Amethyst. (Katsuki Bakugo x Reader)

PART 34 - What the Dark Demands

The Cave

The deeper we walked, with our small glow sticks, the heavier the silence became. Our footsteps echoed against the stone, swallowed by the dark. The air grew damp, cold enough to sink into my skin.

Tokoyami didn't say a word, but I noticed the way his shoulders stiffened with each step, the subtle twitch of his hands tightening at his sides. The further we went, the more the darkness seemed to weigh on him.

It didn't make my own fear any easier to ignore. If anything, his tension fed mine. I hated that—hated feeling afraid and hated even more that I was angry at myself for it.

Finally, my voice broke the silence. "Why does Dark Shadow lose control in the dark? He is a shadow. Shouldn't this be his strength?"

Tokoyami's eyes glinted faintly as he glanced at me. "Because strength without balance is corruption. The darker it is, the stronger he becomes. And the more he slips from me. He is not... evil. But instinct alone is not enough."

His honesty surprised me. It was blunt, but steady.

He walked another few paces before speaking again. "Why are you the only Todoroki who can create something alive from ice? Something you cannot control?"

The words struck sharper than the cold air. He didn't say it like an insult - just fact. And that made it worse.

I exhaled slowly, forcing my gaze forward into the dark. "Maybe because I feel too much. I try to bury it, but it doesn't stay buried. The dragon is... everything I don't want to admit."

The silence pressed in thicker, but it wasn't uncomfortable. Our footsteps echoed against the stone, steady but tense.

Tokoyami nodded once, his eyes fixed ahead. "Perhaps we both are cursed with Quirks that demand more of us than we wish to give."

A humorless sound escaped me, closer to a scoff than a laugh. "Cursed is one word for it."

We walked further. The tunnel widened, the walls slick with damp, the air colder, heavier. Each step made the silence less steady, more alive, like the cave itself was holding its breath.

Then the sound came. A scrape against stone. A shift of air, like wings cutting through it.

Shadows moved before they took form - broad wings stretching out, a head lifting from Tokoyami's silhouette. Eyes glowed in the dark, sharp and alive.

"As long as I hold the reins," Tokoyami said, voice tight, "he is an ally."

I'd seen Dark Shadow before - at the sports festival, when Tokoyami and I had fought side by side. Back then, he'd been powerful but manageable, a partner held in check.

But with every step we took deeper, Tokoyami's posture stiffened. His hand lifted, fingers twitching like they held a fraying leash. Dark Shadow didn't shrink back—he swelled. Feeding off the dark.

Here, he became enormous. His wings nearly brushed the ceiling, his claws cut deep into the rock. His voice, when it rumbled low through the cavern, was layered, deeper, older than I remembered.

For a moment, I couldn't look away. He was impressive - regal, even. Something about the way his eyes flicked toward me made him feel less like a weapon and more like... a being. Almost familiar. Too familiar. Like the dragon's presence that lingered at the edges of my mind.

"Dark Shadow," Tokoyami said, his voice low, measured. "Stay steady."

The creature didn't answer. He laughed - low, jagged, the sound vibrating against the walls.