Chapter Text
Mount Mitake: 15日7月2098年
The sun was just beginning to set, painting the sky into a mix of reds, purples, pinks, and oranges over the top of Mount Mitake. Long shadows were starting to be cast from the many tall trees spread throughout the top of the mountain onto the hiking trails.
“Come on, Hisashi! We’re almost to the top!” cried out an excited female voice. From said hiking trail, a woman had emerged, bouncing back and forth between each foot. Her shiny green hair was pulled up into a tight ponytail, with two pieces of hair framing her face. Her green eyes sparkled with excitement. Behind her, a man stumbles along, his dark hair covering his eyes as he struggles to get a breathe in. He was bent over, both his hands resting on his knees. He looked up, revealing a gentle grey eyes under his fringe. He gasped for air as he spoke.
“I-Inko, why couldn’t we have taken the cable car? Or stopped a-at the Rock Garden? We c-could have been back by now? Jesus, this is steep...” He spoke this as he dabbed his head with his sleeve. As he struggled to catch a breathe, Inko rolled her eyes at him impatiently. He was such a stick in the mud sometimes, she thought fondly. She continued to hike up the last bit of the trail, leaving Hisashi, her husband, in the dust. She looked out in amazement. She looked back to her struggling.
“Hisashi!” she yelled eagerly, “You’re missing the sunset! It’s amazing up here!” She turned back to the horizon that was encompassed by a multitude of hues, each more beautiful then the last. She stretched her arms out to her sides and closed her eyes, as if she were expected a hug in return. The smile on her face was spread widely and she soon released a breathless chuckle. Inko took a glance back when she heard a loud thump behind her, only to see Hisashi laying in the dirt panting heavily. It was then she put her hands down, still smiling, and walked over to him. As she did so, she took off her back pack and reached in, bringing out the desired items, before tossing the bag to the side. She then crouched by his head and looked down at him.
The arm that had been covering his eyes moved slightly, revealing to him his wife’s smiling face. Looking a little further down at her hands revealed the sake bottle and two saucer-like cups she retrieved from her bag. He smiled at her and sat up, groaning as he did so. He accepted the cup and poured sake into it, as well as into Inko’s. They both looked towards the setting sun as they sipped on their sake. The smile on Hisashi’s face dimmed and he took a glance at his wife, was was smiling sadly at the darkening skyline. He fiddled with his sakazuki, before resting it onto his lap.
“Do you... really think this will work?” he mumbled to his wife. If he hadn’t had his eyes on her, he would have failed to notice her stiffening slightly at his question. Her hands grasped her drink much more firmly than before. The smile that had been on her face was gone and was now a hard-line, her eyes beginning to shine as tears began to form in her eyes.
“...it has to...”
They both got quite after that. It was two years after trying for a child that they were told that it would be impossible, that there was something wrong that was preventing the conception. At first, they didn’t want to believe it, visiting as many doctors as they could and spared no expense, trying to prove that it wasn’t impossible, that the doctors were wrong.
However, as months passed with no change and with Inko’s friend, Mitsuki, getting pregnant and giving birth only a few months previously... it was becoming more and more of a reality. They had tried all options, with none of them working thus far. So, they had turned to pray, visiting shrines and fulfilling all kinds of superstition that are suppose to help induce pregnancy. Again, none had worked and they were beginning to lose hope. They had already went to the Musashi-Mitake Shrine earlier that day to pray. When Inko heard about there being a meteor shower that night, she bought the sake and sakazuki cups, and told her husband they were going to the top of Mount Mitake. It took several hours but they managed it, just in time to catch the sunset.
Finally, the sun had disappeared and the moon was beginning to rise in the sky. Stars began to emerge from the inky darkness. Inko laid her head on Hisashi’s lap as they looked up at the sky. Inko played with the grass, gently pulling on it.
“If this works” whispered Inko to Hisashi, “what would their name be?” Hisashi pondered on this. They had this conversation a lot, debating names that would be perfect for a possible son or daughter.
“Hmmm... Akio? Or Gou? Those are some nice strong names for a hero!” Hisashi grinned and pumped his fist in the hair. Inko laughed at her husband’s antics.
“You’re so sure it’ll be a boy!” She giggled, “Well, if it is a boy, he should be named Eito or Haruto. He’ll be kind and a little ball of sunshine!”
“Yeah, but he’ll be tough and manly! Like Crimson Riot!”
“Haha! You’re such a hero fanboy! I don’t think I’ve even heard of him before!”
“Well, you don’t know what you’re missing! No one can beat me with my superior knowledge!” Hisashi said this while placing a hand on his chin, sparkles sparkling near his mouth, a tiny lick of flames being seen as the cause of the artificial sparkles.
“How about Hinata or Rini for a girl?”
“H-hey! Don’t ignore me!” Hisashi pouted, “Besides, those names aren’t good enough for our daughter!”
“Aw, but you make it so easy!” Inko grinned up at him, “Anyway, what would be a good name, hmm? Perhaps Kaida? Would be kind of narcissistic of you...”
Hisashi glared down at Inko while she smiled up at like an imp. He couldn’t hold his weak glare long before laughing, Inko joining in. After they were done laughing, Hisashi looked up and caught sight of the first shooting star. He tapped his wife’s shoulder before pointing up. They both watched in amazement at the glowing shower of lights that passed above them. Inko, for a brief moment, closed her eyes and thought:
Please... let me have a child of my own...
The shower ended shortly after. They packed up the sake and cups, taking out flashlights to help them down the steep path. (“Well, this is going to be fun...” “Shh, don’t be a spoilsport, Hisashi!”) Just as they were about to start the journey back down the mountain in the dark, Hisashi took one last look up and his eyes widened.
“Inko...”
“Hmm...?”
“MOVE!” Hisashi tackled Inko to the ground, causing her to gasp at the sudden push. She watched as a light from above them came careening past them, taking several trees out as the light crashed into the earth. Inko stared at the carnage in wonder.
A... fallen star...?
She got up, pushing away Hisashi’s arms and ran towards the fallen star. She ignored Hisashi’s cries to stay away, to wait for heroes to show up or to go back down the mountain. But she couldn't. She had this feeling, this urge, to see what it was. She made it to the very end of the crevice the fallen star had made and found, not a star, but a smooth, silver object that looked alien in structure. Inko crept towards it, until she was in touching distance. She hesitantly reached a hand towards it, pausing just before she could. She closed her eyes, trying to steel her nerves. She took a deep breath, before opening her eyes, full of determination and went to touch the strange object.
Before she could however, it began to hiss and began to move. Inko tripped backwards, and watched as the silver object began to open, smoke leaking out. Slowly, she crawled towards it, hesitantly standing up once she was close enough. Ever so slowly, she took a peak over the edge of the opening and gasped.
Within the alien object was a baby that couldn’t have even been a year old yet. The baby had short, inky dark hair and skin that was pale, nearly unblemished if it were not for their freckles. They were wrapped in a light green blanket, long enough to be a cape. The baby began to squirm and opened up their eyes, a dark blue that shone in the moonlight. Looking at the unfamiliar surroundings, the baby began to cry. Inko, carefully, picked the baby up and started to gently rock him, soothing away his tears. The baby shortly fell back to sleep after that.
Looking back at the pod, she looked inside it, keeping one hand on the baby. As she looked, she could hear Hisashi stumbling behind her, looking for her. He was calling out her name but she didn’t answer, she was a on a mission now. Just as she heard Hisashi sigh in relief behind her at finding her, she found a strange device and grabbed it. It was covered in markings that she couldn’t decipher or recognize.
“I-Inko? W-what are you doing? What are you holding?”
Slowly she turned around, revealing the baby in her arms. Hisashi’s eyes widened at the sight and began stuttering incredulously. Shifting the baby slightly in her arms, as to use both hands to hold them, she started walking back towards Hisashi. He stared, wide-eyed at what he was seeing, eyes bouncing back and forth between the baby and the ship. It was once Inko walked past him that he forced himself out of his stupor and chased after her.
“W-wait! Inko!” He grabbed her shoulder and forced her to turn around, placing both his hands on her shoulders after doing so.
“What do you think you’re doing!?”
“Taking our baby home.”
“O-o-our baby? Inko, that baby could belong to someone! We can’t just kidnap someone’s kid! We need to wait for someone to show up, whether that be an officer or a hero! He’s not ours!” Hisashi tried to explain to his wife, desperate for her to see sense. Only his wife stared at him in disbelief.
“Wait?” she rhetorically questioned, “Not ours? Hisashi, this is the answer to our prayers! Do you really think that anyone is looking for him? He came out of that thing from who knows where! And what do you think the heroes will do, once they find that out? They’ll report it and he’ll be taken away, probably to some god-awful place to be studied and experimented on by the government!” Inko’s grip tightened around the baby, ”No, we need to leave, now, while we still have a chance. I’m not losing this opportunity to have a child, so help me if you do anything to take this away from me...”
Hisashi listened to her rant and sighed, knowing that there was no getting through to her. He looked down at the baby, watching as they slept peacefully in his wife’s arms. He had to admit, it did look natural, it looked perfect... they could finally have a family...
He sighed again, “Fine, but we need to hurry. Who knows how soon until someone shows up to investigate. You have everything you need? We won’t be able to come back after this...”
Inko nodded firmly. There was nothing else they could do but leave before the authorities showed up. Hisashi grabbed his flashlight, put an arm over his wife’s shoulder, and fled into the night.
Thirty minutes later, heroes, police, and EMTs arrived. All they could find, was an empty pod barren of anything within it. By the time they left, Inko and Hisashi Midoriya would have already snuck back into their ryokan, a new addition to their family. That night, the baby, that they now knew was a boy, was endowed a new name.
“Let’s name him Izuku...”
______________
Keiko Kindergarten: 25日5月2102 年
Izuku Midoriya was staring out the window. Everything was so loud, he could barely hear himself think, let alone listen to his teacher. There were several dogs barking, a robbery taking place at a bank, a hostage situation in a convenience store, some one was screaming for a hero, and more. There was so much! He couldn’t concentrate on anything! All of a sudden, a paper ball hit his head. Izuku turned around and saw Katsuki Bakugo, known to him as Kacchan, looking at him furiously and gesturing to the front of the room.
However, he wasn’t paying attention to that. He was instead staring in horror as his friend, and everyone else’s face, shifted between showing their skeletons and organs. He turned back to the front, a sweat beginning to form as he gazed in horror at what was happening around him. The teacher seemed to finally take notice and walked up to him.
“Izuku?” She asked gently, “are you okay?” Instead of answering, Izuku could only watch as her face switched back and forth between bone and innards, like everyone else’s. It was getting louder, he couldn’t focus on anything. Suddenly areas of the room got closer and then went back to normal. Everything was looking strange. He had to leave! He had to go!
Izuku ran out of the room, ignoring the cries of his teacher. The walls around him fluctuating between being solid and opaque. He ran into the first room he saw and shut the door. It was a janitor’s closet. He looked desperately for ways to keep the door closed, as he didn’t want anyone coming in. He managed to find something to tie the knob of the door to the table in the tiny room. Izuku heard his teacher rattling the door, unable to open it. He could hear his classmates whispering outside. It was too loud! He slowly slid down, seeing his teacher struggle with the door, students surrounding her and whispering to each other.
“What’s wrong with him?”
“You think he got his quirk?”
“Don’t be dumb! He’s Quirkless, remember? Bet there’s something else wrong with him besides being Quirkless...”
“What’s Deku doing, Bakugo?”
“How the fuck should I know? Maybe shitty Deku is looking for attentionor something shitty like that...”
Too loud! Too loud! Izuku shut his eyes tightly, covering his ears to block out the noise but it was in vain. Then he heard it, the only thing he wanted to hear.
“Izuku? It’s mommy...”
...Mama...
“You need to tell me what’s wrong, Izu, otherwise I can’t help you.”
“Everyone back to the classroom now! Mrs. Midoriya, Izuku can go home for today if it’s necessary. Sorry for calling you out of work— I said back to the classroom!”
It was quieter now, not by much, but it was better. Everyone but his mom was away from the door now. His mom was still talking in her soft, gentle voice to him.
“...too big...” he murmured.
He heard his mom asking him to repeat himself. He could hear the slight tremble in her voice.
“The world’s too big...”
Izuku could hear his mom sigh. He could hear the silent tears running down her face as she spoke.
“Then make it small, Izu... Imagine this. My voice, it’s an island. And you want to swim towards it. Can you see it, Izu? Can you swim to it?”
He could. He could see the dark blue waters surrounding him. He could see a distant island, covered in green trees, a green that matched his mom’s hair and eyes. He could get there.
It was now completely quiet. The only thing he could hear was his own breathing and heart beat.
Slowly, he got up, untied the door knob, and opened it. And there she was, his mom. Kneeling on the floor, with tears in her eyes. Izuku‘s eyes began to water as well. He rushed over to her and wrapped his arms tightly around her. Her arms grasped him in a firm hug in return.
“Mama... why can’t I tell anyone about my quirk?”
His mom didn’t answer. He could only feel his shoulder getting wet from her tears. All she could say to him, was that she was sorry.
That wasn’t the answer I wanted, Mama...
______________
Needless to say, he didn’t return to class that day, or the next. His mom called the school and lied to them, saying that his episode was due to him being sick and yes, they were sure he was Quirkless, they even had a doctor confirm it.
Izuku didn’t understand why he couldn’t tell people about his quirks. He had super hearing and x-ray vision! Two quirks! Both being really cool hero quirks! Maybe he could ask his dad, when he got home.
Hisashi Midoriya didn’t come home often. He was the CMO (chief marketing officer) of a support item company. Often, he had to travel internationally for the company. Either way, he brought home enough money for Izuku and Inko to live comfortably. And when he was home, it didn’t matter how tired he was, Hisashi always had time to spend with Izuku. Hisashi was usually the one who would answer his questions and was the parent that supported Izuku’s desire to be a hero.
Izuku heard a car outside. At this point in time, he could recognize the sound of his dad’s driving, no matter what kind of car he had. Izuku smiled broadly and ran to the front door. He could hear his dad’s footsteps getting closer. He waited jumping up and down in place. The door opened and there stood Hisashi Midoriya. He didn’t stay in the door way long, however, due to Izuku tackling him onto the ground in his excitement, causing Hisashi to let out a gasp of air at the sudden action. He smiled down at the little boy hugging his midsection and gave his son a hair ruffle.
Hisashi chuckled, “Missed me, didja? My little Superman!” Izuku was always happy when his dad got home, they got to talk about heroes with one another! About their strengths, their weaknesses, how to improve their costumes, etc. He even helped to sketch out Izuku’s hero costume ideas! It was better then how Inko would react to Izuku’s desire to be a hero.
Lifting Izuku up, Hisashi raised Izuku into the air, making it look like Izuku was flying around. He ran into the living room, making pretend that Izuku was an airplane, making Izuku twist and turn in the air. Izuku’s black-green hair swayed side to side, laughing as his dad lifted him around. It would have continued, until he heard a polite cough from the kitchen. Hisashi turned to look at his wife, who was raising an eyebrow at him. Hisashi smiled sheepishly, put Izuku down, and went to greet his wife. They both went into the kitchen while Izuku stayed in the living room.
Izuku picked up his All Might and Crimson Riot toys, pretending he couldn’t hear his parents’ conversation in the kitchen. They were talking about his episode, of course. It was the reason why Hisashi came home so early this time. Izuku’s good mood began to drop as he listened to an argument begin to take place between his parents.
“...maybe if you would let him use one of his powers...”
“If he uses one, what if he accidentally uses another? How could we explain that? We need him to stay under the radar...”
“He’s suffering! He needs training, from a professional. This can’t be healthy for him!”
“I don’t want to lose my baby...”
“It’ll get out eventually! He wants to be a hero, for crying out loud!”
“I won’t let him!”
“You really think you can stop him? He was meant to be a hero!”
“You’re just saying that because you couldn’t be one!”
“No I’m not! I actually listen to what Izuku wants...”
“He’ll grow out of it...”
“NO, he won’t.”
Izuku didn’t know how many times he heard this argument. It always seemed to come up at least once when both his parents are home. Izuku stopped playing with his toys and went into his room. He looked at his All Might covered walls before walking over to his bookshelf. He looked for a second before finding it, Hero Analysis for the Future No. 1. His dad usually helped him with this but Izuku wanted a distraction. Usually, this helped him tune out the world around him. Maybe he can work on Gang Orca’s page, he was a new hero that finally got out of the sidekick stage of being a hero...
Several hours later, there was a knock on his door. Izuku stopped his notes on Hound Dog and looked at his door. He focused gently on the door and saw his dad outside of it, swapping between bone and organs, holding a tray of food. He mumbled a confirmation to enter and went back to work. He heard the door click and swing open his dad standing in the door way. Hisashi walked in places the food on Izuku’s desk, before walking over to Izuku’s bed and sitting on it.
Izuku looked over at his dad, who was patting the spot next to him on the bed. Reluctantly, Izuku closed his Hero Notebook and walked over to his bed, dropping dramatically onto the spot next to his dad, his eyes firmly on the floor. He felt his bed shift as his dad put an arm around him, allowing Izuku to lean into his dad’s side. Hisashi gently rubbed Izuku’s arm as Izuku began to sniffle and tears started to run down his face. It didn’t take long until Izuku was grabbing his dad’s pressed shirts and was crying fully into it, making a mess of it.
Even though Izuku’s dad was the one he went to when he had questions, he also the one Izuku went to when he was stressed from the secrecy. Izuku couldn’t go to his teachers or Kacchan, since he couldn’t tell them about his powers and due to Kacchan being, well, Kacchan. Izuku also couldn’t go to his mom, since she didn’t seem to understand. She wanted him to hide, to keep him safe. But her blanket of safety felt suffocating to him. He wanted to be able to yell to the world that he wasn't Quirkless and was just like everyone else. Showing off his quirk, taking part in Hero vs Villain games, to... to...to not be a Deku. Hisashi seemed to be the only one who understood him, who saw Izuku.
It just hurt Izuku, to keep it all inside, all the time.
“Dad... why can’t people know about my quirk? Why doesn’t mama want me to be a hero?”
Hisashi stiffened for a second and quickly sighed. This was a conversation the two had had before.
Hisashi closed his eyes, “Izuku, you know why—“
“No, I don’t!” Izuku sat up, his eyes glaring angrily at his dad. “You say mama thinks being a hero is dangerous and that there’s no reason for people to know my quirks but I know that’s not true! I can hear you!” There, Izuku finally admitted to his accidental eavesdropping. Hisashi just looked sadly at Izuku.
“I know. It’s just...it would be so much easier to explain if you were older...” Hisashi ran a hand down his face, exasperated. He looked back at Izuku’s furious green eyes, eyes that looked so much like Inko’s, it was hard to imagine them being their original dark blue. Hisashi slide off the bed and knelt in front of Izuku, placing his hands on his son’s shoulders.
“Izuku... just give me a few more years. A few more years, and I can explain everything to you. Maybe at that point, your mother will be okay with you being a hero or maybe you’ll change your mind. But all I’m asking, is for a few more years. Do you think you can manage that, my little Superman?” Izuku angrily looked away from his dad but nodded anyway. Hisashi sighed in relief, before rubbing Izuku’s hair affectionately and leaving the room.
Unfortunately, that talk between father and son would never come. While overseas, Hisashi Midoriya got caught up in a villain attack. During the attack, he noticed a little boy, who looked quite a bit like Izuku, was about to be killed by the attacking villain. Without hesitation, Hisashi’s body moved on its own and he ran towards the boy and the incoming villain. Using his Fire Breathe quirk, he managed to distract the villain from the little boy, turning the villain’s attention onto him. While the little boy would live, Hisashi wouldn’t be so lucky.Izuku was only six years old when this tragedy happened.
When Inko went to check on Izuku after the funeral, as he had ran straight to his room afterwards, she found his ceiling and floor covered in scorch marks. Her son’s eyes glowed a faint red as he sat in the corner of his room, hugging his knees to his chest. She knelt in front of him and pulled him into her lap, hugging Izuku tightly. They both cried and stayed there until the next morning. Their family of three now back to being a family of two.