Chapter 24: Bakugo
The pounding in my head was a goddamn symphony of pain. It felt like a thousand tiny explosions were going off behind my eyes, and the harsh morning light filtering through the blinds only amplified the misery. I groaned, rolling over and burying my face in… something soft? Furry?
I bolted upright, immediately regretting the decision as another wave of nausea hit me. This wasn't my bed. This wasn't even close to my bed. The sheets were a ridiculous shade of crimson, and the pillow under my cheek was definitely not made of cotton. It felt strangely… warm.
My eyes widened, taking in the room. Kirishima's room. Right. Last night at Mina's. The party. Ugh, the whole thing was a hazy blur of cheap beer, loud music, and Kaminari's ear-splitting laughter. I vaguely remembered challenging Kirishima to an arm wrestle and then… nothing.
I tried to lift my hand to rub my temple, but something was… off. My fingers felt… longer. Panic started to bubble up as I stared down at my hand. My nails weren't nails anymore. They were claws. Sharp, retractable claws. I flexed them, and a low growl escaped my throat before I could stop it.
My breath hitched. I looked down at my chest. No fur. Thank god for small mercies. But then my hand went to the side of my head. Something was there. Something fuzzy. My fingers ran over the soft, pointed shape. I scrambled out of bed and stumbled over to the mirror, my heart hammering against my ribs.
Two wolf ears, grey and twitching, sat atop my head. My eyes, usually a sharp crimson, seemed to glow with an unnerving amber light. I had a tail, tucked behind me, swishing agitatedly as I examined myself.
"What the actual hell?" I muttered, my voice sounding deeper and rougher than usual. This was insane. Absolutely, mind-numbingly insane.
I didn't have time to process it. Not now anyway. I needed to get out of here before someone saw me. I could already imagine the shit-show that would happen if the Bakusquad saw me now. I pulled on my clothes as quickly as I could, trying to ignore the way the fabric felt against my new… appendages.
Luckily, everything was surprisingly quiet. Must be everyone sleeping off the hangover. I crept out of the house and shut the door behind me, hoping to avoid any unwanted attention. The cool air was a welcome relief against my overheated skin. The sun was just starting to rise, painting the sky in hues of pink and orange.
I took a deep breath, trying to calm the raging panic that was threatening to overwhelm me, and that's when, out of the corner of my eye, I saw him.
Deku.
But it wasn't the Deku I knew who was the embodiment of frazzled green hair and constant mumbling. This Deku had a pair of long, white rabbit ears sticking up from his head. They twitched with every shift of his expression. He also had a fluffy white tail that bounced as he walked. He was wearing his usual school uniform, but the sight of his stubby tail poking out of the back of his pants made him look ridiculous and somehow incredibly cute all at the same time. He was also muttering to himself, his eyes fixated on a notebook he was holding in his hand.
"Analyzing the structural integrity… but the velocity and trajectory… how would it affect… oh, perhaps…"
His head was turned down, and he just kept walking, oblivious to everything around him. He stopped to take notes every now and then, his stubby tail twitching with each stroke of his pen.
He looked… ridiculous. And yet, I couldn't deny the slight unease stirring within me. It was… unsettlingly similar to what happened to me.
"Oi! Nerd!" I barked, my voice much louder than I intended. My claws instinctively extended, digging into my palms. Damn it.
Deku jumped, his ears shooting up in surprise as his wide green eyes focused on me. "K-Kacchan?" He stuttered, his notebook fluttering dangerously close to the ground.
He looked at my face, his eyes widening to the size of saucers as he took in my ears, my tail, and the claws that were now retracting back into my fingers. I must have been a sight to behold.
"You… you have…?" He stammered, his finger pointing at my ears. His bunny tail was still twitching but it was now from nervousness rather then habit.
"Look who's talking, bunny-boy," I snapped, crossing my arms. It was stupid. I should just walk away, but something kept me rooted to the spot.
His face scrunched up in confusion. "B-bunny-boy?" Then he looked down at himself, his small tail and floppy ears. His face went pale. "Oh no…"
He mumbled something else about "Quirk mutation" and "unforeseen variables" before he shook his head and looked back at me, his gaze full of a million questions.
This was going to be a long day. And this wasn't a regular kind of long, it was a "everything has gone completely sideways" kind of long. I rubbed my temples, my claws itching to find something to destroy. This was a disaster. A fucking disaster.