he didn't mind losing sometimes.

And he still got a prize, after all, as the naked alpha flipped him over, putting his massive hand on Katsuki's back and pressing him down into the bed. He grabbed his hip with his other hand, moving him until he was perfectly presented. Izuku let out a sweet growl, rutting his massive length against Katsuki's ass.

The omega purred, reaching behind and spreading himself open. Katsuki could hear Izuku's satisfied rumble, his cock suddenly coming up to drag along Katsuki's pussy lips. It sent a shiver down his spine, and Katsuki couldn't wait any longer.

The anticipation was too much.

And yet none of it was enough.

Katsuki couldn't stop himself from whining, begging with filthy words dripping with desperation. "Fill me, alpha! Fuck me! Mate me! Give me your fucking cock, please!"

He wasn't sure how much of that Izuku even really understood. Still, the alpha got enough of it that he shoved inside him, his fat cock spreading him open so well and reaching so deep that Katsuki thought he was seeing stars at the sudden overwhelming feeling. The connection between them finally felt complete again, the lack of communication not mattering anymore because they were one.

Katsuki nearly came on the spot, the rush of endorphins from his alpha, making his entire body practically set fire with lust. The alpha seemed to feel it, too, growling and whining and whimpering. He sounded so desperately happy that it made Katsuki's heart twist with something so sad and so sweet he couldn't help the tears that sprung to his eyes.

It was everything he'd craved since the day Izuku was taken: to be complete again with his alpha by his side. Suddenly it felt overwhelming—like Izuku was really home.

It was overwhelming. Sudden. And so goddamn perfect.

Izuku must have thought so, too, because he let out a massive growl full of emotion, longing, and hunger for his mate. The alpha didn't hold back for even a second longer, holding Katsuki in a bruising grip as he fucked into him, his cock splitting him open with every thrust. He could feel his pussy stretched along him, his cock dragging along Katsuki's walls and filling him so deliciously he couldn't help but cry out for more.

"More, more, more. Alpha! Not enough! Fuck me harder!"

His cries riled up Izuku further, fucking into him so hard and fast that it almost hurt. But it just wasn’t enough.

"No, no, need more, Izuku, please! Fuck, it's not enough! Need more of you!" Katsuki demanded, getting angry and desperate for something he didn't fucking understand.

But even though Katsuki couldn't understand it, the alpha did. Something shifted in the room, Izuku's scent turning possessive and aggressive, making Katsuki feel weak. It was more potent than anything he'd ever smelled, the pheromones seeping into his bones and taking away any bit of rational thought.

He gave into his alpha completely, his words leaving him as he moaned and whined in time with the beat of Izuku's thrusts—their skin slapping turned into the drums as their voices became a melody. Katsuki loved every second of it, deep in his instincts and barely noticing the rutting alpha was getting rougher.

Izuku's teeth scraped against his neck, his grip started to sting, and his thrusts were aided by 1% of One For All. But the little bits of pain were euphoric, and Izuku's love and need came through loud and clear. Katsuki practically melted into the bed, happy to do anything for his alpha, as Izuku fucked him so perfectly.

He was so out of it that he didn't notice Izuku's knot growing or the way his cock twitched. Katsuki was so lost in pleasure he didn't even feel his orgasm building until he was falling over the edge into utter euphoria. His whole body was wracked with ecstasy, his pussy spasming around Izuku's cock until suddenly, the alpha popped his knot inside Katsuki.

It was huge, making him just as full as he remembered. Katsuki loved being tied together, the feeling of cum practically pouring into him, making him feel warm and satisfied as he started to purr out his contentment.

But the peace was broken immediately.

Katsuki was too hazy to stop it—too cloudy to even remember he should stop it.

Izuku bent over him, latching his mouth around Katsuki's scent gland. The omega could feel his alpha fangs growing, scratching against his skin. He purred away, tilting his neck to give the alpha what he wanted.

Then he bit down on him. The mating bite. The one Katsuki knew was supposed to be special.

A wave of pleasure took over him, another orgasm ripping through his body as he trembled underneath Izuku, his pussy fluttering around Izuku's cock, pulling another orgasm out of his alpha.

But at that moment, he just smiled, tears filling his vision again at how amazing it felt to finally be mated to the love of his life. It was everything he ever wanted, his heart feeling settled for the first time in so fucking long.

And he could feel his connection to Izuku. Nothing concrete, no thoughts or feelings. But their bond was warm and buzzing, radiating comfort and love. It felt like some missing puzzle piece was back. If he was even slightly more himself, he would have gagged at all the sappy shit he was feeling, but he couldn't get himself to care.

He was happy and content and sleepy. He was just about to fall asleep when he heard Izuku speak.

"M-My Kacchan."

Chapter Text

When Izuku woke up, he felt weird. His body didn't feel right, as if it were someone else's. It was like he didn't belong in his own skin. Everything felt too real and too fake, all at once. The world around him was buzzing, but he couldn't see anything wrong. Katsuki was in his arms, their nest was a mess, and everything reeked of sex and pheromones.

He could smell his rut scent, lingering even though he could tell it was over. But it didn't feel like it normally did when he woke up after a rut. Sure, it was always disorienting, but this was different. As if he'd been in a rut for weeks.

Izuku could feel the lingering exhaustion, the aches he always had from three crazy days of constant sex and heightened instincts. But all of it was so much worse. The scents were so potent, his body hurt everywhere, and it felt like he was too weak to even move.

He couldn't help but think, what the hell happened.

But it hit him almost immediately after that thought.

It wasn't a typical rut. Nothing about this was normal.

He'd been feral. For nearly two months. His body didn’t feel like his because it actually felt different. His muscles were half the size they used to be, his body smaller and weird and not his. His brain felt empty and dazed, missing so much time with only brief flashes of what happened while he was feral.

It got worse when he pushed farther back, remembering his captivity—the scents, the villains, and the torture.

Izuku didn't want to think about it. He didn't want to remember every knife that sliced open his skin, every shock of electricity that made his body feel like ripping apart. He didn't want to remember the horrible illusions or the tricks they played with Toga.

But every single foul memory was burned on his brain. Every ounce of pain.

None of it compared to the worst feeling of all, though.

He could remember it clearly—the bone-deep ache of missing his omega. The fear that Katsuki would get hurt or dragged into it, that he never knew if Katsuki was alive or safe. So many times they made him see the torture of his omega over and over again. Saw him get fucked all the time by horrible villains.

They played it like a broken record on repeat, flashing through his mind over and over again so quickly he thought he was going to pass out.

It was too much all at once. He didn't want to remember any of it anymore.

"No, no, no," Izuku begged and pleaded, rolling over in the nest to dig the heels of his hand into his eyes. "Stop, please, don't wanna see it. Stop it, stop it, stop it."

"Izu, fuck, shit, baby, it's okay."

"No, no, no, I don't wanna remember! Make it stop!"

Izuku didn't even realize Katsuki was awake and trying to help before he pushed him away. He was too lost in his memories and too afraid to even process what was happening around him. He shoved him too hard, launching him off the bed as he continued to cry.

"Please, please, it hurts," he cried, rolling onto his side to make himself as small as possible, desperate to hide from all the shit in his head.

He wanted to be feral again. Izuku knew some part of him had fought against it. He wanted to be with his Kacchan so badly, but it was just too much. Everything hurt; everything was terrifying. He'd been through too much this time. It was like his brain was throbbing against his skull, his head too full of trauma.

For a moment, he thought he would burst. It was like his skull was cracking. He didn't have space for so much pain in his head.

He continued to sob, his body shaking as he tried to bury himself deeper and deeper into the warmth below him. Distantly, he sought out the familiar comfort. He buried his head in the pillow beneath him and tried so hard to sink deep enough into the nest that he'd never have to face the real world again.

But then he felt a touch again. It startled him so badly, lashing out and shoving the person away again. He couldn't, though, this time. Whoever it was had a firm grip on him. Izuku powered up One For All, determined to throw them off of him.

Izuku wouldn't let it happen. He didn't want to be hurt anymore.

They were so strong, though, and using his quirk hurt after losing so much muscle. It made him cry harder. He was practically defenseless. They could kill him.

It was almost scarier that, at that moment, he wasn't sure he would mind.

He just gave up way too easily. They were going to do whatever they were going to do, and Izuku just had to hope it pushed him too far. He'd be feral again if it meant getting out of the nightmare in his head.

However, the pain never came. Instead, a gentle touch ran through his green curls and pulled him towards the other person. They were naked, just like he was. Izuku could feel the heat radiating from them, shivering when they came skin to skin. All they did was hold him and shoved his head right into their neck.

Izuku wanted to struggle, push away, anything. But before he could try to get any willpower back, the pheromones around him started to penetrate the fog clouding his thoughts. It was the mingling scents of mates, real mates. Cinnamon and smoke mixed with the smell of fresh grass and mint.

They shouldn't have worked together, but they did—like a campfire and candy, sweet but heavy.

His alpha brain loved it, soothing some of his panic. It was easier to distance himself from the mess in his head when he could focus on that.

And with every breath, he could feel himself calming down. Each memory started to drift away until he could think a little more clearly, better recognizing the world around him.

First, he recognized the sound of purring, and he could feel it. The body around him was the source, the purrs spreading through his own chest and into his heart until it stopped racing.

Second, Izuku could feel that the room was warm, and the nest underneath him was soft. It wasn't anything like the place he was before. It was cozy and inviting, the whole room practically wrapping around him.

Third, he knew the sounds around him. There was a fan somewhere in the room, the humming of a familiar white noise that he knew so well, birds chirping the same song he remembered hearing every morning.

Lastly, he knew those arms around him. It was Kacchan. He was in their room, in their nest, with his omega.

He was immediately crying for a different reason. Relief flooded through him, washing away the panic as tears poured out of his eyes. This was home. He was safe here. He didn't have to hide anymore. And he wanted to be with Katsuki.

Izuku couldn't believe that, for a moment, he wanted to go back to hide in the recesses of his mind. With his head a little clearer, he suddenly felt so ashamed. He couldn't believe he'd been willing to leave Katsuki again.

Shaking his head, he started to babble out apologies. "I-I'm so sorry. So sorry. Kacchan, I don't wanna leave you!"

Katsuki held him tighter. "You're not going fucking anywhere. I've got you, alpha. You're safe. I've got you."

Izuku kept shaking his head, desperate to get himself across to Katsuki, but he couldn't speak—couldn't explain. He just kept mumbling about how sorry he was. He couldn't believe he'd been missing from Katsuki's side for so long and then almost willingly left again.

But the omega didn't seem to care. Katsuki kept putting out a comforting scent, holding him close and trying to comfort him. His mindless, soothing words were so out of character that Izuku either wanted to laugh or cry. He couldn't believe Katsuki was in this situation in the first place.

Katsuki was never sappy. He struggled with expressing himself, and Izuku could see it actually hurt the omega sometimes to open up. Vulnerability was not Katsuki's strong suit, and words were definitely not his love language. He did things for Izuku, small favors, and acts of service. And Katsuki was physical, showing Izuku he loved him in the way he touched him.

Izuku didn't mind. He appreciated any show of love from his omega.

He felt guilty but grateful at the same time. But he wanted to protect Katsuki, let the omega stay in his own comfort zone. Izuku was supposed to be the alpha. He was supposed to be strong, so Katsuki never had to do anything he didn't want to do.

It just made him cry more, though. And Katsuki was still stuck comforting him, and he kept trying no matter how hard Izuku tried to get him to stop.

"Izuku, you're safe. You're just at home. We killed all those fuckers, and it's just me. Just me, and I love you, and nothing will happen to either of us. I'll fucking kill anyone who even threatens us."

"No, no, stop. Kacchan."

Katsuki shook his head and kept holding him. "No. You deserve to hear this sappy shit. I love you, and you're safe."

"I-I'm sorry. Shouldn't have to. I'm sorry."

"Knock that off. I would do fucking anything for you."

Izuku just whined and buried himself deeper in Katsuki's scent gland. He needed to explain his feelings but still couldn't get the words to come as he cried. It was too overwhelming. How could he even start to apologize for being gone for so long? For abandoning his omega? For how fucked up he was now?

Even after being pulled out of his flashbacks, he could still see the ghosts of every memory behind his eyelids every time he blinked.

He felt broken.

How could he be a hero, an alpha, a mate while he was so broken?

There was no way he could express that, though. He knew Katsuki would yell at him, tell him he wasn't broken. But Katsuki didn't get it. He didn't know what happened, how fucked up he felt. How much the trauma clawed its way into his heart and tore it to shreds. Katsuki couldn't possibly know that his brain felt like swiss cheese, except all the little holes were stuffed full of torture.

And Izuku didn't have the words to say that.

So he cried—for hours and hours.

Katsuki held him for every minute of it, never leaving his side, even when the omega coaxed him out of the nest to take care of him. Izuku went through the motions, answering Katsuki's questions with just a nod or shake of his head. Everything else was too difficult. It was easier to go along with it and let Katsuki guide him through a shower and lunch.

Izuku tried to speak a few times, responding to Katsuki but still feeling like words were too hard to find no matter what Katsuki asked.

"Do you want to watch a movie?"

"Want to work out with me?"

The worst part was when Katsuki took his face in his hands and pressed their foreheads together. It was soft and intimate, entirely unlike Katsuki used to demand affection. But the words broke him the worst.

"I'm so happy that you're back. Even if it fucking takes you years to mumble all the time again, I'm just glad you're back in your own head."

Izuku started to cry again, ending up back in their nest, falling asleep even if it was only the afternoon. Because, as it turned out, full consciousness was exhausting. Izuku didn't want to wake up again for a very long time. So, he slept and hoped the next day would be better.

Chapter Text

Katsuki was lying in their nest. It'd been two days since Izuku woke up after his rut, no longer feral. It was simultaneously amazing and terrifying. The alpha's panic was fucking scary but understandable. Izuku's voice sounded so good he nearly cried, but he had to focus on taking care of Izuku.

He hated seeing him like that, totally panicked but not even feral. It was such a bad sign of how horrible his captivity must have been that he still reacted like that. It made Katsuki want to tear the fucking world apart with anger. He was half-tempted to let his anger take control and go slaughter every villain in Tartarus.

But his inner omega was annoyingly stronger than he liked to admit, keeping him rooted there, whispering sweet nothings once he got Izuku to stop fighting him.

The rest of their day was quiet; Katsuki didn't even speak much. Izuku clearly wasn't in the mood, traumatized, and basically mute. It broke his heart. He wanted to hear about everything. He was practically desperate to understand—desperate to help. But Izuku just remained quiet, ghosts in his eyes as they went about their day.

It was oddly peaceful. Katsuki no longer had to keep such a close eye on him, the alpha capable of taking care of himself even if he chose not to. But Katsuki let him to some extent; if he just needed to sit in their apartment and be for a bit, then Katsuki wasn't going to stop him.

Izuku didn't need to deal with all the extra shit. He could take time to wrap his head around everything. Katsuki may have never experienced it himself, but he was pretty damn sure that waking up after being feral for months was probably disorienting. Izuku deserved to take some extra time to come to terms with things.

But on that second day, Katsuki knew he was pushing his luck.

He'd briefly told everyone they were fine. Sending a text to Endeavor was quick and easy, and Shouto and Shouta only bothered him a little until he stopped responding to their texts. Katsuki called the doctor's office purposefully after hours and left a voicemail.

Doctor Watanabe tried to reach him several times, but Kastuki ignored all the calls.

Eventually, though, people would come and break down his damn door out of concern if he didn't actually talk to someone. He didn't want to do it in front of Izuku, though. It would feel shitty to talk about someone like they weren't in the room.

So the obvious solution was to call the doctor that morning while Izuku was still fitfully trying to sleep in their nest.

It took every ounce of training to sneak out of the nest, maneuvering pillows, so Izuku thought he was still holding onto Katsuki while he tiptoed out of the room and closed the door behind him.

He groaned, wiping his hand down his face as he walked through the apartment and onto the balcony. The morning air was crisp and cool but refreshing as Katsuki took a deep breath away from the scent of constant pain in Izuku's pheromones. It helped him clear his head, calming his inner omega just enough to realize how fucking bad this was.

Katsuki couldn't push shit off anymore as he dug his phone out of his pocket and called the doctor.

"This is Doctor Watanabe."

"Hey, doc. It's Bakugou Katsuki."

The doctor sighed out in relief. "I'm glad you've finally decided to return our calls. How are you? How is Deku?"

"He's… better. I guess. He's not feral anymore. All that shitty scent is gone, and he's in full control, but he's not doing too good."

"Well, that was to be expected, unfortunately," the doctor said. "We already know he went through a great deal of trauma. How do his health and behavior seem?"

"He definitely needs help, a shrink or something. He barely talks, and he's not taking care of himself. He's had several panic attacks from several different triggers."

"I would agree. The next steps should be a final round of blood tests to ensure he's really past being feral, and I will email you a list of psychiatrists that the hospital's heroes wing recommends. Any of them should be able to help Deku."

"Anything else you think I should be doing?"

"Just what you've been doing. Continue to offer support, give him a safe environment, and slowly reintroduce comforting things back into his life. You can probably have the people he was alright with before come and visit him."

"Alright, got it. I-I really fucking hate this."

The doctor didn't speak for a minute, making Katsuki squirm at his little show of vulnerability. But he could hear a little smile in the man's voice when he responded. "I understand, but you've done very well. I'm impressed, in fact. I was certain this would be a train wreck, and Deku would still end up in a rehab facility."

"Tch," Katsuki scoffed. "I'd never let that happen to my mate."

"I've come to understand that, yes."

"Right, whatever. When do you want us to come in for tests?"

"We can give Deku a few more days reprieve, but I don't want to wait any longer than 72 hours. If you need our team to come to you again, please give us at least one day's advance notice."

Katsuki nodded, making a mental note to himself before telling the doctor goodbye and hanging up the phone.

He sighed with relief, his shoulders slumping as he looked out at the city. It was loud and bustling, an excellent example of things moving forward. Just like he and Deku were, even if the alpha felt stuck again.

But it was still an improvement. At least Izuku wasn't feral anymore, even if his head was full of darkness and villains that Katsuki couldn't help him fight.

He would fucking find someone who could, though. Izuku would get help, and no matter how long it took, Katsuki would be there with him, no matter what. He didn't care how sappy it made him sound. Izuku deserved that kind of love.

With a victorious sneer at no one in particular, he whipped around to march back inside to have a good morning while trying to pull Izuku out of his funk with something—anything. Even just a break in their routine from the last two days. Maybe if Shouta came over, it would help.

But when he turned around, he fucking jumped so bad he nearly fell on his ass.

"Fuck, babe, you scared the shit outta me," Katsuki breathed out, seeing Izuku in the doorway.

A little ghost of a smile spread on the alpha's lips, the closest thing Katsuki had seen to happiness since Izuku woke up. "Sorry," Izuku apologized, his voice gravelly from lack of use. "Didn't mean to."

"Yeah, I know," Katsuki waved him off before dragging him back into the apartment. "How much of that did you hear?"

Izuku just shrugged, looking down at the ground in shame.

Katsuki snorted. "I wasn't trying to hide it from you, nerd. You weren't eavesdropping. Just didn't wanna wake you up."

The tension in the alpha's shoulder and his scent slowly eased away as he looked up with a nod, walking further in and slumping down on the couch. Katsuki assessed him for a minute before deciding the alpha seemed mostly alright.

"You want some breakfast?" Katsuki asked.

Izuku nodded, so the omega went into the kitchen, ignoring the way he wanted to purr at taking care of his alpha.

"What do you want?"

"Shouta and Toshinori. M-Maybe my mom?"

Katsuki reeled back. "What?"

"I want to see them… I heard the doctor say that was okay, right?" Izuku whispered, clearly unsure.

But fuck, it was nice to hear his voice again. Katsuki practically went weak-kneed just from hearing his alpha talk again. How the hell could he possibly tell him no?

"Yeah, I'll text them. Not your mom, though. She's uh, not ready for that."

Izuku nodded in understanding, not fighting him on it.

Katsuki watched him for a moment. "You sure about this? The old man is an alpha. It might be a bad idea."

Izuku shrugged. "Maybe, but uhm, I really wanna see them."

"Yeah, but you really need to see a doctor. Like a medical one and a psychiatrist, nerd. This isn't like the other shit that just the agency therapist can help with."

Katsuki hated the way Izuku shrunk in on himself. It was always painful to see the big, strong alpha pro hero make himself as tiny as possible. But Kastuki was pretty sure he understood. It was that alpha pride bullshit, or at least some stupid guilt about not being able to handle it.

He'd have to talk some sense into him later. But this was the first thing Izuku had managed to ask for, so it would have to wait.

"We're gonna figure this shit out better later, but for now, I'm gonna make some fucking pancakes and text the old men to get their asses over here, alright?"

Izuku uncoiled a little, taking a few deep breaths and giving him another tiny, fragile smile. "Thanks, Kacchan."

He bent down to kiss his alpha. "No problem, nerd."

Katsuki thought that was the end of the conversation, expecting Izuku to sink back into himself after a heavy discussion. But Izuku reached out and held his hand, holding him there.

After a moment, he broke the silence. "Deku? What's up?"

"I-I think we should talk about it.”

"You're gonna have to spell it out for me."

"During my rut… I- I marked you. And Kacchan, I'm so sorry. I never wanted it to be like that. It was supposed to be special, not when I was feral out of my mind! You deserved better. And I'm gonna make it up to you, I swear," Izuku whispered, his voice both broken and determined.

Katsuki knelt to the ground in front of his alpha. "I'm not gonna sugarcoat shit, okay? It's not what I imagined, either. I know if it had been any other time, you woulda been fucking sappy and lovey and perfect."

"Kacchan-" Izuku choked out.

"But that sure as shit doesn't mean I regret it. I've wanted to be your mate for years, and even if it's not like we wanted, I love you. And as far as I'm fucking concerned, that's all that matters. We'll figure out the other shit later."

Izuku nodded, tears running down his cheeks but a smile on his lips. "O-Okay, Kacchan. And I love you too. So much."

With a smile, Katsuki stood up and kissed him. "Yeah, yeah. I know, nerd. You never let me forget it."

"Will you still let me make it up to you? I'm going to spoil you when everything's starting to settle down, okay? Make sure my omega knows he's the best and most loved man on the planet."

Katsuki groaned, feeling his cheeks warm as he turned away. "Such a cheesy alpha, Deku. What am I gonna do with you?"

His voice brightened for the first time, and Izuku almost snickered. "You better figure it out! We're going to be together forever, Kacchan!"

Despite the overwhelming shit they were still going through, Katsuki felt better than he had in months, all because forever sounded so damn good.

Izuku was not feeling patient at all. He had vague memories of the lead-up to guests while he was feral, and he basically had no clue what was happening. All he could tell then was that Katsuki's behavior was weird.

But this time, knowing he'd get to see two of the most important people in the world, he was nearly bubbling with anxiety.

Was he excited? Absolutely. It would be so good to see them while he was actually himself, and Toshi hadn't gotten to see him at all. Izuku just really hoped this wasn't a bad idea. He couldn't let himself fall apart.

Izuku needed to prove he wasn't a burden—that he could get better and get back to work being the best mate and hero he could be. Because as far as he was concerned, he'd already failed on both of those fronts.

Mating Katsuki during a feral rut? And getting kidnapped in the first place? He had things he needed to make up for, and seeing the people who loved him was the best way to do it, right?

Katsuki and Izuku had made a pact to do things together and ask for help. They learned early on they shouldn't tackle things on their own. So this was reasonable. He'd lean on his support system a bit until he could prove he could stand on his own.

The omega seemed to disagree; he'd been holding onto something that Izuku knew would be a conversation later. Izuku just hoped he'd be up to having it. It felt like he was moments from going mute again as anxiety bubbled up in his stomach.

But then he heard a knock, and Katsuki opened the front door.

Shouta's scent was picked up immediately, and without even a second of hesitation, Izuku picked up the older omega straight off the ground and hugged him so tightly. He smelled like paternal comfort, the scent seeping into his whole being for a moment before he set Shouta on the ground and stepped back.

He gave Izuku one of those rare, fond smiles. "It's good to see you're back, pup. We were worried about you."

Izuku looked to the ground. "I-I know, sorry."

"Don't apologize. We worry because we care, the same reason you worry about us."

A huff of breath came out of his nose, almost snorting. "Shoulda known you'd say that."

Shouta cocked an eyebrow at him but shook his head in amusement. "Always a brat. You got that from your mate."

"Oi, old man! Don't be an ass!" Katsuki barked.

It felt so normal for a second that Izuku almost forgot all the monsters in his head.

But he was reminded of them the moment Toshinori stepped into the doorway. His scent was subtle. The alpha was clearly trying to suppress it. The scent of ozone and lemon was calm and happy as he smiled at Izuku with tears in his eyes.

"My boy…" he whispered, almost in awe.

Izuku couldn't hear him, though. The only thing that was running through his head was total panic. The smell was too much. The musk of another alpha, even one he loved so dearly, made him want to puke. It took every ounce of self-restraint to hold back from outright attacking him.

Instead, he fell to his knees and started to dry heave. He tried to tuck his nose into his shirt, but it didn't help. Toshi's alpha scent was stuck to the inside of his nose like a leech, sucking out every ounce of happiness he thought he had left.

It felt like he was being torn apart all over again. For a split second, he thought he might go feral again. But then he felt Katsuki and Shouta wrap around him. Their scents started to cover up Toshinori's.

The alpha babbled. "Young Izuku, it's alright. I will visit over video call next time. Please let them take care of you."

Then, he was gone. And his scent with it. It took a few moments to collect himself, focusing on the pheromones of his mate and his pseudo-dam until he could breathe again, crashing further as he fell back on his ass.

Izuku hated it, but this was a wake-up call. Maybe he really couldn't do any of this alone. It made him feel weak, but he wouldn't be a burden any longer than he absolutely had to. Katsuki deserved better.

He looked up at his omega with tears in his eyes. "I-I think I need help. I want to get better."

Katsuki let out a sigh of relief, the weight of the world slipping off his shoulders. "Thank fuck, lemme call the people the doc suggested. And don't you fucking worry about unnecessary shit. This is the right call, and you're fucking perfect no matter what. Got it?"

Izuku didn't really believe him. He couldn't be perfect when it felt like everything good about him had crumbled away. But he smiled at his omega anyway with a nod. "Okay, Kacchan. I'll try to believe you."

The omega bent down to kiss his cheek and nuzzled against him. He threw a momentary glare at a snickering Shouta before running his hand through Izuku's curls. "No trying necessary, nerd. We've got this."

Chapter Text

Izuku was standing in his bedroom, fidgeting with the strings on his hoodie. He wanted to tell himself he wasn't stalling, but he certainly was. Today marked a big day, and he was worried he was going to fuck it all up. The alpha would straight up cry if everything went wrong—too much was riding on this.

He'd spent over two months going to therapy twice a week, and his psychiatrist put him on alpha suppressants and antidepressants. It took a while to open up to them, but after being medicated for a bit, he couldn't deny feeling at least a little more stable.

But the biggest change was the scent therapy. It was nothing more than Izuku talking through his feelings and memories when exposed to the scents of other alphas, but it helped an unbelievable amount. Katsuki even went out and got scented items from Eijirou and Toshinori, the two alphas closest to Izuku, so he could use them during therapy.

In the most recent session, he hadn't even reacted when it was pulled out. He kept talking to his therapist about how bad he felt that Katsuki was locking himself in the apartment to keep Izuku from getting bored and lonely.

It was a massive boost to his self-confidence. He'd been allowed to take Eijirou's things home, and Katsuki managed to put them into their nest to mix with the rest of the pack scents.

Izuku thought for sure that was a good sign for what he was supposed to accomplish today.

It all boiled down to whether or not he could stomach their meeting. All he had to do was focus on Katsuki's scent and do his best to hold onto real memories related to Eijirou's scent. Like the first time they pack scented, or the time both omegas were on a mission, and he ended up passing out on the couch after video games with the other alpha, or even the time their omegas dared them to kiss at a party.

If Izuku could do all that, he could hopefully get through lunch at Eijirou's and Shouto's place.

It was his first step to getting back out into the real world.

But he couldn't dwell on it too long—as much as he wanted to. Katsuki eventually stormed into the bedroom with his trademark glare, which almost hid the concern in his eyes.

"What the hell are you doing, nerd? I've been waiting for like ten minutes. We're gonna be late."

"Sorry, Kacchan," Izuku chuckled, rubbing at the back of his neck and turning away to hide his blush. "Just nervous. Guess I was stalling a little."

"Tch. It's gonna be fine. You've been working hard, and you even liked having Eijirou's stinky scent back in the nest. You ain't got nothing to worry about, dummy."

"I know, just don't wanna mess this up. If I fail, it'll feel like all this work with my therapist was for nothing."

"Sure as shit wasn't for nothing. Even if you have a panic attack or something, it's still a fucking improvement from even just a month ago."

Izuku shrugged but smiled back at Katsuki. "Thanks, Kacchan. I-I'll try to believe you."

"You fucking better, 'cause I'm the best."

"Yeah," Izuku snorted. "You saved me."

Katsuki's chest puffed up, his scent smelling of his usual arrogance that Izuku loved. "Fuck yeah, I did. That rescue OP woulda failed without me."

Izuku shook his head fondly and walked over to Katsuki. He took the omega's face in his hands and gazed into his eyes like beautiful pools of rubies.

"The hell you doing?"

"I wasn't talking about the rescue OP, Kacchan," Izuku whispered, bending down to meet foreheads with the blond. "I'm talking about all of it. The rescue OP, sure, but also saving me from my own head, y'know? You brought me outta that feral state all on your own, you fought me for when people said you were wrong, and you put up with me. Sure, you rescued me, but it's more than that…

"You saved me."

Izuku dropped his hands, wrapping his arms around Katsuki's waist and pulling him in. He bent down more, burying his nose in the omega's scent, and let out a shuddered breath. A shiver crawled up his spine and out of his body, leaving only the warmth he received from his omega. The heat chased his ghosts away as he pulled back and snorted at the blush on Katsuki's face.

"Sorry, was that too cheesy?"

"Yes, moron. God, I hate you."

"No, you don't," Izuku teased as he bent down to give Katsuki a quick kiss.

"I will if we're late."

"Right. Okay. Let's go then," Izuku said with a less-than-confident nod.

Katsuki wasn't giving him the time to second guess him, though, as he grabbed his hand and started to drag him towards the front door. They paused to put on their shoes and for Izuku to put a scent mask on his face. He hated the damn thing, but he wouldn't be able to handle the outside world without it.

So, he sacrificed his comfort and followed Katsuki out of their penthouse apartment and down to their car. He sat silently, staring at the window the entire drive until they pulled up in front of a heat hotel.

"I can't believe we're doing this here," Izuku groaned.

"It made the most sense, nerd, and you know it. They clean the shit outta the rooms, so it will be scent-empty except for the four of us. It's built to handle shit in case you freak out. And obviously, it's more neutral than either of our apartments cause of you stupid alphas being all territorial over your dens."

Izuku let his head fall back against the headrest. "I know, Kacchan," he whined. "I just don't like it."

"I know, and it fucking sucks that you're going through this, but we gotta do it at some point."

With a heavy sigh, Izuku nodded and got out of the car. He followed Katsuki into the building, checking in with the staff who already knew what they were doing—luckily, name-dropping the top heroes often got them special treatment. They were told to go to room 108 and that Shouto and Eijirou were already there.

Izuku was hoping they'd be there first to prepare himself in the room. But instead, he ended up standing outside the room and staring at the black, glossy sign that read Room 108 - Kirishima/Midoriya.

Katsuki took his hand and gave it a squeeze, his face softening with concern. "You ready?"

Closing his eyes, Izuku took a deep breath. "I-I hope so."

The omega peeled back his scent patch for a second, putting out his sweet, comforting pheromones for just a second. Izuku drank them in, letting his thoughts soften just a little bit before turning and kissing Katsuki.

When he pulled back, Katsuki smiled again—something sweet and fond and only for Izuku. "Alright, alpha, let's do it."

With a final nod, with a little more confidence than before, he knocked on the door.

It only took a second for it to open, both Shouto and Eijirou standing in the doorway.

Izuku hadn't seen them in so long. He was suddenly overwhelmed with the feeling of loss, realizing for the millionth time how much he'd missed out on it. It'd been nearly six months since he'd really gotten to be around them, making his eyes water.

But even more than that, their scents felt like home. Like pack.

Eijirou's alpha musk was more potent in person than on the items Izuku had, but it wasn't bad. Intense, and it stuck in his nose, but he wasn't feeling anxious or aggressive.

He just felt intensely—like it exacerbated all his emotions to the point that Izuku couldn't hold back. He sobbed and dove forward, grabbing his packmates in his arms and scenting them both liberally.

Shouto and Eijirou wrapped themselves around him and scented him right back, all of them letting out a chorus of purrs and rumbles that only intensified when Shouto reached out to drag Katsuki into the group hug.

Izuku let out a watery laugh, shaky with tears but happy. "I really missed you guys."

They all responded back. "We missed you too."