Chapter Text
They weren’t prepared for the chaos and destruction they found in the city.
It was a disaster, buildings were up in flames and heroes were trying and failing to contain the villains as police and firemen worked tirelessly to bring all the citizens to safety.
“This is much worse than I thought it would be.” Aizawa said, voice tense.
“Well then, let’s hurry up and turn these tables.” Neito replied, spotting a group of their former classmates and heroes helping out the rescue teams.
“Mindjack, Ereaserhead!” Ashido spotted them and rushed over “Phantom Thief, thank goodness you are all here. You weren’t responding, we all got so worried.”
Hitoshi looked away, frowning, so Aizawa spoke up “We were in the League’s hideout. We managed to recover everybody’s quirks.”
“Wait, really?” Uraraka spoke up next, joining their group.
“Yes, really. They are in this bag. We need to gather everyone here. The syringes are labelled, just find yours and inject it in your arm.” He explained handing the two girls the respective syringes. “Then spread the word and direct the quirkless heroes to us.”
“Hitoshi, where are you going?” Neito spoke up, seeing the other stepping back and walking away
“I’m going to look for Shiragaki.” He said, his voice cold and furious.
“You can’t go on your own, Hitoshi, it’s-“ Monoma started, but then Aizawa lifted his hand to stop him and stared at his son.
“Don’t do anything stupid.” He simply said, the teen nodded gratefully, and then he was off.
By the time Hitoshi found the man, the battle seemed to have already shifted in favour of the heroes, if the livid rage in Shiragaki’s eyes was anything to go by.
“Shiragaki!” He shouted, standing a few meters away from him, and the man in question turned to look at him, seething.
“You! It’s your fault!” he charged towards Hitoshi, hand outstretched, but the teen simply stepped to the side and threw out his binding cloth, wrapping it around his wrists. He used the momentum to pull Shiragaki back towards himself, kneeing him straight on his face.
The villain stumbled back, stunned, for a moment, but quickly recovered, charging back and trying grabbing Hitoshi as the other kept dodging.
“You’ll get tired of running!” Shiragaki taunted him “Aren’t you going to try and use your quirk?”
Hitoshi swiped his leg, making him tumble to the floor “I don’t need it to beat you.” He hissed and punched him on the face.
They fought for a few minutes, he had gotten a few good hits in, but Shiragaki had managed to grab Hitoshi’s left forearm, the hero had immediately pulled away, but the damage Decay had done had already rendered it useless.
He let what was left of his limb fall limply to his side and smirked at the beaten up villain “I quite like that look on you.” He said, taking in Shiragaki’s bloody nose and swollen face “Why don’t you consider keeping it?”
“You-“ He started replying, and Hitoshi quickly took the chance to take control of his mind.
“Sit down.” He ordered and the villain complied, the hero could feel him struggling and fighting back for control, but his hold on the villain’s mind was strong “Stay there motherfucker.” He hissed and then pulled out his phone to call his father.
“Ereaserhead speaking.”
Hitoshi let out a sigh “Hi, this is Mindjack. I have Shiragaki here secured and restrained. I estimate I can keep my hold on him for two minutes, three tops.”
“I’ll send out your location and the closest heroes will come and take it from there. Be careful, Kurogiri is still on the loose. As well as Dabi, they might try and help him.”
“I’ll do my best. He managed to grab my left arm so I am kind of incapacitated.”
“Understood. Sit tight, someone will be there soon.”
Less than a minute had passed after Hitoshi had hung, up when Deku and Dynamight landed behind him. The blond immediately rushed to Shiragaki, while Izuku crouched next to his friend “Are you okay?” He asked, concerned.
“I’m fine Deku, he just got my arm. Hopefully Recovery girl can do something about it.” He smiled.
The hero nodded and smiled back at him.
“Oi Deku, Mindfuck!” Bakugou shouted “The mummy here is secure. Let’s get him on the first fucking police car to Tartarus!”
Midoriya chuckled “Let’s go, come on. I’ll carry you, we need to do something quick, the decay is spreading quicker than I’d like.” He easily picked up Hitoshi as Bakugou threw Shiragaki over his shoulder and then took off.
As the explosive hero brought the villain to the police Deku quickly took Hitoshi to the medical base they had set up. The battle was winding down, most villains and Nomus had been defeated and incapacitated in one way or another.
“Toshi! Izuku!” His little sister greeted them, running to them and wrapping them both in a hug, Shouta and Hizashi following close behind.
“What happened to your arm?” She asked, taking in the sight of Hitoshi’s injuries.
“You don’t need to worry about it. I’ll get it fixed.” He smiled and ruffled her hair.
“May I fix it?” She asked, looking up, determination in her eyes. Hitoshi hesitated, glancing up at their father, who, in return, looked down at her.
“You think you can control it, Eri?” She considered it for a moment and then nodded again.
“I’ve been practicing very hard. I can do it. I know it.”
Hitoshi let his sister gently grab his arm and watched her as she focused and let her quirk take over. Hitoshi’s could feel his bones, muscles and nerves restoring as his skin slowly closed and patched itself back together.
With a little effort Eri managed to stop herself and let go of his arm. The hero watched his limb fascinated and tried moving his fingers, then he smiled at his little sister.
“That was amazing. I feel great. You did a perfect job.” He scooped her up and gave her a big hug, which she happily returned.
Their happiness was short lived, though, when they suddenly heard Bakugou’s unmistakable voice shouting. “Stop him! Don’t let him escape!”
“What is it now, for fuck’s sake.” Aizawa grumbled and they immediately ran to the scene, and there Shiragaki was, holding one of the paramedics hostage as he slowly made his way to a warp gate opened by Kurogiri.
His eyes met Hitoshi’s and he smirked “You might have stopped me. But at least I still have a consolation prize to look forward to.” He dropped the paramedic as he stepped through the warp “An old friend who is dying to see me.”
As they both disappeared in the dark mist Hitoshi paled “Denki.” He turned towards Izuku “Deku-!”
The other nodded in understanding, green energy crackling around his legs “Hop on and lead the way.” The purple haired hero nodded and climbed onto his back “It’s just a few blocks South from here.” He said, Midoriya nodded and they flew off.
Less than a minute later they were back in front of the same building Hitoshi had been to earlier that evening.
Where he had been forced to leave Denki behind.
“Deku, I-“ He turned towards his friend but the other just smiled.
“You go look for them. I’ll call for backup and take care of Shiragaki and Kurogiri, don’t worry. Find them and take them to safety.”
Hitoshi gave him a quick hug, touched “Thank you.” He whispered and then ran inside, heading straight for the lab, hoping and praying he wasn’t too late.
Once he reached the door Denki had locked himself in, he luckily found it dented, so, with a couple of well placed kicks, he was able to take it off its hinges and kick it down.
“Denki!” He called, looking around; the lab was almost completely destroyed, another Nomu knocked out in the corner. “Denki!” He called again, louder, and, in response, he heard the faintest cough coming from beneath some rubble.
Immediately Hitoshi started lifting and moving the equipment and machine pieces out of the way “Denki!” He said again and finally, finally, he saw it, a flash of blond hair. He moved one final metal plate and there he was, beaten, but alive.
He carefully slid his arms under his knees and behind his back and lifted him, carrying him bridal style.
The other seemed to be slipping in and out of consciousness, his eyes barely focusing on Hitoshi.
“H-Hi...toshi...?” He whispered “What-?”
“I came back for you, you stupid, careless idiot.” He looked down at the man in his arms “I can’t even begin to explain how mad and how fucking relieved I feel right now.”
“I’m sorry.” The blond closed his eyes, crying quietly, but Hitoshi stopped him.
“Don’t you fucking dare say anything.” He tightened his grip on him “I’m taking you to a hospital, we will talk when you feel better. I don’t want to hear it until then.”
He could have sworn Denki chuckled at that, but it might have been Hitoshi’s imagination, because, when he looked down, the blond was unconscious, his head resting limply against the hero’s chest.
If anyone had told Hitoshi he could dislike hospitals even more than he already did, he probably would have laughed.
Apparently, however, the only thing worse than being admitted as a patient, was being in a hospital for a patient, stuck in a waiting room with no news whatsoever.
All of that because Denki just had to go and save Hitoshi’s life, putting his own in jeopardy.
“Hey.” Shouta’s voice pulled him out of his thoughts as he slipped a cup of coffee between Hitoshi’s hands and then sat down next to him “Still nothing?”
Hitoshi sighed and shook his head “No. At least they stopped asking me to leave and come back in the morning.” He joked “Now they just completely ignore me.”
“You know, you could go back home and get some rest.” The older man sipped his coffee “He’d still be here.”
“Yeah, not like he could go anywhere. The police is guarding the operating room. As if he was some kind of dangerous villain.”
Aizawa sighed “Hitoshi, we talked about this. His association with the League-”
“I don’t care.” He said, exasperated “I told you. He is a victim not a perpetrator.”
“You know as well as I do that that decision is up to a judge.”
“No, what I know is that this whole thing is bullshit. And I also know that you agree, so please, just stop for a fucking second playing the ‘responsible adult’ part and let me be upset about it.” He snapped and then leant back, half expecting his father to get mad, instead Shouta squeezed his shoulder.
“You’re right. I’m sorry. Sometimes it’s hard to turn off the ‘teacher and mentor mode’, or whatever Hizashi calls it.” He pulled him close “You know if there is even the smallest chance to play the system we will find it and take it, right?”
Hitoshi chuckled and nodded “Yeah. I know.” He leant against his father, his grip tightening on the coffee cup “I just need him to be okay now.” He admitted, suddenly feeling like he had back in his village, scared, tired and alone.
“Take a nap. I’ll wake you up if any nurse or doctor come with any news.” Shouta encouraged him and took his coffee. Hitoshi didn’t even try and protest as his eyes closed and, in under a minute, he was out like a light.
It was well late into the following morning when finally a doctor came up to them “Are you the ones who have been bothering the staff all night for news regarding Kaminari-san?”
Hitoshi immediately sat up straight “Yeah. Is the surgery over? How is he?”
The doctor sighed “Yes the surgery is over, he is fine, resting. Now, if I ask you to leave and come back when he wakes up will you do it?”
“Yes.” Aizawa said, just as Hitoshi shook his head saying “No.”
The doctor sighed again, defeated “Fine. Then just go to his room and you can wait there. One person at a time, please. And do not wake him up. He needs all the rest he can get. Try not to get in the nurses’ way, thank you. Goodbye.” And with that he was gone, muttering about heroes and how bothersome they were, and Hitoshi immediately collected his things.
“I’m going.” He told his father and the other nodded.
“I figured as much. I’ll go back home and update Hizashi. I expect you to come back by the end of the day, Hitoshi.”
“No promises.” The other replied, smiling and then quickly ran to the elevator. He just needed to see Denki with his own eyes, to see that he was fine and that he was breathing.
As he reached the door he slowed down and opened it quietly and carefully, mindful of the doctor’s orders.
If Hitoshi hadn’t been so exhausted and emotionally drained by the past couple of days, he would have wept in relief at the sight of the blond lying in the hospital bed, looking much better than he had just a few hours prior.
Instead he made his way to his bedside and sat down in the chair, gently taking his hand “Hey Denks...” He whispered “I’m right here.” He gently stroked the back of it with his thumb and then fell quiet, just observing the other’s face as he slept peacefully.
He spent the next few hours holding Denki’s hand with one hand and scrolling through his phone with the other. His eyes were burning after hours of going through every single law and court ruling about pardoned or reformed villains to try and find a way to get Denki out of going to trial for Shiragaki’s crimes.
As he glanced at the time on his phone, Hitoshi realised it was already late into the evening. So he opened his family’s group chat, shooting a quick text to his dads, telling them that he would be staying at the hospital overnight and immediately proceeding to ignore their replies.
He was about to close the chat app, when he noticed Neito had sent him a link, and, below that, a single message.
(The Great) Neito [20:53]
You can thank me later, lover boy.
Curious, he clicked on the link and started reading through the article. It was about a case, in some god forsaken town in Northern Japan, where a villain had been pardoned in the light of extenuating circumstances concerning his upbringing, only to then become the most beloved and celebrated hero in the town’s history. Apparently that story had then inspired a group of professionalsl to come up with a proposal for a sponsorship program. They were still in the early stages, but had already accepted their first cases. The aim of the program was to evaluate their subjects' backgrounds, have them go through a series of check-ups with psychologists and medical professionals to demonstrate that they were lead to villainous acts because of circumstances rather than will.
If these check-ups came back with promising results a pro hero could come forward to sponsor them, take responsibility for their training and guide them through some community service.
At the end of the program they would need another round of check-ups and after that, with the hero commission’s approval, they could even take the exam to get their license.
Hitoshi didn’t need to read any further, his face breaking in a wide grin.
“This is it.” He whispered and let out a breathless laugh. “I won’t let them take you to jail.” He murmured, kissing Denki’s hand.
As if on cue, the blond stirred and slowly opened his eyes “What...” He croaked out, sending himself in a coughing fit.
Hitoshi snapped out of his surprise and immediately got him a glass of water “Careful, drink slowly.” He whispered, bringing it to his lips and helping him as he drank it.
He wiped Denki’s chin carefully and those beautiful golden eyes finally focused on him “Hitoshi?” He whispered, surprised. “What... Where...?”
Hitoshi chuckled and helped him lie back down “You're in the hospital.” He reassured him “In fact, I should probably call the doctor or a nurse. I am guessing they would like to know that you have woken up.”
“Wait!” Denki reached out to weakly grab his hand, almost scared to let him leave “A-Are you staying?” He asked, doubt and fear in his eyes and Hitoshi smiled, trying reassuring him.
“Yes, don’t worry. I’m not going anywhere, Kitten.” He leant in to kiss the top of his head and then walked out, finding a nurse to inform them about Denki’s status. He almost regretted doing so when, for the following two hours, nurses and doctors kept coming and going from his room, asking Denki questions or taking him away for one test or another. He kept quiet and waited patiently, however, knowing all too well they could and would kick him out in a heartbeat if he gave them a reason to do so.
It was well past midnight when they were finally alone again, Denki tentatively reached out to take Hitoshi’s hand, keeping his touch light, as if he was expecting Hitoshi to pull away any second. Instead Hitoshi laced their fingers together and gave Denki’s hand a soft squeeze.
“How are you feeling?”
The blond chuckled “Like a train run me over a couple of times. What about you?”
“Me? I feel like I just had to watch a train run you over a couple of times.” He admitted leaning forward.
Denki hummed and looked down at their joint hands “So... What did I miss?”
“Nothing much, except the fact that thanks to you we basically recovered everyone’s quirks and managed to apprehend the whole League of Villains.”
Denki grimaced and looked away “I didn’t do shit, Hitoshi.”
“Bullshit.” He shot back “Denki, look at me.”
The shorter man groaned but turned to look into Hitoshi’s eyes.
“If it’s my forgiveness that you need, I forgive you. Don’t shut me out, please. You think I would have spent the past forty eight hours in this stupid hospital if I didn’t care about you?”
“I hurt you and lied to you.”
“You were forced to do it.”
“It doesn’t change anything.”
“It changes everything.”
“Your friends and family hate me.”
“They don’t.”
“You should hate me.”
“Well, l love you.” Hitoshi said, cupping his face and gently turning him to face him.
Denki stared at him, speechless, so Hitoshi took it as his clue to keep going.
“All my life I felt like I had to find someplace where I would belong. At first I thought my life would feel whole if I could just be normal, then I thought it would be if I could find my real parents. Then all I cared about was being a hero.” He chuckled “I kept searching for just that one something that could fill this hole in my chest.” He brought Denki’s hand to his lips “Then you came along and I still wanted the same things as before, but I didn’t feel this need to keep going and keep searching anymore.”
Denki’s eyes filled with tears, Hitoshi’s following right after.
“I know what you are thinking. And I know what everyone else might be thinking. The truth is that I don't give a shit.” He caressed his cheek “I finally found my place, Denki. And I hope you can find yours by my side, if you’ll have me.”
They both fell silent, Denki’s eyes focused on Hitoshi’s purple ones, possibly searching for some hint of doubt or hesitation, but his expression was earnest and sincere, almost overwhelmingly so.
His smaller, soft hands moved to cup Hitoshi’s cheeks and slowly, giving the hero the chance to pull away if he wanted to, he brought their lips together. But Hitoshi immediately leant into it, his own hands moving on their own, one to rest on Denki’s waist, the other gently cupping the side of his neck as they kissed slowly, savouring and relishing each other.
Neither of them was sure how much time had passed, too caught up in one another. When they broke apart Hitoshi smiled as Denki let out a shaky breath.
“... Wow.” The blonde whispered, at a loss for words and the taller man chuckled
“Are you always this articulate?” Hitoshi teased him, smiling.
“Shut up, don’t ruin it.” Denki shot back, before pulling him back for another kiss, much deeper and needier than the first one, Hitoshi was now fully hovering over Denki, matching the intensity and passion of the blond’s kisses.
“We should... Slow down...” The hero murmured between kisses “Denks.” He finally pulled away, his lips red and cheeks flushed, as he felt his blood rushing in a whole new direction all of a sudden. The other had the audacity to smirk, fully aware of the way he was affecting Hitoshi.
“Fine.” Denki finally conceded, settling back against the pillows “But you owe me a part two, Hot stuff.”
“That can be arranged.” Hitoshi smiled and took his hand, kissing his knuckles “After I take you out on a few proper dates.”
“What a gentleman.” Denki chuckled and then yawned.
“You should rest some more. You look like shit.” The purple haired man teased him.
“Rude. Also, you should take your own advice, so come here.” He scooted over a bit, ignoring the way his body protested at the movement, and made room on his hospital bed.
Hitoshi hesitated, blushing “Uh. I don’t think it’s...”
“Come on, don’t be a prude, we are just going to sleep, I’m not some animal, I’m not going to jump on you.” He smirked “Unless of course you wanted me to, in that case I’d gladly do that and ride your-”
“Oh my god, please stop.” The other interrupted him, cheeks burning as he climbed on bed “Do you ever shut up?” Hitoshi wrapped his arms around Denki and they shifted around a bit until they found a comfortable position for the both of them.
“You can make me shut up anytime Hot stuff-“
“That’s it. I’m calling a nurse to put you to sleep.”
The blond chuckled and looked up at him “I’ll stop. I’m just teasing you. You’re too cute when you’re flustered.” He admitted and then closed his eyes “Goodnight Toshi.”
Hitoshi found himself smiling fondly at the other as he pressed a kiss to the top of his head.
“Goodnight Denki.”
Five years later
“You are joking.”
“I am not, I told you.”
“There is no way.”
“Denki, Kitten, just look for yourself.” Hitoshi held out his phone but his boyfriend shook his head.
“No, no, no. Have you ever heard the saying that goes ‘ignorance is bliss’? Why won’t you let me live in bliss, 'Toshi? Why must you be so cruel?”
Hitoshi rolled his eyes and looked down, reading out loud “Just a little over a year after his official debut, pro hero Chargebolt is rumoured to be already about to break in the top twenty in next month’s char-“ He stopped as Denki jumped on him, straddling his lap and pressing both his hands over Hitoshi’s mouth.
“I told you I don’t want to know!” He squeaked, cheeks bright red.
Hitoshi licked his palms and the other pulled his hands back in shock “Did you just lick me?!”
“I’ve done worse to you Kitten, haven’t I?” He smirked suggestively, wrapping his arms around the blond’s waist, holding him there, their bodies pressed together and Denki blushed, groaning.
“I liked you more when you were shy and flustered.” He mumbled.
“Come on, Denks. This is great news, why are you so upset about it?” He rubbed circles on his lower back, kissing his temple.
The blond relaxed under his touch and then slumped forward, giving in “It’s just scary ok? I-I just fear that if I let myself hope...” He sighed “And what about the public’s reaction? They know who I am and what I did. What if everyone responds badly to it and they start like, protesting and stuff.”
Hitoshi cupped his cheek and pressed their foreheads together “And what if they don’t? What if people just know about your past and still appreciate what you do now? I think the only one that has not yet forgiven you, is yourself. And if there are people who don’t like you being in the top twenty, let them bark and yap all they want, they can’t take your accomplishments away from you.”
The blond stared at him and then let out a sigh “I hate it when you make sense.” Denki kissed him softly, smiling into it “I love you ‘Toshi.”
“I love you too Denks.” He smiled and held him closer, feeling the familiar buzz of his lover’s electricity where their skins touched. Sometimes it still surprised him how quickly and easily he and Denki had fallen into a routine. Everything with the blond felt natural. Hitoshi wasn't really someone that believed in fate and soulmates, but there wasn't really any other way to explain just how perfectly he and Denki fit together.
“I think we should get married.” Hitoshi blurted out before he could stop himself.
“What?” Denki asked after a beat of silence, looking at him.
“What do you mean what?” He chuckled “I love you and I want to spend my life with you. I mean, we don’t have to do it now. I know we never really talked about that level of commitment. And if it’s not something you’re interested in I get it, it’s just-“
Denki’s lips pressed on Hitoshi’s, successfully stopping his ramblings.
“Yes.” He finally said as he pulled back “I want to marry you. I was just surprised because you never brought it up before, so I wasn’t sure if that was something you even wanted... With me.”
“I want it because it’s you.” He whispered and gave him a soft smile.
“You’re such a sap.” Denki chuckled, cheeks pink.
“Takes one to know one, Kitten.” He laughed at Denki’s affronted face and then flipped them so the other was laying on the couch, Hitoshi crawling over him.
As he leant down and kissed him, Hitoshi allowed himself to feel fully and truly happy.
As he pulled back and looked into golden eyes, which stared back at him with pure love and adoration, Hitoshi allowed himself to finally feel whole.