Dancing Shadows

Chapter Forty-Two

Ellowyn's POV-
   As Katsuki and I walk into his childhood bedroom, I realize just how different it is from his current one. There's only one guitar here and way fewer books but so much more All Might merchandise. Not nearly as much as Midoriya, but still.

   He reaches into his closet and pulls out two t-shirts and then two pairs of sweatpants. He hands me one of each and says, "Change in here. I'm going down the hall to the bathroom. Let me know if you need anything."

   I nod. He kisses my forehead as he leaves. Once the door is closed, I quickly strip out of my dress and leave it on his dresser to dry. Then I throw on the grey sweatpants and the shirt that has a cute All Might cartoon on it. I begin to realize just how much more of an All Might fanboy Katsuki used to be compared to now.

   I head downstairs and into the dining room. Mitsuki has me sit down next to her with Katsuki's dad sitting across from me on her other side. Katsuki comes down shortly after and Mitsuki puts him and her husband to work setting the table and making plates. Once everyone has a plate of food, everyone sits down and begins to eat.

   As soon as I take a bite, I immediately understand where Katsuki got his cooking skills from. "It's delicious!"

   "Thank you for the compliment." Katsuki's dad replies.

   "Thank you for inviting me, Mr. Bakugou."

   "It's just Masaru. And no worries. Our son probably would've waited a long time before inviting you over if not asked to. He's a very private person."

   "I would've brought her over eventually." Katsuki mumbles.

   "It's not like I've been much better. I haven't told my parents about us at all."

   "Really? Why?" Mitsuki asks.

   "I just...I didn't want to worry them any more than they already are."

   "Oh, sweet girl." Mitsuki says, "Parents never stop worrying. It our job. You aren't burdening them by telling them about your life."

   "I know. You're right."

   "I usually am." Mitsuki says jokingly. "Changing the topic, how did you and my son start dating?"

   "Mom, come on!"

   "What? I want the whole story. Minus any juicy details. I don't want to know about any of that."

   "Mom!"

   "Look son, I don't give a fuck what you're doing as long as you're being safe but I don't want to hear about any of it."

   I've never seen Katsuki left quite so speechless. He sets his head in hands, completely avoiding looking at his mom. It's adorable how embarrassed he looks.

   "I mean, the story is pretty boring. We met in class, became friends, and eventually he told me he liked me. Then we started dating."

   "He told you?" Mitsuki asks in disbelief. "My son is so emotionally private he barely says he loves me."

   I can't help but smile as I think back to that day. "Well, it took him a while but he told me." I look at him as I say, "In his own way. Eventually."

   His face quickly turns red with a blush as he glares at me and I have to hold back a laugh. "Anyways," He says, obviously trying to change the subject quickly, "I had some other things I wanted to talk with you guys about."

   "Like what?"

   "it's only two things. First, I talked with Deku. I apologized for everything. I thought you should know."

   Mitsuki smiles as she says, "We're very proud of you. It couldn't have been easy. What made you decide to?"

   "Well, everything that you told me had obviously been playing in the back of my mind for a few years but I finally decided when Cherry suggested it."

   "I'm glad. Has it been better?"

   "Yeah. It has. I just wanted to say thank you. You know, for making me get better."

   "You did that yourself. You should be very proud." She then asks, "What else did you want to talk about?"

   "Aizawa gave us the dates for camp this summer."

   The mood immediately changes. Mitsuki's smile is gone and even Masaru, who is usually very stoic, is obviously tense. I can relate a bit to how they feel. He was kidnapped the last time he was at camp. Could things go as badly as last time?

   Masaru says, "You know how we feel. If you feel unsafe or aren't ready, stay home and we will talk to the school. If you want to go, go."

   "I want to go."

   His father smiles in a bittersweet kind of way. "I had a feeling. You are so incredibly dedicated. Just stay safe."

   "I will."

   Everyone is quiet for a really long time, obviously remembering what happened last summer, I take up the job of changing the conversation. "I'm still awed by how good this food is. I'm a terrible cook, no matter how much Katsuki tries to teach me."

   I spend the rest of dinner listening to Katsuki and Mitsuki bicker back and forth while Masaru and I try to keep the conversation relatively on track.

   Afterwards, we decide to stay the night since it's dangerous to go home during such a bad storm. I help everyone clear the table. Masaru offers to clean up in the kitchen and Katsuki helps him while Mitsuki leads me to the living room. She doesn't hesitate to grab a few family photo albums and show me every single picture of Katsuki she can. Even thirty minutes later, I'm not bored. Especially when she opens a baby picture album. The only thing I recognize is his spiky hair and bright red eyes. Other than that, he just looks so tiny and chubby and nothing like his current self.

   Katsuki walks into the room only three pictures in and when he sees what we're looking at, he and his mom start yelling at each other again. It's obvious that they're being playful, but it's still a bit overwhelming.

   "Fine! Look at these stupid pictures if you want. I'm going to bed!"

   "I love you too!" Mitsuki yells as he storms up the stairs and slams the door to his room.

   I hear it open as he tells back, "Love you!" before slamming his door shut again.

   "I think I'm ready for bed too. I will come back to see these pictures again at some point. Thank you for showing them to me."

   "Of course."

   "Goodnight, Mitsuki."

   As I turn to leave, she grabs my arm and I flinch. "Wait." I turn to face her and she says, "Keep him safe. Please."

   I know that she's talking specifically about keeping him safe from the League at camp this summer, but it means more to me than just that. "I will. I promise."

   She nods, seeming a bit more at ease. "Thank you. Go get some sleep, Ellowyn."

   I nod before leaving her and heading upstairs to Katsuki's room.