Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Shouta sighs softly as he swallows a sip of coffee, humming under his breath as the blessed caffeine starts to work its way into his system. While he hadn’t liked the idea of the dorms, mainly because he’d have to move his apartment, he has come to appreciate the fact that having Yaoyorozu as a student meant a supply of high quality coffees and teas from the girl who preferred them over the cheap stuff. He’ll put up with his hell spawn if it means he can have the coffee he normally only buys as a treat once in a while all the time.

He glances tiredly at the time and sees it’s still forty-five minutes to the start of training. Time enough to enjoy a second cup before he needs to head to his office and get ready for the day training his hell spawn. His usual tiredness clings to him from staying up late going over his notes from yesterday’s training. They’d finally started the students on creating their ultimate moves after a few days of getting settled in and getting the dorms supplied for their extended stay.

He hears the scuff of a foot and looks up to see Uraraka standing in the doorway with a faint frown on her face. “Sensei,” she says softly.

Aizawa wants to sigh tiredly because he can already feel how this will make more work for him, but he knows Uraraka wouldn’t come to him with a look like that for nothing so he stifles it. “You’ve got forty-five minutes until training, Uraraka,” he reminds her.

“Um, I know and I’m getting ready,” she says with a nod. “I just…I’m worried about Midoriya-kun,” she admits, fidgeting with her hands.

“Oh,” Shouta says, feeling a bit of unease curl in his gut because anything to do with the Problem Child can’t be good.

“Yes, well, all this week he’s gotten up early, and he and Iida-kun have started doing morning runs. But Iida-kun said he never came down and when I knocked on his door he didn’t answer. He hasn’t seen any texts I sent and he said he wasn’t feeling really well last night. He hardly touched dinner and went to bed early and I think he might be sick,” Uraraka finally gets out in a rush.

Shouta lets her words sink in, parsing from the word vomit she just spewed at him and taking in the important information. “Alright. I’ll go check on him and if he’s not feeling well, I’ll take him to Recovery Girl,” Shouta tells her and she sighs in relief like a weight has been taken off her shoulders. “Thank you for bringing this to my attention,” he adds and she smiles sunnily at him. “Go finish getting ready,” he reminds her and she nods before running off.

Sighing, Shouta swallows the last few mouthfuls of his coffee and sets the cup in the sink, already guessing he won’t have time for a second cup now. Leaving the kitchen in the common area, he aims for the elevator and heads up to the second floor.

He’s learned two things from being the homeroom teacher of one Midoriya Izuku. One, the boy is entirely reckless, often throwing himself into situations beyond his abilities with such regularity that Shouta would think he’s suicidal if not for the boy’s determination to become the first quirkless hero.

And two, the Problem Child has an incredibly high pain tolerance that has Shouta wondering and worried over just how someone could have become so accustomed to pain. So if Midoriya, who has been known to shrug off broken bones like it’s nothing, said he isn’t feeling well, it can’t be good.

The elevator door opens and he steps out, walking down the hall until he reaches Midoriya’s door, a small sign hanging on the front with his name on it. He pauses for a moment, listening, but he can’t hear any sounds of someone moving around in the room. So with a frown, he taps lightly on the door. “Midoriya, you have training soon and need to get up,” he calls out loudly and waits for any sign he’s been heard.

When there’s no sound of frantic movement or any vocal response, he frowns a little harder. “Midoriya, I’m coming in,” he calls out, wondering if Uraraka’s claim of him being sick enough to not be awake is true.

There’s still no sounds of life so with a sigh, he pulls out the master key to all the dorm rooms and unlocks the boy’s door and opens it. It’s dark in the room, the curtains shut tight against the morning light, only a faint crack showing near the left and on top of the curtains. He can just hear the muffled sound of breathing and catches the faint scent of something acrid in the air.

Reaching out, he flicks on the light and finds the room covered in hero merch of multiple heroes. On the bed, the cocooned form of one Problem Child is obvious. Shouta feels his heartrate pick up as he notices the puddle of vomit to the side of the bed and a half pulled out trash can, as if the teen hadn’t been able to pull it close enough before he puked.

“Midoriya,” Shouta calls out, but the boy doesn’t react and Shouta steps in, closing the door behind him for the moment. Avoiding the puddle of somewhat fresh vomit, he reaches for the comforter covering the teen and slowly pulls at it.

There’s no resistance as he peels it back to find a pale face covered in sweat. Dark rings are under his eyes while a flush rides high on his cheeks as he shivers almost violently. Brows going up, Shouta presses a hand to his brow and hisses at the heat coming off of his skin.

Pulling back, Shouta takes a step away, pulling out his phone as he aims for the boy’s bathroom. Grabbing a hand towel, he opens the faucet on its coldest setting as he brings up Chiyo’s number and hits the call button.

“Aizawa-kun, it’s far too early for an emergency,” Chiyo comments mildly.

“I’m going to need you to come to 1-A’s dorms. Midoriya’s sick,” Shouta informs her, putting the towel under the water to soak it with cold water.

“Oh, what are the symptoms?” she asks as he hears her gathering her things.

“Fever, sweating, shivering, he vomited sometime in the last four to six hours, and hasn’t woken up since I’ve come into his room. He claimed he wasn’t feeling well last night and hardly touched his food according to Uraraka, so more than likely this has been going on for a while and he’s only now started to feel really bad,” Shouta mutters.

He presses the phone between his ear and shoulder as he wrings water out the towel. Recovery Girl sighs softly over the phone. “That boy,” she huffs, but he can hear the concern in her voice. “I’m on my way, keep the others away from him in case he’s contagious, though they’ve possibly already been exposed,” she informs him and he can hear the frown in her voice.

Shouta hums in acknowledgement and walks out of the bathroom before he notices the body on the bed shaking. “Shit,” Shouta mutters before dropping the wet towel and rushing forward while still holding the phone. “Chiyo, call an ambulance. He’s seizing,” he orders into the phone as he keeps the boy on his side while he shakes.

Shouta distantly hears her agree over the phone, but he’s focused on the boy seizing, counting the seconds, not sure how long he’d been seizing by the time Shouta had come back in, or if he’d already had a seizure before he even came into the dorm room.

What feels like forever, but is only about ten seconds, the taut muscles in his frame go lax and he slumps like all the strings cut from a puppet. Getting up, he grabs the towel he dropped and he hurries back over, wiping at the boy’s face and neck, trying to cool him down.

His phone rings shrilly and he grabs it from where he’d dropped it on the bed. He answers it without looking, “What?” he snaps.

“The ambulance is two minutes out. I’ve already informed Ectoplasm and he’s covering your training with Present Mic. I’ve tried calling his mother, but she’s not answering,” Nedzu states simply and Shouta nods, even if the rodent can’t see it.

“Fine,” Shouta says and hangs up before opening the door some to show which room it is. A few minutes pass and then the sound of pounding feet reach his ears as the door is pushed open and paramedics rush in, a gurney out in the hall.

“He’s got a high fever. He had a seizure of at least ten seconds. He’s vomited within the last six hours and hasn’t woken since I found him,” Shouta lists off and they nod, the man pulling the blankets fully off the teen and runs a quick exam while the woman starts pulling supplies out of a case on the gurney.

Finished with the exam, the male paramedic grunts and lifts the short teen up off the bed and quickly lays him on the gurney. The woman easily adjusts his arm and finds the vein there before she slips in the needle for the IV fluids as the man pulls out an oxygen mask and pulls it over Midoriya’s face.

Shouta follows behind them, though there’s not enough room for all of them in the elevator and he takes the stairs, rushing to meet them down below. Most of his class is still milling around the common area, no doubt having seen the ambulance’s arrival and the paramedics rush into the dorms.

“Sensei?” Iida calls out as he appears from the stairwell just ahead of the elevator.

“Not now, Iida,” Shouta snaps. “You and Yaoyorozu are in charge. Ectoplasm and Present Mic will meet you for training,” he quickly explains as the elevator door opens and the paramedics wheel Midoriya out on the gurney, gasps of shock rippling across the room.

Shouta ignores their concerned questions, following the gurney to the waiting ambulance and hauls himself in after them, sitting off to the side as the man shuts the back doors and hurries into the front cab to start driving towards the hospital. Shouta’s phone, which he had thankfully grabbed before following them, chirps with a text. He glances down to see a message from Nedzu and Chiyo.

Nedzu: Still unable to reach his mother. Will try other means.

Chiyo: I will meet you at the hospital.

Tucking the phone away, Shouta keeps his eyes on the trembling teen as he lies so small on the gurney. The woman starts pulling out ice packs, placing them around his form to try and cool him down as his fever continues to burn away at his body.

Shouta knows the distance to the nearest hospital from Yuuei. They all know, just in case something happens. It normally takes about ten minutes to reach Musutafu General Hospital with minimal traffic. It takes nearly double that as they hit rush hour traffic this early in the morning and Shouta has to grit his teeth to keep from yelling at the driver to hurry up.

Eventually, they reach the hospital and the ambulance comes to a screeching halt, Shouta having to grab a roof handle to keep from tipping over. The front door shuts with a slam and then the back door is being pulled open as the woman unlocks the gurney’s wheels and starts to push it out of the vehicle.

Doctors and nurses start to swarm around them as they enter the emergency center and the woman quickly rattles off Midoriya’s symptoms. Shouta follows right on their heels, listening as a doctor starts rattling off orders before he’s abruptly stopped at the door, one of the nurses barring him entry.

“That’s my student,” he growls out.

“I’m sorry sir, but only hospital personnel beyond this point. If you’ll just head to the waiting room, someone will be with you shortly to get as much information on him as we can and you can fill out his admittance paperwork,” she informs him gently and Shouta has to hold back a growl before he nods curtly and stalks off to the waiting room she pointed to.

He’s handed a stack of paper by a nurse to fill out and he does as quickly as he can handing it back. No one has come out by the time he hears a voice call out, “Aizawa-kun,” and he looks to see Recovery Girl walking briskly through the Emergency Center towards the waiting room he’s in. “How is he?” she asks once she draws near.

“I don’t know. They wouldn’t let me back there and no one’s come out yet to tell me anything,” he grumbles.

“Ah, well come along. Try not to make a scene,” she adds and he jerks up from his chair to follow her into the back area. A few of the medical staff eye Shouta, but one look at Recovery Girl, a well-known figure in the medical community, and they look away.

Chiyo stops at the nurse’s station to find where they’ve taken Midoriya and then marches off briskly, parting the people in the halls in her passing. They come to a room with a few nurses working around Midoriya, getting him settled into a bed just as a doctor steps out.

“Excuse me, Dr. Amanji,” Chiyo calls out.

He looks up from his file, sees who called him, and straightens, no doubt recognizing her. “Recovery Girl, so good to see you in our fine establishment,” he says with a smile.

“How is Midoriya?” Shouta asks over whatever Chiyo might have said, impatient to know what is wrong with his student.

The man blinks, not having noticed Shouta and turns to him. “I’m sorry, who?” he asks.

“The boy in that room, he’s my student,” Shouta explains.

“Ah, yes, I was just about to send someone to ask you some questions,” Amanji says. He pulls out a clipboard from beside the door and flips the cover open. “Do you know if Midoriya-san has ingested anything in the last twenty-four hours? Drugs or other substances?”

“No, I don’t think so,” Shouta answers.

“Has he been feeling unwell leading up to you finding him like this?” he asks.

“Yes, one of my other students said he mentioned not feeling well and that he didn’t eat much the night before,” Shouta explains.

“Any known issues we should be aware of?” he asks.

“Not that I’m aware of,” Shouta answers and glances at Chiyo who shakes her head to confirm his statement.

“Okay, well, we’re running blood tests to see if he picked up a bug or something, and we’ll run a few tests to see if this might be something hereditary. One last question, what is his quirk?” he asks.

“He doesn’t have one,” Shouta informs the man.

Amanji looks up from the clipboard. “He’s quirkless?” he asks and Shouta nods, picking up something in the man’s voice that sets his teeth on edge.

“Ah,” Amanji snaps the clipboard closed. “Well that changes things certainly,” he says evenly. “I think it might be best if he is transferred to a different hospital. One that can…accommodate someone like him,” Amanji says simply.

“I’m sorry…what?” Shouta asks abruptly.

“Amanji-san,” Chiyo speaks up before Shouta can go off on the doctor. “Are you saying you’re refusing to treat a patient because he is quirkless?” Chiyo asks sweetly, eyes hard behind her visor.

“I’m simply stating that there are hospitals better suited for his kind is all,” Amanji says back with a heavy frown.

“Amanji-san, are you aware that the refusal to treat a person based on their quirk or lack of is in fact a criminal act after the passing of the Fair Medical Act of 2XXX and that by refusing to  treat him, you are in fact discriminating against him. As such, the minimum punishment for such an incident is the suspension of your medical license, or removal if this is not your first incident with a mark on your record, and the max is jail time with a minimum sentence of six month or longer depending on how good a lawyer a defendant has, and as Midoriya-kun is a student of Yuuei, he would have the very best lawyers backing his case. As well, I recall that Yuuei donates a sizable amount to this hospital. It wouldn’t look good on your hospital if Yuuei were to suddenly pull its funding. People might start to question just how fine an establishment this is,” Chiyo says mildly.

Amanji progressively grows paler and paler as she speaks, and even the nursing staff still in the room has stopped working to listen in, eyes flicking between the unconscious teen and Chiyo. “N-now, now, let’s not be too hasty. It was merely a suggestion, but we at Musutafu General are more than happy to treat Midoriya-san and fix whatever is ailing him,” Amanji says quickly, nervously looking around as he adjusts his tie.

“Of course,” Chiyo says with a bright smile. “Here is his file. It is up to date and if you need any clarification, I will be remaining here for a time,” she says and he nods before hastily walking away.

Shouta’s blood has barely simmered down, but he looks down at Chiyo whose lips have thinned as she looks in on Midoriya. “Would they have really transferred him out?” he asks quietly. “Just because he’s quirkless?”

Chiyo sighs softly. “Unfortunately, that is not an uncommon mindset in the medical community. Many quirkless people refuse to go to hospitals because they know they’ll be turned away, forced to wait even with severe injuries, or mistreated by staff. I find it abhorrent,” she mutters darkly.

“We’re not going to just let that go,” Shouta says angrily.

“Peace, Aizawa-kun. I will handle Amanji and the staff here. Nedzu will not take kindly to any ill treatment to one of his students. You focus on Midoriya-kun,” she orders and he sighs, but nods. He knows when to pick his battles. Besides, Chiyo and Nedzu will have this well in hand.

“Excuse me,” Chiyo calls to the two nurses finishing getting Midoriya settled in his room. “What can you tell me of his condition?” Chiyo asks as she steps in and Shouta follows.

“Ah, yes, Recovery Girl,” the older of the two nurses says quickly. “We’ve managed to get his fever lowered, thankfully. He was severely dehydrated so we have him on IV fluids right now. As well, he had another seizure on the way in so we’ve put him on an anti-seizure medication for now to prevent more.”

“Ah, thank you,” Chiyo says, pulling out the chart at the foot of the bed to read over it.  “Aizawa-kun will be remaining in the room. He is his acting guardian while we try to get ahold of Midoriya-kun’s mother so if anything needs to be approved for treatment, you can ask him.”

“Of course,” the woman says and Chiyo smiles at her before returning to the clipboard to its holder. “Aizawa-kun, remain here and keep an eye on Midoriya-kun. I will deal with everything else,” Chiyo orders and he nods, walking over to slump into the vacant chair in the room.

Chiyo walks off to wage war with the medical staff at the hospital and soon after, the two nurses finish setting everything up. “If you need to get ahold of someone, just press the call button and someone will come quickly,” the older nurse informs him and Shouta nods before they leave him alone in the room.

Shouta sits quietly and stares at Midoriya. He’d always been a small teen, but he looks even smaller in the bed hooked up to wires and tubes as he sleeps. He’s still pale with red flushing his cheeks from the fever, but he’s not shivering as hard as he had been before, though he doubts the Problem Child is resting peacefully. Sighing, Shouta settles into his chair to wait for news on his Problem Child.

~*~

Shouta glances down at his phone as it rings and answers it. “Hey, Zashi,” he murmurs tiredly. It’s been almost two hours since they arrived at the hospital and other than nurses coming to check on Midoriya, no one has come in to tell him what they’ve found.

“Hey, Sho. How’s the little listener?” Hizashi asks subdued.

“Still unconscious,” Shouta mutters. “Still no word on what caused this. They’re running tests, but…,” he trails off, unable to convey how useless he feels right now with his student in the hospital and no idea why.

“I know,” Hizashi says, able to hear what he’s trying to convey. “He’ll get better. Midoriya’s a fighter, we’ve all seen that,” Hizashi says and Shouta laughs softly.

“How are my hell spawn?” he asks, glancing over to the bed to watch the rise and fall of a thin chest.

“Distracted,” Hizashi admits ruefully. “They didn’t make much progress this morning and we decided to give them a short break before going back to training. They keep asking if there’s any word yet,” he adds. “We told them what we know, that he’s sick and was taken to the hospital,” he adds.

“Tell them to focus on training and not Midoriya. Distractions can get people hurt and killed in the field,” Shouta mutters.

“Sho, they’re worried about their friend, and they’re not in the field, they’re in training. They’re allowed to worry, just like you are right now,” Hizashi adds softly.

Shouta lets out a long sigh. “I about went off on the doctor,” he admits softly, rubbing at his face tiredly.

“What happened?” Hizashi asks.

“He tried to get him transferred out because he’s quirkless,” Shouta mutters angrily, still feeling rage simmering in his chest.

“That’s discrimination,” Hizashi says sharply in shock.

“I’m aware of that. Chiyo’s got it in hand. I’m sure she and Nedzu are tearing the hospital a new one right now. I knew it was bad, but I didn’t think it was this bad for quirkless people,” Shouta murmurs quietly.

“Yeah,” Hizashi huffs out and Shouta can hear the sound of papers being shuffled.

“That explains his pain tolerance though,” Shouta adds and hears Hizashi stop what he’s doing. “He couldn’t go to the hospital for any of his injuries so he handled it all at home,” Shouta says and hears a faint trembling sigh let out from Hizashi’s end.

“I hate people sometimes,” Hizashi murmurs and Shouta hums in agreement. “I need to get back to help with your class. Keep me updated, please?” he asks.

“I will,” Shouta agrees easily.

He hangs up and rubs at his eyes. A few minutes later, the door opens and he looks up to see a different doctor stepping into the room. “Hello, you are Aizawa-san?” she asks.

“Yes,” Shouta says, sitting up straighter.

“I’m Doctor Kaito Sakura,” she says softly, bright green eyes serious behind her glasses. “Dr. Amanji has been removed from Midoriya-san’s care,” she explains and Shouta nods, feeling a vindictive curl of warmth at that ass being knocked down a peg.

“Have you found anything?” he asks.

She nods. “The first of the tests have come back and we’ve been able to rule out most bacterial and viral causes for his symptoms. We’re running more thorough tests just to be sure. However, we did find traces of some sort of chemical in his bloodwork. Do you know if Midoriya-san takes any prescription medications or perhaps something over the counter?” she asks.

“Not that I’m aware, aside from something for pain relief. He’s a hero student and they all take it for injuries sustained from training,” Shouta explains. “Is that what is causing this?” he asks.

“It’s hard to say yet. We’re still running tests to see what it is he ingested, but some of his symptoms are common with someone going through withdrawals from extended drug use,” she explains evenly.

“I…,” Shouta frowns, not sure what he wants to say. “We’ll look into it to see if we can find anything in his rooms,” he decides on.

“Of course. We believe it is a pill form as there are no signs of track marks on his body,” she adds and he nods. “I’ll be back once we know more,” she continues and Shouta nods again absently before she does a quick check over Midoriya and writes something on his chart before leaving him alone again.

Frowning, Shouta pulls out his phone and scrolls through his contacts for one in particular before calling it. “Aizawa-kun,” Hound Dog greets over the line. “How is Midoriya-san?” he asks.

“They’re still running tests, but they’ve ruled out most bacterial and viral causes,” Shouta says evenly.

“That’s good. Did you need something?” he asks.

“Yes,” Shouta says, rubbing at his eyes again. He can feel a headache coming on from stressing so much. “They found traces of something in his system. They’re not sure yet what it is. Could you go over his room? See if he’s got something stashed there that he doesn’t want people to find?” Shouta asks.

“Ah, yes, of course. I’ll get back to you once I’m done,” Hound Dog says gruffly, already getting what Shouta isn’t saying.

“Thanks, Ryo,” Shouta says and hangs up after saying goodbye. Sighing, Shouta slumps back in his seat again to continue waiting.

~*~

Shouta rubs at his face in exhaustion, a cup of bad hospital coffee half drunk in his hand. It’s already late afternoon and other than nurses coming and going and a second visit from Dr. Kaito to confirm that the tests were still running, nothing has changed. Midoriya is still unconscious, his heart monitor beeping softly in the background. His chest still rises and falls, and Shouta is about ready to tear his hair out.

A knock at the door has him glancing up to see Hizashi in civilian clothes standing in the doorway with a faint smile on his face. “Hey Sho,” he greets, stepping in and Shouta can see Nedzu riding on the blonde’s shoulder.

“Zashi, Nedzu,” Shouta greets tiredly.

“No changes then?” Nedzu asks as he hops down from his perch onto a vacant chair.

“No,” Shouta admits. He’d gotten a call not even an hour after he called Ryo to be told that other than some over the counter pain medication, there were no drugs or medications, prescription or otherwise, in Midoriya’s room.

“How are you holding up?” Hizashi asks, coming to stand beside him, running a hand through his husband’s hair gently, Shouta leaning into the touch.

“Other than drinking too much crappy coffee, I’m alright. It’s just the waiting,” he admits softly, looking up at Hizashi.

“I’m sure,” Hizashi murmurs.

A tap at the door has them all turning and they see Dr. Kaito standing in the doorway. “Oh, I didn’t know there were more visitors. I can come back,” she says.

“No, that’s fine. Nedzu is the principal of Yuuei and Hizashi is another of Midoriya’s teachers at Yuuei,” Shouta explains and she nods.

“Hello,” she greets, holding a file in her hands. The door shuts behind her and she comes further into the room. “Well, most of the tests have come back,” she explains and Shouta sits up with sharp nod. “There are no signs of a bacterial infection or a viral infection in his body, so any classmates he came in contact with are fine,” she explains.

“You said you found something in his system,” Shouta says.

“Hm, we did. We were able to isolate it and figure out broadly what it is. We’re still running tests on it to better figure out what type it is, but…,” she pauses. “It would seem Midoriya-san has some form of quirk suppressant in his system,” she states bluntly.

“What?” Hizashi ask sharply, eyes wide.

“I am aware of Midoriya’s quirkless status, which perplexed us, because judging by the concentrated buildup in his system, he’s been on them for a long time now,” she admits.

“Are there any repercussions from long term use of these suppressants?” Nedzu asks when Shouta remains silent as he takes in her words.

“Long term use of any quirk suppressant can have lasting side effects, the severity depending on the length used. Until we pinpoint exactly what type of suppressant was used, we won’t know for sure. I am going to schedule some scans and a full battery of tests, just to be sure. Now, I need to ask this to be sure, but are you sure he is quirkless? If he’s been on these for a long time, he might be hiding a quirk,” she states bluntly.

“Dr. Kaito, as far as we are aware, Midoriya-kun is quirkless according to all legal documents. We will be looking into this as well. Please keep us updated on what you find out,” Nedzu explains politely and she nods before tucking the file into his chart before leaving after a quick exam of Midoriya.

The three of them wait in silence for the doctor to leave before speaking. “How can a teenager, let alone a child get access to prescription grade quirk suppressants?” Shouta finally asks the question burning on his tongue.

“They can’t,” Nedzu states simply, black eyes hard. “I have been unable to reach Midoriya Inko all day. I managed to find her work number and contacted them, but as of five days ago, Midoriya Inko no longer works for them. Apparently, she just quit out of nowhere and left. I had the Musutafu Police send over an officer to their address listed in his file. The apartment is empty and when they asked the landlord, he said she ended her lease early and moved out, though she didn’t leave a forwarding address,” Nedzu informs them softly, voice somber.

“Wait, you’re saying his mother has been doping him with quirk suppressants?” Hizashi asks shrilly, eyes wide in shock.

“It was only after Midoriya transferred into the dorms that this all happened. It’s been nearly a week since he moved in, enough time for the withdrawal symptoms from the drugs to get bad enough to hospitalize him. It was only after Midoriya moved into the dorms that his mother left. Wasn’t she against the move?” Nedzu asks Shouta.

“All Might said she fought against it, was even considering withdrawing him, but at the last second, changed her mind,” Shouta admits softly, gut churning with anger and impotent rage at what has been done to his student.

“Do you think he actually has a quirk?” Hizashi asks softly.

“We won’t know for sure until the tests are finished. Either way, I’ll inform Ryo about what has happened. I do believe we’ll need his services once Midoriya-kun wakes,” Nedzu murmurs softly. “Tsukauchi is looking into the case and they’ll look for Midoriya Inko, but she’s got a very good head start on us I’m afraid,” he adds.

“Shit,” Shouta murmurs, rubbing at his face again.

~*~

They aren’t able to do the tests until midmorning the next day, so Shouta leaves Hizashi with Midoriya long enough to go back to campus to shower and change into something cleaner. He gets waylaid by his students and has to reassure them that everything possible is being done for the boy and that they will update them as soon as they know more.

He gets back to find Hizashi had ordered some food for them and they eat in silence, Nedzu having left a while a go to get back to campus with Recovery Girl. They field calls and texts from the rest of the staff asking about Midoriya and just try to wrap their heads around what has already been brought to light.

Shouta sends Hizashi off to check on the rest of his hell spawn and to sleep, determined to stay the night and keep vigil over his student. He sleeps fretfully, waking every time a nurse comes in on their rounds, but they don’t tell him to leave. Not that he would let them.

His back is one big knot by the time morning rolls around, but he doesn’t care. Around nine, a group of nurses come in to disconnect Midoriya from his machines to take him for scans and other tests. Shouta forces himself to stay in his chair and not pace, despite how he wants to.

Two hours later, the boy is back and then nothing as they wait. Noon rolls around and Hizashi appears with lunch for them. He updates Shouta on his students’ progress and what moves they are attempting to create. Shouta takes it all in, but he’s distracted.

Finally, around one, Dr. Kaito arrives with a new file and a heavy frown on her face that has both men sitting up at attention. She shuts the door behind her before turning to them. “Well, the scans have come back, as have the other tests,” she states simply and they nod. “Based on what we found, I decided to run a quirk factor screening, to see if Midoriya-san does indeed have a quirk. It came back positive,” she says and Shouta’s heart clinches a little.

“Were you able to determine what kind of quirk he has or what quirk suppressant was being used?” Shouta asks.

Dr. Kaito nods. “We finally narrowed it down to a mutation quirk suppressant,” she explains before walking to a screen on the wall. “His scans confirmed it,” she says and the screen lights up before she brings up x-ray images of Midoriya’s upper torso. “Here and here,” she points to two spots on Midoriya’s back. “These are Midoriya’s scapula, his shoulder blades. Now a normal person’s scapula is shaped like this,” she brings up a different image to show the difference. “But this configuration is built more along that of an avian.”

“Wings?” Hizashi asks.

“Exactly. It was a little hard to get good imaging with the x-ray, so we did a better scan and found this,” she changes to a new image and they can see the shapes of what appears to be wings, tiny wings. “Avian mutation quirks don’t grow in their wings. They’re born with them partially formed under the skin as a protective measure. As they grow, so do the wings and eventually, they breach from the back. It’s incredibly painful so I’ve heard,” Kaito explains. “These have the appearance of a child’s development. Best guess, around four or five years of age. Had he not been on suppressants, they would have grown and developed quickly over the course of about six to twelve months before breaching. He also has the musculature that would support flight: the double pectoral muscles and back muscles, nerves and veins to the wings, as well as the extra toe joint to facilitate landings.”

“Are there any side effects from taking these suppressants long term?” Shouta asks the most pressing issue.

Dr. Kaito sighs before she grabs a chair to take a seat herself. “As I said before, taking suppressants long term of any kind can have long term effects. Mutation suppressants are probably the worst, depending on when you start taking them. Mutation quirks aren’t like other quirks. Many are born with the quirk and then grow into it. In order to stop the growth of a mutation quirk there are two options: wait for it to finish growing in and then remove it physically, or stunt its growth with a suppressant. However, in order to stunt the growth, you need to block the growth hormones that let it grow.”

“Unfortunately, the growth hormones that allow a mutation quirk to grow are also the same growth hormones that allow children to grow. By taking the suppressants, you can stunt their growth permanently, depending on how long they take them. Mutation quirk suppressants are almost never used on children unless absolutely necessary. You can’t get them from just any doctor either. However, there is a growing trend of anti-mutant sympathizers and people have started to sell the suppressants on the black market. Midoriya isn’t the first person to have had this happen to them. There are parents who don’t like their children’s quirks, so they get them removed and place them on suppressants to ensure they can’t come back, or start them young to keep the quirk from fully developing,” she explains with a heavy sigh.

“So is he short naturally, or is his growth stunted?” Hizashi asks with a frown.

Dr. Kaito shrugs. “Who can say? I’m sure it is stunted somewhat. Stunted growth isn’t just in height though. It’s muscle mass, bone density, organ growth, you name it. I would recommend a very thorough exam at a later date to ensure there aren’t any malformations or anomalies,” she adds.

“Of course,” Shouta says. “What…what can we expect once the suppressants finish flushing out of his system?” Shouta asks.

She nods. “If you’re asking about his quirk…it’s hard to say. He’s been on them for a very long time. It’s possible the wings will have atrophied and won’t grow any further. If that happens, we can always go in and remove them. He is still fairly young and he hasn’t had his last growth spurt yet. Perhaps, under the right conditions and carefully controlled introduction of additional growth hormones to encourage growth, they will grow and be strong enough for use. That will be up to him to decide. Having been raised to believe he is quirkless for so long, I’m sure there will be…issues around this new development,” she cautions and they nod. “As for his own body, he’ll probably grow some, but I doubt he will gain much more in height. He’ll definitely have an increased appetite, growing pains, muscles strain and fatigue as his body returns to normal and attempts to fix what was stunted. We’ll need to monitor not only his wings if he does want to try and grow them in, but the rest of his body as well for weaknesses. Usually, when the body goes off a drug that suppresses something, it goes into overdrive producing what was suppressed. Things that grow too fast, especially bones, can have weaknesses form that could be detrimental to a person’s health.”

“We’ll be sure to get Recovery Girl included in all his treatments and come up with a plan to monitor him,” Shouta says, already drawing up plans in his head. “And Hound Dog will help with any mental and emotional distresses this causes,” he adds.

“Any idea when he’ll wake up?” Hizashi asks.

Kaito shrugs. “It’s hard to give an estimate. Could be a few days, could be tomorrow. Now that we know what is causing his symptoms, we’re taking steps to lessen the withdrawal symptoms while giving him medication to counter the suppressants and flush out what has built up in his system out. He’s obviously been dealing with the symptoms for a while and it was only recently that they got bad enough that he couldn’t brush it off. Once he wakes up, we’ll keep him here for a few days for observation and then he should be ready to be discharged back into Yuuei’s care.”

“Thank you,” Shouta says and Dr. Kaito nods before standing. She does a quick check over Midoriya, marks a few things on his chart, and then leaves. “Fuck,” Shouta mutters, rubbing at his face in exhausted anger. “Why is it always the Problem Child?” he asks the air.

“I’ll inform Nedzu and the rest of the staff what’s going on. We’ll figure out what to do from there,” Hizashi offers, wrapping an arm around Shouta’s shoulders to pull him into a hug. “He’ll have all the support he needs to get through this.”

“He’s going to need it, Zashi,” Shouta says softly.

~*~

“T-that’s a thing?” Yagi asks in shock a few hours later after Hizashi finishes relaying everything they learned from the doctor.

“Apparently,” Hizashi says with a sigh.

“Has there been anything on the boy’s mother?” Nemuri asks softly, eyes a little damp at the distressing news.

“Tsukauchi-san has people looking, but I doubt she will be found any time soon. I’ve already begun the process of placing Midoriya as a ward of Yuuei. Without a legal guardian to speak for him, we will need to step up,” Nedzu says simply. “Someone will need to sponsor him and act as his guardian,” he continues.

“Sho and I will,” Hizashi speaks up before anyone else can. “He’s already his temporary guardian as his homeroom teacher and Midoriya trusts him.”

“Very well, I will get on that. Chiyo-san, will you need any help with getting Midoriya’s treatment program done up?” Nedzu asks the older woman.

“I should be fine with the staff at the hospital. I’ll let you know if we’ll need any specialized equipment for the boy. Dealing with long term suppressant withdrawal on top of the possibility of growing in wings are not things I do every day,” she admits with a frown.

“Keep me informed and I will get you what you need. Ryo, are you able to handle Midoriya’s case? If need be, we can get help from outside Yuuei’s staff,” Nedzu asks, looking towards Hound Dog.

“I should be fine, but I have a few contacts I can consult with and possibly bring in if necessary. I think the fewer new faces we bring in, the better. This will be overwhelming, no matter what we do,” Ryo growls out.

“Of course,” Nedzu says with a nod. “I will keep you all updated should any new developments happen. For now, we are keeping this quiet until Midoriya-kun decides what he wants to do and whether he wants to inform others of his new status,” Nedzu adds and the teachers nod.

Chapter Text

Izuku hurts.

That’s the first thing to come to mind as he starts to wake up. It’s not the pain of a day after an intense workout, or even the pain of a strained muscle or bruised limb. It’s a bone deep ache. His joints feel like there are knives in them. His muscles feel like they were stretched far past their capacity and they tore somewhere along the pull. His head feels like it’s stuffed full of cotton that’s on fire and there’s rocks as well rattling around in there.

He hurts is what he trying to say…and he doesn’t know why. With a lot more energy than the action usually requires, Izuku peels back his eyelids to try and figure out what happened, and frowns up at the white ceiling above him.

He can hear a faint unfamiliar beeping and turns his head on a neck that twinges painfully as he looks around. It takes far too long to realize that he’s in a hospital room. To be fair, he’s only been in a hospital room twice in his life: once when he was six and got really sick, and the other time was after everything that happened in Hosu. So…a big gap in his memories of hospitals and how to recognize them.

But why is he in a hospital? Did he get hurt in training? Why hadn’t Recovery Girl healed him? Was it bad enough that she couldn’t? If so, what happened? “Hey Problem Child,” a familiar gruff voice says softly and Izuku finally focuses on the hunched figure next to his bed.

“Sensei,” Izuku says softly, voice crackling a little from how thirsty he is.

“Yeah, kid,” Aizawa says, holding out a cup with a straw and Izuku drinks from it heavily before he pulls away. “How’re you feeling?” he asks, setting the cup aside.

“Hurts,” he admits with a frown. “Where am I?” he asks.

“Musutafu General Hospital. You got really sick there, Problem Child,” Aizawa explains gruffly.

“Sorry,” Izuku apologizes automatically for causing them problems.

“Not your fault kid,” Aizawa assures him. “I’m going to get a nurse in here,” he says and Izuku nods wearily as the man presses the call button.

Time flows by disjointedly before he finds a new face by his bedside. “Hello, Midoriya-san, I’m Doctor Kaito Sakura,” she says, pale blue hair pulled back in a tail.

“Hi,” Izuku says softly, trying to wake up more. He’s just so tired right now.

“How are you feeling?” she asks.

“Hurts…tired,” he adds.

“I’m sure. What’s the last thing you remember?” she asks.

Izuku frowns, thinking back. “Training, um…dinner…that’s it,” he says softly.

“And how long had you been feeling off?” she asks.

Izuku shrugs, not really sure. He’s always had a low grade ache for as long as he can remember. It made it hard sometimes to realize he’d hurt himself until it started to hurt worse than usual. “That’s alright if you’re not sure,” Kaito assures him.

“What’s wrong with me?” he asks, guessing if he was sick, it was more than just a common cold. He didn’t feel sick, not like it usually presented. This felt more like someone hit him with a truck a few times.

Doctor Kaito frowns and Izuku doesn’t like that expression. She snags the chair next to Aizawa-sensei and sits down. “You’ve been unconscious for a few days now, Midoriya-san. You came in with a high grade fever, seizures and vomiting,” she explains frankly. Izuku frowns, that sounds really serious. “We ran a number of tests to determine what the root of your symptoms was.”

“And?” Izuku asks, hearing his heart rate rise through the monitor clipped on his finger.

Doctor Kaito sighs softly. “After quite a bit of bloodwork, we determined you were going through withdrawals from extended use of Exzenophorial,” she explains. “Exzenophorial is the name of a quirk suppressant used for mutant based quirks,” she says quickly, cutting right to the heart of the matter.

Izuku’s mind goes blank as he tries to comprehend her words. Quirk…suppressant? But he’s quirkless and he’s never taken anything besides over the counter medicine. “I’m quirkless,” Izuku whispers. He went to a doctor and everything; saw the damning x-ray of his foot.

“We did a lot of tests, Midoriya-san, including a quirk factor test. It would seem you were misdiagnosed as a child,” Kaito explains softly, sympathy all over her face, but Izuku doesn’t notice because his thoughts are spinning.

“I saw the x-ray,” Izuku whispers. “I…I’m quirkless. Why would I hide a quirk? That’s…you’re wrong. You’ve got to be wrong. If I have a…a quirk, then why…why am I treated like I’m quirkless?” Izuku demands angrily. His heart monitor is beeping shrilly as his emotions rise. He tries to sit up and winces as pain radiates from his body. “I don’t take anything. I can’t have taken suppressants,” he points out, trying to rationalize their answer.

“Your mother,” Aizawa speaks up and Izuku stills, staring at his teacher, the first teacher he ever had who didn’t care that he’s quirkless. Aizawa looks gutted as he speaks, like he doesn’t want to say anything, but knows he must. “Your mother has been dosing you,” he explains softly in the silence only broken by the monitor. “We tried to contact her after you feel ill. She quit her job and moved out of your apartment within the last week. She knew it would come to light what she’s been doing and she left, Midoriya,” Aizawa informs him.

“What?” Izuku croaks out, throat getting tight. His mom would never…she loves him. She was so sad when he was diagnosed. She kept apologizing after they got back from the doctor. She…she would never do this to him…would she? Condemn him to the horrible life of being quirkless?

“Midoriya…Izuku,” Aizawa calls out and Izuku realizes his teacher is suddenly much closer and his heart is very loud in his ears. “I need you to breathe, Problem Child. In…,” he exaggerates his breathing. “Out,” he continues and Izuku tries to copy, but it’s too much…too much. He’s quirkless. They have to be wrong. They have to be wrong because if they’re right then what is real about him?

He doesn’t hear Doctor Kaito’s words, doesn’t see her grab something from the cart in his room and inject it into his IV. He does notice when the world starts to grow hazy, his thoughts growing sluggish as the constriction around his chest eases. Aizawa is there, easing him back and Izuku swears he sees tears in his eyes, but that must be just a trick of the light. He’s got dry eye. He shouldn’t be crying for him. He needs to save his tears for himself.

Sleep is a siren call and he falls for it with ease. The last thing he sees is Aizawa staring at him, hand pressed to his mouth as he watches Izuku and then darkness takes all. Maybe everything will make sense when he wakes up. This was obviously some strange nightmare.

~*~

Shouta curses softly under his breath as Midoriya finally succumbs to the sedative Kaito injected into his IV line. He’s not sure he’ll ever be able to forget that utter look of betrayal on the teen’s face after explaining about his mother.

Doctor Kaito lets out a slow breath and Shouta pretends not to see the faint sheen to her eyes that she quickly brushes away. “They never truly prepare you for things like this in school,” she huffs out, slowly pulling herself back together.

“They can’t prepare anyone for this,” Shouta says back and she nods with a wan smile. “How long will he be out?” he asks.

“That was a mild sedative, so only a few hours,” she answers, writing stuff down on Midoriya’s chart. “I’ve got to continue my rounds, but if anything happens, just use the call button. I’m on shift all today and into tomorrow,” she adds.

“Thanks,” Shouta says and she tucks the chart away before leaving. Shouta waits until she’s gone and the door is closed before letting out a heavy sigh. He hates the world sometimes.

~*~

Izuku wakes sluggishly, but as each second goes by, he can feel clarity coming to him. He’d had the strangest dream: of being in a hospital, being told he wasn’t quirkless, that his mother had been dosing him with suppressants and had lied to him all his life. Had apparently abandoned him and run after he went to the dorms.

It had to be a dream…right?

Izuku opens his eyes to the dim lighting in his room and sees Aizawa is gone. Instead, there’s the familiar blonde hair of Present Mic seated in one of his room’s chairs reading a book. “Mic-sensei?” Izuku asks quietly.

Mic looks up with a bright grin and Izuku frowns a little because it looks more forced than usual. “Hey little listener,” Mic says with ease, leaning forward. “How are you feeling?” he asks.

“Alright,” Izuku says. He does feel better, not in as much pain as before. “Where’s Aizawa-sensei?” he asks.

“I sent him to go take a shower and get something to eat. He’s spent most of the last three days in your room,” he explains softly.

“Oh,” Izuku says softly. “I’m sorry I’m causing such a fuss,” he apologizes.

“It’s no problem, little listener. You’re our student and we just want to see you getting better and thriving,” Mic explains likes it’s the simplest thing for him to say.

“I think you’re the first teachers I’ve ever had to think that,” Izuku admits quietly, not really thinking as he speaks and doesn’t see the pained expression on the blonde’s face. By the time he looks back, Mic has schooled his expression back to his usual smile. “Can…can I asks you something?” Izuku asks softly.

“Of course,” Mic says with ease.

“Was…was earlier a dream?” he asks, hoping Mic says it was. It has to be.

The voice hero’s expression drops and Izuku knows before any words leave his mouth what he’s going to say. “No, it wasn’t a dream, Midoriya,” Mic says softly, expression sympathetic.

“She…she really…,” he can’t finish the thought.

“I’m sorry, Mi-Izuku. She’s did,” Mic says, reaching out to hold his hand and Izuku pulls away, feeling tears welling up in his eyes. Izuku gingerly turns over and away from Mic as he cries, trying to stifle his sobs like he’d learned to do so many years ago.

Mic doesn’t try to touch him again, or even speak with him, but Izuku doesn’t hear him leave either. He doesn’t know how long he cries, but he must eventually fall into an emotionally exhausted sleep, because the next time he wakes, there’s more light in his room coming from his windows.

His eyes feel dried out and a little swollen. Everything is muted in his head: thoughts, emotions, memories. He’s kind of glad for that. He’s not sure what to feel right now. Izuku turns over onto his back and sees Mic is gone and instead it’s Aizawa again.

“Hey Problem Child,” he greets softly.

“Hi,” Izuku croaks out, throat raw from so much crying.

“I’d ask how you’re feeling, but that’s a stupid question,” he says and Izuku smiles wanly. “You hungry kid?” he asks. Izuku shrugs, not really sure. He probably is. He didn’t eat much that night and he’s apparently been in here for a few days unconscious or sleeping mostly. “I’ll call a nurse,” Aizawa says simply and Izuku nods.

The nurse comes and does a quick exam over him. When she finds nothing wrong, she promises to have a light breakfast sent up as well as the doctor. They fall into silence and Izuku lets time flow by without really thinking. It’s kind of nice to not think. Usually, his thoughts are constant and he can’t stop them.

He’s broken from his numbness by the door opening and the doctor from before coming in pushing a cart in front of her. “Breakfast,” she says simply. Izuku glances at the cart to see a bowl of oatmeal with a few flavor packets to mix into it off to the side. There’s a small cup of apple slices and two sealed bottles of what looks apple juice and orange juice. “We weren’t sure what you might like, so we got a little everything,” she explains.

“Thank you,” Izuku whispers.

She doesn’t comment on his lassitude, simply presses the button beside his bed to lift the head up so he can sit without having to move much. She pushes a rolling tray over his lap and sets meal before him and sits back beside Aizawa like before.

“How are we feeling today?” she asks and then amends, “Physically.”

“I’m still tired, but it doesn’t hurt as much,” Izuku says softly, reaching out to grab the spoon beside the oatmeal. He doesn’t stir any of the flavor packets into the oatmeal.  It’s not like it will make this meal any better. He shoves a spoonful of the gummy, chewy oatmeal into his mouth and swallows it unchewed.

“Midoriya-san,” Dr. Kaito says softly and Izuku sets his spoon down, but doesn’t look at her. “I know things are hard right now. I can’t imagine the turmoil you are going through nor will I pretend I do. I am sorry though, for what has been done to you and what has been denied to you. If there are any questions you would like to ask, pertaining to what we told you, I will answer as best I can. As well, I would like you to know there are options you can take. If you want to talk now, we can, or we can discuss them later at a time when you are better able to process them. We work at your pace and no one else’s,” she says easily.

“Why?” Izuku asks softly, looking at her.

“Why what?” she asks.

“Why do you care? My entire life, I’ve been to the hospital twice. Do you know why?” he asks, voice rising a little. He answers before she can. “Because no one would see me if I was hurt. It’s pointless to help someone like me, worthless, quirkless. Why waste resources on someone like me when they can go to someone who deserves it. So why? Why do you care? Because I suddenly, magically, have a quirk? Have I somehow gained a use in society now that I’m not scum?” Izuku yells out, the monitor beeping shrilly as his heartrate speeds up.

Kaito takes his words with a straight face, not even flinching at his anger. When Izuku stops to catch his breath, she finally speaks. “My sister was quirkless,” she says quietly and Izuku stills. “I spent much of my time cleaning her up, patching up cuts, sewing torn clothes, soothing her as she cried. I watched this horrible excuse of a medical profession spit on her and deny her treatment, simply because she was born different in a society that supposedly embraces different,” Kaito says calmly. “She’s the reason I went into medicine. I wasn’t able to save her when she killed herself while I was away at medical school. I’m doing this because I actually take my oath seriously, Midoriya-san. Everyone deserves fair treatment. You may not be quirkless, but it doesn’t matter because in your mind, you still are and you have the scars to prove it, don’t you?” she asks softly.

Izuku’s eyes burn as tears well up, but he doesn’t try to hide them. The room is quiet as he cries softly with his head leaned back as he tries to get himself under control. She silently hands him a tissue box a few minutes later and he wipes at his face.

“The suppressants were for mutation quirks, so I’m supposed to have some sort of mutation,” Izuku says huskily, still looking up at the ceiling. “What kind of mutation?” he asks. Quirks he understands, has always been able to understand. He needs to focus on this for now and not the boiling, writhing ball in his chest that is everything else.

Kaito nods. “An avian quirk, from what we can tell,” she admits and holds up a tablet with his images brought up. “You were actually born with fledgling wings that, had they been allowed to develop, would have emerged from your back and then grown along with you,” she says softly.

Izuku’s actually intrigued by the pictures, staring at them thoughtfully. He’s studied a lot on quirks: the science behind them, the theories, their progression across the generations and the ways they have mutated, even the ways they are suppressed. “Am I small naturally?” he asks, trying to recall what he’s heard of the drug Exzenophorial. “Mutant suppressants affect growth hormones. I remember reading something about how heavily regulated they are because of that,” he says softly.

“They do and to be honest, we’re not sure. Your mother is fairly short, so it’s possible you are just naturally short, but we plan to do a full physical scan to check for any abnormalities,” Kaito explains.

Izuku nods, still staring at the scans and she hands over the tablet to let him look closer. “You said I have options?” he asks detachedly.

“You do,” she explains. “It will be a week or two before the last of the suppressant is flushed from your body. Once gone, your body will once again begin to produce a normal level of growth hormones, though you will need to be monitored to make sure it doesn’t over produce and cause problems,” she explains.

“That can cause growth defects and abnormalities like mutated cells,” Izuku says, remembering reading a really interesting paper on cell replication and the many ways it can go wrong.

“Exactly,” Kaito agrees.

“So what are my options?” Izuku asks, setting the tablet aside to look at her.

“Right now, there are three. The first is nothing. You let your body do what it needs to while monitoring to make sure nothing serious occurs,” she explains. “There is a chance that your quirk would continue coming in with the reintroduction of growth hormones.”

“Wouldn’t they have atrophied by now?” Izuku asks, mind pondering the dilemma that is his quirk.

“It…is a possibility, which leads to your second option. You have been raised quirkless, have learned to live without your quirk and there is no guarantee that your wings will grow. If you would like to remain quirkless, we could go in and remove the limbs, ensuring you won’t have to worry about complication from them in the future. I can’t guarantee that other aspects of your quirk won’t come forth now that the suppressant is gone, but that at least would be removed,” she says simply.

“Option three?” Izuku asks without saying anything about that option, expression painfully blank as he tries to keep his emotions under lock and key.

“There is the possibility, that through the introduction of your growth hormones, and a few other drugs, we could reactivate your quirk, so to speak. Encourage growth and hopefully, they would emerge in a few months’ time fully functional,” she explains. “We have a few specialists on staff with quirks that are used in similar situations, helping atrophied or diminished limbs return to functionality,” she explains.

“I would have wings?” Izuku asks in an almost detached voice.

“Yes, though I can’t say for sure if they will be fully functional or that you would be able to fly. Though I can consult with some avian specialists to learn how the wings develop and when true flight might be capable,” she explains.

“So my options are: do nothing and see what happens, removal, or try to get them to grow and emerge?” Izuku asks.

“Yes,” Kaito admits, sharing a glance with Aizawa though Izuku doesn’t notice, too lost in the technical side of his thoughts. “We wouldn’t be able to do anything until the suppressants are out of your system anyway, so you have a few weeks to think on this of course,” Kaito explains.

“Oh,” Izuku says softly, taking another bite of his now cold oatmeal. “What about school?” Izuku asks softly, dreading what Aizawa might say.

“You will still have a place in my class, Midoriya,” Aizawa assures him firmly. “You’ll be given as much time as you need to process and recover from this, and whatever decision you come to, you will have Yuuei’s full support.”

“Oh,” Izuku says softly, not expecting that. It’s strange to think that adults actually want him to succeed. “My…my mom is gone though,” Izuku forces out, keeping a tight grip on the anger and betrayal that wants to emerge from the box he’s shoved it into.

“That is true, but when she signed the paperwork to allow you to stay in the dorms, she signed partial custody of you over to us. You will be brought in under Yuuei’s custody as a ward of the school with Mic and myself acting as your guardians until proper accommodations can be figured out,” Aizawa explains simply.

“What about the Provisional exam?” Izuku asks anxiously. He’s already days behind everyone else. He’d hate to have to miss that because of…everything.

“I don’t know,” Aizawa admits softly. “Right now, we’re more focused on getting you better and figuring out your living situation. Once the doctors feel you’re strong enough to go back to training, we’ll start figuring that out then, okay?” Aizawa asks.

That…sounds reasonable. He does feel pretty bad still despite the lessening of his pain and exhaustion. The thought of going back to training sounds exhausting right now. “Does everyone else know…about me?” Izuku asks, anxiety causing his heart to skip a beat.

“They know you’re sick, but not what caused it. What you decide to tell them is up to you. Though, depending on your choices, it will get out eventually,” he reminds Izuku.

“Oh…yeah,” Izuku murmurs.

Silence settles over them for a few seconds as Izuku stares at his half eaten meal before Kaito finally speaks up. “Do you have any questions for me?” she asks seriously. Izuku thinks, but honestly, he’s got too much going on in his head right now to think up any questions he might want answered so he shakes his head. “Alright, well then, I’ll leave you to finish your meal. If you do have any questions, I’ll be available to answer them. Depending on your exam this afternoon, we’ll determine when you can be discharged, okay?” she asks.

“Yeah,” Izuku murmurs.

Nodding, she does a quick look over his chart before writing something in it and hanging it back on his bed and leaves the room. Izuku pokes at his food, suddenly not very hungry. “You need to eat, Midoriya,” Aizawa reminds him gently.

Grimacing, but guessing his teacher is right, Izuku stuffs another bite into his mouth and swallows it whole to avoid tasting the bland food. They don’t talk any the rest of the morning and once he’s done eating, Aizawa offers to take it for him. Once the man is out of the room, Izuku turns on his side and tries to go back to sleep, preferring the nothingness of sleep to the chaos of his thoughts right now.

Chapter Text

Izuku smiles thinly at Aizawa-sensei as he hands over his shoes to put on. He’s been in the hospital for five days and is finally being discharged. His teacher had brought him a change of clothes since he was brought in wearing his pajamas.

“Ready?” he asks evenly once Izuku has put his shoes on and Izuku nods.

Doctor Kaito is waiting outside his room with a smile on her face. “It’s good to see you up and about, Midoriya-san,” she says. “I know things aren’t okay right now, but I’m sure things will start to change for the better, no matter what you decide. I’m always available if you have any questions and I’ll be in contact with Recovery Girl for when you do make a decision,” she informs him.

“Okay,” Izuku says softly and waves stiltedly at the doctor before following sedately behind Aizawa. The elevator ride down is quiet and Izuku fiddles with the cuff of his jacket sleeve as he watches the numbers count down.

On the ground floor, Aizawa leads him out the front door into the early evening darkness and Izuku starts in surprise to see Mic-sensei standing near a car, waving at them. “Hey little listener, it’s good to see you up and about,” Mic says with a bright smile.

“Hi,” Izuku says softly.

“I’m sure you’re tired of this place, so let’s get going,” Mic says and gets them settled in his car. He chatters through the short drive, catching Izuku up on what’s been going on since he was taken to the hospital. Izuku listens mostly, but mainly he just stares out the window at the passing city as the car heads up the hill towards Yuuei.

Back on campus, Izuku quietly gets out of the car. Mic and Aizawa seem to have some sort of conversation without speaking and Mic says goodbye before heading off to check on his dorm while Aizawa leads him towards 1-A’s dorm.

Izuku stops abruptly and stares up at the building, anxiety suddenly surging up. “Do they know that I’m coming?” he asks softly.

“I said you were being discharged soon, but not when. If you’d like, we can go in the back way so you don’t have to talk with anyone,” he offers.

Izuku contemplates it. He really doesn’t want to face anyone right now, but he’ll have to eventually. It might as well be tonight rather than in the morning. “I’m okay,” Izuku whispers, steeling himself for the commotion to come. He can see people are still out in the common area, the lights showing their shadowed silhouettes.

“Okay,” Aizawa says simply and they start to head up the path towards the front doors.

No one notices them at first, busy making dinner, going over summer homework, or just watching some show on the TV. It’s like nothing has changed while Izuku was away and it hurts to think that nothing changed.

Then someone gasps and Izuku can see Uraraka staring in shock at where he and Aizawa are standing just inside the door. More eyes turn their way and suddenly Izuku is the center of attention in ways he doesn’t like.

“Midoriya-kun, you’re back,” Uraraka says excitedly, rushing towards him as a few others jump up as well.

Before they all get too close, Aizawa clears his throat, eyes flashing red briefly and they all stop. “Not right now,” he orders and they all nod slowly.

“It’s good to see you back, Midoriya-kun. We missed you,” Uraraka says softly

“Yeah, bro. You had us all really worried,” Kirishima adds.

“Sorry,” Izuku murmurs and turns to follow Aizawa up the stairs rather than taking the elevator to the second floor where his room is.

His room is as he left it except for the pile of ‘get well soon’ cards, and balloons on or hanging over his bed. “They were really worried about you,” Aizawa says simply and Izuku nods numbly. He’s never had anyone be this worried about him except his mom in a long time. Thoughts of his mother have his stomach twisting horribly. “Do you want dinner?” he asks.

“I’m not hungry,” Izuku whispers.

Aizawa sighs, but doesn’t push him to eat. “I’ll let them know you want to rest and to not disturb you,” he says instead. “We have a meeting with Nedzu tomorrow morning at ten, so don’t worry about sleeping in,” he orders.

“What about training?” Izuku asks, anxious to get back to work. He’s lost so much time.

“You’ve got a meeting with Recovery Girl and Hound Dog tomorrow as well afterwards and if they give the okay, we’ll start on some light training to get back into the swing of things,” he says simply. Izuku nods a little and Aizawa sighs softly. “I’ll be nearby if you need someone to talk to,” he says instead and Izuku nods again. With nothing left to say, the man leaves Izuku standing just inside his dorm room, shutting the door behind him.

Not sure what to do with himself, Izuku heads to his bed and sits on the edge of it, the cards and balloons shifting slightly as he does. Around him, All Might and other heroes stare down at him from across the room. It’s not just that though….his mother bought them and right now…he can’t have any reminders.

With shaking hands and a slowly forming tension headache, Izuku painstakingly starts to take everything down. Rolling up posters, boxing figurines and other items, he stuffs everything into a corner of the room. He does carefully set the cards and balloons aside to go through later when he’s up to it.

It’s a stark bareness throughout his room, but it suits his mood right now. He manages to find his spare comforter, one provided by the school along with other simple furnishings should students not be able to afford to have them brought in. Settling it over his bed, Izuku slides under the comforter in an attempt to sleep.

Hours pass in darkness and silence with his swirling thoughts to keep him company. By the time midnight rolls around, Izuku is too wound up to sleep and his thoughts are bouncing angrily in his head. He just wants the numbness back, if only for a little bit.

He feels too full of energy to stay still and he needs to move. Running always helped him quiet his mind, if only a little, so Izuku gets out of bed, ignoring the thought that it’s technically after curfew. Dressing in simple exercise clothes, he grabs his running shoes and heads down stairs. The dorms have a simple gym for those who only want to do basic exercises.

Moving quietly through the dark halls, he finds the gym and slips in, the motion lights flicking on and illuminating the room. There’s a couple of treadmills, some exercise bikes, and a few racks of general weights stacked nearby.

He didn’t think to bring his music like he normally would, but that’s fine. It’s the movement he craves right now. At the treadmill, Izuku sets it up for a fast walk not willing to push himself too hard after Dr. Kaito’s warning about pushing himself too far too quickly. He still feels a little weak and right now is more about getting out of his head than pushing himself hard.

Setting the equipment to go, Izuku starts to walk. He starts out slowly, just a fast walk that has his muscles stretching and burning a little from being disused for five days. He slowly inches up the speed until he’s jogging, breath coming a little raggedly, but his mind quiets a little bit. He counts each step, the repetitiveness keeping everything else at bay.

Eventually though, it becomes too much and Izuku is forced to slow back down to a walk, cooling down before stopping the machine. His chest burns and his lungs ache from the strain. He still itches to move, to not think, so without really thinking about it, Izuku heads for the weight rack nearest him. Some light weights should be okay.

As he reaches for the weight, movement catches his eye and he looks up to see himself reflected back in the mirrored wall. He can’t help, but stare. It’s the first time he’s really seen himself since he woke up in the hospital. He looks pale, paler than usual, shadows under his eyes. His eyes are drawn to his hair, the familiar dark green and the same green eyes…just like his mother…

Like a bomb going off, everything comes rushing back out that he’s tried to lock away and ignore. The anger and betrayal, the grief and shock, it all floods his mind in a torrent that leaves him gasping for breath more than the run did. Tears burn his eyes and anger slowly takes over, his hand clenching tighter around the weight he’d picked up before with a low scream, he throws it at his reflection, at her!

It shatters the mirror and a second one soon follows before with a sob, Izuku just collapses to the ground, strings cut as gut wrenching sobs tear from his throat.

~*~

Hitoshi can’t sleep, like usual. Then again, he always gets like this in a new place and the dorms are still new, despite having been here for over a week. There are too many strange noises, smells, and the way the room feels around him. He’s not used to it, so his mind won’t turn off.

With a frustrated sigh, he pushes up from his bed and heads out to grab a drink of water and cool off. It’s strange to be here, in the 1-A dorms. He’d been promised the spot for the second semester, but after the small pervert had been expelled from the heroics program right before the final exam, they felt it was easier to bump him into the class early rather than waiting for the next semester, though he was excused from the heroics exam. He’d not been with them on that disaster of a training camp either, but he’s honestly glad he wasn’t. He feels too inexperienced to have reacted well in that situation. And yes, he’s aware of that irony considering they were also only in their first semester of the program.

So here he is, a new body amongst an already established class, trying to play catch up. While they go off to do their own training, he gets trained by Aizawa…well usually. After Midoriya had fallen ill, it had been passed on to Nedzu, Midnight and Present Mic while Aizawa was keeping an eye on the sick teen.

He’d listened quietly as everyone worried in one way or another over the smaller teen. Hitoshi’s not sure what to think of him. He beat him at the Sports Festival despite being quirkless. Hell, he’d made it into the program through the entrance exam which has always had Hitoshi wondering just how exactly he did that.

The teen is nice, always greeting him in the morning before they went their separate ways and he’s tried a few times to include Hitoshi in conversation, but Hitoshi’s not sure what to make of it, nor does he want any friends.

Reaching the kitchen, he opens the fridge to grab a bottle of water to take back with him when he spies light reflecting off the nearby toaster. Glancing behind him, he spies a small sliver of light down the hall that leads to the gym. Curious, Hitoshi shuts the fridge and starts to make his way towards the gym.

Halfway there, he hears the sound of shattering glass and rushes forward, thinking someone is hurt and comes to the door right as more shattering sounds out and sees Midoriya standing in front of the broken mirror, shoulders heaving, tears running down his cheeks before he just collapses where he stands and starts to sob.

Frozen, Hitoshi’s not sure what to do in this moment. Hands shaking, thankful he brought his phone with him, Hitoshi steps back from the door and hits Aizawa-sensei’s number and waits with baited breath for the man to pick up.

“Shinso, why are you calling me this late?” he demands sharply, obviously annoyed with being disturbed, though he wasn’t asleep judging by how clear his voice sounds.

“S-Sensei…I…I think something’s wrong with Midoriya. He’s down in the gym and…he shattered the mirror,” Hitoshi says quickly.

A sharp curse is the hero’s answer before he barks out for Hitoshi to stay put and that he’s on his way before the line cuts off. Not even five minutes later, the man himself appears from the shadowed end of the hall.

Hitoshi follows behind him skittishly, staying by the door as Aizawa slowly walks into the room. “Midoriya,” he calls out softly, though the smaller teen doesn’t seem to hear him, still crying. Crouching next to him, Aizawa sets a hand on his shoulder. “Izuku,” he murmurs and Midoriya hiccups before he looks up at their teacher.

“It’s not fair,” he whispers huskily, still crying. “It’s not fair. Why…why did she…,” he can’t seem to finish his sentence before he flings himself at Aizawa to keep crying.

Aizawa simply wraps an arm around his shoulders before murmuring something Hitoshi can’t hear to the smaller teen. A few minutes pass before Midoriya seems to eventually cry himself into an exhausted sleep.

With a grunt of effort, Aizawa picks him up and carries him towards Hitoshi. Sharp, dark eyes catch Hitoshi and hold his attention. “You will keep what you saw to yourself, understood?” Aizawa says evenly.

“Y-yeah,” Hitoshi agrees easily. “Is…is he okay?” he asks softly.

“No, he’s not, but he will be eventually,” Aizawa says with a look of anger and grief that is quickly wiped away. “Go to bed, Shinso. You’ve got training in the morning,” he reminds him.

“Yes, sensei,” Hitoshi says and follows Aizawa away from the gym towards the common area. Rather than take the sleeping teen back to his dorm room, Aizawa heads in the direction of the teacher’s apartment and Hitoshi heads to his own room.

He sleeps fretfully, mind still catching on what he saw before he finally falls asleep around three. He wakes up exhausted, but he’s used to it. When he checks on the gym curiously to see if what he saw actually happened, he finds the shattered mirrors cleaned up and replaced as if it never even happened. Deciding to put it aside for now, Hitoshi goes to grab a light breakfast before training. He sees neither Midoriya nor Aizawa that morning.

~*~

Shouta wants to hit something, preferable Midoriya Inko, as he carries the sleeping teen to his apartment rather than back to his dorm room. Hizashi is waiting for him as he steps inside. Shutting the door, the blonde’s expression grows solemn at the sight of his burden. “I’ll make up the guest room,” he says simply and Shouta nods in thanks, following him down the hall.

It’s quick work to put clean sheets on the bed and to tuck Midoriya into it after pulling his shoes off. It’s pointless to worry about him cleaning off the sweat. He’ll just have to shower in the morning. After they finish settling Izuku into bed, they head for their own room.

“What happened?” Hizashi asks, settling on the bed and patting the spot next to him.

“Apparently he went to the gym to exercise a bit. Probably couldn’t sleep. Something set him off and he shattered two of the mirrors down there with some of the weights,” Shouta informs him with a grimace. Pulling out his phone, he shoots off a quick text to Nedzu who promptly responds that it will be taken care of.

“He’s not hurt?” Hizashi asks.

“Not physically,” Shouta murmurs, exhausted by the last week.

“You don’t have to shoulder this all on your own, Sho. We all want to help him. If you need a break, you need to ask. I don’t want you getting burned out by trying to do everything yourself,” Hizashi orders sternly.

Shouta sighs, but nods. “I will,” he promises.

“We’ll take care of your class tomorrow. Just focus on getting him checked over and talking. I’m sure getting back into a routine will help once he’s okayed for it,” Hizashi adds.

“Yeah,” Shouta agrees and starts to slide further up the bed, Hizashi following. They get settled and turn off the lights. If it takes a while to find sleep, neither points it out.

Chapter Text

The office is silent as they watch Nedzu prepare tea for them. Izuku’s not really sure what to feel this morning. He’d woken up in a strange room still in his exercise clothes with his eyes sore from crying so much and a throat that felt a little raw. When he’d slipped out of the room, he’d found just Aizawa-sensei sitting at a kitchen table drinking coffee and reading over something on his phone. The man hadn’t said much besides reminding him that they had a meeting with Nedzu at 10 and then the two others after that.

Izuku had been grateful that he hadn’t tried to talk with him about last night. He’s not sure what to say about it, only that it had happened and he’s not sure if it did much besides make him feel exhausted, emotionally and mentally.

He’d snagged his shoes from the front entry and had headed back for the dorms, realizing that it was fairly late and that the others would have already left to start their training. It’d been a relief to step into the dorms and not see anyone as he’d headed up to his dorm to grab a change of clothes and his shower things to go get cleaned up before the meeting with Nedzu.

He hadn’t felt like eating as well and Izuku thinks Nedzu is aware of his lack of eating judging by the pile of various pastries on a plate set on the table between the two couches they’ve taken up. A knowing glance from the rodent’s dark eyes as he hands over a freshly prepared cup of tea has Izuku sighing and reaching for a pastry, if only to have something to nibble on as they talk about…whatever this meeting is about.

Aizawa accepts the cup as well and then Nedzu sits back with his own tea. “Well, we might as well cut to the heart of the matter, since we are all well aware why we are here,” Nedzu says somberly after taking a sip of tea. He looks over at Izuku. “Midoriya-kun, as of right now, you are officially a ward of Yuuei pending your mother’s arrest and sentencing for child neglect, abandonment and any other charges that can be levied against her,” he states bluntly and Izuku nods mutely, unable to get any words passed the lump in his throat.

“As of right now, nothing will really change in your day to day. You’ll still be living on campus in the dorms, eventually going back to class once the new semester starts up. If you have need of anything, Aizawa-kun and Yamada-kun will be acting as your guardians in the interim. Are you okay with this?” Nedzu asks evenly.

“Y-yeah,” Izuku gets out huskily and thankfully neither comments on how rough his voice sounds.

“As of now, you have no parent to take you in. We have tried locating your father, but have been unsuccessful. If you could perhaps tell us anything you might know in locating him as there is no one listed on your birth certificate,” Nedzu asks leadingly.

Izuku sadly shakes his head. “I never knew him. M…Mom never told me much, only that I got some of my looks from him. I think he lives in America. That’s where she said she met him at least,” Izuku admits softly.

“Ah, well, we’ll keep looking into that. Currently, we are scheduling an appointment with Child Welfare to get you a representative and see about getting you possibly into a foster home. We will be heavily scrutinizing all options given before allowing any kind of transfer of custody to ensure your safety and that you will be able to continue your education here,” Nedzu explains patiently.

Izuku frowns. “You said Aizawa-sensei and Mic-sensei would be my guardians,” Izuku says softly.

“Temporarily,” Aizawa speaks up. “While we do have a license to foster, we want you to have a choice in which foster parents you will be staying with. As well, there are some who might see it as a conflict of interest if we were to take you in. These things take time to iron out and finalize. Nothing will be decided without your say so,” he reminds Izuku.

“Okay,” Izuku nods, taking a bite from the pastry still in his hand.

“Now, the question I’m sure you want answered most: the Provisional Exam,” Nedzu says a little more cheerfully and Izuku sits up a little straighter. “That unfortunately is entirely dependent on you, I’m afraid. You have some choices to make here soon in regards to your quirk. Depending on what you decide will decide how we proceed. It won’t preclude you from joining your class in competing for the licenses, but we might have to put limits and restrictions,” Nedzu informs him.

“And training?” Izuku asks.

“That is what your meeting with Recovery Girl will mainly be about. She wants to get a baseline today, as well as going into detail on what exactly each of your options will entail. After which, you will then have a meeting with Hound Dog,” Nedzu informs him and Izuku dims a little at the thought of speaking with the man.

“I know you don’t want to talk about this and we can’t make you, Midoriya-kun, but something very traumatic and emotional has happened to you. We as a school cannot ignore this fact. What goes on in your session is between the two of you and if you’d like to continue them, you can. Just remember that there is nothing wrong with needing help to get passed this and healing from this, alright?” Nedzu asks softly.

“Fine,” Izuku finally gets out stiffly.

“Good, now finish your pastry and tea. I’d hate for Recovery Girl to think we weren’t feeding you,” Nedzu says cheerfully as he sips from his cup and Izuku follows, forcing himself to eat.

~*~

Izuku watches quietly as Recovery Girl puts his blood through some strange machine in her office. They’d spent the first half hour discussing everything that his three options would entail and the plans drawn up to follow said choices. They were extensive, which is kind of relieving. He likes to have things planned out and he’s glad they’re taking this so seriously.

She’d then drawn some blood from his arm to get a baseline of his various hormone and chemical levels, and to see how much of the suppressant still remained in his blood. She turns away with a soft hum. “Well, that is that, Midoriya-kun. I’ll keep you updated on any changes good and bad. Let’s schedule the next meeting for Saturday morning before you start your day,” she offers.

“Okay, I can do that,” Izuku agrees.

“Good, and next time, eat a better breakfast,” she scolds him while handing him a few gummies.

“Yes ma’am,” Izuku agrees sheepishly before he follows her out to the main part of the nurse’s office where Aizawa is leaned against a wall waiting for them.

“All done. He’ll be coming Saturday morning for more bloodwork,” she informs the hero.

“I’ll make sure nothing interferes with him coming here,” Aizawa says simply. “As to his training?” he asks.

“Hmm, two days of light training and then you can go back to your normal regimen…within reason of course. I don’t need you back in here because you overdid if young man,” she says pointedly.

“Yes ma’am,” Izuku says with an excited nod.

“Now go on. You’ve got a meeting with Hound Dog to get to,” she reminds him which dampens his mood a little, but he still nods and follows Aizawa back out of the room and into the hall.

Aizawa leads him through a few more halls before stopping by a door labeled with Hound Dog’s name and his office hours. “I’ll leave you here and be back to get you once your session is done. We’ll have lunch afterwards and then you’ll join Shinso with his training,” Aizawa says simply.

“Yes, sensei,” Izuku says with a nod. Aizawa nods back and opens the door for Izuku to walk in. With a sigh, he does, not fighting their pushing for him to talk about what happened. Aizawa gives a silent nod to Hound Dog who’s seated at his desk and then with one last shared look at Izuku, shuts the door and leaves him alone with the counselor.

“Have a seat, Midoriya-kun,” Hound Dog says softly, motioning towards the small couch in the middle of the room. Izuku walks in slowly and sits, tense and uncertain how this is supposed to go. Hound Dog stands and walks towards a counter and comes back with a hot water maker. “Tea?” he asks softly. “Or hot chocolate, if you’d like that. There’s some juice in the fridge as well,” he adds.

“What?” Izuku asks, thrown off.

“I find it’s nice to have something to hold when talking and it gives you something to wet the throat if you talk a lot,” Hound Dog says simply.

Izuku almost says hot chocolate, favoring the drink and bites his tongue before saying, “Green tea is fine,” huskily. He doesn’t need a reminder of her right now.

Hound Dog nods and makes them both a cup of tea. Izuku thanks him softly when he hands it over and then silence falls over the room. Izuku swallows nervously and stares down at his cup of tea, feeling the heat radiate from the porcelain. “How about I lay out some guidelines for us, okay?” Hound Dog offers and Izuku nods slowly.

“Very well. This is a safe place,” Hound Dog says simply. “I want you to feel safe enough to talk here. I won’t force you to talk or reveal anything you’re not comfortable sharing. You can say as much or as little as you want. I will try to help you to work through what has happened to you, Midoriya-kun, but sometimes, a person might need more than this type of therapy or a different type of therapy. Don’t blame yourself if that is the case. We’ll simply have to find what will help you. Either way, I want you to feel like you can come here to get away from the world for a bit if it becomes too much. No questions asked, alright?” Hound Dog offers.

“Okay,” Izuku whispers, guessing those stipulations are alright.

“How are we doing this morning? Physically, emotionally, mentally, whatever you’d like to share,” Hound Dog says simply.

Izuku frowns, considering his words. “I don’t hurt as much anymore,” he admits.

“You were feeling pain before this started?” Hound Dog asks evenly.

“I mean…yeah, sort of. It kind of became a constant,” he admits.

“Is Recovery Girl aware of this?” he asks.

“I…I don’t know…maybe,” Izuku admits with another frown. Had he told her about it?

“Well, no need to worry. If you’d like I can inform her, or you can simply tell her at your next meeting,” Hound Dog proposes.

“Y…You can tell her,” he decides. He really doesn’t want to see her disappointed expression because he didn’t tell her.

“Very well,” Hound Dog says with a nod and writes a note on a pad of paper by his elbow before looking back at Izuku. “Do you want to talk about anything?” he asks.

“I don’t know what to say,” Izuku whispers, hands fisting on his lap. How do you put into words everything that has happened to him and what he’s learned about himself?

“That’s understandable,” he hums softly before crossing his legs and leaning on his elbow. “You have a quirk now, one that was denied to you from a young age. It must be confusing considering your upbringing,” he points out.

Izuku pulls his knees up, wrapping his arms around them after setting his tea aside to keep from spilling it. “I don’t know if I want it,” he whispers softly. “I…I’ve wanted a quirk all my life and now I have one,” he chokes out.

“Uncertainty, confusion…these are normal reactions to have, especially considering the reason for this new development. And there is nothing wrong with taking your time to work through these feelings and weighing your options before making a decision,” Hound Dog tells him.

“But I have a quirk,” Izuku insists. “I was going to be the first quirkless hero, but it was a lie and I…that dream was a lie and how will I help them,” Izuku growls out angrily.

“And?” Hound Dog asks simply and Izuku stills. “Dreams change and evolve,” Hound Dog reminds him evenly. “So you aren’t going to be the first quirkless person to be a hero. Will you let that stop you from helping the quirkless population out there? From being a person to inspire them and fight for their rights?” Hound Dog asks.

“No,” Izuku breathes out, feeling tears in his eyes.

“Are you aware of the growing anti-mutant groups out there?” Hound Dog asks suddenly and Izuku blinks at the sudden change.

“A little,” he admits.

“Then you are aware that you are not the first person this has happened to,” Hound Dog explains and Izuku pauses, wrapping his head around that fact. “There are many this has happened to and is still happening to. Children, teens and even adults who have gone their whole lives thinking they are one way only to learn they were lied to and forced to be that way.”

“Oh,” Izuku whispers.

Hound Dog stands and heads to his desk to grab a packet of papers from it before coming back and handing it to Izuku who glances at it before looking back at the counselor. “This contains a support group online for those who have gone through this as well. Sometimes having someone to talk to who understands what you are going through can be a great help. As well, there is an advocacy group who specializes in these cases. They work closely with the quirkless community as well as the mutant community. They’re always looking for help and have been very vocal about getting hero support to help back them and change things for the better,” he says simply.

“You want me to help them?” Izuku asks.

“If that is what you want. If nothing else, it is a source of information and a resource for you to pull from in the future. I simply wanted you to know that you aren’t alone out there. It is often comforting to know there are those who understand,” Hound Dog says simply.

“Oh,” Izuku whispers, looking back down at the papers. “I don’t know how to tell anyone,” he admits suddenly, the words forcing themselves out of his tight throat.

“This is a difficult subject to just bring up in casual conversation,” Hound Dog admits with a wry huff. “And depending on what path you chose, it will be revealed no matter what you want,” he points out. “There honestly isn’t any easy way to talk about this with others, but if you want to reveal it to someone, I suggest someone you trust, or who will understand what you are going through will be a good first choice.”

“I guess,” Izuku says with a frown.

“Take your time,” Hound Dog says simply. “You don’t need to rush into anything right now.” There’s a faint buzz from his phone which had been sitting on the small table next to him and he glances at it before nodding. “Our session is nearly up,” he informs Izuku and Izuku blinks, not having noticed the passing time, but when he picks up his undrunk cup of tea, it’s cold.

“Okay,” Izuku says, setting the cup back down.

“I would like you to come back for another session in a few days. How about Sunday? We can do it earlier in the day, or later, if that works for you,” Hound Dog offers.

“Um…early I guess,” Izuku decides. Sundays are their rest days, so he won’t have any pressing things to worry about.

“I’ll set you for nine on Sunday then. If you need to come here and talk with me before then, don’t be afraid to stop by. My door is always open and I’m always willing to sit down with you,” he tells Izuku.

“Okay,” Izuku agrees. He picks up his pack of papers and stands, Hound Dog doing so as well and escorts Izuku to the door. When they open it, they find Aizawa leaned against the wall across from the door.

“All done?” he asks.

“Yeah,” Izuku nods.

“Nine on Sunday morning,” Hound Dog informs Aizawa.

“Thanks,” Aizawa says with a nod, before he motions for Izuku to follow him.

“Thank you,” Izuku says with a slight bow to the counselor.

“You’re welcome,” Hound Dog says before he walks back into his office and shuts the door.

Izuku follows behind Aizawa towards the dorms. The teacher doesn’t ask how he’s doing or what he talked about, and Izuku is grateful for that. He doesn’t necessarily feel better for talking, but…he glances down at the papers in his arms and feels a little hopeful that maybe he will feel better. There are others out there that have gone through this, have gone on with their lives, and have hopefully moved passed it. So maybe he can too.

The dorm comes into view and he can see his classmates moving around in the common area making lunch after getting out of training. “Will you be alright on your own?” Aizawa asks softly, expression serious as he studies Izuku.

Izuku flicks his gaze between Aizawa and the view of the dorm and nods. “I’m okay,” he says softly.

“Alright. You have my number. If you need me for anything, text, or come find me in the teacher’s dorms,” Aizawa says easily.

“I will,” Izuku agrees.

“I already informed Shinso that you would be joining his training, so just follow him to our usual meeting point. Your gym uniform will be fine for now,” he advises.

“Okay,” Izuku says, feeling a bit of excitement bubble up in his chest. He can finally get back to training for the exam and he’ll get to train with Shinso, whom he’s not had the chance to spare with yet.

“Go eat, Problem Child. I don’t need you fainting on me because you ran out of energy,” Aizawa orders and Izuku nods before the man turns to walk away.

Taking a deep breath Izuku walks up to the doors and slips inside. It’s loud and boisterous inside as people slip in and out of the kitchen where the smell of food is cooking. One of the TVs are on with the volume down, but the subtitles on so people can still understand what is going on. There’s a group at one of the tables with books cracked open as the write some things out.

Nobody notices him at first and he considers trying to slip away up to his room, but realizes it’s pointless with how many have sensitive senses and how many people are moving about. Someone would spot him anyways. Better to face the music anyways.

As he thinks this, it happens. Yaoyorozu pushes away from the table, turning to head for the kitchen and sees him out of the corner of her eye. “Oh, Midoriya-kun, welcome back,” she says easily with a small smile. The shock and silence ripples out at her words as people turn to look his way, a few heads poking out of the kitchen.

“Midoriya-kun,” Uraraka says happily, smiling. “Are you hungry? We’re making lunch for everyone,” she says.

“Um…yes…please,” he tacks on.

“I’m glad you are feeling better. You had us all worried,” Iida says, hands chopping the air.

“Yeah,” Izuku agrees, slowly edging through the area towards the stairs.

“Dude, where were you? You missed some things at training this morning,” Kaminari calls out. “You’ll fall behind if you don’t catch up,” he adds with a grin, not trying to be cruel, but it still makes Izuku wince a little. He looks away and doesn’t see Jirou slap Kaminari on the head with a hissed few words.

“Y-yeah,” Izuku agrees. It’s true. He’s fallen behind everyone and now he has to work even harder to catch up.

“What’s that you have?” Uraraka asks curiously, coming closer.

“It’s nothing,” Izuku says sharply, tightening his arms around the pack of papers. “Just some stuff from Recovery Girl,” he tries to lie, falling short. “Um…I’m going to put this in my room and come back down,” he says and quickly skitters across the room for the stairs. Thankfully no one stops him and he makes it up the stairs to his floor.

He flings himself into his room and shuts it with a sigh of relief. The stark bareness is still there from last night. It feels even more like a reminder of what has happened. It’s cleansed of everything, including her, but also his past. Who is he now? His whole life has been a lie and now he has to try to find himself again.

Taking a shaky breath, Izuku sets the papers on his desk with plans to look closer at them after training. Patting his cheeks to try and psych himself up, Izuku heads for the door and steps outside, quickly closing it. As he turns, he jumps to see Katsuki standing a few feet away, leaned against the wall.

“K-Kacchan, I didn’t see you there,” Izuku stammers out, falling back on his old nickname for the blonde.

“The fuck is up with you?” Katsuki growls out with a glare.

“What do you mean?” Izuku asks, heart in his throat.

“Don’t play stupid, Deku. Something’s up with you that’s more than you just being sick. What are you hiding?” he demands.

“Nothing is up,” Izuku tries to deflect.

“Bullshit, Deku. I know when you’re trying to hide something. You always have that same squirrely look on your face, so spill. This better not mess up my training,” Katsuki growls out.

Izuku feels a sudden spark of anger in his gut at Katsuki’s words. It makes his blood burn and his spine straighten as he starts to walk towards the stairs, Katsuki blinking at his sudden change in demeanor. “Not everything that happens in my life revolves around you, Katsuki,” Izuku snaps at him. “It’s time you realized that.” Before Katsuki can regroup and retort, Izuku is in the stairwell and marching down the stairs.

It’s only once he’s at the bottom that he lets out the breath he’d been holding, waiting for Katsuki to come after him for snapping back. He takes a breath to steady himself and steps out into the common area.

The temperature shifts slightly to his right and he looks to see Todoroki standing near the stairs. “Hi, Todoroki-kun,” Izuku says quietly to his friend.

“Everything okay?” he asks, eyes flicking up to the floor above. Izuku guesses he saw Katsuki head up after him.

“I’m okay,” Izuku says with a wane smile.

Todoroki doesn’t call him out on his lie thankfully and simply nods, before leading the way to the kitchen where the chaos has diminished some as order is placed over the area. “Midoriya-kun, hi, here’s your food,” Uraraka says quickly, handing him a tray with a bowl of food, utensils and a can of juice on it.

“Thank you, Uraraka-san,” Izuku says with a smile.

She grins back, handing Todoroki his own tray before grabbing herself one and following them towards one of the tables. They sit and Izuku forces himself to eats, despite the anger still bubbling in his gut from Katsuki’s words.

“Are you really okay?” Uraraka asks quietly to keep the others from over hearing too much.

“I’m okay,” he reassures her. “I had a few meetings this morning, one with Recovery Girl to check me over and she says I’m good to go. I’ve got two days of light training and then I can join up with you guys,” he explains.

“Oh, that’s great news. Um, if you don’t mind me asking, what was wrong?” she asks softly.

“I’d rather not talk about it right now,” Izuku admits softly.

“Of course,” she agrees without any anger at him denying her answers. “I’m just glad you’re back and feeling better. I’ll have to show you my progress once you rejoin us,” she adds, making a fist and flexing her bicep. “I’ve gotten stronger.”

“I look forward to seeing it,” Izuku says serenely. “You as well, Todoroki-kun,” he adds.

“Of course,” Todoroki agrees easily. With that out of the way, Uraraka, with Todoroki chiming in on occasion, tells him about what he missed and all the antics the others got up to during training. Eventually though, lunch ends and they all have to go their separate ways, most going to the gym, while Izuku hangs back with Shinso to head somewhere else.

“Yo,” Shinso mutters with a salute once the others have left. “Guess you’re with me.”

“Yeah,” Izuku agrees with a nod, excited to be doing something that doesn’t pertain to his new found quirk. “Where are we going?” Izuku asks with a smile.

“Gym Zeta,” Shinso supplies.

Izuku’s never been in that gym before. He follows Shinso who knows the way and they soon end up next to a tall building, at least three stories. It’s also longer than it is wide. Inside, they see Aizawa is already there. They’re both in their gym uniforms, so they don’t have to get changed.

“Good, you’re here. Shinso, you know what to by now for warm ups,” Aizawa points out and he nods, setting off at a light jog around the perimeter of the interior of the gym. As Izuku looks up, he can see a strange arrangement of scaffolding and platforms tucked up in the ceiling.

“Problem Child, come here,” Aizawa orders and Izuku complies. “We’re going to start with some basic exercises and stretches. You let me know if anything hurts or feels weird, got it?” he demands.

“Yes, sensei,” Izuku agrees. Aizawa starts barking out positions and stretches that Izuku executes. Other than being a little stiff after so many days of being in the hospital, he feels fine. He feels better than he has in a long while, now that the pain from before is mostly gone.

Izuku finishes his stretches and maneuvers at the same time as Shinso finishes his laps. The teen is panting slightly, but doesn’t seem too winded. He quickly does some light stretches to loosen up at Aizawa’s orders.

Once he’s finished, Aizawa nods. “We’ll do a light spar between you two to get into the swing of things and test how you pair up,” he says simply. Izuku grins, excited about it and even Shinso smirks a little.

They head for an area covered with mats and square off against each other. “Nothing too heavy, no quirk this round,” Aizawa orders, glancing at Shinso. “You stop if I call it or if you’re pinned for three seconds,” he adds.

“Okay,” Izuku agrees, flexing his shoulders a bit. Shinso just nods.

“Go,” Aizawa says simply. They both rush each other, throwing punches, kicks, ducking and dodging. Izuku rolls under a grappling arm and pops up behind Shinso to jump on his back, but the teen seems to expect this and rolls forward, away from him.

Eventually, Izuku manages to get a hand on Shinso, despite his greater height and weight. They tumble to the floor and Izuku manages to pin him for a second before Shinso rolls them and Izuku finds himself on his front, pinned to the floor.

“Shinso wins,” Aizawa calls out as the three seconds go by.

Shinso lets him up and Izuku sits up with a grin. “You’re good,” he huffs out, wiping sweat off his brow.

Shinso actually looks shocked that Izuku admitted he was beaten. “Thanks,” he huffs out. “You’re not an easy person to get a hand on,” he admits.

“Small is good for some things,” Izuku admits with a shrug and stands, offering his hand to Shinso who takes it after a second of staring at his hand.

“Less chatting, more training,” Aizawa speaks up and they both turn to look at him. “Go again, be quicker,” he orders and they both nod. “Go,” he calls out.

~*~

Hitoshi is exhausted as the training comes to a close. Midoriya is a beast with his stamina, the smaller teen still looking ready to throw hands despite being drenched in sweat. It’s only Aizawa’s orders for them to stop that keep him from continuing.

“Cool down stretches and then hit the showers. We’ll meet up here tomorrow morning. Shinso, bring your capture scarf. Midoriya, bring your costume and be prepared for some climbing,” he orders, motioning behind him to where they can see a large climbing wall is situated.

“Yes, sensei,” Midoriya agrees cheerfully.

Nodding, Aizawa walks off and leaves them to their cool down stretches. With a groan, Hitoshi starts to stretch out his aching calf muscles. Midoriya settles nearby and starts his own stretches. The silence falls over them, but it doesn’t feel strained.

He does notice the smaller teen sending him the occasional glance. Finally, Hitoshi grows curious enough to call out Midoriya. “Yes?” he asks, catching Midoriya in the act.

Midoriya jumps before looking away with a faint flush on his cheeks. “Sorry,” he mutters.

“You’ve got a question or something?” Hitoshi asks.

Midoriya sits up, crossing his legs, and starts to fidget with his fingers. Hitoshi sits up as well, even more curious. “Can…can I ask you something?” he asks. “You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to. It’s a really strange question and I’m sure it will be weird to answer,” he trails off.

“Alright,” he agrees, recalling last night and if this is related to that.

“Really?” Izuku asks in shock.

“Ask your question,” Hitoshi says with a huff.

“Oh, yeah, um…well…if…if you could, would you change your quirk?” he asks softly. Hitoshi freezes, not expecting such a question. “I…I know your quirk isn’t viewed in the best light on a good day. I even heard some people call it villainous. So…would you change it to a more…heroic quirk?” he asks.

Hitoshi frowns considering the question. Would he? He’s spent so much of his life dealing with bullies and quirkest assholes telling him how he’s destined to be a villain, how he shouldn’t even try to become a hero. That he should just turn himself in and save the police and heroes the effort. And in spite of all that, here he is at Yuuei, training to be a hero.

Maybe he started this whole campaign out of spite to all the people that pushed him down, but at the end of the day, this quirk is his. He used to hate it once. He even told his mother that he hated it when he was younger. She’d sat him down and explained that hating his quirk meant he hated himself. That his quirk is a part of him and just because others didn’t like it didn’t mean he wouldn’t find people out there who would love him for it.

Don’t get him wrong, he still did this with 25% spite in mind, but the other 75% is because he truly wants to help people and inspire other kids out there with ‘villainous’ quirks that they’re not wrong and they can dream big if they want.

“No,” Hitoshi says slowly, picking his words deliberately. “My quirk…it’s a part of me. If I changed it, I wouldn’t be the me you see now. I like who I am right now. Maybe when I was younger I would have, but now, no. You can’t change who you are and a quirk is just another part of you, you know?” he says and then winces because Midoriya is fucking quirkless and he just stuffed his foot in his mouth. “Sorry, that came out wrong,” he mutters.

“No,” Midoriya says quickly. “I…I get what you were trying to say. You can’t change what is a fundamental part of you, even if you could,” he says back. “Because to change that, you’d have to change everything and then you wouldn’t be you,” Midoriya surmises. “Thanks,” he adds softly.

“You’re welcome,” Hitoshi answers, confused, but glad he didn’t offend him. They finish their stretches and then get up to clean their area up before heading back to the dorms to shower and get changed. They arrive back at the dorms ahead of the others so they split ways and head to their own rooms.

By the time they finish and are grabbing a snack from the kitchen, the others come barreling in, having showered at the gym before coming back to the dorms. No one say anything to single out Midoriya more than usual. Instead they fall into a bickering match over what movie they should watch that night as a group.

When Hitoshi glances towards Midoriya halfway through an All Might movie, he finds him smiling a little and seeming a lot more settled than he was that morning. Hopefully his words helped him, even just a little.

Chapter Text

Saturday rolls around with Shouta escorting Midoriya to Recovery Girl’s domain before training that morning. He technically doesn’t need to, but he feels like he needs to, especially now that he and Hizashi are responsible for him.

Midoriya doesn’t complain at Shouta tagging along, so they walk silently towards the main building. The meeting should only take half an hour, plenty of time for them to get there and back before they have to head to the gym for training. The two days of light training had done wonders for Midoriya’s confidence and getting him back into the groove. It had also shown that Shinso is ready to join up with the rest of the class. He’d already sent word to Cementoss to upgrade the gym for Shinso to use his capture scarf.

For now though, he focuses on Midoriya as they take the elevator up and head for the nurse’s office. She doesn’t look surprised to see Shouta with Midoriya, so Shouta doesn’t have to make up an excuse. Instead, he steps aside and leans against the wall while she takes Midoriya back to do her usual exam and draw his blood.

Twenty minutes later, he’s back with a small wrap around his arm where they drew blood. “All done. His last blood sample looked good and I’ll compare it to this one once it’s finished. Hound Dog informed me of what you told him,” she adds and Midoriya winces a bit. Shouta sits up at that, wondering what they spoke about. “How long had you been feeling the chronic pain?” she asks evenly.

Midoriya hunches a little at her words. “I don’t really know. I’d felt it for so long, I just got used to it,” he admits.

“Did it wax and wane, or was it constant?” she asks.

“Both,” Midoriya says. “It was mostly constant, but some mornings it hurt more…or if I did something that hurt me, then the pain was more,” he explains.

“And now?” she asks. “Is that same pain still there?”

“Not…not really. Not like before. It’s more like…spurts of pain,” he tries to describe.

“Not constant though?” she asks for clarification.

“No, not constant,” he confirms.

“Well, the pain you are probably feeling is the residual from the withdrawals. As well, you’ll likely start feeling growth pains as your body starts to grow properly again,” she admits. “Some mild pain killers are fine, but if you take some and it doesn’t help ease the pain, you come straight to me or Aizawa-san, is that understood? It could be a bigger issue than just basic aches and pains,” she informs him.

“Yes, Recovery-san,” he agrees easily.

“Good, then I’m all done with you,” she informs him, handing over her usual gummies with a kind smile.

Midoriya takes them and then pauses. “Um…actually,” he starts off with and they both look at him. “I…I made a decision,” he admits softly and Shouta stills.

“It’s only been a few days, Midoriya-kun. You don’t need to rush yourself,” Recovery girl reminds him.

“I know that, but I’ll just keep thinking myself into circles and well, this feels right,” he admits, fidgeting with his hands.

She studies him for a long moment before nodding. “What choice have you made?” she asks quietly.

“Um…I…I want to try and restore my quirk,” he says softly, not looking up as he says it. “It…it’s a part of me and it was taken away and…I’d like to know that part of me,” he explains.

Shouta’s heart twists slightly at his halting explanation. That is certainly one way to look at this situation. How might his life have changed had his mother not done this?

“Of course dear, it is most definitely a part of you,” Recovery Girl says with a nod. “I’ll start getting things prepared then, but we’ll have to wait until your blood is clear of the suppressant. If you change your mind, don’t be afraid to tell me. I’d rather not do something you don’t want to do,” she tells him.

“Okay,” Izuku says, looking relieved that they didn’t try to change his mind or demand a better explanation.

“Come on, Problem Child. Breakfast and then training,” he tells Midoriya and the teen nods, looking excited. Shouta’s just glad the boy seems to be recovering mostly. Hopefully, time will help him get passed this hurdle and on to better things in his life.

~*~

Shouta gets the email on the following Thursday about Nedzu wanting to meet with him Friday morning. The week has been, well not stressful because he might be training twenty students to prepare them for their provisional exam, but for the most part they have the drill down. It’s been hectic though and he’s glad for the distraction, even if it has to do with Midoriya and his quirk.

Recovery Girl has been getting the things necessary to start returning Midoriya’s quirk to him. There are a few specialists that they have to schedule appointments with, medicines to orders, a few bits of tech to make it easier to monitor any growth of said wing development. His last blood screening had shown barely any of the suppressants in his system, so they would soon have the green light to start.

So come Friday morning, he drags himself out of bed earlier than he likes to head for Nedzu’s office for a meeting before he has to do training later. He has a large cup of coffee in his hand, and he’s ready to face anything.

Until he steps through Nedzu’s door and is met by the laughing golden eyes and red wings of the current number two hero, unofficially until the next billboards in November. Shouta just knows that this meeting is going to be painful.

“Hawks,” Shouta greets evenly. He’s only met the hero a few times in the winged hero’s short career. While he doesn’t hate the man, he’s a good hero and his work ethic is strong, his personality grates on Shouta’s nerves sometimes.

“Eraserhead,” Hawks greets back with a big grin. “How’s Tokoyami doing? We’ve missed him at the Aerie,” he says.

“He’s doing well and growing stronger,” Shouta says truthfully, seeing the serenity in the man’s words.

“Glad to hear. Now, what have you called me here about?” Hawks asks cheerfully of Nedzu.

“Of course,” Nedzu says, clapping his paws and motions for them all to sit on the side couches where tea has been set up already and is waiting to be poured. “Have a seat and we’ll cut to the chase, as they say.”

Shouta snags a spot, but turns down the tea, drinking his coffee instead. Shouta can guess why Nedzu called in Hawks. Winged quirks aren’t that common, despite what people might think and with the target on class 1-A, Nedzu would be hesitant about calling in a civilian to consult with, even with Hawks connections to the HPSC.

“I’ve asked you here, Hawks, because we have need of your expertise in regards to your quirk,” Nedzu says simply after handing the man a cup of tea.

“My quirk?” Hawks asks in surprise, brow arching. “What do you need to know about it?” he asks, taking a sip.

“We know avian quirks are quite rare and one of our students has…begun the arduous process of growing in a pair of wings,” Nedzu says succinctly.

“A quirk mutation?” he asks.

“A little more complicated than that,” Nedzu admits with a frown.

“I’m going to need more info than that,” Hawks points out.

“What is said in this room does not leave it,” Shouta states bluntly and Hawks sits up a little straighter, eyes sharp and probing as he studies Shouta before he nods slowly. “It was recently discovered that one of our students was being forced to take mutant quirk suppressants unknowingly by his mother. We only found out when they moved into the dorms and his mother could no longer dose him and he had to be hospitalized due to the withdrawal symptoms. Currently, he wishes to try and restore his quirk and we need to know what to expect,” Shouta states bluntly.

Hawks blinks slowly and then lets out a long whistle. “That’s…a lot,” he admits, expression somber. “You’re sure it is an avian quirk?” he asks.

“Positive,” Nedzu speaks up and hands over a tablet with the scans of Midoriya’s wings.

“Yeah, definitely avian. You can see the feathers had started to form. Judging by their size and development, I’d say he was a few months off from emerging,” he says evenly, eyes scanning through the images as he flips through them. “It’s your quirkless student then? Well, not quirkless,” he amends.

“What makes you say that?” Nedzu asks curiously.

“It’s got to be 1-A if Eraser’s here and the kid’s the only one that would fit the perimeters. Plus, with Yuuei’s issues with the LOV, I assume you wanted to keep this in house,” Hawks adds.

“Astute,” Nedzu admits. “Midoriya-kun is indeed the child in question. We’re set to start his restoration plan sometime next week should nothing happen in the interim.”

“So you want me to tell you what will happen? Can’t your nurse do the research? We may be rare, but the info is out there and published,” he reminds them.

“We want to know about it from a personal experience. As well, there are aspects of avian and other animal quirks that aren’t recorded in scientific journals,” Nedzu points out.

“True,” Hawks agrees. “Well, mine emerged when I was five, but there were signs a few months leading up to it. As the wings grow, they press against the skin and form two ridges. As it gets closer to the time to bring them out, the skin will be sensitive and thin to allow the emergence. It will also be extremely painful,” he adds.

“We’re prepared for such an occurrence,” Nedzu informs him.

“I can’t say for sure how his will develop due to the extended suppressant use and his age, but they grow fast. If they follow normal development, they will eventually match his stature within a few months,” he explains.

“What about flight?” Shouta asks.

“If the muscles are strong enough and there are no abnormalities, he should be able to fly given time to increase his strength and to learn how to actually fly. But it also depends on how his quirk expresses itself. There are a few avian quirks out there where they grew wing, but they couldn’t fly, the limbs not able to support their weight, or they were from flightless birds,” he points out.

“What about the instincts?” Nedzu asks.

“Can’t help you there, not until we know if he’s a true avian or not,” Hawks admits. “There are some who have wings and that’s it, no animal instincts. We’ll just have to wait and see if something comes out. He might start showing some of the instincts before they emerge, if he has them,” he points out.

“Then we’ll have to keep an eye out,” Nedzu says simply.

“Do you know who he got his wings from? Someone in his family might know something,” Hawks points out.

“Unfortunately, the boy’s mother is currently on the run, there was no father listed on his birth certificate and he doesn’t know who he is. As for other relations, none are living,” Nedzu states with a huff of annoyance. “We assume it was from his father, but can’t be sure.”

“Damn, kid’s got all the luck,” Hawks huffs out.

“Tell me about it,” Shouta mutters.

“Would you be willing to stay on for consultation when we need you?” Nedzu asks. “At least once we’re closer to his wings emerging, if they do emerge. He will need someone to help him figure out how to live with wings,” Nedzu asks.

“Sure, I’m down to help out another wing friend,” Hawks says with a grin. “Keep me in the loop and I’ll swing by when you need me.”

“That would be most appreciated,” Nedzu says with a smile. “Now a few last questions before we let you go,” he adds and Shouta settles back to let the rodent grill Hawks for every last kernel of info he can get from him.

~*~

“Hello, Midoriya-kun,” Recovery Girl says with a smile as he comes in. Today is the day they start his plan and he’s nervous. “No need to fret, my dear. We’re simply going to take this one step at a time.”

“Okay,” he agrees, stepping further into the room. Aizawa is with him again as moral support, which he really appreciates. He didn’t get much sleep last night due to strange dreams and nightmares, so he’s a little frazzled this morning.

“Now this is Fujiko-san, who specializes in restoring reduced and atrophied limbs,” Recovery Girl explains to Izuku, pointing to the unassuming woman standing near the back with another familiar face. “Kaito-san came as well to assist with the initial process,” she adds.

“It’s good to see you doing well,” Kaito says with a smile and Izuku waves slightly with his own smile.

“Before we get started with the procedure, we’re going to talk medication,” Recovery Girl says and Izuku nods. “You’ll be taking three pills at different rates,” she continues, setting three pill bottles in front of him.

“The first is meant to encourage cellular growth in small amounts. You’ll be taking it every other day. The second is an anti-inflammatory, to help reduce any growth pains you might experience. Again every other day and both can be taken with food,” she continues. “The last is a hormone regulation drug. It will help regulate your growth hormones to keep them from going out of control. This you will take every day one hour before you eat,” she adds.

“Okay, I can do that,” Izuku agrees.

“Now if at any time you feel weird with the medication or it starts to have strange effects on you, come to me immediately. Understood?” she asks and Izuku nods.

“Alright, then we can get started with Fujiko-san,” Recovery Girl says and Izuku nods, following the smaller woman to the back of the room, clutching his pill bottles as they start to explain how exactly this will go down.

~*~

It’s the week before the Provisional Exam and Izuku is both excited and anxious, a strange combination to have. They’d started his plan and he’s been taking his pills. He’s scheduled to see Fujiko-san again tomorrow and one more time before the exam. Recovery Girl has been requesting daily scans of his torso, just to track progress and to determine the game plan before the exam.

So far, they haven’t grown much and he still has the green light mostly to participate. He’s worried that it’s been too long though and this will all be for naught, but Fujiko-san assures him that they are on track and exactly where she expected him to be. He’d honestly expected something more dramatic, but apparently reawakening a quirk and restoring atrophied limbs actually takes times…who knew.

He’s got a late session today with Hound Dog, the man having to work him into the schedule with other students. Izuku doesn’t mind coming later. Aizawa simply drops him off at Hound Dog’s office with a reminder to take it easy tomorrow and Izuku nods before slipping into the counselor’s office.

The counselor is seated at his desk writing something down and simply gestures for Izuku to take a seat while he finishes what he’s working on. A minute later, he sets his pen down and pushes away from his desk to come take his usual seat.

“Sorry about that, Midoriya-kun,” he apologizes and Izuku nods, fidgeting with the pull string on his hoodie he’s wearing. “How have things been?” he asks, letting Izuku decide what he’d like to share.

“A-Alright,” Izuku says with a frown. “Pretty much everyone has stopped watching me after the whole…hospital visit, so that’s nice,” he says.

“You said pretty much, who is still keeping an eye on you?” Hound Dog asks curiously.

“Um,” Izuku frowns. “Todoroki-kun still does, but he watches everyone and I don’t mind. Ka…Bakugō-san pretends he’s not watching, but I notice him from time to time. Shinso-san as well keeps an eye out, but he’s a bit like Todoroki-kun and watches everyone, so it doesn’t really bother me,” he explains.

“Does Bakugō-kun watching you disturb you?” Hound Dog asks.

Izuku shrugs trying to find the right words. “He…he knew me before high school. He knows my m…mom,” Izuku explains, growing quieter after that word. “He’ll know fully what happened when it does get out,” he explains.

“You and the Bakugō family were close?” Hound Dog asks.

“His mom and mind are…were…friends. I don’t know if she is actually aware that she’s left and I’ve been too afraid to ask what they know,” he admits.

“Of course. This is a difficult situation, no matter how you look at it. If he does anything that makes you uncomfortable or if he tries to pressure you into revealing things you’d rather not, let myself, or Aizawa-san know, understood? No one is allowed to make you feel worse, or pressure you into revealing information you are not ready to,” Hound Dogs says seriously.

Izuku nods with a faint smile, still not used to adults being so willing to defend him. It feels nice though to not have to struggle at everything alone like he used to.

Hound Dog sighs through his nose, but it seems more like he’s centering himself than annoyance or anger. “Now, on to a topic that I’m sure you’ve already thought about somewhat,” he says and Izuku tenses a little. “We’ve mainly been focusing on the present, dealing with the here and now as you came to terms with what has happened. We should start to consider the future though, as you continue with your plans to restore your quirk,” he states bluntly and Izuku winces. He’s been avoiding thinking about that because it’s such a charged topic.

“I…I guess,” he says, fiddling with the draw string more as his nerves creep up on him.

Hound Dog frowns before reaching under the nearby table and pulls out a strange bit of brightly colored plastic. He hands it over to Izuku who stares at it with a frown. “It’s a fidget toy. Something to mess with so you don’t hurt yourself or mess with your clothes,” he explains.

Izuku nods, accepting the toy and absently starts to mess with parts of it as he looks back at Hound Dog. “I know this is a hard thing to consider, but unfortunately, we are on a timetable now, though it is still flexible. If all goes according to plan, your wings will breech sometime later this year, a few months of time. You won’t have a choice in revealing your wings to the world then. It might be better, and easier, to inform at least your classmates of what you are going through so they can be prepared for the change,” he explains.

“I…I don’t even know how to begin that conversation,” he admits.

“I never said it would be easy,” Hound Dog points out with a sympathetic look. “Though perhaps if you reveal it to a close friend first, someone you trust, it will give you a chance to practice before the bigger reveal. Having someone in the know will certainly help in that you’ll have someone else to talk to about what is going on.”

“I…I guess,” Izuku admits, considering who all he would consider telling about everything.

“You don’t have to do it now. Just think on it. There’s no pressure right now,” he points out.

“Okay,” Izuku agrees, putting the problem aside for now.

“Good, then tell me how your time has been since we last talked,” Hound Dog asks and Izuku gratefully talks about his life rather than think about that issue.

~*~

Izuku quietly works on an entry in one of his notebooks as the commmon room fills with everyone the closer they get to dinner. Some are working on summer homework they still need to finish, or their own personal projects. Some are part of the group working in the kitchen making dinner. There’s a small group by one of the TVs playing some game that has them cheering and groaning in turns.

It’s peaceful for the most part; something his life hasn’t been in recent weeks. Only now, the closer they get to the stressful day of their Provisional Exam, do things finally seem to be evening out. Like he told Hound Dog, most everyone has stopped acting like they did when he first came back. There will still be an occasional check-in, but mostly, they act like they did before.

How will they react when it does come out about his newly awakened quirk…if everything goes according to plan? He’s made friends here in school, something he hasn’t truly had in years, not since Katsuki changed so much. He’d had friends, even while quirkless. Will they change when they find out? Will they think he was actually hiding it all this time?

He shakes his head of that thought. No, they wouldn’t think that. Who would choose to be quirkless in today’s society? That’s social suicide, and that’s not including the hazards that come to the quirkless from others. He’s got a lot of scars on his body from other people taking out their frustrations on him, a convenient target.

He glances over to Iida and Uraraka, the two chatting while they work on some extra work Aizawa assigned them. They were the first ones he would consider his friend, despite the strange start to their friendship. He’s not sure how Iida would react. He’s got such a stark view of the world sometimes, and though he’s never had issues with Izuku being quirkless, he might have opinions about what happened that are…harsh.

Uraraka would be accepting, has always been accepting. She was even willing to give up some of her points in the entrance exam for him before even knowing he was quirkless. But she might ask questions he’s not ready to answer. Honestly, he doesn’t think he’ll ever truly be ready to answer them.

Todoroki wouldn’t have an issue. After he spilled his complicated family history to Izuku after the Sports Festival, they’ve been rather close. He’s nice, not loud, but calm. He doesn’t mind Izuku’s muttering and they often study in his room when everyone else is just being too much at the moment. If anyone can understand just what he’s going through, it’d be him. And he wouldn’t ask unnecessary questions.

Strangely, he’s started to consider Shino as his friend, despite the other teen’s loud proclamation to not wanting friends. After his return and those few days spent training together, they’ve hung out more and he’s found a rather keen and observant mind under the sleep deprivation, coffee and sarcasm. He’s learned a little about his life before high school, just small snippets, but Izuku is very good at filling in the blanks and he’s well aware how society and one’s peers can act. They’ve kept up their training together, Izuku helping Shinso build up his strength while he helps Izuku with flexibility. If there’s another person who might understand what he’s going through, he’d say Shinso.

Still, he doesn’t even want to consider telling anyone until at least after the exam. He’s already got enough to stress about with the exam so close. Once he does or doesn’t have his provisional license in his hands, then he’ll make a decision on who to talk to.

He blinks as a cup of tea suddenly appears in front of his face and follows the arm up to see Todoroki standing there with a second cup in his other hand. “You look like you’ve got heavy thoughts,” he murmurs.

“Thank you,” Izuku says with a smile, accepting the tea. “And…yes, I guess you could say that.” He takes a sip and hums at the taste. Todoroki and Yaoyorozu somehow always make the best tea, though Principal Nedzu’s tea is a little better.

“Wanna talk about it?” he offers, not pushing or demanding. He always lets Izuku decide what he wants to share.

“Not…not right now,” Izuku says with a faint grimace.

“Okay,” he says without an ounce of annoyance. “Any new quirks you’ve analyzed?” he asks, motioning to Izuku’s abandoned notebook as he’d been lost in turbulent thoughts.

“Oh, yes,” Izuku says brightly, leaning closer to Todoroki to start explaining about the quirk of a new hero that debuted a few months ago.

~*~

“Well?” Shouta asks as Izuku and Recovery Girl come back into the main room of the clinic. Tomorrow is the exam and they need to know now just what is allowed for the teen.

“Bloodwork is good,” Chiyo starts off with first as they settle in front of her desk and she reads the results that printed out of her printer. “Hormonal balance is in a good range and the medicine is helping to keep things in line. Izuku-kun has told me the pain has been minimal so far, other than what is normal with hard training. His scans,” she flips on a screen behind her to show his scans. “The wings have finally started to show a little development and Fujiko-san has given her approval to go ahead, saying they should be fine for the exam. I see no reason to restrict him during the exam,” she says finally.

Shouta breathes a sigh, glancing at the teen to see him grinning brightly at the good news. “However, I expect you to take care of yourself young man. Putting your all in the exam is fine, but being reckless is foolish and could even be detrimental to your progress. Is that understood?” she says sharply.

“Yes, ma’am,” Izuku says with a nod.

“Good, then good luck on your exam and I want you back in here the morning after just to check things over unless you feel like you need to see me sooner, alright?” she offers.

“Yes,” Izuku agrees.

“Good, then you can go,” Chiyo says with a motherly smile, patting him on the head and handing over her customary gummies.

Taking them, Izuku stands up and Shouta follows him out of the room, relief flowing through him at not having to restrict the teen for the exam. He would have if he needed to, but he’s glad he doesn’t need to. The kid doesn’t need more reasons to resent what happened to him.

They walk together back towards the dorms, the light starting to fade as evening comes over them. It’s a nice night and the weather is looking to be good for the exam, not that bad weather would have mattered. Heroes work in all weather.

1-A’s dorm comes up and Shouta lets Izuku enter first before following through the door. Inside is mild chaos, the class wound up with anxiety and excitement before the exam. Shouta watches Izuku head upstairs to change out of his workout clothes he’d still been wearing earlier for training and comes back down a few minutes later in clean clothes, the teen making a beeline straight for the table where Todoroki, Uraraka and Iida have taken over.

Most of the class has noticed him standing there by the door in partial shadow watching them, but haven’t said anything, used to him coming in to watch first. To be honest, this year so far has been a shit show, between the initial attack by the LOV and the following incidents leading up to the summer camp fiasco and Kamino Ward. Now this whole thing with Izuku and his mother, Shouta honestly just wants this exam to be a normal exam. No attacks, nothing crazier than a bunch of teens throwing around their quirks. Just…a bit of normal would be nice.

Shouta steps forward and the group quiets down to listen to him. “Don’t stay up too late; we leave at five to head for the exam site. Dress in your uniforms. You won’t be changing into your costumes until right before the exam. You represent Yuuei and you will act accordingly. I’ll see you in the morning,” he says and the group bids him good night at various decibel levels before he slips back out of the dorm.

Hizashi is already back in their apartment making dinner by the time he gets in. “Hey,” Hizashi says with a  bright grin. “What’s the verdict?” he asks, well aware that Shouta and Izuku were heading to see Chiyo this afternoon.

“We’re in the clear, no restrictions besides don’t be reckless,” Shouta says, pulling his capture scarf off and hanging it up with his goggles.

“Well that’s some good news. Dinner’s almost ready. Why don’t you take a shower while I finish up,” he suggests.

“Thanks,” Shouta murmurs, feeling himself unwind a little now that he’s home. He won’t fully relax until the exams are done, but it’s something. He presses a kiss to Hizashi’s cheek as he passes by on his way to their room.

By the time he emerges in some loose sleep pants and a black t-shirt, dinner is ready. They eat and chat, catching each other up on their day. Hizashi had been off campus most of the day at the radio station. There’s thankfully no emergency that calls him away, no alert of students doing something stupid as they are prone to do.

Once curfew is about to hit, they both head out to do a dorm check and find all their students in their rooms. If there’s a few still awake, he doesn’t call them out, knowing anxiety can cause sleeplessness sometimes. They meet back up in their apartment and then head to bed themselves. Shouta sleeps lightly, waking a few times through the night, but manages to go back to sleep. He even manages to get six hours of sleep which is nice considering he usually barely scraps by with four most nights.

Morning finds him dressed and back in the dorms at three-thirty waking the students up. Some are already up and working on getting dressed. Others he has to bang on a few doors to get them going. By the time four-thirty rolls around, everyone is up and dressed to his standards. Someone had the forethought to pre-make breakfast foods and everyone is eating standing up, careful to not get anything on their uniforms.

By the buses, Vlad is already there with his class, along with Nemuri, Hizashi and Cementoss, the three checking their cases one last time and helping organize the kids getting on the buses. Vlad’s lot looks just as tired and anxious as his lot, even Monoma not doing his usual antagonistic monologue.

They manage to get everyone on the buses, their gear stowed and on the road only a few minutes after five which is honestly a first in a while. They’re usually fifteen to twenty minutes late on exam days. Shouta’s not complaining.

He tells them to behave and to expect to arrive at the exam site in two hours before rolling up in his sleeping bag and napping the whole ride.

~*~

Izuku’s nerves are high as he listens to the Commission person explain how the first exam will go, looking around at all the other hero students from other schools. It’s a little unnerving to realize they’re the youngest ones here for the most part. Almost everyone in the room is a second year student and older than them.

Shaking off his nerves as best he can, Izuku tries to focus back on the information being given. Yet even as he focuses ahead, part of him is distracted. A shiver keeps going down his spine, like someone is watching him, only when he looks around, he can’t see anyone looking directly at him.

Berating himself silently for his stupid paranoia, Izuku focuses back ahead and ignores the strange feeling and follows behind the rest of 1-A to gather the items needed to start the exam. They all decide, after having talked about it the day before over planning, to stick together as long as they can. Strength in numbers and all that, and it helps that they’ve all worked together at one point or another.

They take their place on the field and wait for the alarm to sound the start of the exam. Izuku shifts on his feet, still feeling that feeling of being watched, but he ignores it because he needs to focus on the next few minutes. As soon as the alarm sounds, he rushes with his class and braces to slam into the tide of the Yuuei Crush.

~*~

Izuku coughs and quickly ducks behind a chunk of stone after picking himself up off the ground. A quick glance around shows there’s no one else with him and that’s annoying, but not unexpected after that one student’s quirk. Part of his mind is itching to sit them down and just ask so many questions about their quirk, but he shoves that urge down. He’s got to focus or he’ll be knocked out of the first round.

He can hear shouts and explosions in the distance as other students fight each other. He really needs to get some height and see where he landed and if anyone is nearby. A quick glance shows a larger spur of stone jutting out, so Izuku decides to head for it to get a view to survey the area.

Keeping low, he starts moving between shadows and chunks of rock towards the perch. Something shifts behind him, gravel scrapping together and Izuku whirls, looking for someone behind him, but there’s no one there. Pausing for a few long seconds, he breathes out a sigh and continues his journey.

He reaches the stone and starts to climb. At the top, he looks around, hoping to see a classmate or two. He can see movement further ahead, but he’s not sure if it’s his people or rival students. Well, he won’t know until he gets closer, so with a huff, he makes his way back down, keeping the direction in mind.

As he reaches the bottom, the hairs on the back of his neck rise, feeling eyes on him. Heart rate rising, the faintest scuff of a foot step is his only warning and he ducks right as an arm that would have hit him goes flying by. Rolling away, Izuku comes up to see…Uraraka standing in front of him.

“Uraraka-san?” he asks in confusion.

“Oh, Midoriya-kun, I’m so sorry. I thought you were someone else,” she says with a sheepish smile and Izuku finally notices the ball in her hand.

“It’s fine. I’m glad you’re here. We all got separated and I was just about to look for the others,” Izuku says.

“Oh good, I’ll come with,” she says with ease and falls into step with him.

As she nears, the wind shifts, coming towards him and a scent reaches him. He can’t place it at first, something metallic that sits on the back of his tongue. As she falls into step, it finally clicks…blood. It smells like blood and he can’t parse why he’s smelling blood.

He takes a subtle sniff and it’s coming from her. Did she hurt herself? He looks, but sees no signs of cuts or scrapes. In fact, she’s skipping along like this is some fun game and not a serious trial to get their licenses. “Hey, Uraraka-san,” Izuku says slowly, wary all of a sudden as things start not adding up. “You wouldn’t happen to have seen Izumi-san from our class, would you? We could really use their quirk right now,” he says with a smile.

“Oh, no, I’ve not seen them. We don’t need them though,” she says with a grin at him.

“Okay,” he says with a nod, mind whirling and turns back ahead. He grips his ball tight in his hand. This isn’t Uraraka, so it must be someone from one of the other schools. Are they trying to get him to lead them to his other classmates before taking them out?

He’s not going to let that happen. He jerks his leg out, trying to trip the imposter and they jump over it and away with a laugh. “Oh, how’d you know?” she complains from a few feet away.

“I just did,” Izuku snaps out.

“Midoriya-kun!” A new voice calls out and he turns slightly to see the real Uraraka coming up at a run, Sero just behind her. “What?” she adds when she sees who he’s fighting. “That’s me!”

“Aw, I guess we won’t get to play after all. Boo,” the imposter says with a sigh and then giggles. She darts forward, faster than Izuku can react and a line of pain on his cheek is the only indication she landed a blow before she’s passed him. He turns, holding his cheek and sees the girl from before when they got off the bus, grey goo sliding off of her. “Bye, Izuku-kun. We’ll play some more later,” she says and rushes off before anyone can stop her.

“Midoriya-kun, are you okay?” the real Uraraka asks, rushing up.

“I’m okay,” Izuku says with a faint smile. He pulls his hand back from where he’s pressed it to his cheek and sees a line of blood from a cut there. “Are you guys okay?” he asks.

“We’re cool, man. That okay?” he asks, motioning to his cheek.

“It’s fine, just a scratch. Come on, I saw some people over this way. Maybe we can get enough to pass this round,” he says, really wanting them to stop scrutinizing him right now.

“Sure,” Uraraka says with a smile, expression turning serious. As she passes him, he takes a cautious breath, but the scent of blood is gone. He’s glad he can’t smell that. It had been a little disconcerting to be smelling blood so much.

~*~

Shouta eyes his class as they slowly gather around him before getting on the bus. There are a few scrapes and bruises, but no one got seriously hurt. Todoroki does look like one strong wind will knock him down, wincing at the noise from the headache he no doubt has. That he didn’t get a license doesn’t seem to be bothering him. He knows he messed up.

He eyes Izuku, but the teen is fine. Only a small cut on his face that’s been patched up. He looks about one step away from simply floating into the sky going by that grin as he stares down at his license. To be fair, most of the class looks like that. The only other student that didn’t pass is Bakugō, the teen glaring down at the ground. The only reason he’s not ranting and raving, explosions going everywhere, is that he can do remedial classes to get it in a few months.

“1-A,” Shouta calls out and they all shift to look at him. “I’m proud of you all. You did your best, showed Yuuei proud, and showed the other schools just what it means to be a student from such a prestigious school. You’ve learned, improved and realized where you lack. Take this critique and better yourselves. A hero will always be learning and anyone who says otherwise is ignorant. Be proud of how far you’ve come,” he finishes. Most look excited, but two stand out with determined expression. Todoroki and Bakugō share a look before they nod and look away. He doesn’t need to worry about them it seems.

“Aizawa-sensei, can we have a party when we get back? Just some food and drinks, maybe a little music?” Mina asks with a grin.

Shouta eyes her before slowly nodding. “I don’t see why not. No staying up passed curfew though. You have classes in the morning,” he reminds them to a few low groans. “Now get on the bus,” he orders and they slowly file on, putting their costume cases into the holding area of the bus.

The drive is quiet, most students taking the opportunity of a few hour drive to get a nap in before they get back to campus. Shouta, feeling generous, puts in an order for pizza to arrive around when they will and asks Hizashi to get it for them. His husband is all for it and promises to make things festive.  Shouta dreads to see just how festive it will be. He does send a text to Nedzu informing him of who passed and the two going to remedial classes. A text to Recovery Girl is responded to by letting Izuku have the night to rest and coming in the morning unless he needs to see her sooner.

A glance at the teen shows no outward signs of discomfort, but he’ll pull him aside once they get back to double check. Nothing horrible happened. There were no LOV attacks, no one was seriously hurt and it was overall a normal exam. School starts tomorrow and hopefully this trend of normal school life will stay.

Chapter Text

The first day of school dawns with Izuku waking sore and tired, but with a grin on his face as he spies his license lying on his nightstand. Reaching out, he picks it up and stares at his picture. It’s a step towards the future and he’s going to keep taking these steps.

With a wince at sore limbs, Izuku gets up and gets dressed. He’s got to get up a little earlier than the others if he’s going to meet with Recovery Girl. It’s just a precaution, he knows this and he’s glad it’s happening. He feels good though, no pain, other than general soreness from a long day running around. It hits him that he doesn’t feel any pain. Not like he used to feel, even the little bits afterwards are gone. To be truly pain free is a relief. He never realized how much he hurt until it stopped.

A quick brush of his hair, he heads out of his room, grabbing his bag as he goes. Aizawa is waiting in the kitchen when he arrives downstairs, a cup of coffee in hand. He motions for Izuku to eat breakfast and he does with a smile, hungry still despite how much pizza he ate last night as they celebrated.

When they’re both finished, he follows to the main building and up to Recovery Girl’s main office. She’s already there and waiting. “Good morning, you two. How are we feeling?” she asks.

“I’m good,” Izuku says with a smile.

“I’m glad to hear. You know the procedure by now,” she says, motioning towards the curtained off area and Izuku nods, following her. A quick blood draw, followed by a quick scan happens in short order. She does examine his back by touch, running gentle fingers over his shoulder blades where the wings sit. They haven’t started to show yet, still too early in developing, but in a month or so, they will be. “All done. You can put your shirt back on,” she orders and he does before following her back out.

The results are printed and the scans are on her computer by the time they return. She spends a few minutes looking over both. “Nothing’s changed. I don’t see any damage, though I will be sending these to the others to double check. Other than that, you’re good. We’ll meet at the end of the week for your next scan and you next session with Fujiko-san,” she reminds him.

“Yes, ma’am,” Izuku agrees.

“Good, then you’re good to go to class now. You know what to do if things feel off,” she reminds him like she always does.

“Tell you or Aizawa-sensei,” he recites.

“Good,” she says with a smile, hands him some gummies and pats his head a little. “Go on.”

Nodding, Izuku leaves the clinic, Aizawa staying behind to talk with her, not that Izuku minds. It’s a nice morning, he’s got so much to be excited for and it’s the start of their second semester. He grins and walks out into the sunlight, munching on his gummies as his mind tumbles over all the cool quirks he saw yesterday. Maybe he’ll grab a fresh notebook later and start filling it in with what he saw.

~*~

The first day back is both thrilling and exhausting. Between the mountain of school work unloaded on them, the new lessons and an assessment to see how they’ve improved, Izuku is stumbling tired by the time he can head back to the dorms.

The others are just as bad off, many complaining about how much homework they’ve been given. Izuku, for his part, heads up to his room to store his stuff, then finds the notebook he planned to use and heads back down to start writing in it. Todoroki eventually finds him and settles nearby, reading something. Even Shinso, who normally stays apart from the class when he can, sits near him, scrolling through his phone, earbuds in to drown out the noise. When he shifts, Izuku catches a glimpse of his screen and sees a video of some cat.

The group eventually winds down, the excitement of the day waning as people start working on homework or other projects. The group assigned to making dinner goes about it with grins and laughter, telling jokes as they cook until dinner is ready and everyone files in to grab some. Izuku plans to wait for the crowd to thin, but Todoroki comes back with a second bowl and hands it to him. Izuku grins in thanks.

They eat, chatting, even Shinso pulling himself from his phone to comment on whatever Kaminari and Jiro are arguing about, some artist that they all know Izuku thinks is what it’s about. Either way, it’s nice and he feels…good.

The meal ends and the cleanup crew gets up to start clearing things away. Izuku, included in the group, goes about collecting trash. Most of the class has left bags of trash for him to grab, so he makes his way down the halls, stuffing them into his larger bag until he’s got two sizable bags of trash.

Hefting them, he heads to the area behind the dorms where the communal dumpsters are at. It’s quick work to toss them in and he grins at getting them in with one clean toss, giving a silent cheer like he made some grandiose throw. There’s a thump from his mini jump and he looks to see his wallet fell out of his pocket.

Sighing, he picks it up and can’t help, but look inside where his new provisional license rests front and center over even his school ID. He’s made it so far already…despite what’s happened. He frowns at that thought and glances at a small corner of paper sticking out of one of the slots in the wallet. Almost involuntarily, he pulls on it, a small photo coming out.

It’s him and his mom, from his second year in elementary. They’d gone to a theme park for his birthday. They’re grinning so big, so happy. His hand tightens and the photo creases slightly at the pressure he’s putting on it. He should throw it away. That’s a lie and why should he keep a lie.

His heart gives a lurch, thumping harshly in his chest.

I’m so sorry, Izuku.

I love you, Izuku.

I made you katsudon.

I got you a new poster, Izuku. Do you like it?

You’re so smart, Izuku. You get that from me.

Good bye, Izuku. I’ll miss you.

“Hey,” a voice suddenly says right next to him and with a start, Izuku wheels around, fist flying in shock and fright, chest heaving as he realizes he’s having a panic attack. The fist doesn’t land, but he does overbalance and he ends up on his ass, trying to calm down and not able to find a rhythm like Aizawa-sensei and Hound Dog tried to teach him.

“Easy,” the voice says again and he looks up to see big blue eyes, blonde hair and a concerned frown as the older teen settles near him, not crowding him, but staying nearby. “Like this,” he murmurs, exaggerating his breathing and Izuku latches onto the rhythm desperately as he’s slowly able to calm his breathing. “That’s right, that’s good,” the older teen says with a bright grin.

With a shuddering sigh, the panic finally ebbs away, leaving Izuku feeling weak and hollow, like a cracked bowl and everything has just leaked away. Tear tracks slowly dry on his cheeks as he catches his breath and he wipes at them briskly. “Better now?” the older teen asks quietly and Izuku looks at him.

“Yeah,” he whispers hoarsely.

“I hope I didn’t scare you too bad. I saw you struggling and I just wanted to make sure you were okay,” he apologizes.

“Sorry I tried to hit you,” Izuku shoots back sheepishly, feeling a little bad that his first instinct was to lash out.

“Are you okay?” he asks, settling more next to Izuku where he’s pressed up against the nearby wall that surrounds the dumpsters. “You…uh…you were having a panic attack,” he points out awkwardly.

Izuku shrugs, not sure what to say as he pulls his knees up to wrap his arms around them. Is he okay? He thought he was getting better. Thought his talks with Hound Dog meant he was getting better, but one little thing just wreaked so much progress. Will he ever be able to get passed this and move on with his life? “I don’t know,” Izuku finally admits, scrubbing at his face in frustration. Thankfully, in his panic he’d shoved the photo away, so he picks up his wallet and stuff it into his pocket. “Thanks for…helping,” Izuku says, looking up at him, not knowing his name.

“Of course. Always glad to help. I’m Togata Mirio from 3-B by the way,” he introduces himself as they stand up.

“Oh, um, Midoriya Izuku from 1-A,” Izuku says with a faint smile.

“It’s nice to meet one of my kohai. Would you like me to walk you back,” he offers, not pushing just letting Izuku decide.

Izuku shakes his head. “Thank you, but I’m okay. It was nice meeting you, despite the circumstances,” he adds awkwardly.

“Likewise,” he agrees with a bright grin. “Though a bit of advice from your senpai, whatever is troubling you, I’m sure Hound Dog-sensei would be more than willing to listen to you and help. I’ve gone to him a few times and he’s helped when things got too stressful, you know. Training to be heroes isn’t easy and we all need help sometimes,” Togata says with a knowing smile.

“I…I’ll keep that in mind,” Izuku says, not saying he’s already seeing the counselor. “Thanks,” he adds and waves awkwardly before heading back towards the dorms. He does sigh in annoyance though as he walks away. He knows he should tell Hound Dog about this, he just doesn’t want to because it’ll mean talking about things he’d rather just forget.

He smiles wanly at Todoroki, Iida and Uraraka where they’re settled at a table working on homework, but shakes his head when they invite him over. Instead, he heads up to his room. He’s not in a good head space to interact with anyone right now. Sometimes, it sucks that the others don’t know about what he’s going through. If they knew, they’d know how to handle his moods at least a little. But then the thought of telling them leaves him terrified his problems will be too much and they’ll not want to be friends anymore. Life sucks sometimes.

He grabs his bag and heads to his desk to start working on his own stuff, putting on some soft music to help him work and drown out any thoughts that might crop up.

~*~

The next day is better, and he does force himself to go to Hound Dog during lunch to tell him about his panic attack the night before. The hero looks proud of Izuku for coming to him and informing him about what happened, Izuku squirming a little inside because that’s not the reaction he was expecting. He does say that these things happen, progress not being a linear journey. It’s messy and there are obstacles and stumbling blocks in the way. He says they’ll discuss it more at his next session so Izuku nods and heads out to continue to get lunch.

Afterwards, he’s not expecting their heroics class to have a guest, or rather three guests. Nor is he expecting to see the older teen from the night before, but there he is as one of the Big 3. He’s also not expecting to get his ass handed to him, a heavy punch catching him in the gut and sending him down. He at least lasts longer than some of the others.

They all scatter once they’re given the go ahead, groups gathering to chat and talk about what happened and the idea of getting a work study with a hero. Izuku stays silent, mind pondering his own dilemma. Can he get a work study? His quirk is still coming in. Once it does, not only will his costume have to be revamped, he’s going to have to learn a whole new way of living, moving and fighting. Wings, depending on how big they get, aren’t something you just learn to work with overnight.

They’d have to tell any hero who might be interested in taking him as a work study student. Would they want to take him on with all that hanging over him? It’d probably be a huge hassle to take him on right now. Maybe he should wait until…well everything is finally settled. Yeah, he’ll be behind everyone else again, but at least he won’t make a fool of himself.

With a frustrated sigh, Izuku grabs his bag after tossing his water bottle in it. His PE uniform is tossed in the communal laundry where they’ll be cleaned and returned. Rubbing at his face, he steps out of the gym locker room and aims for the outside. He’s not expecting anyone to be waiting on him having told the others to go on ahead without him.

He blinks at the sight of Togata Mirio leaned up against the wall by the gym doors. “Hello again,” he greets with a huge smile.

“Oh, hi,” Izuku says quickly. “Um, did you need something?” he asks.

“Just checking to make sure you were okay,” Togata says, easily falling into step with Izuku.

“Oh, I’m fine. Um…I did go to Hound Dog…I’ve got a meeting soon with him,” he adds awkwardly, twisting the drawstring of his hoodie he threw on in his hands.

“That’s good,” Togata agrees with a gentler smile. “Any ideas on which hero you’d like to ask for a work study?” he asks curiously, hitting right on Izuku’s current dilemma.

“Um…no,” Izuku croaks out and then clears his throat. “Um…I don’t think I can ask for one now. There’s…I’ve got some issues going on right now and I don’t think it would be a good idea to do one,” Izuku says, trying to be vague.

“Have you talked with Aizawa-sensei about it? I’m sure he could help,” Togata says with concern.

“He’s aware about what is going on, though we haven’t had a chance to talk about the work study stuff,” he admits with a shrug. He hasn’t specifically told Izuku he should wait, but he hasn’t given the greenlight either. Usually, everyone confers before deciding if he should do something. He’d figured this was the same.

“May I ask what the issue is?” Togata asks suddenly and Izuku freezes in his tracks, paling a little because he’s been dreading this question…yet Togata is a stranger for the most part. They’ve met once before today. If he scares him off, it wouldn’t do much to Izuku personally. “You don’t have to answer, I was just curious,” Togata says with a quick wave of his hands, seeing the panicked look on Izuku’s face. “I’m too curious and like to put my foot in my mouth sometimes,” he apologizes.

“I…,” Izuku swallows, wetting suddenly dry lips as he tries to find the right words. “I was falsely diagnosed as quirkless as a child and given quirk suppressants and only just found out over the summer that I actually have a quirk and I’m currently growing in my quirk now that I’m off the suppressants, but I have to be careful because I could hinder my progress and I’ve never had a quirk and have to learn a whole new way of life and I’m not sure if a hero would be okay with that,” Izuku spills out suddenly before he slams a hand over his mouth to stop the word vomit he just engaged in, eyes wide as he stares at Togata.

Togata blinks, no doubt trying to parse through everything he just heard. “Oh,” he says, looking around and Izuku’s expecting he’s looking for a convenient escape. Instead he looks relieved and reaches out to snag the sleeve of Izuku’s hoodie. “Come over here,” he says and directs them to a small bench off the beaten path under a few trees. Izuku sits without prompting, more like collapses, knees giving out as he tries to process what just happened.

“You’ve been holding onto that for a while,” Togata says softly from beside him and Izuku nods. “For what it’s worth, I’m sorry that happened to you.” Izuku smiles thinly at him. “Why do you think a hero wouldn’t want to take you on because of…this,” he says with a wave at the air to indicate everything Izuku just said.

“It’s such a hassle and I don’t want them to feel like I’m being a bother, you know. I’m already taking up so much of my teachers’ time and the medical people too who come in regularly for my appointments. I don’t want to make their efforts pointless by doing the wrong thing,” he admits, stomach knotting at the idea of ruining everything and wasting their time. This is the first time in so long that adults have wanted to help him and he knows it’s because he has a quirk now, but still, it’s nice.

“I doubt they feel like this is a hassle. They just want to help you,” Togata says.

“Yeah, now,” Izuku mutters under his breath and Togata gives him a look, Izuku realizing he’s been heard and he’ll have to explain. “I grew up quirkless, Togata-senpai. Adults, of any profession, weren’t lining up to help me then. The only reason they are now is because I have a quirk now,” he explains bitterly, though a part of him twinges at that thought.

Togata frowns. “Do you really think so low of your teachers?” he asks and Izuku blinks at him. “Do you really think Aizawa-sensei would treat you differently?” he asks.

Izuku looks down at his hands. No, Aizawa-sensei is one of the few he doesn’t think that about. Even his other teachers, from before it came out, never treated him badly or differently from the other kids when they all thought he was quirkless. That doesn’t mean it’s not a true statement. “Maybe not the people here, but out there,” he waves towards the world outside of Yuuei, “it’s true. My last school was horrible. They didn’t stop the bullies, only encouraged them. Doctors turned me away, people spit at me, yelled at me, even hurt me for no reason other than that I was quirkless. It’s a horrible life to live, Togata-senpai and to ignore that is wrong,” he says firmer.

Togata frowns, seeming to be digesting his statement. “You’re right, that is wrong and to ignore it is wrong, but to go around painting everyone with the same paint brush is wrong, too,” he points out. “There’s always going to be horrible people, but there are good people out there who want to help because that’s who they are. Many of them are heroes or work in professions where they can help others. Maybe they want to help simply because it’s the right thing to do. And I’m sure there are some heroes out there who wouldn’t care about what is going on with you. They’d still take you on to teach you like any other student,” Togata adds.

“Do you know any?” Izuku asks curiously.

Togata frowns and then shrugs. “Not off the top of my head, but you have to actually ask them first before you’ll know, you know. The worst thing they can say is no, but they could also say yes,” he points out.

“I think I still need to discuss it with Aizawa-sensei. They might be planning on holding me back,” Izuku says, not wanting to consider his words just yet.

“If you didn’t have all this to worry about, what hero would you have asked to do a work study with?” Togata asks.

Izuku blinks and then frowns. “I…I don’t know. Before all this, I was quirkless. My internship was a huge bust, no one offering me one despite how far I got in the Sports Festival and I ended up interning with Manual because he was on the prearranged list Yuuei provided, but then the whole Hosu thing happened,” he explains and Togata nods, knowing what he’s talking about. “Right now, everyone still thinks I’m quirkless, so they wouldn’t want to give me a work study.”

Togata frowns. “Does no one else besides your teachers and some doctors know?” he asks and Izuku nods. “Not even your friends?”

Izuku hunches a little. “What if they hate me, or think it’s all too much and don’t want to be friends?” Izuku whispers.

“Then they’re not very good friends and good riddance. If they can’t be there for you while you’re going through such a hard and traumatic experience, then you don’t need them in your life. Do you think they would act that way?” he asks.

“I don’t know. I don’t think so, but sometimes you think you know someone and then they change,” he whispers, mind filled with memories from his childhood and Kacchan. A quirkless diagnosis ruined so much of his life. How is this any different?

“Well, don’t you think it’s better to find out now rather than later?” he asks and Izuku considers his words. “And nothing says this won’t make your friendship stronger than ever. If you give them a chance, they could surprise you,” Togata says with a smile.

“I’ll…I’ll think about it,” is all he says.

“Good,” Togata says and grins brighter. Then he gets a thoughtful look on his face. “You know, I could ask Sir Nighteye if he’d take you on. He’s mainly an underground hero and his quirk doesn’t help him much with combat so he fights mostly quirkless, so he’d have had no issues with you from before, plus I’m sure he would be okay with what is going on with you now, you know,”  Togata says excitedly.

“What?” Izuku gasps out.

“Well, to be honest, it would just be a foot in the door even if he says yes. You’d have to prove to him that you’re worth taking on, but then he’s like that with everyone. He doesn’t take anyone for free, you know?” Togata explains.

“You don’t have to,” Izuku says, not wanting to get his hopes up.

“What are senpai’s for,” Togata says with another grin. “Here, give me your phone and I’ll put my number in it. I’ll text you when I’ve asked him, okay?” he offers and Izuku nods dazedly, slowly handing over his phone to let the older teen put in his number. “And if you ever just need someone to talk with who is in the know, I’m always willing to hang out again, okay,” he adds softly as his own phone beeps from sending a text, looking at Izuku seriously. “Don’t feel like you have to shoulder this all on your own.”

“Thank you,” Izuku whispers wetly and runs a hand over his eyes to get rid of the evidence of his tears.

“Of course, that’s what friends do,” he says and Izuku smiles a little at that. “Now, I’ve held you up enough. I’ll get out of your hair, but let me know what Aizawa-sensei says and I’ll ask Sir when I next see him,” Togata offers.

“I…okay,” Izuku whispers and stands with the older teen.

Togata abruptly pulls him into a hug and Izuku blinks before relaxing into it. “You’re going to be okay,” Togata says and it’s like a balm on some of the hurts he’s been hiding. The adults have been saying something similar to him, trying to help him, but somehow, the way Togata says it makes him actually believe it.

“Thanks,” Izuku says and then pulls away. “I’m sorry for unloading so much on you,” he adds with a slight bow.

“I don’t mind. I’m just glad I could help. Now, I’ve got to go, but I’ll see you around. Don’t forget to text,” he adds and Izuku nods before Togata rushes off. It’s only as he looks that he notices two others standing further away and recognizes the other Big 3 who must have been waiting for Togata as he talked with Izuku. Togata waves at them and then they start to walk away.

Izuku turns and starts to head for the dorms, but he can’t help thinking over Togata’s words. He recalls Hound Dog’s words as well, about telling people. He won’t be able to keep it hidden or quiet for long, and there’s something about taking matters into his own hands and telling people himself rather than them finding out that speaks to him…control. He’s not had a lot of control in his life for a while. And he wants to tell people, his friends specifically, he just needs to find the courage to do so. It’ll hurt if they don’t want to be his friend after finding out, but at least he won’t have gotten his hopes up.

Sighing, Izuku slips into the 1-A dorm and finds the common room is fairly empty, everyone either out of the dorm still, in their rooms, or sitting around working on stuff. He spies Todoroki on a nearby couch and as soon as the door shuts, he looks up to see Izuku coming in and stands, a faint worried frown on his face. “Everything okay?” he asks softly once he’s close enough.

Izuku winces internally. He knows he’s been acting weird lately and disappearing a lot to go to appointments and there was the whole hospital scare. Todoroki has been sticking a little closer since then, checking up on him in his own way. Would he really care about Izuku’s new status change? “Sorry, I was talking with Togata-senpai for a few minutes about something is all,” Izuku reassures him with a smile.

“Ah,” Todoroki says with a nod. “Want to work on homework?” he offers, motioning where his stuff is on the coffee table.

“Oh, sure, let me just get some things from my room,” Izuku says with a smile and heads at a brisk pace towards the stairs to grab some things and put some stuff away. He’ll table his thoughts for now and focus on school work. He still needs to talk with Aizawa-sensei about work studies and then text Togata and he’s got his appointment with Hound Dog soon and his appointment with Fujiko-san this weekend. His week is looking busy, but maybe that’s a good thing. Less chances to dwell on things he doesn’t want to.

Grabbing his things, he heads back down the stairs and settles next to Todoroki to work on some math homework.

~*~

Shouta and Hizashi have just settled in to read and grade papers, the apartment quiet around them, when there’s a knock at their door. With an annoyed huff, he waves Hizashi off from getting up and heads to the door himself.

He’s not expecting to see Izuku, the teen having been busy hanging with his friends while they worked on a group art project Nemuri had assigned them all. “Hey, Problem Child,” he greets and steps back, letting Izuku in. This whole dorm situation has their whole fostering situation sitting weirdly. Technically, Izuku should feel fine to come and go as he pleases, this is his apartment now too, but with the dorms being so close, it’s just been easier to interact with him there in a teacher capacity than as a guardian capacity. “You know you don’t have to knock. We gave you a key for a reason,” Shouta reminds him and him nods sheepishly.

“Sorry,” he murmurs, shrugging awkwardly. “I…I’m still getting used to everything,” he admits.

“That’s alright,” Hizashi calls out. “Are you hungry, thirsty?” he offers.

“I’m okay,” Izuku says with a smile, Hizashi’s good cheer easing the whole awkward interaction. “Um…I actually had a question,” he admits.

“Then sit and we’ll discuss it,” Shouta says simply, leading the way back to where his work is at, though he sets everything aside and focuses on Izuku. “So, what’s the issue?” he asks.

“Oh…um…, it’s about the work studies, actually,” he says, fidgeting with his hoodie sleeve. “I…I don’t know if I’m allowed to, what with everything going on,” he finally says.

“Of course you’re allowed to,” Hizashi speaks up before Shouta can. “Why wouldn’t you be?” he asks.

“It’s just, there’s a lot going on and I don’t want to cause issues because of this. Won’t they consider me growing in a quirk as too much?” he asks curiously.

“If they do, then they’re not very good heroes, or teachers for that matter. Quirks, especially quirks of children, are still growing and developing even in high school. They don’t completely settle until at least around the mid-twenties, around when the human brain finally finishes developing too. People have been known to have spontaneous mutations in their quirk or discover new aspects of it well into their twenties. To fault a child for growing as why they won’t take them on is ridiculous. And to fault you for something that isn’t your fault shows they’re not a good hero and I wouldn’t want you learning from them anyways,” Hizashi rants, hands gesturing angrily at the hypothetical slight against Izuku.

Shouta can’t help, but smile at his husband for his defense and when he looks at Izuku, the kid looks poleaxed, like Hizashi’s words are not something he’d ever considered. How many times in his life has he been blamed for things outside his control, Shouta wonders bitterly. It’s a testament to today’s society how much emphasis is put on quirks, especially heroic quirks and how little regard is put to the people behind them. When the world only cares about what your quirk is, what do you do when you have none?

“We weren’t planning to restrict you from work studies,” Shouta finally says. “You would still need to do the leg work and contact the heroes you’d like to ask for a work study and then once contact was made, we would inform them of the current situation. At most, they might restrict you from certain duties, just until your quirk finally emerges, but other than that, you would still be doing the same thing as your other classmates,” Shouta explains simply.

“Oh,” Izuku whispers, blinking in shock.

“Did you have a hero in mind?” Hizashi asks.

“Um…I was talking with Togata-senpai earlier today and he offered to ask Sir Nighteye for me,” he explains, rubbing the back of his neck anxiously.

“He’s a good hero, and he’ll certainly teach you a lot,” Shouta says with a nod of approval. “If he gives the okay to interview, I’ll contact him and fill him in,” Shouta adds.

“Would he be alright with my…situation,” Izuku settles on.

“He’s worked with others who have hard quirks to control or were late coming into them before. Togata, before Nighteye took him on, had a hard time controlling his quirk and Nighteye helped him learn control. I’m sure he won’t care about the situation of how your quirk is coming in,” Shouta reassures. “But that’s if he’s willing to take you on. He might not be taking on new work study students. He usually only takes on one or two at a time and they have to impress him first,” he adds.

“I understand,” Izuku says with a nod, looking relieved at his words. Maybe this is a relief to him, to not have to worry about someone treating him as different or fragile because of his still growing in quirk. “Um, I’ll text Togata-senpai to ask and then I’ll let you know when I’ve heard from him,” Izuku says.

“Alright, keep me informed. Anything else you’ve got questions about?” Shouta asks.

“No, that was all. Thanks Aizawa-sensei. You too, Yamada-sensei,” he adds with a grin.

“Always glad to help. Do you want a treat before you go? I can make some hot cocoa,” Hizashi offers.

“Ah, thanks, but I should head back. Todoroki-kun is waiting for me back at the dorm. I was only meant to be gone for a bit,” he explains.

“Go on. I’ll see you tomorrow, then,” Shouta says and he nods before doing a quick bow and fast walks out, the door shutting quietly behind him. “Jeez,” Shouta huffs out, rubbing at his face.

“You okay, Sho?” Hizashi asks.

“Yeah, but I swear, I’m gonna burn society to the ground one day,” he grumbles and Hizashi gives him a sympathetic nod.

“He’s getting better and one day, he’s going to make the world better. All the kids are,” Hizashi says brightly and Shouta nods.

Chapter Text

It’s Friday morning and Izuku has finally come to a decision. He’d texted Togata about the okay and hadn’t heard back yet, though the older teen had sent a few funny pictures of cats he saw around, so he’s just waiting on that. But his thoughts have been swirling and constantly coming back to the same thing over and over. He needs to tell his friends. Maybe not all the details, but enough so they won’t be surprised when he one day comes in with freaking wings.

So, he decides Friday is the best day. Or he thinks it’s the best day, but there will never be a perfect day to tell them, so Friday it is. He waits, and one by one, gets them alone, asking them to meet him at the private meeting room near 1-A to talk with them about something after class. They all agree, even Shinso, who looks suspicious, but not hostile or even annoyed which is a big change from how he was when he first came to 1-A. He also informs Aizawa-sensei at lunch, finding the teacher in his office.

He’s supportive, as usual and says he’ll hang out in 1-A after classes end just in case Izuku needs someone to talk to or things take a sour turn. Izuku is honestly glad Aizawa is his teacher. He just seems to know the right thing to say to help Izuku get passed some of his anxiety.

Finally, classes end and most of 1-A leaves in a rush for the weekend. They’ve still got training tomorrow, but other than that, the weekend is theirs, so they’re all excited to have some time off. Todoroki, Iida, Uraraka and Shinso are all waiting by their desks, letting the others go on ahead of them. They turn to look at Izuku who gulps, but stands.

Aizawa clears his throat, catching all their attention and gives them a look before jerking his head to tell them to leave. The group does, Izuku leading the way silently to the private room and nervously opens the door before slipping in, the other four following.

Uraraka is the last one in and she locks the door so they won’t be interrupted. “Everything okay?” Todoroki asks quietly, seeing how pale Izuku is as the door locks.

“I…I guess…it’s complicated,” Izuku finally settles on.

“We’re here for you, Midoriya-kun,” Iida says with his usual arm motions. “Whatever you have to say, we’ll listen.”

“Thanks,” Izuku says with a wan smile and settles on a chair. The others slowly follow, settling on seats and quiet descends. “It’s…um, it’s a little hard to talk about, you know…but you’re my friends, or at least I consider you my friends and I’d like you all to know first, before it eventually gets out,” he explains.

“Are you dying?” Shinso asks suddenly with a heavy frown.

“What? No,” Izuku exclaims. The group seems to relax a little and Izuku realizes how his words might have sounded.

“Well, if you’re not dying, then it can’t be that bad,” Shinso adds with a smirk and Izuku huffs faintly.

“We definitely consider you to be a friend, Midoriya-kun,” Uraraka speaks up with a grin.

“Thanks,” Izuku says with a slow sigh. He pulls in a steadying breath before he starts. “I’m sure you’ve noticed I’ve been acting…off lately and the whole disappearing a lot and all the meetings…and the whole hospital thing,” he adds quietly. The four are silent, but nod. “I…I wasn’t sick like everyone believed. Or well, I was sick, but not in the conventional flu or cold situation,” he explains.

“Um…it’s a little hard to explain, but I was so sick from drug withdrawals,” he finally says. “I…I didn’t know it, but I was being given a drug for a long time. When I came here, I wasn’t taking it anymore and my body reacted badly.”

“Oh…that’s…wow,” Uraraka says slowly.

“If I may, what was the drug?” Iida asks, seeming to find the right chord to hit and they all look at Izuku.

Izuku grimaces, but nods. “It’s called Exzenophorial. It’s…it’s a quirk suppressant, specifically for mutation quirks,” Izuku says softly, hunching slightly as the words finally leave his mouth.

“A quirk suppressant, but you’re…,” Uraraka trails off as the words finally connect.

“You have a quirk,” Todoroki finally speaks, “a mutation quirk.”

“Apparently,” Izuku says, hugging his knees as he waits for someone else to say something.

“So,” Shinso says in the quiet. “What’s your quirk?” he asks and Izuku looks up. Shinso looks anxious, but like he’s trying to lighten the mood in the only way he knows how.

“Um…I’m currently growing in wings,” he admits.

“What!” Uraraka says in excitement. “Really?”

Izuku nods. “It’s why I’ve been disappearing so much. I have regular checkups with Recovery Girl and usually once a week I meet with a specialist who works with atrophied or diminished limbs. I’ve also been seeing Hound Dog as well, because of…well…,” he trails off. “My…my mom’s the one who was doing this and now, she’s run off, so I’ve been taken in by Aizawa-sensei as a foster kid, so…it’s been a lot to work through,” he explains.

He’s thrown back as a body collides with him and he looks up to see Uraraka has thrown her arms around him. “I’m so sorry, Midoriya,” she says sadly. Slowly, Izuku wraps his arms around her. A few seconds later, a body slots in on his right, Todoroki throwing an arm around his shoulders. Iida lays a hand on Izuku’s shoulder. Shinso doesn’t come closer, but he sends a supportive look.

Izuku sniffs wetly, burying his face in Uraraka’s shoulder as a few tears escape. They don’t hug for long, but it feels nice to finally have this burden off his shoulders, to finally have told them. That they don’t hate him or even seem to care is a relief. He’d been expecting…well, a more explosive reaction actually.

They pull away and slowly retake their seats, a few wiping at tears. “So, what happens next?” Uraraka asks with a watery smile.

“Not much,” Izuku admits. “I…I plan on telling the rest of the class later, when it’s closer to the big reveal. It’s apparently going to be a painful and messy experience to finish growing in wings, so I’ll probably miss a few days of class.” At their frowns, he grimaces. “They have to breach from my back,” he explains.

“Damn,” Shinso whispers. “I thought my quirk was bad when my voice started to change,” he mutters.

“My engines coming in had been horribly painful,” Iida confesses.

“I had to wear gloves for months until I figured out how to control mine,” Uraraka confesses with a huge grin. “I felt like I had a stomach ache the whole time too.”

“Do you want us to be there…when it happens?” Todoroki asks, not offering his own story, but Izuku’s heard some of it and knows it’s not nice.

Izuku shakes his head. “No, I’ll have plenty of help and you really shouldn’t see me like that. But you can come visit me afterwards to see what they look like,” he adds.

“Deal,” Uraraka agrees with a grin.

“Do you think you’ll be able to fly?” Shinso asks curiously.

“I…maybe, I don’t know. I’ve done some research and it depends on the quirk. Some people have wings, but can’t fly. Either way, we won’t know for sure until they’ve finished growing large enough to support my weight…if they grow large enough. That is always an option since I was on suppressants for so long,” Izuku explains.

“If you ever need to talk with us or just vent, we’re here for you,” Uraraka says and the others all nod.

“Thanks. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner,” he says softly.

“You told us when you were comfortable telling us. That’s all that matters,” Shinso speaks up suddenly and Izuku blinks before smiling a little. “Don’t think this will spare you from all the bird jokes once they do come in,” he adds with a smirk.

“No,” Izuku whines and the others laugh as the last of the heavy atmosphere lifts.

“Come on, let’s get some food and we’ll have a study group in one of our dorms,” Uraraka suggests and they all agree.

Shinso’s the first to the door and unlocks it, opening the door before he freezes in his tracks. Izuku cranes his head to see Aizawa leaned against the wall directly in front of the door. “Everything good?” he asks, expression serious as he looks over them all for anything negative.

“We’re good,” Izuku says with a watery smile.

Aizawa eyes him and then smiles faintly. “Good. Don’t stay up too late, and if you all have any questions, come ask me, got it?” he orders and they all nod. “Get going,” he orders and they file out of the room. Aizawa thankfully heads in the opposite direction, probably to his office and they head to the dorms.

They gather some snacks, their homework and end up in Todoroki’s room where they talk and work well into the evening. Izuku’s able to explain some things in detail that he kind of glossed over, the others asking questions about other things. It honestly helps him feel better to get this all out. Maybe Togata, Hound Dog and Aizawa were right. Talking about it does help.

~*~

The group finally breaks up once it’s dinner time. They offer to keep the whole group thing going, but Izuku waves them off, needing some time to himself. Having his friends all behind him is nice, but there’s still one more person he needs to tell.

He doesn’t want to, but he knows if he waits and tells Katsuki with the rest of the class, he’ll react badly. Plus…Katsuki knew his mom and their moms had been friends. There’s a history there. Maybe it’s not a healthy mind set to think Katsuki deserves to know, or the fact that he wants to rub his quirk in his face for all the pain he caused Izuku as a child. Maybe it’s a bad idea all around and he should have told Aizawa his plans on this as well…but he doesn’t care. Something in him needs this, so he’s going to do it.

It helps that Katsuki is easy to predict, his schedule unchanging since the start of their stay in the dorms. As well, he’s been quieter here lately since they got back from the exams. Izuku knows he and Todoroki have their first remedial class this weekend, being exempt from training tomorrow since the class is all day.

He bids his time, waiting and watching and on cue, Katsuki heads up stairs to go to bed. Izuku waits a few minutes, scrolling through his phone before he bids the others good night, saying he’s tired after such a hectic day. They don’t question him, guessing why he’s tired and Izuku slips up the stairs easily.

He doesn’t stop on his floor, keeps going until he reaches Katsuki’s floor. It’s not hard to find his room and Izuku takes a quick breath, quelling the anxiety building in his gut and knocks softly. It takes a few minutes before he hears annoyed grumbling and heavy steps, the door opening harshly as Katsuki glares out of his room.

He does blink a bit in shock at Izuku standing there. “What do you want, Deku?” he demands, though he at least keeps his voice low to keep someone from overhearing them.

“Hi Katsuki…can we talk?” he ask softly, for once managing to keep eye contact and Katsuki frowns at the serious tone in his voice. He looks like he’s about to say no and Izuku speaks up again. “Please,” he adds softly. Katsuki tsks, but nods finally, stepping back to let him in his room. “Not here,” Izuku says, not wanting Katsuki to start using his quirk inside when he hears what Izuku has to say. He doesn’t want him to get in trouble for setting off the fire alarm and outside means people are less likely to hear him.

Frowning, Katsuki nods and steps out, closing his door behind him after stuffing his feet into some sandals. He follows Izuku to the stairs, but rather than go down, he goes up to where the roof access is. The roof actually is accessible to them with covered areas and benches, even some trees, the area for people to study under, to just sit and relax, or even to do exercises if they wanted to.

The door closes behind them and Izuku walks further out onto the roof. It’s a nice night, not many clouds out. There aren’t any stars visible, but the moon is shining brightly and a breeze keeps the air cool, but not cold. Though he doubts that will last. Summer is coming to an end and soon it’ll start getting colder.

“What did you want?” Katsuki demands, but even now his voice is hushed, like he can sense this is something serious.

Izuku sighs, wrapping his arms around his chest. “Some things came to light when I was in the hospital over the summer,” Izuku says without preamble and Katsuki stills. “I’m not sick, or dying,” he adds hastily. “Just, some medical stuff and why I got sick,” Izuku says with a wince. He should really learn how to say this better.

“Yeah, so what?” Katsuki asks, frowning.

“Apparently, I was going through withdrawals from a drug called Exzenophorial. It’s a quirk suppressant for mutation quirks,” Izuku states bluntly. Katsuki stills, his arms starting to uncross as he frowns, processing Izuku’s words.

“The fuck are you talking about?” he demands, looking confused.

“Mom was dosing me with a quirk suppressant to keep my quirk from growing in. Apparently, she’d rather I be quirkless than have a mutation quirk,” Izuku states, anger building in his chest as he starts to pace.

“Are you fucking joking around right now?” Katsuki demands.

“Why the fuck would I joke about something like this, Kacchan?” Izuku snaps, spinning to glare at him and the blonde flinches at the way he uses his old nickname. “Mom is gone!” he yells and Katsuki actually takes a step back. “She ended our lease on the apartment, quit her job and left. She’s gone because she knew it would get out what she’d done,” Izuku yells, tears starting to flow down his cheeks.

Silence descends, the wind picking up and Izuku turns away, wiping at his eyes. “Why are you telling me now?” Katsuki growls out, but he sounds subdued.

Izuku shrugs. “You’d find out eventually. Once my quirk finishes growing in, it’s going to be kind of hard to hide it. I planned to tell the rest of the class before that happened, but…you’re the only one who knows me from before and knows mom. You’d have put pieces together and…I really didn’t feel like hashing this out in front of everyone,” Izuku says wearily, suddenly tired. “Also, Auntie Mitsuki should probably know before she tries to contact her and can’t,” Izuku adds.

Katsuki doesn’t say anything and Izuku wants to scream at him, throw it in his face that he was wrong, that Izuku’s not a worthless, quirkless Deku like they used to call him, like Katsuki used to call him, but he’s suddenly just done with this whole day and conversation. It’s not worth it for the petty comeback. It won’t change what was done to him and he doubt it will change much of how Katsuki will act from now on.

Sighing, Izuku rubs the last of his tears away, shivering a little as the breeze sneaks under his hoodie. “I just wanted to tell you this. Take it as you will,” Izuku finally decides on. “I’m going to bed now.” He walks back towards the door and Katsuki remains standing where he’s at. “If you need to ask questions, Aizawa-sensei knows,” Izuku throws out and then he’s through the door and going back downstairs.

He finds Aizawa standing on the stairs a floor down, arms crossed as he leans against the wall. “Okay?” he asks. Izuku guesses he came to check on the class and couldn’t find Izuku so he went looking. Izuku shrugs. “Come here, Problem Child,” and Izuku lets him pull him into a loose hug.

“Sorry,” he whispers huskily.

“It’s not a problem. Do you wanna stay in the dorms or come back to the apartment?” he asks.

Izuku thinks on it and finds his dorm room to be very unappealing with the packed boxes still a glaring reminder of what is going on. “Apartment,” he whispers.

“Alright, go pack some pajamas and clothes for tomorrow. I’ll meet you at the back door and let the class know not to bother you,” Aizawa says and Izuku nods, eyes pricking with relief at not having to face anyone right now. Maybe doing this hadn’t been the best idea after all so soon after such an emotional talk with his friends.

Izuku goes to his room, and ignoring the glaring reminder in his room, packs a quick bag of his pajamas, a change of clothes for tomorrow, his phone and his charging cord. He’ll text the others to let them know where he’ll be and that he’ll see them tomorrow.

He sneaks to the back door, glad the stairs don’t open to the main room. No one sees him go and soon, the darkness is enclosing him again as he steps outside. He aims for the front of the dorm and meets Aizawa outside.

“Hey kid, let’s get you in bed,” Aizawa murmurs, wrapping a loose arm around Izuku’s shoulders and helps guide him to the apartments where the teachers stay at. Yamada-sensei is there and smiles softly at Izuku, letting him know the room is already made up and that he can stay as long as he’d like.

Nodding gratefully, Izuku heads for his room and collapses to the bed, exhaustion eating at him. It takes a lot of work to get changed into his pajamas, but he manages it. He sees a few texts in his group chat from the others, newly created after their talk today. He doesn’t say much, just that the day caught up to him and he’s staying with Aizawa tonight and that he’ll see them tomorrow for training.

There are confirmations all around and good nights. Izuku is so glad he told them. As he’s getting under the blankets, his phone chirps again and when he looks at it, he sees a DM from just Todoroki.

TS: Did something happen between you and Bakugō?

TS: He just came from the roof and rushed to his room looking weird.

Izuku frowns, but finally sighs.

MI: Yes.

He doesn’t say anything else and Todoroki doesn’t ask anything more. Relieved that he doesn’t need to explain himself, Izuku lets sleep drag him under and thankfully, he doesn’t dream about anything, at least not that he can remember.

Chapter Text

Despite the emotional upheaval Izuku went through, nothing changes. He gets up the next morning to a breakfast spread courtesy of Yamada-sensei who is very much a morning person to Aizawa-sensei’s ‘dead to the world without caffeine’ attitude.

It’s nice though. He hasn’t had a normal morning and breakfast like this in a while. Before…well everything, he didn’t see his mom much, the woman working early shifts so their time together had always been limited in the morning.

There are ‘good mornings’ from his friends on his phone when he checks it, a few funny cat memes from Shinso included, but for the most part, they act normally besides checking in with him to make sure he’s okay and reminding him they’re there.

Smiling, he sends back that he’s fine and would be coming to the dorms shortly. He thanks them for letting him stay last night and for the breakfast. Yamada-sensei says he can come any time, that that is his room and Izuku smiles in thanks. He waves and heads out, needing to get ready for training today.

They haven’t really had a chance to finalize his whole foster situation, but when they do, he’d really like to stay with Yamada and Aizawa. They…they get what he’s going through, have been there since the beginning. It would be strange to not have that and to have to explain to someone unknown to him about what has been happening to him lately.

Most everyone is up and no one comments on him coming in from outside. He usually gets up early to go exercise and such, so it’s not uncommon for him to do so. Unfortunately, Todoroki is already gone, heading for the place where the remedial classes will be at so he can’t say good morning to him. He does send a ‘good luck’ text to him and gets a ‘thanks’ back. On the plus side, Katsuki is also already gone, so he doesn’t have to deal with that awkwardness just yet.

The others are out and greet him. He waves, heading over to where they’re settled. Shinso has a cup of coffee, Iida some orange juice and Uraraka looks like she has apple juice. “Ready for training today?” he asks.

“You bet. I hope we do some sparring. I’m really in the mood to throw some hands,” Uraraka says with an evil grin, fist clinched and Izuku laughs at her enthusiasm at beating up the rest of them in the name of training.

An hour later, Aizawa arrives and tells them to go get ready and to meet at Ground Beta. Excited and curious, the class rushes off to do as told and Izuku does so as well. Today is a new day and he’s not going to let the emotional rollercoaster of yesterday affect him today.

~*~

Shouto sits in the chair provided by the teachers and works in the notebook provided as well. So far, this first day of remedial training has been nothing, but book work with the teachers starting each lesson with a demonstration of the proper way to do what they’re teaching them. It’s a lot like what they’ve been doing at Yuuei, but with less focus on their other classes as well. It’s a concentrated lesson meant to get them up to speed faster.

Still, he can’t keep his gaze from straying as he waits for the next session to be started. Bakugō is seated one row ahead of him and on his right. The blonde normally has some form of a frown on his face, but this morning, it’s more pronounced and Shouto’s noticed he’s a lot more distracted, more prone to staring at nothing, thoughts on something else.

He’d guess it’s because of whatever Midoriya and he talked about last night. He’d seen Bakugō coming from the roof looking a little shell-shocked and confused, body tense as he disappeared back down to his floor and into his room, the door closing with a loud snap.

If Shouto were to guess, Midoriya told Bakugō about what he told them earlier in the day. He knows the two have a history, grew up together, though they haven’t been close in a long time. Maybe it was a shock, but if Shouto had to guess, he’d say a lot of what he saw on Bakugō’s face was guilt and shame.

The teacher steps up and he focuses back on them only to see a break is being called and they’re being released for thirty minutes to stretch their legs and do as they like. They’re reminded too, that the second half of the day will be first aid drills and to be prepared for some exercise.

Shouto heads for the outside wanting some air and to maybe grab a drink from the vending machine. Thoughts of Midoriya have him pondering what Midoriya told them yesterday. He’d known Midoriya was quirkless since they started class. Had been confused how he got into the program, but once he saw how hard working he is, how intelligent, he figured it was that that got him in. It hadn’t mattered to him that he was quirkless and trying to be a hero. As long as he stayed out of Shouto’s way, what did he care?

And then they’d been paired to face off in the third event of the Sports Festival. Shouto had been tired, exhausted by his quirk use and so cold, but he’d thought it would be an easy win with Midoriya. He’d been stupid, underestimated his opponent and that nearly cost him the match. Rather than waste what little energy he had left on another big glacier like he’d done before, he’d gone smaller, more precise, aiming to freeze his legs.

Before he even realized what was happening, Midoriya had dodged the attack and closed the gap between them in seconds. Only his own training in hand to hand kept him from being knocked out with one hit, ducking the punch. The fight got dirty and messy very quickly, the ice starting to melt around them. He remembers Midoriya yelling at him in fury for treating him as lesser, as weak, for daring to use anything less than his all against his opponent.

It had been the first time he’d used his fire like that and that sudden realization that he was disrespecting everyone by refusing to use his fire, even to spite his father. And then Midoriya said the one thing that truly set him free: ‘It’s your quirk, not his, so fight me!’ It unlocked his mind like nothing else had and ended the fight with Midoriya knocked out of the ring, Shouto shocked by the ending. He’d honestly expected Midoriya to win.

He’d still ended up losing to Bakugō the next round, exhausted by everything, but he hadn’t cared, not even when Endeavor had screamed at him for being a failure. He’d sought out Midoriya after that and had pulled him aside, quietly explaining why he had done what he did.

Midoriya had apologized for yelling at him, but Shouto had shaken his head. He’d needed it. It finally made him realize what he was doing wrong. He’d promised to never treat Midoriya like that again. After that, he’d stuck close to Midoriya, eventually the two becoming friends. He liked Midoriya, the teen quiet like him a lot, preferring to study away from the chaos of their class. He is also smart, far smarter than Shouto, helping him figure out things about his quirk he never realized and that not even the fancy, expensive quirk councilors ever realized.

They faced off with the Hero Killer in Hosu with Iida, solidifying their friendship with the other teen too, had been together when they faced the LOV at that disastrous summer camp and after, when they went to save Bakugō. Midoriya had done all that while quirkless.

And now he’s not. Shouto doesn’t care whether Midoriya has a quirk or not. He’s amazing no matter what, but the thought of him having a quirk has him wondering how much stronger, better, he’ll be now. Shouto has been in awe of him from the moment they faced off and Midoriya showed his true self. How can he face him with a quirk added?

There’s the sound of footsteps behind him and when he turns, he sees Bakugō standing behind him. “Yes?” he asks evenly, not interested in talking with the blonde, but guessing Bakugō won’t let him leave without some sort of talk.

“You’re friends with Deku?” he snaps out.

“I’m friends with Midoriya,” Shouto says pointedly and Bakugō sneers, ignoring the barb.

“Did he tell you about…,” he waves his hand in the air, trying to emphasize everything that Midoriya had told them.

“He did,” Shouto says, seeing no reason to lie. Midoriya never said he needed to keep this secret.

“And?” Bakugō demands.

“And what?” Shouto asks, not getting what he wants.

“Is it true?” he demands again, looking one wrong word from snapping.

“Why would Midoriya lie about this?” Shouto asks in confusion.

“To look better or something,” Bakugō snaps.

“Aizawa-sensei has already confirmed it with me. Midoriya has no reason to lie,” Shouto points out. “The fact that you can’t accept this has no sway on the validity of his words. Why would he lie to you anyways?” Shouto asks and Bakugō just gets even angrier.

“The fuck if I know. That fucking Deku has always been a weasely little shit. Always followed me around when we were kids, muttering and watching. Always going on about how he’d become a hero when he fucking knew he was quirkless and couldn’t,” Bakugō says snidely.

“He was right,” Shouto points out and Bakugō frowns at him. “He got into Yuuei without a quirk, got into the heroics course without one either. Beat a lot of students in the Sports Festival without a quirk. He was well on his way to being a hero without a quirk. Imagine how far he could go with one,” Shouto murmurs and Bakugō growls lowly. “Just because you’re scared of what he can do doesn’t mean I am. What are you so afraid he’ll see in you?” Shouto asks, starting to see what Bakugō’s deal is. “Afraid he might find some secret you’d rather not be known?”

“Fuck you, I’m not afraid,” Bakugō snarls at him, but even then he looks a little pale.

“Then prove it,” Shouto murmurs, “To him, not me. I don’t care, but for someone who says he doesn’t care, you seem strangely obsessed with someone you consider beneath you. What does he have that you don’t?” Shouto asks pointedly.

With another low snarl, Bakugō storms away, faint pops following as he lets off steam. Shouto doesn’t follow. Maybe now Bakugō will leave Midoriya alone, at least until he gets his head on straight. He reminds him a lot of Endeavor, who is so insecure, constantly striving for perfection when he doesn’t even know what perfection is. It’s honestly a little pitiful.

His phone chirps and he glances at it to see a text in the group chat. Opening it, he finds a picture of Midoriya and Uraraka in their hero costumes, the two of them sweaty and looking like they took a tumble through some dirt, but grinning at the camera either way. In the background, he can see Iida and Shinso talking, also in their costumes, Shinso just starting to look at the camera as it was snapped.

Hope you’re having fun, Todoroki-kun. We miss you. Good luck!

Smiling, Shouto sends back a ‘thanks’ with a smiley face before taking his drink with him back to the building, their break almost over. He’s got a lot of catching up to do, but hopefully he can walk besides Midoriya and the others without feeling like he needs to hold back. It’s his quirk…not Endeavor’s and he’s ready to prove that to the world and to himself.

~*~

Sunday rolls around with Izuku excited for a day off, not something he’d been expecting. Yesterday’s training, while fun, had left him exhausted. Aizawa-sensei had worked them hard at their lessons on urban patrolling and fighting. He’d been quite clear: quirks would only get someone so far. Knowing, not only how to find your way through a city if lost, but how to use the environment to your advantage and to make anything a weapon if needed, those are the lessons that would help them the most.

They’d spent a lot of time getting ‘lost’ after being blindfolded and left somewhere in the mock city to find their way back. They also sparred in various places: alleys, streets, a roof top, and even in a fountain for one of the pairs. Aizawa-sensei had imparted important advice to them, helping them where they struggled and berating them for stupid mistakes they should know not to make by now.

So needless to say, he’s expecting an easy morning to relax, maybe work on some homework and to go to his appointment with Fujiko-san that afternoon. He’s not expecting to have Aizawa-sensei find him in the kitchen that morning eating breakfast.

“Hey Problem Child,” he greets, a cup of coffee in his hand.

“Good morning, Sensei,” Izuku greets with a tired grin.

“Finish that up quickly. We’ve got a meeting with Nedzu in thirty minutes,” he informs Izuku. “I’ll explain when we’re heading there,” he adds before Izuku can ask and sees him glance behind Izuku where some of the others are up and about.

“Okay,” Izuku agrees with a shaky smile and quickly finishes off his breakfast. Thankfully, he’d already gotten dressed, so once he’s done and his dishes have been cleaned and set aside to dry, he’s ready to go.

They’re silent as they leave the dorm, Izuku waving to the others in the common room as they leave. Todoroki sends him a look and Izuku tries to send him a reassuring smile before he’s forced to face ahead and step outside.

“What’s this about?” Izuku asks. He’d not been expecting this meeting.

“Himeji-san is here,” Aizawa says and Izuku blinks. Himeji Ran is Izuku’s Child Welfare Representative. He’s only met with her a few times over the last handful of weeks since everything happened. She’s nice, if a little…distant. She at least doesn’t treat him differently, though whether that’s because she doesn’t care about his situation as a whole, or that he’s actually got a quirk now, he hasn’t tried to ask, not wanting to shake things up.

“Oh,” Izuku says and follows quietly behind Aizawa to the main building and up to the principal’s office. Himeji is indeed here, the woman’s dark hair pulled back into a tight bun, her sensible pant suit clean and pressed. Dark eyes watch him enter, a clipboard and a couple files resting beside her on the couch.

“Good morning, Midoriya-kun,” Nedzu greets with a smile. “Sorry for the sudden meeting, but we finally have everything finalized with your fostering situation and we’d like your input,” he explains.

“Okay,” Izuku agrees, heart rate rising just a bit in nervousness. “Good morning, Himeji-san,” he greets with a small bow.

“Good morning, Midoriya-san. How have we been?” she asks coolly.

“Good, I got my provisional license,” he admits.

“Glad to hear,” she says back. “Now, let’s get down to business so you can go about your day.” Izuku nods and takes a seat next to Aizawa-sensei. “Now, we managed to secure a potential place with three other foster families. They’re all aware of Midoriya’s situation, have the training to help him should he need it and are all within a short distance of the school itself. Here are their files if you’d like to go through them. Midoriya-san, we agreed that you would get to choose your fostering arrangement, so read over them and pick what’s best for you,” she continues.

“What?” Izuku asks softly.

“Fostering…Like we discussed at our first meeting,” Himeji explains patiently.

Izuku stares at her and then glances at Aizawa. His face is passive, nothing showing. Izuku numbly reaches out for the files and flips through them, words coming at him, but he doesn’t retain much. He’s sure they’re nice. Some even have pets or children of their own or other fosters.

“Wh…What about Aizawa-sensei and Yamada-sensei?” he asks tentatively, afraid to look up.

“They were a temporary stop gap until we could secure you a foster home. They were never meant to be a permanent foster home,” Himeji explains patiently still.

“But…but they could be,” Izuku points out. He remembers them saying they could be permanent so many weeks ago.

“They could,” Himeji agrees neutrally. “However, they are already your teachers. It would be pointless to have them be both,” she points out.

Izuku looks down at the files in his hand. They’re full of strangers. People he knows nothing about, in homes he’s never been to or seen. Izuku shakes his head. “You said I get to decide,” he points out and Himeji frowns faintly before nodding. “I want to stay with Aizawa-sensei and Yamada-sensei. They…they know me…what is going on. I trust them. I don’t trust these people,” he brandishes the files. “I couldn’t stay with someone I didn’t trust. And maybe they look nice on paper, but that doesn’t mean they’re nice behind closed doors,” Izuku points out heatedly.

“We have thoroughly vetted them,” Himeji points out.

“So were my old middle school teachers and yet they let bullies do whatever they wanted,” Izuku states bluntly. “People act different when they want something or know someone is watching. I’m fine where I’m at,” Izuku says with finality.

He waits, breathing a little harder, for them to say ‘no’, to tell him to pick. Himeji sighs faintly through her nose and then glances towards Aizawa. “The final say is up to you and your husband,” she points out.

Aizawa is quiet and Izuku glances at him out of the corner of his eye. He finally stirs. “We’d already put our names forward to make this permanent. You were the one who insisted on making this meeting happen. We’re still in agreement about making this a permanent foster,” he adds.

Himeji purses her mouth a little like she bit into a lemon before nodding. “If that is what he wants and the foster parents are in agreement, then I see no reason to change things. I’ll draw up the appropriate paperwork and send it over for you to fill out and sign. I’ll arrange a home check for next week as well,” she adds pointedly.

“Of course. We look forward to seeing you,” Aizawa says with ease.

Nodding briskly, Himeji stands and with a last soft goodbye to them, leaves the room. Izuku looks between Nedzu who has remained silent through this whole thing and Aizawa who is watching Izuku with a guarded expression. “I…I can stay with you two?” he asks, shocked.

“You can,” Aizawa agrees with a faint smile.

Grinning suddenly, Izuku launches himself at Aizawa who carefully wraps his arms around Izuku’s back, mindful of his still growing in wings. “Thank you,” Izuku says into his chest where his face is pressed.

“I can’t let my Problem Child out of my sight. You’d get into too much trouble otherwise,” Aizawa jokes and Izuku laughs wetly, no one commenting on him crying, breathe hitching.

Eventually, the meeting is finished, Aizawa walking Izuku back to the apartment where Yamada is sitting at the kitchen table. Aizawa nods at him and he grins brightly before offering a hug to Izuku who takes it with a grin. He honestly wasn’t expecting this, but now that it’s happened, he’s glad it did. He hadn’t realized how unsettled part of his life has been until this was finalized.

The rest of the day is a bit of a blur, emotions all over the place. He grins a lot, for sure, but he’s happy so he doesn’t care. The others all sigh in relief when he tells them what happened and congratulate him.

~*~

Izuku fidgets nervously as the train rocks slightly. Togata is seated next to him, acting as both support for his nerves and an escort to Sir Nighteye’s agency. He’d gotten the text two days ago that Nighteye had agreed to an interview. He doesn’t know if Aizawa had managed to talk with Nighteye about his whole situation, but his teacher had given the go ahead for the interview, signing off on the pass off campus.

“You’re going to do fine,” Togata says, seeing how nervous Izuku is the closer they get to their stop.

“I…I hope so,” Izuku says with a glance at the route tracker to see how much longer they had until their stop arrived. “Any…any advice?” he asks hopefully.

Togata frowns slightly, considering the problem seriously. “Sir is very strict, prefers things by the book. He’s told me stories about things not going by the book and cases being dismissed because something was done incorrectly, so I can see why he pushes it so much. But, he also has a sense of humor, though many people don’t realize it. If you can make him laugh, even just a little, I think he’ll really like you, but…just be yourself. Don’t try to be anything else, he’ll sense it. You want him to like you not what you think he’ll like,” Togata finishes with a shrug.

“That’s a little hard right now,” Izuku admits with a wry smile. “I’m still trying to figure out who I am now.”

“Nothing’s truly changed, not your core at least. Everything else is just…extra bits. You are still you. Do you still want to be a hero, to help people…save them?” Togata asks quietly.

“Yes,” Izuku says firmly.

“Then you’re good,” Togata says with a huff of laughter as their stop is announced and Izuku jumps from nerves. “Come on, we still have a short walk,” he reminds Izuku and he nods, standing to follow him off the train as it opens the doors.

~*~

The room is silent as he steps into Nighteye’s office. The man himself is seated at his desk, watching Izuku from behind his glasses with a neutral expression on his face. “Ah, good morning, Sir Nighteye,” Izuku greets stiltedly.

“Good morning,” Nighteye says evenly. “You’re Midoriya Izuku?” he questions.

“I…I am,” Izuku assures him with a nod, hands twisting together before he consciously forces himself to stop.

“Sit,” he orders, motioning towards the chair across from him and Izuku does as told, swallowing nervously even as he stares in wonder at all the All Might merch around the room. Izuku holds out the work study form for Nighteye and he takes it, their hands brushing briefly before he sets the paper on his desk and Izuku sits. “Togata has vouched for you, so I’ve allowed this interview. Whether anything will come from it is on you,” he reminds Izuku.

“Of course,” Izuku agrees. “Um…did Aizawa-sensei inform you about…,”he trails off, still not knowing how to phrase his strange situation.

“He has not. I don’t care about whatever makes you unique or special or limited in someone else’s eyes. I will make my judgement of you today by your words and actions, not what someone else tells me,” Nighteye says evenly and Izuku winces slightly. “So, you think you deserve a work study with me?” he asks.

“I don’t think that,” Izuku starts off with reflexively before hastily adding, “I’d like a work study with you, but I don’t…,” he trails off again, anxiety rising as more negative thoughts start to eat at what little confidence he has.

“Why should I take you on? What can you bring to my agency that I don’t already have?” he demands brusquely.

“I…,” Izuku frowns. Is it presumptuous to think he has anything of value to add to this agency? He’s smart, good with quirks, decently strong and quick, something that mainly came about from avoiding bullies and some hasty training before getting into Yuuei. It’s been honed by Aizawa with training, but still, is it worth anything? Until his quirk comes in, he’s still basically quirkless and even then what can his as of yet unknown quirk add to this? Wings won’t add much for now.

Izuku looks down at his bag and decides to at least show what he can do. “I’m smart,” Izuku says hesitantly, reaching for his bag. “I really like quirks, breaking them down, analyzing them, finding how they’re weak and strong, that stuff,” Izuku says, starting to word vomit a bit as he rushes to get the words out before they clog his throat. He holds out his notebook, one of his newer and better ones. Nighteye doesn’t even glance at it or take it, and slowly Izuku lowers his hand. “I’m strong…quick, I learn fast…I…,” his words finally die out in the face of such an impassive stare.

“So not much then?” Nighteye asks simply and Izuku flinches. Izuku shrugs, shoulders hunching a little. This was such a bad idea. He should have just not even tried. “If that is all you can offer me, then you’ve wasted my time, Midoriya. I don’t see this being worth my time,” Nighteye says simply.

His ears ring hearing those damning words. He’s dreaded hearing them, and now…Izuku stands from the chair before Nighteye has to tell him to leave. “I’m sorry to have wasted your time,” he murmurs, eyes burning and ears ringing as he bows slightly. He turns away, heart a heavy drum in his chest, shame blaring in his head.

Just be yourself. Don’t try to be anything else, he’ll sense it. You want him to like you not what you think he’ll like.

Izuku pauses just inside the door, recalling Togata’s words. Was he being his true self? What is his true self? He’s wanted to be a hero for so long, to help people, to save them, but is that all? He’d wanted to be the first quirkless hero ever; to show the world he and they are worth more than pain and disdain. Now, he can’t do that dream…but dreams change, like Hound Dog said. Maybe he can’t be the first quirkless hero, but he can still be a hero, a damn good one who fights for everyone, but especially those who have no voice, no protection.

Something uncurls in his gut, a hot anger at Nighteye dismissing him so. Who does he think he is, assuming that Izuku has nothing to offer? He would be lucky to have him. Even Togata sees it, Aizawa-sensei sees it, Yamada-sensei, Hound Dog, Recovery Girl, his friends. They all see worth in him. Why can’t Nighteye?

His thoughts swirl and coalesce on one thing: he’s going to prove him wrong. Too fast to really think about it, Izuku pulls out a pen from his bag and turns, hurling it at Nighteye with as much force as he can. Nighteye snatches it from the air like he knew Izuku was going to do it. Izuku sees the way his eyes flash, just a hint of color completely different from his normal color.

An eye based quirk, one that isn’t passive, bur consciously activated. Something that allowed him to know what Izuku was about to do. A predictive quirk…something that showed him things before they happened, allowing him to react in time…like catching Izuku’s pen. He pulls out a pencil next, throwing it to the side of his head and Nighteye catches it as well. This time, Izuku sees the change from his normal eye color to his quirked eye color.

“Your quirk is a predictive mental based quirk in your eyes. It shows you the future, probably in bursts, but possibly further. I’d need to run more tests to be sure. It…,” he frowns, considering the whole meeting that just happened. “It requires sight, your sight…no eye contact, you kept trying to catch my eyes with yours…and…and touch,” he finally realizes. Nighteye had grabbed his form so weirdly, deliberately going for a grab that would force their hands to touch. “You need to physically touch your target before you can see anything,” he finalizes.

Nighteye watches him passively, the pen and pencil set down on the desk. Izuku feels that anger surge again. “You asked what I can bring to this agency, but what can you provide to me? What do you have to teach me that I should learn? What makes you so special that I would want to come here?” Izuku demands angrily. “What can you provide that I won’t get from someone else too?’ he snaps out.

Nighteye stares at him in the growing silence, the anger still simmering in his gut and then he sits back, a faint smile on his lips and a soft huff of laughter escaping his throat. “I’m sure I can teach you plenty,” Nighteye says softly. “But you have yet ask me to teach you, you only stated that you would like to learn from me. Usually you have to ask for something if you want it,” Nighteye reminds him.

Izuku feels like his legs have been cut out from under him at Nighteye’s words and he blinks in surprise. Just ask? When was the last time he asked for something because he wanted it? He’d learned a long time ago not to want things or to ask for them. No one would give it to him and he’d more than likely get yelled at or hit, or sneered at or laughed at for wanting something. Even him claiming he was going to be a hero wasn’t a want. It was a need, a hope, but he never asked if he could because he feared what people would say if he did ask.

Swallowing that instinctive urge to hunch up, anxiety rising so high, Izuku looks Nighteye in the eye. “Will you please teach me, Sir Nighteye?” he asks, bowing low to the hero, heart a tattoo in his ears.

There’s a low thump and when Izuku looks up, he sees Nighteye picking up a stamp off of his form where he just signed off on his form. “This won’t be an easy work study. I’ll work you to the bone, demand perfection from you and further, berate you for your mistakes, but I’ll also praise your triumphs and show you how to be a hero you can be proud of. Do you think you can handle this?” Nighteye demands.

“I’ll strive to do my best,” Izuku agrees with a grin, disbelief etched on his face, eyes burning with tears again, but happy tears this time.

“I look forward to working with you. Now, I think you should go find Togata and take a break. You look like you need one,” Nighteye comments mildly and Izuku nods, feeling a little wobbly indeed. “I’ll contact your teacher to go over everything and set up a schedule with him. I’ll contact you with that schedule once it’s done, okay?” he asks.

“Yes,” Izuku agrees easily.

“Good, then we’re done. Go take a break,” he orders and Izuku nods again, bowing one last time before stumbling out on weak knees.

He rounds the corner of the hall and leans heavily on the wall as what happened finally hits. Izuku sniffs faintly, wiping at his eyes. “Midoriya-kun, are you okay? Did it go badly?” Togata calls out, rushing up the hall to him.

“I…no, it went fine, I’m just…,” he can’t find the word.

“Happy, excited, over the moon?” Togata offers with a bright grin.

“Yeah,” he agrees to all of them.

“Then we’re going to celebrate. We don’t need to be back for a bit longer, so how about we grab some lunch, my treat for your accomplishment,” Togata offers.

“I…I could go for a bite to eat,” he agrees, managing to straighten, no longer afraid his knees will give out.

“Then come on. I know an excellent café just around the corner. It’s where I usually grab some food when I’m here,” Togata says, leading the way out of the agency. Izuku laughs and lets the older teen take charge, just glad nothing went horribly wrong.

~*~

Shouta wants to strangle Nighteye. He’d seen how Izuku looked after he came back from the interview, excited for getting it, but also a little fragile too. Instead, he takes the seat across from him with only a glare, setting Izuku’s file on his lap.

“This seems a bit much, Eraserhead. You could have just emailed me his info,” Nighteye comments mildly.

“This isn’t something that can be easily covered in an email,” Shouta states bluntly and Nighteye’s brow goes up, curiosity rising, but also that instinct that heroes get when something is about to happen that won’t be good.

He’d had that feeling when he first saw Izuku’s file after Nedzu had finalized who had passed and given him and Vlad their class lists. He’d known having a quirkless teen would be hard, he just hadn’t realized how bad things would get. They’re thankfully getting better, but there are a lot of loose threads to take care of and until they do, Izuku’s life is going to be in a constant state of flux with no solid ground to stand on.

“Show me,” Nighteye says instead of asking questions, so Shouta hands over Midoriya’s file. It’s not his school file, but his personal one Shouta keeps on his students. It’s the one he’s been using for all of Izuku’s things as his guardian as well. There’s a lot of medical paperwork in there.

Nighteye reads quickly, his frown steadily growing more pronounced the further he gets. Finally, he snaps the file closed and sits back in his chair, rubbing at his chin a little as he digests what he read. “So that’s why you called me before,” he mutters and Shouta nods. Nighteye had refused to hear him out and he can see why, but it had still irked him. “This doesn’t change anything,” Nighteye settles on.

“It better not,” Shouta mutters.

Nighteye eyes him, but wisely doesn’t comment on his words. “You’ll keep me updated on his progress and let me know when it’s closer to time?” he asks.

“Of course. We’re still a few months at least from anything,” Shouta informs him.

“Any restrictions I should be aware of?” he asks.

“Not currently. There probably will be the closer we get. From what I’ve been told, it will get quite painful on his back as it gets closer to breaching. We’re taking this a week at a time honestly,” Shouta says with a heavy sigh.

“And the mother?” he asks, tapping the file that contains the police report in it.

“Nothing yet. Tsukauchi is on the case since it’s in his district, but she had a few days head start and seems to have some knowledge of hiding her tracks both digitally and physically. My guess, she’s done something like this before,” Shouta admits. It’s a working theory he’s mostly kept to himself. No one disappears this well or easily without experience, or someone with connections.

“I’ll message him and see if he needs any help. I’ve a few connections that can help look,” Nighteye offers and Shouta nods in thanks.

“Thanks. Do you need a copy?” he asks, meaning the file.

“I think I’m good. If I have any questions, I’ll email you,” Nighteye says.

“Okay, I’ll get out of your hair,” Shouta says, standing with a grunt.

“I’ll send you my offered days he can come. I suggest the days Togata is coming, since security is so high because of the LOV attacks. That way he won’t need an escort,” Nighteye points out.

“I’ll check it over and get back to you,” Shouta says and accepts the file back before waving and walking out. He takes the train back, mind going over everything he needs to as he heads back to campus.

~*~

“What!” Uraraka cries out later that evening when they’ve all gathered in Shinso’s room to study and so Izuku could give the good news.

“I got the work study,” Izuku says, still unable to keep the grin off his face.

“Congrats,” Shinso says with a small grin of his own. “I’m still trying to decide who I would want to go with,” he admits.

“Same. Gunhead can’t take me. I was talking with Tsu-chan earlier and she’s having some difficulty too, unable to go with Selkie either,” Uraraka explains.

“Maybe you should ask Hado-senpai?” Izuku offers. “I got mine through Togata-senpai. She might know someone who you could ask,” he offers.

“Oh, that’s a good idea. I’ll text Tsu-chan tonight and we’ll see if we can’t find Hado-senpai tomorrow to ask. It’s something at least,” Uraraka says with a frown.

“Was it hard?” Todoroki asks softly and they all look to him before glancing at Izuku.

Izuku frowns, recalling the roller-coaster of emotions he went through in the span of ten minutes in that office. He’d been exhausted afterwards, so wrung out by everything. Only his elation has been keeping him going the rest of the day, but he knows he’s going to sleep hard tonight.

“Yes…and no,” Izuku settles on. “I…I think I made it harder on myself and so Nighteye used that against me, but once I just outright asked him…he said yes,” Izuku admits, rubbing at the back of his neck a little. “I got so caught up in my head I forgot to even just ask,” he jokes.

“Ah,” Todoroki says and the others look thoughtful.

At that moment, a huge yawn hits him and he feels his jaw crack a little bit. “Sorry,” he mutters, rubbing at his eyes.

“Go to bed, Midoriya, before you fall over,” Shinso orders and Izuku grins sheepishly.

“Okay, I’ll see you guys tomorrow,” Izuku says, gathering his stuff up before getting up. “Good night.” They all call out good night and then Izuku slips from Shinso’s room to head to his which is actually next to Shinso’s.

He slips into his room and flicks the light on. It’s quick work to get changed into some pajamas, heading to his bathroom to brush his teeth and finish getting ready for bed. He does lift his shirt, glancing in the mirror to see if anything has changed from the last time he looked. His back is still smooth, no noticeable lumps like he’s been told to expect.

Shrugging, he pulls his shirt back down and heads to bed. He plugs in his phone and settles into his bed, but before he can turn off his lamp, his eyes are drawn to the pile of boxes and rolled up posters in the corner of his room.

He just sits there, blanket over his lap and stares at it for a while, thoughts distant and not really focused on anything. Maybe he should just get rid of everything, a clean break so to speak, a fresh start with nothing connected to his mom. Even as he thinks it, he balks, unable to let that tie go, even after everything that’s happened.

Will he ever be able to get passed this, he wonders silently before he lies down, hand hitting the switch on his lamp and plunges the room into darkness.

Chapter Text

The room is silent and bare of anything, but the most basic of necessities. She doesn’t need much, not when she’s trying to remain undetected. When she’d made contact a few months back, she hadn’t expected to call in the favor, hadn’t expected things to escalate so suddenly in such a short time. She’s glad she did, even as her decisions finally came to light and ripped her carefully constructed life to shreds.

With sigh, Inko reaches out and picks up the lone piece of her heart she’s brought with her. Izuku grins in the picture, dressed in his All Might costume, posing as a hero would with his arms cocked. He’d been four, maybe five then. He’d been so small then, just starting his fist real steps into the world.

And now…she’s lost all ties to him. She cut them herself, but it still burned like acid when she did it. Her little boy is lost to her, probably forever and there’s nothing she can do to fix it, not right now.

A knock at the door has her jumping, heart hammering, breathe coming quickly as she waits and the knock comes again in the code she was expecting. Carefully setting the picture aside, Inko gets up and heads to the door. A peek through the door sight shows a familiar face waiting patiently for her to open the door.

Inko opens it a few inches, peeks through just to make sure and then opens it the rest of the way. “I thought we were keeping contact to a minimum,” Inko whispers as the woman steps in, quickly shutting and locking the door behind her.

“Yes, well things have changed,” she mutters, rubbing at her face. “My people have lost track of him,” she admits.

“What?” Inko whispers, eyes widening as fear rises up.

“Last location was in New York, but he managed to slip my tails. Best guess, he’s heading this way,” she admits.

“He doesn’t know where we’re at,” Inko insists.

“Not you, Inko, but your son has made a lot of waves here lately and that broadcast from the Sports Festival was internationally viewed. The odds of him not recognizing Izuku as his were slim at best. You knew this, hence why you contacted me to begin with,” she points out and Inko looks down at her hands.

“Yuuei will protect him, I know they will. We just need to lay low and hope he decides to leave,” Inko whispers.

“Have you ever known your ex-husband to ever let go of something willingly once he claimed it as his?” she asks pointedly. “Isn’t that why you ran away with Izuku to begin with, because you knew he would never let you go willingly,” she adds.

Inko sighs again, knowing she’s right. “What do I do?” she demands, anger sparking.

“For now, you lie low, avoid anyone recognizing you. The cops are still very much looking for you. I’ll lay some false trails to distract him away from Izuku and you. It won’t distract him for long, but it will be a start. As for afterwards…I don’t know,” she admits. “You might need to get more help than I can provide,” she admits with a shrug.

Inko looks over at the photo she just put down and nods. “Do what you have to,” she agrees and the other woman nods before seeing herself out.

~*~

“Here, Problem Child,” Aizawa says, holding out his costume case. Izuku frowns, not expecting to be given the case so suddenly. “I sent it to the Support Department for some updates,” he explains and Izuku nods. “They installed some protective padding specifically to the back to protect your wings for now. As well, Maijima wants to sit down with you soon to start planning out the updated costume for when your wings do emerge,” he adds.

“Okay,” Izuku agrees. “Um…should I go try it on now?” he asks.

“Probably best, in case it doesn’t sit right,” Aizawa advises so Izuku heads down the hall from his office to the nearby changing room. It doesn’t take much to slip into it. He’d decided on practical originally when designing his costume. With wings added, he’ll need to really think about what he wants in his costume.

Zipping up the top, he flexes his body, shifting around to see how it feels. He can feel the extra padding in the back which he honestly appreciates. He hadn’t been thinking about that, too focused on his upcoming first day at his work study. Thankfully, it’s not too difficult to move in and as he wears it more, it will get easier, he’s sure.

There’s a tap at the door to the chaining room. “How’s the fit?” Aizawa asks through the door. Rather than answer, Izuku opens the door so he can see. “Nothing feels off?” he asks.

“It feels fine. A little stiff, but I’m not used to the padding and I think it just needs to be broken in,” Izuku says.

“Good, pack it up. You leave with Togata shortly. Don’t forget to eat breakfast if you haven’t already. You’ll be excused from your classes today. I expect you to make them up, when you get back. I’ll leave any work assigned in your room,” he adds.

“Thank you, Aizawa-sensei. I promise I won’t let my work slip,” Izuku assures him.

“I’m not too worried about that, Problem Child. Just be careful and do as you’re told, okay?” he asks and Izuku nods. “Good, then finish getting ready,” he orders. “I’ll meet you back in my office.”

Izuku nods and the door shuts between them. He gets changed quickly, throwing on his uniform again before tucking the costume back into its case. Once he’s ready, he heads back to Aizawa’s office where Togata-senpai is already waiting. “Oh, good morning, Togata-senpai,” Izuku greets with a grin, excitement fizzling through him.

“Good morning,” Togata greets. “Ready?” he asks.

Izuku nods and then glances at Aizawa. “You’ve eaten and taken your medicine?” he asks bluntly.

“Yes, sensei and Recovery Girl said I was good to go yesterday, too,” he reminds Aizawa.

“Alright, you’re good to go,” Aizawa says with a sigh, but a small smile graces his face at Izuku’s excitement. “Don’t do anything reckless, Problem Child. I don’t need any grey hairs,” he orders and Izuku grins bigger before nodding.

Togata laughs, “I promise to keep him on the straight and narrow,” and then starts to herd Izuku out of the office.

The excitement carries Izuku all the way to the train station and on it before nerves start to hit him. It’s his first day, and yes he proved to Nighteye that he deserved the work study, but he doesn’t want to make a mistake and make him reconsider. “You’re going to be fine,” Togata says, sensing Izuku’s sudden nerves. “The first half of the day will be getting you acquainted with everyone and the work area, getting your stuff set up and going over procedures and such,” he explains.

“And the afternoon?” Izuku asks, a little mollified.

“We’ll do a patrol more than likely. Nothing serious, but you’ve got to get your toes wet at some point,” he points out and Izuku grins again. The last time he went patrolling was in Hosu and that…well, it started out fine until the whole attack on the city thing happened.

The rest of the ride is less nerve-wracking as he chats about some of the things they’re working on in class, Togata chiming in with similar things he did in his first year and offering advice or tips. They get off eventually and head for the agency.

Nighteye is already waiting for them once they arrive and it is a long few hours of him getting Izuku added to their systems, touring the agency, meeting everyone who works there, showing their programs, their filing system, how they do certain things and what exactly Izuku’s main job would be at the agency. Being the newest and most junior member of the agency, he would be doing a lot of paperwork, or file fetching. He’d be given case files to study and Nighteye would quiz him on them later for important info.

He would still get to patrol and do other things involved with being a hero work study student at the agency, but first he had to prove he could handle the menial work as well. When Nighteye hands him a small stack of files, he swallows, but nods. Togata laughs at his expression.

“I had to do this too, don’t worry. It’s good work to learn, but it can be a bit…boring,” he decides on. “Let me know if you get stuck on anything or need a break.”

“Okay,” Izuku agrees. He isn’t going to complain. He has to start somewhere and this is as good a place as any.

“After lunch, you’ll be going out with Togata on patrol, so make sure your gear is ready as well,” Nighteye adds with a small smirk and Izuku perks up more, grinning at the older hero who chuckles. Nodding, Izuku takes his stack of files and finds one of the free work spaces to start doing his assigned tasks.

~*~

Izuku crumples up the wrapper of his store bought sandwich. Across from him, Togata is finishing his food as well, the two having grabbed food for lunch and brought it back to the agency. He throws it away and then settles back at the table. “Togata-senpai, were you nervous when you first started here?” he asks.

Togata finishes his last bite before answering. “Oh, definitely. I was so shocked that Sir offered me a work study. Before that, I had a lot of trouble controlling my quirk, and I made a bit of a fool of myself at my first Sports Festival since I couldn’t wear my costume that works with my quirk and…well, I might have flashed a few people,” he admits with a chuckle.

“That was you?” Izuku asks in shock. “I watched that festival on the TV,” he explains.

“Yep, I thought for sure I wouldn’t get any offers. Then Sir sent in an internship offer and afterwards, the work study offer. He helped me figure out how to use this unruly quirk of mine without hurting myself or others,” he explains.

“It can hurt you?” he asks, curious about Togata’s quirk after his demonstration at the start of the semester.

Togata nods, getting a little serious. “I can phase through any material, but if part of me isn’t solid, like my feet, I go through the floor. And when I’m intangible, I can’t see or breathe either. As well, I have to be careful not to become solid while going through something as it forces me out and I can hurt someone else or even myself if I’m not prepared. That can be very bad,” he explains.

“Oh,” Izuku whispers, guessing he’s learned some of this from experience.

Togata glances at the time and stands with a grin. “Let’s go get ready. It’s almost time to start our patrol,” he advises and Izuku nods, standing as well before heading to the changing area he was shown earlier.

He finishes getting ready and rushes out of the changing room to wait for Togata. The older teen soon joins him and Izuku stares at his costume in amazement. He can guess where he got some of his inspiration from for said costume. “Do you like?” Togata asks, posing a little.

“It’s so cool,” Izuku says with a grin. “How does it work with your quirk?” he asks as they start to head for the lobby.

“Oh, it’s lined with my DNA so it doesn’t fall off me and my quirk works with it like it’s a part of me. Neat, huh?” he asks and Izuku nods.

He pauses once they get to the lobby, expecting to see Nighteye waiting for them, but he’s not there. “Where’s Sir Nighteye?” he asks.

“Oh, Sir is on a stake out right now with Bubble Girl. We’re going to be doing an easy patrol of the nearby area while he’s away. I’ll show you the route we normally use and point out important places to keep an eye on,” Togata explains.

“Okay,” Izuku agrees and falls into step beside him as they head out the door.

They walk for a bit before Togata finally speaks up. “I’ve been meaning to ask, what is the name you chose for yourself?” he asks.

“Oh…um…,” Izuku pauses for a moment, considering. “I was using Deku, but with everything that’s happened and will be happening soon…I think I need to change it. That…that name isn’t me anymore,” he admits with a frown.

“There is no shame in changing your name if it doesn’t fit anymore. Is it alright if I use Deku for now while we patrol?” Togata asks.

“Of course, I don’t mind,” he assures him. “Um, what is yours?” he asks.

“Oh, mine is Lemillion, because I want to save at least a million people, even if I can’t save everyone,” Togata explains for him.

“I like that name,” Izuku says with a grin.

“Shall we continue?” Togata asks, motioning ahead and Izuku nods, following along as they continue on the patrol.

It’s not a hard patrol, just like Togata told him. They help an old lady across the street with her groceries, help mediate an argument and deescalate it down from becoming a full blown fight, and even help a little girl catch her dog that had gotten loose, the mother scolding her once they reunite them.

Izuku knows that not every patrol will have action in it, no big fights or stopping criminals, but he’d been hoping for at least something a little interesting…something to tell the others when he got back. He shakes his head at the thought. He shouldn’t want bad things to happen. A boring patrol means that everyone is living peacefully.

They’re just turning to the last leg of their patrol. It’s a section that briefly touches into a neighboring industrial section full of big warehouses, manufacturing places and a warren of alleys. It’s an interesting juxtaposition between the brightly colored businesses on one side and the drab warehouses on the other. “There’s another agency nearby that covers this area, but we overlap our patrols here because a lot of time things bleed over from there,” Togata explains as they walk, gesturing to the two sides.

Izuku nods along, listening to the older teen, but he catches faintly a gasp of pain, and he frowns. Looking around for the source, he starts to turn when he hears running feet and something comes barreling into him. Instinctively, his arms come around to keep whatever that ran into him from falling and he looks down.

There’s a small child, a girl judging by the dirty smock and long hair, clinging to his front. She’s breathing hard, like she’s been running for a bit and he can feel her trembling ever so slightly. “Hey, are you alright?” Izuku whispers.

“Please,” he hears whispered just as a second set of footsteps sounds out. The girl flinches, trembling harder and Izuku looks up to see a man emerging from the same alleyway the girl just came from. He’s wearing fairly ordinary clothing, though his jacket has a strange purple ruff on the collar. But what stands out the most is the strange bird like mask on his face, brightly colored and eye catching. It reminds him a little of the plague masks he’d once seen in an old history book about pre-quirk history.

“Eri,” a voice calls out lowly and Izuku feels the hairs on the back of his neck rise. The girl whimpers, clutching him harder and Izuku’s heart speeds up in his chest, adrenalin pumping through his veins as fear makes him break out in a cold sweat. Strangely, followed close behind it is anger. “It’s time to come back,” he continues.

“Please,” Eri whispers near soundlessly, but Izuku still manages to hear it.

Izuku looks at Togata and sees a heavy frown on his face before it smooths over and he smiles like everything is okay. “Excuse me, but what is going on here?” he asks, stepping closer to the man and putting himself between the new arrival and Izuku and the girl, Eri. “It’s kind of strange to see a man chasing after a little girl, you know,” Togata adds evenly.

“She’s my daughter,” he says, his own voice even and yet Izuku still feels like something horrible is about to happen. “She ran away from me after I already told her once not to,” he adds pointedly to Eri.

Izuku looks down at her, really looks and notices some bandages peeking from under the sleeves of her smock. “Why is she covered in bandages?” Izuku asks, having to work to make himself speak, to hear anything over the pounding of his heart in his ears. Protectiveness rears its head as he looks down into wide red eyes, tears building. “If you’re her father, why does she look like she’s been hurt?” he asks sharply, voice going a bit rough.

Izuku sees Togata tense beside him slightly, but he refuses to back down on this. The man simply cocks his head, for all the world unbothered, but that pressure seems to build even higher, making Izuku sweat even more. “My daughter is clumsy sometimes and she hurts herself when she falls down. You are heroes, are you not? What agency do you work for?” he asks.

“We’re just work study students, not full-fledged heroes yet,” Togata says sharply, drawing the man’s gaze back. “I’m sure you would like your daughter back and we really need to return to our patrol,” Togata says, motioning for Izuku to release the girl.

He wants to listen, but he can’t make himself let go. This girl, Eri, is obviously in some sort of danger. She’s terrified and this man…whoever he is, is not good news. He can’t just leave her to him. That is not what a hero does. “What have you been doing to her?” he demands suddenly and Togata looks at him, but Izuku can’t turn his gaze away from the golden eyes staring down at him. He can’t see his mouth, but he’s sure the guy is smirking.

“If you’d really like to know, come into the alley with me and I’ll show you everything,” he says smoothly. That strange feeling builds even higher and Izuku feels himself pale even as something inside him seems to burn brighter, pushing back against the fear eating at him.

He’s not given a choice to act on the man’s words. Instead, Eri jerks from his hold before he can react and runs over to him, clutching at his pant leg. Her eyes, when he looks at her, are wide and terrified. A gloved hand comes down to pat her head. “Good girl,” he murmurs and starts to turn. “See you later, heroes-to-be. I’ll remember you,” he says in passing.

Izuku goes to stand up, but Togata grips his shoulder tightly, keeping him from moving as the man and child disappear back into the shadows of the alley. Only when that pressure finally dissipates and Izuku is able to breathe without feeling like he’s about to pass out, does Togata let him go.

“Senpai?” Izuku asks, feeling anger at being denied the chance to save Eri from what was obviously a villain of some kind. There’s also the still lingering fear too, his heart still not at a normal beat and there’s confusion, because he can feel that something more just went on here, but he just doesn’t have all the facts right now.

“Not right now,” Togata murmurs, looking a little wide-eyed himself. “We need to get back to the agency and report this to Sir.”

“We can’t just let him take her,” Izuku insists that anger getting bigger.

“Deku,” Togata snaps and Izuku jerks to attention. “That man we just talked to…he would have killed us,” he states bluntly. “The fact of the matter is, Eri just saved our lives.”

“What?” Izuku asks.

“Sir can explain more, but we really need to go…now,” Togata urges and Izuku nods, following him down the sidewalk back towards the agency. The last bit of their patrol happens in a blur, Izuku keeping watch as they walk, but his head is in turmoil. Togata speaks briefly with Sir Nighteye on the phone to give him the heads up, but for the most part, they are silent. When they finally get back to the agency, Sir Nighteye isn’t back, so Izuku goes to get changed while they wait.

~*~

Izuku hides away in his room when he gets back after bidding Togata farewell. The older teen eyes him worriedly, but Izuku tries to put on a convincing face to reassure him that everything is fine. It must work because he doesn’t say anything, so now Izuku is in his room pacing.

That anger he felt with his encounter with that villain, Overhaul, hasn’t dissipated at all. It’s been a steady low grade simmer in his gut. He’d listened to Sir Nighteye as he explained who Overhaul was. The Yakuza, while much smaller in threat compared to other villains, were still a threat nonetheless. He’s been investigating them, specifically Overhaul for a little while now. He’d actually been staking out one of their bases while they’d been patrolling and ran into him.

He’d also explained that Togata had been in the right for what he did, no matter how horrible it felt. Overhaul is not a villain that just anyone can face, let alone two work study students, one of whom was on his first patrol.

Izuku wants to be angry at them, but part of him knows they’re right. He remembers that fear as he stared into cold eyes, the way his heart had beat so hard as some animal part of his mind screamed he was facing a predator. No, he’s angry at Overhaul for whatever he’s doing to Eri. She’s just a child!

His steps lead him to his bathroom where he flicks on the light and stares at himself in the mirror. Green eyes stare back. He knows what it’s like to be hurt by others, by adults and children alike. He at least had his mom…despite what she had been doing to him. Eri has no one to fall back on. No one to comfort her.

He wants…no needs to protect her, but more than that, he needs to get her back. To take her away Overhaul and show her there’s more to the world than pain. She’s his to protect and he’s not going to let anyone stand in his way.

With his jaw clinched tight, Izuku turns away from the mirror, turning off the light and heads for his desk. He needs to do some research, if only to give an outlet to this impotent anger. He’s not going to let fear sway him again from doing what is right.

Chapter Text

Hizashi stands back and watches the hero students training. Usually, this would have fallen on Shouta, but his husband had been called away on a case so Hizashi had offered to supervise with Yagi as they worked.

Normally, he wouldn’t be too worried about the students. First years were still learning the basics and figuring out just what kind of hero they wanted to be. Except this year hasn’t been a normal year. Between the LOV’s attacks on this class in particular, and the recent rise in crimes involving Trigger, the streets have been hectic. Then there’s the incident with Fat Gum and his interns leading to Tamaki being without his quirk for two whole days…it has him worried.

But something else has him worried. His eyes trail across the gym to find Izuku standing there talking with Shinso, the two discussing something. With their fostering situation made permanent here finally, they’ve been trying to include Izuku more in their lives outside of school related things. This usually ends up being group dinners and the occasional movie, Izuku spending at least one night at the apartment recently.

He’s started to notice something off about Izuku though. He’s seen him at his best and brightest, and he’s unfortunately seen him at his worst and so broken by an injustice done to him. This though…this is new. The teen is determined, has always been determined, but now it’s become almost single-minded. He’s also noticed him snapping more than once at one of his classmates before quickly apologizing to them.

It’s not unusual for a teen to be having mood swings, but it’s the first time he’s seen it with Izuku and it’s throwing him off. Is this just normal teenage stuff or something else? He wants to help him figure things out, but how far is he allowed to push? Even regular teens in normal family situations hate to have adults butting into their lives and asking invasive questions. How is he supposed to offer help when their situation is so strange?

Sighing, he puts the thoughts aside for now as Kaminari calls for his attention. He needs to focus on being a teacher now. He can be a parent later. Izuku is fine, he’s growing, opening up in ways they didn’t expect and he’s slowly, but surely healing from the trauma he has suffered. That’s all he can ask for right now.

~*~

Izuku gets an email from Nighteye the night before it asks him to come to the agency the next morning. It’s a bit unusual. Sir Nighteye has kept him to a schedule so he’s not missing too many days consecutively. Normally, after a day of work study, he’s off and he just got back today from patrolling. He’d spent the whole patrol with Togata looking for any sign of Eri, but like before, there’s been nothing, though their patrol was changed to a different area, Nighteye not wanting them to run into Overhaul again.

Not sure why he’s being called back in again, he sends off a text to Aizawa-sensei to inform him about the sudden change. Aizawa allows it, telling him to be careful on his way there. That taken care of, Izuku looks down at his current notebook.

There’s no title on the cover like his other ones have. Inside is only one subject: Overhaul. He’s looked up what info he can on him, even sneaking into the files to snag their file on him to study it before putting it back where he found it. He needs to know everything about Overhaul and his quirk: how it works, what its limits are, and how he can beat it.

There is a lot of info on him and his yakuza group, but even then it’s still limited. The info he needs just isn’t there. It frustrates him to no end. With an annoyed huff, Izuku scratches harshly at head, ruffling his curls to relieve some stress and then winces at a zing of pain from his scalp.

With a hiss, he pulls his hand back and finds just the tiniest bit of red on his right middle fingertip. He also finally notices that his nails have grown longer since he last really looked at them. He’s been so busy lately that he’s barely had time to shower properly. He must have just scratched a little too hard.

Getting up, he goes to the bathroom and gets some stuff out to clean the cut. It bleeds for a bit, but head wounds tend to do that. Finally, it stops and he puts a bit of antibacterial ointment on it just in case. He’d really not like to explain why he has an infected cut on his head to Recovery Girl. She already gives him the stink eye whenever he goes to her for minor injuries from training.

Sighing, he puts the stuff away and heads to bed to flop down on it, tired all of a sudden. He hopes that whatever this meeting is about, it puts him one step closer to saving Eri. He feels like he’s going to burst if he can’t save her soon. Sighing, Izuku turns on his side and just stares at the still opened notebook on his desk. He needs to be ready for anything.

~*~

Izuku gets up early the next morning to get ready to head out. It’s a bit earlier than he usually has to get up for class, so he’s not expecting to see anyone, but the true early risers up and about in the dorms. So when he slips out of his dorm and heads downstairs, he’s a little surprised to see Tsuyu, Kirishima and Uraraka all standing around in the kitchen quietly making breakfast. “Oh…good morning,” he murmurs in surprise.

“Midoriya-kun, good morning,” Uraraka says around a yawn.

“Good morning, Midobro,” Kirishima says with a grin full of sharp teeth.

“Morning,” Tsuyu greets.

“You’re all up early,” Izuku comments, aiming for the fridge to pull out one of his specialty shakes Recovery Girl recommended for him to help with his increased appetite here recently.

“So are you,” Tsuyu points out.

“Oh, I got called in to my work study unexpectedly,” Izuku explains before taking a sip of the shake.

“Same,” Uraraka admits and the other two nod as well.

“Well, then let’s all head to the train together,” Kirishima offers and they all agree. They finish their breakfast quickly and once they’re ready, aim for the main gate to head to the train. They chat quietly, costume cases in hand as they head down the hill to the station. No one really says anything at first as they all enter, but it quickly becomes obvious that they are all heading for the same terminal, the one Izuku usually takes to get to Nighteye’s agency.

“We can’t all be heading the same way,” Uraraka mutters with a frown as it becomes apparent they are.

“Fat Gum sent me an email last night with a location I’ve never been to. When I texted Amajiki-senpai, he confirmed the train I needed to take,” Kirishima admits.

“Ryukyu did so as well,” Tsuyu adds with a frown and glances at Izuku.

He waves his hand. “This is my normal way to Sir Nighteye’s agency,” he explains hastily. “That is strange though,” he adds. Their train arrives before more can be said, so they all get on, exchanging a few theories. When they get off and it becomes obvious that they’re all still heading to the same place, Izuku guesses it’s something big.

He’s proven right when they enter the lobby to Nighteye’s agency and it is filled with heroes, including the Big 3 from school who must have gotten here just before they did. He’s also a little surprised to see Aizawa-sensei standing off to the side talking with Nighteye.

“What, why are there so many heroes here?” Uraraka asks softly to the Big 3 as they spot them and come over.

“It’s a meeting for a special case. Something big going by how many we have here,” Togata speaks up with a grin.

“Does this have to do with what happened before?” Izuku asks him quietly.

“Probably,” Togata admits with a serious look shared between them and they both nod.

Aizawa-sensei finally spots them and excuses himself from the conversation he’s having with Nighteye to come over to them. “Sensei, what’s going on?” Kirishima asks.

“It’s a meeting for a joint task force. It will all be explained in the meeting. You’ve been allowed here due to your involvement in various aspects of the case. Act accordingly and keep your eyes and ears open. You’ll learn a lot from this meeting,” he explains patiently.

Just as he finishes, a call goes out quietly and people start to aim for the large conference room in the agency, one Izuku has seen, but hasn’t been used since he started here. The four first years follow quietly and end up seated near the older students and their respective hero instructors as the meeting begins.

~*~

Izuku is quiet the whole way back to the dorms. There is so much info in his head now. Some of it he knew, but he never realized how…much there was about this case he didn’t know. He’d only been seeing it from Eri’s perspective. He never realized how far spread the Shie Hassaikai is or what it could mean as a whole to so many people.

Those quirk bullets sound horrible. When he’d heard Amajiki-senpai had his quirk stopped for just a few days and that Kirishima almost had his done so as well, it had left a shiver down his spine. The fact that they’re using Eri to make these bullets, that they’re using her quirk and her own flesh and blood to make them…it infuriates him. It was all he could do to not go tearing out of that meeting to hunt down Overhaul and tear him limb from limb.

It was only the surprise and uncertainty he’d felt when that surge of emotion had surfaced that kept him quiet in his seat. He’d never wanted to tear someone limb from limb. Never felt this strongly about something, this…angry about something. Even everything he suffered when the world thought him quirkless hadn’t made him feel this way.

It’s shocking to say the least, and he’s not sure if he likes this side of himself. He wants to help people, to make them feel safe when he arrives. He doesn’t want to do something that might make someone afraid of him.

Maybe he should talk with Hound Dog about this new side of him. Their talks haven’t been quite as often as they were when this first happened. He still has scheduled sessions, but with school keeping him so busy, the counselor had felt taking time between each session would be good for him. His next one isn’t until the week after next, since he had a session two days ago.  He’ll talk with him then, and maybe he’ll understand why everything just feels so much…more!

Izuku glances up at the others who are on the train. The Big 3 is seated off to the side talking amongst themselves. Kirishima, Uraraka and Tsuyu are seated across from him, all looking lost in thought with frowns on their face. They’re probably all thinking about what he’s thinking about too.

He doesn’t try to talk with them, not wanting to talk himself. This is so much more than any of them probably expected. As a kid, he’d always seen the heroes on TV or in real life and just saw the action, the fighting, the cheering from the fans and the victims smiling, happy to be rescued. He never realized how much wasn’t shown: the leg work, the research, the investigations and sleepless nights, the people and families broken or destroyed by these villains and criminals who didn’t care. How could he have comprehended such a thing as a child? He can barely wrap his head around it now.

The train announces their stop and as a group, they all get up to get off. The walk back to Yuuei is just as quiet. It’s going to be a long few days until they finally have a location on Eri. He’s not sure he can handle that without doing something to distract himself.

~*~

It takes two days to get word. For those two days, Izuku is distracted at his school work, mind going over everything in a loop of anxiousness and determination. At training, he’s hyper focused, needing to make sure he’s ready for this mission. He doesn’t want to give any reason for the adults to decide he can’t go and he doesn’t want there to be any way the villains can stop him.

He still has the okay from Recovery Girl to keep training, his quirk still growing slowly, but Izuku is fine with that. It means he can’t be pulled from this mission because of it. He doesn’t think he could handle being pulled. His emotions have been all over the place and it makes things hard sometimes, but he tries to keep the others from noticing, especially Aizawa-sensei and Yamada-sensei, the two watching him closely.

So when he receives an email from Nighteye about meeting at his agency tomorrow, that they finally found Eri, his heart soars with relief and anticipation. Finally…finally he can save her, rescue her from Overhaul’s clutches and bring that bastard to justice for thinking he could harm Eri. For thinking he could use her and torture her. For daring to touch what is his!

He barely sleeps that night, so keyed up and when dawn comes, he’s up and ready to go hours before he needs to leave. He finds Kirishima, Tsuyu and Uraraka are also up early like he is. He’s not surprised to see Aizawa-sensei in the kitchen drinking coffee either.

“Good morning,” Izuku greets with a wan smile.

The others all greet him just as subdued, everyone thinking about what’s to come. Aizawa steps closer to him, dark eyes looking over him critically. “How much sleep did you get last night, Problem Child?” he asks mildly.

“Enough,” Izuku says grimly, daring Aizawa-sensei to take him off this mission.

He sighs, but nods. “Eat up, all of you. It’s going to be a long morning and you’ll need the energy,” he says instead of calling Izuku out on his lie. They all eat quickly and quietly, and soon after they’re leaving with Aizawa, costume cases in hand. The Big 3 are waiting at the main gate for them and as a group they all head for the train station.

Their arrival at Nighteye’s agency is just as quiet and grim, the heroes called in clustered in small groups going over their gear as they wait for the meeting to start. Finally, the last stragglers arrive and Nighteye straightens. “Alright, let’s get this started,” Nighteye calls out and leads the way into the conference room once again. Izuku follows grimly, prepared to do anything to save Eri.

~*~

Izuku coughs as more dust is kicked up by all the shifting rock. He lifts his mask up, hoping to keep from inhaling more and glares at the air, waiting for the sound of grinding stone to announce another wall is coming.

It comes again, but instead of sending another section towards him and Aizawa-sensei, instead it opens up slightly ahead and they see Rock Lock stumble out, looking a little worse for wear. Izuku breathes a sigh of relief, relaxing slightly.

He’s about to step forward when white fabric shoots passed him to ensnare Rock Lock. Izuku looks over to see Aizawa’s eyes are glowing with his quirk and when he looks back, he sees Rock Lock is melting, another person where he’d been.

He blinks both in confusion, but also recognition. He’s seen something like this before…but where was it? He doesn’t catch what Aizawa says to her or she says back, mind frantically searching for the memory. It finally clicks when he sees how she tilts her head with a large smile.

“You…You were at the exams,” Izuku says slowly.

Aizawa glances at him, eyes back to normal now that he doesn’t need to cancel her quirk. “What?” he demands.

“She was at the provisional exams. I ran into her, but she was disguised as another student and she changed herself to look like Uraraka as well. I thought she was a student,” he explains, panic starting to rise.

Before either of them can do anything, Aizawa grabs him by the arm and yanks him back as a knife suddenly stabs down where he’d just been standing in shock. Part of his capture scarf lies on the ground, cut off so she could escape.

“We’ll discuss this later,” Aizawa says with a glare at her. “For now, stay focused. She’s dangerous and prepared to kill,” he warns and Izuku nods, facing forward, pulling out his batons and settles into a ready stance.

~*~

The sound of fighting behind him echoes Izuku’s frantic running steps. He’s not sure when, but Aizawa-sensei isn’t behind him anymore, but he can’t stop to check where he went. Ahead is where Eri is at. He’s not sure how he can know this, but he just does.

So he runs, pushing himself harder than he has to reach her in time. Ahead, breaking stone and yelling voices greet him, part of the wall is cracked and open to show some light. Thankfully, he’s small enough to fit through the crack and he slides through it to find a wall of spikes in front of him, blocking his view.

He can hear Togata shouting at Overhaul, fighting him and his minion while keeping them away from Eri. He peeks above the spikes and sees Togata is mainly on the defensive while he tries to keep Eri protected. He’ll never be able to stop them if he has to keep protecting Eri.

With a grim twist to his mouth he waits, and when Overhaul and his minion are distracted, Izuku darts out. Eri is surprised to see him, wrapped up in Togata’s cape. He picks her up gently. “Shh,” he whispers and darts back towards where he came from.

He hears a shout of rage and barely makes it back through the crack before spikes slam against the wall, more following out into the hall chasing him, but Izuku just keeps running. He keeps Eri clutched to his chest, taking one turn, then another, getting lost, but also getting away from Overhaul. He needs to get Eri somewhere safe, somewhere protected. That’s all that matters. The world falls away, only the small child in his arms and the muttered mantra in his head left to guide his actions.

~*~

Shouta rushes ahead next to Nighteye, the two aiming towards where Togata and Izuku are. They manage to get through the blocking wall, the stone so cracked and misshapen that it doesn’t take much to make it crumble. Inside is a mess. Stone spikes, pillars and just chunks of concrete are everywhere.

Togata still stands in the middle, but he’s badly injured, blood staining his costume, even as Overhaul lies unconscious at his feet. Further away, they find two others, also knocked out, one looking slightly crushed by the stone still partially burying him, one of those strange guns beside him.

“Lemillion,” Nighteye calls and the teen turns with a pained smile, thumb going up to say he’s okay.

“Where’s Deku and Eri?” Shouta asks, seeing no sign of either of them

“Deku grabbed Eri and ran with her. I don’t know which way he went,” Togata admits with a grimace, starting to list slightly and only Nighteye’s quick reflexes keep the teen standing up.

“Shit,” Shouta huffs out and leaves the way they came. He stands in the hall and looks around, hoping to find something to show which way Izuku went. As he glances around, he spies a bit of red thread to his left, further away from the destruction. Not seeing Togata’s signature cape, he assumes Eri is wrapped in it, so he heads down the hall, following the trail of red thread like a morbid trail of bread crumbs.

The trail doesn’t go far, but it is winding, likely Izuku was just running on instinct and not thinking rationally. To be fair, this whole fucking mission went pear shaped rather quickly. Moving slowly to make sure he doesn’t lose the trail, he sees a doorway up ahead and another thread right in front of it.

Shouta approaches slowly, not wanting to alarm either of them. He listens at the door and can hear faint breathing. “Deku,” he calls out, tapping on the door and starting to open it.

As it opens, a growl echoes out of the room and Shouta frowns. That didn’t sound human. Rushing feet approach, Nighteye coming around the corner and Shouta quickly throws up a hand, gesturing him to stop as the door finishes opening and the light from the hall illuminates the dark room beyond.

Green eyes glow in the shadowed room, the pupils slit as another growl rolls out. Izuku is crouched in front of Eri who is still wrapped in the cape, her own eyes wide in fear, but not just at him, she looks at Izuku as well.

The young teen is strung tight, ready to rush him if he makes the wrong move right now. Fuck, they were so fucking stupid. Hizashi had said Izuku was acting off and fucking Hawks talked all about instincts showing before his quirk finished forming. How did they not connect the dots? Right now, Izuku is running on pure instinct, whatever that means for him and his quirk. He can’t fuck this up, not unless he wants to add more trauma on to both kids in this room.

“Midoriya,” Shouta calls out softly, slowly lowering himself to the floor until he’s crouched and no longer towering. “Izuku,” he tries, the teen not relaxing, but not reacting worse either. “I’m not here to harm you or Eri. You know who I am, Izuku. I know right now everything is just too much, but you need to get control of yourself,” Shouta continues.

He tries inching his hand into the room and Izuku growls again. He pulls back and Izuku stops growling. “Izuku, I know you don’t want to be like this. You need to calm down,” he continues, but it doesn’t seem to be reaching him. “You’re scaring Eri,” he goes for the low blow, pointing at the scared child.

Green eyes look away from Shouta to where he’s pointing and focus on Eri. Silence hangs over the room before a gravelly voice crackles out, “E…ri,” Izuku gets out of a throat that is probably a little raw right now. Green eyes glance back at him and clarity is starting to show in them. “Sensei?” he asks, brow furrowing in confusion. “What?”

“Hey, take it easy, Izuku. It’s okay, everything is okay. You’re safe, Eri is safe. I just need you to come here,” Shouta explains softly. Izuku glances back towards Eri and she eyes him warily. He stands awkwardly and stumbles towards Shouta who grabs him gently and helps lower him to the ground. “Easy, Problem Child. It’s okay,” he murmurs.

“I don’t understand,” Izuku mutters still looking lost.

“It’s your quirk, Izuku. Looks like something finally woke up,” Shouta explains and looks up as soft footsteps come closer. Eri still has the cape clutched around her shoulders, but she has a determined expression on her face.

Izuku starts to reach out for her and finally notices the claws on his hands, nails grown out and sharp looking. He panics, eyes wide in shock and shame, and starts to pull his hand away, but not before Eri reaches out to grab it.

Eri looks at it curiously, but what fear she might have had for Izuku is fading as she looks over the scared and confused teen. She doesn’t say anything, simply holds his hand and settles beside Izuku, letting Shouta wrap his free arm around her as Shouta nods for Nighteye to approach.

~*~

When Hizashi gets the phone call from Shouta, he wants to curse so hard. He knew something was off with Izuku, but this? He assures Shouta he’ll be there shortly and then calls Nedzu. The rodent only needs a few sentences to explain the situation and lets Hizashi go, already agreeing to cover his class and promising to send Recovery Girl his way as well.

He grabs one of the school’s cars and drives there as quickly as he can, not willing to brave the trains right now. He arrives and parks before rushing for the hero’s ward of the hospital. He brandishes his ID and asks where Izuku’s room is, stating he’s his foster parent.

He’s finally pointed where to go and rushes for the elevator. Shouta is waiting outside Izuku’s room, arms crossed as he leans against the wall. He’s in a hospital top, a bandage peeking out of the sleeve, but otherwise seems okay. “What’s wrong?” Hizashi demands.

Shouta straightens at his approach. “He’s okay. They’re just doing a checkup and asked me to step out briefly,” he explains and Hizashi deflates a little.

“What happened?” he asks softer, cupping his cheek briefly to reassure himself that Shouta is indeed whole and okay.

“What usually happens,” Shouta mutters, leaning into his touch briefly before Hizashi drops his arm. “Everything went pear-shaped from the get go. The LOV was involved as well and we weren’t prepared for it. Apparently, Toga was at the Provisional Exams, too,” he adds with an edge of anger in his voice. “Izuku ran into her there and when we ran into her on the raid, he recognized her quirk,” he adds.

“Shit,” Hizashi mutters, not one to normally throw around curses, but this certainly deserves one. “What happened to you?” he demands.

“Toga got me in the shoulder with her knife before she managed to get away,” he admits, shrugging with his uninjured shoulder. “They already stitched me up and I’m cleared for the most part,” he explains.

“You said Izuku’s quirk acted up?” Hizashi asks, needing clarification.

“We should have listened to Hawks better,” Shouta admits with a twist to his mouth like he just bit into something rotten. “You said he was acting off and he was. Apparently, his instincts were starting to come out. This mission drove him head first into them. He was nearly feral when I found him protecting Eri in a room,” he explains.

“I guess we’ll need to introduce Izuku to Hawks sooner rather than later,” Hizashi points out and Shouta lets out an annoyed sigh, but nods.

“How’s everyone else?” Hizashi asks, now that the most pressing issue is discussed.

“Nighteye is good. Rock Lock took some damage from Toga, but he’ll be fine. Fat Gum and Kirishima are going to need a few days to heal up. Uraraka and Tsuyu are okay, they just have some quirk exhaustion. The Big 3 need some healing too, especially Togata. I’ve not heard any word about the other heroes or the police. Eri is being checked over, but they have her in isolation right now because she’s got no control over her quirk and it’s so dangerous,” Shouta explains.

“That’s good to hear that no one died,” Hizashi says right as the door opens up and a nurse comes out.

“Oh, hello. We’re all done and you can go back in. Call us if you need us,” she adds and they both nod before heading into the room. Izuku is lying on the bed, an oxygen mask over his face, a heart monitor clipped to his finger and an IV in his arm.

“Hi Yamada-sensei,” Izuku says with a wan smile.

“Hey, little listener,” Hizashi says with his usual grin. “You’re looking a little banged up,” he points out and takes one of the chairs by the bed.

“I’m okay,” Izuku insists. He goes to move his hand and frowns at it gets caught on something. When Hizashi goes to help him, he finds Izuku has talons now, the claw caught on a thread of the sheet.

“Easy,” Hizashi says, helping ease the claw out of the fabric. He exams the talons critically.

“They’re not very nice looking,” Izuku mutters, sounding a little embarrassed.

“They would look really good with some nail polish honestly. They’re nice and long. I know many women and even some men who would kill for these nails,” he points out and Izuku blinks at him. “There’s nothing to be ashamed of here. They’re just you,” Hizashi emphasizes and Izuku stares at him for a second before smiling a little brighter.

~*~

Izuku is wheeled into Eri’s room. He doesn’t necessarily need the wheelchair, but the nurse insisted, so here he is. Aizawa-sensei is with him, Yamada-sensei checking up on everyone else. Eri is sitting on her bed, watching him approach.

“Hi, Eri,” he greets.

“Hi,” she whispers.

“How are you feeling?” he asks.

“Okay,” she admits. She looks up at Izuku. “You saved me, you and that other person,” she whispers.

“We did,” he agrees, though part of him knows he didn’t do much. He just ran away from the fighting, Togata doing all the heavy stuff. “We’re just glad you’re okay and that we could get you away from Overhaul,” he adds sincerely.

“Will I see you again?” she asks.

Izuku grins and nods. “As often as you want me to visit and I’m sure Lemillion would say the same thing,” he agrees easily. He glances at Aizawa and he nods, agreeing to it without saying anything. “We’ll be there for you.”

Chapter Text

Shouta is in Nedzu’s office waiting for Hawks to arrive. They’d sent word to him as soon as Izuku was released from the hospital along with the other students and he’d agreed to come at the requested date. So now, he’s here, while Hizashi is with Izuku and Chiyo, the woman doing blood work and scans to see if anything has changed.

Nedzu is watching the screen of his computer and hits the button as someone approaches for the door to open. Hawks stands in the doorway and for once he seems to be taking this seriously because he doesn’t try to mess with Shouta when they explain what happened and why they called him in.

“Lead the way,” Hawks says instead of anything else and Shouta nods, Nedzu staying in his office as he leads the way to Recovery Girl’s domain. In the elevator, Hawks leans against the wall and glances at Shouta. “I read about the case. That was some nasty stuff the Shie Hassaikai was planning,” he murmurs. Shouta snorts derisively at the reminder of that fucking group. “How’s the girl…Eri it said she was called?” he asks.

“Apparently she accidentally killed her father when her quirk came in. Her mother has given up all rights to her and wants nothing to do with her. Her grandfather is in a coma and is not likely to ever recover. She’s got no control of her quirk and has little to no socialization beside what she got with that group. It’s…a shit show,” he finally settles on.

“Damn,” Hawks mutters and the conversation fades out as they slowly arrive at the right floor.

Shouta has no idea what will be done with Eri. She’s got no family right now that wants her or can take her. Plus her lack of control makes her ineligible for most foster situations, let alone adoption right now. He’s offered his services for now as one of the few who can cancel out her quirk, but even then…

He’d had a long talk with Hizashi about maybe temporarily fostering her, just until she has control and can get a more permanent placement, but it’s a maybe. They’ve already got Izuku’s case to work with right now, plus their own busy jobs, and dealing with whatever the fuck the LOV is up to now that they seem to be popping up everywhere.

They have the room in the apartment and he’s sure Nedzu would approve it. And he’s sure Izuku would be all for it too. Right now, there’s just too much going on and it’s going to be a while before she’s even cleared to leave the hospital. They have no idea what was done to her by those assholes and the doctors are making sure nothing horrible was done before considering releasing her.

The elevator opens and he pushes that problem aside for now to focus on his current task. “Hang on a second so I can tell them you’re here,” Shouta says and he nods, staying outside as Shouta slips into the room.

Hizashi is sitting in one of the chairs and he looks up at Shouta with a thin smile. Shouta nods towards the door to say Hawks is here and he nods. Izuku and Chiyo are just coming from the back as well. “Take a seat, this will take a moment,” Chiyo orders and Izuku nods, still looking tired even after a good night’s sleep.

“Hi Aizawa-sensei,” Izuku says with a smile.

“Hey Problem Child,” Shouta greets, ruffling his curls a little and Izuku grins a little bigger. “I’ve got someone here to meet you, actually,” he starts off with. “Figured, if you’re growing in wings, you might want to get some advice from someone with wings too,” he tacks on.

He watches the gears turn in the teen’s eyes and sees when he makes a guess about who is outside, no doubt a correct guess, and his eyes go wide. “What?” he gets out a little high in his shock.

“Come on in,” Shouta calls out and the door opens, Hawks poking his head in with a grin before stepping further in.

“Hey there fledgling, how’s it going?” he asks brightly, grinning even as Izuku has a mini meltdown at meeting the current number two hero.

“Hi Hawks sir, it’s so nice to meet you,” Izuku says enthusiastically, bowing slightly and flushing a little.

“Easy there fledgling, no need for the sir, Hawks is just fine,” Hawks says with a wink at the kid and he nods. “I hear you’re growing in wings,” he adds.

“I…yeah,” Izuku says with a shrug, glancing towards his back.

“Well, I’m here to answer any questions, but first, I think Recovery Girl is ready for you,” he adds and the teen straightens, glancing towards the older hero.

“Thank you, I am,” she admits. She’s holding some printed pages. “Well, for starters, your hormones are all over the place, like I expected,” she admits with a frown.

“What does that mean?” Izuku asks with a frown and even Shouta sits up a little at that.

“Well, normally this wouldn’t be a good sign, but if we look at this from the perspective as a child who’s quirk is soon to be coming in, it’s actually fairly average,” she admits. “Your quirk has slowly been growing in since we started this plan. However, recently some of your hormones have been a little high. I attributed it to your quirk starting to find its pace and in a way I was right. I just didn’t expect it to suddenly all wake up,” she jokes. “Between the adrenalin of the mission, the influx of additional hormones and the apparently awakening instincts of your quirk, it made a cocktail to jump start your quirk much quicker than expected,” she explains.

Chiyo turns to her wall monitor and flips it on to show three different scans. “The scans on the left were from last week. You’ve been moving at a fairly slow pace, noticeable, but not extreme. The middle one is the scans from the hospital after the mission. It was mainly to check for damage, but you can see that there’s some change there. The right scans are from just now. As you can see, your wings are growing much faster now. They’ve grown more in the last night than in the last few weeks,” she points out.

“So that means…I have less time now,” he guesses.

“More than likely. We were looking closer towards the end of the semester, but now, my best guess would be a month, a month and a half maybe,” she finally says. She looks at Hawks, “What do you think?” she asks.

Hawks frowns thoughtfully, eyeing the scans. “Do you mind if I try something?” he asks and Chiyo nods. Hawks glances at Izuku. “Do you mind if I touch your back, you can keep the shirt on,” he adds.

“Oh, okay,” Izuku agrees. Hawks comes to stand behind him and grabs him by the shoulder with one hand to hold him steady and the other he places over his right shoulder blade. Slowly, he applies pressure, not hard just consistent. “Oh…that feels…weird,” Izuku finally settles on.

Hawks lets up and releases him. “You’re feeling things through the wings now. I’d say a month at max before they breech. I can feel them starting to press against the skin now. I’d definitely start restricting things now,” he adds.

“But…,” Izuku gets out.

“I know it sucks, but think of it this way. Your back is going to start hurting here sooner rather than later. The skin is going to thin out the closer you get. Do you want to be in the middle of training and have the skin rip on you?” Hawks asks simply and Izuku pauses taking in his words. “This isn’t to be mean. It’s to make sure nothing horrible happens,” he explains.

“I guess,” Izuku says with a sigh.

“Thank you, Hawks. I’ll inform Nedzu and the rest of Izuku’s care team. I’ll consult with them and get back to you Izuku on what exactly we’ll start doing from here, okay?” she asks and he nods. “Alright, well I’m done here. You’re free to go,” she adds.

“How about we find somewhere private and talk shop,” Hawks offers and Izuku nods, along with Hizashi and Shouta. As a group they file out and Shouta leads the way towards one of the private conference rooms on this floor.

~*~

Izuku fidgets as they settle on a couple of couches. He’s honestly got a lot of questions, but he doesn’t know what to ask first. The end of the mission to save Eri is kind of a blur. He remembers reaching her and running away, but after that it gets fuzzy. Just sounds, feelings, smells, which is a weird thing to consider when usually smells weren’t noticeable for him unless they’re very distinct.

“Well fledgling, how are we feeling? Any big pressing questions you wanna ask?” Hawks ask.

Izuku frowns and then shrugs a little. “I don’t know what to ask first,” he admits.

“That’s fine,” Hawks says with a grin. “They tell me you kind of got lost in your instincts during the mission. What do you remember?” he asks.

Izuku frowns. “I just…I really wanted to save Eri and protect her and when I got her away…it kind of goes fuzzy,” he admits.

“Protective instincts, that’s something,” Hawks says with a thoughtful frown.

“Is that important?” Yamada asks.

Hawks shrugs. “A lot of this is going to be playing things by ear. Everyone is different on what presents first. Protective instincts aren’t good or bad, but they can be very strong, same with aggression and being territorial. As well, some have found their territorial instincts tend to curve towards possessive instincts as well, an unwillingness to share what you perceive as yours with others,” he continues.

“How have you been feeling lately?” Aizawa asks Izuku and he frowns a little.

“Angry…sometimes,” he admits quietly, fidgeting with the sleeve of his jacket. “Just…a lot I guess,” he confesses.

Yamada leans forward to lay his hand over Izuku’s and he looks up at him. “It’s okay to feel things, Izuku. There’s nothing wrong with that. I think we might need to schedule an extra session with Hound Dog so you can get some help figuring out what is you and what is your instincts,” he adds.

“Okay,” Izuku agrees more than willing to talk with the counselor to get some help with this. It’s confusing…and a little scary. He doesn’t want to lose time like that again.

“Well, we’ve got some of that figured out. How about we try a little experiment?” Hawks speaks up, and Izuku glances at him and nod. “Ready?” Izuku nods again. “Tell me how this makes you feel?” he asks and then releases a series of chirps that sound…like a bird honestly.

Izuku can’t describe it. Something in him recognizes, at least a little, what Hawks is doing or saying. There are no words, but it feels like a question, like he’s asking something about Izuku. Izuku blinks in surprise. “That felt weird,” he admits.

“Welcome to the bird club,” Hawks says with a grin. “You won’t be able to completely understand or talk with other birds per say, but you can say rudimentary things with them and with other bird folk who recognize the language. It’ll take practice, but you’ll get the hang of it. If you need help, Tokoyami actually knows it as well, though he doesn’t like to say he does,” Hawks adds in a whisper with a wink and Izuku smiles.

At that moment, Izuku’s stomach growls loudly and he flushes. “Did you not eat?” Aizawa asks.

“I did,” Izuku insists. “I’m just…hungry,” he huffs out.

“What did you have for breakfast?” Hawks asks.

“Some cereal, a bit of fruit and one of my shakes,” Izuku says.

Hawks gets an understanding look on his face. “Judging by those pretty talons you’ve got going on, you’re more predatory bird than song bird,” he points out. “They’re carnivorous. I’d recommend putting more meat into your diet. You can still eat other things, but it’ll fill you up better and give you the nutrients you need to maintain your health,” he explains.

“I can do that,” Izuku says with some relief that there’s a reason why he’s still hungry.

“Well grab you something before you head to class,” Yamada speaks up and Izuku nods.

“Anything else we need to know?” Aizawa asks.

Hawks shrugs. “Not much. He might stress grip if he gets too overwhelmed. Just let it run its course and try to get him calmed down. Don’t try to open his hand if he’s not ready to. You’ll break a finger before you break his grip,” he warns and they nod. “I’ll send you some books to read from that can give you a better idea what’s going on, too,” he adds to Izuku.

“Please,” Izuku says and Hawks grins at him.

“Of course, fledgling. If you have any questions, just send me an email or text. Once your wings do come in, I’ll teach you how to care for them, okay?” he offers.

“Thank you,” Izuku says, relief coursing through him.

“Alright, I think Izuku and I are going to go get him something to eat before class, unless you have any more questions?” Yamada asks.

“No, I…I’m good for now. Thank you again,” he adds standing to bow slightly.

“No problem,” Hawks says and stays seated as they leave, Aizawa remaining to talk with him some more.

Out in the hall, Izuku fidgets with his sleeve again. “I’m going to have to tell my class soon…aren’t I?” he says, looking up at Yamada.

“Yeah, little listener. But, you’ll have Sho and I, plus your friends to help you, okay?” he adds.

“I…okay,” Izuku agrees as they head for the dorms to grab him something to eat.

~*~

They decide to wait until the weekend to give everyone time to adjust to the news. For the rest of the week, Izuku is on light duty once more. When asked by the others who don’t know, he says he pulled something and needs to take it easy. To his friends who do know, he explains simply that it’s getting closer and he’s been put on restrictions. He also tells them he’s going to tell the others soon.

They have training as usual on Saturday and Izuku joins in, but at the end, Aizawa calls the class to order before releasing them and tells them they have a class meeting in two hours and to be in the common area then. He doesn’t explain why despite multiple people asking, and turns to head out with a dismissal echoing back.

Izuku’s stomach is in knots, Uraraka and Todoroki trying to distract him from what was about to happen. The next few hours, he eats a little, not willing to trust his nerves to not make him puke. “You’re going to be fine,” Uraraka says while they’re in Todoroki’s room. They’ve got maybe thirty minutes before they need to head down. Iida isn’t here, but he’d said he needed to be downstairs to help set up for the class meeting, but promised to stand by him when the meeting happened.

“What do I tell them though?” he asks, starting to pace anxiously.

There’s a knock and Shinso pokes his head in. “I see we’re at the pacing part of this whole thing,” he comments mildly.

“It’s helping me,” Izuku snaps angrily and then pauses to take a breath. “Sorry,” he mutters. He’d had a meeting with Hound Dog a few days ago to talk about his emotions and instincts and figuring out which is which and how to curb them when needed. It’s a work in progress and so far, none of his friends have minded the occasional snap.

“It’s fine. You’re allowed to pace,” he adds. “This is your normal.”

“Thanks,” Izuku says with a wane smile and goes back to pacing. “I still don’t know what to say though. How much do I tell them?” he asks, looking at them.

“Honestly, just the basics,” Shinso speaks up and Izuku pauses to look at him. “They don’t need to know everything. Just say you were misdiagnosed as a kid, your quirk has finally started to come in and it was the reason you went to the hospital and that in a few weeks, you’ll have wings.  Anything else is need-to-know and not their business,” he adds.

“Just…just like that?” Izuku asks with a frown.

“Midoriya, no one is allowed to just demand personal info from you,” Shinso points out. “For one, it’s rude, two there are laws protecting personal medical info and three, it’s none of their damn business,” Shinso states bluntly, counting on his fingers.

“Tell that to my old middle school,” he mutters. He goes to run a hand through his hair and thinks better of it when he sees his talons. He’s still not used to them. He’s managed, with Recovery Girl and Yamada’s help, to find an easy way to keep them trimmed, but they grow fast. Recovery Girl says it’s because his quirk is still coming in, so once everything is settled, they won’t grow so quickly, but it’s still annoying to have to check every morning to see if he needs to trim them.

“It’s almost time,” Todoroki speaks up and Izuku looks at his phone to see they have ten minutes to go. Swallowing nervously, Izuku straightens and heads for the door, the others following. Downstairs, the furniture has been arranged so everyone has a seat and is facing the same way to make it easier to talk to everyone.

He heads straight for Aizawa who is standing off to the side by the kitchen. “Breathe, Problem Child,” he murmurs when he sees how anxious Izuku is.

“I am,” Izuku assures him, taking a slow breath.

“I’m here if you need anything and if you want to head to the apartment after this to avoid talking with anyone, feel free,” Aizawa adds and Izuku smiles gratefully.

“Everyone, take your seat, it is nearly time,” Iida speaks up, Yaoyorozu standing next to him and the class as a whole who isn’t already seated congregates to the seats to do so. Izuku takes one of the seats on the edge, Uraraka, Shinso, Todoroki and eventually Iida taking the other seats next to him to act as support until he has to get up.

Aizawa walks into the area cleared for him and the class quiets down quickly without him needing to say anything. “Yes this is strange, but it is something that needs to be done. Some things have happened recently and while I’m sure a few have noticed something happening, most are unaware. One of your classmates wishes to speak with you and share some things. Be respectful, keep your questions for afterwards and if they don’t want to answer your question, don’t demand an answer,” he orders and the class nods slowly, looking around, trying to figure out who it is.

Aizawa eyes them for a moment and then nods before stepping back and Izuku realizes that’s his cue. Taking a steadying breath, he stands and all eyes zero in on him. Uraraka sends him a thumbs up and he smiles gratefully before walking to stand beside Aizawa. “H-Hi guys,” Izuku says softly. “Um…thanks for coming and listening. This…is a bit hard for me, so just…be patient with me please?” he asks.

“We’ve got you, Midobro,” Kirishima calls out and the class nods or murmurs together. Izuku ignores the red eyes glaring at him from the back of the group, Katsuki watching, but not speaking.

“Thanks,” he says. “Um…I know I’ve been acting…weird lately…weirder I guess,” he amends. “Um, some things have recently come to light that I’ve been dealing with. They’re not bad…per say, but…um…,” he pauses trying to find his words.

“When…when I was hospitalized, some things were found out. I’m not sick, or dying, I promise, but it was a bit of a shock. I…,” he glances at his friends and sees they’re smiling or nodding for him to continue. He glances at Aizawa and sees he’s watching and nods for Izuku to continue. “I was misdiagnosed as quirkless as a child,” Izuku says quickly. “It’s why I ended up in the hospital. My…my quirk was coming in and it made me sick at first. I’ve been seeing specialists and such to help with my quirk coming in and to figure out how to…well have a quirk,” he finally says softly, throat closing off as panic courses through him.

Silence reigns for a moment as everyone parses his words. “So you’re not quirkless now,” Kaminari speaks up.

“No,” Izuku manages to get out.

“Midoriya-kun, if I may ask, what is your quirk?” Tsuyu asks.

“I…well, I’m currently growing in…wings,” he admits. The class bursts out in exclamation at his words and Izuku looks at Aizawa who loudly clears his throat and they settle back down. “They…they’ll breech in a few weeks…so I wanted to let you guys know now so you’re not surprised by them,” he explains, growing a little more confident when there is no outright negative reaction.

“Why are they only coming in now?” Mina asks excitedly.

“Um…it’s complicated and I’d rather not talk about that,” Izuku says quickly.

Aizawa clears his throat and they all glance his way. “No more questions. Midoriya will be on training restrictions for the next few weeks until his wings finish coming in. So don’t be surprised if he’s doing other things while you train. He will be absent for at least a day while he recovers from them coming in and will be back to class once he is cleared by Recovery Girl to do so. In the meantime, please respect his privacy and don’t pressure him to answer any questions he doesn’t want to,” he adds pointedly and the class nods. “Good, then this meeting is over. Go back to your day.”

The class begins to trickle out of the common area, some helping to put the chairs back. Others stop by Izuku who is still standing by Aizawa to say they’re excited to see what his quirk will look like and to offer help if he needs it. Finally, most of the class has dispersed, a few lingering in the common area and Izuku finally breathes a sigh of relief, his friends and Aizawa staying close.

“Good, Problem Child?” he asks Izuku.

“I’m…okay,” he finally settles on. He’s exhausted from the emotional rollercoaster, but it’s a good exhaustion. It means, at least for now, everyone who needs to know now knows. No need to hide anything or act like nothing is going on.

“Offer still stands,” Aizawa reminds him. He glances at his friends and they nod that it’s fine.

“Okay,” he says quietly. Some peace and quiet away from the class will be nice. He’s still got some homework he needs to finish too.

“Go get your things,” Aizawa says and Izuku nods, grinning slightly before heading to do as told.

Chapter Text

Izuku glares up at the ceiling of his dorm room and shifts again. The new position doesn’t do much other than make him aware that his back aches slightly and no position is going to help him. He’d tried his side, but it felt like gravity was pulling on him and it was still uncomfortable. He’d even tried sleeping on his stomach, but while it took pressure off his growing wings, they still ached and he couldn’t sleep then either.

Sighing, he sits up and gets out of bed. He’s honestly not that tired anymore and he needs a distraction. So he opens his computer, turning on his desk lamp to its lowest setting and opens up a site he’s only been on a few times.

Hound Dog had given him the link to a support group when this first started, so many weeks ago. He’s been on a few times, reading over peoples stories. There are a lot of similarities between his and theirs: parents, grandparents, guardians, all deciding to change the person because they didn’t like their quirk. All finding out in strange ways, often by visits to hospitals that told them about their unknown quirk or like Izuku, suddenly coming off the suppressants and being hospitalized by it.

He’s been hesitant to write his own, though he has commented on a few stories. If he writes it…this becomes all the more real. What little denial he’s been clinging to will be taken away and he’ll have to fully face what happened to him. Is he ready for that?

He glances behind him where his pile of hero merch still sits as a reminder of everything. Swallowing nervously, he faces forward again and opens up a new post. Slowly, with much back tracking to change things or add things, he slowly lays out his story. When he’s done, he stares at it. It’s only a couple of paragraphs long as he wanted to keep the details limited. But still…this is his life boiled down to a couple paragraphs.  All the lies, his pain, everything, just…there!

Is he ready to share this?

Slowly, he drags the mouse to hover over the submit button and with baited breath, he clicks it. The page loads up and it’s there for everyone to see. He doesn’t feel much different, still anxious, still hurt and grieving for what was taken from him, but Hound Dog always says healing takes time, that it’s not fast or obvious. That sometimes, we never truly heal and only learn to live with our pain, learn to use it to make ourselves better people and help those who need help. Maybe he’ll come to terms with this pain one day.

He closes laptop before anyone can comment on his post. He’s not ready to see what they write. He aims back for bed, back still aching and curls around his pillow, trying to find some way to get comfortable enough to find sleep.

It takes a while, but eventually he does get some sleep.

~*~

Two days later, Izuku is woken from a light sleep to horrible pain. His back lights up and every breath hurts like nothing he’s ever felt. He gasps out; tears rolling down him cheeks as he lies on his bed, afraid to move because it hurts so badly already and moving will make it worse.

His phone is right there on his nightstand. He just needs to reach out, to calls Aizawa because this isn’t normal. Crying as silently as he can, Izuku forces his arm to reach out and pain erupts further along his back, but he feels his fingers curl around his phone. Pulling it back, he shakily and half blinded by tears thumbs it on and finds Aizawa’s contact.

“What’s wrong?” Aizawa’s voice echoes in the quiet of his room as the call connects.

“I-It hurts,” Izuku manages to get out, breath hitching as another wave of pain sweeps across his back.

“I’m on my way, don’t move,” Aizawa orders and Izuku nods even though he can’t see. The phone drops from his hand and he just rides out another wave of pain. He startles when someone’s hand touches his head and it makes him whine in pain because he tensed up.

“It’s okay, Izuku,” Yamada says softly. “We’re going to take you to Recovery Girl. It looks like they’ve already started to breech,” he says and Izuku nods.

Aizawa comes in with a stretcher and between the two of them, they manage to get Izuku on it, the boy crying the whole time before he’s being lifted and taken downstairs. He loses some time, the night air nice against his heated skin and then bright light as they enter the main building to go up to Recovery Girl’s office.

“Easy now, gently,” Recovery Girl calls softly as they lower him onto a table. “Hello, Midoriya-kun. You’re breeching a little early,” she says conversationally as she quickly gets an IV inserted into his hand.

“Sorry,” Izuku hitches out.

“No need to be sorry, we’ve been prepared for a while now. We were just hoping to do it on our schedule, but they decided now was the best time.” She pats his head gently. “I’m going to give you something for the pain. We’ll need to wait a few minutes before we can start, but I’ll let you know when we do,” she explains.

“O-Okay,” he gets out and then she grabs a needle off a nearby tray and injects something into his IV line. Slowly, the pain dims some and he’s able to breathe a little easier.

“Any word from Hawks?” Recovery Girl asks Aizawa and Yamada.

“He’s been staying close by the closer we got, so he’ll be here in a few minutes. What do you need us to do?” Aizawa asks.

“Just stay with him and keep him calm. Kaito will be here shortly as well and then we can proceed,” she explains and they nod.

A body settles in the chair by his head and Izuku glances at them to see Yamada smiling at him. “Hey little listener, how’re we feeling?” he asks, running a gentle hand over his head.

“Not as bad,” he whispers. The pain meds are finally sinking in and everything feels very floaty right now.

“That’s good. Hawks and Kaito will be here soon and then we’ll get started on getting your wings out finally,” he explains.

“Okay,” Izuku agrees, liking the feeling of fingers through his hair right now. It’s soothing. He loses some time again and then he hears new voices as he focuses back into his surroundings.

“We’ll need some warm water and towels to clean them off,” he hears Hawks explaining.

“It’ll be best as well if we manually cut them out rather than letting the skin tear naturally. Cleaner lines will mean the back will heal cleaner,” Kaito adds. “We’ll just need to be careful not to hurt the wings.”

“Is it better to let them tear naturally?” Aizawa asks.

“It honestly depends on the doctor’s opinion. Some say yes, other no. Right now, the important part is just getting them out and stopping the pain. With Recovery Girl here, healing him will be easier than if she wasn’t here,” Kaito adds.

“I won’t be able to heal everything with my quirk. He’s exhausted and I can tell he hasn’t had much sleep here lately. I can at least seal everything and stop the bleeding through,” Recovery Girl explains.

Izuku reaches out towards Yamada who is still next to him and the older man takes his hand. “Hey, it’ll be fine. I’m right here,” he murmurs.

A second body crouches by Yamada and Aizawa’s face comes into view. “You’ll be fine, Problem Child. We’re here,” he adds and Izuku nods faintly.

“Alright fledgling, we’re about to start,” Hawks speaks up. “You’re going to feel pressure and some pain, but it’ll be over quickly. Just breathe through it and try to keep from tensing up too much, okay?” he adds.

“Okay,” Izuku whispers.

“Alright, we’re starting with the right wing,” Kaito speaks up. He feels a little pain, the meds not covering up everything, but it’s nowhere near as bad as what he was feeling earlier. He winces and squeezes Yamada’s hand. There’s pressure and he feels something inside him move. It feels so strange he can’t really wrap his head around it. “Almost there,” Kaito says and then there’s just relief from the pressure as something finally gives. “There we go. One down, one to go,” she says cheerfully.

The next one seems quicker and he shudders in relief as that one finally gives and comes out as well. He can feel tears pricking his eyes, but Yamada and Aizawa don’t move away, staying near him as Kaito and Recovery Girl work on his back, Hawks helping.

There’s some tugging, a few pinpricks of pain and then he feels Recovery Girl lay a kiss on his shoulder and some of the pain just seeps away. “Alright, we’re done,” Kaito says softly and Izuku blinks slowly. “Don’t try to sit up,” she warns when Izuku tenses.

Something shifts and he sees Hawks coming over with a mirror. “Wanna see them?” he asks with a big grin and Izuku nods, waking up a little. Hawks manages to angle it so Izuku can see his back. There, sprawled awkwardly over his back and the bed he’s on are two smallish wings. The feathers are dark, but he’s having trouble guessing the color of them right now.

“They look good, fledgling. Nicely formed and no abnormalities. We’re going to get them and you cleaned off, and then you can sleep, okay?” Hawks adds.

“Okay,” Izuku agrees, feeling so tired suddenly as the build up to this day, the sleepless nights and Recovery Girl’s quirk sap what little energy he had. Yamada and Aizawa stand up, but Izuku is okay with that, floating a little. He feels a warm, wet cloth wiping at his back and it feels nice. He feels something wiping at what he assumes is his wings. The sensation is new, but it feels nice, so he doesn’t mind.

He’s barely awake when he’s picked up awkwardly still on his front and moved to a different bed, this one softer. He cuddles into it, a blanket slowly pulled up over him. He hears someone say good night and hums, but he’s gone after that point, sleep a siren calls he falls for willingly.

~*~

Izuku wakes to a dull ache and a dry mouth. Blinking sluggishly, he opens his eyes and glances around with a frown before he finally places where he’s at, having been in Recovery Girl’s domain many a time here the last month or so.

He goes to push himself up and winces as his back protests him even tensing, let alone attempting to sit up. “Ah, best stay lying down for now,” Recovery Girl speaks up, coming into the room and into his line of sight. “You’re going to be a little sore for a while until it is finally healed up. Best to just keep resting for now,” she advises.

“What time is it?” Izuku asks softly, voice a little rough from sleep and thirst.

“Around ten,” she says, bustling about to grab him a cup of what looks like juice and sticks a straw into it so he can drink. He takes a few long pulls, apple juice tasting so good right now. “You’ve been excused from your classes for the day and your classmates have been made aware what is going on. Your friends promised to take notes for you though, so you won’t fall behind.”

He finishes off the glass with a gasp, not realizing how thirsty he’d really been until that moment. “Where is Aizawa-sensei and everyone else?” he asks softly, laying his head back down on the pillow.

“Aizawa and Yamada are teaching, though they promised to come by between classes when they can. Kaito had to go back to the hospital, but I believe she promised to stop by this afternoon to check on you. Hawks had a meeting to attend with the Commission and should be back later. He’s going to be hanging around for a while to help you get used to your new quirk. I believe he’s going to help teach a few of the heroics classes as well,” she adds.

“Oh, okay,” Izuku says.

“Are you hungry?” she asks. Izuku nods quickly, suddenly ravenous. “Alright, I’m going to get you something. Unfortunately, since you can’t sit up yet, I’ll be one of your shakes, but once your energy gets up enough, I can heal you some more and you should be able to sit up for your next meal,” she informs him.

“That’s okay,” Izuku agrees. She bustles off to go grab his food. The mirror Hawks had used last night is still on the small side table and with some reaching, he manages to snag it. Lifting it awkwardly, he looks at his back. His blanket covers his wings up and he pushes it down before he can finally see them. He has wings! It’s been so abstract to him. Yes, he’d seen the scans, but still, it hadn’t truly been real until just now as he sees them resting so innocently on his back.

In the light they’re a semi-matte dark grey, only a little sheen to the feathers. They look fluffy too…kind of what a baby bird’s feathers look like. He’d done some research on birds and their wings, and had fallen down a rabbit hole on cute baby animals some weeks back. They’re not that big either nestled into the curve of his back, the tips barely brushing the top of his pajama pants.

“Don’t worry, they’ll get bigger,” a voice calls out and Izuku flinches, losing his grip on the mirror and it falls from his hand towards the floor. He’s expecting to hear a crack as it breaks, but instead it floats up with the help of a familiar red feather. Izuku glances towards the door to the room to see Hawks standing there with a grin. “Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you fledgling,” he apologizes, setting the mirror on the table before his feather comes back to him.

“Hi Hawks,” Izuku says softly as the hero comes into the room and around the bed to settle in the chair near his head.

“Hi fledgling, how are you feeling?” he asks, leaning forward a bit.

“Still a bit tired and sore,” he admits.

“I’m sure. Give it a couple of days and you’ll be back to full. Then we’ll get to work learning your wings,” he promises.

“Recovery Girl said you’re going to be staying on for a bit,” Izuku admits.

“I am indeed, at least for a month or so. Long enough to get you up to speed and thriving with those pretty wings and to impart some wisdom onto some impressionable minds that need it,” he jokes with a wink and Izuku smiles at him.

The door opens and Recovery Girl comes in. “You’re back quicker than I expected. My experience with Commission meetings usually run a lot longer,” she says, holding a large glass of one of his shakes.

“Eh, it went quicker than expected and got out a little early,” Hawks waves off, holding out a hand to take the shake for her.

“Thank you,” she says after situating the straw. “Take it slowly. Small sips at first to make sure your stomach can handle it,” she advises and Izuku nod “I’ll be in the other room when he’s done. He should sleep some more after this,” she adds.

“You heard her,” Hawks says and Izuku nods, still feeling tired. Hawks holds out the shake, making sure the straw is close enough for him to drink from. He starts off with small sips, but his stomach doesn’t protest, though it does demand more. Eventually, he drinks it all down, stomach pleasantly full of food. “Alright fledgling, back to sleep with you. One of us will be by later,” Hawks says with a pat to his shoulder as he stands with the empty cup.

He pulls the blankets back over Izuku and he settles in, tried once more now that he’s eaten and drank something. With a yawn, he settles back down and lets sleep fall over him, hearing the door shut as Hawks leaves.

~*~

When he next wakes, the light from the window is a little different. He also finds Aizawa sitting beside the bed reading something as he drinks some coffee. Dark eyes glance at him as he stirs. “Hey Problem Child,” he murmurs softly, putting a bookmark in before closing the book and setting it aside. “How are we feeling?” he asks.

“Better,” Izuku admits, stretching slightly and while his back twinges a little, it’s not as painful.

“Recovery Girl gave you a healing boost while you were sleeping. You should be okay to sit up if you wanna try it,” he explains.

Izuku nods eagerly, tired of lying on his front like this. Slowly and with some help from Aizawa, Izuku manages to get his arms and legs under him and settles on his butt, legs hanging over the side of the bed. It still hurts a little bit and he winces some, but he can handle this pain. It is weird though to feel weight on his back he’s not used to.

He glances back to see the wings are still tucked close to his back. “Oh good, you’re up,” Recovery Girl says, coming in. “I think some lunch is in order. Do you think you can handle sitting up that long to eat?” she asks and Izuku nods, stomach saying it’s hungry again.

“Alright, I’ll go get it. Your friends asked to come see you, but I told them to wait until after classes. Is that fine?” she asks.

“Yes,” Izuku says with another quick nod. He’s sure they’re worried about him. She nods and heads back out to grab his lunch and Izuku looks at Aizawa. “How much did I miss?” he asks softly, afraid he’s going to get behind again.

“Nothing serious and I’m sure your friends will help you catch back up. Just focus on yourself for now, kid. You’ll be fine,” Aizawa assures him as the door opens and Yamada comes barreling in.

“You’re awake!” he says excitedly.

“Hi Yamada-sensei,” Izuku says with a grin at his enthusiasm.

“You had me worried last night when you called. I’m glad you’re up and about,” he says, snagging a second chair in the room and sits. “How’s it feel to finally have your wings in?” he asks.

“Weird,” Izuku admits. “It feels strange to have something on my back,” he explains, shifting to look behind him.

“Don’t worry. You’ll get used to it and soon they grow out and you’ll be able to work with them more. Maybe even fly,” Yamada says with a grin and Izuku nods as well. Even if he can’t fly…maybe he could glide?  Could he use them to fight maybe? He’s thought off and on how to use them as a hero. Maybe Hawks can give him some ideas.

“Alright, here’s lunch and then afterwards we’ll have a look at you to see how you’re healing up, okay?”  Recovery Girl says as she comes in with a tray on a rolling cart.

“Okay,” Izuku agrees, excited to see what everything looks like and to start moving around.

~*~

“They’re so…fluffy,” Uraraka says softly, staring at his wings.

“Uh, yeah. They’re technically baby feathers. I asked Hawks and he says eventually I’ll molt these and get proper feathers in. I’m not sure when that will happen though,” Izuku explains as his friends all sit or stand around his bed. Recovery Girl had finally given him the clearance for them to visit, though she warned he would need to spend one more night there before she okayed him going back to the dorms tomorrow.

“How does it feel?” Shinso asks.

“I’m not used to having them on my back for sure, but honestly, I hardly notice them. I…uh, can’t really move them much yet either. That’ll take some practice and I have to get a whole new wardrobe, at least my tops, to accommodate them now. It’s…a lot,” he admits.

“I too have to get accommodations in my clothes,” Iida admits. “My pants have to be tailored to fit over my engines. Brother’s shirts have to be modified to fit over his on his arms,” he adds.

“Thankfully there is a whole industry that specializes in making clothes to function with people’s quirks,” Uraraka says with a grin.

“If you need help with anything, don’t be afraid to ask,” Todoroki speaks up and Izuku glances at him. “We want to help.”

“I know and you guys have already done so much. Thank you for taking notes. This will really help me catch up,” Izuku says, motioning towards the notebooks set on his side table.

They hang around for a bit longer, filling him in on what they did in class and the antics everyone got up to before Recovery Girl comes in with his dinner and shoos them out to go eat their own dinner. Izuku eats quickly, still hungry despite having had regular meals all day. Recovery Girl assured him it’s just a side-effect of her using her quirk on him so many times to heal him up. He just needs to replenish his energy reserves and the hunger should taper off some.

Yamada unfortunately has a patrol after classes and Hawks does too, his patrol area temporarily shifted to accommodate him staying at Yuuei. It’s just Aizawa with him in the evening, the older man staying with him for a while reading his book again while Izuku reads over the notes taken for him and starts to work on the missed assignments.

Eventually, Recovery Girl comes in and sends Aizawa off so Izuku can rest. “Sleep well. Hizashi will be by in the morning with some of your new clothes so you can go back to the dorms dressed,” Aizawa explains to him.

“Okay,” Izuku agrees, a little tired despite not doing much all day.

He ruffles Izuku’s hair and then frowns, leaning forward. He motions Recovery Girl forward and Izuku’s pulse goes up, wondering what’s wrong. “Hm, I see what you mean,” she says.

“What is it?” he asks quickly.

“Nothing to worry about. You just have a few feathers coming in on your head is all. You’ll need to be careful to not damage them when brushing your hair until they’re finished growing,” she explains with a smile. Izuku tentatively reaches for his head and Aizawa guides his hand to where there is a small, stiff spine starting to grow from his scalp just above his right ear. When he feels the other side, there’s one there as well.

“That’s weird,” Izuku whispers softly.

“Welcome to having a quirk, kid. Your body sometimes does strange things without your say so,” Aizawa jokes, and Izuku snorts and nods. He ruffles Izuku’s curls again and then heads out. Recovery Girl helps him set aside his school stuff and to get settled. With his wings making it difficult to lie on his back, he’d found that curling around a pillow on his side helped support him without him needing to be fully on his front. So he gets settled and she turns off the light.

Sleep doesn’t come right away. He reaches up to run a gentle finger over the growing in feather in his hair. He’d always wanted a quirk, but he never realized how strange it must be for some things to happen. Maybe if he’d been a kid when this happened, it wouldn’t have been so strange. Now though, he’s got years of living without a quirk to get passed.

His phone chirps with messages and when he glances at it, he sees good nights from his friends. Smiling in the dark, he sends back a good night of his own before setting his phone aside and closes his eyes, letting sleep slowly take over him.

Chapter Text

It takes five minutes with help to figure out how to put on his new shirt. Unable to really move his wings to help with getting clothed, they have to maneuver them manually through the shirt until it sits right and then do up the zipper in the back before he buttons up the front. “Well, how does it feel?” Yamada asks seriously, eyeing him as he shifts left and right to see how it fits.

“It’s fine,” Izuku assures him. It’s actually a little big, but since he might grow some more, that’s a good thing. They got him five normal shirts for when he’s not in uniform, with plans to take him to the actual store to pick out others he might want to add to his wardrobe. His uniforms have been altered as well to accommodate his wings, including his PE uniform.

“Are you sure? There are others we can try,” Yamada reminds him. Izuku nods quickly to reassure him. He’d never realized how fashion oriented Yamada could be until recently when he’d spent part of an evening quizzing Izuku on what fabrics he preferred, if he wanted buttons, zippers, Velcro or some other means of closure, if he liked things tight or loose, and what brands he liked too. He’d been a little put out when Izuku had admitted to not having any preferred brands, usually wearing a shirt and jeans, or shorts if it was warm. Aizawa had simply smirked at Izuku suffering under Yamada’s disapproving look for not being fashion oriented, no doubt having suffered under his wrath as well and glad to not be under his eye.

“Alright, if you’re sure. Then let’s gather your stuff up and head for the dorm. We’ll get you settled in, and then I’ll help with your uniform shirt and we’ll go from there. You’ve been excused from your first class, so we can take our time,” Yamada reassures him as he helps Izuku gather his school things and stuffs them into a tote bag to carry to the dorm.

Done gathering everything, Izuku follows him out of the room he’s been staying in. Recovery Girl is waiting with a smile as he walks out of her office this time. “Looking handsome,” she says and Izuku smiles awkwardly. “You know the drill by now. If anything feels off, come to us. We’ll schedule your visits to once a week again for the next few weeks just to keep an eye on things and make sure they’re growing how they should. Your afternoon heroics session today will be with Hawks rather than with the class for your first lesson on your quirk,” she explains.

“Will that happen often?” Izuku asks them, glancing at Yamada.

Yamada shakes his head. “We’ll try to keep you going with the class still and will probably arrange for lessons after class, or during a free period, but it might happen again. Once you’re able to start using them and are used to them, things will change,” Yamada explains.

“Okay, that’s fine,” Izuku agrees. That seems logical. He’s got years of learning to make up for and he knows it won’t happen overnight.

“Alright, well go on then. I better not see you until our scheduled appointment,” she adds and Izuku nods with a grin, accepting the gummies from her and bows slightly,  having to shift his weight some to keep from tipping forward too far and then stands to follows Yamada out of the office.

It’s strange to be out of there with his wings. He wants to hunch his shoulders and hide away and has to force himself to walk normally and breathe calmly. This is his quirk, there’s nothing to be ashamed of, no reason to hide.

Yamada must sense his unease and rests a hand on his shoulder, squeezing gently and he smiles down at Izuku as they keep walking. The dorms are empty when they get there, everyone already in class, so Izuku has no issues getting to his floor and into his room.

He takes the normal clothes from Yamada and quickly folds them into his dresser, the drawer recently emptied of his old stuff he can’t wear anymore. He then spends a few minutes getting everything into his book bag to take to class. Finally, Yamada holds out one of his new uniform shirts. “Want help?” he offers.

Izuku frowns and then shakes his head. “I think I need to figure out how to do this on my own…but stay just in case,” he adds, imagining getting stuck and needing help out of his new shirt. Yamada nods with a knowing smile and Izuku slips into his bathroom to start changing. The pants are easy, no change there and his socks are fine as well, and then comes the shirt. He stares at it for a full minute, seeing where everything is supposed to go before he reaches out slowly and starts to pull it on. At first it’s a struggle and he puts his arm in the wrong hole. Finally he gets it settled right and reaches behind him to awkwardly zip it up under his wings before he buttons up the front.

He twists a little, but it sits nicely, not too tight or loose. He steps out of the bathroom and Yamada eyes him for a moment before giving a thumbs up with a grin. “See, not so hard. After a while, it’ll be easy,” he encourages and holds out Izuku’s uniform jacket. That one takes a moment, but even that is easier to get on. It helps that it has magnets instead of zippers or buttons and simply snaps into place in the back once it settles correctly around his shoulders and wings, though he has to tug it into proper alignment.

He does ask Yamada for help with the tie, still struggling with getting a nice knot on it, but he promises to work with him on that later. “Well, ready to face the masses?” he asks seriously.

Izuku takes a deep breath and nods. “I…I’m ready,” he says simply. Grinning, he drags Izuku into a quick hug and then leads the way out. He was excused from his first class and English happens to be their second class, so they’re both heading the same way.

The bell rings to announce the ending of their first class and they quickly approach 1-A’s door. Ectoplasm is just leaving the class to head for 1-B and nods in greeting. “Welcome back, Midoriya-kun,” he says simply and Izuku nods before he’s walking passed them.

“Ready?” Yamada asks.

“Yes,” Izuku says, though inside he’s anxious.

“Alright,” Yamada says. “Let me go in first to wrangle the masses and then I’ll call you in,” he orders and Izuku nods, waiting outside as Yamada goes in and announces himself in his usual fanfare as Present Mic.

The noise inside slowly dies down and then the door opens softly. “Alright,” Yamada says with an encouraging smile.

Taking one last deep breath, Izuku walks in slowly, fighting to keep from hunching, not having many good memories from being the center of attention like this. The room is silent as he comes to a stop at the front of the class. “Um…hi guys,” he says softly.

“Dude, you’ve got wings now,” Kaminari speaks up, looking excited.

“Of course he does, he told us already,” Jiro speaks up.

“Your wings look very nice Midoriya-kun,” Tsuyu speaks up.

“Yeah man, awesome wings,” Kirishima adds.

“Alright, settle down everyone. Take a seat now and we’ll get started on the lesson plan which means…pop quiz,” Yamada announces with glee to groans, but does wonders on dragging attention off of Izuku.

Izuku walks down the aisle to his seat and pauses briefly as he catches Katsuki’s gaze, the blonde’s eyes wide in almost disbelief. Deciding he doesn’t have the energy to deal with whatever is going on in his head, Izuku continues to his seat behind him and readies himself for the pop quiz. Thankfully Yamada informed him of it last night and helped him study since he missed a day.

~*~

Shouta hates hospitals. He’s been in them far too much in just this school year alone. Between his own personal visits and then afterwards with Izuku, he’d rather not step into one for a while, but here he is, called in because the doctors have finished checking Eri over and they need to start figuring out their next step for one traumatized little girl in need of a home.

Nedzu rests on his shoulder as they walk through the halls to her room. They’re meeting Nighteye there as well, the man asking to be made part of any plan for her. He’s been back a few times to help out and he’s authorized both Izuku and Togata a few visits as well to visit her while she is here.

They come to Eri’s room and find Nighteye waiting outside. “Nighteye,” Shouta greets.

“Eraserhead, Nedzu,” he responds. “We’re just waiting for Eri’s doctor and her social worker who are in with her right now,” he explains. They nod and wait before the two step out of the room shortly.

“Ah, good, we’re all here. We’ll talk in one of our conference rooms,” Dr. Kaneda says with a nod, the elderly woman smiling a little at them as she leads the way further down the hall.

The come to the mentioned conference room and soon settle around it. “Well, thank you all for coming,” Shikawa Nobuda says, the man’s face creased with age and laugh lines. “I think this is something we need to figure out quickly to get Eri a more permanent living situation.”

“Yes, indeed,” Nedzu agrees.

“How is Eri?” Nighteye asks.

“She is in good health. We have done thorough checks on her and found nothing wrong. Other than taking the samples they needed, I believe the yakuza that had her were afraid to attempt to alter her in any way, least they mess it up and lose their only source of the horrible bullets. It was simpler to test on samples than the live specimen. As well, she has finally reached some medical milestones as well,” Dr. Kaneda says.

“That’s good to hear,” Shouta says softly.

“Now, as to Eri’s living situation,” Shikawa says simply, face a little more serious. “Unfortunately, she still doesn’t have any control over her quirk, though we’ve had specialists working with her while she is here. Without any kind of control, I simply can’t put her with a more conventional family and even ones who specialize with children who have hard to control quirks are hesitant to take her in,” he admits.

“I would take her, but I don’t have the foster licensing or the home environment for a child her age,” Nighteye admits with a grimace. “A single man’s apartment is not a good home for a young child,” he says with a wry huff.

Dark eyes glance at Shouta and he sighs. “I’ve been considering it,” Shouta admits. “We have the room for her and with Izuku finally getting settled, it might be possible,” he admits, rubbing at his eyes. “I’ll need to discuss it with my husband and my other foster kid,” he adds.

“Of course,” Shikawa agrees. “Now, if you are able to take her, here are three families who have reluctantly agreed to take her, on the condition that she get access to not only a suppressor bracelet while she works on control, but to quirk specialists as well. With how dangerous her quirk can be, we are certainly looking to accommodate them. We would hate for Eri to become even more traumatized due to her quirk,” Shikawa adds.

“Yuuei would like to help in securing her access to those specialists,” Nedzu speaks up as the meeting heads into the building of a plan for Eri’s future.

~*~

Izuku’s tired after his long day. His back is sore and tired after two hours spent with Hawks just learning how to move his wings normally so he can go about his day, not even doing any fancy stuff. Just opening them, closing them, shifting them around or tilting them even just a bit. He’d then given Izuku a list of homework exercises to do before bed and at the start of his day each day to help build up the muscles in his back and shoulders and to get him used to using his wings.

Still, he’d actually started moving his wings, so he’s fine with some soreness. He’s just gotten changed out of his uniform which is easier now that he sort of can move his wings around to make it easier, when his phone chirps with a text.

He finishes getting his shirt done up and then glances at his phone, expecting a text from his friends. Instead, it’s from Aizawa. Family meeting tonight. Come after dinner.

Izuku frowns at the text. Why a meeting suddenly? Did he do something? Maybe he’d forgotten something and now they need to talk about it. Oh man, what did he forget? He’s about to work himself into some heavy anxiety trying to figure out what he did wrong when his phone chirps again. He glances at it to see Yamada texted. Nothing serious, just need your input on something! :)

Izuku stares at his phone for a second and then lets out a huge sigh. He’d thought he’d been in trouble. Aizawa usually never texted unless it was serious, school related or medical related. Even then, he usually preferred to find Izuku and tell him in person.

Glad to not be in trouble, Izuku heads downstairs and goes to the kitchen to help start making dinner since it’s his week. Unfortunately, he’s very quickly and politely kicked out of the kitchen after his wings knock something off the counter for the fifth time.

“It’s really fine, Midoriya-kun,” Touru says with a wave of her hoodie sleeves. “Honestly we don’t mind. We know you don’t mean to. You can make it up later once you have better control. We don’t let Kaminari near any electronics anymore since he’s still learning to not fry them,” she adds and Izuku remembers when the blonde had accidentally short-circuited the fridge and they’d had to get it replaced.

“If you say so,” Izuku says with a sigh, flushing slightly at being banned from cooking.

“If you want, you can switch with me,” Sero speaks up. “I’m on clean up,” he adds.

“I…okay,” Izuku agrees with a strained smile.

“Don’t worry too much, Midoriya-kun,” Uraraka speaks up, popping up beside him. “We all went through this too. You’ll get the hang of it. You haven’t even had a full week to try and figure this out. Cut yourself some slack,” she scolds gently as she steers him towards their friend group.

“No one is going to blame you for not having control,” Shinso speaks up softly once Izuku is in range.

“I just feel so far behind everyone,” Izuku huffs out.

“You are,” Todoroki says bluntly and Izuku winces. “But you’ll catch up. We all had our childhood to learn this, but we also have experience and can give you shortcuts and advice,” he adds with a small smile to lessen his blow.

Izuku sighs again and then slumps on the couch. “I guess. I just hate being so behind,” he mutters.

“Then show us something you excel in. Come on, we’ve got that paper in history due in three days. Wanna help us figure out what to write?” Shinso asks with a pointed look at their spread papers.

Izuku smiles a little and nods. “Okay, what do you guys need help on?” he asks as they all settle around the table.

~*~

Shouta looks up as the door opens and Izuku slips in being careful to tuck in his wings consciously so he doesn’t knock into the little side table in the entryway. “Hey, Problem Child,” he greets with a small smile, pride at how far Izuku has gotten welling up.

“Hi, Aizawa-sensei,” he greets, slipping out of his shoes and coming further into the apartment.

Hizashi pokes his head out of the kitchen where he’s just finishing up cleaning the dishes. “Hey, kiddo, want anything before I close the kitchen down?” he asks with a smile.

“I’m okay,” Izuku assures him and Hizashi nods, disappearing back into the kitchen. There are a few thuds and then the light shuts off and he comes back out with another smile.

“How’s the training going?” he asks, motioning towards Izuku’s wings.

“Okay, I’m a little sore,” he admits.

“Learning to move a new limb will do that,” Hizashi says, laying a hand on Izuku’s shoulder to guide him towards the couch to sit and settles next to him. Shouta sets aside his grading as well.

“Yeah,” Izuku agrees. Then he starts to fidget, “Um…you said you needed to discuss something with me?” he asks a little anxiously.

“We do,” Shouta admits.

“It’s nothing serious for you, but since you are a part of this family now, we want your input,” Hizashi picks up.

“Okay,” Izuku agrees, looking a little relieved, but also curious.

“So,” Hizashi starts off with. “How would you feel about another foster sibling?” he lays out bluntly.

“What?” Izuku asks in surprise. Hizashi doesn’t repeat himself, seeing Izuku is actually processing his words. “Oh…wow…I mean…I’m not against it,” he finally says with a frown. “I’ve never actually had a sibling before,” he admits. “Who would you be taking in?” he asks.

“Eri,” Shouta informs him and his eyes go wide in shock. “She needs a safe place to stay and she has no control on her quirk so most foster parents can’t take her. Even the few that could are hesitant considering how dangerous her quirk is. I offered our family, but we wanted your input before going ahead,” he finishes.

“Yes,” Izuku says quickly and then flushes at the brow Shouta raises at him for his quick answer.

“Is there a reason for your quick answer?” he asks evenly, not mad, just curious.

Izuku frowns, obviously trying to find the right words. “I mean, I want her to have home,” Izuku says slowly. “She’s been through so much and it would make seeing her easier,” he adds. “I’m sure Togata-senpai would agree too.” Then he pauses, frowning harder. “Some…some of it is instinct…I think,” he admits and Hizashi leans a little closer to smile encouragingly. They’ve been trying to help him learn to figure out what is instinct and what isn’t. “I…I guess I feel very protective of her,” he finally settles on.

“There is nothing wrong with being protective of someone you care about,” Hizashi reassures him. “So long as we learn when we’re being over protective,” he reminds him and Izuku nods quickly with a small smile.

“This isn’t a permanent fostering situation,” Shouta points out to Izuku and he looks at him. “For now, this is temporary while we teach her control and get her up to speed on some learning milestones. Her representative won’t allow a permanent fostering until some time has passed and Eri decides she wants to stay. We’re trying to give her what control we can,” he explains.

“Of course,” Izuku agrees easily.

“So we can let them know we’re down to take her in?” Hizashi’s asks.

“Yes,” Izuku says with a grin.

“Alright, then you’ll be coming with me this weekend to start shopping,” Hizashi warns and Izuku blinks in surprise. “We need to make Eri’s room the best room a little girl has ever had and we need to clear out the furniture out of there since we’ve been using it as a sort  of office,” Hizashi adds, listing off the to-do-list.

“Of course,” Izuku agrees and Shouta snorts.

“That was all we needed to really talk about. It’ll be a bit before everything is finalized, but we’ll let you know when she’s coming to stay,” Shouta informs Izuku.

“Okay. Can…can I inform the others?” he asks.

“Your friends have shown they can keep a secret, so you can tell them, but the rest of the class will be informed later once Eri is actually here,” Shouta decides on and Izuku nods again. “Alright, you can head off if you’d like. That was all we needed to discuss.”

“Does Eri know yet?” Izuku asks as he stands to start heading out.

“Not yet. We were waiting until we knew for sure before telling her,” Hizashi speaks up.

“Can…can I be there when you do?” he asks nervously.

Shouta huffs and nods. “I’ll see what I can do,” he says and Izuku grins before nodding quickly. With a wave, he heads off and Shouta leans back against the couch, Hizashi’s fingers finding his head and running easily through his hair.

~*~

Izuku stares trepidatiously at the set up Hawks has shown him. It’s been a week of training with the hero, usually after classes and with his exercises assigned as well and the hero has finally decided to up the training. “What…what is all this for?” he asks nervously. There are three stations before him: one with some sort of pull up bar, one with a balance bar of some kind, and some weights attached to a wheeled platform.

“Well, since you’ve gotten used to the wings now and can function in the day to day, it’s time to start really building your muscles if you want to fly,” Hawks explains as the rest of the class follows Aizawa and All Might to their own area of the gym.

“Fly?” Izuku asks excitedly.

“Don’t look too excited. You’ve got a while before that will happen. Your wings aren’t big enough yet to support your weight fully and you haven’t even molted yet, but this will be a start to building up your muscles for when that time comes,” Hawks explains with an evil grin that has Izuku reevaluating the situation. He’s been sore all week from just learning to live with wings. This is going to be painful no doubt.

“What am I doing then?” Izuku asks nervously.

“I’m glad you asked. I’ll demonstrate what each exercise is and how it will help you,” Hawks says and walks to the pull up bar. “The first thing you’ll learn once you’re wings are ready to start flying is lift. How to use them to just get off the ground. Using the bar to hold yourself steady and guide you, you’ll use your wings to pull yourself up. I don’t expect much at first considering they’re not big enough yet, but I do expect to see some air between your feet and the ground eventually,” Hawks says, and after adjusting the bar to his height, demonstrates. With a great burst of air, his wings flap hard and he easily clears the high bar in one wing beat. “Understand?” he asks once his feet touch down again.

“Yes,” Izuku says with a nod. He readjusts it back to Izuku’s height and then goes to the balance beam.

“This one will be a bit tricky. When flying, you’ll be spending long stretches of time gliding. That can be hard on the muscles to hold the gliding position for so long. This will help you train to hold the position for long periods, but to also stay level while flying. Since we can’t simulate wind currents in here right now, balancing will do in a pinch,” he explains.

Hawks settles along the bar and lifts himself into a plank position balanced precariously on the bar as his wings outstretch and lock into a glide position. He neither moves nor wavers. “Got it, fledgling?” he asks.

“Yeah,” Izuku nods.

“Alright last, but not least,” Hawks gets up and moves to the weights and the rolling platform. Up close, Izuku realizes the platform has straps to hold on to. “This is to work on breaking,” he explains.

“Breaking?” Izuku asks.

“Yep. In the air, there’s nothing to slow you down besides wind resistance and that’s not very fast. If you need to break quickly or slow down when flying, you back flap. The harder you back flap, the quicker you slow down. It is also how you slow down to come into a landing, so this is an important exercise to keep from landing badly,” Hawks adds.

He settles on the platform and grips the handles. “Make sure you’re holding on securely and then back flap. The weight simulates your speed. The heavier the weight, the faster you’re flying and the harder you have to flap to slow down,” he explains and then flaps once, hard, and goes sliding back, the weights grinding dully over the concrete. “Everything clicking?” he asks, standing up.

“I…yes, but it’s a lot,” he admits.

“It is. Normally, you would be building up this muscle over years rather than months and could take it easier. But if you want to be able to use them as a hero, we need to train you up quicker, though within reason. Right now, you’ll do 10 reps of the first and third exercise while the second one will be thirty seconds, or as long as you can hold it, and then take a ten minute break to rest your body. If you overdo it trying to push yourself, you’ll be grounded longer, got it?” Hawks asks evenly.

“Yes, Sensei,” Izuku agrees quickly, not wanting to disappoint the hero.

“Alright, you know what to do. I’ll be nearby keeping an eye on you. If you need help, ask for it,” he adds with a grin and Izuku nods back before heading over to the pullup bar. He can do a normal pull up and does so just to make sure his wings don’t make that harder.

He feels fine though the wings add a little more weight to him. Recalling how Hawks did it and the demonstrations he’s given before on how to shape his wing movement to gain lift, Izuku flaps as hard as he can, holding onto the bar to keep from falling over.

Nothing happens.

Gritting his teeth in determination, he does it nine more times, but he doesn’t gain even a millimeter of lift. Not discouraged, he goes to the next station. It takes a bit to figure out how to actually balance on the bar and then he tentatively stretches his wings out. Almost immediately he understands what Hawks meant about holding the position being tiring.

His shoulders start to burn and ache, the joints in the wings themselves aching too as he slowly counts the seconds. He makes it to twenty before he has to stop, sweat dripping off his brow as he collapses to the bar and then has to catch himself to keep from falling off the bar too.

Breathing heavily, he makes his way shakily over to the rolling platform and settles heavily on it. Waiting a second to catch his breath, he shifts the platform to make sure everything is aligned, then gripping the handles, he flaps his wings hard.

The platform rolls at first until it comes to the end of the tether attached to the weights. Izuku nearly falls off not expecting the lurch as he abruptly stops. The weights shift maybe an inch or two and then stop. He finishes the set, the weights never moving more than an inch or two.

Finally, he’s done and just collapses on his front, letting his wings lie beside him. Steps announce Hawks arrival, the man crouching beside his head. “Not easy, huh?” he asks and Izuku just groans in exhaustion.

“Well make it fifteen for today for your break,” Hawks decides and Izuku just gives a thumbs up. A hand pats his shoulder and then Hawks stands and walks away, leaving Izuku in an aching pile of limbs and feathers. The fifteen minutes goes too quickly and then he’s forcing himself up, grabbing a quick drink of water before doing it all over again. He sleeps hard that night.

Chapter Text

Izuku shifts nervously next to Togata in the hall. They’re at the hospital with Yamada and Aizawa to pick up Eri to take her home for good. He’d been there last week when they told her the news, the little girl looking shocked and even a little excited, though she hadn’t smiled, still so unsure of herself and the rapid changes happening to her.

“You’re going to be a brother,” Togata says with a grin.

“I…I guess,” Izuku says. “I don’t want to mess it up though,” he admits.

“You’ll be fine and if you have any questions, I’m sure your friends, or Aizawa and Yamada can help as well,” Togata assures him as the door opens up and Eri nervously comes out of the room, Yamada carrying her small case of clothes she’d acquired during her stay here.

“We’re ready to go,” Yamada announces as Aizawa brings up the rear.

“Ready, Eri-chan?” Izuku asks softly, walking up the small girl.

Eri frowns faintly and finally nods. “I am,” she whispers. Izuku holds out a hand and she takes it. They leave the hospital to applause from the staff, waving farewell to the small child. The ride is easy and quiet, Eri watching the world go by with wide eyes.

Their arrival is unmarked by anyone really and they get Eri to the apartment easily. Togata has to leave shortly after, but he promises to visit whenever Eri would like him to. They get Eri settled in the apartment, the girl staring in shock at her new room filled with anything she could possibly want.

Izuku spends the rest of the day there with Eri, Aizawa and Yamada, acting like a family, something Eri hasn’t had in a long time and something Izuku is getting reacquainted with after everything that’s happened to him. It’s nice, something inside him easing as he realizes he’s got a family again, more of one than he’s had in a long time.

~*~

“A concert?” Izuku asks in surprise when the final vote for their school festival is announced. He’d been away for part of the morning for a doctor’s visit and had asked Todoroki to cast his vote on whatever the other teen wanted.

“It seems like something everyone was really interested in. I’ve never been to one. It seems like fun,” Todoroki explains.

“Well, when is the planning?” he asks.

“Well, we did some already,” Uraraka explains. “Some of the class already volunteered to dance and some already know how to play instruments so they’re playing those. The rest are helping back stage and with set building. The others said you could decide once you got back,” she adds.

Izuku sits at their table for lunch and takes a bite of his sandwich and mulls over what they just told him. “What are you doing?” he asks them.

“I’m dancing,” Uraraka says with a grin.

“I’m helping with effects,” Todoroki says evenly.

“Same,” Shinso says with a grimace. “Like hell am I dancing in front of this school.”

“I have chosen to dance too,” Iida says.

“What do you want to do?” Uraraka asks.

Izuku frowns. “I…I’m not very good at dancing,” he admits with a wry twist to his mouth. “Maybe I could help with effects and such?” he offers. His wings have gotten bigger here, growing quickly like they expected them to now that they’re actually growing properly unhindered.

“I’m sure they could use your help there,” Uraraka encourages.

“Yeah,” Izuku agrees with a smile, liking the idea.

~*~

Shouta woke this morning expecting a rather normal school day with only Eri’s presence being the new thing in the apartment. It’s been a learning curve for both him and Hizashi. Izuku, despite his whole situation, is a teenager and rather self-sufficient. They honestly haven’t had to do as much as they expected to do in helping raise and guide him.

Eri needs a lot more hands on help. Not only schooling wise with Eri far behind other children her age, but socialization wise too. Ryo had also given them a few names to child therapists who specialized in traumatized children to help Eri work through what had happened to her, if only to make sure she could get passed it and start living a normal childhood, as much as  one can after what happened.

So this morning, he’s not expecting an email from Nedzu stating that one of his student’s parents had requested a meeting with him, especially this particular student’s parents. When he tells Hizashi, his husband frowns, but nods, agreeing to look after Eri for the morning while he deals with this situation. Some gut instinct tells him this isn’t going to be a nice or pretty meeting.

Coffee in hand, he sets off to do battle in Nedzu’s office, Nedzu already texting him that they had arrived a few minutes ago onto the campus early to their meeting. He arrives to the office, the door opening without him needing to knock and steps in to see the two parents in question staring back at him.

“Good morning,” Shouta murmurs to Bakugō Mitsuki and Masaru. Thankfully, their son isn’t here. They don’t need a second hot tempered opinion in this room. He’s already well acquainted with these two after Bakugō’s kidnapping.

“Good morning, Aizawa-sensei,” Masaru speaks up, Mitsuki glaring at him like he’s hurt someone she cares about.

“Now that we are all here,” Nedzu speaks up, drawing their attention to him and breaking Mitsuki’s staring match, “let’s get down to what this meeting is about. Now, you were a little vague about why exactly you needed to speak with us,” he points out.

“I asked to speak with Izuku,” Mitsuki snaps out.

“And unfortunately, we can’t allow someone not Izuku’s family to demand to see him,” Nedzu states simply.

“We are family,” Mitsuki snarls.

“Not legally,” Shouta states bluntly, guessing that Bakugō finally told his parents what has been happening to Izuku.

“How dare you say we aren’t family?” Mitsuki yells, pushing up out of her chair. “I have known that boy since he was a baby. I helped raise him, watched him grow up. I’ve raised him like my own son,” she huffs out. “And now I’m hearing these horrible accusations about Inko, too. The woman I know would never have done such a horrid thing.”

“When was the last time you actually spoke with Inko?” Shouta asks evenly, not even blinking at her anger and she stills. “Actually, when was the last time you spoke with Izuku? If you’re so close, surely you would know all about what he’s been going through. Did you know he was hospitalized recently?” Shouta asks calmly.

“I…,” Mitsuki sputters.

“Mitsuki, calm down, throwing out accusations won’t make this any better,” Masaru whispers, touching her arm and she lets out a breath in anger. “We’ll admit we’ve been a little distant with Inko and Izuku the last year or so. It happens sometimes, but we’ve known Inko a long time. It’s hard to believe someone could…could do such a thing, let alone to their own child,” he states calmly.

“It’s wasn’t easy for us to realize either. The fact of the matter is, Midoriya Inko is currently gone, fled after releasing Izuku to Yuuei to live in the dorms. Izuku is currently in my and my husband’s care as his foster parents. So any demands to see our foster son will be ignored. Requests on the other hand, we might consider…if Izuku wants to see you. Perhaps there’s a reason he didn’t tell you,” Shouta adds pointedly.

Mitsuki sits down hard, running a brusque hand through her short blond hair. “May we see him, just to make sure he’s okay and to speak with him briefly?” Mitsuki asks, almost pleading.

“Not right now,” Shouta says and she sags a little. “He’s currently in training and I won’t interrupt that. I will speak with him afterwards and if he is amendable, you can see him tomorrow on Sunday. Is that acceptable?” Shouta asks.

“Yes,” Masaru agrees before Mitsuki can say anything. “You have our contact information, just call or text and we’ll respond quickly.”

“Very well, but if he doesn’t want to see you, you will not badger me trying to see him. He is allowed to choose who he sees,” Shouta reminds them pointedly and Masaru nods, Mitsuki frowning a bit before also nodding along.

When neither adds anything, Shouta nods and bids them both farewell before leaving, coffee still in hand. Seeing as not much time has passed, Shouta opts to head back to the apartment since his part in training is covered due to the meeting.

He finds Eri and Hizashi in the kitchen as the blonde shows Eri how to make a simple meal. “That was fast,” Hizashi comments as Shouta steps out of his boots.

“It was,” he agrees, still feeling a little anger simmering in his gut. The audacity of Mitsuki just demanding to see Izuku and refusing to believe what has happened to Izuku. She would have rather believed Inko was incapable of such an act when the evidence is all there.

He refills his coffee and settles at the table to watch Hizashi finish his little cooking lesson with Eri. Once the food is done, it’s divvied out between the three of them, both of them complimenting Eri on her cooking, the little girl looking a little happy to have made something.

Afterwards, they offer to clean the dishes and let her go off to play in her room. Hizashi cleans the dishes while Shouta dries. “What happened in the meeting?” he finally asks now that Eri is out of ear shot and Shouta can vent his anger.

“Apparently Bakugō finally told his parents about what happened,” Shouta says evenly as he takes a plate to dry.

“They didn’t take it well then?” Hizashi asks mildly.

“They couldn’t believe Inko could have ever done such a thing and basically demanded to speak with Izuku simply because their families were friends, despite a few years of basically no contact,” Shouta explains stiffly.

“They didn’t even ask about Izuku after everything that happened in Kamino and they were aware he was involved,” Hizashi says incredulously. “Why would they care now?” he asks.

“Who knows? I told them they would need to wait and only if Izuku said he wanted to speak with them would I allow it. Honestly, the way Bakugō acts around Izuku and the way his parents talked, I don’t think Izuku ever had a very good relationship with anyone in that family. If he says no, we will make sure they have no contact with him. We’ve worked too hard to help him recover, I’m not setting him back,” Shouta growls out, barely keeping his movements calm as he keeps drying.

“We’ll let him know after training is done and he can decide then,” Hizashi says and Shouta nods in agreement. He hands Shouta the last dish and waits until he’s done drying it and puts it away before pulling Shouta into a loose hug. “You’re a good dad, you know that right?” Hizashi says with a small smile.

Shouta hums, leaning into Hizashi’s hold. “I just try to do the things mine never did,” he mutters. His family life is the one thing he never really talks about, Hizashi rarely bringing it up.

“It’s more than that and you know it. Anyone can be a foster parent, but not a good one,” Hizashi points out.

“The same goes for you,” Shouta points out.

“Yes, well, I can’t let you have all the fun,” he jokes with a wink and Shouta snorts before he reluctantly pulls away. “I should probably go check on the training,” he admits.

“You just don’t trust Hawks to not turn your hell spawn all against you,” Hizashi says with a chuckle. Shouta doesn’t dignify that with an answer, only rolls his eyes before he heads back to go put his boots back on.

“Let Eri know I’ll be back with Izuku for lunch,” Shouta says and Hizashi nods, leaning in to kiss him before Shouta heads out the door.

~*~

“You know you don’t have to do this?” Aizawa reminds Izuku as they head for the private room they put Mitsuki and Masaru in. When Aizawa had told him about the two coming to the school after learning about what has been going on with Izuku to get answers, he hadn’t known how to take it.

On the one hand, he hasn’t talked with them in months besides passing quick texts at birthdays and holidays. The last time he physically saw them was the end of their third year of middle school at graduation. Before that, it was sometime in their second year before things got so much worse between him and Katsuki and he started avoiding the Bakugō household all together.

He’s not sure when his mom last spoke with either of them, but they haven’t had a get together or a gathering in at least a few years. He knows some of it is from Mitsuki and Masaru’s jobs really taking off, their work leaving little time to raise Katsuki, let alone make time for friends.

On the other hand, he never told them what happened because he knew how they would act. The few times he tried to tell them things about what was going on between him and Katsuki, they brushed it off as boys being boys, or that Izuku was being too sensitive, going off how easily he cried and not the fact that Katsuki had hurt him enough to leave a mark. He stopped trying after a while. He doubts they would have believed him if he told them himself, not without his wings as proof.

Still, this is Mitsuki and Masaru. He considers them like an aunt and uncle, despite the lack of blood relation. He spent so many years being watched over by them, in and out of their home when he was friends with Katsuki. He spent so many nights at their home when his mom had to work long nights so he wouldn’t be alone. Part of him still considers them family and maybe they at least deserve to see and know what exactly has happened. Whether that will translate into staying in contact…he’s not sure. It honestly depends on what they say.

“I know I don’t, but I think I need to,” Izuku says slowly, fidgeting with his jacket sleeve as they walk.

“You don’t need to do anything if it makes you uncomfortable,” Aizawa says evenly.

“I know,” Izuku says with a smile up at him. “I still think I need to though.”

He sighs, but nods. “I’ll be in the room, no buts about it,” he says simply when he sees Izuku trying to tell him he doesn’t need to. “I don’t know these people besides being the parents of one of my students. I wouldn’t let any of my students be alone in a room with adults I don’t know unless they’ve been vetted by other authority figures,” he says evenly. “If at any point you want to leave, we will. Just squeeze my hand or something if you don’t want to say something aloud, and I’ll make a reason for us to leave, got it?” he asks gently.

“Yes, Sensei,” Izuku says softly.

“Not sensei right now, kid. Just your foster parent,” he reminds him.

“Yes, Aizawa-san,” he murmurs, still not used to calling him anything else, but sensei. He and Yamada have been trying to make a line between school and home, especially since he’s been staying over more to be with Eri.

They come to the door and pause in front of it. “Last chance,” Aizawa murmurs softly.

“I’m okay,” Izuku says and he is. He’s been making progress with his training, Eri is in his life now, he’s got friends and adults who care for him and treat him like a person. His life has changed so much since this all happened and he honestly hasn’t been this happy in a long time. It’s time to finally bring closure to his past: with his mom, with Katsuki and his parents, even with Aldera. He’s tired of letting any of that have any sway over what he does.

Aizawa sighs, but nods with a small proud smile on his face. He steps in front of Izuku slightly and knocks on the door before opening it. “We’re here,” he says, stepping through and quickly, Izuku follows.

Mitsuki and Masaru look the same, though in much nicer, fancier clothes. Apparently their jobs have been doing really well then. Izuku smiles thinly at them, waving stiltedly. “Hi Auntie, hi Uncle,” he says softly as they both stare at him, or rather behind him, where his wings are visible over his shoulders.

Mitsuki, who had been standing when they entered, sits hard, pale and shocked. “So it’s true then,” she whispers.

Aizawa locks the door and ushers Izuku to a seat while they collect themselves. “Of course it’s true, why would we lie?” Aizawa asks evenly. “Do you think we would fake hospital visits and medical exams just to fabricate some elaborate story?” he asks.

“Excuse me for not wanting to believe something so horrible about one of my friends. This…is hard to believe,” Mitsuki snaps and then trails off, eyes trailing back to his wings. Izuku extends them a bit making it look like he’s stretching them and they both watch with slightly horrified looks. “Why did you not tell us, Izuku?” Mitsuki asks bewildered. “We would have helped you,” she reasons.

“When…when this all happened, it was a lot to take in. I was trying to figure out everything myself and I only recently told anyone else,” Izuku admits, recalling how hard it was to come to terms with all this. “I also figured you wouldn’t believe me,” he adds softly, looking down at his lap to avoid seeing their expressions.

“What?” Masaru actually speaks up in shock. “Of course we would have believed you.”

“You never did before,” Izuku says evenly, hands fisting in his lap as he looks up at them. He feels Aizawa shift beside him and his shoulder leans into Izuku’s in comfort.

“What are you talking about, Izuku?” Mitsuki asks in confusion. “Nothing like this has happened before.”

“You never believed me about anything I told you: about school, about bullies…about Katsuki,” Izuku says sharply, looking pointedly at them. “Why would I expect you to believe me now?” he demands.

“Of course we believed you,” Mitsuki insists, but even to Izuku’s ears it falls flat, Masaru looking a little distant as he starts recalling what Izuku is talking about and paling some.

“Then why did you never do anything about it?” Izuku demands suddenly. “I told you I was being bullied and you did nothing. I told you the school was purposefully treating me different from the other students because I was quirkless and you brushed it off. I told you Katsuki hurt me…and you said I was just being too sensitive. So tell me how you would have believed me about this without these,” he jerks his hand towards his wings, “as proof?” he demands, can feel angry tears in his eyes, though thankfully they don’t fall.

Neither speaks, processing his words and Izuku lets them. “Maybe we haven’t been the best, but we’ve tried our best to help you when we could,” Masaru speaks up.

“I know, which is why I’m still talking to you now, but you don’t get to demand to know why I didn’t tell you in the first place,” Izuku points out, feeling emboldened suddenly. He’s always been a little afraid to really speak with them like this. Besides his mom, they were some of the few adults who treated him decently and he was afraid to lose that attention. But he doesn’t need them now, knows he has people on his side. “You still haven’t even asked how I am. Haven’t asked what I’ve been through or how it’s affected me, only demanded to know why you weren’t informed,” he points out.

Neither speaks as he points it out. “I’m fine by the way. No pain now that I’m off those suppressants and my wings have come in. I’ve got actual friends here and people who care about how I’m doing. I’m doing really well now and I don’t need you to believe me anymore because they believe me,” Izuku says pointedly and Mitsuki winces slightly.

“I’m sorry,” Mitsuki says softly, expression still shocked.

“Are you?” Aizawa speaks up before Izuku can. “Doesn’t really seem that way to me,” he says mildly.

“We don’t want your opinion,” Mitsuki snaps at him, anger sparking in her eyes so similar to her son’s.

“I do,” Izuku says and Mitsuki looks at him in shock. “I trust Aizawa-san and Yamada-san. They’ve honestly been the best thing to happen to me, becoming my foster parents. I don’t know how I would have handled this without them,” he admits quietly. “So if they don’t believe you, I trust their judgement.”

Izuku stands and Aizawa follows suit. “It was nice seeing you Auntie, Uncle. Maybe next time we see each other, it will be under better circumstances,” Izuku says, turning away to walk out.

“If you want to contact him later, it will be through me. If he tells me you tried to contact him without me knowing, I will file a restraining order,” Aizawa says calmly as Izuku unlocks the door. “Have a good day. Please leave campus grounds soon, your visitor passes with be expiring shortly,” he says evenly and follows Izuku out of the room.

Izuku manages to make it down the hall and around a corner before the tears start. Aizawa at least doesn’t ask if he’s okay, simply pulls him into a separate conference room to give him some privacy to cry and lets Izuku bury his face in his chest.

Eventually, the tears dry out and Izuku just stands there leaned against him. “Wanna talk about it?” Aizawa asks softly, hand resting on his shoulder as comfort.

“No,” Izuku croaks out. He’s not sure how he feels about that meeting. There was a lot of stuff said that needed to be said, but it hurts to think he’s cut another part of his past away. How much can he cut away before there’s nothing left of who he was before? He doubts Mitsuki and Masaru will want to stay connected after this. Despite how they treated him sometimes, they still did care about him in their own way.

“We will need to discuss some of the things that were said in there, but we’ll hold off for now,” Aizawa says softly and Izuku nods against his chest. He figured they would. He’s kept some things hidden for a while now. “If you’d like, we can schedule an extra meeting with Hound Dog if you feel you need it,” he adds and Izuku shrugs, not sure. “Well, just let us know and we’ll do it. How about we head back to the apartment and have a movie marathon with Eri?” he offers.

“Can we have popcorn?” Izuku asks with a small smile.

“Do you really think Hizashi would have a movie marathon without popcorn?” Aizawa asks with an amused huff as he pulls back a little. Izuku shakes his head with a growing grin as he wipes at his eyes. “Come on Problem Child, let’s get out of here,” Aizawa says, curling an arm around Izuku’s shoulders to start guiding him out of the room they stepped into.

Yamada and Eri are working on some writing exercises, but when the movie marathon is announced, they both jump up, Eri having found a love of watching new movies, especially anything to do with princesses or fairies. By the time night has fallen, a pillow fort has been erected, him and Eri curled up inside while the movie plays, Yamada and Aizawa working on grading papers.

Izuku falls asleep in the fort, Eri curled into his side, a blanket thrown over them.

Chapter Text

An appointment is made with Hound Dog for the next day, Izuku asking for it quietly that morning after a night to sit on everything. Aizawa and Yamada don’t even blink, just nod, give a hug or head pat, and promise to inform the counselor. He does ask if they can be there too…to discuss what was talked about and what he has been hiding. He really only wants to go over it once and this way everyone is on the same page. They also agree to this without hesitation and then Izuku heads to the dorms to go get ready for class.

The appointment is set for after school ends, so he goes about his day as usual. Training is still hard, but he’s finally making some progress, though only a little. Hawks had complimented him on his progress and then reached out to pluck a feather that was sticking out at a weird angle, commenting that it looked like he might be molting soon.

So with that bit of info to look forward to, he meets up with both Yamada and Aizawa at Hound Dog’s office. A lot is talked about, stories told about what life was like before coming to Yuuei. He explains, with some breaks, what his relationship was like with Katsuki before and after it got bad. He shows some of the scars he collected before coming to Yuuei, most from his old classmates and some from the explosive blonde.

By the end, he’s a little numb again, just wrung out of any kind of feelings. He’s excused from his dorm chores that night and hustled to the apartment to rest and spend time with Eri who always has a way of brightening his mood. She must sense he’s not in the best place because she just sits quietly with him, slowly and haltingly reading one of her children’s books to him, Izuku occasionally helping on a hard word. They have dinner early and Izuku goes to bed, both reminding him they’re proud of him for telling them such hard memories to relive.

The next morning, he’s in a better headspace and just feels a little lighter too. They know now and they don’t hate him or agree, and that honestly is the best thing he’s felt in a while. No more secrets or tension between them. He goes to class that morning with a smile after a hug from both.

Izuku doesn’t ask what they plan to do with the info on Katsuki and they don’t volunteer any info to him. He does notice the blonde disappearing for a while, but he doesn’t comment and instead focuses on homework with his friends. Katsuki’s problems aren’t things he needs to focus on now.

~*~

Shouta watches silently as Bakugō walks out of Nedzu’s office with Hound Dog and Recovery Girl, the teen looking a little lost and confused. Part of him wants to just make a snap judgement and expel the teen on the spot, but he reins that instinct in. It isn’t his job to pass judgement on him. That is Nedzu’s job that will ultimately make the final call after Bakugō has been evaluated. It does mean, however, that there will be another meeting with his parents in the future, once Nedzu has finished looking into Aldera.

“Well, this is certainly a unique situation,” Nedzu murmurs, taking a sip pf tea.

Shouta just hums softly, rubbing at his tired eyes, feeling a headache building there. There had been talk about removing him from heroics until he proved he has changed and Shouta would be fine with it. The blonde had spent a good amount of time in middle school bullying Izuku, had even suicide baited him once. If he did pass his evaluation, there is still the decision on whether to keep him in 1-A or move him to 1-B. Vlad would bitch, but even he would agree to a switch if needed. If he didn’t pass Hizashi was always okay taking his cast offs that didn’t make the cut.

“Keep me updated,” he says rather than comment on that loaded statement.

“Of course. Bakugō will be excused from classes tomorrow and I will let you know when the meeting with his parents has been scheduled,” Nedzu informs him.

“Thanks,” Shouta murmurs and then stands, heading out of the office. He stops by the dorm to check in on the class and finds a section of the common area has been taken over for dance practice, the other side littered with things for the backstage crew, papers littering a table with plans on what they want to do. He spies Izuku in the thick of things with the second group, grinning as his hands gesture enthusiastically, Aoyama frowning thoughtfully as he nods along to whatever is being said.

It’s a good scene to see and soothes some of the anger in his chest. Seeing that everyone is okay and there are no fires to put out, he heads back out. He’s got a patrol tonight and needs to get in a nap before he leaves campus. He ends up on the couch under a blanket, the sound of Eri and Hizashi in the kitchen lulling him into a doze.

~*~

Shouta sits in the conference room with Nedzu at the head of the table, Hound Dog, Recovery Girl, and Vlad also gathered. Since both he and Vlad are in this meeting, they decided to have a joint training class, Hawks and Ectoplasm keeping the classes entertained while the meeting is happening. Bakugō is still excused from training and classes, confined to his dorm while they discuss his fate in 1-A and the heroics program in general.

“Let us get this meeting underway, shall we,” Nedzu says with a serious expression. Shouta isn’t surprised by his grim attitude. He’d only seen some of the things captured on Aldera’s cameras in the three years Izuku and Bakugō attended that middle school and it had been…atrocious.

The lack of discipline and the blatant disregard to the law on quirk use alone had been horrible. Teachers hadn’t cared their students were using their quirks, even on other students, and even the teachers were using theirs as well, none with the permits allowing quirk use for school purposes.

There was also the bullying going on. Izuku wasn’t the only kid being pushed around, attacked and degraded by the student body, but he was one of the worst they saw. Bakugō had played a part in much of that, but he also wasn’t the only one, often his lackeys finding Izuku while the blonde wasn’t around and doing worse things to Izuku.

“Recovery Girl, can you shed any light on this case?” Nedzu asks.

She nods. “Bakugō does seem to have some chemical and hormonal imbalances in his system, possibly due to the biochemical nature of his quirk. Not enough to excuse his actions, but it can explain some of his reactions to certain stimulus and his need to use his quirk constantly to burn off the excess nitroglycerin in his system. I have sent his results to those knowledgeable about biochemical quirks to see if they have any solutions towards this problem. Why it was never caught when he was younger, I don’t know, but this should have been addressed years ago,” she says evenly, frowning softly.

“Hound Dog?” Nedzu asks the counselor.

“I have spoken quite a bit with Bakugō. While I won’t disclose what was discussed, I have found the teen to have undiagnosed anger issues along with a healthy dose of self-esteem issues that exacerbate the anger. He is aware that his actions from the past and some of his more recent actions at the beginning of the year aren’t good or heroic, though when I asked why he did them, he couldn’t tell me. Some of the things Nedzu has disclosed to me about Aldera and the environment they were in have led me to believe he was conditioned by his teachers towards this attitude, encouraged constantly to act superior and aggressively towards those he saw as beneath him,” Hound Dog says, a low growl escaping before he gains control of himself. “Bakugō has shown some improvement since he arrived at Yuuei now that he has been removed from that horrible school and has a better example to observe. He can make a full recovery from this mindset, but it will take time and work with a specialist,” he concludes.

“Thank you,” Nedzu says with a nod. “We have a decision to make here. Has Bakugō shown enough change for the better to remain in heroics or should he be removed from the program until he has proven he is heroic material? If he has shown enough change, do we keep him in 1-A, or should he be switched to 1-B?” Nedzu finishes.

“Other than those early incidents with Midoriya in the first semester, has he had any new negative interactions with him?” Vlad asks.

“No,” Shouta admits. “They have mostly stayed to their respective friend groups, especially after everything with Midoriya started. They haven’t been grouped up either,” he points out.

Vlad nods. “If we need to move him to mine and switch one to 1-A, I will, but there might be a mutiny in 1-B. And there’s no guarantee he won’t cause issues with the kids there. They seem to be coexisting in 1-A okay now. You could just keep them separate for now, no grouping together and keep them away from each other as much as possible,” he points out.

“That’s if we decide he is staying in heroics,” Shouta points out and Vlad nods with a frown.

They look to Nedzu. “Hound Dog, you have spent the most time talking with Bakugō and his parents on this issue. Do you think he could handle staying in heroics?”

Hound Dog frowns. “Bakugō has based his whole identity and world around the idea of becoming a hero, of becoming number one as he puts it. Taking that away from him would certainly be a wakeup call he might need, but it could have negative effects on his psyche. And should he decide that what was done was unfair and he goes rogue…well, I for one would not want to unleash someone with that much destructive force on the world,” he admits grimly.

“That is one way to look at it,” Nedzu agrees, black eyes glancing over his notes in front of him.

“There is still one factor we haven’t taken into consideration,” Recovery Girl points out.

“You mean Midoriya,” Nedzu says and she nods. “I have been reluctant to involve him in this. That is a lot of pressure to put on someone, especially a child.”

“He should still have a say in whether he wants to stay in the same class as Bakugō,” she points out.

Nedzu looks at Shouta. “He hasn’t said anything about Bakugō since our talk. I don’t know what he thinks about him, other than what was said before,” he admits.

“Perhaps we should ask him…later of course,” Nedzu says. “Considering the facts you have already laid before me and other factors, one of which is the LOV that has already kidnapped Bakugō once already, I am reluctant to expel Bakugō from Yuuei. The fact that he has changed towards the better shows he can improve, which says much considering how he was at the beginning of the year,” Nedzu says evenly.

He pauses before continuing. “I think it is time for a ‘death’,” he says to Shouta and the man nods. “I will let you decide how long he will remain dead. In that time, he will attend regular therapy and anger management sessions. By the end of his death, he will be reevaluated and if he has shown improvement, he will be allowed to return to the heroics program while still continuing the sessions and being under academic probation. Depending on what Midoriya says in regards to Bakugō staying in 1-A or not, we will then go from there. Is this satisfactory to all?” he asks.

Shouta wants to say no, but he doesn’t. He needs to remain logical, not let his emotions cloud his judgement. To be honest, this whole situation is a tangled mess. Yes, Bakugō did all this, but some of it can be blamed on the school, and parents who were either too busy or excused his actions as him just doing what kids do.

He also hates himself a little for not recognizing what was going on between the two sooner. He’d just thought it was a rivalry, maybe a little antagonistic, but mostly harmless. He’d kept throwing them together, hoping to use it to make them better, only he kept throwing a victim with his bully. He’s spent quite a few nights berating himself for his blinders. He’d apologized profusely to Izuku at that meeting, horrified when everything finally came out. He’d forgiven Shouta, but still, he needs to show Izuku he won’t let something like this happen again.

“When are we informing Bakugō?” he asks evenly, not showing his swirling thoughts on his face.

“In an hour. His parents will be arriving then to the meeting to update them on our decision,” Nedzu informs him.

“I’ll be there,” Shouta says, not mentioning anything about Izuku. He’ll give it a few days without Bakugō as a constant reminder before he broaches the topic with him.

“Of course. Thank you for your help in wading through this quagmire of a situation. It hasn’t been easy, but I think we have come to a good compromise,” Nedzu says with a nod to all of them. “We’re dismissed for now,” he adds and they all start to gather their things to head out. Shouta heads for the dorms to inform Bakugō of the meeting and to prepare himself for the coming yelling from his mother.

~*~

When 1-A is informed of Katsuki being removed from 1-A, the class erupts into chaos. Izuku, for his part, just sits there silently trying to process what was said. Katsuki was removed from 1-A. Aizawa did say he might be able to come back, but it was still undecided. Still…Katsuki faced consequences.

When was the last time Katsuki ever faced any consequences for his actions? Honestly, the only thing that comes to mind was back when they were children, before their quirks came in. Once his quirk showed up everyone started to fawn over him like he was special, and everything started to change after that.

“Hey, are you okay?” Todoroki asks quietly beside him. Izuku’s seat had been moved away from Katsuki after his talk with Hound Dog, Aizawa and, Yamada. He’s closer to his group of friends now.

He looks up at Todoroki with a faint frown of confusion. “I…I don’t know,” he admits. It feels wrong, honestly, Katsuki getting in trouble and not him. He has spent so many years being blamed for everything…it feels surreal actually.

He looks up to see Aizawa watching him and he tries to smile a little to reassure him. He doesn’t think he’s successful, but Aizawa doesn’t call him out on it. Instead, he calls the class back to order. “Whether you like it or not, this is already a done deal. This is what you will face in my class. If I find you lacking, if you don’t do your best, or I find your actions to be unheroic, you will be removed from this class. I only teach those serious about heroics and who show it. Am I understood?” he asks sharply, eyes flashing red briefly.

With a much more subdued atmosphere, the class agrees before sitting back down and listening to the morning announcements.

~*~

Izuku has a chat with Aizawa and Yamada at lunch, the two assuring him it wasn’t just what he told them about their past. There were many factors to take into consideration and their past was just one of many. They do explain a little bit of the deal they gave Katsuki though. Not all the details, but a brief summary: the goals he needs to achieve before they’ll consider letting him back into class.

They sit him down and ask what he wants, should Katsuki be allowed back into the heroics program. Would he be okay with him in 1-A or did they need to move him?

Izuku isn’t sure and asks to think on it. They agree easily, telling him to take his time. That afternoon, the class has a panicked meeting that drags Izuku away from his swirling thoughts and back to the present.

“This whole concert is ruined,” Kaminari huffs out.

“We’ll be fine,” Jiro says with annoyance.

“Like someone else can play the drums as good as he can,” Sero points out. “We’ve only got a few more weeks left until the festival; we don’t have time to teach someone drums.”

“What?” Izuku asks in confusion, finally figuring out what they’re talking about.

“With Bakugō out of 1-A, we don’t have anyone to play drums and they’re the core beat of the whole song,” Hagakure explains from her spot perched on the couch.

“Oh, is that all?” he asks and they all stare at him, making him flush a bit. “I…I can play drums. Ka…Katsuki used to drag me to his lessons because he refused to go alone and he hated them so much. I…I’m not as good as he is, but I at least know the basics,” he explains.

“Done, you’re on drums. We’re going to have a cram session now,” Jiro says, standing to start dragging Izuku to the area sectioned off for band practice with insulated walls.

“What?” Izuku says in surprise and ends up spending the next few hours dredging up old memories of playing drums and learning the song.

~*~

The day of the festival dawns bright and clear, the temperature cool, but not cold. Izuku grins excitedly as he gathers his stuff to start making his way towards the gym they’ve been given for the concert. Some of the others are already there setting up and he’s helping to bring the rest of their stuff over, Uraraka helping to make everything float.

As they step outside, he actually feels his feathers fluff up a bit in the cool morning air which is still a strange sensation to feel. He glances back at his wings, no longer covered in the fluffy dark grey feathers they came out with. He’d had a horrible time a week and a half ago as he molted the baby feathers off and then had to grow in the new ones. Never has he ever been so itchy and unable to scratch.

Now though, they are a solid black, glossy and healthy. They have a slight green sheen to them in the light. He’s been progressing quickly with his flight training; the wings growing steadily and hopefully will be large enough soon. His weekly checkups have found them growing without any problems, also a bonus. Hawks even said, depending on his next week of training, they might start trying to get him airborne. He’s so excited for that.

“Is this the last of it?” Shoji asks quietly, his arms holding a couple of the boxes they need. Beside him, Izuku’s drum set and a few other things float from Uraraka’s quirk.

“I think so. We can always run back quickly if we forgot something,” he says and Shoji nods. Grabbing the first part in the chained floating gear, Izuku starts to drag it out of the dorms, Uraraka following to make sure they don’t get caught on something along the way.

They make it to the gym with plenty of time and head for the stage where their class is frantically setting everything up, Sero painstakingly using his tape to tape down cords so no one trips on them. “There you three are. Quickly, bring that stuff up here so we can get it set up,” Iida calls out.

Others swarm them, unhooking items from the chain to start taking them onstage. Once everything is in place, Uraraka cancels her quirk and they set everything down. “Midoriya-kun, can you help us a moment?” Sato calls out from where they are getting things set up for the backstage crew and he nods, rushing over.

~*~

Exhaustion eats at Izuku as the afternoon slowly fades into night. He’s tired, but the elation of the day still thrums through him. Their class concert had been a success, yes, but also…Eri smiled. He’s never seen her smile like that, like a child excited about something.

Togata had looked just as excited about it as he did, escorting Eri around while Izuku, Yamada and Aizawa were busy. They’d made a day of it, enjoying the festival and showing the girl how to have fun. While they couldn’t all be together as a family, they did have moments of one, Yamada and Aizawa trading off to be with him and Eri as they wandered around the festival.

By the end, Eri had been passed out from so much activity and even Izuku is ready to collapse. The stress and excitement leading up to this, plus a few other things have left him feeling out of sorts lately, but now…now it’s fine. Nothing else compares to seeing Eri finally smile like she means it, like she’s excited and happy all at once.

Izuku pushes himself off his bed where he collapsed to just lay for a moment. He really needs to get changed out of his dirty clothes and into some pajamas. He also needs to brush his teeth after eating so much junk food. Aizawa had turned a blind eye on the class breaking their eating plans with all the junk food. He did warn they would be doing extra training tomorrow to work it all off, but they were all okay with it. It’s nice to have a cheat day every once in a while.

Standing, he stumbles over to his bathroom, stretching his arms and wings a bit before he quickly brushes his teeth and hair, does a glance over his wings to make sure no feathers are out of place. Then, it’s a quick change into some pajamas and he’s back for bed, ready to sleep.

He’s just doing a last check of the HNN site on his phone to see if anything new happened he needs to look at tomorrow when it starts to ring in his hand. He nearly drops it in shock, not expecting someone to call him at all. His friends and the class all text usually and so do Aizawa and Yamada. If it’s really important, they come to him rather than call.

He manages to fumble it back to an upright position and look at the number calling. His heart skips a beat, Mom displayed across the screen. Heart in his throat, curiosity taking over, Izuku answers it. “H-hello?” he asks softly, dreading what he’ll hear.

There’s just silence, or he thinks it’s silent at first, but he can start to just faintly hear breathing. “M…Mom?” Izuku whispers hesitatingly.

Still nothing and then the line ends. Heart beating rapidly, Izuku gets out of bed and throws his shoes on and a jacket over his pajamas before heading out of his dorm. There are a few still up, curfew still a little ways off. Izuku just shakes his head jerkily when they call his name and heads out of the dorm.

When he lets himself into the apartment, a pair of red eyes behind colored lenses stare at him with a frown of concern on Yamada’s face showing how unusual this is. “What’s up, little listener?” he asks.

Aizawa isn’t in, he had a patrol tonight and Eri has already been put to bed after her long day. Izuku just walks over to Yamada and worms his way into his arm, needing some sort of contact as Yamada hugs him back, thankfully refraining from asking questions just yet, guessing whatever happened isn’t physical.

Finally, Izuku stirs and picks up on Yamada’s soft humming. He stops when he sees Izuku back with him. “Hey, everything okay?” he asks.

Izuku shrugs, not really sure and pulls out his phone. He pulls up the call log and shows it to Yamada. His frowns gets more pronounced as he realizes it was an inbound call. “Did someone answer?” he asks.

“No, but I could hear breathing,” Izuku admits quietly. “I…was it her?” he asks.

“I…I don’t know. The number was disconnected shortly after you came to the dorms. It’s possible she reactivated it,” Yamada admits. “Do you mind if I borrow this?” he asks, holding up Izuku’s phone.

“I don’t mind,” Izuku says. “Can I text my friends that I won’t have my phone for a bit?” he asks and Yamada nods, letting him do so quickly in their group chat.

“We might have to get you a new phone,” Yamada says. “I’ll let you know. For now, why don’t you stay here tonight, okay?” he offers and Izuku smiles gratefully. Yamada reels him back in for another hug. “I know this is confusing sometimes because she’s your mom and we can’t always stop loving someone, but we’re here for you, okay?” Yamada says softly.

“I know…thank you,” Izuku whispers.

They pull apart and then Izuku slips further into the apartment to his room. He settles under the blankets, but sleep eludes him for a while, swirling thoughts making it hard to find sleep. Why would she call now? Why didn’t she answer him? What would she have said if she had spoken to him? What would he have said? He doesn’t fall asleep for a while and when he does, it’s not restful.

~*~

She’s not expecting a call on her burner phone. It’s usually a last resort thing if she needs to contact Naomi. So when Naomi’s number appears, she answers. “What’s happened?” she asks. Something has to have happened.

“Did you call him?” she demands sharply.

“What?” Inko asks, confused.

“Did you call you son?” she demands again.

“No, I…I haven’t called anyone, but you,” Inko assures her. “What’s happened?” she asks again.

“I’ve been hacked into your son’s phone for a while. Just to keep track of him and to make sure nothing happened I didn’t know about. Your old number called him last night. Now, his phone has been deactivated and I had to quickly hide my presence to keep from being backtracked by their computer techs,” Naomi admits, sounding like she’s frowning.

“I swear, I haven’t called him. I don’t even have that phone. I left it in the apartment when we left,” Inko swears, panic starting to swirl in her chest. “Do you think it was him?” she asks.

“I don’t know. It’s a possibility. Either way, I’ve lost my means of tracking Izuku, which means I can’t keep abreast of anything happening around him. We’re in the dark right now. As for my false leads, he didn’t follow any of them. He’s waiting for us to make the first move I think. Inko…this is getting serious. I know we’re family and I’ll do what I can, but I can only do so much. Eventually, shit is going to hit the fan and I don’t think I can protect you, not from the likes of him. We might need help on this,” Naomi admits.

“He’s got all of Yuuei to protect him and so long as I hide, he can’t find me, correct?” Inko asks.

“In theory, but Izuku can’t stay behind Yuuei’s walls forever. Eventually, he will come out of Yuuei for some reason. He’ll bide his time and wait for the best moment. You say Yuuei can protect him, but if they don’t know what is coming, they won’t be prepared enough,” she warns.

“They don’t need to know,” Inko insists. “This…this is personal and I won’t drag my mistakes in front of strangers for them to judge me or Izuku. They’ll look at Izuku different if they know,” Inko whispers.

Naomi sighs across the line. “Very well. Let’s hope this doesn’t blow up in our faces. I’ll keep you updated and I’ll try to figure out his new number,” Naomi says.

“Thank you, Naomi,” Inko whispers.

“Yeah, yeah,” she mutters and then the line goes dead. Inko sets the phone aside and lets worry take over as she goes over everything Naomi told her.

Chapter Text

Shouta sits in front of Tsukauchi’s desk and waits for him to come into his office. Hizashi had called him an hour ago while on patrol to inform him that Inko had called Izuku on his phone. The phone is currently off and broken down into parts just to make sure it can’t be remotely turned back on. Shouta had swung by Yuuei to grab the phone and stop to check on Izuku.

The teen had been asleep, though it didn’t look peaceful. He’d then checked on Eri, given Hizashi a quick kiss and had left, texting Tsukauchi that he was heading to his station and what had happened, since he was the main lead on the case regarding Midoriya Inko.

Tsukauchi had sent a text for him to wait in his office once he handed over the phone to the techs and now here he is, waiting. Ten minutes later, Tsukauchi comes in with a heavy frown and a file in his hand. “What’s happened?” Shouta demands, not liking that look.

“The number that called his phone: it was Midoriya Inko’s old number. She left her phone in the apartment when she fled and we had it locked up in evidence. The phone is gone,” he admits, rubbing at his eyes tiredly.

“What?” Shouta demands.

Tsukauchi nods. “We’re not sure when, but someone took the phone. We’re starting to comb through our surveillance to see who all has been in there that shouldn’t have been. I honestly have no idea when it was taken though,” he admits.

“Do you think it was Inko?” Shouta asks.

“Honestly…I don’t know. Maybe she hired someone to retrieve it. Maybe whoever helped her disappear did this. Maybe someone else did it. I just don’t know. There are too many loose threads and I don’t know which one to pull. Something about this whole case just sits weirdly with me,” he admits.

Shouta nods in understanding. He’s had that feeling too, like they’re missing something important, something big. There is something more going on here than just an abandoned child and horrible parenting.

There’s a knock at the door and it opens to show someone with a few paper printouts in their hand. “You wanted to know if we found anything, sir?” the man says and Tsukauchi nods, holding out his hand. They hand it over. “We’re still going through the phone, but the first sweep found signs of hacking. Someone put a back door into the phone,” he points out.

“Thank you, keep me updated,” Tsukauchi orders and they nod before slipping back out and shutting the door. “Now we have a hacked phone,” he mutters, staring at the papers.

“Does it say what they were looking for?” Shouta asks.

“No, but it shows someone was keeping track of the GPS of the phone,” he says, showing the printouts to Shouta. “Someone was tracking your student for some reason.”

Shouta frowns and nods. “I’ll let Nedzu know. We might have to do a school wide check to make sure no other phones are compromised and the network at the school is safe,” he mutters. “Keep me updated?” he asks.

“Of course,” Tsukauchi agrees easily.

Nodding, Shouta stands and heads out. Since his patrol was interrupted, he heads back to it, thoughts swirling. He does send off a request to the support department at his agency on help securing a new, more secure phone for Izuku. He sends off a text to Nedzu, informing him of the breech in security. The text back assures him Nedzu will do a full sweep.

~*~

Izuku is a bundle of nerves and excitement as he and Hawks walk to an open area in the gym while the rest of the class trains. It was finally time to start trying to fly. “Alright, fledgling,” Hawks says with a grin and Izuku grins back. “I think you’re ready, so we’re going to start small. You can get yourself a few feet up using equipment. Now, it’s time to learn to do it without something to hold,” he explains and Izuku nods. “Follow my lead,” he orders and starts to show the best way to position his body for takeoff.

“Okay, not bad. Let’s see them wings go,” he orders. Izuku nods and starts to flap hard. It takes a few flaps to get the right movement since he’s not holding onto something. But slowly, he starts to gain height into the air until he’s at last hovering about five feet off the ground.

“Alright, come back down,” he orders and Izuku does, landing awkwardly, but managing to stay on his feet. “Take a short breather and then do it again. We’ll keep doing this and as you get more comfortable, we’ll go higher, okay?” he asks and Izuku nods.

“Alright, again,” Hawks says and Izuku does as told, slowly lifting himself into the air.

~*~

Air streams passed him making his eyes water. His wings are outstretched, feeling the way the currents push and pull at his wings. “How’s it feel?” Hawks asks over their connected ear piece, the hero flapping lazily as they fly over training ground beta where the rest of the class is doing a battle simulation right now. Rather than have Izuku try to get this high, he’d flown up on Hawks’ back and is now barely holding onto his shoulders while his wings glide.

“I…it’s hard to explain,” Izuku admits. “It’s like…like I already know this somehow.”

“Instinct. Birds are born knowing how to fly, they just need the practice and to get strong enough to fly. The info is there, you just need to make it a part of you now,” Hawks explains. “Wanna try doing a glide down on your own?” he asks.

Izuku gulps, looking down at just how high up they are. “Okay,” he agrees.

“You’ll be fine and if you feel like you need me to step in, just say something and I’ll be there in an instant,” he reassures Izuku.

“Okay. I’m ready,” Izuku says and slowly lets go of his hold on Hawks’ hero costume. The wind suddenly grabs him and he goes up a few feet before he levels out. “I’m flying,” Izuku says with a grin.

“You are,” Hawks agrees. “Let’s start an easy descent. Angle your wings a little to start heading down. Circles will make it easier on you rather than a straight descent for now, so just take it easy,” Hawks says over the ear piece as he slowly starts to pull away and Izuku nods. He consciously shifts his wings and feels himself start to descend, managing to turn it into a circle.

“Where am I landing?” he asks.

“Do you see the fake hospital and the helicopter landing pad?” Hawks asks.

“Yes,” Izuku says.

“We’ll aim for there. Your class should be done soon, so we’ll end the lesson after this,” he says and Izuku nods even though he probably can’t see it.

The wind is loud in his ears and he can’t stop grinning. For the most part, he keeps his wings locked into a glide position, but whenever he feels himself start to wobble, he flaps a little to right his course. He can see Hawks doing a wider loop around him, keeping an eye on him and ready to help if needed, but letting him do this on his own.

The landing pad it coming up quick a few minutes later and Izuku swallows. “You’ve got this, fledgling. Just remember, the harder you back flap, the quicker you’ll slow down and if you do it too soon, you’ll have a rougher landing. Timing is important here,” Hawks warns.

“Okay,” Izuku says and waits, trying to time it just right.

He’s focused on his flying, on judging the distance between himself and the roof of the building. He’s not aware of activity on an adjacent roof. He judges he’s close enough and starts to back flap, gritting his teeth as he hopes he got it right when he hears Hawks shout his name through the ear piece and from a distance.

He loses his concentration and falls the last few feet to land heavily on his feet and ends up on his hands and knees as he loses his balance. He hears his name yelled again and looks up right at the roof across the way…where Todoroki is standing, fire shooting straight at Izuku in a huge gout of flame, the teen going white in shock.

Eyes wide, Izuku reacts in the only way he can, arms going over his head. He doesn’t realize he brings his wings around himself to shield from the flames. All he knows is nothing at first and then heat.

~*~

Hawks lands heavily, rushing towards Izuku. Todoroki is still standing across on the other rooftop with Tokoyami, the two staring in shock. They’d been fighting in the mock battle and hadn’t realized Izuku was coming in to land when Todoroki had launched his attack at Tokoyami, the shadowed teen dodging it, but not Izuku.

“Izuku!” Hawks yells, dreading the worst. All he can see is dark wings curled around Izuku’s body. As he gets closer, he starts to slow as he notices something off about Izuku’s wings. The feathers are gone…and in their place is what looks like scales. They’re the same color as his feathers, black with a slight sheen of green too them, but as he watches, other colors start to appear, almost like an oil spill across dark water.

“Izuku?” Hawks calls out again.

Slowly, the wings start to unfurl and he finds Izuku sitting on the ground looking okay. Some hair has been singed a little, but unharmed. “What?” Izuku asks and then frowns as his voice comes out a little rougher.

“Hey, it’s okay,” Hawks says easily, crouching down in front of him. He can see his pupils are slits right now. “Easy. Does anything hurt?” he asks quickly.

Izuku frowns, doing a mental evaluation. “No,” he says. “How?” he asks in surprise.

“I think we found a new aspect of your quirk,” Hawks admits, pointing towards Izuku’s wings where the scales have replaced the feathers.

“What?” he gets out in shock.

“We’ll get this figured out later. How about we get off this roof,” Hawks says and Izuku nods, accepting the hand up onto shaky knees. “You did well on your landing, as well. If you hadn’t been distracted by us yelling, you would have landed great,” Hawks adds and Izuku nods, still looking distracted by this new development.

Aizawa and the rest of the class are waiting down below when they finally emerge onto street level. “What happened?” he demands and then frowns upon seeing Izuku’s new wings.

“Something new,” Hawks says with a shrug. “He seems fine, though maybe a trip to Recovery Girl just in case,” he advises and Aizawa nods.

“I’m okay, Todoroki-kun,” Izuku says and they turn to see Todoroki looking incredibly shaken by what happened. “See, no burns, no harm. It was an accident.” Todoroki doesn’t say anything, but he does hug Izuku, the smaller teen allowing it as they both come to terms with what happened. Hawks does hear a softly murmured ‘I’m so sorry,’ from Todoroki, but doesn’t point it out.

“Come on, let’s get you to Recovery Girl and see what happened,” Aizawa speaks up. “1-A, you’re dismissed for the day. I’ll inform the others what happened,” he adds to the class and they nod, slowly trooping back to the changing rooms to change out of their costumes and head back to the dorms.

~*~

“Well, this is something,” Recovery Girl says some time later as Izuku sits on an exam bed and she looks over his wings. She’d done a through exam of his person just in case, but found no signs of burns or damage other than the singed curls on his head. “May I try some tests?” She asks Izuku and he nods.

She grabs a few instruments and comes back over. A small metal rod is tapped against the scales and while it makes noise, the rod doesn’t even leave a scratch. “Well, they’re certainly hard,” she observes. Taking a small scalpel, she runs it over the scale from before and while it makes a slight line, it’s barely any damage. “Very hard indeed,” she adds. “Do you remember what happened when this occurred? Did you feel weird? Feel anything shift or change?”

“Not really,” Izuku says with a frown. “Just heat and then it was gone. I didn’t even realize what happened until Hawks-sensei came over and pointed them out,” he admits. He shifts his wings and frowns. “How are they heavier than before?”

“Scales are thicker than feathers, so more weight to carry,” Aizawa theorizes.

“Well, transformative quirks are tricky until you figure out what causes the change. Was it the stress of the situation that caused the shift? The fire? Instinct? We won’t know until we can get Midoriya-kun here into a controlled environment to try and recreate the situation safely to see how the wings changed,” Recovery Girl points out. “As well, we will need to wait for them to shift back.”

“Wait, how long will that take?” Izuku asks a little panicked.

“Who can say, fledgling, could be any minute, a couple hours or even overnight. They shifted due to a stressful situation, so I’m hoping they will change back once you calm down,” Hawks points out.

Izuku ducks his head sheepishly, still keyed up and anxious after everything. He really needs to get back to the dorms to make sure Todoroki-kun doesn’t start blaming himself or deciding to stop using his fire again. The others promised to stay with him until Izuku got back. As well, he’s a little frustrated because he thought this was all done and sorted out. He had wings and everything was fine, but now this is happening, and it’s just one more thing to worry about and figure out. Can he just catch a break for once?

“How about we go back to the apartment and calm down,” Yamada says with a smile. “Eri will sure get a kick out of seeing your new wings,” he adds.

“But, I was going to-,” Izuku starts to say.

“Izuku,” Aizawa murmurs and he stops, looking at him. “It is not your job to look after other people’s mental wellbeing. Your job is to calm down and figure out your quirk. I will make sure Todoroki has the help he needs to ensure he does not take this negatively, understand?” he asks evenly.

“I guess,” Izuku murmurs, heart sinking. What if Todoroki doesn’t want to be his friend after this? Or stops using his fire? Or blames him for causing this?

There’s a sudden tugging on one of his curls and Izuku blinks to see Yamada staring at him. “Out of that head of yours,” he orders gently with a kind smile. “Just breathe. You did nothing wrong. Todoroki did nothing wrong. This was an accident. Accidents happen. You can’t control everything in the world and you’ll stress yourself into an early grave trying. You know what you can control?” he asks and Izuku shakes his head. “Your breathing, so in…and out,” he murmurs.

Izuku copies him and they spend a few minutes doing just that. It helps a little, his heartrate slowing some and some of the anxiousness fades a bit. “Sorry,” Izuku murmurs a few minutes later.

“Nothing to be sorry for, little listener. You’re still learning and growing. Cut yourself some slack. I know you’ve been thrown quite a few curveballs here recently, but I promise, we’ll get through this just like everything else. This is supposed to be the fun part of a quirk: learning all the interesting bits of it and figuring out how to make them work. I bet you could think of a few things this could be useful for as a hero,” he adds.

Never let it be said Yamada doesn’t know how Izuku’s mind works. That thought lights a spark as he frowns, considering and starts to fall into a quirk analysis mutter, considering the possibilities, pulling one of his wings around to get a better look at the new scales.

“Alright, well unless something happens, or you start to feel any pain, there’s not much I can do. We’ll just have to wait for this to run its course. Keep me updated, okay?” Recovery Girl orders.

“Of course,” Yamada agrees and helps Izuku get up before escorting him from the room while he’s still analyzing what happened to his wings. Aizawa follows for a bit with Hawks before they split off to aim for the dorm while Yamada leads Izuku to the apartment.

~*~

Shouta walks into the dorm to see most of the class has scattered to their dorms or other places, only a few in the common spaces working on homework or on their phones. He can hear a couple in the kitchen, probably getting dinner started or grabbing a snack after training.

He doesn’t see any of the teens he’s looking for. A few glance up at him as he steps further into the dorms, but no one calls his name, so Shouta doesn’t stop. As he’s nearing the kitchen on his way to the elevator, Uraraka comes out of the kitchen with a few drinks in her arms.

“Oh, sensei, hi,” she says with a forced smile, no doubt worried about Izuku and Todoroki.

“Uraraka-san, are you all upstairs?” he asks, meaning her friend group.

“Yes…we didn’t want to leave Todoroki alone,” she says softly.

“That’s good,” he reassures her and she smiles a little brighter. He motions for her to lead the way and he follows her to the elevator where it goes up to Todoroki’s floor. The others look up when they both come in and a look of relief crosses a couple of their faces when they see Shouta.

“Alright, I know you are here to keep Todoroki company, but I need you to clear out for now. I need to talk with him,” Shouta says evenly. Shinso and Iida stand, following Uraraka back out of the room.

Shouta eyes Todoroki who watches him warily. His whole posture is stiff and defensive, hands fisted in his lap, brow furrowed and mouth frowning. Shouta, rather than say anything just yet, settles on the tatami flooring in the kid’s room, back leaned against the wall and waits for him to speak first.

“Is Midoriya okay?” Todoroki finally speaks up.

“He’s fine. A little shaken up because of this new development, but healthy otherwise,” Shouta reassures him and his shoulders relax slightly.

“Am I in trouble?” he asks stoically, or attempts to, but his voice wavers a little.

“Why do you think you’re in trouble?” Shouta asks, rather than answer.

“I attacked another student, would have hurt him horribly if not for this new part of his quirk,” Shouta says evenly.

“Did you intentionally try to hurt him?” Shouta asks and he shakes his head. “Did you see him coming in to land before you released that attack?” he asks and again a shake of Todoroki’s head. “Did you want to hurt him?” he asks.

“No!” Todoroki says sharply.

“Then why would you be in trouble?” he asks again. “This was an accident. Accidents happen. Even if Midoriya had been badly hurt, you still wouldn’t be in trouble, because this was an accident,” Shouta explains simply. “Learn from your mistakes, but don’t beat yourself up over something that was an accident.”

Todoroki frowns and doesn’t say anything. Shouta sighs through his nose softly, seeing this probably needs more professional help. “I am scheduling a session with Hound Dog tomorrow morning for you. You’ll be excused from your first class. Talk with him, work through this and don’t close yourself off because this happened. I know Midoriya doesn’t blame you or hate you, and he wouldn’t want you beating yourself up like this,” Shouta points out.

“Yes, sensei,” Todoroki says evenly and Shouta sighs again.

He stands and when he walks out, the others are standing outside the room, but far enough away to not overhear anything through the door. He waves them back in and heads down to the first floor and back outside. A quick email to Ryo has Todoroki scheduled first thing in the morning for a session. Hopefully, this will help him work passed this.

He heads for the apartment and inside finds Eri and Izuku sitting and coloring in some pictures while she tells him about her day. Izuku looks much more relaxed, smiling and nodding along. He does notice that the scales are gone, the feathers back, but he doesn’t mention it yet, letting Izuku have a calm moment.

He finds Hizashi in the kitchen making dinner. “So, when did they change back?” he asks him, going to wash his hands so he can help.

“Not long after he get in here and Eri got a hold of him. I think they’re a defensive aspect of his quirk. They reacted to his fear and changed. He feels safe here…,” Hizashi trails off.

“So they changed back,” Shouta concludes with a nod. He trusts Hizashi’s judgement. The blonde has always enjoyed quirk analysis as a hobby. “Todoroki’s got a session with Hound Dog tomorrow. He thinks he should be in trouble,” he mutters softly, still worried about that thought process.

“It was an accident,” Hizashi points out.

Shouta shrugs to convey ‘what can they do’. It’s something Todoroki needs to figure out with Hound Dog. “We’ll just have to keep an eye on him,” he says instead and Hizashi nods, handing over the rice for Shouta to start washing.

Chapter Text

Izuku follows Yamada to one of the smaller gyms, their arms laden down with items for the testing they were going to do shortly. He’d been excused from the heroics lesson today to do this, so he’s a little excited to figure out how this new aspect of his quirk works. He’d had a brief talk with Hound Dog to work through this new crisis and is feeling better about it, so he’s ready to learn.

They get in and set everything down. “Okay,” Yamada says with a grin once they have everything set up. “Let’s start with the basics. Sit here,” he points towards a chair they brought in. Izuku does. “We need to see if you can change them now, or if you’ll need something to help at first,” he explains and Izuku nods, recalling the detailed plan they had made up for today. “Focus on that day, that moment on the roof top. Fire is coming at you and you react how?” Yamada asks easily as Izuku sits there, eyes closed and recalls what happened.

It happened so fast though, he reacted on instinct. He still tries to focus though and after a few minutes, nothing feels different. When he opens his eyes to look, he still sees feathers. He sighs in frustration. “Hey, it’s okay. Most kids, when they get their quirk, can’t actively use it at first. It usually activates instinctively until they can figure out how to trigger it,” Yamada reassures him. “When I was born, I could already use my quirk. It was learning how to not use it that was my issue. Everyone needs time to learn, okay,” he says and Izuku nods, letting the frustration and frown go.

“So, my best guess with what little data we have, your quirk acted defensively to your fear and changed to the scales. This is a bit of a tricky type of quirk, because it requires fear to trigger it, or something close to it at first. Are you okay if we hurt a feather or two?” Yamada asks.

“Yeah, it’s fine. I just want to be able to control this,” Izuku says.

“Control will take time. Let’s just figure out your triggers, okay,” Yamada says and Izuku nods. He brings out some scissors. “Alright, we’ll do a small feather. Let me know if it hurts, okay? I don’t want to hurt you.” Izuku nods and spreads his right wings out to make it easier for Yamada to reach one of his feathers.

They both brace as he brings the scissors up. It doesn’t hurt per say, there are no nerves in the feathers, but he feels…pressure perhaps. They both watch his wing, but nothing happens. “Maybe plucking?” Izuku offers, though he’s not looking forward to that test. He’s lost a few so far in training when they got caught on something and a feather got yanked out.

“Are you sure?” Yamada asks.

“It’s already cut, and I’ve lost a few feathers before, but we need to be sure,” Izuku reasons.

“Alright, on three,” Yamada says. He starts to count and yanks on two. Izuku grits his teeth at the shard of pain, eyes watering faintly, but as they watch his wing, still nothing happens. “Sorry, you needed to be surprised,” Yamada apologizes, letting the feather fall.

“It’s fine, I figured. It still hurt though,” he huffs out and rubs the spot where the feather was. It aches faintly, like a paper cut, but even now is fading. “What’s next?” he asks.

“Fire and a life threatening situation,” Yamada admits with a wry grin.

Izuku grimaces a little. “Fire first, I guess,” he huffs out and Yamada nods, reaching over to their pile of things and pulls out a small lighter.

“Ready?” Yamada asks and Izuku nods, watching as he strikes the flint and slowly brings it closer to his wings and one of the feathers he’s pulled out slightly to avoid the rest.

He swallows, slowly tensing the closer it gets, not liking having fire so close to his wing. Feathers are flammable and he’d hate to damage them, but he trusts Yamada and they have things set aside to put out fire and such…but still.

The moment the flame touches the feather and the faint smell of burning feather reaches him, Izuku feels a flush pass over him, pin pricks prickling along his wings. He feels a bit dizzy for a second at the sensation and then warm as Yamada let’s out an exclamation and pulls back.

Not realizing he closed his eyes, Izuku looks to see the scales are back and that Yamada dropped the lighter. The prickling and heat are gone as well and he feels fine. “I think we have a winner,” Yamada says with a faint grin.

“What happened?” Izuku asks. “I closed my eyes and missed it.”

“Well, right after the feather started to burn, your feathers all shifted into the scales you see, but…I think they absorbed the flame,” Yamada admits with a faint frown. “It didn’t get snuffed out and I didn’t drop it until after the flame disappeared.”

“Wait, what?” Izuku asks in surprise.

Rather than pick up the small lighter he’d been using, Yamada grabs one of the larger ones they snagged from the kitchen. He motions it towards Izuku and he nods. He flicks it on and like metal drawn to a magnet, the flame points towards his scaled wings. “Not just absorbs…attracts fire,” Yamada whispers, bringing it closer and the flame is snuffed out. A faint tingle goes through him and he shivers slightly.

“I felt that,” Izuku whispers.

“This will take some thinking and some more experimentation, but I think we’ll stop there,” Yamada says, setting the lighter aside.

“But we could keep going,” Izuku says, eager to learn more.

“Little listener, you look pale and a little manic right now. Let’s take a breather for a moment and get some water. If I think you can continue, we will, but if you can’t calm down enough for your feathers to come back, we’ll pick this up later. I don’t want you pushing yourself right now,” Yamada cautions and Izuku sighs, but nods. They get up and walk to the front of the gym where some windows let in the light and stretch, get some water and just breathe. They do discuss what this could mean, why his wings are able to do this. Where it might have come from considering he doesn’t know who his dad is or any of his mom’s extended family.

By the time thirty minutes has passed, his feathers have returned and Izuku feels tired, despite just sitting there. “That’s what I expected,” Yamada discloses when Izuku admits this. “Your quirk stamina is still low. Transformative quirks take a lot of energy at first before you start training to do it and build up your reserves. Now that we know what triggers the change, we can work on making a training plan to build up your stamina slowly. Hopefully, you won’t need fire to make them change and can do it on command,” he explains.

“You really think so?” Izuku asks as he helps Yamada pack up their stuff to head back towards the class room.

“Of course. You’ve only had your wings for a few weeks now. Give yourself time to learn and grow. You’re making leaps and bounds right now, even if it doesn’t seem like it. Most people take years to learn this much about their quirk. Cut yourself some slack. You’ll get there,” Yamada says, giving him a one arm hug, pulling Izuku into his side.

“Thanks,” Izuku says with a grin and follows Yamada out of the gym. That night, they explain what they figured out to Aizawa who nods along, brow raised in surprise that it was fire that started this.

~*~

Unfortunately, life can’t keep going on as it has. At the end of October, Hawks has to leave, unable to keep away from his agency for any longer and needed on some business for the Commission. Plus the Billboards are coming up and he needs to be ready for that. Izuku hates that he can’t stay. He enjoyed the hero’s company and the easy way he helped Izuku learn all that he has about his new quirk.

He reassures Izuku that he can always call or text him if he has questions, or just needs to talk. So with a heavy heart, Izuku and the rest of 1-A and 1-B bid him farewell. Life keeps going on, Izuku continuing his training, though with one of the other teachers keeping an eye on him when he’s flying around. He starts to return back to normal training now that he’s got flying down and can start incorporating it into his fighting...only somewhat successfully. It’s hard to figure out a whole new fighting style, let alone a doing stuff while flying.

The day of the Billboards, they unfortunately have class, so they can’t watch it. They do check on their phones when they can and watch the tail end of the whole event where they name the top 10 in the dorms, everyone cheering when Endeavor gets named number one and Hawks number two.

Izuku sends a congratulations to Hawks by text and gets a string of emojis in return, making him smile. The next day is Saturday, so they do their normal morning training and then have the afternoon off. He and his friends are down in the common room working on a history assignment when the TV that had been on low with the news suddenly lights up with a news bulletin.

Looking up, Izuku pales as he recognizes the figure on the screen and scrambles to grab the remote and turn the volume up as the news continues to cover the huge fight currently going on in Fukuoka between Hawks, Endeavor and some strange creature or person.

They watch in silence, more and more of the class crowding in around them as the fight drags on. Izuku reaches over and silently takes Todoroki’s hand, seeing how tense he is watching his father fight. Todoroki doesn’t say anything, just squeezes his hand back.

When the fight finally ends, cheers erupt, but Izuku stays silent along with Todoroki, both focused on the badly hurt Endeavor and near wingless Hawks.

~*~

Keigo stares at the smug figure across from him after delivering his report on Endeavor and his perspective of the fight. Dabi just smirks at him, pulling out a cigarette to light it with his quirk and ignores his complaint about the location, considering the middle of Fukuoka was not where they originally planned to have this fight.

He’s about to say something when his phone rings shrilly in his pocket. He ignores it. “Aren’t you going to answer that?” Dabi asks lowly.

Frowning, Keigo pulls his phone out and frowns harder at the name on the caller ID. “Well, go on, answer it,” Dab says with a wave of his hand.

Sighing silently through his nose, Keigo hits answer and brings up the phone to his ear. “Hey fledgling, how’s it going?” he asks cheerfully while still eyeing Dabi.

“I’m sorry to call so late, Hawks-sensei. I hope I didn’t wake you,” Izuku says over the line.

“Nonsense, I was still up, finishing up some work is all, so no bother. In fact, I could use the break from the monotony of paperwork,” he reassures the teen.

“Oh, okay,” Izuku says, sounding relived he hadn’t disturbed Hawks. “Um…I meant to call earlier, but I figured you’d be busy with what happened or recovering, and I just wanted to make sure you were okay. You…you lost a lot of feathers there,” Izuku says, trailing off.

“Nah, it’s fine fledgling. A couple of days and I’ll be right as rain. So, no need to worry about little ol’ me,” he jokes.

“Oh, that’s good. Um, I’ll let you get back to work. Sorry again to call so late,” Izuku apologizes.

“It’s no problem. Good night fledgling,” he says. Izuku responds and then the line cuts out as Izuku ends the call. It cuts back to his main screen and he stares at the photo currently being used as his background. He’s snapped a selfie with Izuku and Tokoyami, called it a bird photo jokingly.

“Cute,” Dabi comments and Keigo turns the phone off and tucks it away from his sight. “Any problems?” he asks.

“No, just a check in. You know how fledglings get, so worried and anxious. Now, if we’re done here, I do actually have work to get back to, unless you have another inane job for me to do just to keep stringing me along?” Keigo points out.

“No, we’re good. I’ll let you know what Shigaraki thinks and whether it’s good enough,” Dabi adds smugly and saunters away, purposefully putting his back to Keigo with his wings so diminished. Sighing in annoyance, Keigo walks back the way he came and heads back to the Aerie. He’s got reports he needs to fill out.

~*~

Soon after Hawks leaves and everything that happened in Fukuoka, the reminder that the end of term exams are approaching fast is announced. With that reminder, mild panic descended on 1-A as people scrambled to study for the written exams and no matter how much they ask Aizawa or ask older students, no one can tell them what the practical this time will be.

The only bright spot Izuku has outside of the usual stuff is Todoroki finally finishing his remedial classes and getting his provisional license. He seems to have recovered from the traumatic experience that was the accident that unlocked part of Izuku’s quirk and what happened with Endeavor in Fukuoka. If anything came of that fight between him and his father, he hasn’t said, but he’s gone home a couple of times now and come back looking…thoughtful.

The exams, when they do arrive, are hectic and long. Days of just written exams leaves him a little numb, though feeling good about how he did. The practical, when it is announced, is interesting. It’s actually announced the day before the exam, the class split up into four groups of five with a list of missions and objectives that they will need to complete to finish the practical exam. They are given time to strategize and work. Two teams are villains, two are heroes and they are working against each other, trying to stop the other team from finishing their objectives while still working on their own.

It’s chaotic, it’s fun. Izuku ends up on a villain team with Yaoyorozu and unfortunately for Shinso who is on the hero team they face, they mop the floor with them. Not to say the hero team fails the exam, but they will probably lose some points there. Iida and Uraraka end up on the other villain team, much to the taller teen’s dismay, not wanting to do villainous stuff. He might have overheard Uraraka giving him a talking to about not purposefully throwing the exam just because it was a villain team. Apparently she managed to convince him because they did really well, though the other hero team with Todoroki on it still manages to beat them in the end.

All in all, it’s a good exam and Izuku, when he gets his results back, finds himself near the top of the class on both parts of the exams. He celebrates with Aizawa, Yamada and Eri that night. The following morning, it is announced that they will be doing work studies over the winter holidays. Everyone would need to do it. If they had difficulty finding a hero that the school approved of, their teachers would help.

Izuku’s first thought is Nighteye, of course. However, the email he gets back dashes those hopes. Nighteye is unfortunately very busy and in the middle of multiple sensitive cases and can’t take on a work study right now. He tries Hawks next, but that’s a dead end as well as Hawks isn’t taking on any work study students or even interns, schedule super busy now that he’s ranked number two.

Thwarted on two fronts, he’s about to go to Aizawa and ask for help when Todoroki comes to him with a dilemma. Apparently, Endeavor offered to take him on as a work study student. It’s is a good opportunity, but his relationship with his father leaves him unsure if it’s a good idea. He asks if he does do it, will Izuku go with him, needing a friend there in case things go south like they usually do.

Izuku agrees, though he’s not sure if Endeavor would even agree to take him on. Todoroki assures him that Endeavor will and then goes off to do just that. The next day, he has an email from Endeavor’s agency with the paperwork needed to fill out to be a work study student under Endeavor.

“What did you do to get him agree?” Izuku asks in shock, holding out his phone to show Todoroki the email.

“That if he wanted me to come there, he needed to send you an invite as well,” Todoroki says with a shrug. “He didn’t fight it at all,” he admits with a faint frown.

“Well, I guess we’re both going to be going there,” Izuku says with a grin, excitement coursing through him. He’s barely been outside of Yuuei since he moved into the dorms and everything started to come out about him, other than when he worked under Nighteye, and the few times he visited Eri or went shopping with Yamada.

~*~

Aizawa agrees to sign off on his and Todoroki’s work study requests, reminding them to behave and listen to what they’re told to do. Izuku packs for the few weeks they’ll be there, making sure he’ll have everything he needs.

A new, winter version of his costume is sent to him for final inspection. It’s similar to the green jump suit he started with. Now though, it’s designed to lets his wings in. As well, a thicker jacket is over top, the cold air up high requiring it, as well as better insulation throughout the whole costume in general. He also got communicators for when he’s too high up to be heard, and a pair of goggles with some interactive displays to help him when he’s flying and to protect his eyes from debris. He’d also traded out his staff for a pair of batons, the two less likely to foul up his wings when fighting.

He flushes slightly at the round of applause from Yamada when he shows it off. “Looking good, little listener. Very well thought out design there. If you have any issues or want to add something, let Powerloader know and he’ll see what can be done. Are you packed to leave tomorrow?” he asks.

“Yeah, just have the last few toiletries and such left to pack in the morning,” Izuku admits, pulling the goggles down to let them hang with his mask.

“Good to hear,” Yamada says.

“If you need us, no matter what, call, got it?” Aizawa says with a tap on Izuku’s head with the stack of papers he was putting up after grading them.

“I will,” Izuku promises with a faint grin.

“Alright, go get changed and have fun with your friends. You’re going to be busy here soon and won’t have much time to talk with them,” Yamada says with a wave.

“Okay, bye Eri, be good,” Izuku says and the little girl runs up to hug him before he leaves the apartment to go get changed.

~*~

Izuku is nearly vibrating with excitement as he and Todoroki walk down the hill to the train station. It’s strange to be off campus, but it feels good either way. The air is crisp, though not cold enough for snow yet. Hopefully, it won’t snow much while they train with Endeavor. He’s not flown in really cold weather yet and doesn’t want to make a mistake and get hurt.

Todoroki is his usual quiet self, only saying a few words here and there when Izuku asks him a direct question as he rambles about anything and everything. Eventually, the train arrives at their destination and they get off.

Even from here, they can see Endeavor’s agency, the building towering over the shorter buildings. “I never realized how big his agency is,” Izuku murmurs as they walk.

“He says he likes to see everything, but I think he just likes towering over everyone,” Todoroki mutters.

Despite it looking closer, it’s still a bit of a walk to the actual agency. Izuku looks around excitedly, taking in the new area. He’s never been to this area before, so it’s nice to see all the different shops and stuff.

About halfway to the building, a shiver passes over him and he frowns, glancing around. “What’s up?” Todoroki asks when Izuku pauses.

“I… don’t know,” he whispers, feeling like he should. His head swivels around, but doesn’t see anything out of the ordinary. “I thought I felt someone staring at me,” he admits with a frown.

Todoroki does his own sweep, but finds nothing either. “Maybe it was a fluke?” he offers.

“Maybe,” Izuku murmurs. “Let’s go. We don’t want to be late,” he adds brightly and starts to continue their walk to the agency. Todoroki keeps up easily. If they keep a more vigilant eye out, neither comments on it.

Chapter Text

Izuku collapses to his knees, panting hard after the grueling workout one of Endeavor’s sidekicks just put him through. He never thought he could be this tired. Honestly, the last time he felt this horrid was when he was hospitalized and he slept through most of that.

“Come on, Midoriya-kun, surely you can keep going?” Burnin calls out with a big grin.

“Just…need to catch my breath,” Izuku wheezes out.

“Alright, five minute break,” she decides on and Izuku smiles gratefully at her.

It’s only been three days since he and Todoroki arrived, but already they’ve been making them work hard. Todoroki has been spending a lot of time with his father working on his fire and how to better control it. Izuku, after explaining about his quirk and the new things that recently came to light, was assigned to one of the sidekicks to build up his quirk stamina and start refining a way to use both sides of his quirk. Needless to say, his back and shoulder muscles are sore.

Standing up, Izuku staggers over to the side area and snags his water bottle to take a drink, throat dry. He likes Burnin, she’s very down to earth and listens when he has an idea, or wants to try something. She also doesn’t try to baby him, like some people have done. If he pushes himself too far, then he’ll learn the lesson of what not to do. He knows they’re only looking out for him, but sometimes it feels a little stifling.

 “So, what do you think? Do you think you can activate your scales on your own now?” Burnin asks as she comes over.

Izuku nods. “I think I almost have it. It feels so weird though,” he admits, scratching at his head and grimaces at the sweat caking it before wiping his hand on his exercise clothes.

“Quirks always do, at first. When mine first came on, it took months for it to feel like a normal thing. You’ll get there eventually,” she says with a smile and claps him on the shoulder making him wince at the sore muscles there. “Break’s up, back to work. After this bout, we’ll finish for the day and you can go rest,” she adds.

“Okay,” Izuku agrees with a grin and sets the water bottle down to follow her back onto the training mats. They square off and continue where they left off.

~*~

Shouta is expecting a fairly easy winter break. A couple of weeks of no classes means he can catch up on some sleep and devote a little more of his time and energy to his cases. Hizashi tends to do a lot of charity work during break from his radio station. With Eri, they do curb their stuff a little, spending time with her and making plans for the future for her. She’s made a lot of progress since she came to live with them. While she still doesn’t have enough control of her quirk to be considered safe for other foster placements, she does have enough to start her off with school.

There’s a small, local school that caters to children with hard to control quirks and they managed to get a spot for her next semester. It’s only for half a day for now, to see how she does and if she’ll thrive there. Hopefully, she’ll continue to grow and improve as the days go by.

Still, winter break means a bit of a break for him. He’s just settled for a nap as the only one in the apartment when his phone rings shrilly and he groans softly. Reaching into his pocket, he pulls it out and sees Tsukauchi’s name flashing.

“Yeah,” he mutters into the phone without greeting him. They both know who the other is, why waste time with social pleasantries.

“Sorry to disturb you, Aizawa,” Tsukauchi says. “Normally, I wouldn’t call you, but considering the nature of this case…,” he trails off. Shouta waits patiently for Tsukauchi to start back up. “They found Midoriya Inko and have her in custody,” he finally says.

“What?” Shouta says, sitting up, the blanket he’d been under pooling around his waist.

“Yeah, the local police in Niigata recognized her from her wanted poster and took her into custody. I’m going to be heading that way shortly to question her and arrange for her to be transferred to Musutafu. Normally, we wouldn’t get parental figures involved, but considering your hero status, I think I can wave that policy,” he explains.

“I’ll be there in thirty minutes,” Shouta says and hangs up before Tsukauchi can respond back. Pulse picking up, he rushes around the room grabbing his gear and stamping his feet into his boots.

He pulls out his phone before he leaves to text Hizashi who is currently out at the park with Eri. ‘They found Inko. On my way to where they have her. I’ll let you know what’s going on afterwards. Keep this from Izuku for now,’ he types out hurriedly.

‘Of course. Stay safe.’ Hizashi types back and then Shouta is out the door, snagging their car from Yuuei’s parking and starts to drive towards Tsukauchi’s precinct, thankful it’s not too far from Yuuei.

~*~

Izuku tries to catch his breath as he and Todoroki stand off to the side while Endeavor deals with the police. They’d been too slow to keep up with his fast pace and had gotten to the scene after Endeavor had already finished.

“Man, how is he so fast?” Izuku mutters, rubbing at his shoulder. He knows he’ll never be as fast as Hawks when it comes to flying, but even Endeavor is faster than him.

“He’s got more experience than us,” Todoroki mutters, staring down at his clenched fist. “We’ve got a long way to go to catch up to any of them,” he adds.

Izuku sighs, shoulders and wings sagging a little. “Yeah, I guess you’re right. I just hate falling behind, you know,” he says with a wry grin up at Todoroki.

“Yeah,” Todoroki agrees and then frowns, glancing behind them. Izuku follows his line of sight to see a rather tall man in a business suit standing near an alley entrance staring right at them.

“What’s wrong?” Izuku asks softly, though he keeps an eye on the man.

“He’s been staring at you for a few minutes now,” Todoroki murmurs.

“Are you sure it’s me he’s staring at? He could be staring at Endeavor, or one of his sidekicks, or even you as his son,” Izuku points out quietly.

“No, only you,” Todoroki mutters and then starts to walk towards the guy.

“Todoroki-kun,” Izuku hisses and is forced to follow him.

“Excuse me, why are you staring at my friend?” Todoroki demands bluntly and the man blinks yellow green eyes at them. His hair is slicked back into a short little ponytail that curls a little.

“Ah, I’m sorry, I guess I was staring. It’s just, your friend here reminds me of my son. He also wants to be a hero and this makes me hopeful that he’ll be a hero, too, one day,” he explains with a sheepish smile.

“Oh,” Izuku says with a shy shrug. “Well, maybe he will be. How old is your son?” Izuku asks.

The man smiles thinly. “He’d be about your age by now. I…I haven’t seen him in a long time,” he adds wistfully.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Izuku says with sympathy.

“Things happen, but I’m hopeful I‘ll get to see him soon,” he adds.

“I hope so too,” Izuku agrees with a big grin.

“Is there a problem over here?” Endeavor suddenly speaks up making Izuku jump a little. For being such a big man, he can walk rather quietly when he wants to.

“Ah, Endeavor-san, no…no problem. I was just talking to these two future heroes is all. They will be fine heroes and I can’t wait to see them in the field one day,” he explains quickly.

Endeavor huffs, but finally nods curtly. “You should disperse now. The road has been reopened. We’re leaving,” he adds to Izuku and Todoroki.

“Okay,” Izuku says. “It was nice meeting you, sir. Have a good day and I hope you do get to meet your son soon,” he adds with a wave before he and Todoroki follow Endeavor away.

The man turns away with a smirk, reaching into his pocket to pull out a carton of cigarettes and taps one out. The base of his throat glows red with heat and a small flame is blown out of his mouth to ignite the cigarette before the heat dies back down.

“Well?” a figure nearby asks. “Is it him?”

“It is. Get the others ready and warn them that the plans will be put into motion soon. I just need to speak with our new...recruits,” he murmurs before taking a drag and blowing the smoke out.

“At once sir,” he agrees with a hasty bow and then hurries off. Huffing a laugh, Hisashi takes another drag from the cigarette and blows it out again, though more smoke than he should have inhale is blown out.

“Looks like our family reunion is coming faster than expected,” he murmurs as he exits the other end of the alley and slides into the car waiting there.

~*~

Shouta stares through the one way mirror at Midoriya Inko. The woman looks both the same and different from the last time he saw her before everything happened. Gone is the housewife image of sweaters, slippers and tea. She’s lost weight since he last saw her, her clothes hanging off her slightly. Her hair has been dyed as well to a standard black.

It’s her expression that seems to have changed the most. She’d been so sunny, if a little anxious, when they met last, worried about her son. Now, she just looks resigned, hands fisted on her lap with the cuffs connected to the underside of the table as her shoulders sag in defeat a little.

“Her ID reads Kobayashi Yuki, but it is Midoriya Inko. It’s a good fake, too. Someone knows what they’re doing. There’s even a paper trail for the ID, though if you look at it too closely, it falls apart. Whoever helped her, they’re not an amateur,” Tsukauchi explains after coming in from talking with the police that took Inko in.

“Has she said anything yet?” Shouta asks. He can feel anger boiling under his skin and it takes work to keep in in check. He won’t let his emotions rule him. He wants answers and he’ll get them, but he’s willing to wait if he needs to.

“Not yet. She asked for one phone call as is her right, but when we tried to trace the number, all we could find was a cellphone registered to a Ketuno Aju who doesn’t exist. Whoever she called, no one has shown up yet, either as a lawyer or someone who can help her,” he adds.

“When are you planning to talk with her?” he asks.

“In a few minutes,” Tsukauchi admits.

“I want to be there,” Shouta says tersely.

“Aizawa, you know I can’t allow that. I’m already toeing the line just having you here considering your connection to her son,” Tsukauchi reminds him with a frown.

“Fine,” Shouta mutters and Tsukauchi walks out of the observation room leaving Shouta alone with the speaker on so he can hear.

The door opens to the room and she looks up to watch Tsukauchi come in with her file. He sets it down and sits across from her. “Good morning, Midoriya-san, or is it Kobayashi-san now?” he asks mildly.

Inko doesn’t say anything and Tsukauchi continues. “I’m sure you already know why you have been taken in, but if you would like, I can start to list off the charges currently being filed against you,” he says pointedly. Still Inko refuses to speak. Tsukauchi opens the file. “Child abandonment, child endangerment, use of a harmful medication on a minor without a doctor’s prescription, falsified quirk registration, falsified legal identification, buying said drugs without a prescription…, there’s still quite a few more, but I think we can stop there,” Tsukauchi says evenly. “Do you have anything you’d like to say?” he asks.

Inko doesn’t look up, but she does speak, softly. “Is…Is he okay?” she asks quietly.

“If you mean has he recovered from what he eventually found out, I would say so,” Tsukauchi says evenly. “However, mentally, emotionally, that’s not something someone just gets over,” he says pointedly and Inko flinches slightly. “Now, Midoriya-san, I’m curious as to why exactly you did this? Why you essentially poisoned your son for years and then ran afterwards?” he asks.

Inko doesn’t say anything. “No defense, no trying to explain it away?” he asks.

“May I see him?” she asks softly.

Shouta sees red and storms out of the room at the line. The officer outside the door takes one look at him and wisely steps aside as Shouta shoves open the door to Tsukauchi’s surprise. “Why the hell should we allow you to see him?” he growls out angrily.

Inko looks up and pales a little, recognizing him. “Do you know the trauma you put that boy through, what he still struggles through now?” he demands.

“Aizawa-san,” Tsukauchi yells out, trying to catch his attention, but Shouta only has eyes for Inko.

“I didn’t…,” she starts to stutter out.

“Didn’t what? Think it would hurt him? That he wouldn’t feel betrayed by his own mother? That he wouldn’t resent you for what you took away? That his own mother harmed him, deliberately and repeatedly over the years, because you what…were ashamed of his quirk? Hated that he didn’t have yours? Thought it was unnatural?” he growls out, slamming a hand onto the table.

“I did it to protect him!” Inko screams out, standing and forcing her chair back with a squeal of metal on tile as her hands slam onto the table as far as they can with the chain to her cuffs keeping her bound. Shouta stares at her in silence, meeting her glare for glare as her shoulders rise and fall with angry breathes. “Everything I’ve done is to protect Izuku. Everything I sacrificed was for him, so don’t you dare tell me what I thought,” Inko whispers out.

“Aizawa, back down. Midoriya-san, if this is true then you need to tell us. This paints you in a bad light otherwise,” Tsukauchi says calmly. Shouta blinks and realizes his quirk activated in his anger and has to blink a few times to get rid of some of the dryness.

Despite her words Inko clams up, sitting back down and looks down at her fists in her lap. A tap at the door has them all looking up. It opens to reveal a tall woman with dark red hair and glowing golden eyes. She’s dressed in a simple pant suit, a slim brief case held in her hand.  “Who are you?” Tsukauchi demands.

“I’m Midoriya Inko’s legal representative,” she says simply. “I’m also family,” she adds.

“Naomi,” Inko whispers desperately.

“Sorry, Inko-chan, I think it’s time we stopped this. I warned you when you chose this course of action that it would eventually blow up in your face. Now it has and we still need help if we’re to keep him from getting what he wants,” Naomi says simply.

“It is not their business to know,” Inko hisses angrily.

“Even if telling them means protecting Izu-chan?” she asks back and Inko pales a little before her shoulders bow.

“What the hell is going on here?” Aizawa demands, red flags waving everywhere. “Who are you talking about?”

Naomi stares at Inko, but she doesn’t say anything against her speaking so Naomi comes the rest of the way into the room and shuts the door behind her. “Inko’s ex-husband, Izuku’s father, all this scheming, this whole plan, was too keep Inko and Izuku away from him. They’ve been under my protective custody for the last fifteen years,” Naomi says evenly, holding out an ID.

Shouta takes it, glancing at it first before handing it to Tsukauchi. “IPS? I thought the International Protective Services didn’t let family protect family?” Shouta says with a raised brow.

“They don’t, they didn’t know about me helping Inko go into hiding with Izuku. When they did find out, I left, about five years ago. Thankfully, I still had my own contacts and I started my own freelance business afterwards while still keeping Inko and Izuku safe,” she explains.

“You still haven’t said just who his father is?” Tsukauchi points out.

“No, I haven’t,” Naomi says softly, eyeing Inko, but the woman seems to have given up, shoulders bowed, her hair falling around her face to hide her expression. “Tell me gentlemen, what do you know of the villain the Dragon?” she asks evenly.

Shouta stills, thoughts tumbling as he pulls up all he’s heard about such a renowned villain. “You’re saying…,” he trails off.

“He is Izuku’s father. He’s currently left America to come to Japan because he now knows where Inko and Izuku are,” Naomi explains simply.

“You’re saying the Dragon is currently in Japan, in Musutafu as we speak,” Tsukauchi asks, barely holding onto his calm.

“For about a month at least, possibly sooner. He wants what he sees as his…his wife and his son. He won’t stop until he has them,” Naomi explains simply.

A soft sob escapes Inko and Naomi reacts quickly, rushing over to kneel down and awkwardly hug Inko. “It’s okay, Inko-chan. I know this is hard, but this is honestly the best option in the long run,” Naomi whispers to her.

Tsukauchi stands quickly. “I need to get the word out. If the Dragon is in Musutafu and no one’s seen him yet, that can’t be good,” he murmurs to Shouta and quickly steps out of the room.

Shouta takes his vacated seat, Naomi snagging the extra chair in the corner. “I think we need to start at the beginning here,” he says evenly. “No offense, but how did you get involved with an internationally renowned villain?” he asks.

“He wasn’t that famous back then and at the time, I didn’t know what he was,” Inko whispers. “He said he was a business man working in one of his company’s American branches. I was studying abroad at the time. It’s lonely, to be foreign in America, and to find a familiar face, someone who speaks the same language, was so nice. We met in a coffee shop of all places and things just happened,” Inko whispers. Naomi hands her a handkerchief and she dabs at her eyes.

“I dropped out of college, we got married, and it was an amazing life. Eventually, I got pregnant and had Izuku. I thought things couldn’t get any better,” she whispers. “After Izuku was born, he started to act strange, just a little. I thought it was just fatherhood affecting him. Then he went on a business trip, a long one. He planned to be gone for months.”

“I was okay with it. There was plenty of money and he’d hired a few people to help out, a maid and a driver to get me around,” she continues. “I didn’t realize that they were there to keep an eye on me for him. I was looking for something in our rooms and I found something I shouldn’t. There was a gun stashed under our bed. I thought maybe he just had it for protection.”

“But I kept looking. I found other weapons, a stash of cash, even multiple fake IDs all showing fake names. There was newspaper clippings as well, all focused on the up and coming villain, the Dragon,” Inko whispers. “I put everything back before anyone saw, then I grabbed Izuku and went to the park. I needed to think and get out of that apartment.”

“I walked for a while and then I remembered Naomi. She always told me if I ever needed help, to call her. So I did. I asked her to come visit, that I really missed her and needed to talk with her about something, that she hadn’t seen Izuku yet,” Inko whispers.

“She babbled a lot, but I finally realized she was asking for help without saying anything in case the phone was wired,” Naomi says.

“How are you two related?” Shouta asks, not seeing much similarity between them.

“We’re cousins. Our parents were siblings. Inko looks more like our grandmother, I took after grandfather,” she says with a shrug, flicking a red bang out of her face.

“So anyway, I arrived the next day. I thankfully happened to be in the US on a job. I took some time off, visited her and she explained what she found, showed me the clippings. I put the pieces together and realized what I needed to do. It took a bit of work to do it without my job finding out. Hisashi wasn’t expected back for a while, so we at least had time. Two days later, I had them on a flight back to Japan. I gave them enough time to visit family and then I bundled them away under a new name, a whole new identity,” Naomi explains.

“I wasn’t allowed to see any family after that, in case he was watching them. I didn’t even get to go to either of my parent’s funerals or my grandparents either. It’s been hard living like this, but I did it to protect Izuku,” Inko whispers.

“So you’ve been living under protection this whole time. That still doesn’t explain the quirk suppressants,” Shouta growls out.

“When Izuku was four, he wasn’t showing signs of a quirk coming in. So I took him to get checked over. They found him growing wings. I panicked. I thought he was going to have Hisashi’s quirk, would be just like him. I thought Hisashi would be able to track him down some way because they had similar quirks. Naomi warned me it was a bad idea, but I didn’t listen. We bribed the doctor to falsify his report and show Izuku was quirkless and he destroyed his scans. Naomi has a contact that got us the suppressants. Afterward, I got a new monthly supply in the mail and I dosed Izuku’s dinner every day. I hated doing it, that I was denying him his quirk, but I felt it was the only way to protect him from Hisashi finding us. Only now, it’s pointless. Hisashi found us and now he knows where Izuku is,” Inko whispers.

“Why did you let him go to the dorms?” Shouta asks. “You could have kept him with you, kept all of this from coming to light. Gone somewhere else and started over. Yes, you might have had to explain it to him, but he would have gone with it. Why let him go?” he asks.

“I…I haven’t seen Izuku as happy as he was when he found out he got in to Yuuei. Being labeled quirkless, I knew it would be bad, but I never realized how bad. But by then, it was too late and I couldn’t undo what I’d done, so I did the best I could to mitigate the damage. When I saw how desperate he was to keep going to Yuuei, despite everything that had happened…I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t take that away from him. So I let him go. I hoped Yuuei would be able to protect him when I couldn’t,” she whispered.

“And so you fled, abandoning him to finding out the worst things you had done,” Shouta murmurs.

“I’m sure he hates me and he’s right to hate me, but I hope one day he’ll let me tell him how sorry I am. That I only wanted to protect him,” Inko whispers.

The door opens suddenly and Tsukauchi comes rushing in, expression panicked as he listens to the person on the other end of his cellphone. Shouta’s phone dings an alarm alert specifically for Yuuei, something they had implemented right after everything with Bakugō happened. Shouta pulls his phone out and sees in bold letters ‘BLACK ALERT, STUDENT MISSING, MIDORIYA IZUKU’S LAST KNOWN LOCATION: TOKYO, HERO IN CHARGE OF THEM IS CURRENTLY ENROUTE TO HOSPITAL, SEVERLY INJURED, ALL HANDS NEEDED.’

His phone beeps with an incoming text from Hizashi. “Someone has Izuku. Get back now!”

Shouta looks up at Tsukauchi. “It’s confirmed, local police on the scene have reported him missing. The sidekick he was patrolling with is currently being rushed to the ER. They’re looking for cameras to see if they caught anything, but as of right now, no one has eyes on Izuku,” Tsukauchi says evenly.

“What?” Inko whispers in shock.

Chapter Text

Breakfast that morning is a quiet affair. Him and Todoroki meet in the dorm kitchen the agency has and eat what they normally would: a largely protein meal for himself and Todoroki eating his usual traditional breakfast.

His phone dings with a text and he opens it up to see a good morning text from Uraraka who is currently back with Ryukyu. Shinso had ended up with Joke with Aizawa-sensei’s help and Iida had gone back to Manual after promising to not step out of line after his last stay at the hero’s agency.

“What’s on the schedule today?” Izuku asks after finishing a bite of food.

“Early training and then a patrol,” Todoroki murmurs with a faint frown. “I don’t like being split up,” he mutters.

“It’s fine, Todoroki-kun. We can’t always be teamed up. This way, we can get experience from multiple sources. Though I did figure Endeavor would be leading again for patrol,” he adds thoughtfully.

“There’s a meeting at the HPSC main building he has to go to. He wasn’t sure how long he’d be, so he arranged work with his sidekicks,” Todoroki explains.

“Oh, yeah, I guess being the number one hero means you get called on a lot for important things,” Izuku says with a nod. “Well, let’s finish up here and head down to training. I know Burnin doesn’t like to be kept waiting.” Todoroki nods and they quickly finish their breakfast before cleaning up and heading to get changed into workout clothes.

~*~

Izuku smiles bashfully as the old lady he just helped across the street thanks him with a pinched cheek and a bit of candy. As she walks away, he hears soft, snorting laughter and flushes harder at Burnin trying to smother her laughter.

“Yeah, yeah,” Izuku mutters, turning away to face Burnin. “It’s not that funny,” he adds.

“I don’t know. You look really comfortable helping old ladies. Maybe that’s your calling. You’d get all the pinched cheeks and a mountain of hard candy,” she adds before her chuckles die off and she starts to lead the way back along their patrol route.

“I used to help out all the older people in my old apartment complex,” he admits. “They usually didn’t care that I was quirkless,” he explains softly. Burnin had been filled in on his previous quirk status and his more recent changes.

“Yeah, I’m sure,” she agrees softer. “So, how’s the research going? You said you still weren’t sure what branch of heroics you wanted to do,” she reminds him.

“Not well. I still can’t decide. Is it bad that I just want to do it all?” he asks.

“Nah, not bad, though some might say you need to make a decision and if you can’t then you shouldn’t be in the game, but they’re idiots. There’s nothing wrong with wanting to specialize in a little of everything. Makes you well rounded. However, you will be required to declare a specialization before you’ll be given your hero license. That doesn’t mean you have to do just that, but it will dictate what kinds of missions you get called for the most,” she explains.

“Like a rescue hero usually only being called for rescue missions and such,” Izuku says.

“Exactly. It also helps them prepare for those who go underground to get their identities under lock and key, you know,” she adds.

“You know a lot about this,” Izuku says, looking up at the taller woman.

“I was a bit like you. I couldn’t decide, but I finally settled on limelight because I wanted to be seen helping. I’m not looking to be on the TV, but I want the people I’m watching over to see that I’m making a difference any way I can. To show those who said I wasn’t cut out for this work that they were wrong. Maybe it makes me a little selfish, or self-centered, or whatever, but I’ve never lied to myself or the world. This is me. Take it or leave it,” she explains.

“There’s nothing wrong with that,” Izuku says with a grin. “You’re still helping people at the end of the day.”

“Exactly,” she agrees with her own grin.

“Excuse me,” a woman calls out and they both look over to see a dark haired woman walking up. “Burnin-san, could you help me please?” she asks.

“Of course. What’s wrong?” she asks with a nod, falling into hero mode with ease.

“My friend hurt his leg. We think it might be broken, but if you could take a look at it? We want to avoid moving him too much if it is broken,” she explains.

“Sure, lead the way,” Burnin says and they start to follow the woman towards a side street.

As they near the side street, there’s a clatter and they both look to see a man struggling to refill his spilled box. Izuku quickly sees why he spilled it. One arm is missing and his prosthetic is currently off to the side on the ground.

Izuku looks at Burnin. “Go help him out while I help her out. We’ll meet back here,” she orders and Izuku nods. “Keep your gear on though in case I need to find you,” she adds and Izuku taps the small tracker on his belt to show the green light is on and active.

Grinning, she ruffles his hair and then turns to follow the woman into the side street as Izuku quickly walks over to the man. “Here, let me help you,” Izuku says and quickly grabs a few items out of his reach.

“Oh, thank you. I normally don’t need the help, but…,” he trails off to look at his prosthetic. “My arm is on the fritz and I’ve not had a chance to get it looked at. Makes carrying big boxes fun,” he jokes.

“Yeah, I’m sure. Let me help you get it where you need to take it,” Izuku offers.

“Oh, thank you. That would be most kind,” he says as Izuku grabs the last few items and tucks them into the box. The man adds his arm as well and then Izuku hefts the box. “I’m Atsuhiro,” he adds with a slight bow.

“Oh, um…I still haven’t settled on a hero name, but you can call me…Wyvern I guess. It’s on the list I’ve made, but I haven’t been able to settle on which name I want to use,” he jokes.

“It’s a good name whether you go with it or not,” Atsuhiro says with a small smile. “This way,” he adds and starts to lead the way in the opposite direction Burnin went. “I was just heading a bit further down this way.”

“What do you do for a living Atsuhiro-san?” Izuku asks as they walk.

“Oh, I’m a street performer,” he explains with a smile. “A bit of sleight of hand kind of stuff,” he adds.

“Oh, so this stuff is what you use for your tricks?” Izuku asks, looking into the box that contains a few things that could be used for magic.

“Most of it, some is just stuff I needed to move. Really, my best stuff is escape tricks and the real magician stuff, the stuff that leaves people coming back, you know?” he says as they keep walking further. “It’s in the blood. My great, great grandfather was famous for this kind of stuff. But it’s hard to make a living doing this when quirks exist,” he adds with a sigh.

“Quirks are nice and all, but I’d love to see some old fashioned magic tricks. No help, just sleight of hand and misdirection,” Izuku says with enthusiasm.

“I’d be happy to give you a show one day,” Atsuhiro says as they turn a corner. The side street comes to a dead end.

“Is this it?” Izuku asks with a frown, seeing nothing, but a dumpster and no doors. Atsuhiro reaches out with his hand and grabs Izuku’s wrist as he starts to turn and the world goes white. The box drops once again with a thump.

Atsuhiro smiles down at his palm where the small blue bead rests before tucking it in his pocket. Reaching into the box, he grabs his prosthetic and reattaches it, flexing the limb to make sure it’s set properly.

Reaching into the box, he pulls out the small tracker he’d slipped off the teen’s belt while he wasn’t looking. Dropping it to the ground, he slams his boot down onto it and the device cracks, the green light going out. Satisfied, he grabs and marbleizes the box, too, before he saunters back out of the alley and heads towards the meet up point.

~*~

Hisashi stares passively as the ragtag members of the LOV all file into the warehouse where he’s currently staying out of sight. Of the ones left after Kamino happened and their encounters with other groups and the police, only two he feels need to be kept an eye on.

Blue eyes regard him distrustfully, as they should, as Dabi stays near the back of the group. Shigaraki is standing off to the side scratching in irritation at his neck as Compress comes forward.  The other’s, while useful, are not possible threats, so he barely casts a glance at them.

“Well?” he asks evenly.

Compress reaches into his pocket and fishes out a small, round, blue bead that he hands over. He almost thinks the man is pulling one over on him until the light hits it just so and he catches a brief glimpse of his son inside, expression just starting to show surprise.

“Your son, Dragon, as requested,” Compress murmurs before stepping back.

“We couldn’t get to your wife. She apparently ended up in police custody recently and we had no way to reach her,” Dabi speaks up with his raspy voice.

“Is that so?” he asks and gestures to one of his people who walks off, pulling out his phone to make discreet enquires.

“Well?” Shigaraki demands waspishly when he doesn’t say anything else. “We had a deal. We upheld our end of things. Now how do you propose to uphold your end?” he asks.

Hisashi tucks the bead into his pocket before turning yellow green eyes on the young and ignorant upstart. “The deal was you would bring my wife and son to me, and in return I would break All For One from his prison. I only have my son, so the deal is unfulfilled,” he points out evenly, keeping the grin he wants to unleash hidden at the shocked look on Shigaraki’s face.

“You said she would be easy to get and would be at a specific location. She wasn’t. You gave us false information. You will uphold your end of the deal,” Shigaraki growls out and takes a threatening step forward towards Hisashi, hands curling at his side.

His people react to his threat, reaching for weapons or readying their quirks and he holds a hand out, stopping them. Hisashi takes a step closer, a low growl entering his voice. “Do you think to force me, child?” he asks softly, a sneer making his mouth curl slightly. “You may have a powerful quirk, but that doesn’t make you powerful. You think that just because you’ve made a little name for yourself, you can do whatever you want when in reality it was All For One pulling all the strings for you and you have no idea what you’re doing,” he points out lowly.

Shigaraki reacts how he expects, hand lashing out for center mass, quirk ready to take him out. His shirt is unfortunately the first casualty of his quirk, falling to pieces before flesh meets flesh. He feels a bit of a sting from the quirk before the roiling heat coming off his skin finally registers and Shigaraki cries out in pain, yanking his severely burned hand away, cradling it to his chest as he falls to his knees.

Hisashi sighs softly, motioning for one of his people to grab him a new shirt. That had been one of his favorite shirts too. He’ll have to get a replacement for it later. “Your attack shows your ignorance. A touch based quirk is fine and all, until you can’t touch someone. I just burned your whole palm. You’ll be lucky if you can ever use your quirk out of that hand again,” he remarks mildly as one of his people reappears with a fresh shirt.

He rips the remaining scraps off his person and pulls on the fresh shirt, buttoning it up with ease of practice. “You have a few options right now,” he remarks mildly. “The first: you can leave and never show your faces to me again. The second: you can attack me and my people. You might take out a few of them, but I doubt you’ll survive very long,” he remarks mildly, finishing buttoning the shirt up and tucks it into his pants. “Third…you can stay here, join my hoard and actually make a name for yourselves,” he says.

“So, join you or die,” Dabi speaks up with a frown.

“But he said we could leave,” Toga points out.

Dabi snorts disdainfully. “He’s been very careful about not being seen when going out. He used us to get his family rather than use himself or his people. He’s trying to keep a low profile. The fact that he’s let us see him in person means we’ve seen too much. We can leave, but there’s no guarantee we’ll survive very long once we walk out that door,” he points out.

“That’s not fair. That’s smart! You hired us,” Twice yells out.

Hisashi nods slightly, glad to see someone has brains around here. “The way I see it, you’re doomed to die eventually. You’ve lost your best pieces. Your warp companion is gone, in police custody. All For One got locked up and for that alone, he should stay there. If he was even half the villain he used to be, he would have never gotten caught like that. He’s weak and the weak should rot for all I care,” Hisashi says boldly. “You’re currently being hunted here and it’s only a matter of time before it all comes falling down. I can change that for you,” he says, crouching down in front of Shigaraki who is still clutching his burned hand.

One clawed finger comes under his chin and forces him to look up with glaring red eyes. “All For One was a little too heavy handed when it came to you. He tried to force you into the mold he wanted and warped you instead. You just needed nurturing. A firm hand to guide, but allowing you to make your own mistakes,” he murmurs. “He would have thrown you away the moment he got what he needed from you. If you join my hoard, you stay, precious and protected. I keep my hoard, protecting it, helping it, growing it. You wouldn’t be a pawn to throw away. You would mean something here,” he murmurs.

“All of you,” he adds, looking at the rest of them. “If you join me, you all come under my protection.” Uncertain glances are shared amongst them. Hisashi stands and steps back. “I’ll give you an hour to think it over. Koji, get them some food and drink. Henry, get the doctor to look at Shigaraki’s hand. Hopefully, she’ll be able to get use of it back,” he calls out and people jump to. “One hour, and then I’ll expect an answer,” he calls before walking away. “Compress, with me for a moment. I will be releasing my son shortly,” he adds and Compress nods before sharing one last look with the others before following Hisashi further into the warehouse.

~*~

Shouta storms Endeavor’s agency with Tsukauchi, Midoriya Inko and Akatani Naomi who introduced herself along the way. The only reason Inko isn’t still in cuffs is because he and Tsukauchi don’t believe she’s a flight risk anymore. In fact, she volunteered herself willingly to come when they found out about Izuku being missing.

Endeavor is waiting for them in his office, his son off to the side with a pinched expression. Burnin, despite being previously severely wounded and barely patched up, is in the office too, though at least in a wheelchair. Nedzu is already there with Hizashi waiting for them to arrive.

Hizashi, upon seeing him, walks over with a worried frown on his face. “Do you know what is going on?” he asks softly.

“Some,” he admits with a frown of his own. “Not enough to help just yet,” he adds. “Where’s Eri?” he asks.

“Nemuri offered to watch her while we dealt with this,” he informs Shouta.

“Good, she doesn’t need to be swept up in this,” Shouta says with a sigh. He turns eyes on Endeavor and his sidekick. “What happened?” he demands.

“Where is my son?” Inko adds.

Endeavor eyes the woman, already aware somewhat of Izuku’s current familial situation in case something happened. Nedzu speaks up first before he can. “Whoever did this knew what they were doing. Only one camera was in the area. It caught Izuku, Burnin and the young woman that attacked her, but not who Izuku was taken by. We found his tracker broken where he was taken and no signs of a struggle. My guess is a quirk was used to subdue him,” he explains.

“Why did he go off alone to begin with?” Shouta demands.

“It’s my fault,” Burnin speaks up. “The woman asked for my help and the man Izuku went with was struggling to carry a box. I thought it was fine. It seemed cut and dry until I ended up with a knife in my gut multiple times. I managed to hit my SOS, but by the time help arrived, the girl was gone and Izuku was missing,” she explains.

“Do we know who the woman was?” Shouta asks. Obviously these two were working together if they coordinated to separate a hero from their work study student.

“We’re still running her image through our databases, but nothing has shown up yet. We had a sketch artist draw the man she saw, but that hasn’t given us anything either,” Nedzu admits, holding up the image of the man. It’s obviously an approximation and not a true drawing, the face not quite whole, only prominent features really standing out. “We do have somewhat of a lead: the man is disabled. He had a prosthetic left arm. That should narrow it down some,” he adds.

“Well we know who took Izuku, or who hired these people to take him,” Tsukauchi admits and all eyes turn on him. “It has come to light Izuku’s true parentage. His father is the Dragon who has recently arrived in Japan looking for his son and wife,” he gestures to Inko who flinches, looking down at her fisted hands. Naomi reaches out to rest a hand on her shoulder in solidarity.

“Oh,” Nedzu murmurs, a faint frown marring his furred face. “That actually explains more than it doesn’t. That would explain the quirk,” he adds.

“The Dragon,” Endeavor growls out with a heavy frown. “Describe him,” he orders.

Naomi speaks up first. “Dark, curly hair, usually keeps it tied in a short tail. Yellow green eyes. Tall, well over six feet. Likes to wear suits. Screams of money,” she adds drily.

Shouta notices the way Shouto looks up in shock. Endeavor growls under his breath. “He’s in Tokyo, or was. He was watching him a few days ago. I thought he was a bystander. He was checking my protection,” he huffs out angrily, the heat in the room rising momentarily.

“He waited until Izuku wasn’t around you and then struck,” Hizashi speaks up. “That means he’s been watching this building, or someone he hired has. If you have surveillance around the building, you might find them on a camera,” he points out.

Endeavor reaches for his desk and snatches up a phone. “Kidashi, get some people on the surveillance feeds for the outside of the building. We’re looking for someone seen multiple times watching the building for long periods of time and then leaving as soon as they see Midoriya leave the building,” he orders. They say something and then the phone is slammed down, though thankfully isn’t broken.

“Until we can find some way to track him down, we’re in a holding pattern, I’m afraid,” Nedzu speaks up to the sudden silence of the room. “The police are canvasing the area to see if anyone has seen either person and if you would be so kind as to speak with the sketch artist to make an image of the Dragon, we can hopefully narrow down where they are at,” Nedzu says to Naomi.

“I can do you one better. I have surveillance footage of him,” she says and opens her briefcase to start leafing through it and pulls out a photo. It’s not the greatest quality, but it indeed shows a tall, older man who looks like he could be Izuku’s father.

“That’s him,” Endeavor growls out once he looks at it.

“I’ll get this circulating with the police forces and hopefully we’ll find something,” Tsukauchi says and Naomi hands it over.

“Perhaps if we could wait somewhere,” Nedzu says pointedly to Endeavor who nods and calls in his secretary to show them to an area where they can sit and discuss anything necessary while they wait for any news.

~*~

Izuku blinks at the sudden light change. It takes a few long seconds to realize something has happened, mind not wanting to compute the sudden change in environment. And then it hits as he looks around for Atsuhiro and finds him gone and himself in…a room.

He…was just outside…wasn’t he? When… He looks around frantically, feeling his heartrate speed up as dread starts to curl in his stomach. A brief glance shows he’s alone in a small bare room with only a simple cot, a blanket and two doors. One is closed and when he goes to it, locked. The other is open showing just a toilet and sink and not much else.

Izuku ends back up in the middle of the room, breathing coming faster as panic starts to set in. He remembers suddenly the tracker he was given at the start of his work study and the SOS button on it. He reaches for it on his belt and finds just an empty spot where it should be.

He looks down and sees it’s gone. The panic hits hard then, breathing coming faster as he starts to pace, mind swirling, trying to figure out where he is, what happened. He’s not sure how long passes before he hears so clearly in his mind, Aizawa’s voice talking to him. ‘Calm down. Panicking won’t help anything.’

Izuku stops mid pace and takes a slow breath. He remembers that lesson. It had been a tough lesson that he had sat the whole class down for: what to do if you end up captured. The school had planned it weeks after Katsuki had been taken by the LOV.

What were the steps they told them…calm down and don’t panic, learn what you can, study your captures, use their mistakes against them. It had been such a cut and dry list of things and Izuku had wondered if there should be more or less. Now, he can see that the words came from experience.

So…learn what he can. He’s stuck in this room, but maybe there’s something to learn here. Taking another calming breath, he starts to explore. The door out is indeed locked with multiple locks. He can see the locks through the crack. There’s steady light coming through as well which means the door connects to the inside of a building. The hinges aren’t on the inside either so no trying to take those out.

The bathroom is bare of anything except a bar of soap and a small hand towel. The water, when he runs it, is clear and cold, no heat coming out. There is no mirror, which sucks. He could have possibly used it as a weapon or to see around corners after breaking it.

The cot is just a simple metal frame with fabric stretched across. The blanket is thin and barely big enough to cover him. He’s not sure if they intend to hold him indefinitely in here, but it might be a possibility.

He’s scouring the walls in a desperate attempt to maybe find a loose section or a hidden vent when he stumbles across a tiny camera. He doesn’t even realize what it is until he pries at it with a talon and pops it out of the concrete wall. There’s a drilled hole through and wires snaking behind the camera. Glaring at it, he yanks on it hard and the camera comes out, the wires sparking. His hand stings a little at the mild shock, but he ignores it. He finds a second one on the opposite wall and a third over the door. Thankfully, the bathroom is clear of them.

Why are they watching him? Is it to make sure he’s not going to attack them? Are they expecting him to do or say something? Who are these people that took hm? He’s been here for a few hours already and no one has come to the door, no one has even walked by that he could hear. What are they waiting for?

Is it the LOV? They took Katsuki from the training camp, were even going to take Tokoyami as well. Why take him though? Before everything came out, he was just a quirkless nobody. They hadn’t even announced his quirk, though his registration had been changed quietly by Yuuei to update the discovery of his quirk. They shouldn’t know about his quirk. Yes, he’s been off campus with his quirk revealed for a few days here, but still…

If it’s not the LOV, then who? Atsuhiro, if that was his name, was obviously working with that woman. They coordinated together to get him separated from Burnin. Did they capture Burnin too? Is she in a different room?

For that matter, why isn’t he tied up? They even left all his gear, including weapons, only taking the tracker. What kind of kidnapping is this to leave him things to use to fight with? He double checks his pouches and confirms they are all there, even his collapsible batons. Do they have some means to subdue him, even from outside the door?

Why is he here? That is the most pressing question and his mind keeps circling back to it. What do they need him for?

He doesn’t know how long he’s been standing still in the room, mind whirling in circles as he tries to figure things out when there’s a series of sounds…the locks one by one coming undone.

Izuku freezes, heart in his throat as he hastily grabs his batons and extends them, ready to fight whoever is coming in. The final lock clicks and then silently, the door opens, more light from outside flooding the dim room.

No one enters. Swallowing, Izuku creeps closer and peers through the partially opened door to see a hall leading away from his door which seems to be at the end of the hall. Taking a steadying breath, Izuku slowly creeps out of the room, senses straining to hear any sound of movement as he heads away from the room he was being held in, all the while expecting some sort of trap.

Chapter Text

The hall is silent as he creeps down it. The doors along it, when he checks them, are all locked. When he listens at them, he hears nothing. The hall feels like it goes on forever, but in reality, it’s maybe a hundred feet at most before he comes to the end and a final door. He’s expecting it to be locked too, like all the others and is shocked to find it unlocked and easy to open.

It doesn’t even make a sound as he slowly pushes the door open into a large room. It’s large because he can’t see the far walls, the ceiling fairly high. In front of him are stacks of large crates and containers. He must be in some sort of warehouse to have these here.

He almost takes to the air to get a vantage point, but stops. Up there, he’ll be spotted quickly, nowhere to hide. Down here at least he can duck behind a crate or something. He needs to find an exit and that means making it through the warren without being spotted.

So, taking a slow breath to calm his nerves, Izuku creeps forward. He listens hard, but there’s no sound beside the ambient noises of the warehouse: the faint buzz of the overhead lights, the whirring of the vents.

He pauses, hearing a soft murmur of someone walking nearby on the other side of some crates. He can’t make out what they’re saying, the person talking too softly, but his heart is in his throat as he waits for them to pass. He hears a distant door close. Hopefully, they weren’t going to where he was being held, or they’ll raise the alarm.

He keeps creeping along and stops again as he hears another door open loudly before it goes quiet again. He starts pushing forward again before he hears steps approaching and heavy breathing. He glances around, looking for a place to duck behind, but he’s in a fairly open section.

He’s just about to duck back the way he came when someone comes stumbling around the corner ahead of him. Izuku pauses, heart in his throat before he finally recognizes the man in front of him. It’s the man he talked to the other day, who was hopeful to meet his son. Why is he here? He jumps when he spots Izuku and then relief crosses his face. “Oh, it’s you,” he murmurs softly.

“What are you doing here?” Izuku asks, quickly walking over to him.

“I don’t know. I woke up here. It’s been a few hours and then the room I was in unlocked and I found my way out here,” he explains quickly.

“Same,” Izuku says with a frown. “I don’t know what is going on, but we’re getting out of here. Come on,” he says and starts to lead the way forward again. He glances back to see the man is following. “I’m Izuku by the way,” he adds softly.

“Hisashi,” he replies as he follows.

They keep going, Izuku stopping them as someone walks nearby before they continue. “Do you remember anything about what happened before you woke up here?” he asks.

“Not much. I was on my way home. I ran into someone and knocked them over. When I went to help them up…it goes fuzzy and then I woke up here,” he explains.

“I was helping someone and then I ended up here,” Izuku explains. He stops them at the end of the section of crates and glances around. Most of the crates end here. All that’s left is a smattering of a few crates and mostly open space to a set of doors on the far wall. There’s also a set of doors for what looks like loading bays. This must be the way outside.

“That looks like the way out. There’s no one around. If we’re quick and quiet, we can get to the door and get out. Think you’re up for some exercise?” Izuku asks with a faint grin back at Hisashi.

“Oh, I’m sure I can manage,” Hisashi says with a smirk.

Nodding Izuku steps out of the crates and grabs Hisashi’s arm to start pulling him towards the far wall, the man keeping pace easily. He’s maybe halfway across the space before he feels the hairs on the back of his neck go up, feeling a sudden spike of heat in the air around them.

Before he can react, he’s shoved forward hard, landing harshly on his front, one arm still held by Hisashi and not able to fully catch himself. He accidentally bites his own tongue, blood filling his mouth as he hits his chin on landing.

His arm is suddenly yank into a painful position, a knee jamming into his back, pinning at least one of his wings as a body presses him to the floor. Hot air brushes by his ear as they lean forward…as Hisashi leans forward, Izuku finally realizes. “First lesson: never trust anything at face value,” he murmurs lowly with a soft chuckle.

~*~

Keigo gets the alert midflight on his way back from the Commission. He’d been reporting in on the LOV, what little he has on them. They’ve been suspiciously quiet recently, not even bugging hm for stupid, annoying jobs in an attempt to gain their favor.

He stops midflight, hovering in the air as he reads the alert and his heart lurches. He knows Izuku went to Endeavor’s agency after he was unfortunately forced to turn him and Tokoyami down for a work study. He didn’t feel he could be a good teacher with his life currently pulled between his hero work and trying to get into the LOV without tipping his hand. They need someone who can focus on them.

It takes an hour hard flying to arrive at Endeavor’s agency. They don’t even look surprised to see him there, just direct him to the conference room the others have taken over while they search for Izuku. What he’s not expecting is to meet Izuku’s mother and aunt, learn about why his mother did what she did, though he wants to throttle her for her reasoning for the suppressants, and who exactly Izuku’s father is, the one who has apparently taken him.

“Is there anything?” he asks the techs who are scouring the surveillance feeds trying to find a common face.

“Not yet. They either knew where the cameras were and found a blind spot, had a quirk that allowed them to stay hidden, or we just haven’t spotted them yet,” one woman admits.

Keigo frowns at their words, mind sifting through what pieces he has and what info he has on the Dragon. He knows about him and some of his bigger exploits. Despite his origins in Japan, he’s stuck mainly to America. He knows he’s got some sort of transformative and heat based quirk and that he has a lot of people under his command.

“How sure are we that he doesn’t have someone with some sort of disguise based quirk?” he asks aloud and most look to him, some with grimaces that show they’ve already considered the option. It’s a good question too. Body altering quirks are fairly common. Some can change their hair or their eyes, or body proportions. Some can change their whole body. And even then, a man this paranoid, he might not have sent the same person to watch the agency. They’re honestly looking for a needle in a very large haystack.

“We’ll find something,” Mic says hopefully, expression strained. It’s already been a few hours. Hours in which someone has had Izuku and could be doing who knows what to him.

He steps aside and sends his own quick update to the Commission. They’ve probably already heard, but anything will help and the Commission has resources not disclosed to the public or most heroes for that matter.

He’s just sent off the report when he receives a text from a number he really doesn’t want to deal with right now. Sighing silently and turning away so they can’t notice his faint frown, Keigo opens the text. It’s just a location with the word ASAP next to it. This is the most inopportune moment for this. He feels his desire to find Izuku warring with his need to further this mission before a thought comes to him that has him pausing. This can’t be a coincidence.

“Sorry,” he calls out with a faint smile. “I need to make a call. Text me if you find anything and I’ll be ready,” Keigo says and they all nod, though Nedzu eyes him suspiciously, though he doesn’t say anything.

Keigo takes the elevator to the ground floor and goes out the back of the agency.

It’s not hard to pull up the location and see that it actually isn’t that far from here which makes his suspicions flare higher. With a grime twist to his mouth, he takes to the air. He doesn’t have time to go covertly right now. He’ll go to ground before he reaches the location to avoid being seen.

~*~

Izuku jams an elbow into Hisashi’s side like he was taught by Hawks and the man backs up with a grunt, giving him enough wiggle room roll out from under him and come back to his feet with a glare. Hisashi doesn’t follow, stays seated on the ground with a smirk. “Not bad. At least they teach you well at that hero school,” he murmurs.

“Who are you?” Izuku demands. Obviously this is the person who took him, or had him taken. Why play the ruse of helpless civilian otherwise? Which means their interaction before was a ruse as well. He was watching Izuku before. Why?

“Oh, I’m sure you’ll figure it out soon enough. I can see that mind of yours whirring, looking for answers,” Hisashi says with a shrug and slowly gets up, even turning his back to Izuku, not seeing him as a threat. “So, you tell me. Who am I to you?” he asks.

“Just tell me,” Izuku demands, eyes flicking around the room. It’s still just the two of them. Maybe if he’s quick enough.

A fist lands hard in his gut and sends him sprawling to the floor, making him wheeze as he tries to catch his breath and not puke. Hisashi tuts softly. “Really, it’s rude to be looking to leave when we just started our interaction. Lesson two: don’t be obvious with your tells. Don’t let them see what you’re planning. Honestly, if this is Yuuei’s standards, it’s not at all worth it’s tuition or reputation,” Hisashi huffs out in annoyance.

Izuku coughs weakly, still holding his stomach as he struggles to get back up. He’s fast and strong. That punch was barely held back. Izuku swallows nervously. It’s obvious Hisashi wants him to play along to whatever this is and he’s not going to get out of this easily.

With a grimace, Izuku takes off back the way he came, towards the crates and away from Hisashi. He needs some space between them. Hisashi doesn’t follow and Izuku flaps hard, taking to the air. Maybe he can’t contend with Hisashi physically, but he can keep out of reach of him until he can come up with a plan.

He notices the net too late, the wires so fine. The moment he touches even one of them, his body seizes up, electricity surging briefly through him before he falls and loses contact with the wire netting. He lands hard on a couple of crates and falls off them to the floor.

Izuku just lies there, limbs still twitching with residual judders from the shock. Everything hurts and he can feel tears in his eyes, fear tightening his throat and making his heart race. How can he get out of this?

Steps come closer at a leisurely pace and Izuku’s breathing speeds up. Hisashi looms over him with a resigned expression. He kneels down next to Izuku and shockingly, brushes his curls back off his sweaty face, almost like a parent would do. “I hate this just as much as you do,” he murmurs softly. “Unfortunately, pain is often the best teacher. You’ll learn quickly, I know you will. After all, you wouldn’t be my son otherwise. Soon, the pain will stop,” he promises, Izuku staring up at him with wide eyes.

~*~

Keigo stalks into the shadowed alley with impatience and a growing sense that this is connected somehow to Izuku. It’s not hard to spot Dabi, the man leaned against the wall with a cigarette in his hand. If was in the right head space to notice it, he’d see Dabi is tense, eyes wary. He isn’t though, mind still back at the agency.

“Well, I’m here. What task did you need done now, oh glorious one?” he demands a little waspishly, barely pulling on his playful, bantering person at the last moment, bowing slightly.

Dabi eyes him before taking a drag on his cigarette. It glows in the shadows, nearly out and he drops it once he’s done, grinding it under his heel. He releases the smoke in a long exhale. “I hear you’ve lost a fledgling,” he murmurs.

Keigo tenses for one long second before his feathers whirl and Dabi finds himself pinned to the wall of the alley, the sharp edge of a feather pressed to his throat and feathers pinning his arms by his hands to the wall, tips digging into flesh and making a small trickle of blood well up to drip to the ground. “How do you know that?” he demands heatedly.

Dabi tries to smirk and play it off, but Keigo can see the cracks in his mask, the worry in his eyes. “Talk, or I ends this and you right now,” Keigo orders.

“I thought you were a villain here. Isn’t that why you’ve been trying to get in with us?” Dabi asks.

“That doesn’t mean I want kids to die. And this one I’m close to, so if you don’t want the police to find your corpse in this alley, talk,” Keigo hisses out. “How are you involved in this?”

Dabi frowns before glancing away. “We took him,” he admits. “Or well, Himiko and Compress did. We were hired to take him and the mother. We couldn’t get to her,” he admits.

“How do you know I’m connected to him??” Keigo demands. He’s made sure to keep Izuku and Tokoyami out of this side of his career.

“That night he called you. I saw your phone screen. Didn’t realize who it was until I saw him briefly, but it was too late to turn back. Shigaraki already made the deal,” Dab admits.

“And you couldn’t get out of it,” Keigo hisses, silently berating himself for allowing even that much to be seen. It was a stupid sentimental mistake. “Where is he?” Keigo demands again.

“I have stipulations,” he says evenly.

“You don’t get to make stipulations,” Keigo reminds him, pressing the feathers in harder.

“You kill me, you’ll never find him in time and he’ll disappear. You’ll lose your precious fledgling,” Dabi points out and Keigo stares at him hard before letting up on the feathers slightly.

“Talk,” he orders.

“When you raid the place, let the LOV go,” Dabi says evenly.

“Why? You made the mistake of making a deal with the Dragon. If you’d done your fucking research, you’d know how much of a mistake that was. He either kills you or collects you. There is no between with him. So why should we just let you go?” Keigo demands.

“Because if you do, I’ll tell you were exactly he is, how many people he has with him, what their quirks are and his whole security set up,” Dabi responds simply and Keigo pauses.

“And is that all?” Keigo demands, still mulling over his words.

“Just one more,” Dabi admits. Keigo nods for him to speak. “Take that bastard down for us. We’ve already got you assholes after us right now. We’d rather not have to deal with the Dragon out for revenge, too.”

“You don’t ask for much,” Keigo rejoins.

“Yeah, well that asshole thinks he can get us to join with pretty words and hard threats. He thinks he’s got us under his thumb right now and I’d like to prove him wrong. I don’t do anything I don’t want to and some fire breathing asshole is never going to order me around again,” Dabi growls out.

Keigo files those words away to parse over later and considers his demands. He asked only for them to be let go when the raid is called. It doesn’t mean they can’t go after them later. The others might not like it, but it’s a good deal. Endeavor will just have to deal. “We won’t stop you from leaving, but if you get caught on the outside, that’s on you. We won’t help you either. You get hurt, you’re on your own,” Keigo says.

“Fine. We’ve got an exit plan already. Just need to keep that bastard distracted long enough to go,” Dabi mutters and Keigo finally lets up on his feathers and steps back.

“Talk and if anything you say is false and it leads to the Dragon taking him, I’ll personally hunt you down myself and make you hurt,” Keigo says softly.

“Overprotective much,” Dabi mutters and then jumps when a feather embeds itself in the wall next to his head.

“I protect those I care about. Do you honestly think I don’t have blood on my hands?” Keigo hisses out softly. “I didn’t come to your little group on a whim. It’s not my fault you took my mask at face value,” he reminds the villain and Dabi cocks his head to the side slightly with a thoughtful frown. “Now talk and make it quick. I’m sure you’re expected back soon.” Dabi huffs softly in annoyance, but talks all the same.

~*~

What? His ears ring at his words and Izuku forces his still tingling limbs to move, pushing Hisashi away and scrambling a few feet away, needing some space between them. Son? That can’t be right…can it?

“I…I’m not your son,” Izuku whispers out of a tight throat, thoughts spiraling.

“Are you so sure?” Hisashi asks easily, staying where he was and letting Izuku have his space. “Surely you must have wondered who your father is. She never told you, did she?” he asks and Izuku’s thought freeze.

His mom never told him who his father is, despite asking all the time. The most she ever told him was that he looked like his father some and he remembers the faint frown she had when she said it, like it pained her that he did. Izuku studies Hisashi. He has yellow green eyes and dark hair that looks like it might curl if not for being in a tail. He can even see some faint freckles dotting his skin, faded some from not being outside much, going by his pale complexion.

“Prove it,” Izuku demands.

“Well, considering I married your mother almost seventeen years ago and we never divorced, I’d say that’s proof enough,” Hisashi murmurs. “I married Akatani Inko in America and we had a son we named Izuku. She ran away with him, with you, when you were a year old.”

“My mom’s name is Midoriya, not Akatani,” Izuku points out.

“It’s not hard to change a name, or in this case, create a new whole identity,” Hisashi points out. “She had help or else I would have found you two sooner,” he explains.

“If you are my father and I’m not saying you are, why didn’t you just come to me? Why go to all of this trouble?” Izuku demands.

“I know you’re smarter than that. You must already guess why,” Hisashi says instead of answering. Izuku glares at him, refusing to respond until he answers. Hisashi sighs. “I didn’t locate you until you’d already started staying at the dorms on Yuuei and your mother had disappeared. Do you think Yuuei would accept some strange man appearing on their door step claiming to be your father without some sort of proof?” he asks evenly.

Izuku frowns harder. “No, but there are tests. You could show you are my father that way,” he remarks.

“True, but I don’t need to take a test to know you’re mine and I refuse to bend to some person’s whims when I can take what belongs to me,” Hisashi growls out.

Izuku stands shakily and Hisashi copies. “Why would she run away with me from you?” Izuku asks softly.

“Your mother was afraid of what she didn’t understand. I don’t blame her for reacting the way she did. She has always been subject to the whims of her emotions. It was one of the reasons I loved and married her. She felt so strongly about so much. I envied her sometimes how freely she showed her emotions. I just want to get her back to explain what was really going on and to show there isn’t anything to be afraid of. That we can be a family again,” Hisashi says beseechingly, holding out a hand to Izuku.

Izuku swallows nervously and cautiously takes a step forward. “A…a family?” he asks.

“Yes, isn’t that what you’ve always wanted?” Hisashi asks with a growling smile.

“I…I’ve never really had a father before,” Izuku admits, looking down. “How do I know you’ll be a good father?” he asks, looking back up.

Hisashi closes the gap, crouching slightly. “Let me prove to you that I can be the best father,” he beseeches.

Izuku smiles softly and then lashes out, fist connecting with the side of Hisashi’s head, knocking him to the side and he darts around him, aiming for the door out only to be tackled from behind, slamming into the concrete of the floor.

Hisashi has him pinned with a hand holding him by the back of his neck and he bends down with a chuckle. “I see you already are well acquainted with lesson three: emotional manipulation. Looks like you’re eve more my son than I thought. Good to see,” he murmurs and Izuku closes his eyes, a few tears escaping.

~*~

Keigo returns to find no change, despite being gone for over an hour. “Anything?” he asks the techs, but they shake their head. No sign of someone watching the agency in the days Izuku was here. Nedzu in on a tablet himself and when Keigo glances at it, he finds the security feeds from Yuuei, the rodent checking their own cameras in case someone was seen there as well.

Naomi and Inko are off to the side, speaking softly. Eraserhead, Mic and Tsukauchi are near Endeavor, talking lowly as they discuss something. Keigo walks up to them with a frown. Eraser notices him first and sits up, seeing his changed demeanor. “I know where he is,” he admits and the room quiets as all eyes turn to him.

“How?” Eraser demands.

Keigo eyes Eraser. “Surely you know how this goes,” he says back evenly and Eraser’s hands fist before he nods, getting what Keigo isn’t saying. Sometimes, you have to go through not so legal means to get what you need for a case.

“Where is he?” Endeavor demands heatedly.

Keigo leans forwards where they were looking at the grid pattern of a satellite map on the table screen and punches in the coordinates for the location given. The screen shifts to an industrial area about an hour’s drive from the agency in a section full of warehouses. “He’s here. The Dragon currently has this whole block of warehouses under an assumed name, so there shouldn’t be any civilians in the area. This one is his main base though,” he zooms in on the one in question. “He has fifteen different people under his command right now. Most are patrolling the area and some might be out when we do raid. I’ve got a general list of what quirks will be involved, though the biggest contender is the Dragon himself. We have no idea his full capabilities, and he currently has Izuku as a hostage. He might be willing to use him against us, despite their blood connection,” Keigo points out dispassionately.

“I can have a force of officers called up fairly quickly to raid it,” Tsukauchi offers.

“No, that will draw too much attention. They’ll know we’re coming and be ready. We need to strike quickly and quietly. The element of surprise will be our best bet. Just the four of us will go in to get him. Tsukauchi, call up the officers, but wait until we give the signal. Once we are engaged, swarm in after us to catch those who flee,” Eraser orders.

“There is unfortunately one stipulation for this info,” Keigo murmurs and they look back at him. “The LOV was involved in taking him, hired by the Dragon. It was a bad deal and they turned on him to get out from under it. Let them go if you see them,” Keigo states simply.

“Are you fucking serious?” Endeavor demands.

“Yes, I am,” Keigo snaps and Endeavor glares at him, the heat billowing off of him in his anger. “It is just for today. After that, you can hunt them all you want. I made a deal for this info. The Commission is aware and has agreed to it. So, if you see them, do not pursue,” Keigo orders.

“Fine, we leave in fifteen minutes,” Erase snaps and stalks out, Mic following him from the room.

Chapter Text

Shouta hangs back on the roof near the area of warehouses. A pair of binoculars rests on the lip of the roof in front of him. It’s midafternoon and he’d really prefer it to be darker for this raid. Hizashi is near him on his phone, coordinating with the other two and Tsukauchi.

Anger churns in his gut, but so does worry. They have no idea what shape Izuku will be in, no idea what has been said to the teen. The knowledge of family is hard to resist, even villainous family for someone who hasn’t had much family for most of his life and after everything that happened with his mother…

“He’s going to be alright,” Hizashi murmurs, guessing what the frown on his face means. “Izuku isn’t so weak willed as to fall for any honey words this bastard will have said,” he adds with a frown of his own.

“I just hate that this happened,” Shouta admits, rubbing absently at his eyes momentarily to relieve some of the pressure from the building headache. Once this is all over and they have Izuku, he needs a nap.

“We’re in position,” comes Hawks voice over Hizashi’s phone. “I’ve picked up eight of his people patrolling and in some of the other warehouses. There’s too much interference on the main base to hear anything inside, but there’s three doors in and a guard on each.”

“We have eyes on one of them,” Shouta says softly. “Take them out quickly and get in the doors before anyone is aware we’re here,” Shouta advises.

“Best bet. Endeavor’s agreed to stay out here to ensure we have an escape if we need it and to start taking down his people as they come. As soon as we get in the main base, we’ll send the alert to Tsukauchi and the police will surround the place,” Hawks adds.

“Mic and I will handle the Dragon if we run into him. You find Izuku and separate them,” Shouta orders, well aware that Hawks won’t be well matched against the fire user.

“Of course,” Hawks agrees easily. “Hit our targets in two minutes?” he asks.

“Done,” Shouta agrees and then the line goes dead.

“You’ll be okay against the Dragon?” Shouta asks Hizashi.

“It won’t be my first time fighting a hot tempered asshole,” he says with a sharp grin. “Nor will it be my first time fighting in a building. I know how to handle this,” he adds.

Shouta holds out a hand and Hizashi takes it, squeezing it, before he lets go and they quickly scale down the side of the building to the alley below. Their target isn’t even looking their way, focused on the main road in the opposite direction. It’s almost too easy to lash out with his capture scarf and yank them into the alley, Hizashi already ready and waiting to knock them out with a few quick hits to the diaphragm, throat and side of the head.

“Remind me to never get on your bad side,” Shouta jokes with a smirk at his husband.

“Oh, I’d be much pettier with you if you did,” Hizashi jokes back as they rush across the street, leaving the unconscious villain handcuffed and gagged. A quick pat down finds nothing of use on his person.

The door of course is locked and Hizashi stands guard as Shouta goes to one knee, pulling out his lock picks to quickly unlock the door. It’s not complicated, just strong and within thirty seconds he has it unlocked and opened. “I’m in,” Shouta murmurs and they slip in, shutting the door.

It’s dim inside, most of the lights off except the emergency lights. The hall they’re in leads along the side of the warehouse. They’d found the blueprints of this place: three halls with various staff rooms follow along a wall each while the fourth has loading bay doors. Only two of the halls have an exit though, the back hall only leading into the main warehouse.

They wait at the door leading into the main warehouse, Shouta pulling out the feather Hawks gave them to silently communicate that he’s in. A few seconds later, it jerks in his palm to show Hawks is in position. Tucking the feather away, Shouta quietly opens the door and slips into the warehouse properly.

~*~

Izuku lies on the concrete floor trying to catch his breath and not cry. He’s scraped and bruised all over. On his side, shallow puncture marks from Hisashi’s claws where he dug them in throb with his heart. His right arm gives a painful zing that leads Izuku to believe it’s either badly sprained or worse, it’s broken. Either way, it hurts to move it right now, so he has it tucked up close to his stomach.

“Surely this isn’t all you have to give,” Hisashi drawls out with a sigh from his spot squatting near Izuku. “Though, with what little I’ve seen from you, I doubt Yuuei has truly taught you enough to survive out in the field. At least that means I won’t have to help you unlearn any bad habits,” he muses.

Izuku sits up, still cradling his bad arm and glares up at Hisashi. “There, now that is a good look. Anger is a friend here. It’s amazing what anger can do for you, how far it can propel you. Be angry at me if you must, but at least I haven’t lied to you about who and what I am. I have never tried to make you be something you’re not,” he points out.

Izuku ignores the barb meant to distract him, breathing shallowly as he mind races. He’s tried so many times to escape this asshole and nothing works. He’s smart and he knows enough about Izuku to plan ahead. He’d designed this whole warehouse to keep him contained for whatever this stupid lesson is supposed to be about.

He’s about to snap back when there’s a faint beep from overhead and Hisashi stands up with a frown. “I guess we have company. They found me quicker than expected. They must really care about you,” he comments mildly, like he’s talking about the weather. “Stay here a moment, I’ll only be a second,” he orders and takes a few steps away, waiting for whoever it is to come into view.

Izuku looks around, heart in his throat as he waits. The moment he sees the two familiar figures step into view, relief sweeps through him so quickly it leaves him breathless. Aizawa and Yamada don’t glance at him, focused on the threat in front of him.

“Ah, the teachers turned guardians. I really must thank you for taking such good care of my son,” Hisashi calls out jovially, taking a step forward. “Here, let me thank you properly.”

Izuku tenses, waiting for the first move and nearly yelps as something suddenly tugs on him, yanking him up and back. He would have made a noise if not for a bright red, familiar feather covering his mouth. He must still make some audible noise because Hisashi turns and sees Izuku being carried away by Hawks’ feathers.

“Don’t you dare!” he roars out, but Izuku quickly loses sight of him as he’s pulled into the maze of crates.

A pair of arms wrap around him and Izuku looks up to see Hawks grinning down at him. “Hawks!” he breathes out in relief.

“Let’s go, fledgling,” he orders and Izuku nods, stumbling after Hawks as he starts to lead the way through the maze to his escape.

~*~

Shouta pulls back as fire spews out at them. Turning his eyes on the Dragon, he activates his quirk and the flames wink out momentarily. His quirk works a little on the Dragon’s own quirk. Not enough to completely stop his fire, but enough to disrupt it. He can work with that.

As the flames go out, a sharp burst of sound knocks the man back ten feet, feet skidding over the concrete floor, arms held up to protect him from the burst of sound. As they lower, the Dragon glares at them, eyes glowing with their own inner fire. “You will not take from my Hoard,” he growls out and Shouta arches a brow as scales start to spread across his face, horns slowly growing out of his hair. Naomi hadn’t been able to give a good description of his quirk, but she did say it had some transformative elements to it. Guess this is it.

The man starts to swell, growing as fabric tears, the shirt he’s wearing giving under the strain, but as well, a tail suddenly lashes out in anger, tipped in sharp looking barbs that Shouta doesn’t want to be on the receiving end of.

Shouta sends a look to Hizashi and he nods, the two rushing in. Shouta ducks under a clawed hand lashing out and kicks a foot out to strike center mass, knocking him back, though not as far as Shouta would have liked. He feels the heat through the sole of his boot and is glad they’re tempered to handle increased temperatures without melting.

Ducking out of the way, he barely clears the area before Hizashi unleashes a stronger blast of sound at close range on the Dragon. The man at least buckles under the assault, not even his own strength able to handle the sound assault.

He can’t see Izuku or Hawks which is good. Hopefully they got out of the warehouse and to safety.  Hizashi keeps the sound going as long as he can, but even he has a limit and the moment his quirk wavers, the Dragon lashes out, tail striking at Hizashi. Hizashi tries to dodge it, but he’s too close and it strikes dead center and throws him back towards the crates in a resounding crash.

Shouta’s heart lurches, seeing the blood tipping the spikes on his tail, but keeps from rushing after Hizashi. That’s stupid and will only lead to him being hurt. “You are not the first heroes I have taken out. Nor will you be the last. Maybe if I kill you, he’ll stop fighting me,” Hisashi muses aloud with a wicked grin.

Shouta doesn’t respond and just settles in for the next attack.

~*~

They don’t get very far before the fighting starts behind them. Izuku looks back, slowing and Hawks keeps dragging him along. “Don’t stop, fledgling,” he orders and Izuku stumbles along, keeping up.

They almost make it to the door when someone springs from the shadows and lashes out at Hawks, the man ducking away even as one of his feathers drags Izuku away from the fight. “Keep going,” Hawks orders and Izuku nods, stumbling away.

He pauses though when he hears the sound of Yamada’s attack, loud in the confined space of the warehouse. He’s about to turn away and keep looking for the door out when the sound wavers and then there’s a resounding crash as something lands hard in the crates nearby. Izuku, heart in his throat, rushes towards where they landed. He finds Yamada sprawled across one of the broken crates.

Blood is pooling from a nasty puncture in his side. “Yamada-san,” Izuku cries out, rushing forward to help him off the crate and the blonde sinks heavily to the ground with a grimace, hand pressing to his side. “You need a doctor,” Izuku whispers.

“I’m fine, little listener. You need to leave now. We didn’t do all of this so he could get his hands on you again,” Yamada grits out, trying to stand back up and failing with a hiss of pain.

There’s another resounding crash and Izuku looks towards the way it came, but can’t see who it was. “Go, Izuku, now,” Yamada orders desperately.

“No, let him stay. He can watch while I kill you,” Hisashi says easily, coming around the corner of some crates. Izuku stares at him in shock. He’s at least a foot taller, muscles bulging as scales cover most of his body. Horns protrude from his head and a tail whips lazily behind him, spiked at the end. “It’s time you let them go, Izuku. They are not your family anymore. The harder you cling, the worse it will be when I eviscerate them,” he adds.

Izuku is frozen, staring at him, heart beating so fast. “Go, Izuku,” Yamada orders again, struggling to rise, voice reverberating as he readies another attack.

Hisashi’s foot lashes out and strikes Yamada in the chest, knocking him back down and cutting off his attack, the blonde shouting in pain as he lands on the ground again. “I’ll show you what I do to those who think they can steal from my Hoard,” Hisashi says easily and his throat starts to glow, fire building in his chest.

Izuku feels his fear clogging his throat, but underneath it is a familiar anger and rage building, like when he faced Overhaul the first time. He didn’t understand it before, what he was feeling, those instincts clamoring to be let loose. He knows now.

“Don’t you touch him,” Izuku snarls out rushing forward, wings held high and in front of him. He feels the telltale tingle as his feathers shift to scale and then the fire hits him.

He honestly expects to feel some pain, but none of the flames touch him, drawn to his wings. He does feel good however…in fact, better than good. He feels great, the pain slowly ebbing as his wings absorb more and more fire before Hisashi stops, eyes narrowed in faint shock at Izuku. Izuku flexes his bad arm and finds it doesn’t hurt anymore. “You won’t touch either of them again,” Izuku hisses out, feeling a growl low in his chest.

“You think you can take me, boy?” Hisashi demands.

“If I have to,” Izuku hisses out and rushes Hisashi, wings flapping to get him airborne enough to launch himself at Hisashi, claws digging into whatever soft spots he can find. His claws skid off of scales before he finds a soft spot where the scales don’t quite meet near his shoulder and Izuku digs in.

Hisashi roars in pain, a clawed hand grabbing the back of his costume and yanks him off, tossing him away. Izuku arcs through the air, but his wings shift back to feathers and he catches himself midair, staying low enough to avoid the still electrified wires above. He learned that lesson well.

Flapping hard, Izuku missiles at Hisashi even as the man’s throat glows again, ready to unleash more fire at him. He opens his mouth and then it suddenly winks out, the man surprised enough that when Izuku plows into him, he’s slightly off balance.

Hisashi goes down with a growl and Izuku doesn’t waste time, digging claws into tinder spots again. Hisashi lashes out at him with his hand and he ducks under it, but can’t avoid his tail, the limb knocking him sideways and he rolls, tucking his wings close to protect them.

As he looks up, he sees Aizawa stumbling into the partially destroyed area blood pouring from a head wound as his eyes glow red, hair raised as he glares down at Hisashi. Yamada gets up with a grimace, the two converging on Hisashi and then all hell breaks loose.

Aizawa blinks, his quirk ends for just a moment, and a fist to his gut knocks him back into another crate. Yamada unleashes another sound attack and it hits, forcing Hisashi back a step before he releases a loud growl and launches himself at Yamada.

Izuku stares in horror as his hand comes forward, claws glinting in the low light and find purchase in Yamada’s gut, the man buckling under Hisashi’s weight with a cry of pain as they go to the ground. Hisashi raises his other hand, aiming for Yamada’s throat, claws ripping through his support gear, shattering it. He aims for his exposed throat and Izuku sees red.

“NO!” he screams and launches himself at Hisashi, claws first and slams into him, knocking him off of Yamada. He goes sprawling, Izuku perched on his chest, wings spread wide, scaled and shimmering with the fire and heat he already absorbed. Hisashi’s throat glows and Izuku digs his claws into his chest, even through the scales. “No,” he growls and feels something in him just give.

He feels the heat start to seep up his arms where his claws dig into his chest. Watches as the fire in his throat gutters out. Watches his eyes go wide in fright as he slowly weakens, more and more heat flowing, Izuku pulling it in, absorbing it.

Everything else just fades as he watches him slowly still, skin taking on a grey tinge, the light in his eyes starting to fade before whatever he’s connected to suddenly breaks off and Izuku sways. Arms come around him and he starts to fight it until he sees familiar blonde hair, though it’s half out of its up do from the fight.

It takes a second to hear what Yamada is saying and slowly realizes he’s shushing Izuku. It takes another second to realize he’s crying, sobbing, throat raw as his chest hitches. “It’s okay, I’ve got you,” he murmurs and Izuku just buries his face in Yamada’s shoulder.

He hears movement and glances over with teary eyes to see Aizawa limping towards them. He can just see the still unmoving figure behind Aizawa and stares at Hisashi’s body before Yamada turns his head away. “Don’t worry about it. He’s alive,” he reassures Izuku.

The sound of a distant door bursting open has them all tensing before police swarm the area. After that, things become a little hazy, exhaustion hitting Izuku now that the adrenalin is fading. Izuku ends up in the back of an ambulance with Yamada, Aizawa staying behind to help handle the scene.

He fights sleep on the way to the hospital, afraid to sleep and have Yamada disappear. “It’s okay,” he murmurs, seeing the anxiety in Izuku’s eyes. “I promise, I’m not going anywhere,” he reassures Izuku and finally, sleep takes him under.

~*~

Hizashi grimaces as a nurse cleans and sutures up the punctures in his abdomen. He’d refused to leave Izuku’s side so they have them both in the same room while they look over Izuku. He smiles in thanks when she finishes bandaging his injures up and then slumps back against the bed as he watches the doctor and nurses look over Izuku.

Relief is a heady feeling right now, so glad they got Izuku back. Worry still sits low in his gut. He hopes Izuku will be able to move passed this whole traumatic moment. There’s definitely a few sessions with Hound Dog in his future.

The doctor steps away and Hizashi sits up with a faint grimace as the man walks over to his bed. “How is he?” he asks quietly.

The doctor frowns and then nods. “He’s fine. What injuries he did have are mostly healed. We believe he has a partial healing factor in his quirk. It didn’t completely heal him, but it sped up the process. Really, the main issue is the quirk exhaustion. We’ve got him hooked up to an IV and we’ll let him sleep to recover. Depending on how he feels when he wakes, he’ll probably be ready for release in the morning,” he advises.

“Thank you doctor,” Hizashi says and slowly starts to slide off his bed.

“You should rest as well. You took a lot of damage,” he scolds, trying to push Hizashi back onto the bed without touching him.

“I’ll rest in one of the chairs. Might be best to stay close by when he does wake up,” Hizashi says with a faint grimace, recalling how hard he fought to stay awake and clung to Hizashi’s hand in the ambulance.

“Ah, perhaps that is best. If you need anything, please call a nurse for assistance,” he orders and Hizashi nods before limping over to one of the chairs by Izuku’s bed and settles with a sigh. His knee took a hell of a hit and it’s letting him know it right now. Hopefully the pain meds they gave him will kick in shortly and mellow out the pain.

He’s not sure how much time has passed, but he must have dozed off because something wakes him. He comes to alert and looking for a threat before a warm hand runs though his hair and Hizashi relaxes into Shouta’s touch. “Easy,” he murmurs.

“Sho,” he huffs out.

“How is he?” Shouta asks, helping to finish the job of releasing his hair from its up do.

“Exhausted, but mostly healed. He might have a healing factor in his quirk,” he adds helpfully and Shouta nods, eyes tracing over Izuku slowly to make sure for himself that Izuku is okay. He’s really tired of seeing him in a hospital bed.

“How are you?” he asks, looking down at Hizashi.

“I do not have a healing factor in my quirk,” he jokes with a chuckle that makes him grimace as his side protests the movement. “I’ll heal, though I won’t turn Recovery Girl away if she offers to speed this up,” he adds. “How were things back at the warehouse?” he asks.

“Endeavor and Hawks are fine, barely any damage to them. Part of the warehouse did catch fire and the fire department was brought in. The Dragon is currently in a maximum security prison hospital while they try to figure out what happened to him and if he’ll recover. A few of his people escaped, but most are currently in custody as well. None of the LOV was scene,” he admits softly.

Hizashi grimaces at another reason for Izuku to react badly. He’s not exactly sure what the teen did with his quirk. It almost looked like he sucked the life out of the villain. He won’t like that aspect of his quirk. “Your thoughts?” he asks Shouta, knowing he had a better look at the villain.

“He’ll live, but he looked…aged almost. It might just be a side effect of whatever was done and he’ll recover to how he was, but…I won’t hold my breath,” he admits.

“How are you?” Hizashi asks, seeing the bandage on his forehead and the way he’s favoring his right leg.

“I’ve had worse,” he jokes, but it falls flat, Hizashi recalling earlier this year with a grimace. “I was cleared on the scene. No concussion and some soft tissue damage to my hip. Recovery Girl messaged that she would be by soon to check us over herself. Nedzu’s already informed the rest of the school staff and released a statement to the press,” Shouta adds.

“Busy as always,” Hizashi huffs and reaches over to drag the other chair closer. “Sit down and get off that hip,” he orders and Shouta nods, sinking into the chair with a barely there sigh showing he was in more pain than he let on. “Where’s Inko and Naomi?” he asks.

“Back in police custody, though considering her protective custody and the fact of who she was hiding from, she’ll probably get a lessened sentencing,” he admits with a huff of annoyance.

“She’s not our problem right now. Leave it to the police and the courts. Right now, the only people we need to worry about are Izuku and Eri, got it?” Hizashi reminds him with a smile.

“Got it,” he agrees and they fall into silence, resting after the chaos of the day finally comes to an end.

~*~

Izuku wakes to a familiar beeping sound and a soft bed under him. He frowns faintly, hospitals not his favorite place after the amount of time he’s been in one this year alone. He opens his eyes to see the same off white ceiling tiles above. “Hey, Problem child,” Aizawa murmurs and Izuku looks to his right to see him in one of two chair, the other occupied by Yamada who is leaned against Aizawa’s shoulder sleeping. “How do you feel?” he asks softly.

“Tired,” Izuku admits. Exhaustion still claws at him like nothing else and he could fall asleep right now without any qualms, but part of his mind is awake right now and won’t let him. Already it’s cataloging everything: his injuries and aches, the bandages on both Yamada and Aizawa, the fact that he’s in a hospital and not back in that warehouse. “What happens now?” he asks.

Aizawa eyes him before letting out a soft sigh. “Right now, you keep resting. Depending on how you’re feeling, you’ll be released in the morning. We’ll head back to Yuuei afterwards. Unfortunately, your work study is done for the winter break,” he admits.

“Yeah, I figured,” he admits wryly. Getting kidnapped by his supposed father would do that. That thought has him pausing. “Is he…my father?” he asks needing to know, but also not wanting to know.

Aizawa sighs louder, rubbing at his eyes tiredly. “Yeah, Problem Child. Unfortunately, he is. They’re going to do a DNA test just to confirm, but…,” he grimaces a little at what he has to say next. “They found your mom,” he adds and Izuku stills, though the heart monitor echoes the way it skips at his words. “She eventually told us about your father and the reason she went to ground after ensuring you were safely in Yuuei’s custody,” he explains.

“Oh,” he whispers, not sure if he wants to know his mother’s reasoning for everything she lied about.

“You also have an aunt,” he adds flippantly and completely throws Izuku out of his downward spiral as the teen blinks and looks at him.

“What?” he asks in shock, not expecting that.

Aizawa nods with a faint smile. “Akatani Naomi. She’s the one who helped hide you and your mother originally and your mother again recently. She’d like to meet you, though she said she’ll understand if you don’t want to,” he adds.

“I…,” Izuku swallows, not sure how to take all this. “I don’t know,” he whispers.

“Take your time, Izuku. You don’t need to rush into anything right now. Focus on healing and recovering. Everything else can be dealt with later. Okay?” he presses, expression serious, but a faint smile curls his mouth.

“Okay,” Izuku whispers. He lies back on the bed and closes his eyes. He shoves everything aside for now and just tries to find sleep again. He must fall asleep because the next time he wakes up, it’s morning.

Chapter Text

“Come here,” Burnin whispers heatedly, dragging Izuku into a tight hug and he lets her. Aizawa had told him what happened to her after they were separated. He’s glad she’s doing okay, mostly healed up by now. “I’m so sorry, Izuku,” she whispers. “I should have never let you go off alone.”

“You couldn’t have known,” he points out. “I don’t blame you for anything,” he adds, pulling back with a small smile.

“Yeah, well, the Commission doesn’t see it that way and I got in some trouble. I deserve it. I made a horrible mistake and if he had taken you and we never found you, I never would have forgiven myself. So I’ll take my punishment and learn from this,” she says pointedly and slowly Izuku nods, getting it.

As he pulls away from Burnin, he sees Todoroki standing off to the side and walks over to him, letting the taller teen give him a look over before hugging him. “I’m okay now,” he reassures him.

“I should have been there,” he mutters.

“I’m glad you weren’t,” Izuku says with conviction. He never wants Todoroki to face what he did.

“They’re recalling all of us from our work studies,” he tells Izuku softly as they walk towards a couch to sit.

“Really?” he asks.

Todoroki nods. “Apparently, the LOV was involved with the Dragon. They were the ones who took you and handed you over. It’s a safety precaution until they can be sure there are protective measures in place to keep us safe,” he explains.

“Jeez,” he mutters. What is it with their year and the LOV? “Everyone else is safe, right?” he asks.

“They’re all accounted for and safe. The others wanted to come visit, but they were told they would have to wait until we got back to campus to see you,” he explains. The only reason Todoroki was being allowed to see him is because Izuku needed to get his stuff and so Aizawa and Yamada could escort him back to campus, too.

They sit there quietly while they wait for Aizawa and Yamada to finish up with what they’re doing and can head out. Finally, Todoroki speaks up. “I met your mom,” he admits and Izuku looks at him in shock. “She was with Aizawa-sensei and Mic-sensei when they arrived with that police detective and some other woman.”

“I…,” Izuku swallows around the lump in his throat. “How did she look?” he asks quietly, afraid if he talks louder it will cause something bad to happen.

“Tired,” Todoroki finally settles on. “Resigned,” he adds.

“Oh,” he whispers. He’s honestly not sure what he expected his mother to be doing after she left him behind. Part of him assumed she was living a better life now that he wasn’t around to hold her down. Was it better though? Aizawa had hinted that there were other things going on about why she left him, about why she did everything to him. Does he want to know? Will any reason she gives change the fact that she did this to him?

Todoroki’s phone going off breaks him out of his circling thoughts and when he pulls it out, it shows a call from Uraraka. He answers it. “Todoroki-kun, is Midoriya-kun there?” she demands as soon as he greets her.

“I’m here,” Izuku reassures her.

“Oh thank goodness,” she says with a sigh. “We’ve only heard bits and pieces and all they would say was you’d been taken,” she explains. “Are you alright?” she asks.

“I’m okay,” he says and it’s mostly true.

“When will you be getting back to campus?” she asks and he can hear Tsuyu in the background asking a similar question.

“Aizawa-sensei and Yamada-sensei are finishing up some things here and then we’re heading back,” Izuku explains to her.

“We’re catching a train in a bit with Hado-senpai, so we’ll be there this afternoon,” she explains.

“We’ll see you then. Any word from Iida-kun or Shinso-kun?” he asks.

“They’re expecting to be back around the same time,” she informs him.

“That’s good,” Izuku says.

A voice calls on the other end and Uraraka sighs. “We’ve got to go. We’ll see you soon, Midoriya-kun, Todoroki-kun,” Uraraka says, Tsuyu adding her own words.

“Bye, see you soon,” they both say and then the line goes silent.

“Come on you two. We’re done here,” Aizawa calls out and they both stand, Izuku picking up his bag of stuff and his costume case and Todoroki copies. They follow the two teachers out of Endeavor’s agency to a waiting car provided by the number one hero to take them back to Yuuei.

The ride back is quiet, everyone in their own thoughts. Izuku silently watches the world go by and can’t keep his thoughts from returning to his mother…and his father. He excuses himself to his dorm to unpack once they get back and no one stops him.

~*~

The rest of winter break is fairly anticlimactic compared to the start of it. After the initial worry and anxiety from 1-A and 1-B due to another LOV attack on their year, the classes settle down. Considering their work studies ended early, they instead call in a few local heroes from different fields to lecture and lead exercises on campus. The 1-A eventually mellows out and while the attack is not forgotten, it is behind them.

They do get Izuku in a couple of sessions with Hound Dog, the poor kid suffering from a few bouts of nightmares, one of them having to go into his room to wake him least he wake Eri and set her own triggers off. The fact that he’s spent almost every night in the apartment rather than the dorms is a little telling, but they don’t point it out. Whatever helps him sleep and feel comfortable again.

Shouta keeps appraised of the trial and sentencing of the Dragon. They don’t take long to follow through with him, the internationally infamous villain wanted in multiple countries. Due to his extensive dealings in the US, he’s eventually extradited to their government to be dealt with.

Whatever Izuku’s quirk did to him had a lasting effect. He recovered…mostly, but had a lingering weakness about him that the doctors aren’t sure will ever fade. Whatever it was, it makes it easier to keep him contained, so Shouta isn’t expecting any trouble from him, though he does call in a small favor to be kept abreast on him…just in case.

Eventually, Izuku does come to them and asks quietly about his mother. They’ve kept it all hushed while he recovered, but he seems to want to know, so they tell him. They lay out everything she told them, about why she did what she did. Perhaps there are some details missing that she could tell him, but he doesn’t seem to want them. They inform him about her upcoming trial, the woman not fighting the police or the courts. It seems she’s willing to take the punishment given.

Afterwards, he avoids them for the rest of the day, lost in thought. Shouta has to keep Hizashi from searching the teen out. Izuku needs time to think everything over and come to his own conclusions. They can’t have a hand in that or he might regret something later.

Instead, they make dinner, Eri helping a little, but mainly glancing worriedly at the door every few minutes. She’s been made aware some about what happened and what is going on. They didn’t want to overburden her with too much.

They’re just done making dinner and setting it out when the door opens and Izuku slips in quietly. “Hungry?” Hizashi calls out and he nods with a faint smile, settling next to Eri.

“Are you okay?” Eri asks quietly, grabbing his wrist a little.

Izuku smiles down at her. “I’m okay,” he reassures her and she eyes him for a second to make sure he’s not lying and then smiles herself in relief. They eat and talk about inconsequential topics. They don’t mention the elephant in the room, but they know eventually Izuku will come to them.

He waits until later that night, after Eri has gone to bed. They’re in the living room, going over case files in Shouta’s case and paperwork from the studio in Hizashi’s case. When he settles on the couch near them, they easily set their stuff aside to give their full attention.

Izuku suck in a breath before speaking. “I…I want to see her…at least once,” he finally says.

“We can arrange that,” Shouta agrees easily. Part of him doesn’t want Izuku near his mother, afraid it will just undo all the good work they’ve done healing her handiwork, but this is his decision so Shouta doesn’t say anything.

“And…I’d like to meet my aunt, too. I don’t really have much family and I’d like to know that side of it,” he adds.

“Of course, little listener,” Hizashi agrees with a smile.

Izuku nods and then frowns. “What happens now though?” he asks.

“What do you mean?” Shouta asks.

“I just…I was placed with you two because I had no family, but now I have an aunt, and probably cousins as well. Do I…do I go with them now?” he asks anxiously.

“This is a difficult situation,” Shouta admits softly and Izuku’s shoulders fall a little. “Akatani-san has said she won’t ask for custody of you unless that is what you want. So really, that is something for you to decide,” Shouta explains.

“What?” Izuku asks hesitantly, looking up at them.

“She said she’s aware she’s a complete stranger to you and considering everything with your mother and her own hand in helping that…she understands if you want nothing to do with her. As well, her work has her going all over the place, not a very stable living situation for someone dependent on her,” Hizashi explains. That had been an interesting talk they had with her in the police precinct where Inko was being held. The woman had been sincere though and had promised not to fight for him if he didn’t want her to.

“So, you’ll stay here with us unless you’ve changed your mind,” Shouta says lowly.

Izuku shakes his head with a relieved grin. “No, I’m fine here,” he says quickly.

“Good, then you should head to bed. It’s been a rough few days. We’ll let you know when we have the meetings arranged,” Shouta adds.

“Okay, good night,” he says and heads for his room, looking lighter now that he’s back on solid ground with his living situation.

~*~

Izuku finally meets his aunt a few days later in one of Yuuei’s private conference rooms. Yamada is with him, Aizawa called away for something. He’s glad at least one of them is with him for this meeting.

Akatani Naomi is a somewhat intimidating woman, tall and thin. Her red hair is pulled back in a loose bun, golden eyes eyeing Izuku behind a thin pair of glasses. She’s dressed business casual, a briefcase resting against the leg of her chair. Izuku’s not sure what to make of her. She doesn’t look anything like his mom or him for that matter.

“Well, I’m sure you have questions,” Naomi says with a thin smile. “Ask away.”

Izuku frowns to himself before asking his first question. “How are we related?” he asks.

Naomi smiles again. “Your mom and I are cousins. Our fathers were brothers. We grew up fairly close when we were younger, but after high school we lost touch when I was recruited to the IPS and Inko went off to college, eventually going abroad to America where she met your father. We didn’t reconnect until she called me asking for help,” Naomi explains easily.

“You…um…you don’t look related,” he finally says with a frown, trying to phrase that better.

Naomi actually laughs at that. “Yeah, no, I’m the odd one out unfortunately. Most of the family is similar to you and Inko: dark hair and eyes. I inherited grandfather’s looks, your great grandfather,” she explains. “I…I have some family photos, if you’d like to see,” she adds.

Izuku nods quickly and Naomi grabs her case before dragging her chair closer so he and Yamada can see. Pulling out a thick photo album, she opens to the first page. “Here they are, Grandmother Kaede and Grandfather Ishikawa,” she points to a photo and Izuku looks closely. It’s a wedding photo, the two dressed in traditional clothing and smiling at the camera. The woman looks a lot like his mom, long dark hair pulled back from her round face, short, compared to the towering figure her husband is. He stands at what must be six feet or more, built on lean lines, hair cut short and blurred as it moves in the photo, colored like flames. His eyes as well are golden, glowing with their own inner fire.

“Grandfather was…unique, I guess you would say,” Naomi explains as she turns the page to show them more photos of the two, one showing one child, another showing two, their sons. “He was far older than most people assumed,” she explained. “His quirk has a unique property. Fire couldn’t harm him, no matter the temperature and so long as he absorbed enough each day, he didn’t age,” she admits with a faraway look.

“What?” Izuku asks in shock.

“That’s a pretty powerful quirk,” Yamada says aloud.

“It is and it’s why he never advertised it. He was born many decades ago, closer to the first generation of quirks. I don’t know what year exactly. He liked to change it every time we asked just to mess with us. Grandmother knew. He never kept it secret from her. He named is Phoenix Soul, a little poetic, but we liked it. He was sad when his sons inherited Grandmother Kaede quirks, telekinesis, or various forms of it at least. When I was born, he was excited that someone finally had his quirk, or something like it,” she explains.

“Are you like him?” he asks, interested by quirks as usual.

Naomi shakes her head. “Not exactly. I have heat resistance, like he did and his coloring, but I can’t absorb anything like he did. Still, he was glad to know someone got his quirk. And now you do as well. He would have been ecstatic,” she explains, flipping to another page and it shows a large gathering of them all, his mother standing next to his grandfather, so tall compared to her and holding a small bundle in her arms.

“Is…is that me?” he asks in shock.

Naomi nods. “After I got Inko out of America, we stopped to visit the family briefly. She knew, once she went into protection, she wouldn’t be able to see them for a long time…if ever. So we wanted to have a photo one last time of all of us together,” she explains. “They were all happy to see you and sad to see you go.”

“Are…are they…,” he can’t finish the sentence.

“Not all,” she admits sadly. “Around your third birthday, Grandmother got sick, really sick. The doctors did what they could, but she eventually passed away. Grandfather didn’t take it well. Eventually, he stopped absorbing fire and extending his life. Six months after she passed, he did as well,” she explains and Izuku swallows around a tight throat.

“Inko’s parents were killed in a villain attack when you were eight. My mother passed away a few years ago, but my father, your great uncle is still alive. I’ve a brother and there are also the cousins from the other branches of the family. We try to keep in touch, but life is busy and we can’t always get everyone together. Though, I’m sure if you wanted to meet them, they would all come to say hi,” she adds.

“Me?” he asks in shock.

“Izuku, you have been a sore spot for all of us. We hated that we couldn’t have you in the family, though we knew why. Now that Hisashi is in prison, you are free to do what you like without fear of him coming after you,” she explains.

Izuku looks down and flips the page and stares at the photo of his mom, it must have been the same day as the group photo since she’s in the same outfit. She’s holding him tightly to her chest and crying. She probably doesn’t know someone took the photo.

“Can I think on it?” he asks.

“Of course. We will respect your decision, no matter what it is,” Naomi reassures him and he smiles wanly.

~*~

Shouta leads the way down the long hall of the jail, Izuku a quiet shadow following behind. They had finally arranged for a meeting with Inko. Her trial had already gone through, Inko not fighting it, though her lawyer fought to lessen her sentencing. They were still waiting to hear back from the judge on what her sentencing would be.

They’ve kept Izuku abreast of the trial at his request, though they don’t go into great detail, not that there is much detail to give. He’s heard the gist of everything once already. They had informed Hound Dog, just in case things went badly and he was needed for Izuku to parse through everything professionally.

A guard is waiting outside the meeting room and he nods at them before unlocking the door and letting them inside the room. Inko is waiting for them, dressed in tan scrubs, her hair down out of its usual hairdo. She’s pale, shadows under her eyes, but she still smiles at them when they enter.

“Hello,” she greets softly, though she doesn’t try to come closer to them. “Please, sit,” she motions to the two chairs across from hers.

Slowly, they both come in and take a seat, Izuku tense as he stares at his mother for the first time since everything came out. “You…you look good…healthy,” she finally says with forced cheer.

“No thanks to you,” Izuku mutters and Inko flinches at the blow before Izuku frowns. “Sorry,” he says quickly.

“No…you have every right to say that. What I did…,” Inko buries her face in her hands for a moment before looking back up, eyes red with unshed tears. “I don’t expect forgiveness or anything close to that. I’m just glad you’re okay. When they said he’d taken you, I feared the worst. Now…now that he is in prison, you’re free to live your life as you want. Neither of your parents will hold you back. But…if you have questions, I will answer what I can. No more lies,” she promises.

Shouta glances between the two, holding his own comments back for now. This is Izuku’s show and he’ll let him make the decisions here. As the teen starts to tentatively ask questions, Shouta mentally prepares for the fallout that is sure to come.

~*~

The ride home is silent between them, Izuku looking a thousand miles away in his own thoughts. Shouta texts Hizashi to tell them they’re coming back and a few choice comments on his thoughts about that meeting. Hizashi, anticipating that things might be bad once they got back, asks Nemuri to watch Eri for the evening, just until Izuku has gotten passed the worst of it.

They make it onto campus and into the apartment before he starts to notice Izuku breaking. He tries to hide it, going so far as to head to his room, but they’re not fooled. Shouta taps on the partially opened door, looking in on the hunched figure on the bed as he tries to stifle his sobs into a pillow.

“Problem Child,” he murmurs, Hizashi right behind him as the step in.

Hizashi reaches him first, gently pulling the pillow away before letting the teen latch onto him, crying into his shoulder. It takes a while for Izuku to calm down some. Shouta steps out briefly to grab the box of tissues from the living room and a bottle of water for the teen before he comes back to Hizashi still humming softly and rocking him.

“She was never going to trust me…was she?” Izuku asks huskily, the two having to strain to hear him. Neither knows what to say to that comment and decides to let him keep talking while trying to sooth the angry hurt in him. “I was four years old,” he gets out angrily. “She was supposed to help me and all she saw was him when she looked at me!” he finally gets out. “Every day, over and over, all she saw was him, not me. That’s…that’s not fair,” he barely gets out of a tight throat, tears streaking his face.

Hizashi sighs softly and slowly pushes Izuku back enough to wipe at his tears. “Adults…we may seem like it, but we don’t know everything, are barely getting by with all our ducks in a row, little listener. Your mom made a choice, the only choice she felt was right at the time. Was it the right choice, no, and I’m not excusing her actions either, but sometimes, even adults make mistakes, panic and do something that is far worse than we originally intended,” he finally says. “And right now, she’s paying for her mistakes,” he continues. “Whether you should forgive her or not, I can’t make that decision, only you can, but I will says this.”

He shifts until he and Izuku are looking eye to eye. “You are not your mom or your dad. You are Izuku. What that means, only you get to decide, be that as a hero, an ordinary person, or something in between. We will support you, no matter what, okay? We just want what’s best for you and you get to decide what that is.”

Izuku surged forward to hug Hizashi and the blonde wraps him up tight, Shouta resting a hand on his back as he cries some more, though it sounds less gut wrenching and more cathartic. Eventually, he pulls back with a sniff, wiping at his eyes. Shouta holds out the tissue box and he snags one to blow his nose on.

“Here, you should hydrate,” he murmurs, holding out the water bottle and he smiles gratefully, taking a sip from it.

“How about we have a night in, just some movies, some dinner and some peace and quiet,” Hizashi offers and Izuku nods. It’s quick work to put it into action. Shouta texts Nemuri to bring Eri back now that the worst is behind them and Hizashi gets to work making a quick and easy dinner for them all.

Eri arrives and quickly beelines for Izuku hugging him tightly, sensing his turbulent emotions. Eventually, between the two of them, a blanket and pillow fort is built and somehow, they manage to get him and Hizashi in it as well.

It’s a good night, despite how emotionally fraught it was earlier. They leave the two sleeping in the fort rather than try to get them to bed. They still need to see if he wants to talk with Hound Dog in the morning, but for now, all is well.

~*~

Izuku quietly tapes up the last box of hero merch. Most of it is going to a merch shop that he sold it to. Only a few pieces remained with him, tucked away in another box in his closet, keepsakes from his childhood he just couldn’t let go of, despite everything. It feels cathartic to finally make a decision about everything. To no longer have the glaring reminder sitting there staring at him. It helps that he’s already gotten a few pieces from Yamada to restart his collection, the Present Mic poster and figure sitting proudly on his wall and shelf. Too bad unders don’t have merch or he’s sure he would have some of Aizawa’s stuff as well.

 Setting the last box aside to be taken, he looks around his room. The letter from his mother’s lawyer rests on desk, sent to inform him about what had been decided for her. The judge finally sentenced her to two years in a low security prison with the chance for early release with good behavior, though all communication to Izuku was cut off. They got it lowered considering who she was hiding from. She also lost all parental rights to him.

The letter also said, if he wished, he could ask for a restraining order to keep her away from him, if he wanted that. Only if that was something he wanted. He’s not sure what he wants. He hasn’t forgiven her, that much is sure, but two years is a long time. Maybe he’ll change his mind. He’ll think on it.

Sitting at the desk, he opens his laptop and brings up a familiar website. He’s been on it a lot here lately, venting and just talking with others in situations like his. He pulls up a new post screen and starts to type.

I’ve spent a long time hating myself, hating society, hating others. When I was quirkless, I was nothing and now that I have a quirk, I am suddenly somebody important. It’s a fucked up way of doing things.

But everyone forgets that quirks have only been around for a few centuries now, a blip in the history of our race. There’s no guarantee that in another century, they’ll be gone as quickly as they came. We’ve placed so much emphasis on quirks that we’ve forgotten the most important thing.

We’re all human. Whether we have a quirk or not, we’re human at the end of it all. We live, make mistakes, love, cry, and die, all as humans. We are not our quirks, or lack of them. They do not define us.

This quirk does not define me.

At the end of the day, it is not my quirk that drives me. It’s my heart, my dreams, my goals, my friends, and my family, both found and blood. I want to help people. I want to help my fellow humans because it is the right thing to do. I won’t let a quirk or lack of one persuade me to not help someone. Everyone deserves help.

So I am signing off from here, not as a quirkless person, or a quirked person.

Merely, as a human being, worthy of help, love, and understanding.

Izuku reads over it one last time before hitting send on the screen and smiles a little.

“Izuku, we’re ready!” Eri calls out.

“Coming,” he calls and shuts his laptop. Bending down, he grabs the two boxes of items and the small backpack bursting with posters, and heads out to where Aizawa, Yamada and Eri are waiting for him. “I’m ready,” he says with a grin and they all nod, Aizawa taking one of the boxes from him while Eri grabs the backpack and shrugs it on.

“Maybe we can get some stuff to replace this while we’re at the store,” Yamada says offhandedly.

“You just want to get him more of your merch,” Aizawa mutters as they leave and Izuku laughs as Yamada tries to defend himself, feeling lighter than he has in a long time.

End.