Chapter Text
“Oi! Red Dragon!! Where the fuck are you!!??” Bakugou was yelling from inside the network of caves. It wasn’t the first time he’d been hired to kill a dragon. This one had apparently been harassing a nearby village, stealing shit. Bakugou didn’t really care. It was a job.
It took twenty minutes of walking down corridor after corridor in the mountain’s cave system before he found the largest cavern, with a giant scaled beast already snarling at him from within. Bakugou’s torch lit the slitted pupils eerily.
“There you are, lizard breath!! Prepare to die!!” He dropped the torch and lunged forward, embedding magic into his sword to give it enough power to break through the dragon’s scales and skin. He made cut after cut, dodging the mouth full of razor-sharp teeth and blocking the fire breath with his magic. This dragon was going down easier than he expected. Its moves were slow and it seemed... off balance. He sent blasts to the creature’s face and underside, stunning and putting a big gash in its chest. The dragon stumbled with a cry of anguish and fell back into a cloud of smoke. Bakugou wore a proud smile and waited for the smoke to clear. The dragon’s form had changed. He was smaller and had human features now, though still donning horns in his spiky red hair and partially scaled skin. Tail and wings remained as well. He had his body curled around something.
“Please! Warrior, there's a hatchling here!!” The dragon cried. His big red eyes met Bakugou’s. The thing he was curled around was a dragon child, a little girl with electric blond hair who clung to the redhead in fear.
“I wasn’t hired for the child. I’m here for you,” he pointed his sword.
“S-someone wants to kill me?? But why??”
“Said you were messing with the village or some shit. Doesn’t matter to me.”
“I-oh-I was trying to make medicine... for this little one... I didn’t want to steal but she was getting so much worse and they have so many resources in the village!!” The dragon pleaded seemingly out of breath.
“I don’t care. Let go of the kid and get over here.”
“Please! Her mom won’t be back for weeks!! She needs me! I-I’m the only.. one here... what if...” the dragon’s speech was slurring. Was he succumbing to his injuries already? He was covered in cuts and the gash on his chest was pretty bad. But something seemed off. The dragon’s face was flushed and his eyelids seemed to grow heavier the more he talked.
“What if something... happens to her.. I can’t....I...can’t...” then the dragon collapsed. The little girl shrieked.
“Kirishima!! Don’t die!!” She sobbed. “M-mr. Human, he-he got my sickness after I got better. He gave me the last of the medicine! How do we help him?!” She wailed through her tears. Fuck. Killing something that’s not full strength was not honorable at all. It hadn’t been a fair fight from the beginning. Bakugou groaned. This was turning into a much more complicated situation than Bakugou was willing to deal with. These fuckers are lucky Bakugou’s savings were hefty.
“What...” Was he really going to do this? “What was the medicine?” He asked. Bakugou wouldn’t consider himself a generous person by any means. He had simply been sick a handful of times on the road and remembers how frustrating it was to be sick and alone.
“You’ll help?!” The girl’s eyes lit up. “It was um. Elderberry and sawtooth vines and um. Some leaf that looked like um. Kind of like a star or maybe it had six points? Or maybe-“
“Fucking!! God damn it!!” Bakugou yelled. The girl scrunched her nose at him. “Will you know it if you see it?”
“Yeah!”
“Let’s go then. good fucking lord, how did I get into this stupid fucking situation. I should just leave the lizard to fucking die and collect my goddamn pay,” he mumbled to himself walking toward the exit. He turned to see the girl still standing by the collapsed, elder dragon. “Do you wanna help him or not?!” The girl nodded and ran after the human stranger.
…
Kirishima groaned and started to stir, his skin clammy, feeling too hot and yet freezing. His vision was blurred but he could tell the cave was empty and he started to panic. The human had left him to die and took the young dragon. Was he going to sell her? Put her on display? Fuck he needed to save her. He started dragging himself across the floor, his balance all out of whack.
“Hikari... where... are you..” he pulled himself to the next room before collapsing again.
…
The next time he woke he heard voices.
“You can just go there and buy all that stuff all the time?!” The little girl’s voice sounded. Hikari!
“Yeah it’s basic trade dumbass. If you guys didn’t look so ridiculous, you could do it too. Not that you probably have any money.”
“Oh we’ve never needed money.”
“If you had used money for the medicine in the first place, I wouldn’t be here.”
“W-what are you...?” Kirishima pulled himself up onto an elbow.
“Why the fuck are you over there now, dumbass lizard?” Bakugou barked the question. Kirishima saw the young dragon on the warrior’s back smiling happily.
“Kari... you’re okay?” Kirishima asked so puzzled. Bakugou kneeled so she could slip off of his shoulders.
“I don’t kill kids asshole,” Bakugou growled.
“We got medicine!!” Hikari ran over to him. “You’re gonna get better now!”
“What? Medicine? Human, what did you—“
“Bakugou.”
“B-Bakugou why are you doing this? You were supposed to kill me...” “The brat said you were sick. Not a fair fight.”
“But.”
“Shut up and stop asking your dumbass questions.” The dragon surprisingly obeyed, struggling to a sitting position. He watched with big eyes as Bakugou made his way to their fire pit.
“I can do it! I can do it!” Hikari ran over and started to blow only tiny flames despite all her effort.
“I don’t need your puny-ass flames.” Bakugou watched her reactions when flames exploded from his palms, lighting the wood instantly.
“Wooaahhh! Are you a dragon too?” She asked in wonder.
“No way. This is magic. Have you guys not taught her anything?”
“She hasn’t really had... a regular hatchlinghood...” Kirishima said weakly. Bakugou blasted into a pot to clean it before filling it with water and waiting for it to boil. He walked over and extended a hand to the ailing dragon who took it graciously. He helped the dragon over by the fire where there were mats and blankets and made him lay down, throwing a blanket over him.
“You don’t have to do all this,” Kirishima shivered.
“Don’t see anyone else stepping up,” he grumbled. He dampened a cloth and draped it across the dragon’s forehead. “Small lizard. You change this cloth for a new cool one every couple minutes okay?”
“Yessir!” She saluted.
“Her name’s...Hikari. Seems like she likes you...”
“Didn’t ask.”
Bakugou watched the dragon close his eyes smiling softly. The wound in his chest had already healed a significant amount. He wondered how quickly he healed when he wasn’t sick.
“Where did your mom go?” Bakugou asked the little dragon.
“She’s looking for more of the thunder. I don’t really remember them but mom says they’re funny and fun to be around. But she doesn’t know where they went.”
“Why would they leave?”
“Iunno. Mom just said they got separated.”
Bakugou hummed. He pulled out his knife and cleaned it with a blast before chopping the ingredients into as small of bits as he could manage. He’d throw them in the boiling water until fragrant and then make the older dragon drink. His eyes were still closed but he was shivering. When the medicine was ready, he nudged the dragon back into consciousness.
“Drink. Then sleep.”
“Thank you. Will you stay the night?”
“I have some errands to run but I’ll check back in tonight. Guess a cave isn’t the worst place to camp.”
“No one will be worried if you don’t go home?”
“I don’t stay in any one place for long.”
“That sounds lonely.”
“I don’t need all that sappy shit.”
“You think having friends is sappy?” He chuckled.
“That shit only makes you weak.”
“Hmm. I think it makes you stronger. I fight harder when I have something to protect.”
“Good for you. Finish the shit and go to sleep.”
“It tastes so baaaad,” he whined.
“The kid was able to do it, so you,” he jabbed his finger into the heat of Kirishima’s shoulder, “get over it.” Kirishima sighed and chugged the last of the medicine soup.
“Blegh. Well if you get cold, my body is basically on fire. Or freezing to death I actually can’t tell.”
“I’m not trying to catch your sickness.”
“Thanks for staying.” Kirishima was already drifting.
“Not doing it for you.”
“Thanks anyway. It’s been hard...to be the only one watching Kari....”
“Lizard-breath. Sleep.” He commanded. Kirishima giggled softly.
I like this human.
…
Bakugou woke up early like always. He saw the red dragon curled around the young one, one wing over them protectively. Bakugou thought about just heading back to the village and saying he couldn’t finish the job. But then they’d send someone else... someone who might not care that a kid was here with no other guardian.
Bakugou sat closer and felt the redhead’s forehead. His skin and small scales were cool to the touch, but then again what temperature were dragons normally? He considered waking them up but hesitated. He had a magical creature in rare form lying vulnerable in front of him. He’d allow himself to stare a few moments at the scales freckling his cheeks, or the wings so strong yet flexible. The horns growing out of this human forehead looked heavy and sturdy. They were an interesting texture. He reached forward and felt its slight roughness. Kirishima stirred.
“That tickles,” Kirishima smiled. They can feel their horns?
“Can all of you shift?” Bakugou asked quietly, as the little girl was still snoring.
“Yeah. Some of the elders thought it was ‘disgraceful to the dragon’s original form’ or something. I think it’s fun.”
“You would.”
“Haha, you say that like you know me.”
“You’re pretty easy to read.”
“And you… kill things for a living?”
“I just do whatever people will hire me for. Protection, transporting, handling magical creatures that bother the people,” he grabbed the horn again, this time more firmly, and shook it. Kirishima smiled as his head was gently rocked.
“I bet I’d be good at transportation. You like my horns?”
“They’re weird.”
“They’re pretty strong most of the time. But if they break they’ll usually fall off so they can regrow.”
“You shouldn’t be telling humans about your weaknesses.”
“How much did they pay you to kill me?”
“100 gold coins.”
“Is that a lot?”
“It’s a decent wage. It usually takes me 6 jobs to make that much”
“Wow. I guess I won’t be able to buy you off huh.”
“Nope.”
“What aboouuttt if I make a pact with the village about never stealing from them again.”
“You’re asking the wrong person.”
“Oh... who should I ask?”
“Village lord and their counsel. They don’t usually make pacts with magical creatures though.”
“I bet they’ve never been asked to. Dragons are pretty prideful. Like you.”
“Shut up. When’s the brat gonna wake up?” Kirishima shrugged.
“She’s a heavy sleeper.” He brushed her bright hair with his fingers.
“When is her hag getting back?”
“I... I don’t know. She’s searching the mountains to the north. It’s dangerous up there, especially if she runs into another thunder. Very territorial. But her mate was one of the ones we were separated from.” Bakugou just now realized Hikari wasn’t even the dragon’s own offspring, even though he’d been so protective of her. Kirishima’s voice had lowered even farther at the mention of her mate. He couldn’t tell if that meant he was a friend or a rival.
“What about yours?” Bakugou asked, tearing a piece of squirrel jerky off with his teeth.
“M-me?? Mate? N-no I’ve never even courted anyone.” He spoke flustered. “I guess you don’t have one either.”
“Pretty obvious.”
“Can’t imagine you letting someone take care of you,” he laughed. “So. Can I ask you to take me to this village leader person? For Kari’s sake?”
“Fuckin’ fine. But if they don’t agree, I’m still killing you,” he lied.
“Gonna raise this baby dragon yourself? Clean her wings? Teach her to fly?” Kirishima asked seriously. Bakugou noticed his strong jawline tighten.
“...Fuck no.”
“Leaving her alone is the same as killing her.” Bakugou didn’t know what to say to that. He only killed for jobs and food like his father taught him. No mothers, no babies. Nature must endure.
“We’ll go to the village after breakfast if you’re able.” Bakugou went to stoke the fire.
“I already feel so much better! What’s for breakfast?” He moved over by the blond watching eagerly, Bakugou shuffled farther away since the dragon apparently hadn’t heard of personal space.
“I have jerky. We can have some eggs that I got from the village. What do you normally eat?”
“Mm we’ve been looking for berries or hunting small animals.”
“Berries?! To feed two dragons?! Who fuckin raised you??”
“I-I’m not the best hunter...”
“Maybe I should just leave and let you starve to death,” Bakugou huffed. Hikari finally woke up to the smell of freshly cooked eggs.
“So good,” she said through a mouthful. “Shut your face when you’re eating.”
“Sorry,” she said, once again through her mouthful. They finished up and set out for the village.
The cave opened up to a cliff that overlooked a field of tall grass. The village was down the rocky slope and across the field.
“Um,” Kirishima hesitated. It wasn’t a terribly long journey, but he would normally just fly and cut the travel time down to practically nothing. But he had a human with him. “Do we have to walk?”
“The fuck? You said Hikari can’t fly.”
“She wouldn’t be.” Bakugou tried to process what he meant. “She rides. Do you... want to ride with her?” Does Bakugou Katsuki want to ride a dragon?!
“Fuck yeah!”
“Sweet!!” Kirishima smiled brightly, that wide toothy grin. Bakugou watched in awe as he transformed into the giant beast he’d fought the day prior. Or maybe he should say attacked. At least Kirishima’s wounds were all healed now. Kirishima bowed his horned head to give the two easier access to the junction at his neck and shoulders. Hikari scrambled up, her small wings flapping to try to help propel her up. Bakugou followed suit and scrambled up surprisingly slick scales to sit behind the young dragon. Kirishima’s red mane made for a decent hold, but next time he’d need to get this asshole a saddle or something. Next time, why the fuck am I think about next time...
“Kiri asks if you’re ready.” Hikari said. Bakugou looked into the fiery eye of the beast who was waiting for an answer. He could already feel how powerful the massive creature was. His breath alone made him rise and fall.
“Hell yeah. Let’s go!!”
He had never felt more powerful. Kirishima was the one technically in control. But Bakugou was a human. About to ride a DRAGON. Kirishima rose to his full height making sure the human would be able to stay on. He moved to step off the cliff, his giant wings catching air and gliding smoothly.
“HOLLYY FFUUCKK!!” Bakugou yelled. Kirishima panicked for a second and turned his head again to make sure the human was okay. He was more than okay. He had a wide, feral grin plastered on his face that made Kiri’s heart soar. Kirishima decided to climb higher to give him an even better view. He circled the village, playfully diving through a cloud. Bakugou started to slip on the dive though, his legs couldn’t wrap around the thick neck and he could only grip so tightly to the mane.
“Shitty Lizard!!! Pull up!!!” He screamed. Kirishima immediately did as he was told.
“He says he’s sorry!!” Hikari yelled.
“Whatever lizard-breath! Just don’t drop so steeply!!” Kiri turned his head and closed his eyes like a ‘yes.’ They lazily drifted through the sky letting themselves lose altitude until they finally landed in front of the village’s gates. The two riders slid off so Kiri could revert to his half form. Bakugou originally thought it was weird that Kirishima’s clothes transformed with him, but then again if he can change his entire appearance, why not his clothes too?
“Did you like it?!” Kiri asked, eyes sparkling like a child.
“Yeah, Shitty Hair, it was so damn awesome.” He smiled while the redhead pouted at the nickname.
“It’s Kirishima! And our hair is not that different!” Bakugou just laughed.
“What is he doing here!!” Guards were lined up at the gates defensively.
“He wants to talk to the lord and her counsel!” Bakugou yelled.
“We are not letting a dragon enter the city!! It’s too dangerous!!”
“Then bring her out here!!” The guards talked amongst themselves before one nodded and ran to fetch the leader.
“Warrior Bakugou. We hired you to kill this beast, not bring him here,” the dark-haired woman spoke.
“He wants to make a counter-offer.”
“It will nullify our agreement and you won’t be paid. Is that fine by you?”
“It’s fuckin whatever. He’s got a dragon brat with him anyways.”
“So, dragon, what is your offer?”
“I won’t come to the village anymore!! I only came because it was an emergency before!”
“And what if there’s another emergency?”
“I...” he’d do anything for the child in his care. But then he remembered Bakugou’s words. “I’d pay for it!” The leader barked a laugh.
“With what money?”
“I can work!!”
“We have no work for a dragon. We would rather you just leave. Move out of our mountain so we can harvest the minerals there.” Leave? Kirishima panicked.
“I...okay,” he resigned. Bakugou saw his worried look.
“So be it. Warrior Bakugou your contract is cancelled and don’t bother asking for another after this incident. Now be on your way,” the leader stalked away confidently.
Kirishima’s lips were pressed in a hard line, trying to breathe.
“Chill out. You can find another cave.”
“I... I’ve only lived in two. I don’t know the first place to look and—“
“It’s fine. I have a few maps.”
“Really?...Bakugou!” Kirishima dove forward and hugged the human. Bakugou started to panic at the touch, but the grip was so solid he couldn’t really budge. “Thank you so much!! You helped me get better and then lost your job to help us!!”
“It’s not a big fucking deal,” he kept trying to shove him away to no avail.
“It’s a huge deal!! We owe you so much!!” he pulled back to look at him seriously. “Let me help make that money up to you. Please! It’ll be so much faster for you too!”
“Whatever. Just shut up and let’s get going before we get yelled at again.”
“It’s an oath! Where should we go??”
Bakugou walked under a nearby tree and pulled out some maps, carding through them until he found the right area. When his mind was left to wander, a horrible realization passed over Kiri’s face.
“Spit it out,” Bakugou demanded quickly
“How will...Jirou find us...”
“Is that the mom?”
“Yeah. Fuck! How will we ever run into them again?!”
“Calm down.”
“I can’t raise Hikari alone!!” His eyes were red and glassy now.
“Kirishima!! Shut up or I’m leaving your ass here!” At that threat, Kiri sewed his mouth shut. “We need to get moving to a new village first. Food. Shelter. Dragon hunting later. You may be able to find some info at one of the bigger cities. Dragon spotting is pretty rare and people will talk.” Kirishima nodded.
“Don’t worry Kiri! Momma’s hearing is so good that she’ll find us and bring us back to Daddy and the others!” The young dragon attempted to comfort him.
“Thanks, Hikari,” he stroked her bright hair.
“Should have taken a different damn job...” Bakugou muttered. “Let’s head northwest.” He saw zero recognition on the dragon’s face. “That way.” He pointed.
“Oh okay! Time to fly?”
“Yeah, dumbass.” Taking off was a little harder this time since Kirishima had to work to get as high as they needed to be, so the two held on as tightly as they could, Hikari trapped between Bakugou’s arms. The trip that would have taken Bakugou three days only took barely one, including a rough night with the dragons lying straight on rocky the ground. Once they had taken off that next morning, they could already see their destination.
“Land outside the city!!” Bakugou yelled.
“You don’t have to yell! Kiri has really good hearing in his full form,” Hikari said.
“You can hear this?” Bakugou talked quietly. He couldn’t even really hear himself.
“He said yeah!”
“Hm. Well. We should probably camp to save money and keep you guys out of trouble.”
Bakugou left the pair on the edge of the city to buy cloaks, some food, and two extra bedrolls.
Kirishima had spent so much of his life in caves, in the sky, or on top of mountains. To just be sitting in a forest felt so unnatural. Hikari was fine playing with sticks and bugs and leaves. Kirishima’s instincts were kicking in and he went full form, circling their campsite. He rubbed against trees and rolled on the ground as if to claim the spot as his own.
Bakugou made his way back to see the. camp... disturbed.
“You spent money...on stuff for us?” Kirishima shifted and asked, utterly touched.
“I’ll add it to your debt. It’ll make things easier. What the fuck did you do around here?” He looked at the scraped bark and trampled grass.
“Oh nothing, uh, just some territory stuff,” his cheeks tinged pink at the admission.
“Weird. I’ve picked up a new commission too. You’ll need to rest up because it’ll be a long flight. First I’m gonna go to the river for a bath.”
“That sounds fun!!” Kiri chirped.
“It wasn’t an invitation...” The dragons followed anyways.
Kirishima and Hikari spent most of the time splashing and playing. Bakugou worked his fingers over his muscles in the cool water after rubbing away all the dirt. He’d needed this. Usually this was his quiet meditative time. Now it was full of noise and laughter. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to complain or not.
Back at camp Bakugou was preparing their dinner. He was pacing, waiting for the water to start to boil when he noticed sparkling red on some of the trees. He pulled one out. A scale. It was so... pretty. It’s like his body was covered in red jewels. He pocketed it and went back to the fire. Kirishima was playing some weird hand game with the kid while they waited.
“How is this so good!!” Kirishima praised.
“Cuz I know how to fuckin cook.”
“Where have you been my whole life,” Kirishima (half) joked.
“Just learn how to do it properly. And add spices.”
“Eh, why do that when you’re here?” Bakugou just scoffed and rolled his eyes.
All three laid around the dying embers. Hikari had fallen asleep so quickly to Kirishima humming an old dragon song. The sky was so clear that they were able to marvel at the stars. Once Bakugou dumped water on the fire, the whole sky seemed to light up.
“Where did you grow up, Bakugou?”
“Just a dumb small town with close-minded ideals.”
“Is that why you left?”
“Something like that.”
“Do you ever think about going back?”
“Sometimes. But there’s nothing for me there.”
“No friends? Family?”
“No real ones.”
“I miss my family a ton. I hope you get to meet them.”
“Your thunder?” Bakugou asking questions about someone else’s life? It felt completely foreign, but he was genuinely curious about this group of mythical beasts.
“Yeah. I’m... I’m not sure who made it out, honestly. The hunters came right after the eggs were laid and we were so vulnerable. It was just me and Jirou and Hikari until a few weeks ago. She wanted to find her mate, Den—Kaminari. He was one of my best friends. I...” shit he was tearing up. “Never mind, sorry! You probably don’t care about that at all!”
“S’fine,” Bakugou said, thinking about how many nights he’d only had the crickets and the leaves to listen to. He must be getting old. His sixteen-year-old self would have told the guy to shut the fuck up at the first question.
“They’re really fun. We goofed around a ton together before. We were always together, the five of us.”
“Five?” He didn’t really care, but the sound of his rambling was putting him at ease.
“Sero is a super chill guy who will go along with our silly plans, though he usually has a bit more sense than the rest of us. Mina was my other best friend. She’s a bad bitch who can spit acid.”
“Damn. How long has it been since you were separated?”
“Like... a year?”
“That’s... a long time.”
“Yeah. At least Hikari had her mom. I offered to go to those northern mountains instead, but she wanted Hikari to be safe and I have pretty good defensive skills.” Bakugou snorted. “I do!! You met me when I was about to fall unconscious. I bet your blade couldn’t pierce me now!” Kirishima was so spirited he propped up on one hand in seriousness.
“Yeah yeah. I’ll be sure to try that sometime.”
“Anywaysss,” Kiri flopped back down on the ground pad Bakugou had bought him. “Jirou wanted Hikari to have her dad and her thunder. We all lost a lot of family... she was trying to cling to the hope of the others still being alive. So we won’t have lost EVERYTHING. She probably needed a break to grieve too. Hard to grieve in front of your own kid.”
“Mhmm,” Bakugou hummed. Kiri could see his face in the moonlight, calm, eyes closed. “I’ll let you sleep,” Kirishima said quietly.
“All right.” Bakugou listened to the two breathe before drifting himself.
…
“Wai...
No...
You can’t.... Stop!
PLEASE STOP!
GIVE HER BACK—“
“KIRISHIMA!!!” Bakugou was yelling down at the dragon as he knelt by his side. His palm was letting out soft explosions for light. His other hand was on Kirishima’s shoulder shaking him. “What’s wrong with you? You were yelling.”
“Agh just...” Kirishima looked around, eyes wet with tears. “...a nightmare I’ve been having. It... might be the reason Hikari is such a heavy sleeper these days...” he could make out her little outline still asleep. Had he been suffering like this for a whole year...?
“About your family?”
“Yeah,” he croaked. Damnit! Stop crying! “I’m sorry! We’ve already been such a burden and now I’ve woken you up!” Kirishima gripped Bakugou’s pants and pressed his forehead into his knee. Bakugou reached out. Maybe Bakugou was getting sick. Do dragons make all humans this soft?
“It’s fine...” Bakugou’s thumb rolled over the muscled shoulder. They stayed like that for a moment, Kiri trying to breathe slower. Bakugou had no comforting words. Kirishima was grieving and traumatized and allowed to feel these things. And he hadn’t ever had to try to help anyone in this situation. “You good?” was all he couldn’t muster.
“Yeah.” Kirishima released his grip and scrubbed at his eyes. “Sorry.”
“Drink some water.” He pulled his hand back and went to lie down. “Night.”
“Night, Bakugou.”
Bakugou had little experience in comforting people with his words. He’d usually just yell at them to get over it and throw them a water bottle or cook them a meal or something. He’d been alone for so long that he forgot people even felt things this deeply. He had cut off his deep relationships. He didn’t want any. But right now he wanted to say more. Why did he want to say more? He was trying to view this dragon as another problem he had to deal with, like he’d been nothing but trouble... but the flying was really fun... It was nice to not waste any food when he cooked... and watching Kirishima try his hardest for the younger dragon was refreshing. He’d gone so long thinking everyone was tainted and selfish. But something was different about Kirishima. He seemed... pure.
He finally found a few words he thought might help.
“We’ll find whatever family you have left and you’ll rebuild.” Kirishima sniffled and nodded.