bunny love [k. bakugo x oc]

50. Empathy

Sounds crept all around Katsuki. Five minutes had finally lapsed, so audible commotion commenced downstairs upon the arrival of the other heroes. Shouting, crashing, and other such indications of violence created a faint, discordant melody that seeped through the floor to reach them. The stifled cries of the ten children added to the cacophony as Katsuki released the wrists of a child with a broken leg and picked him up.

Suddenly, the walkie-talkie dropped by one of the kidnappers crackled to life. Their heads turned to look at the item left in the hallway.

"Morinaga!" a woman on the other end of the line barked. "Hide your asses, there're heroes here—"

The transmission abruptly cut out, rendering short a message this Morinaga person wasn't even awake to receive. Katsuki looked back at his teammates, who took the woman's order as a cue to round up all the children.

"We need to get out of here," Deku urged, scooping up the remaining two injured children who refused to walk.

Katsuki helped another kid to her feet while Shoto coaxed the children crowded around Kuri to action. He herded four kids to the door and whispered promises they would be safe. Katsuki kept his eyes on Kuri as everyone else headed out.

Kuri stiffly got to her feet and placed her hands on the backs of the last two children, who looked up at her nervously. She turned around and pressed the kids forward, her eyes downcast and glazed over.

Katsuki furrowed his brow worriedly before looking away from his girlfriend and back toward the hallway. There was no time to talk to her about the undeniable pain in her expression until everyone was safe.

The fourteen of them hurriedly bypassed the bodies of the kidnappers and made for the stairwell. Katsuki noticed Shoto had encased the last conscious kidnapper in ice—with a little breathing hole to prevent asphyxiation. He tried to shield the children's eyes as he led them to the stairs, but they looked anyway.

Just as Katsuki stepped a foot over the threshold, he heard rapid footsteps ascending the stairs, and he threw an arm out to keep the others from going any further. Katsuki passed the child he was holding to Shoto just as a person stumbled into view.

The gaunt man threw out a hand, and Katsuki put up an arm to deflect a barrage of needle-like projectiles aimed at his face just as Deku ushered everyone to duck behind the wall. Katsuki felt a few of the sharp objects sink into his flesh, and he winced before jumping back to hide with them for a second. He hoped those needles didn't have poison on them.

"Everyone, cover your ears!" Katsuki shouted for the benefit of the already startled kids, giving them a second to follow his command before thrusting an arm back through the doorway at the man running over, and firing off a medium-sized blast.

The explosion shook the building and frightened the kids, but the force knocked the man straight into the wall one flight below. Through the dust and debris, Katsuki saw that the impact of the man's body against the concrete had cracked it and his skull. Whether or not he was dead, Katsuki didn't know, but the man was no longer a threat to the kids.

The others quickly rushed in behind him, and Deku jumped and grabbed the frame of the rooftop door, pulling himself through the hole quickly before settling in a kneeling position at the opening and directing Katsuki and the other two to hand him the kids.

The four of them made quick work, knowing another stray kidnapper could weasel away from the pro heroes to come check on them at any second. They sent up the most injured children first, then the ones drawing the most attention by crying loudly. Katsuki and Shoto did most of the lifting while Kuri designated the next child to be sent out, due to their height difference.