Chapter Text
You straightened Toshi's tie, wishing you could convince yourself to stop fiddling. He watched your hands work, a distant look in his eyes. You were both nervous, but for entirely different reasons. Toshinori didn't want to retire. You just didn't want to be on television.
"All Might, Silver," a set hand murmured, bowing politely. "They're ready for you." You let go of Toshi's tie as the two of you turned to acknowledge her. Rather than wring your hands worriedly, you shoved them both into your pockets. Toshinori was silent, a crease on his brow. Taking a deep breath, you followed him out and onto the press conference stage. There was a single table covered in microphones with two chairs waiting for you.
Toshinori stood behind his chair rather than sit in it, so you did the same. Resisting the urge to straighten your shirt, you pulled your hands out of your pockets and let your arms hang somewhat awkwardly at your sides. The noisy crowd of reporters settled down into a tense silence as they waited for one of the two of you to make a move. Just as you were about to say something, Toshinori bowed from the waist. Thanking your good reflexes, you followed suit a fraction of a second behind.
"All Might's true form, which you have all known for many years now, is no more. I will be retiring from the position of professional hero." A bright blue eye flashed to look at you, letting you know it was your turn.
"Though my quirk is intact, my body is no longer capable of the work of a professional hero. I, too, will be retiring." You managed to say it all without stuttering, drawing on some of Toshinori's unwavering composure. How he managed to be composed in front of cameras and a complete goof in private, you had no idea. When he straightened back up, you did the same. Finally, he pulled his chair out and sat down; you followed suit immediately.
Toshinori got the brunt of the questions. He'd been an icon in Japan for years; any fame you had in this country was more or less based on your relationship with him. As the questions got steadily more personal, you started to get annoyed. Toshinori answered almost all of the questions, dodging some and flat-out refusing to answer others. From the past interviews you'd seen of him, and the reactions of the reporters, you could tell that he wasn't acting like his usual self. All Might was always laughing and telling jokes on camera; Toshinori had yet to even smile.
When you were finally asked a question, you were too distracted by Toshi's frown to hear them. Realizing you'd been wringing your hands nervously under the table, you disconnected one and slid it over to rest on top of his. He blinked, glancing at you before turning his hand over and tangling his fingers in yours. Immediately, some of your tension was gone.
"I apologize," you said, realizing someone was waiting for you to answer them. "Please say that again."
"I asked if you knew the medical status of the American hero-turned-villain, Tremor."
"He's in a coma," you said simply.
"Yes, but when will he wake? Is he seriously injured?"
"It's unlikely that Tremor will wake. According to the police, the American government has been contacted, and will be determining what to do with him. His mother is still alive, and will likely make the final decision."
"So he's basically dead?"
"Basically." There was a surprised murmur; your blunt response was, apparently, unexpected.
"And you're the one who killed him?"
"Yes." This time, it wasn't a murmur. The reporter who was asking all the questions waited for the excited roar to die down before asking his next question.
"Will there be an official investigation from the police department?"
"The police will no doubt make a public statement on the matter," you said with a shrug. It was a fair question, and you had no reason not to answer. "As I understand it, they're treating the case as self-defense, until further notice."
"Was it self-defense? You were hardly even injured in the attack."
"Is that so?" You asked drily, raising an eyebrow at him. He was starting to get on your nerves.
"Do you deny it?"
"I'm just curious who told you I wasn't injured."
"There are multiple photos and even some videos of you following the events in Kamino Ward," he said. "You showed no signs of injuries and didn't check into the hospital."
"I did check into the hospital, actually." Toshinori squeezed your hand, sensing your annoyance and probably trying to calm you down some. You glanced at him, counting to ten in your head before continuing. "I also asked for a full body scan, to better determine the extent of my injuries, and to update my medical records. My injuries were not visible, I'll admit, but that doesn't mean they weren't there."
"So, what was the extent of your injuries...?" He sounded skeptical, and a few of the other reporters gave you similar disbelieving looks. You were starting to get angry now; just because an injury wasn't obvious, didn't mean it wasn't there.
"I just told you..." you growled, leaning forward. Before you could continue, Toshinori had taken your hand into both of his, squeezing just enough to distract you from the reporter. You looked at him, eyes still narrowed in annoyance, and he cleared his throat. Turning to the reporter, Toshinori answered for you.
"Silver fought with Tremor in the woods just before the League of Villains assaulted the training camp." You'd told him everything while he was still in the hospital, curled up in the chair next to his bed. "Though it may not appear as such, Tremor won that fight. The details and extent of their injuries are, frankly, none of your business."
"...Thank you, Love," you said quietly, though there were too many microphones for the crowd not to have heard you.
The attention returned to Toshinori, and you took the chance to settle your temper. The minor coughing fit you had a minute or so later may have gone unnoticed, if it weren't for the new ring on your finger. As you cleared your throat, running a handkerchief over your mouth one last time, you actually heard someone gasp. Looking for the source of the noise, you saw your favorite (or was it least favorite?) reporter, Ms. Ito, staring up at you with eyes wide enough to rival Midoriya's.
"Is that an engagement ring?" She asked, speaking over the reporter Toshi' had just called on. You exchanged looks with Toshinori, deciding how to answer the question. You'd both chosen to keep your rings on during the interview, at the risk of someone noticing, but with no intention of bringing it up. Naturally, you'd been found out.
"Yes," you said in unison. For the first time since the interview had begun, Toshinori smiled.
--
"Good morning, class," you said, setting your notes down on the teacher's podium. The class returned the greeting, earning a small smile from you. You'd been in Japan long enough that the novelty of their greeting should have worn off, but it hadn't yet. "Today, we'll be learning how to determine which nutrients you should focus on, based on your quirks. I'll give you an outline of-"
"Wait, you can't do that!" Ashido interrupted, looking genuinely offended. You weren't particularly surprised at the interruption.
"I can't do what, Ashido?" You asked, leaning on the podium and raising an eyebrow at her.
"I-uh," she stuttered, realizing just how rude she'd just been. "I'm sorry, Teacher, I just..."
"Teacher," Iida said, standing up and bowing politely. You turned your raised eyebrow on him, amused. "I believe Ashido meant to ask for... clarification, on a few things. Such as your retirement, and-"
"You're engaged to All Might!" Uraraka interrupted.
"Well, both of those things sound pretty straightforward to me," you said, fighting to keep the amusement out of your voice. "So I don't see any reason to clarify anything."
The reactions were a mixture of annoyance and disappointment, including a couple of loud sighs. Unable to hold it in any more, you burst into laughter, leaning heavily on the podium as you did. As had been happening lately, your laughter turned into a coughing fit, and you had to dig around in your pocket to get your handkerchief. When it had finally settled down, you looked up at a classroom of worried students.
"Don't worry," you said cheerfully, "the cough isn't anything serious. I planned a half-lesson today, because I expected you all to have questions. But, please, let me teach the lesson before we get into all of that. Class comes first."
"Yes, Teacher," Iida, who had remained standing since his original speech, gave another bow and sat down. You returned to the teachers' podium, picking up your notes.
"...and that's how you would determine the best nutrients for your specific quirk." You finished several minutes later. "Naturally, visiting a nutritionist would be your best option, but I know that can be expensive. If you have any serious concerns about your current diet in relation to your quirk, feel free to ask me. I'll gladly give you pointers. Now, who has questions?"
Half of the class raised their hands. You sat on the table at the front of the class, sighing with relief. The majority of your injuries were as healed as they would get, but you were still recovering. Standing for an extended period of time was exhausting.
"How many of those questions have to do with today's lesson?" You asked, setting your paperwork to the side. Every single hand went back down, some of the students even blushing in embarrassment. You laughed, this time avoiding a coughing fit. "Well, then. Ashido, you seemed the most eager of the class earlier. What would you like to know?"
"When are you and All Might getting married?" She asked instantly, leaning so far forward in her seat that you feared she would fall over.
"We haven't decided on a date, yet," you said with a shrug.
"What will the wedding be like? Will it be big and fancy and on television?" She asked, leaning even further forward.
"Please sit back; you're going to fall over. We haven't discussed our wedding in detail, but I don't think it will be that big. All Might is used to being on television, but I'm not. Kaminari, what was your question?"
"Were you badly hurt during the villain attack?"
"Yes. I very nearly died. I would appreciate if you kept this sort of information to yourselves; I don't want to hear about my own injuries on the news."
"What, exactly... happened? Like, how did he hurt you?" You scratched your nose, trying to decide how best to answer Kaminari's question. The students didn't need the gory details, but you always felt that the other teachers never properly emphasized the risks heroes took on a daily basis.
"When Tremor first discovered his quirk, he thought he was drawing on the energy of the earth's tectonic plates. Essentially, he thought he was creating earthquakes. He was still a relatively newly-licensed hero when he realized that he was actually creating sonic pulses in his hands.
"Everything in the world works on a certain frequency. I won't get into the details, because we would be here all day, but that's more or less how the world works. Tremor's quirk allowed him to disrupt an object's natural frequency by touching it."
"Like how some headphones cancel out outside noise by playing the counter-frequency of the noise itself?" Jiro asked. You nodded. Naturally, the girl with the sound-based quirk and family of musicians would understand the concept quickest.
"Yes, exactly. Like I said, I won't go into details today, but opposing frequencies cancel one another out. That concept works with solid objects, as well - everyone's heard of singers breaking glasses with their voices. It took Tremor several years to learn how to control the frequencies he was working with enough to affect specific body parts. Usually, he kept to bones." You raised your right hand, showing them the scars from when he'd shattered every bone in it. "Occasionally, he would work specifically with organs."
"That's... That's evil." Hagakure whispered, shock in her voice.
"Yes, it is. The first time I saw Tremor use his quirk specifically to affect an organ, I fought him. He won that fight, and I spent several months in a hospital. By the time I got out of the hospital, the American government had officially declared him a villain. We're getting off track again, though.
"Tremor and I fought in the woods. He overpowered me, and landed a punch directly in my gut." Unconsciously, you put a hand on your stomach. "He used his quirk to - well, the best term I can think of is scramble - my internal organs. I don't know exactly how long I spent piecing myself back together. I woke up in that factory in Kamino Ward. There is permanent scarring, and some of my internals are still healing."
"That's terrible," Yaoyorozu said quietly.
"It's a fact of life. A professional hero's license comes with a long list of risks. I'm lucky, to be perfectly honest. If it weren't for my quirk, I would be dead. Many heroes don't even get a chance to retire. I'm not trying to convince any of you to quit or walk away from the course you've put yourselves on. But I need you all to understand what you're getting yourselves into." You looked around the room, making sure everyone was paying attention. Mineta looked genuinely frightened. "Stain killed heroes. All Might was injured so badly that he can no longer work as a hero. I'll have this cough for the rest of my life, as well as a few other lifelong medical issues."
"I'm sorry, Teacher," Midoriya said, staring down at his hands.
"Don't apologize for something you had nothing to do with. I knew the risk I was taking, and I took it anyway. Now, there were more questions, weren't there? Aoyama, what were you going to ask?"
"All of your clothes are new, Teacher. You're almost sparkling." Aoyama had his chin propped on his hands, his eyes half-lidded. In an adult, you would have called his look 'flirtatious'.
"That isn't really a question, but thank you." You tugged at your new button-up. "I took All Might to get some of his clothes tailored and some simply replaced. He insisted that, if he was getting new clothes, so was I." You both now had fully-renovated closets. His clothes were actually sized to fit him properly, and your vast collection of button-ups and slacks had been replaced with new, expensive silk shirts.
--
You waited outside of class 1A as the bell signaling lunch rang, greeting students as they passed by. Some gave congratulations as they went, while others offered condolences on your career as a hero. Finally, Bakugou stepped through the doorway, Kirishima directly behind him.
"Bakugou," you said, hands in your pockets as you leaned against the wall. "Mind if I talk to you for a moment?"
"...Sure," he said. Kirishima waved, promising to save a seat for him in the cafeteria. Once the hall was empty, you straightened up and put a hand on each of his shoulders.
"I'm only going to say this once, and I don't really expect a response." You leaned forward, eyeing him closely. "First of all, I'm proud of you for standing up against the League of Villains. I didn't doubt your resolve for one second, but I think you already knew that."
"...Yeah," he muttered, his ears turning pink.
"Secondly, and this is the important one, I need you to know that none of this was your fault. It wasn't your fault you got captured. It certainly wasn't your fault that I got captured. No one's injuries were because of you in any way."
"I know that!" He snapped. You shook your head, squeezing his shoulders slightly.
"Guilt isn't logical, Kid. Listen. The only person responsible for my injuries was Tremor. The only people responsible for your classmates' injuries were the League of Villains. And the only person responsible for All Might's injuries was All for One."
"I already know all this," he growled, pulling out of your grip.
"Sure," you said, as he started to walk away. You shoved your hands back into your pockets. "But sometimes, it helps to hear someone else say it, too."
"What is Midoriya to him, anyway?" His back was to you, and he spoke quietly, but the question was clear. This kid had seen the connection between Toshinori and Midoriya. You sighed.
"That isn't for me to tell you," you said quietly.
"But it's there. They have... something."
"...Yes." You'd never been inclined to lie to children. Bakugou walked away, shoulders hunched and his hands in his pockets. He'd been through enough that he didn't deserve to be lied to now. You'd have to talk to Toshi' about this.