Fire and Paper (BakuDeku Quirk Transfer AU)

A Discovery and a Plan

Katsuki lay on his bed, staring at the ceiling blankly and paying no mind to the growing puddle that the dampness of his hair was creating on his pillow. In fact, he paid no mind to anything; not the calling of birds roosting in trees outside as night approached, nor the smell of his favorite spicy curry wafting in from under his bedroom door. His skin was redder than usual, the result of scrubbing too hard in the shower, yet the rawness of it did not phase him. After all, how else was he supposed to ensure that he got every trace of that villain off of him?

Ah yes, the reason behind Katsuki's behavior: the Sludge Villain. To put it simply, it had been quite the day. Katsuki, of course, would describe it as annoying; the villain, the fuss his mother had made when he had gotten home, and "fucking Deku" all combined to put him in a foul mood. He hadn't even wanted the praise of the heroes who had offered it. The extras had done nothing but stand by, too chicken to get close, to even attempt to do anything besides hold the perimeter. But perhaps it wasn't the heroes who were annoying him, as much as it was the fact that the quirkless nerd had come close while the heroes didn't, had put his life on the line when the Pros would not. And for what? A scolding from the Pros and a pitying look from All Might. Not to mention a tongue-lashing from Katsuki himself, though the boy did somewhat regret it considering Izuku was the only one actively trying to save him for the majority of the ordeal. Plus, the nerd had left so disheartened that Katsuki almost felt sorry for him. No, scratch that, he did feel sorry for him.

The blond shook his head at the thought, finally noticing the dampness of the pillow in the process and sitting up, grimacing as cold water ran down the back of his neck. This fucking villain must be driving me crazy if I'm feeling sorry for Deku, he thought with a scowl. I'm not gonna waste time thinking about that shitty ass nerd. He begrudgingly grabbed his textbook, electing to study rather than face the annoying thoughts in his head.

Skimming through the assigned chapter, he growled. Why the hell are we going over quirk inheritance AGAIN? We just fucking covered it last year. He skimmed over the text. Know that. Know that. Definitely know that. He paused as his eyes fell on unfamiliar content on one of the few pages that he wasn't required to read. "The transfer of Quirks? What the fuck is this shit?" He read the section slowly under his breath.

"With the cooperation of ex-villain All for One, Pro Hero All Might, and a team of elite geneticists, Project 'Create a Machine With the Capability to Copy and Transfer Quirks' (named by All Might and much more commonly referred to Project CTQ) succeeded in doing just that. The Quirk-Transfer Devices allow for the user to copy their Quirk via a DNA sample, and transfer said copy to a compatible host.

"After 'The Nomu Trials,' the initial human trials that resulted in severe mutation and mental impairment in several volunteers, all devices were redeveloped to determine compatibility before the transfer takes place, and will cease function if any Quirk rejection or other signs of incompatibility begin to occur during transfer. While use of these devices is currently regulated by the government, scientists believe that these devices will aid in the strengthening of Pro Heroes and the treatment of Quirklessness... What the fuck?" He stared at the page with a skeptical look, before rereading the entire thing an additional two times.

His eyes widened as he took the information in. Wouldn't this help that shitty nerd? He took out his phone and typed a quick message, but instead of hitting "send" his thumb hesitantly hovered over the button. Actually, he thought with a smirk, maybe I should surprise him. Dumbass wants to become a hero, and his old hag's Quirk sure won't be good for that. But what if I gave him MY Quirk? Just as an apology for shit; don't want any rumors about me bullying him too bad starting cuz that'll fuck with my career later. He justified, ignoring a slight blush that ran across his face as he made a quick search on his phone for information on acquiring a Quirk-Transfer Device.