Chapter Text
Being number 1 was an inevitability in Katsuki’s mind. It wasn’t a matter of if he was going to make it to the top, it was a matter of when he would get there. The fire that burned like a raging inferno in the pits of his belly was the fuel to not only his rage, but also his fierce determination and tenacity. He had to fight his way out of the stigma surrounding being born of a male Omega and a female Alpha from the moment he was born and hadn’t stopped fighting to prove he was Number One in every aspect of his life. Living in the same house as an overly aggressive Alpha; one who lost her temper at the tiniest slight also meant his home life was stacked against his efforts and goals.
Like most alpha’s he inherited his more of his sire’s personality traits. His father’s anger and cruelty were well known to Katsuki and because his mother died early in his life, he had little to counter the effects on his on personality. His early school years were spent more often than not in detention, with some individuals claiming him to be nothing more than a bully who attacked at random. The reality behind it was the need to ensure no one got too close to see the truth. The one time a young Beta came to his house for a group project he was beaten so severely that Katsuki was in the hospital for the whole weekend. His father’s reasoning? For not being smart enough to do projects by himself.
His father Alpha Commanded the poor Beta child into attacking Katsuki, then used Katsuki’s self-defense as proof of him being a danger and told the teachers he needed to be isolated from the rest of the students, for their own protection. That he had far too many violent outbursts with no warning to be considered safe. The Beta was too scared to argue or speak up.
As the story goes; it wasn’t always like this. The first four years of his life were like any other pup’s life; wake up, play, eat, go on an adventure, eat again, sleep. But two months before his fifth birthday he felt a deep burning itch in the center of his palms. At first he tried using his little fangs to scratch at the itch, but soon realized it wasn’t working and just caused more pain. He had run as fast as his little legs could carry him to get his mama and daddy, because they would know what to do. Concerned for the pup’s burning palms that looked red and swollen, as well as the odd buildup of a sweet smelling sheen of sweat along his skin had both parents running for the doctor with the pup tucked between them protectively.
Explosion.
Much like everything in Katsuki’s life his powers came in with little warning and left devastation in its wake. Not being able to control his power, while also producing a large amount of its catalyst, on top of being a normal four year old with ordinary fears created the perfect tornado for disaster. Small bursts of pure power and heat would spark from his palms like small fireworks while he was awake and trying to be careful, but at night when he had a nightmare and couldn’t control his power the little harmless sparks grew into a battle for safety for anyone within the little boy’s vicinity.
He hadn’t meant to catch his blanket on fire, or for said blanket to light the rest of the room on fire. Waking to the feeling of smoke choking him was a fear Katsuki would never grow out of. Little feet ran towards the safety of his mama’s nest screaming at the top of his lungs. Memories could only do so much justice to the terror that ripped through the pup’s chest as his mama’s fearful face poked out from his doorway while his father’s own fear turned to anger as she rushed forward.
Katsuki can still remember the gentle way his father clutched him to her chest in a protective way, it was the last time she would ever hold him like that. He couldn’t remember much of that night after that, a part from hearing his mom’s pained scream and his father’s sorrowful cry as she ran back into the burning house for her husband.
A beam had fallen blocking off the path for him to escape, and with the smoke turning black as it consumed the once happy home, he never stood a chance of escape. The responding fire chief said he had been trapped and it was likely he passed from smoke inhalation, before the flames managed to invade the room he was stuck in.
It was weeks before Mitsuki could even look at her son again, and when she turned her red eyes to glare down at the poor boy he was reminded of the flames that took his mama. Her rage and grief began to dictate her life; she missed enough shifts that she was let go, she never stepped foot into a kitchen to cook for either of them, and she usual spent the day in her bed releasing the sourest pheromones one could smell. The few times she would make an appearance in Katsuki’s life was to reprimand him for the smallest infractions, which eventually turned into her hunting him down like wild prey to punish him for taking her mate away.
They fell into a pattern after that. A pattern of self-destruction and abuse, but a pattern none the less. Katsuki would try his hardest over the next ten years to prove that he deserved to live and be loved, that he wasn’t the murderer both his father and his own conscious claimed him to be. He got straight A’s-he may have been a ‘bully,’ but he was a smart bully-and learned to control his quirk, spending many nights awake in fear of repeating what had already happened. At 15, much like his quirk came early, he was the first to present in his class. Alpha.
No one was surprised of course. The pure aura of power and control that the young boy exuded left little doubt as to what his second gender would be. That day was supposed to be his day, he had finished in top place at the entrance exams to UA, managed to con his way into getting a free hot dog from his favourite stand, and caught the early train home to an empty house. Yes, the day was turning out pretty great if he said so himself.
Then the burning started, reminding him of that day back in preschool, but this time he had no one to run to. His head was splitting in two as a deeper voice began to rattle around in his skull, at first it roared and snarled nonsensically, but eventually the deep rumbling began to form words trying to order him around. Demanding he claim his territory, to ensure he was the strongest in the area, to prove himself as the undisputed greatest. Katsuki’s forearms burned with the excess sweat his pores spilled out as his neck throbbed painfully. Aggression and confusion thickened the air around him in a suffocating manor, warning all others to stay back. Of course this was about the time he caught a scent approaching.
A scent so incredibly familiar, yet jarringly unfamiliar as he inhaled with his improved sense of smell. The stench of bitterness broken up with hints of hate and sadness burned his lungs. A sadness so deep that it brought the young Alpha to his knees as his own heart felt like it was turning to stone in his chest, sharp edges cutting along his ribcage with every breath he took. A pain so deep and all-consuming that it flooded his eyes with tears and caused the blood behind his ears to pound against his ear drums.
The foreign smell over powered his own and forced him to stay on his knees, to submit. Having only enough strength to turn his head and bare his neck, he caught sight of red eyes staring deeply into his own.
“Pathetic.”
The rejection from his sire caused Katsuki’s inner Alpha to whimper, automatically trying to release calming pheromones in an attempt to placate the obviously pissed off older and stronger Alpha.
“Enough.”
If Katsuki’s Alpha was scared before, it was downright petrified now as the weight of the command forced his chest to the ground, his arms splayed out in front of him, palms up. The angle his neck sat, still trying to show submission felt like he was choking on his own trachea. His legs stretched out behind him, crossing his ankles in a defensive manner.
“What a sniveling, sorry excuse for an Alpha,” her harsh words were matched with a harsh slam of her foot on his awkwardly upturned wrist.
The resounding crack sent a wave of ice through his veins as he roared in pain which was shortly cut off by a quick kick to his ribs. The young Alpha turned in on himself trying to bring his twisted wrist in close to his chest in an attempt to protect it from further damage.
Unfortunately, for Mitsuki she had forgotten to take in the heat caused by a newly presented Alpha. A heat that caused a normal buildup of sweat in an average Alpha meant little, but in an Alpha like Katsuki, with a power like his created a perfect weapon. He hadn’t meant to lose control, hadn’t even realized he had, not until the carpet under him began to smoke, and much like when he was a child, the flames were not just on the surrounding surfaces, they burned bright in his father's eyes.
Katsuki doesn’t remember much after that, the next time he opened his eyes he was in a white hospital bed with a nurse checking his vitals. He had kept quiet and watched her do her job as she glanced between the machines and jotted things down on her silver clipboard. When her eyes landed on him, she jumped slightly before smiling brightly.
“Hello, my name is Tanaka. You must be very confused, I’ll go get the doctor,” her voice sounded like bells as she placed a comforting hand on his bandaged forearm.
Shortly after a doctor marched in, carrying the smell of Alpha on his tail coat as he began to explain what happened to Katsuki. The fire was put out easily, but it seems the home invaders had gotten away, luckily his mother was there in time to put out the fire and bring his unconscious form to the nearest hospital. The clueless doctor released a comforting and soothing scent as he smiled warmly at the young Alpha trapped in the bed by IV’s.
“Your father hasn’t been here in a day or so unfortunately, she is getting your new house set up. I’m sure she’ll be so glad to hear you are doing better, oh and congratulations on the presentation. Being an Alpha can be a bit scary and seem a little daunting, but I’m sure a strapping young man like you will do great. And with a quirk like yours? You’re gonna have to beat the Omegas away with a stick!” he laughed at his joke.
‘Beating?’
Katsuki didn’t want to hurt anybody, not like he was. He couldn’t possibly subject someone to a dysfunctional life like his, not if he could help it anyway.
No, Katsuki, promised himself while lying in that hospital bed waiting for his wretch of a hag mother to return, that he would never take a mate.