Green Hope :: BakuDeku

2 Years

"You never told me what the fuck a Brute is."

Izuku sighed, dropping his head. "Katsuki... We're still outside... Just because we don't see an Infected doesn't mean there aren't any," he muttered, keeping his voice low and gaze sweeping the area around them.

Katsuki shrugged, adjusting Izuku's duffle on his shoulder. "Tell me and I'll shut up, Nerd."

The greenette inhaled, running his fingers through his hair. "A Brute is one of the Mutated Infected, like a Screamer or a Runner. They're kind of... Dumb, if you will... They don't really know what they're supposed to go after or what they're supposed to eat, so they do best when in a herd. They have thick skin, making it a lot harder to take them down, and they're really strong. They are capapble of breaking down walls, just like you saw. I've even seen one flip a car."

Katsuki hummed and nodded, feigning impressment. "So, morons with muscle..."

"Yeah, something like that..."

"How long have they been around?"

Izuku scrunched his nose and halted, looking to Katsuki. The blond limped about two more steps before stopping as well. "Uh, the whole time? Just like the others."

Katsuki scoffed, crossing his arms. "Then how come I've never come across one of the fuckers?"

The greenette sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Well, like I said, they do better in herds, so it's likely you've seen one or been near one, but mistaked it for a normal Biter. They look and act the same, they just maintain muscle mass really well and can break or throw shit." He adjusted his knapsack and continued, walking ahead of Katsuki.

"Slow down, Nerd. I'm fuckin' gimpy."

"'Gimpy?'" Izuku echoed, but did slow down. "What are you? Eight?"

"Twenty-two, thanks for asking."

"Oh my God..."

~

"Alright, the house is clear," Izuku sighed as he set his bag on the sofa. "Door locked?"

Katsuki rolled his eyes and nodded, leaning back in the reclining chair with his feet up on the coffee table, boots already kicked off to the side. "Locked it when we came in."

Izuku frowned, crossing his arms over his chest. "You sure are comfortable."

"You had it. Small house, big gun. I'm sure you got another grenade somewhere, too."

The greenette rubbed his face. "I nearly died for those grenades and I'm not going to use one for just one or two Biters, Katsuki."

Katsuki shrugged, shifting in the seat to get more comfortable.

Izuku groaned and sat on the sofa beside his bags. "Well, there's three bedrooms. I checked the kitchen, there's some canned foods that may still be good, but not much else. Looks like the family had offed themselves in the backyard back when it all started," he muttered, rubbing his hands together.

Sighing, Katsuki looked up to the ceiling. "Yeah... A lot of people did that..."

"I know..." Izuku's voice fell and it had Katsuki sitting up straight, scowling deeply.

"Why'd you fuckin' say it like that?"

"What?"

Katsuki sneered, curling his fingers into fists. "Why did you say it like that? What happened? What-" he paused for a second before his eyes widened. "Your parents..?" No, it couldn't have been. His parents were the happiest people alive. They wouldn't just off themselves because it was the end of the world. Would they..?

However, the way Izuku avoided eye contact and rubbed his neck made Katsuki's stomach churn. "It's not what you're thinking, Katsuki... I promise. Mom had gotten sick... Not like, bitten or anything... She just got sick and wasn't getting better. We ran out of medicine and... She felt like she was putting me in danger. Dad was gone, so it was just us... I had to take care of her. I didn't mind at all, but she felt as if she was a burden, so one night... While I was sleeping, she took the gun and..." He shrugged. He didn't have to say it. Didn't want to.

The blond sank back into the chair, gripping the arms. "It couldn't have been easy..."

Izuku smiled softly, leaning back. "No, it wasn't... It sucked and I was alone... But I understood. I would have done the same... So I tried to keep living, for the both of my parents, even though I didn't have them anymore..."

"So, why are you going to the CDC? All the fucking way down in Georgia? And why now? Why not go there right from the start? You could have been there by now."

The greenette sighed, twiddling his thumbs. "Well, mom and I stayed at home until she died, which was about six months in. I couldn't leave for a while... Not wanting to leave home. I think I was there for about a month, then I left with the intention of going to the CDC... About a week later, I was only two cities over and I... Got caught up in a group... I was there for about four months before I was able to esc- leave..." Katsuki narrowed his eyes, but kept his mouth shut. "I left and started traveling, but I was injured, so I holed up in a place for a bit while I healed..."

Katsuki hummed and nodded. "Okay, so you're still missing about a year."

Izuku chuckled. "Well, I stayed in that place for a while... I think maybe two months. I healed, once I healed, I started training... Started working out and getting stronger. I didn't really know how to shoot a gun, so I started teaching myself. I found a second group and they taught me a lot, too. I was there for only three months before I kept moving again, then I got trapped in a city. The biggest herd I'd ever seen went through. It took a week for me to even think about leaving safely. Uhm... At one point, I realized I was going the wrong direction for about three weeks, so I had to go back and head the right direction... Then there were times where I just needed a break... So I'd camp out for a few days before moving on. Some places also just took a while to get through. It's easier and faster with two or three people, but..." He breathed deeply and shifted.

"But most people want to find a safe place and stay and... I'm finding it difficult to trust a lot of people... The end of the world really brings out the worst in you if you let it..."

Katsuki nodded in agreement. "Yeah... I've only come across a couple of survivors going through the city while on runs... One group killed one of ours, another stole our shit and left us for dead."

"That's happened to me, too... Set me back by a few days..."

"So you've just had a real shitty end-of-the-world experience, huh?"

Izuku laughed, pulling off his shoes. "Yeah, I guess so. You got pretty lucky with a big group. Any friends from before?"

Katsuki hummed, taking the blanket offered to him. "Yeah. Quite a few actually... Round cheeks, too."

The greenette's eyes widened and he sat up quick, a second blanket in hand. "Seriously? Ochako? She's alive?"

"Yeah. Can't even describe how pissed I was when we found her, 'cause you know she makes me fuckin' mad." Izuku giggled and nodded. "Anyway... She's a damn good fighter. Rocked some guy's shit a couple months back when he tried breaking into the dorms. So, I guess it's cool she's still kickin'."

Izuku shook his head and moved the bag off the sofa. He laid back, draping the blanket over his legs and staring up at the ceiling. "She was such a good friend... One of my only friends in high school..."

Katsuki frowned again, turning away. "You could've seen her if you'd helped me back to the dorm."

The other was quiet for a few moments. Finally, "good night, Katsuki."

Yeah, he's still got shit to work on. Still such an ass.

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1337 words