Chapter Text
It’s the three from this morning that tried to talk to Katsuki only to be immediately shut down. Kirishima, Kaminari, and Mina are their names. Izuku kept careful track of memorising his classmates names and faces as his dad called for them through the tests.
“Hey dudes!” Kirishima greets, still panting from running after them, “You guys were impressive out there!”
Katsuki scoffs a quiet obviously and Hitoshi grunts in acknowledgement. Looks like Izuku is going to be the one to actually speak to their new classmates. He will not let himself freak out about talking to their classmates, especially these three as they seem so genuinely nice.
“Thanks! You guys were cool out there too! You all have really neat quirks.” Izuku exclaims, gesticulating as he talks and smiling widely. For all his anxiety, talking is so easy.
Kaminari speaks up this time, “Thanks man but you two were awesome!” He turned in place as they walked through the halls to point at Katsuki, “You can make explosions! And you,” He whirled back towards Izuku. “You just- you just made wings appear behind you during the jump! That was so sick, dude!” Izuku sputters for a moment, a blush high on his cheeks. Meanwhile Kaminari turns to look at Hitoshi. “I didn’t see you use your quirk… but if you hang out with these two I bet it’s just as cool.”
Hitoshi looked stuck for a moment, his steps stuttering, before he went back to his normal pace. He shrugs, not offering an explanation as to just what his quirk is, “If you say so.”
Kirishima figuratively pokes at Katsuki, trying to get him to talk. It doesn’t really work in the way he wants it to, as when Katsuki does finally voice his thoughts it’s because he’s biting out, “Fuck off.” rather than any responses to Kirishima’s excitement and questions. Kaminari seems to be doing the same thing with Hitoshi, though he has a bit more success. Hitoshi dodges all quirk talk and Kaminari seems to take it in stride, just happy to be talking.
That leaves Mina with Izuku. She has short, pink curly hair that she keeps blowing out of her eyes. An action Izuku finds terribly relatable. She has yellow horns and where Izuku’s eyes are white, hers are black with yellow irises. She’s pretty and energetic.
Izuku likes her.
She seems to have a different definition of personal space and boundaries or just doesn’t really respect it because she latches onto Izuku’s arm as she talks. Izuku sees Katsuki glance over to him out of the corner of his eye and how the blond’s face scrunches up, it makes Izuku crack a smile for a second. Mina bounces around as she talks. Izuku feels a little suffocated by the close contact, his throat was overworking itself from the proximity. It didn’t help that the arm she was latched onto happened to be the arm that has a large, oblong scar from a past classmate. Not that she knows that or could even see it.
Except, for all her brightness and easy going energy, she seems to notice his discomfort and oncoming panic as she casually untangles herself from him. She doesn’t step away, doesn’t make any big obvious moves, just silently acknowledges that he is uncomfortable and fixes the problem.
Izuku kind of felt like the floor was falling out from underneath him. He’s never had a classmate… accommodate him? Like that? No one but his immediate family and friends have ever treated him so kindly. If she noticed his confusion and shock, she didn’t mention it.
“Ah, anyway! What’s your name? I don’t think I ever caught it, actually… did Sensei even ever say your name?” Mina asked in a lower voice, bewildered by the realisation.
Her question caught the attention of the rest of the group. Katsuki and Hitoshi were looking at him with outwardly disinterested looks but he could see the curiosity of how he would handle this. Too bad Izuku wasn’t thinking of any grand way to get out of saying his name. He did agree to not try to explicitly hide their relation and he already threw out enough ambiguity today, he thinks.
Izuku gives Mina a sheepish smile, hand coming up to rub at the back of his neck, “That’s probably because my name is Aizawa Izuku. It probably would’ve been weird to call out his own name, y’know?”
Kaminari and Mina’s jaws dropped, meanwhile Kirishima grins and prattles on, “Whoa! Really?! What a coincidence man! That’s gotta be crazy for you, sharing a surname with your teacher.”
Izuku just shrugs with a small, crooked smile. The conversation peters off as they split at the locker rooms. Hitoshi and Katsuki trudge to a corner and start stripping off their sweat-soaked clothes. Izuku slips into a stall to change, not entirely comfortable with people seeing his few scars and back in all their glory. Especially not after the worried murmurs he heard from the glimpses they all got earlier.
The three are in and out in record time once again, speed walking to the classroom so they can grab the aforementioned syllabus. Katsuki grumbles something as he pulls his phone out of his pocket, rolling his head back and groaning before typing a response to whatever he saw.
Izuku tilts his head, eyebrows furrowing just a little as a small pout takes place on his lips, a silent question. Katsuki explains as soon as he sees it, “Fuckin’ parents want to take me out to lunch to ‘celebrate me starting high school’. Dumb as fuck.”
Izuku grins and Hitoshi snickers before speaking, “Oh, don’t act like that, Kat. We all know you love that kinda shit.” Hitoshi nudges Katsuki's shoulder playfully which just deepens the blond’s perpetual scowl. Another ping! sounds from his phone and Hitoshi and Izuku watch as Katsuki’s face turns red.
“What now, Kacchan?” Izuku asks as he gets his notebook out of his bag and stashes his backpack under his dad’s desk.
“They’re parked outside waiting for me. They’re so fucking embarrassing. I hate them.”
“Keep telling yourself that, Kacchan.”
As Katsuki ‘angrily’ texts his parents back, more classmates wander in and out of the room. Most of them just grab a sheet, briefly look it over, then promptly leave. Some stick around, though.
In particular, when Tokoyami enters the room he grabs a sheet and then heads straight for Hitoshi. Izuku can barely hear the conversation he picks up with his insomniac of a best friend but Hitoshi looks surprisingly relaxed so he doesn’t try to intervene or eavesdrop. Izuku’s honestly incredibly pleased Hitoshi seems to already be making friends or at least pleasant acquaintances with some of their classmates.
To say the least, this day has gone much, much better than his anxiety imagined it.
At one point, the trio from earlier show back up and Mina hounds Izuku for his phone number, claiming something about how she’s determined to become his new best friend and this is the first step. Izuku relents, passing his phone over in a daze. Simply trying to grasp why someone would want to be his friend so bad.
He’s not complaining though.
Soon enough, Tokoyami says a rather respectful goodbye, Mina gives Izuku an overexcited parting wave with a promise to text, and Katsuki pulls Izuku into a meaningful side hug with a reluctant ‘see you later’ attached. Aunt Mitsuki isn’t a patient woman, after all. Hitoshi also ends up leaving, needing to go home and recharge his drained social battery.
Which leaves Izuku to his own devices, or really, finally free to head up to Nedzu’s office. He practically skips down the halls and into the elevator he’s not sure he’s supposed to know about, his analysis notebook hugged to his chest as he waits.
He’s so happy! This day has been a whirlwind of emotions and most of them were positive! Izuku didn’t expect that. His brain had been sure today would be an awful, messy disaster full of rude comments and mean stares but instead it was the opposite! All sunny, excited smiles and pride filled eyes and hope for a future so much better than his past self could have ever dreamed of.
With a wistful sigh and the telltale shake of the elevator coming to a stop, Izuku steps out and approaches Nedzu’s office. Slipping through the cracked door and bee lining it to his usual chair, accepting the lovely cup of berry infused green tea with nonexistent grace.
The meeting between them doesn’t go on for too long, Nedzu can see the excited energy buzzing through Izuku.
The mammal is all too happy that Izuku had a good semi-first day. Nedzu was already horribly prepared to expel students on the kid’s behalf, in all honesty. Especially after Yagi came into his office and all but demanded footage of Izuku’s quirk awakening. Perhaps he’s a little protective of his favourite human being and star student. The assignment he has planned is rather easy to explain; Izuku just needs to analyse his classmates and their quirks for general weaknesses and strengths so they can help to better them. Something Izuku has already been doing all morning, as throughout every test his dad put them through his hands were restless, wishing his notebook was with him so he could write down all his observations and questions.
After some quick notes, Nedzu finally asks about Izuku’s day. Given he knows pretty much exactly how it went, cameras are oh so convenient sometimes. But he wants to hear about Izuku’s personal thoughts and feelings!
The teen immediately goes over every little thing he did and how he felt, going off on tangent after tangent about certain classmates he’s interested in but didn’t get to interact with much.
Todoroki keeps coming up. How Izuku first noticed him; the scar and the way his shoulders tensed when he was called by his surname. How when it came to the tests Todoroki’s abilities seemed so advanced compared to the rest of them, his control and stamina are so far above average it just fed Izuku’s curiosity. What kind of training did he undergo? Is it natural capability? Why does it feel like he’s hiding something important? He didn’t speak unless necessary and it was always to spit out something about ‘not making friends’. And he only ever used his right side! Izuku wants to know if there’s some sort of handicap there. Can his left not use his quirk? Did something happen? What is it?
So many questions. All with no answers.
He talks about Yaoyorozu and how her quirk has so many capabilities, she’s so versatile and powerful that it makes his head spin in the best way. He cannot wait to talk to her, if he ever gets the courage to, that is. He doesn’t mention how he sees the insecurity she’s harbouring, it feels too insensitive and invasive. He doesn’t know for sure after all, it’s just speculation and possibly projection.
And Mina! She was so nice! And bubbly! She reminded Izuku a lot of himself when he’s truly comfortable with someone, when he gets excited about a new hero or finally getting a breakthrough in one of his more challenging analyses. And how she was so silently observant, for all her loudness, she was quiet and caring in her little show of understanding and support. How she was so interested and determined in becoming his friend.
If Nedzu’s smile is much more genuine for the rest of the day, after Izuku leaves his office, no one can prove it.
Izuku finds himself in the teacher’s lounge, seeking out his family.
As soon as Izuku breaches the door, he makes eye contact with none other than his dad. The man’s expression is deadpan and as soon as he opens his mouth to speak, in a voice so exhausted and monotone, Izuku is sent into a laughing fit that has his sides in stitches.
“Oh my god. You’re Eraserhead.”
Hizashi and Nemuri, as well as the other staff members sitting in various spots throughout the room, all look terribly confused. It only feeds into Izuku’s giggles. Shouta gives up the bored expression for something much softer, much fonder. A light, exasperated smile gracing his lips as his eyes squint playfully. Once Izuku is mostly done and has his breath back, he sends back an all too cheeky smile.
“Anyone gonna fill me in on what’s happening right now?” Nemuri asks, Hizashi nods along.
Shouta releases a heavy sigh with one final exasperated look thrown at Izuku, who finally manages to make his way to the couch where his dad has seemed to take residence. All his expulsion paperwork and shorthand notes on students laid out across the coffee table. Hizashi and Nemuri are still seated at their own desks, going over their lesson plans and any last minute class changes students requested.
“Apparently, Izuku decided it would be fun to make that exact comment during the tests this morning.” Shouta says, turning most of his attention back to his work even as Izuku sits down and leans into his side.
Nemuri nearly cackles and Hizashi makes a raspberry sound as he pictures it.
“Oh, so that’s how you’re playing it? How’d you find a way to pull that one off, Green Bean?”
Izuku smiles, happy to tell the tale, “When the class got too loud, dad used his quirk so I just acted like I finally recognised him or something!” Izuku’s voice drops to something so quiet it’s barely a whisper, “Didn’t even have to act excited, I genuinely was.”
His dad still hears it. The way he wraps his arm around Izuku and pulls him further into his side is all the answer he needs to know he heard. Meanwhile Hizashi, Nemuri, and the rest of the people listening in have no idea.
Shouta is still incredibly happy and smug about being his son’s long-time favourite hero.
Hizashi and Nemuri continue to interrogate Shouta about how his morning with the class went since he’s finally willing to talk about it. (They know he was waiting for Izuku to be there. He’s not very good at hiding it when his guard is down.) He talks about how he expelled a kid that didn’t even deserve to get past the entrance exam with the way he was acting. He talks quietly about how so many students look promising this year. Perhaps his gaze strays to his side and lingers on Izuku as he says that particular line, it makes Hizashi smile something so soft and sweet it’s almost cavity inducing. He loves them a lot, so much.
Izuku’s still radiating happiness, practically glowing with all the positive energy singing through his veins. It’s a wonderful feeling for him and a heartwarming sight for everyone else.
Eventually the topic strays to just that. His dad asks the obvious question, “Something happen after I dismissed class, kid?”
Izuku hums, “Why do you ask?”
“Sprout, you haven’t stopped smiling once since you stepped in here.” Nemuri remarks, her own words tinged with the sound of a smile.
Izuku’s cheeks pinken lightly, “I think I made a friend…?”
Nemuri and Hizashi squeal. Loudly. Jumping up from their desks, nearly making their chairs fall back, and racing towards Izuku, descending on him in a crushing hug as they speak too high and too fast for even Izuku to understand. His dad grunts from the secondary impact, jostling from all the movement.
“Green Bean! I’m so happy for you, oh my god! Tell me about them!” Hizashi gushes, smothering Izuku into his chest.
So he talks about Mina, and the two boys with her that seemed nice but more interested in his friends, not that Izuku minded. He talks about how jarring it was for someone his age that’s not Katsuki or Hitoshi to be so kind. Izuku noticed the mood dip at that utterance, smiles dimming at the reminder that Izuku’s never had such simple things like this.
The topic switches.
Nemuri goes on to talk about how her class of third years did something silly at the opening ceremony, a dumb ‘welcome to yuuei’ prank to ‘let the first years know what they’re getting into’. Hizashi goes on to sing praises about his Gen Ed class, saying how they are so determined to do well, how a few want to try for hero course admission through the sports festival. Hizashi gets carried away with joy as he says one of the students nearly walked into a wall when she saw him and immediately blurted out he was her favourite hero.
It’s late mid-afternoon by the time all the paperwork they were working on is done and packed back into their deceiving little folders, piled in a tray dedicated for ‘stuff to give to Nedzu’. The little family of three meanders out of the building slowly, Nemuri draws out the hugs and goodbyes for as long as she can get away with it.
The car ride home is quiet, just the gentle hum of the radio and the occasional comment from Hizashi about something he spots out the window.
As soon as they’re inside the apartment they all beeline to the couch. Shouta going down first—semi-sideways as he leans into the crook between the back and arm of the couch. Hizashi takes the space next to him easily, head resting on his shoulder as soon as he’s close enough.
Izuku takes the most comfortable spot, in his humble opinion. He practically collapses on top of the two, sprawling across their legs and curling into them. His head lands on his dad’s chest and his knees are drawn up into Hizashi’s lap.
He’s extremely comfortable and warm and safe and loved.
The family of three sit and doze in their cuddle puddle for a little over an hour before stomachs start grumbling and they have to give into their bodies’ whims.
Hizashi and Izuku detangle themselves from Shouta who hmphs as soon as all their warmth abruptly leaves him. Hizashi tuts playfully and Izuku giggles before the two retreat to the kitchen. A common occurrence for the two.
Izuku, due to his past unfortunate circumstances, is used to cooking for himself. For the longest time he saw it as a necessity and something that caused him a little too much stress. Now though, he enjoys it.
Cooking for himself was boring and draining but as soon as he moved in with his dad: something changed. He suddenly understood all the home-cooking shows on TV that talked about how cooking was an act of love and a gift for the people in your life. As he worked around the kitchen to try and impress and please his new dad who would try his absolute best to help out with his limited skills. It made him so happy to be able to do something for someone else and for them to enjoy it.
Then, years down the line, when Hizashi finally officially moved in, it became their thing. How many nights a week Izuku would help in the kitchen or the other way around. They would trade techniques and somehow still manage to teach each other new things every once in a while. Izuku specialised in comfort, homey foods that could sometimes be too spicy if he forgot just who he was making them for—perhaps being around and temporarily living with the Bakugou family influenced him a bit much. Meanwhile Hizashi had near mastery over well balanced, elaborate meals that Izuku had only ever seen in movies.
It gave a whole new meaning to being in the kitchen and making something. Izuku did it with the people he loved and felt closer to them with it.
As he and Hizashi moved around one another, passing around vegetables and reaching for various spices and utensils, Shouta eventually trudged over to plop down into the closest seat at the table. Just to watch and add useless but incredibly entertaining commentary.
Once everything was done and their dinner was plated, they sat around the table, small talk and old stories drifting through the air. Embarrassing high school stories about the two adults were churned out eagerly upon Izuku’s request. Talk of the newest episode of whatever show had someone’s interest.
But overall, it was a quiet evening. Hizashi and Shouta retired to their room to spend a couple hours by themselves before Shouta had to leave for patrol. The two adults finally got a chance to talk about Shouta’s conversation with All Might and the new revelations that somehow just added to the puzzle that was his connection to Izuku.
Izuku, meanwhile, sat himself on his bed and finally answered the texts sitting in his inbox while writing down every little thing he could remember about his classmates.
He was too pleased to see Mina had indeed texted him. Just little questions and excitement about school and how Izuku thought it was going to be. Mina is entirely too easy to talk to.
She asks about whatever she can to keep the conversation running, Izuku is a bit spotty with replying because he’s switching between his notebook and phone like it’s some sort of sport. Even with all her efforts around Izuku’s nervous, sometimes stilted replies and her enthusiastic answers to some of Izuku’s own questions, the conversation tapers off within an hour.
So Izuku flips his attention to a different ongoing, constant stream of messages.
It started as soon as Katsuki left the classroom. His semi-fake distress over being dragged to some fancy bistro with his parents. Though—apparently—the food was ‘to fucking die for’. The two text for a while before it turns into a call, wanting to see each other despite spending the better half of the day together.
When it comes time for Katsuki to hang up and get ready for bed, Izuku manages to prolong the call by talking Katsuki into them doing their skincare routines together. Izuku was entirely too pleased to sit in the bathroom and do a face mask, phone propped against the tap as he watched Katsuki drop various serums onto his skin.
Their inevitable goodnight was dragged out until Katsuki threatened Izuku with bodily harm if he didn’t let him go the fuck to sleep.
There’s a break, where Izuku abandons all his current activities to wish his dad a good, safe patrol. He just happened to be walking out of the bathroom as Shouta meandered out of the bedroom, costume properly adorned as he looped his capture weapon around his neck and situated his goggles atop it.
Hizashi’s back in the living room, reading a case file and somewhat watching the true crime show he has on. Izuku gets a little drawn into the show, succumbing to the need to analyze and know everything he can, to solve any and all puzzles presented to him.
Around 11 he snaps out of his cold case haze and goes to his room to attempt to wind down. Izuku tries and fails to get himself tired. Ending in Izuku staring at the clock that somehow reads 2am before he puts on music and hopes the background noise will manage to lull him to sleep.
His thoughts keep him up for a while. Thoughts of school and all his new classmates. He doesn’t know what a lot of them are like or how they’ll treat him. What if they hate him? What if they find out he used to be quirkless? What if after what if plagues him until his body finally succumbs to its desire to sleep.
Hopefully it’ll be okay, is his last conscious thought, because even if no one likes him and something goes horribly wrong, at least he has his dad and 'Zashi. At least he has Katsuki and Hitoshi.
That’s all he can really ask for.