BakuTodo - Prince of Kings

11

That night, Todoroki went to the guest room Bakugo was staying in. He would've gone right away but the kingdom had been chaos since his declaration and he didn't have the time.

He was distraught over his brother words and needed someone to confide in. Bakugo was that rock in his life. He had always been there for him and Todoroki was glad he fell in love with such a kind character.

"What's wrong?" Bakugo asked as soon as Todoroki entered the room, moving to him with concern."You look like shit. Have you been pushing yourself too hard, Shoto?"

"I went and saw my brothers," Todoroki explained.

"Oh..." Bakugo looked to the bed."Sit down. Take a breath."

Todoroki put up a hand."No, I'm fine. It's okay, I'm just-" He paused, hands moving up to clench his head."How could they do such a thing?!"

"Shoto..."

"I'm fine, really." He began pacing back and forth across the room."How could they betray me like that and then expect me to believe them when they're just sprouting out more lies?!"

"More lies?" Bakugo questioned."Shoto, slow down. I don't know what the fuck you're talking about."

"Natsuo told me that he had nothing to do with the forgery of my fathers will," Todoroki explained, still pacing."Even Touya vouched for him! How the hell am I supposed to believe them after all that's happened?!"

Bakugo tensed."He said he had nothing to do with it? How is that possible? The whole damned kingdom found evidence proving he was!"

"I know they did!" Todoroki shouted back, slowing his pacing to a stop."I know that, but...what if someone really did set him up?"

"And who would possibly do such a thing?" Bakugo asked."Your kingdom is powerful. People would rather be friends with you than enemies."

"I don't know..." Todoroki mumbled."But my brother said it had to be somebody near me..."

"They're someone near you, Shoto. Closer than you think."

"Closer than I think..."

Todoroki searched through all the names and faces he knew. People he met recently and new faces he had never seen before. There were so many but also so few who actually interacted with him.

Who was it? Who set this all up?

"Shoto...?" Bakugo questioned softly, walking up behind him.

Todoroki paused, eyes widening. It couldn't be him. No way it was. They loved each other, right? You could never be cruel to the one you love.

"Katsuki, did you..." Todoroki slowly turned around to face him and his eyes widened at how close the other was.

Todoroki wouldn't have caught it if he wasn't already suspecting Bakugo but out of the corner of his eye he saw the shiny silver of a knife. Bakugo was going to stab him. He was going to hurt him.

In a pure act of fear and adrenaline, Todoroki jumped away from him but not before Bakugo could get a bloody slash right through his back. Todoroki stumbled and Bakugo followed with a deadly cut right to his achilles tendon.

There was a loud pop and then Todoroki was curling over in pain on the floor. Bakugo watched him with a blank expression, holding his bloody knife at his side. Eyes growing dark, Bakugo voice was barely a rumble.

"You should've stayed quiet, Prince Todoroki. Or should I call you King now?" Bakugo let out a small cackle."Not like you could ever stand on equal ground as me."

"Why?" Todoroki cried, holding his ankle with shaky hands, not believing what was happening. His whole body was in shock, not able to do anything but shiver wildly."Why? Why? Why? Why, Katsuki?! Why?!"

He looked up at him with tearful eyes, wanting some kind of answer he knew he would never get. Why did everyone have to betray him? Why was this happening to him?

"What did I do to deserve this?!" He wasn't talking to Bakugo this time, but looking up and asking the Gods. Pleading for forgiveness and wanting desperately for answers he would never get.

"It never had to be you, Shoto. You were just the most convenient."

"What...?" Todoroki's crazed eyes fell again on Bakugo."What is that supposed to mean?"

"Your family took everything from me," Bakugo explained, head lolling around as he rubbed his neck."But you would never understand that, my dear naive prince. You would never know what it feels like to lose everything and then having to rebuild a kingdom from scratch."

Todoroki just stared at him, breathing heavily and attempting to gain his whits.

"It feels like shit, you know? I was twelve years old when your damned father rained hell upon my kingdom. Say, have you ever heard of the Reprisal War?" Bakugo asked, crouching down to meet Todoroki's eye level.

The Prince swallowed, shaking his head.

"Of course you haven't!" Bakugo laughed."It was your fathers dark period, after all! No one would want to scar his image as the worlds savior, so let's just wipe it from the fucking textbooks!"

Bakugo let out a mirthful chuckle."That war was hell, you know? I remember seeing my fathers men come back without any limbs or talking like the devil possessed them. I would watch people with half a body run back onto the front lies just to defend my kingdom. It was fucking brutal and all this was because your fucking father couldn't handle the power my family was gaining.

"They call it the Reprisal War but in the end, the first act was made by your shitty father. He betrayed my father and my kingdom, attacking us when we were down. There was no mercy, just a cowardly one-sided battle. We were completely annihilated, towns ruined, and more corpses than people left alive.

"My father and mother were taken from me in a brutal fire. As our land burned, they hid me away before those bastard knights could find me. In my place, they sacrificed themselves and burned at the stake. That was the only way your father would end the war. The piece of shit wanted to see their bodies on a stake burning like meat.

"I saw it all. I heard their screams of agony and helplessness at their inability to stop the downfall of their kingdom. And I ran. I ran and I ended up in the hands of tricksters. From there, I vowed revenge. I would rebuild my kingdom which was wiped from the records and take what was rightfully mine. I would become the King of the Salvo Kingdom."

Bakugo grabbed Todoroki by the hair, bringing his face up so they were staring deep into each others eyes."I hate you, Todoroki Shoto. I hate your fucking kingdom and I hate all that you stand for. You will fall and it will be by my hand."

"You..." Todoroki's eyes watered, still he stayed strong."I thought you loved me."

Bakugo hesitated."I never loved you. Your foolish nativity was just a means to an end. Wake up from your pathetic delusions."

Todoroki's eyes grew dark. A small noise grew in the back of his throat and then he looked up and glared at Bakugo.

The next thing the King knew, a knife was flying towards his face. He narrowly dodged it but the prince still got a massive cut across his face, narrowly missing his eye. It bled deeply but didn't deter him. He knew the minute he was hit that it would scar.

Todoroki had made his mark and now it was Bakugo's turn to retaliate.

But, in height of all his adrenaline and lust for revenge, he couldn't move. He hesitated and in that moment, everything changed.

Love, was it? Feelings?

With the strength of a seasoned warrior, he grabbed Todoroki's hand and crushed it so that he would drop the knife. His other hand gripped his knife, shaking slightly, but he forced it to stop.

He couldn't hesitant now. He couldn't stop.

"This is your penitence, Todoroki Shoto. Don't worry, I'll take good care of your kingdom."

And with those words, he slashed Todoroki's throat.

He hated every second.