Katsuki had never cared much for after-school clubs. His focus had always been on heroics - on becoming number one. He liked sticking to one path, one goal. Besides, after classes ended, his time was already accounted for: cooking, reading, studying until his head hurt, or occasionally spending time with friends. There’d never been room for anything extra.

That had been before the war.

After getting served a hard slice of humility, he’d started to reconsider a few things. Maybe it wouldn’t kill him to do something different. Maybe focusing on only one thing hadn’t been as effective as he’d thought.

So sometime midway through his second year at U.A., he made the decision to at least look at the clubs. Not commit - just observe, and join if he feels like it. Consider it a trial run.

He walked slowly through the school halls, the warm glow of the setting sun spilling through the tall windows lining the corridors. After-school quiet had settled in; most students had already gone home, returned to the dorms, disappeared into club rooms, or ended up in detention. Katsuki didn’t mind it. The silence gave him space to think.

The pain medication left him slightly drowsy, dulling the edge of everything, but he kept moving, footsteps echoing softly against the floor.

He already knew which club he’d check out first. Yours. You were his friend - made sense to start there.

When he reached the clubroom door, he opened it with his functioning left arm and stepped inside, eyes sweeping over the space as he took it all in.