Chapter Four

-Bakugou's POV-

I didn't feel like explaining everything to those dumbasses, instead just tossing them to Deku so I could be alone again. I finally reached the waterfall again, sitting on the rock from earlier and just staring at the water. I wait here almost every day, because at the perfect moment the water seems to glow with the moon's light shining down on it. It gives off a certain calming feeling when you watch it, and a cool touch from the water.

I don't know how long I was there but I smiled when I saw the falling water start to light up, reflecting the moon beautifully. This was something I don't think I could ever forget, a sight I had found by accident quite a few years ago with my old man actually.

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I ran away from the settlement, tears in my eyes. My dad would be leaving for the fight tomorrow and I hadn't been allowed to go with him. Why couldn't they let me fight? I wanted to help too, staying with a bunch of kids and women wasn't gonna help anyone.

Stumbling around in the dark I found a tall rock to climb onto. I sat there in a ball crying, angry at the elders and mom. They didn't understand, all I wanted to do was help. I heard footsteps behind me but I didn't care, I didn't want to go back.

"Katsuki?" my dad called gently, wrapping his arms around me.

"Katsuki, what's wrong?" he asked, rocking me gently.

"I-I just w-wanna hel-lp you keep e-everyone safe." I stuttered out, trying to keep from sobbing.

"Oh my sweet boy, I know you do. But I need you here, not every fight is away from the settlement. I need you here to watch over the women and children." he stated lovingly.

"B-but what if you d-don't come back? Who's g-gonna keep you safe?" I asked, looking up at him as he smiled at me.

"Katsuki, no matter what I'll be back. Here, take this and hold it close to you." he directed, handing me a small pendant from around his neck.

It was in the shape of a teardrop, with a light blue color to it. It almost looked like it was glowing as I held it closer to me. He put his hand over mine as I held it, smiling down at me.

"Whenever you feel upset, hold this close and remember I'll be back. This stone has a legend to it y'know." he said, making me look between him and the pendant.

"The legend says that the one who gifts it to another, can leave a piece of them with that person. A way to call back a lost loved one. All you have to do is close your eyes, hold it to your heart, and call out their name." he said, the wind rustling leaves around us.

"Look Katsuki, look at the water. This is where I found it, and this is where its call is strongest. If you ever need me, all you need to do is call." he stated, the pool in front of us rippling from the wind.

As we sat there the clouds parted a bit, causing the water to light up. The dark black soon became a sky blue as the moon shone brightly over the water. The pendant felt heavy in my hands as my eyes slowly closed. A soft hum filled the air as my dad rocked me in his arms.

"Goodnight Katsuki, remember what I've said." he whispered as I finally drifted to sleep.

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Those had been his last words to me, leaving the next morning to go fight the Sira tribe. I watched the water ripple, small stones sparkling below the surface. I hadn't told anyone about that night, the old hag not even questioning me the day after it happened. I carefully untied the string of beads from around my waist. Looking at it, it didn't look like anything special, but I knew that the one bead on there that did matter was the center of attention.

Others have constantly stated that it stuck out like a sore thumb, and that I should replace it with one that fits in more. I just couldn't bring myself to remove the tear shaped stone from the center of the string. The light blue pendant my old man had given me hung there between the orange, white, and red beads. It was definitely attention grabbing, but was also very out of place. I still refused to get rid of it, always believing the legend my father had told me so long ago. I came here every night that I could so that I could simply sit here and watch the water.

"Katsuki? Are you around here?" my old hag called, somewhere nearby.

I could hear some rustling nearby until she sighed, sitting next to me on the rock. She looked over at the belt I held in my hands, a small chuckle at the blue stone on it. We sat in silence for quite a while, just watching everything around us sparkle.

"I miss him too, but he should be returning soon. He'll be here in time for your wedding." she stated, in a sad tone.

"You don't want this wedding either do you?" I asked, not looking over.

"No, I'd much rather have you here. But we need to take care of the tribe, this'll settle things between our people and keep others from getting hurt." she answered.

"I want to keep everyone safe, that's all I've wanted." I mumbled.

"I know sugar, we'll be safe I promise." she stated softly.

"Do you really think he'll come back?" I asked, seeing her turn to me.

"He will, your father is one of the most considerate people I've ever met. If he says something he means it with every fiber of his being. He'll be back." she stated, trying to sound comforting.

"He better be, or I'll beat him up for lying." I mumbled, hearing the old hag chuckle.

"Let's head home, you're gonna need your sleep if you're gonna help everyone plan this thing." she said, getting up and standing a bit behind me.

She waited there for me as I looked over the pendant and down into the water it came from. The clouds had covered the moon a little bit ago, but there was still a faint glow to the water. I put the string of beads back around my waist, clasping it where it belonged, and getting up to follow the old hag back to the settlement.

-Time Skip: The Next Day-

I had spent the night in the settlement, a first in months. It was just as noisy as I remembered, not a lick of silence all night with the many babies or children waking up in tears. At some point I had gone for a walk to try and make myself tired, though it didn't work. Now I was fighting to stay awake with the many women of the settlement going over what would need to be collected to make the food for the ceremony. Apparently the Sira's had sent word to their fighting groups and home to inform them of the deal and date to arrive.

The current argument was over whether it would be better to have raspberries on the tables or grapes. Both seemed like they would be fine but apparently that wouldn't work for this type of ceremony. I could tell my old hag was seriously contemplating this topic because she was silent while the debate of pros and cons continued around her. My betrothed hadn't bothered to show up to the meeting today though, opting to help gather the meat needed instead. A messenger had arrived not too long ago to deliver some news to the old hag that seemed to make her day better.

"Well raspberries are fresher and more bright and colorful." someone argued, getting on my nerves already.

"Yes, but grapes are juicier and can be very refreshing." someone else countered.

I was severely irritated when I sent a glare to the old hag, trying to relay that I didn't want to be here. It was bad enough everyone had to take domestic lessons, but this was torture. She gave me a pointed look, though finally stating something.

"We'll go with raspberries, seeing as grapes aren't local to the Sira tribes land so they might think we're gonna poison them." she said, getting a few nods and stray ok's from people.

"Inko, could you please inform the other gatherers of the fruits, herbs, and vegetables that will be needed. Everyone else can work on the decorations and clearing of the ceremony site. That will be all everyone." she stated, everyone nodding and leaving.

She gave me a smile before leaving herself, allowing me some time to myself. I decided to head back to my hut and try to sleep. It was the only quiet place nowadays. I loved getting time to myself, as rare as it was so that I could just go hide away from everyone. It was one of the most relaxing things I could do right now. Though my betrothed seemed to think otherwise, since his people wouldn't let me leave the settlement if they saw me. It was irritating to say the least.

I was currently trying to lose the person he ordered to tail me. It was very easy to notice seeing as they were following me all night when the old hag and I got back, as well as all morning once I left our family's hut. It was some guy with short, straight black hair that was slightly shorter than the rest of them. Even so he was still quite stocky and would send someone to ask for help if I tried to leave for any reason. Currently I was heading towards the resource hut, planning to grab a snack and sneaking out of the back window. The hut had to have ventilation or the food would go bad.

I walked into the hut, seeing Deku calculating how much was in there. He looked at me to speak before I covered his mouth with a glare. He must have gotten the hint because he didn't say a word as I moved my hand and grabbed an apple. I climbed out of the window, heading in a straight line for the woods. I had just broken the treeline when I heard the guy yelling to his buddies. Snickering I made my way to my hut, staying as hidden as I could. When I made it to my hut I carefully went inside, taking care to keep it hidden.

-Kirishima's POV-

I had just gotten back from hunting with the few people that could hunt here. Their work was definitely sloppy to say the least, but they managed to catch what they needed to. When we walked into the settlement, Sero was yelling about something. People were running in and out of huts, looking for something.

I tapped Sero's arm, gesturing away from the crowd. He followed me over to a small field that children usually play in. He seemed on edge as he looked around while we walked, something definitely wasn't right.

"What's going on here?" I asked, looking him over briefly before he spoke.

"I was following Katsuki around like you asked, but now I can't find him." he answered, making a bubble of anger rise.

"You lost him! How did that happen?" I asked, dropping the spear I was holding.

"He kept trying to go into the woods and eventually went inside the resource hut with that green haired kid and I never saw him leave. When I went to check on him he wasn't there." he explained frantically.

I sighed, looking along the trees, we had to find him eventually. I saw Sero nearly jump out of his skin when a girl tugged on his arm. We both turned to look at her, her white hair braided over one shoulder. She had lovely red eyes like Katsuki and a sweet demeanor about her. We both relaxed a bit when we saw her, making her smile so adorably.

"Are you looking for Kacchan?" she asked, looking me in the eyes.

"Yes, do you know where he is?" I asked, seeing her nod.

"He's hiding, he doesn't like being in the settlement for too long. It makes him anxious." she stated, making me hum.

"Do you know where he's hiding? I'd like to check and make sure he's safe." I asked, seeing her nod again before grabbing my finger with her tiny hand.

"Sero, go tell Mina about this. Tell her that she can decide what happens in concern to what happened." I said, seeing him nod and run off.

I turned back to the little girl, giving her a nod to start leading, following her the best I could. After making our way through the woods for a while I could see the waterfall that I had met Katsuki at. She walked by, stopping by some vines that hung loosely from the trees. It looked just like every other group of vines, so I was a bit confused when she started to tug at them. I carefully moved her and pulled the vines out of the way, revealing a hut door with the Folia tribes seal on it.

"He's in there, you know your way back. Have fun." she said, skipping back the way we'd come.

I reached for the door, easily opening it to find a fairly spacious room on the other side. It wasn't lit by anything other than a window on the far wall near a lumpy hammock. I closed the door again quietly, inching around the place carefully. Once I was next to the hammock I could see the spiky fluff of blonde hair in it. He was facing away from me, but I could still see that he was wearing the same thing as usual. His body paint was only a little messy, not that it was too important for daily wear.

"Get out dumbass, I'm trying to sleep." he grumbled, making me freeze.

I watched him roll over after a little bit, glaring at me. He had soft bruising under his eyes showing how tired he is. His glare didn't hold much hostility, only seeming slightly annoyed that he had been woken up.

"You shouldn't sleep in the middle of the day, it'll mess up your internal clock." I said, seeing him frown at me and lay down again.

"Easy for you to say, all you've been doing is hunting and trapping. I've been the one with the most work to do." he grumbled, shifting a bit.

"Would you like for us to switch places for a few days then? Then you could go out and hunt." I offered, making him roll over again.

"I can't, there's a law about it. I have to stay and take care of these things cause I'm weaker than you." he growled, irritated.

"In your tribe maybe, but you could always say that I found it offensive that you didn't get to hunt like the men of my tribe. Cause that would be true." I said, seeing him contemplating it.

"Two days, we'll see how long you last with those people." he said, a smirk on his face.

I went to ask what he meant when a horn sounded in the distance. I could see Katsuki jump slightly before nearly falling out of the hammock, trying to get to the door. I followed him out, watching him hide the hut again and take off towards the settlement. I followed almost right next to him as we ran, he had quite the endurance to be running this fast for this long. When we made it to the edge of the forest he paused for a moment.

-Katsuki's POV-

I had heard the horn sound, just like the redhead, being excited to see my dad again. He was home early, I couldn't wait to train with him again. As we made our way through the settlement quickly I could see the warriors gathered at the training field. As we approached I noticed they had their weapons pointed at the redheads companions, even my father with a spear to the girl with pink hairs throat.

"Dad!" I yelled, seeing him turn slightly.

"Katsuki, what is going on here?" he asked, anger apparent in his voice.

"Masaru, please put the spear down. We don't need a fight here." the old hag stated, pushing warriors out of the way as she came up behind my old man.

"I just get home from fighting these creatures and here they are with not a scratch on them." he growled, getting glares from the Sira's.

"Masaru, calm down. Everyone is safe, they haven't caused any harm since they got here." the old hag explained, getting him to lower his spear a bit.

I felt the redhead grab both of my arms, keeping them just behind me with a bit of discomfort. I tried to wiggle free, only getting a tighter grip on my arms making me hiss slightly. The noise had gotten the old man's attention as he looked over in rage. Before he could yell at the idiot behind me, said idiot spoke.

"Lower your weapons or we won't be as civil as we are now." he ordered, firm and full of authority.

All I could do was stand there watching the man as he looked ready to kill the woman in front of him at any second. The redheads grip tightened again making me whimper slightly at the pain. The sound made my old man close his eyes, with a sigh he lowered his spear as the warriors followed shortly after. The redhead behind me let go as soon as the last weapon was lowered, letting me back away from him. The look on his face was one that showed slight anger, but when his eyes met mine I could see he was hurt by something.

-Time Skip: Ten Minutes Later-

We were all gathered in the meeting hut, the old man still angry with the redhead. My old hag was still explaining the events of the past few days to him, neither of them taking eyes off the other. I was next to my old man, avoiding contact with the redhead. While they were talking, bruises had formed around my arms, leaving deep purple handprints wrapped around my arms just above the bend.

"Seeing as there seems to be an agreement here, I won't kill you, but don't ever touch my son like that again or you won't make it through the night." the old man threatened.

"Masaru, please calm down. Everyone is safe and Katsuki only has a little bruising, he's fine." my old hag stated, making me jump slightly and look up at my dad.

"Where'd the ones around his eyes come from?" he asked.

"I couldn't sleep last night, I've been tired all day." I explained quietly, seeing him sigh before relaxing a bit.

"Fine, go get some sleep, son. I'll have someone wake you up in a little while." he said gently, a caring smile on his face as I nodded.

I got up from my seat and moved past the redhead at a distance, not wanting to touch him. He still seemed hurt by it when I finally looked away and walked outside, heading back to my little hut. I noticed many people that looked to be Sira's talking with the others that have been here a while. The guy with black hair that had been following me pointed at me while talking to a girl with black hair and red eyes. A colorful array of beads adorned her head and she gave me a kind smile that seemed familiar. I walked off without returning the gesture, continuing on my route in order to get some sleep.

-Kirishima's POV-

Katsuki left and seemed to be avoiding me, causing a slight pang of discomfort in my chest. I noticed his father glaring at me after he left, returning the glare just as easily. We sat in tense silence for a while. Everyone was uncomfortable as him and I only glared at each other.

"We should get back to preparations, there are still many things that need to be done." Bakugou's mother stated.

"Fine, let's get this over with." his father responded, getting up and leaving.

I left a little bit after he did, Mina following after me. As soon as we got back to the small camp that we'd set up I noticed that my mother was here. She had her usual strings of beads on her head, looking as lovely as she always did though a bit tired. She saw me coming closer and smiled, holding her arms open so I could hug her. She wasn't from the Sira tribe originally, so she was much smaller than everyone else.

"How's my darling son been while he was away?" she asked, getting wrapped in a bear hug by me.

"I've missed you Momma, but I've been fine." I answered, smiling and putting her down again.

"Sero tells me that you're betrothed is quite feisty, sounds like you'll have your hands full." she chuckled, making me smile.

"Ya, he's eccentric but he's very cute and kind in his own way." I stated, walking with her back towards the others.

"I can't wait to meet him. Let's get some food and sleep before you get any thinner." she said, poking my side.

"Ma, I doubt it'd be that noticeable." I replied, holding the spot she poked.

"Boy, don't make me get your other mother to feed you. You know she isn't gonna be nice about it." she stated firmly, staring me down.

"Yes Momma, I'll go eat." I replied, seeing her smile and sit down with the others.