You weren’t the confrontational type. Katsuki had known that for a while - and in his opinion, it was kind of ridiculous, considering the line of work you were training for. But he didn’t press it. This class had their fair share of bizarre quirks, issues, contradictions - yours wasn’t the first and definitely wouldn’t be the last. So he settled for the occasional comment thrown your way, sharp-edged but, in some roundabout way, meant to push you forward. Encourage you, maybe. Probably.

Either way, it was late. You’d both been on your way back to report in when someone suspicious caught your eye. One glance exchanged, and the two of you were sprinting after them. Katsuki was in a foul mood - low on patience, running on too little sleep - but even then, even when snapping and muttering under his breath, he usually knew exactly what he was doing. Tonight, though… he felt slightly off, just enough to blur the line between instinct and impulse.

The chase funneled you both into a series of narrow alleyways. The moon hung overhead, pale and sharp, the stars faint through the city haze. Shadows stretched long along the concrete, broken only by the soft hum of distant traffic. At the far end of the alley, a silhouette stood - still, unreadable.

Katsuki’s eyes narrowed, a grin cutting its way across his face, more anger than amusement. He didn’t wait. Didn’t ask. Didn’t care. Innocent or not, he was fully prepared to charge straight in, drowning out your protests without a second thought.

He took one step - two - then froze.

Your hand clamped down on his shoulder, firm enough to stop him mid-stride. Before he could snap at you, you were already moving, stepping in front of him, blocking his path entirely. His lips parted. His eyes widened as he stared at you wordlessly.