Chapter Text
Ever since Eijirou was first allowed into Katsuki’s abode, he had continued to let himself in. It was as if that one instance made the werewolf think he had an open-door policy. For Katsuki, it was infuriating. Not only did he have to lock the door at night now, but he needed to chase a full-grown wolf out the door on a near-daily basis.
Shuzenji seemed to think it was hilarious whenever she’d come in looking to stock up her office with Katsuki’s remedies. She had even stopped to pet Eijirou a few times when he was basking on the front porch. Katsuki could always tell when it was happening because he would hear the dull thumps of the redhead’s tail as he rolled over and showed the old woman his belly for rubbing.
Occasionally, Eijirou would still bring him a dead animal and drop it off on the mat. It was far less frequent than before, which Katsuki appreciated, but he got the sense that Eijirou was waiting to be invited in for dinner again. That was not happening. Nope. No way. The damn dog had laid on his kitchen floor for one meal, and Katsuki wasn’t going to allow it to happen again. He had been finding hair in his food for a week after.
Despite all the annoyances, Katsuki still found that he had a soft spot for the werewolf. He didn’t pee anywhere inside, all of his stuff wasn’t torn up by sharp claws even when Eijirou did wander in past the shop portion, and Eijirou had continued to fetch him ingredients from the forest.
Katsuki’s ankle had healed in the month since he had fallen over that stupid tree root. He should be perfectly capable of going back to look for his own herbs, but for some reason he just… didn’t. Eijirou seemed to know what he needed when he needed it, which was a shock since the werewolf’s brain didn’t seem capable of anything more than speech. Each delivery had been appreciated and Katsuki may have encouraged Eijirou to continue by giving him pieces of freshly baked bread each time.
Yet some herbs weren’t growing in the woods behind Katsuki’s shop, and there came a time when he needed to travel.
“Eijirou, stop whining. I’ll only be gone for a few days.”
The lycan let out an even more pathetic whimper from where he sat near Katsuki’s feet. He had allowed himself behind the counter in the shop just so he could paw at Katsuki’s leg and demand ear scratches. The stupid oaf took up most of the space, but Katsuki had allowed it because he wasn’t causing problems.
“I can’t talk with you like this. Are you willing to put the pants on and have a big boy conversation, or are you going to be a baby about it?” Katsuki smoothed one hand over his brow while his other fished a pair of trousers out from under the register. He had purchased them in town after the dinner with his mother, and Eijirou had thrown a fit every time Katsuki forced him to put them on. Apparently, they were itchy. Enough so that Eijirou had usually come around in his wolf form instead of putting up with the fabric for a few hours.
At least Eijirou seemed to obey this time. When Katsuki looked back there was a thick torso at eye level from where he sat in his stool. With a scoff, Katsuki shoved the pants into Eijirou’s chest and shook his head. Even though the redhead clearly didn’t care about privacy, Katsuki turned away while Eijirou pulled the pants on and synched them at the waist.
“Katsuki, you can’t just leave me. Who’s going to feed you while you’re on the road?”
“Probably a shopkeeper, I don’t fucking know! Is that seriously what you’re upset about? Who’s going to feed me? What about bandits or murderers?” As he spoke, Katsuki’s hands flung up and he glared at Eijirou, though he quickly realized he just made this whole thing much worse. Now the werewolf’s lower lip was wobbling dangerously as his eyes grew damp.
“Are you crying!? Oh my god! I’m not going to get murdered!”
“You don’t know that!”
Eijirou was right. Katsuki didn’t know that, but that didn’t mean he was going to worry about it. He had magic! He was strong! This trip had also been one he had been on multiple times in the past and there had been no issue. It wasn’t like Deku was super far away. The walk would take a day at most. Just twenty-four hours on the road, and he’d camp as soon as it got dark out. No big deal.
“Just take your broom… Please?”
Dammit. Not the puppy eyes.
“You chewed the handle! I’m not sitting on something that’s all jagged. Besides, I’ve been making this trip since before I could fly, Kirishima. It’s not a big deal,” Katsuki rolled his eyes. Eijirou looked only slightly embarrassed by the comment as his gaze slid away from Katsuki’s and his cheeks flushed pink.
“It’s not chewed that bad…”
“Look, I’m not changing my mind Shittyshima. I’m going to All Might’s garden or I won’t be able to fulfill a couple of big orders. You’re not going to find Feverfew in the forest here no matter how much you dig.” Katsuki stood up from his stool and headed to the front door to flip the sign to ‘closed’. He held it open and gestured with one hand for Eijirou to go. The werewolf was hesitant. He looked like he wanted to say something else to the witch, but Eijirou ended up shutting his mouth and leaving.
Katsuki watched him from the front window as Eijirou disappeared into the tree line. He couldn’t help but wonder what the wolf did when Katsuki didn’t let him sleep on the porch. That foxhole that Katsuki had seen in the woods had supposedly been his home, but it hardly seemed like enough for a large man like Kirishima.
It didn’t matter in the end. It wasn’t Katsuki’s business.
They weren’t mates.
The blonde rolled his eyes before he locked the shop door and headed to pack for his trip. Visiting Deku and All Might would possibly give him some insight into what to do about his current situation with Eijirou.
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The next morning, Katsuki got up early and pulled on some clothes that were more suitable for travel. His cloak was draped over his shoulders and his hat was firmly placed on top of his head before he secured his satchel. Inside were a few dried fruits from the market and leftovers from his dinner the night before, a cot, and two changes of clothes.
Breakfast was short - just some oats with strawberries mixed in - and soon he was off. The sun was just starting to rise and the birds were chirping in the crisp morning air. Katsuki tilted his head up and took in a deep breath before he headed down the dirt path.
As he was nearing the main road the snap of a branch could be heard. Katsuki glanced over in its direction and spotted Eijirou poking his big canine head out of the bushes. Despite his wolfish face, Katsuki could tell he was still worried about Katsuki leaving. For a moment, only a moment, the witch almost thought about comforting him with a head pat, but that thought was gone as soon as it occurred. Instead, he turned his head and scoffed as he continued walking.
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Night settled in late during summer, but that was fine with Katsuki. Because of it, he was ahead of schedule and would arrive at Izuku’s place late in the day tomorrow. Katsuki’s camp had also been in an ideal spot. He found a small clearing only twenty feet from the main road and settled in with a campfire.
Katsuki had just finished placing his cot down when the sound of laughter came from up the road. He listened for a moment while chewing on a dried piece of fruit. It seemed like a bunch of farmers making their way home. Katsuki couldn’t quite make out what they were saying, but there were some fields up ahead that he knew of. He let his shoulders drop as he relaxed and pulled out the rest of his dinner.
The talking grew louder the closer the farmers came and Katsuki tried to ignore it, but he couldn’t help but notice when loud laughter turned into whispering. They seemed to have stopped parallel to Katsuki on the road as he strained to hear what they were mumbling. It was possible they had just seen the light of his fire through the trees and were worried about the forest burning down, but they were lingering too long.
Katsuki finally let out a breath when he heard the laughter pick up again and the voices drift away. He had no idea what he was thinking. Maybe after having that talk with Eijirou, Katsuki had ended up scaring himself with the thought of bandits and murderers. Who knew? Wild things tended to happen to Katsuki whenever he was in the woods lately.
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Twenty minutes later Katsuki’s dinner was finished. He leaned over to extinguish the fire with a quick water spell and headed to his cot. A sigh escaped him as he settled in with his cloak as a blanket and his hat at his side. The blonde had just closed his eyes when a hand found its way over his mouth. Katsuki let out a muffled yelp as his eyes snapped open. It took only a minute for his eyes to adjust to the dark, and sure enough, a man was standing over his cot. The hand not currently keeping Katsuki quiet held a knife in it, and the smirk on the man’s face told Katsuki all he needed to know.
He was willing to use it.
“Don’t make a sound, Blondie. I know you’re out here all alone, so no one’s coming to help even if you do,” the man, who had some pretty nasty crooked teeth, ground out.
“Just hand over any money you have on you and we’ll leave,” another voice said off to the side. Katsuki’s eyes snapped over. Predictably, Crooked Teeth had two friends with him. It didn’t take Katsuki much brain power to put two and two together. These were the farmers on the road. They probably thought they could get some quick cash from a passing traveler and be on their way. Either that or they weren’t farmers at all and they had been scouting for someone to rob as soon as it got dark out.
Slowly, Katsuki raised both hands in surrender as he lay on the ground. Like hell, he was going to actually let them get away with this. He’d put on a show for these goons and then light their asses on fire. This whole situation was stupid and avoidable. Katsuki should have set up camp further away from the road or gone without a fire. He had never been robbed on this road. Perhaps he had become too comfortable, or Eijirou had been right. He should have just hopped on his broom and been there in a few hours, but Katsuki had insisted on walking because that was what he had always done. Now he just looked like a fool as he sat up with his hands still in full view.
The bandits looked excited as Katsuki reached for his bag and fished around. He didn’t have much in there for money. Just a few copper coins since Katsuki hadn’t anticipated buying anything other than a meal. That didn’t mean that he was willing to part with any of them. Katsuki pretended for a moment more while he watched Crooked Teeth out of the corner of his eye. He still had that knife at the ready by his side.
With a small breath outward, Katsuki’s fist clenched around his bag of dried fruit.
Everything erupted into a flurry of motion as soon as he whipped the bag out of his satchel and threw it in the air. The two idiots near the treeline dove for it and nearly knocked themselves out by bashing their heads together while Katsuki turned around to their boss and shoved him away with crackling palms.
The shove was hard, but Crooked Teeth seemed to be smarter than the other two. As he fell, the bandit swung his arm holding the blade toward Katsuki. The blonde tried pulling away but found that he didn’t have much wiggle room when his legs were still wrapped in his cloak. As the blade got closer, Katsuki squeezed his eyes shut to at least avoid looking at what would undoubtedly hurt like a mother fucker. Luckily for him, the knife seemed to miss. Katsuki never felt the cool metal, nor did he feel the air as it swung closer. Instead, there was just a sickening crunch and a shrill scream.
“Wolf!”
The sound of frantic footsteps on the dirt ground reached Katsuki’s ears before he opened his eyes to see what the hell happened. In the dark, he could make out a familiar shape standing over Crooked Teeth while the other two abandoned their friend. The bandit’s forearm was currently locked in Eijirou’s jaws while the wolf growled and thrashed his head back and forth like he was holding onto a damn chew toy. Katsuki almost felt bad for the guy as he screamed and tried to pull his arm away. A sharp snarl left the wolf’s throat when he finally let go only to watch Crooked Teeth scamper off with his tail between his legs, just like the others.
“Ei…”
Katsuki wasn’t sure what to say. Did he thank Eijirou or scold him for following him here? It wasn’t like Katsuki said he couldn’t come, and Eijirou had never asked. The witch had just assumed that the lycan would want to stay in his own territory instead of traveling somewhere new.
Hands cupped Katsuki’s cheeks and before he knew it, Eijirou was kneeling in front of him as his human self. The look on his face was soft - full of concern - and all Katsuki could do was stare. How could someone possibly have been so worried about him?
“I saw them turn around. I couldn’t just leave you, Katsuki. You’re too important to me.”
“Why?”
“Because you’re my ma-” Eijirou started, but was quickly cut off when Katsuki shoved at his chest. The witch wrestled his way out of the cot and stood, looking down at Eijirou for once.
“Enough with this mate bull shit! I don’t want someone who cares about me only because your stupid instincts tell you to. We fucked once, Eijirou. That’s it.”
Katsuki didn’t want to stay here anymore. He didn’t want to look at Eijirou’s face at the moment, and he didn’t know when or if those bandits would be back. Even though his legs were slightly achy and he needed rest, the witch decided to press on toward Izuku’s house. Katsuki let out a deep breath he had been holding in as he started shoving his things into his bag. With Eijirou still kneeling on the cot, he was forced to rip it out from beneath him.
“I’m serious, Eijirou. Go home.”
“You can’t keep pushing me away. I know the bond is partially instinctual, but this is more than that, Katsuki! I know you can feel it, too!” The werewolf sprung up on his own feet and grabbed Katsuki’s arms. Holding him there firmly, Eijirou leaned down into Katsuki’s space. Eijirou’s eyes were wide and his small brows were turned slightly upward as he looked on in desperation at the witch’s face. Whatever he was searching for, he must not have found it since a short moment later, his face fell.
“You seriously don’t feel anything for me…? Not even an ounce of affection?”
“I-”
Katsuki cut himself off. He did feel something for Eijirou. There was a small ember deep within himself that seemed to hold affection for the werewolf. It lay dormant most of the time, but Katsuki could feel it flare up whenever Eijirou was near.
Katsuki felt it when he came over and found Eijirou asleep on the doormat, when he stretched, when he asked for scratches or belly rubs, or when Eijirou sat with his chin resting on the windowsill of the shop while he watched the sunset as Katsuki closed up for the night and inevitably kicked Eijirou out. His fur always looked so soft in those moments as it tinted red in the light and his eyes glittered.
“... I feel… Something. But I’m not like you! I can’t just see someone and instantly decide that I want to be with them for the rest of my life! Humans don’t work like that. Just give me some time to decide what I want,” Katsuki said. His tongue felt thick in his mouth and he found that he couldn’t look Eijirou in the eye once more. The werewolf always seemed to find a way to make him self-conscious, and for some reason, Katsuki found that he didn’t hate it.
“That’s more than I could ask for.”
Fuck, why did he have to be so understanding?
Katsuki let out a huff and threw his cot back on the ground. He might as well stay here with Eijirou for the rest of the night. It was too dark to walk safely, and Katsuki was confident that Eijirou would protect him if those bandits came back. With the wound on Crooked Teeth’s arm, he highly doubted they would.
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The rest of the night was quiet after Katsuki settled back in his cot with a new fluffy blanket halfway on top of him.
Eijirou. The blanket was Eijirou.
For some reason, the idiot had decided it would be better to be as close as physically possible and since Katsuki refused to sleep next to him while he was naked, Eijirou had shifted back into his wolf form. There had been quite a bit of circling before the lycan settled down with his front paws over Katsuki’s legs and his head resting on the witch’s hip. It took everything in Katsuki to not immediately shove him off. But the idiot had earned a treat, so he let the mutt stay put. Katsuki wasn’t conscious for very long anyway.
When morning came around, Katsuki was given a fresh rabbit that Eijirou had chased down as soon as it was first light. He hadn’t appreciated the bloody thing being dropped on him while he slept, but after screaming at Eijirou for a solid minute, he felt better. Their food was cooked shortly after, and then Katsuki was packing to head out.
This time, Eijirou joined him on the road. His tail wagged the whole time and his big dopy tongue hung out of his mouth while he trotted beside Katsuki. A few people who were heading to the fields commented briefly on his ‘dog’, but Katsuki ignored them. He didn’t want to get stuck talking to some extra and push back his arrival time. Katsuki was still tired from yesterday and he just wanted to get to Deku’s and take a warm bath.
At least traveling with a companion made the long hours feel shorter. Even though Eijirou wasn’t talking with him, he would at least entertain Katsuki as they walked. There were times when he bumped his wet nose against the witch’s hand and asked for head pats while they were moving. Other times, Eijirou would dart off into the woods. Katsuki found out after the third time he had done it, the moron had been chasing squirrels. Surprisingly, Eijirou never brought one back so Katsuki assumed they outsmarted the werewolf by climbing a tree.
With all of the distractions, time flew by and Katsuki found himself turning down the path to Izuku’s house with a little bit of a spark left in him. He still wanted that bath since the sun had been beating down on his black clothing, leaving him fairly sweaty, but he wasn’t itching to crawl into bed yet.As the thatched-roof cottage came into view, Katsuki looked down and found that Eijirou was no longer at his side. He was paused at the end of the road, staring forlornly at Katsuki.
The witch paused, turning halfway toward his companion. Katsuki bit his lip as he contemplated what to do. Maybe it was for the best that Eijirou was left outside. He was used to it and if Izuku saw him, he’d know that Katsuki let him inside. But… He looked so sad, and that little ember deep inside Katsuki was flaring to life. With a groan, Katsuki turned toward the house.
“Come on, Shittyshima. I’m sure there’s meat inside for you.”
Eijirou let out an excited bark and quickly bound toward Katsuki, nearly knocking him over as he jumped eagerly at the witch's side. The closer they got to the door, the more aware Katsuki was of the smile slowly spreading across his face.