𝒦𝑒𝑒𝓅𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒴𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝒫𝓇𝑜𝓂𝒾𝓈𝑒 | Katsuki Bakugo x OC

Prologue

"Kousuke!"

Said man who is dressed in a fancy red cape with layers of toothed necklaces decorating his bare chest, turns to the call of his name.

His scarlet eyes widen at the sight of the woman he adores running to him, her tear-stained face contorted in worry and glancing up at the balcony left of him.

He follows her gaze, curious as to what is frightening her so. But suddenly feels two hands shoving him off his balance. He falls, immediately standing right back up with his muscles flexing to fight, his lungs heavy with deep breaths, ready to scream at his assailant.

Except when he sees who attacked him, who pushed him, his heart sinks into the pits of his stomach like an anchor in the sea. Like how it does when he's falling from the sky with no safety on the ground.

The love of his life, an auburn haired woman has an arrow piercing her abdomen instead of his.

Her white dress is now stained crimson.

She saved him from the path of a poisoned arrow meant for his heart.

She saved him.

"Ayane!"

He screams, so raw, so broken, he himself barely recognizes his own sound.

He scrambles to her side, gingerly picking up her torso and laying her on his lap. With shaky, frantic hands, he tears a part of his cape and wraps her stomach carefully, securing with a tight knot to try to stop the red pouring out of her. To stop her from loosing anymore of her lifeforce.

Her eyes are half-lidded, her cheeks are still flushed from sprinting to his side, her breath is still erratic.

"No," he panics, "no no no, no please. Aya, I beg you, look at me." The prideful king, now reduced to a desperate man, is lightly patting her cheek. He needs to keep her awake, he needs to keep her alive.

Her vision blurs from the tears pooling in her aquamarine eyes, but she recognizes the raspy voice of the man she loves. "Ko- Kousuke." Her voice cracks and splinters as she tries so hard to say his name as tenderly, as ardently as she can.

His left arm coils around from behind her shoulders, his other hand combing her hair away from her face.

"We have to get you to the old lady, just hold on. Okay." He says with rare rare tears pooling in his eyes, his words meant to convince her but are working more to convince himself. "You're going to be okay. You hear me, Aya."

I cannot, will not lose her. He thinks fiercely, passionately. Not like this.

But when he is about to call a soldier to get the healer, he feels a shaky hand squeezing his right one.

"Kou, st- stop." She stutters and coughs, because the pain is too much. Because she can feel herself slipping further and further away. Nonetheless, she continues. "Please stop. It's o- okay. It doesn't hurt." She lies, her lips curling up in a small smile.

His eyes widen, a sudden sharp terror of loosing her starts to pierces his chest, right through his heart. "No, you can't leave. No please." He begs, weeping with his entire body and soul. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

I'm sorry.

Her salty liquid cascade down her color-draining cheeks at his desperate words. Reaching out with right hand, she cups his jaw, her thumb wiping away his never-ending tears.

She shushes him. "K- Kou. Don't cry. Everything is well." Her smile is just as beautiful, even if it is laced with pain, and manages to make him melt and crumble all the same.

"No, nothing is well." He argues with urgency, with deep, bone-rooted regret. "I shouldn't have been so furious at you. It wasn't your fault. I'm sorry I didn't heed you. Just please don't- don't leave." He croaks, his voice breaking and cracking every other word from his emotional turmoil, from seeing her slip right through his fingers.

Please, don't leave.

"Let's go to the healer, okay. She'll fix you up so quickly you would not even feel the pain. And then everything will be well." His words are light with frenzy and heavy with fear. "Okay, Aya? Everything is going to be okay." He chokes between sobs, his chest heaving, clutching her frail body so close to his as he tries and tries to seep his warmth into her ice-cold frame.

Ayane's smile falters for a split second, only bringing it back bigger than before, crinkling the corners of her earthly looking eyes. "Kou, they're his arrows." She swallows the blood pooling in her mouth. "Lady Chiyo doesn't have the antidote. No- no one does except him."

Hearing her words, his heart of glass shatters so much he can feel it dust into nothing. "Aya." He coos, something he's only reserved for her ears. "We still have to go to your meadow."

Please, stay. He pleads with every fiber in his being. Please.

He lowers his head, kissing her lips so tenderly, so affectionately he's afraid he'll break her anymore. And she kisses him back, tasting the salty liquid leaking from both of their eyes and the iron from her blood.

He leans his forehead to touch hers, his tears dripping on her face, continuing to mix with hers.

"You still need to show me your favorite flower bed." He says, his hot breath fanning her tear-stained cheeks.

"It's okay," she splutters, and coughs, and red is now going down her chin. "You can go and see it for me." Her beam breaks him even further. "Hm?"

Kousuke whimpers much like a child. His crown, his status mean nothing when it comes to death. He finally understands that now. "I can't see it without you, my love, my suisen."

Please gods, he beseeches to the ones up in the heavens. Please don't take her away from me.

"Promise me-" A cough and a wince and she can feel him clutching her tighter, feel him shaking further, "-promise me you will."

And when he doesn't say anything, she lightly pushes his face away from hers so she could meet with his twin crimson flames that are so dull she felt immense guilt for leaving him.

"Kou." She says with her voice small and soft, pleading for compliance.

"You have my word." He whispers back, smelling her hair, trying to keep the scent of daffodils imprinted in his mind forever.

Please don't leave me.

She gives him another smile. This time oozing relief and contentment as she cups his cheek one last time. "Kousuke.... I love you...."

He sobs openly now, kissing her cheeks and her nose and her forehead and her lips, and finally whispers a promise on her frigid skin. "I love you more."

I love you. So, please stay.

She opens her eyes, showing the light in her aquamarine irises one last time, a single tear streaming down her face.

"I promise" she whispers in his ear as he holds her to him as though they are one. "I will be with you again... I promise my love...

my Kou...

I promise."

And with her last breath, a final promise is forged.

A final vow ensured to be fulfilled.

When?

Only time can tell.