Chapter Text
It took Bakugou Katsuki two years to get into the top five. Two whole years after graduation, pretty damn good considering the shit show that went down at the end of his first year at UA.
Took the whole country three years to start trusting heroes to do their fucking job again, ofcourse stupid Deku was to thank for most of that.
Bastard.
Endeavor retired shortly after the capture of his oldest son. Jeanist followed months later.
Which meant all the new graduates who went straight into full hero work, skipping being a sidekick, were placed right into the ranks. Most of Katsuki's graduating class made it into the top 50s. Though the feat wasn't all that impressive considering how many heroes had retired during the strike.
It was clear the method of hero work needed to change. A year after graduation Katsuki helped flesh out Deku's plan to have a new network agency. The idea branching from the summer in year one when they worked together as a class on Nabu Island.
They roped class A and B in, as well as some graduates from Shiketsu and Ketsubutsu, in order to create one spanning agency that covered every region of Japan. Everyone in the agency was managed the same way. Each region had a branch office that managed all prefectures within. They kept everyone on the same page at all times so they were able to more quickly work together and move forces when needed.
Katsuki was the head of one branch office, ran mostly by his squad in the Kanto Region.
The new system they'd curated over the two years since graduation made the hero rankings seem more like a "Employee of the Year" recognition, but Katsuki was still aiming for number one!
It was hard work. Katsuki pulled so many all-nighters just to get his section of the agency running and show himself in the public enough so he could stay in the charts. It was worth it though, because Katsuki finally made it to number four!
Yeah, Deku was number two but the bastard had been hovering in number two since Hawks took number one after Endeavor. The only reason Katsuki couldn't get higher was because Mirko was clinging to number three.
It was Katsuki's first full day off in over six months. Forced upon him by Legal, Kirishima and the rest of the fucking squad all because he may have lost consciousness in the middle of the agency hall and took down the wall to Pinky's office when he fell through it.
Katsuki didn't even wake to her high-pitched screams, just his luck she was actually in office when the incident occurred.
Kirishima drug Katsuki's sorry ass out of the plaster. He woke while being piggybacked to medical, drooling all over Kirishima's bare shoulder with Pinky fussing behind them.
After pitching a fit, Katsuki was sentenced to seven whole days of vacation. A fucking WEEK!? To do what? Sit on his ass!? No fucking way!
Except Katsuki really would have slept all the first day if some fucking inconsiderate bastard didn't go banging down his door at ass-o-clock in the morning.
Katsuki spent maybe one night a week in his dingy little apartment. He pretty much lived at the office, most of his shit was there, so he didn't live in the best part of town, and the apartment was super cheap l, old and of course had no security.
Rolling out of bed was a chore, especially since all he had was a futon on the tatami. By the time Katsuki made it to the genkan the knocking had stopped. He was half a mind to just go crash in bed again. Infact, Katsuki had turned a full 180 to head back in thinking whoever it was realized they'd got the wrong address when a pitched wail rang in his ears.
Katsuki turned back around so quick he tripped over his feet to get to the door. He swung it open so hard he lost grip on it and the knob left a dent in the wall.
He didn't need to go far to find the source of the noise. Katsuki nearly toppled over the basket sitting at his doorstep. Landing on his hands and knees resulted in his eyes meeting a lump of pale flesh swaddled in an orange blanket.
The lump stopped crying long enough to stare incredulous up at Katsuki with watery crimson irises blown wide in shock.
Katsuki's neck cracked as he looked around trying to find the baby's mother, but the landing was dead. All lights in neighboring apartments were off, no stranger cars in the lot, no squealing of tires. Nothing.
"Hello!? Who's fucking kid is this!?" Katsuki shouted into the early morning darkness.
The baby's lips trembled. It made a snorting sound that left snot all of it's chin then started wailing again.
Katsuki's gaze snapped back to the babe, this time noticing a white letter stuck in the folds of the swaddle. He reached forward and pulled it free.
The front had typeset lettering and read Bakugou Katsuki.
Creepy.
Katsuki pulled it close to his face and sniffed it.
Paper and the sweat of his own hands was all he could detect so he flipped it around to open it.
The sheet of lined paper had fucking block letter Kanji cut out of magazines and pasted onto the damn paper. It was also a very short and precise note.
"Baby's yours. I don't want it. Born: 14July '
"This ain't funny, fucker!" There was no possible way Katsuki had a goddamn kid. No way. But fuck if the kid didn't look like someone pulled Bakugou Katsuki from one of his mother's baby photos and placed it in a basket.
The bundle had the exact same shade of hair, though it looked like the baby may have two different textures since the front seemed to lay pin straight while the back was wild and spiky. The shade and even shape of the baby's eyes as well matched Katsuki perfectly.
Fuck.
The baby's little nose was swiftly turning red in the chill of the January air. There was no way Katsuki could leave it there to freeze. But he had no clue how to care for a fucking baby!
Katsuki tossed the note back on the squirming lump and grabbed the handles. He lifted the light bundle and took it into his dingy apartment.
For all of thirty seconds.
Katsuki absolutely did not panic!
No.
He was cool. He could handle anything!
Except rearing a child.
What if he held it wrong!? Baby's were floppy right? Except this baby was struggling to get out of it's binding and decidedly not to floppy.
What did babies eat!? Did it even have teeth yet!? While the babe was wailing Katsuki thought there might be a few teeth…
Fuck.
Katsuki couldn't do this. Not alone.
He needed back up.
Katsuki needed Kirishima.
With that in mind, Katsuki refitted the swaddle to strap the baby to his chest. Kirishima had an annoyingly regular schedule. The day prior was his Friday, he always worked out of office for five days, took two off, two days on call then worked another five out of office. Rotating the same schedule, days the first week, swing the second, and graveyard the third. Rinse and repeat.
Katsuki hated it, it had too clear a pattern. Someone smart could track the movement and figure out when Red Riot wasn't gonna be working, and plan their attacks accordingly.
Not that Katsuki was much better. He technically worked everyday on call and 13 out of 14 days out of the office.
Pinky, Cellophane, Chargebolt and Ear Jack rotated a fourteen day schedule by pulling lots every month to determine what days they'd have off, which they'd be on call for and which office days and times they put in.
Unless Katsuki looked on the employee roster he'd never be able to figure out which days the squad was home or in office.
Kirishima, on the other hand, Katsuki knew would be just getting home as long as everything went smoothly on his patrol.
When Katsuki stepped out of his apartment again he fitted ear muffles over the baby's fat head before using his quirk to blast himself up into the air. Must have woken half the neighborhood, but Kirishima lived halfway across town and Katsuki wasn't thinking straight that morning.