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There were many shades of red that painted the counter top. Some areas had brighter shades while others were crusted, dark and old. Katsuki was struggling to tell the difference when Sakura asked him if he could hand over the lip stick with the shade “Four Hundred”.
That wasn’t a color…
Sakura had been applying, wiping, and then reapplying lipstick – all of which were just fucking reds - in her little ass bedroom mirror. The younger blond had been lounging in a large bean bag chair in Sakura’s room while listening to vast music collection she had to offer on her mp3. Deku was doing fuck all for all Katsuki cared about. As long as he was in the little ass apartment, Katsuki couldn’t care less.
Of course, peace and quiet didn’t last forever. Sakura’s phone had received a message. Katsuki knew this because the phone only made one clear beep. Two minutes had past and two more beeps were heard before Deku bumbled into the room before making his way over to Katsuki. The two of them were squished in the sink hole that were PVC pellets.
The phone began to vibrate more…
Sakura’s lazy ass finally decided to pick up the phone after accidentally smudging her lipstick. She stood up before flipping up the phone and answering. Katsuki could hear her heavy foot steps walking towards the kitchen…fading away.
Deku had shifted next to him. Those big stupid eyes were staring at him, while too sharp teeth worried at his pale bottom lip. Katsuki knew the signs and it was no surprise to hear the low whine coming from Deku’s throat when Katsuki decided to go back to scrolling through the long list of songs.
“I don’t do baby talk. If you want something you better, ask or I’ll ignore your ass.”
Cruel, but Katsuki didn’t appreciate when Deku did stupid shit.
He couldn’t stand that childish shit.
The clock on the mp3 said that it was a little after nine pm. It wasn’t super early, but not as late as Katsuki was hoping to go looking for something to eat. He would just have to make do then.
Deku was fidgeting before he tugged at Katsuki’s shirt. His cold lips were near Katsuki’s ear before he heard a slightly deeper voice rasp: “Hungry”
“And? What you want me to do about that?”
Large green eyes just started at him blankly for a second, but red eyes caught the slight up turned corner of his mouth. Soon those eyes were shining so pretty for him. Fat ugly tears were rolling down the other’s pale cheeks, his grip on Katsuki’s shirt tighten.
“P-Please.”
Beautiful
Katsuki hopped up from the sink hole that was the bean bag chair before grabbing his jacket and book bag. He threw Sakura’s precious mp3 on her messy bed before walking out the bedroom. Sakura was still on the phone. Her voice was low, but Katsuki could still hear her. It sounded like man was on the other line. He didn’t sound very happy, but the false pink haired bitch didn’t seem too bother. Her cigarettes were left untouched on the kitchen table. She didn’t spare them a glance when they walked out, but she did wave.
It was kind of cold out, but it didn’t mean much to Katsuki. The blond always ran hotter than others thanks to his quirk, but that just meant that Deku was a sucker for his heat. The other was practically wrapped around his arm as they walked back. They stuck to the shadows and tried not to be too much of a scene. They took the long way home.
They walked past a few homeless people curled up in the corners of the big industrial garbage cans that businesses used. Deku was quick to drag his feet while they walked past. There was a sharp pain in his stomach, but he ignored it was he pulled Deku.
When the little freak dug his heels in the dirt, Katsuki threw his hands up. The crackled to life with the promise of fire and power. Two things that would be lost to Deku. He kept up the intimidating display regardless of his bandages burning away. His nail-less fingers began to leak. Blood was spilling down the back of his hand while those that dripped to his palm were dried immediately.
It stung like a bitch, but he upped the power.
Deku’s large eyes displayed many emotions…
The one that Katsuki started to recognize was w a n t.
The stubbornness was quick to leave. Deku rejoined his side, seizing his hand.
A long tongue lulled out of a cave filled with sharp crooked teeth. Deku was gentle to clean up the mess. Of course, none of Katsuki’s fingers went near the teeth.
“Is that enough?”
“How am I supposed to know? You told me to just run after you left the joint, so I grabbed what I could.”
The shadows around Deku began to shift as the two strangers around the corner held their attention. The tongue that was wrapped around Katsuki’s fingers fell limp.
His fingers were still bleeding.
There was a slight excitement building in the pit of his stomach. He could smell their sweat, they sounded winded which means that they were tired. A million little thoughts passed by Katsuki as he crept closer to the voices. His face couldn’t hold back the stretch of his lips.
His grin was wide.
In the dim lighting, Katsuki could make out two hunched over figures ogling over a box of needles. Two empty syringes were discarded not too far away from them. The two losers were shaking. One of the men grew longer spikes while the other gained a larger mane of flame.
They looked so happy…
They were laughing hysterically. Their black tongues lulled out their mouths as they tried to talk about how invincible they were. They fully believed themselves to be stronger than All Might. Katsuki couldn’t take much more of their ignorance. He marched up to the two buffoons.
He stared down at them.
Only one noticed him before grabbing at the other’s attention.
The box was just behind them.
“Huh? Don’t brats have bed times?”
The other laughed. “Yeah, aren’t you afraid that the boogieman is going to get you kid?”
“…”
His lack of response seemed to tick the flaming extra off.
“I’m talking to you!” The guy snatched his collar and held him up. “You got some nerve being so damn disrespectful!”
“Sorry Mister, I guess I have a hard time understanding idiots.” He swung at the guy with his bleeding hand. It hurt like a bitch, but it was a good look. The lunatic had his blood smudged across his face. It wasn’t long before his friend got wise of the situation and came to help.
There wasn’t much to be done, when Katsuki danced out of the other’s hold at the last minute. The two crashed into each other. The spikes, sharp as they were, stabbed into his friend’s arm. There was some screaming and yelling, but Katsuki wasn’t fond of the noise. He hated how loud it felt.
The shadow on the wall behind them grew in size before protruding out.
Both losers sunk in as Deku began closing his mouth.
All that was left of their encounter was that stupid box of syringes.
A rush of energy filled Katsuki as he looked at Deku standing in the autumn cold in nothing but his loud ass red kicks and plain ass clothes. “Come on nerd, I think I’m in the mood for a movie. Let’s go home”
“I can’t believe the foreign kids get to have a party.”
“To be fair, the school approved it and they live in dorms. Its not even a real party.”
“I just thought it would be cool to do something other than watch a bunch of B-rated horror movies, while everyone else has fun!”
“You’re being a drama queen. Our school agreed for use to give out candy to other students”
There was a groan through out the lunch room.
“Haru, that’s no better than the shit they do for the elementary kids.”
“Chill, its just Halloween.”
Katsuki had a hard time focusing as he listened to the other kids. Usually he did nothing on Halloween except fall asleep to old school horror movies while waiting for his parents to come home from the companies’ cosplay ball. He wondered if he should do something this year.
Classes went by like a blur, not that he cared. Most students were making plans for get togethers while Katsuki quickly packed up his bag and rushed out the door.
He could hear the other students whispering about why he was in such a rush and that he had no friends to hang out with. It was all typical shit that didn’t deserve a rebuttal. He was quick to grab Deku’s attention before the other could do something malicious.
He was going to Sakura’ apartment.
He didn’t even knock, he just opened the door with the spare key that he had.
Clothes were everywhere…on the couch, on the floor, on the kitchen table and her room…
The blond didn’t want to think about the disastrous mess that could be in her bedroom.
Little miss pretty in pink was glaring at the full-length mirror with her hazel eyes as she switched between some type of little red riding hood costume and a short flowing white dress. Her hair was wild and unkept as it spilled over her eyes and ran over her shoulders. As always, she had no shame standing in nothing but a tiny pair of boy shorts and a cropped sweat shirt.
“Yo, which one?” She asked turning to both of them, repeating the same motion.
“Does it matter? You’ll be ugly in either one.” A pile of clothes were hurling towards Katsuki.
“Fucking brat.” She began going through more of the choices.
Katsuki couldn’t help but notice that there was a theme in all these costumes. He never asked what Sakura was doing to pay for the apartment. The blond wondered if her new clients treated her nice.
“You asked…what’s with the shit?” Katsuki sat on the mountain of clothes, while Deku followed after him.
“There’s a Halloween party coming up and yours truly has a date.”
Katsuki leveled her with a look.
She stared back.
“And I need an outfit.”
“What do adults even do on Halloween?”
Sakura took off her sweat shirt to throw on a bat girl costume. It was too short, like the others, and was way more revealing that it should have been. Granted, the pink haired girl wasn’t exactly gifted in the chest department.
“They drink, talk, play silly games and those that need to pay rent…fuck.” She threw off that outfit and picked up something else. “Personally, I miss real Halloween shit.” This thing wasn’t even that great. Just another ‘sexy’ cosplay outfit that Katsuki would see online.
It was boring.
“Back in the day, my old man was real big into the shit. He would tell me the wild shit he did when he lived overseas. He worked at a haunted house when he was a kid with no money. He was pretty decent with the makeup and he knew how to pull fear out of people. This place actually let you rough up people if they decided to act brave.”
Katsuki didn’t have much experience with haunted houses. He knew that there were a few places that were really considered haunted, but that never interested him. Who the fuck gave a shit about a bitter ghost? Red eyes slide over to the other beside him. Deku listened with rapid attention at Sakura’s tales. It was a first considering Deku never gave much thought to the pink haired girl, but his big eyes hung on every word.
“There’s this place I want to visit, it’s like a hospital. You get to explore at your own pace and shit.” She had on a sailor outfit. “Most haunted houses usually have rooms that cause sensory overload – flicking lights, loud noises and jump scares – I love it. I wish I was going to one this week. Instead I’m going to this stupid party.” She smeared red lipstick on.
“If its just a stupid party, why even bother?” Katsuki picked at a discarded dress from the pile.
“Its something to do.” She flicked off the outfit before trotting back to her room for something else. “Plus, I need to light the fire. You know…good faith type shit.” She came back with a new outfit and some candy from them. Deku took to the large sucker while Katsuki opted out.
“Good…faith?”
“Yeah, to honor the dead. There’s a few rules you should follow tomorrow if you decide to go out. This is the time of year where a lot of souls and…other things can walk around. You should make them feel welcome, so they can leave when the night is over.”
Deku shifted closer to him, hanging off his arm as he hung on Sakura’s words. She chose to put on a mask. “Make sure to wear a costume. It would be rude to come in your own skin. Remember we are celebrating them.” She tossed another mask his way. It was rabbit mask that didn’t suit his personality. He instead gave it to Deku. The mask was white, but Katsuki thought it looked alright. His eyes looked at the ears.
She fluffed up her hair and did a few poses in the mirror. “Remember to have fun. If someone tells you trick or treat, you give them something or…you know. Its baby etiquette.”
Katsuki nodded. He wasn’t an idiot. In elementary school, the teachers all stood at their classroom entrances with a bucket of treats. The blond remembered his parents being happy about the school’s activity and fully participated. Katsuki found himself forced to dress as a harmless ghost, while other students chose cooler costumers like vampires, kitsunes, demons, and angels. His teachers always passed out the sweetest candy.
He hated sweet things.
Hazel eyes gleaming looking at the outfit in the mirror. Katsuki could see why she liked this one above the others. It wasn’t as ‘cutesy’ as the princess or goddess costume, but it something. A dirtied baby doll outfit hugged her non-existent chest and flowed at her waist. Her stockings were ripped with stains. She even had a “bloody” surgical mask. “Feel free to look through my shit of a costume if you want one for tomorrow.”
Katsuki took her up on her offer. He was walking home with Deku. The little shit had tugged on his arm asking about food.
‘Kacchan, I’m hungry’
‘Kacchan, when can I eat’
‘Kacchan’
‘Kacchan’
“Kacchan?”
“What the fuck do you want?” He stopped to turn on the fucker. He was very aware of Deku’s hunger. His stomach was loud as shit. “If you fucking tell me about your stomach one more goddamn time, I’ll make sure your ass doesn’t get any food.” Deku’s eyes were glassy and his lip trembled. Red eyes were daring green ones. The smaller boy just bit his wobbling lip to keep silent, but that didn’t stop the tears. “Are you fucking serious?” He pushed Deku against a near by wall. “Are you seriously going to cry?” His smoking hands took a hold of the smaller boy’s chin, forcing him to look up. “After all I’ve done for you…you have the nerve to cry.” He pushed away and resumed walking. “Don’t worry your ungrateful little head. I always do what I say I'm going to do.”
At that Deku hurried after him. There was a shy smile on his lips as well as a certain glint in his eyes. Katsuki found himself grinning.
Sakura had mentioned where the party was. It wasn’t in the best of places when he checked the address on the internet. Deku sat on the bed munching the left over from the night before. It was just turning five and the sun was starting to slip by. His costume sat on his bed, ready to go.
He donned his costume. The red mask, horns and hoodie. He kept his pants and shows black. The red hood hid his loud blond hair. The smile of the oni mask was what drew him to the piece. He thought he looked badass.
“Come on Deku!” He slipped out into the night. His parents were gone for a work party, so it was easier.
He left a lit caved pumpkin by his door.
A few train rides and some walking later, they stepped out of the wispy black shadows that clung to Deku. There where a lot of people here. The sight was familiar to Katsuki. The sight of grinding bodies, strobing lights and heavy music brought him back to when he first meant Sakura. The only difference was that people were dressed in cosplay and decorative horror make-up. Katsuki stayed away from the dance floor.
His gut told him he would find something more interesting in the back rooms.
“Let’s make a haunted house, Deku. She said strange things tend to walk this night. Let’s make people remember that.”
It was noticeably colder, which was a first for Katsuki. The air was heavy and stifling.
Black tendrils stretched around the blond like a loose embrace.
“You better not imply that I don’t provide for you ever again, fucking brat.” He turned around, glaring at the dark void behind him. A lone eye opened and stared back at him. The pupil was a startling iridescent green while there was no difference between the dark void and his sclera. Its stood at a level was far greater than Katsuki’s height, but he didn’t feel small.
It was quiet the opposite.
The halls pulsed on and off with infectious colors that danced to the beat of music. Jin kept tapping his foot. He wasn’t catching the beat…not that he wanted to. He didn’t want to dance with the rest of the no bodies here.
He wanted to dance.
He wanted to jump up and bust a move!
His head was killing him.
The hand that was massaging the back of his neck clawed at the tense muscles. He had no idea why he agreed to come here.
He thought it would be great to get some fresh air.
…Fucking splitting in half
He clutched his head. The others paid him no mind as they went about their fun. A box of syringes laid on the table. Those that weren’t dancing and having fun were gambling just to use those damn things. They said it would help him. He would feel good…better than good.
It wasn’t worth waiting.
Jin slipped out of the room with little trouble before trying to find a corner. The strobing lights weren’t helping, but he able to find a spot that didn’t have a couple grinding to completion. His shaky hand dug into his pocket and pulled out the comforting material. He nuzzled it, whispered to it, kissed it before putting it on.
Just like that it was all gone.
They became him.
Twice hugged himself.
His foot tapped to the beat of the heavy base. The strobing lights made it a harder to see smooth movements. People on the lower dance floor looked like they were just pictures. Every time the light came back on people had moved from their original place.
Twice wondered if he should mingle with the people.
He wondered if he could find a partner tonight.
Somewhere in the back of his mind told him that no one would waste time on him.
He didn’t feel like going back to that room!
The drop-in temperature made him feel hot. His skin prickled at the change. He looked around. No one on the lower level seemed bothered. He glanced down the hall. Twice wasn’t sure if he eyes were right. He rubbed them quickly before blinking again. He thought he saw a…kid?
Maybe it was just a short person in cosplay.
The strobing lights presented him with a person wearing an Oni mask. Twice caught something bigger standing behind the other person.
The music pounded in his ears as the figure crept closer. The lights distorted his view.
Red
Black
Red
Black
“Hello?”
Trick or Treat
The smell of blood filled his nose as something loomed behind him.
“Trick or Treat, asshole.”
The little Oni stood in front of him with his hands out-stretched.
‘Run’
‘Fight’
‘Ask him his name’
Twice was at a lost for words. His heart was beating loud and hard in his chest as he decided to withhold oxygen from himself. He dug in his pocket again and pulled out some cash. He didn’t have much. He didn’t even have candy.
Why would he have candy?
He dropped the change into the Oni’s wet hands.
The little Oni walked away. His figure seemingly teleporting with the changing lights.
Thank
you
The heavy stifling air lifted as he watched the two disappear behind a closed door.
There were screams that were drowned out by the music below them.
Twice wasn’t exactly attached to this joint.
It would be best to leave the little Oni to his work.