𝔸 𝔾𝕙𝕠𝕤𝕥 𝕠𝕗 𝕎𝕙𝕒𝕥 𝕎𝕒𝕤 𝕆𝕟𝕔𝕖 𝕄𝕚𝕟𝕖 𝕍.𝟚 💥𝔹𝕜𝔻𝕜💥

Chapter 44

⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽༓☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅

Bitter Sweet Reunion

IZUKU

Day One of Imprisonment

Izuku's consciousness flickered back into existence, jolted by a distant, bloodcurdling scream that pierced the silence. A sudden cold, paralyzing dread clenched his heart. Where... where was he?

The cold crept in slowly at first, then bit deeper, sinking through skin, settling like lead into his bones. He lay pressed against a hard, unyielding surface—a stone floor, he realized, the chill leeching into his muscles, making them twitch in protest. He tried to move, but his arms, his neck... something was holding him, something tight and relentless, confining him. Panic stirred within him, clawing at his throat as he strained against the restraints.

What...what is this? His breath quickened, each inhale thin and shaky. Dim light seeped from beneath a distant door, just enough to catch the glint of metal encircling his wrists and neck. He twisted, inching closer to the light, squinting as he tried to make out the restraints. His heart pounded harder. (T.I.M.) The Iron Maiden. The name jolted his mind awake, and instinctively, he tried to call on his quirk—but his energy felt hollow, like a match snuffed out. One For All... come on, please...

Nothing.

Not even a flicker.

Izuku's wide, emerald eyes flickered around the room, searching desperately for anything—a weak point in the restraints, a vent, anything he could use to his advantage. He wracked his brain, trying to calm the rising panic, even as his quirk remained stubbornly dormant.

Izuku tugged frantically at the chains, his hands, still bound by the chains, shook uncontrollably as he tried to move his feet. His bare toes scraped against the rough surface beneath him, searching for where the chain might connect to the floor, anything he could leverage to pull himself free. He squirmed, awkwardly feeling along the cold stone, but the chains clattered, tight and unyielding, offering no give. Izuku's frantic heartbeat pounded in his ears, a relentless rhythm that drowned out everything else. It was deafening, the thud-thud-thud of panic threatening to consume him entirely.

Somewhere in the distance, another scream ripped through the silence—a chilling, broken sound that sent a fresh wave of terror crashing over him.

In the dim, flickering light, his eyes caught sight of something—his own torn kimono, hanging loosely around his body. The fabric, once vibrant and familiar, now hung in tatters, stained with dirt and blood. It clung to him, heavy and cold, like a cruel reminder of everything that had led him here.

The sight of it made him freeze, his blood running colder than it already had been. A sharp, piercing memory crashed through his mind, as vivid as if it had just happened.

Kacchan.

Katsuki's face, etched with anguish, burned into his mind, his arm reaching out, desperately trying to save him. Izuku felt a lump rise in his throat, a whimper escaping before he could stifle it. Kacchan... He bit down on the inside of his cheek, forcing back the flood of emotions. He could almost hear the desperate cry of his name that Katsuki couldn't say past the posion, echoing in the recesses of his thoughts. Katsuki had been so close, his arm outstretched, eyes wide with a kind of fear Izuku had seen only once before. That fear wasn't for himself—it was for Izuku. Katsuki, broken and beaten, had been trying to save him.

What had happened to Kacchan after that? He remembered the blood, the broken bones and bruises marring Katsuki's skin, and the frantic way he'd fought to get to him before that venom user took him down. Katsuki had been injured, badly. The thought made Izuku's stomach churn.