Chapter Text
Beginning (Part 1)
Katsuki BAKUGO
He couldn’t understand what was happening to him.
That overwhelming, unbearable heat coursed through his limbs. Thick black smoke spilled from his palms, slowly filling the room, making it harder and harder to breathe. His small hands burned—truly, agonizingly.
His power. That damned defective power that had destroyed everything. The doctors said it was rare for it to hurt this much, to manifest so violently. Most kids’ abilities came gradually.
Not his. Never his.
His teeth clenched as the burning pain spread through his countless veins. It crept over his entire body like a snake coiling around its prey to suffocate it. A whimper escaped him, raw with a fear so new he couldn’t even comprehend it yet.
His trembling arms wrapped around himself in a futile attempt at comfort.
That unfamiliar terror sent him spiraling into hyperventilation. His whole body shook violently in response to sensations he didn’t understand—things strange and dangerous, like a devastating tornado tearing through everything in its path.
The acrid taste of burnt sugar and smoked cedar flooded his mouth—his quirk’s signature.
But underneath… something warmer. Richer.
Caramel.
His therapist had taught him, with patience and care, how to control his breathing when his power flared. An unimaginable stress had taken root in his mind ever since he had arrived at this center, isolated in the middle of nowhere.
He was only six years old, trapped in a place he couldn’t bring himself to call “home,” far from his parents—parents who had chosen to abandon him when his divergence had manifested at the age of four.
That treacherous fear began seeping through the pores of his lightly tanned skin. His eyes burned with unshed tears, but he had to be stronger than his emotions.
He was an alpha. He couldn’t afford weakness—not here.
Slowly, the child straightened from his hunched position and took a careful breath, holding it for three seconds before exhaling with his eyes closed. Little by little, he managed to steady his breathing, calming himself with painstaking slowness.
The acrid smoke from his quirk finally faded. But another scent took its place— something from him, not his power.
Caramel. Warm and sweet, with that same woody, spiced undertone.
His alpha scent.
He had never imagined his own pheromones could be lightly sweet while still carrying that spiced edge.
Once calm, the young boy climbed down from his bed and stepped in front of the tall standing mirror positioned to the left of the built-in wardrobe in his dormitory room.
Katsuki stared at his feet. Brand-new white sneakers—too clean, too new. He hated them. His gaze crawled up his legs, the blue denim loose around his bony thighs.
A growl rumbled in his throat. Weak. He looked weak.
Every alpha in this place could probably snap him like a twig, and they knew it. He had to get stronger. Had to.
It was an obsession shared by every alpha—whether already presented or not, young or old. Being strong and reliable, both in body and in scent, for the omega they would one day court.
The other residents—mostly Alphas and Betas—could already tell that the child’s scent was stronger than that of his peers aged ten to sixteen, many of whom had already presented.
A Prime Alpha, the doctors had confirmed with poorly-hidden excitement. Rare. Powerful. Presenting at six when most waited until fifteen.
Katsuki didn’t feel powerful. He felt like his body was tearing itself apart.
Shaking his head with a small, animalistic huff, the child continued inspecting his appearance, setting aside thoughts of his secondary biology. His torso was clad in a black T-shirt bearing a gray-white skull at its center, layered beneath a light gray longsleeved polo.
Long sleeves. Again. The doctors insisted, despite the heat radiating from his own skin. Katsuki tugged at the grey fabric, scowling at his reflection. He was always too hot—why couldn’t they understand that?
His nose wrinkled at the absurd insistence of the OFA center’s doctors. His body already stored an intense amount of heat, making him sweat while keeping him warm, sometimes reaching temperatures as high as forty degrees Celsius.
How the hell wasn’t this kid dead with a body temperature that high?
His scowling expression stared back at him—blood-red eyes set in a young face hardened by a toughness he’d forged for himself. Sharp, wide eyes beneath furrowed brows reinforced his severe look. His mouth was pressed into a thin line, twisted with frustration. Atop his childish head, a chaotic mass of champagne-blond locks defied the laws of hair physics, shooting out in every direction like a blond explosion.
His gaze dropped to his hands. They were dry, marked by patches of hardened skin in several places. He raised them in front of his watchful eyes.
One brow arched in silent confusion. Since when had cracks formed along his palms? And those painful chilblains on his fingers—where had they come from?
Damn it, that heat hurt like hell.
When it surged back yet again, the child couldn’t hold back his whimper, biting hard into his lower lip. Blood welled from the abused flesh as a thin trail of smoke slipped from his hands.
He exhaled shakily as the pitch-black vapor evaporated from his palms. His vision blurred all at once, a deep growl rumbling in his throat as he fought back tears.
For God’s sake, he was an alpha. He couldn’t afford weakness—not here. This damn place housed nearly fifteen percent Alphas within its walls—adults and children alike. The young blond had to pull himself together.
A sudden knock against the door made him jump. His nose caught the scent of stale tobacco and closed rooms.
Shota Aizawa.
He would recognize that scent anywhere. That alpha was the one who had pulled him from a life on the streets after his parents had abandoned him.
Another knock followed, harder this time. Was the man seriously waiting for an answer? The champagne-haired child snorted at the thought. Aizawa never bothered knocking properly.
“Hey, kid.” The man’s weary voice was followed by a tired sigh. “She’s here. She wants to see you.”
A low growl was the child’s only response. Don’t misunderstand—he could speak perfectly well. His tongue was even one of the sharpest among the divergent children of the agency, or so every adult within those walls privately acknowledged.
On the other side of the door, Aizawa sighed again and walked away, muttering something the child clearly caught as “problem child.”
“Useless old bastard,” the little blond growled sharply.
His eyes returned to his hands, and he released a small sigh of relief when the pain failed to return.
As an Alpha, instinct drew him back to the mirror, trying—at least a little—to tame his explosive hair so he’d look halfway presentable for his psychologist.
Unfortunately, his hair refused to cooperate. A subtle growl of annoyance slipped from his throat, his nose wrinkling and deepening the frown in his fine blond brows.
“Tch. Guess it’s time to see Doctor Yagi.”
He brushed imaginary dust from his clothes.
A renewed determination settled over his features, igniting a fiery gleam in his crimson eyes. Spine straight, chest puffed out, the mini-alpha opened the brown wooden door.
All the children living in the vast center were housed on the second floor, in the residential wing. The organization behind the building was called One For All. Its director and founder had purchased a small island named Gloup Holm—bought from a Scottish minister—measuring just over twelve hectares and surrounded by endless water.
Stepping out of his dorm room, the young alpha sighed once more, bored, his back pressing briefly against the closed door.
His ruby eyes scanned the hallway to the left, then the right. Some of the resident children wandered about, laughing, shoving, carefree.
The ivory-white corridors hurt his eyes. An irritated growl escaped him as he already missed his room, with its gray and white walls accented by black and red, decorated with posters of American superheroes—Spider-Man, Hellboy, The Punisher—and a few rock bands still popular in 2004.
Along the main pedestrian corridor, massive floor-to-ceiling windows flooded the space with light. Katsuki paused for a moment, his gaze caught by the endless grey water beyond the glass.
Trapped.
The North Sea stretched as far as he could see—no escape, nowhere to run. His chest tightened.
The building stood on one of the Shetland Islands’ islets, a few kilometers from Yell— isolated, owing nothing to anyone. Total independence from civilization.
The little alpha let out a resigned sigh as he pushed himself off his door. His feet carried him down a path his mind already knew by heart.
As far back as he could remember—since arriving in this new “home” housing an enormous so-called “family”—the child had never bothered to explore the place. There were only the mandatory locations for his education, the places that would shape his life until he reached adulthood.
The little blond thought about his classroom—the first room he had seen since arriving at the OFA agency. A few children his age were following the same educational instructions as him, which included:
Algebra—designed to make the children mentally meticulous. Foreign languages, starting with English—which had become the adopted language for some members of the organization. History and Geography—the Earth had the most fascinating stories. Physical Education and Sports—the mini-alpha couldn’t help but agree that this subject was particularly intimidating. Science and Technology—young children were trained to become modern-day MacGyvers.
Other rooms accessible to the little blond included the training room, his personal dormitory, and the child psychologist’s office for PTSD—post-traumatic stress disorder linked, for example, to parental abandonment.
“Ready, kid?”
The weary, morose voice of the older, dark alpha pulled him from his thoughts, forcing him to lift his crimson eyes from the floor.
“Yeah.”
The little blond champagne-haired boy grunted in response, slipping his hands into his jeans pockets as he followed the man.
The director—Shota Aizawa—led the young alpha through the maze of corridors. Katsuki followed, each corridor a different jarring color—olive green melting into Babylon blue, then blood-red, then some garish pink that made his head pound.
Who the hell chose these colors?
Through an open door, he spotted men and women taking notes while observing a young girl with black hair in a high ponytail. Her white tank top showed faint sweat marks; the lack of scent confirmed she was just a Beta.
OFA had a strange system regarding originality of colors—it was meant to give each area a distinct identity. The agency’s main focus was always the children.
Lost in thought, he paid no attention to where he stepped. His companion stopped abruptly, forcing the little alpha to bump into him. The elder growled in disapproval, drawing the crimson eyes to him.
“Watch where you stick your nose, Bakugo.”
The tone was neutral, gruff, and weary. A sigh escaped his chapped lips as he pinched the bridge of his nose with thumb and index finger.
“Dr. Yagi is waiting—don’t keep her.”
With that, Aizawa left the little alpha in front of the oak door, the elegant gold plaque reading in black script: Dr. Inko Yagi, Psychologist.
The boy inhaled softly. A delicate, sweet scent of lavender and jasmine filled his nose. Courage returned to his veins as he knocked lightly, Alpha strength restrained.
“Come in!”
The small authoritative voice gave him chills for reasons he couldn’t explain. Opening the door, young Bakugo was greeted by the doctor.
“Katsuki! I’ve been looking forward to seeing you. Wonderful!”
Dr. Yagi—a petite, beautiful woman with cobalt green hair in a half-ponytail and forestgreen eyes—chattered excitedly, clapping her delicate hands.
The timid growl of the child made the beautiful woman sitting in the palm-velvet armchair by the door smile even wider—she was sitting directly opposite him.
Since arriving on the tiny island, Katsuki had been dazzled by the beauty of the Omega woman. It was a slightly troubling fact, given that OFA normally didn’t accept Omegas.
This woman radiated kindness, gentleness, and an overwhelming compassion that left the young Alpha speechless. Any man who had married her had to be unimaginably lucky—territorial, possessive, and protective by nature.
“The old man came to fetch me at my door,” the child grunted, hands in his pockets as he made his way to the large camel-colored velvet sofa.
“Hm. Mr. Aizawa—as an Alpha—is quite protective of certain members of his staff.”
The announcement left the boy puzzled, arms crossed over his chest.
“Protective? Does he have some hero syndrome or something?”
Katsuki snickered, his blond head tilting back with a mischievous laugh.
“Katsuki. Have I ever told you about my husband and Alpha, Toshinori Yagi?”
The young Bakugo straightened at the man’s name. This wasn’t the first time he had heard of the tall man. Katsuki had met him last year, at age five—a giant with golden blond hair, aquamarine blue eyes, a dazzling smile, and a laugh that simply screamed, I am here!
God, this man—a Dominant Alpha—was the husband of his psychologist? Was the miniAlpha about to meet him? Or perhaps hear the amazing story of his universal powers?
Katsuki didn’t hide his excitement, releasing a phenomenal amount of campfire-scented pheromones.
“Calm down, Katsuki.”
The soft laugh of the small woman made the young Bakugo groan in embarrassment, clearing his throat to listen to what Inko wanted to say.
“Do you like my husband a lot, Katsuki?”
“Like him?”
His rhetorical question made his eyes widen. Katsuki couldn’t imagine that Inko Yagi might think her Alpha could be so admired by all the children at OFA.
Young Bakugo hadn’t had much chance to interact with the giant Alpha, despite his brief appearance last year as the boy’s tutor. Still, Katsuki was no fool—and, fortunately, he could read even the most difficult words, much to the amazement of Director Shota Aizawa and Dr. Inko Yagi.
“Mrs. Inko, your husband is literally the hero of this organization.”
His surprised face returned to the angry mask he had crafted for self-protection.
“I haven’t had the chance to see him much, but the stories I’ve heard about him are incredible! Even his code name—since OFA’s most skilled agents often had strange pseudonyms—is amazing: ‘All Might.’”
The little boy was visibly excited. Inko noticed despite his sulky expression; his fists clenched on his child-sized thighs, his crimson eyes gleaming beneath his fierce exterior. Inko saw the tiny signs of admiration in the subtle stretch of his lips; the child adored the great Alpha.
“Katsuki, darling, may I tell you a story?”
The gentle voice of the Omega woman drew the crimson gaze of young Bakugo. He studied her face—a soft smile, forest-green eyes glancing down toward the large bump of her belly.
“This story truly defines All Might.”
The boy was immediately intrigued, though the acrid scent of withered roses made him wrinkle his nose. The doctor sighed softly, her right hand gently caressing her stomach.
“Toshinori Yagi was the most adorable and promising man I had ever met. I was just a child at the time. OFA grew larger over the years, recruiting and welcoming more individuals capable of becoming warriors, enjoying anonymity while serving as weapons within the organization.”
Her gaze lifted to Katsuki, who listened with all the attention an Omega could command. Inko crossed her trembling hands beneath her belly, supporting her disruptive little pup.
“My elder brother was jealous of Toshinori. This enormous man, with golden blond hair and aquamarine blue eyes, a Dominant Alpha, had set his sights on the little Omega I was.”
“I was only ten at the time; Toshinori was twenty. It was easy to see that this chance— TrueMate—struck both of us. But as I received his courteous gifts, my brother— unfortunately a Beta—decided he alone would decide who I could mate with.”
Katsuki listened intently, his furrowed brow forming an expression of anger. The child despised anyone deciding another’s life simply because they couldn’t live it themselves.
“Fortunately, Toshinori did not give up. This man had the kindness to want me, body and soul, and God knows he waited patiently until I was of age for the mating bite.”
Katsuki raised an eyebrow at this revelation, not fully understanding the meaning of the gesture.
The sudden ring of a bell startled young Bakugo, causing him to glance around. The Omega woman smiled gently before taking a small energy bar from her handbag.
“A little snack for a pregnant woman. My pup asks for food at a certain hour, and his father and I never understood why.”
The mini-Alpha was slightly flustered but simply nodded at the doctor as she nibbled her snack.
“Where was I… Ah, yes. I’ll spare you the courtesy cycle of Toshinori; that concerns only him and me.”
Her soft, teasing laugh made Katsuki groan in annoyance, crossing his arms and rolling his eyes.
“I dreamed of becoming a doctor to help people, just as my Alpha could. I attended private Omega schools, but that didn’t prevent me from seeing my Alpha when I wanted.”
The gentle woman nibbled slowly, taking care not to choke or disturb her pup’s complicated nutrient absorption.
“Toshinori greatly supported my project, encouraging me during revision periods while he returned from missions in a terrible state. I wouldn’t hide that I worried seeing blood and cuts on him.”
She picked up the small water bottle on the coffee table for a sip.
“I didn’t fully understand his work. I was sixteen, and he was an adult taking care of an Omega in addition to himself.”
“Did your brother help you?”
Katsuki’s sudden question made the gentle Inko pause, looking at him in surprise. She then rested her chin in her thumb and forefinger, pondering.
“Let’s say, when he learned I had mated younger than normal, my brother decided to kick me out of our house. Fortunately, Toshinori was there.”
“What an asshole.”
His growl, accompanied by the strong scent of smoked cedar, filled the small Omega room.
“Dare to do that just because you refused to follow the rules. Pathetic man.”
“I can’t argue with that, Katsuki. My Alpha beat him for my honor before taking me to his home.”
Inko briefly grasped her belly fabric with a faint grimace of discomfort.
“Are you okay? Need help?”
The worried voice of the mini-Alpha made Inko coo at his instinctual care. An Alpha— bound or not—always wanted to protect a distressed or suffering Omega.
“Don’t worry, darling. My little one is just a handful.”
“Is… Is he also All Might’s child?”
Though he knew the answer, young Bakugo couldn’t resist asking. Inko’s soft laugh made him blush, realizing the foolishness of his question.
“Yes, my pup is Toshinori’s as well.”
Her gentle smile reassured Katsuki, who sulked slightly on the sofa.
“Katsuki, despite the difficulties of our TrueMate bond, Toshinori noticed my unhappiness when I felt empty and sad.”
A soft sigh escaped her rosy lips, her right hand resting on her cheek as her gaze drifted away.
“For a mated Omega, it’s hard not to think about having a pup or descendants. I loved, and still deeply love, my Alpha, but when it came time to conceive, Toshinori held me back.”
Her slight Omega growl filled the room, making the youngest Alpha hold his breath.
“This rogue didn’t want me pregnant at eighteen. I was still at the University of
Edinburgh, studying social and human sciences. But I understood his fear: a young Omega getting pregnant with neither degree nor experience to properly care for her pup.”
Looking back, Inko realized she had been unnecessarily harsh on Toshinori. She later understood that her Alpha only sought to protect her in a society that still restricted Omegas—male or female—from studying or earning a degree if they became pregnant during their academic years.
The little Omega had succeeded in her Alpha’s imposed challenge. Katsuki listened as Inko explained that Toshinori Yagi had no choice but to make a fair arrangement with his gentle wife: she had to complete her first three university years, earn her degree, and only then could she exercise her profession in a limited, regulated way.
Only once she graduated would the Alpha promise to ensure her desire to become a mother could be fulfilled.
Unfortunately, for the married couple, conceiving a child proved extremely difficult, mentally taxing for the Omega and angering the Alpha.
It took nearly thirteen years of effort before they could truly have their pup. Now thirtyeight, Inko Yagi radiated happiness, her large belly near term.
Though still young, Katsuki was intelligent and mature enough to grasp what all this meant for a married couple. Multiple miscarriages, likely linked to the Omega’s physical condition, or false hope regarding child development, could break a couple who wanted nothing more than their own pup.
Being thirty-eight for a first pregnancy carried risks. Alphas became more protective and clingy with their Omega and offspring. Katsuki watched the little Omega tenderly caress her belly, her forest-green eyes shining with unshed tears; she still felt as if this were all a dream despite her imminent term.
“What will his name be?”
Katsuki tried to think of something other than the distress the Yagi pair must have felt during those thirteen long years to have their child.
“Hm, Toshinori and I thought we’d name him Izuku.”
Her smile was warm and tender as she looked at the young Alpha.
“Izuku?”
His blond eyebrows shot up toward the roots of his hair, disappearing under the lock that fell over his forehead.
“What a strange name.”
“Yes, but I find it so cute. Izuku Yagi.”
The sound of the name rolled delightfully on the future mother’s tongue as she cooed joyfully, repeating over and over this adorable little name for her unborn pup.
“Of course, we also want our little baby to be healthy and safe, nothing happening to him.”
“Izuku…”
The child repeated the name in a whisper. The syllables rolled on his tongue, sending an unfamiliar shiver of pleasure down his spine.
“It… sounds good. Izuku.”
Inko couldn’t have been happier that her little patient approved of the name. Gently, the duo continued talking, Katsuki asking many questions about the strong Alpha wellknown in the agency, whom he had admired deeply for a year already.
Curiously, Bakugo asked the young Omega woman about the sex of her baby—Izuku— but Inko smiled mischievously, putting a finger to her lips and declaring it would be a secret.
A small growl escaped Katsuki’s throat; he had no idea whether the child’s primary or secondary sex would be. He also didn’t understand the sudden, foolish urge that appeared in a corner of his primitive brain, screaming “I will protect him,” even though he had never met the unborn being.
The young Bakugo furrowed his brows slightly, arms crossed, crimson eyes fixed on his feet. Many investigations would need to be undertaken—for his own curiosity about what he was feeling, as well as the research he wanted to start to truly understand what OFA really was.
To be continued…