Work Text:
Shouta cursed his luck, for all it was worth.
Which - from the scene that lay before him - wasn’t much. His kids. His fucking kids-
This was suppose to be a nice day out...a day for his class to relax. Relentless attacks, left and right from the villains and the media left the children restless, tense and upset.
Not that he blamed them - the underground hero hated the media as much as they did. He found them akin to vultures - disgusting scavengers who were there only for the leftovers - for what lay bare, for all to see, for all to judge. They harassed his students. And that wasn't even mentioning the villains.
Shigaraki...the League...even just one-off villains who were looking to get their five seconds of fame...it left a bad taste in the man's mouth.
One that came back full force - making the man wanting to retch it up. It was only his stone-cold professionalism, years on the job, that made him able to hold it back. Able to keep his expression under wraps despite the fear that dispersed through his very core.
Screams sounded deathly silent on his ears, his onyx coloured eyes only watching the pile of cement before him, thick trails of smoke trickling upwards from the pile of destruction. Walls and debris that used to make up a building, a small two-story store. It had happened in an instant, his body moving too slowly for him to react at the first blast that alerted and partially destroyed the street.
His fists clenched as people ran behind him, screaming and crying out at the steady smoke that arose from the rubble - some of those cries belonging to several of his students, who had met up with him after going off on their own. The one's who hadn't wondered into the building. The building that now resembled not a building, but a pile of crushing weight, set to kill anyone still trapped within it's deadly walls.
Uraraka in particular gave a loud sob, grabbing at her sensei's shirt with both hands as tears rolled down her cheeks.
"Mr. Aizawa, they're in there!" the brunette cries, eyes clenching shut, and Shouta knew. He knew before she spoke those next words, having seen those particular students walk into that store not even just ten minutes ago. The disappointment, anger, the rage at himself coiled beneath his skin, threatening to break out at any moment for his mistake, such a rookie mistake.
"Ashido...Hagakure...Deku...sir, they're all in there!"
Metal and cement creaked and groaned overhead, shifting as a grunt pushed past tight lips, a small body shifting slightly in his already precarious position. He pushed against the cement slab, the only thing holding the rest of the rubble above them.
Keep holding it...just a little longer...
It was dark, and Izuku couldn't see very well - arms too occupied holding up who-knows how much weight above his head, straining even with the help of One For All. He couldn't grab his phone, still in his pocket and working, that he knew. But despite the darkness, he could still train his eyes on the small crowd before him, in varying states of being dazed and consciousness.
It had been a second...all it had took was a second, an explosion to sound from beneath the floor, rattling and shaking the entire building before it tumbled down upon their heads, taking down everything within its radius. Izuku had only a split second to activate his quirk, to brace himself against the tons of weight dropping itself upon his unprepared self - a very thin thread, very close to snapping.
The blood blooming across the boys chest was yet of no concern to him, forgotten. His attention was not only focused on keeping himself crushed, but also keeping the others safe.
"Ashido? Hagakure?"
His voice a hoarse whisper, dust coating his mouth, and he coughed. A whimper met his words, one of the bigger bodies stirring, but not moving much more.
The three of them, browsing the lower level of the shop, had managed to drag two young children with them, preventing the pair from being crushed. Izuku hadn't seen a mother or father in sight - regardless, he hoped that they hadn't been caught up in...all of this.
The children themselves seemed to be responsive, able to see their eyes slightly in the darkness...but were clearly in shock, Ashido and Hagakure's invisible body covering the two from the shower of dust that covered them from overhead. Izuku dared moving a foot, able to just nudge the closest one.
"...Midori?"
"Ashido..." he sighed, shading his dust-covered head. Muffled sounds from beyond their cement prison distracted the boy from the rattling that came from someone's chest. "Can you move?"
He could only see the girl's back, and a bit of her curly hair.
"My arm's pinned...I don't want to risk-ouch...risk melting it. H-Hagakure's legs are the same..."
Dammit...
"The...the heroes will be on the way, I'm sure." Izuku murmured, fingers digging into the roof above them. "I...j-just hang on, alright?"
Blood dripped down the boy's temple, leaving a warm trail down one side. His body shuddered as the rattling continued. He could see slight movement from Ashido, as if she was trying to get a better look at the boy.
"I'm sorry...if only I d-didn't see all the hero stuff-" Ashido's croaky voice held guilt, and Izuku could tell by how thick her tone was, that she was holding back tears.
"It's not your fault..." Izuku murmured, ignoring the adrenaline slowly fading from his veins, the strength of his quirk slowly starting to ebb away - but refusing to let up, digging his fingertips in tighter.
"We're fine....I'm fine." he tried to reassure his pink-skinned classmate. "We...we'll get out of here."
Izuku's lie tasted about as promising as the copper between his teeth.
Shouta couldn't explain how time had slowed down in that particular moment - waiting for the emergency services to arrive, so they could start looking through the wreckage. He desperately wanted to go in - to rescue his stuck students...but with the fire, it was too dangerous to do alone.
Not to mention his other students, who all had tried in some way, shape or form, to help. He had to hold them back. He had to stop them from making any mistake that could cause the rubble to crush any survivors beneath.
"Mr. Aizawa, we have our licenses - let us help." Todoroki, for probably the third or fourth time, spoke up against his teacher. The boy had been antsy, pacing when Iida's small attempts at calming him had failed. "We can help-"
"It's too dangerous."
Todoroki nearly growled in frustration. "Those are our friends!"
Shouta could see the smoke rise from Todoroki's left side, the boys eyes narrowed as he tried to stare his teacher down into letting the remainder of the class help - not that it helped, given that Shouta was more hardened and taller than the other. But he had to give the dual quirk user points for some form of intimidation.
"I understand, Todoroki," Shouta began with a heavy breath, a wisp of white hair and old, all too clear memories flashing in the forefront of his mind, all too similar and familiar to the current situation. "But you're all too inexperienced with rescue operations...if that rubble goes down, any chances of finding your classmates in one piece is gone. I can't risk you doing that - and possibly hurting yourselves, as well."
"They could run out of oxygen! What if they inhale too much smoke?" Todoroki demanded, voice thick. "Mr. Aizawa, please-"
"We can't just sit here..." another student chimed in, quiet. Their voice was almost drowned out by the incoming sirens, indicating that help was approaching steadfast.
"That's why I have texted Present Mic and All Might. They'll be here to take you back to U.A. Where you can remain safe."
As expected, an uproar rose by angered and upset students alike, the remaining seventeen students trying to speak all at once.
Shouta knew all too well how they were feeling. But no, he couldn't risk it. Not when he already had three students - three - in a position not too different to dear old Oboro, from many years ago.
This weighed on his shoulders. And the man would be damned to drag another child down with him. He'd be damned to put any of them in that situation, something he can prevent.
"Your classmates lives are held in the heroes hands...I will not let anything that happens stain your own. Do you understand?" His voice left no argument, pulling his yellow goggles up to cover his eyes. He'd take responsibility for all of this...
He'd ensure nothing happened...
Izuku wasn't sure how much time had passed...
The aching of his arms, phantom pains shooting up the sides was almost numbing at this point, almost jolting the boy on occasion as if he'd let go. Faint sobbing was heard beyond the wall, too far for the hero student to tell the age or state of the person, too far to call out...
It was almost silent, otherwise.
His legs trembled, close to giving up. This was bad...
One eye was now closed, sticky with blood as he watched Ashido shift, the girl trying to sit herself up as much as possible. The two children she and Hagakure had managed to cover, covered in dust, sat huddled by her, now more responsive since the majority of the shock had passed. They'd even spoken to Ashido, although not more than a few words, still much too terrified...
Izuku didn't blame them.
Droning out the soft tone of Ashido, speaking quietly to Hagakure who had not woken long ago, the boy let his mind wander to the possible outcome at this point. Surely, he had never expected to find holding a building up more difficult than that of fighting a villain...but here he was.
Even 20% wasn't helping much...only enough to keep the rubble above his head. He couldn't risk trying to punch or kick his way out...judging by the sobbing he heard before, they were not the only people stuck here.
Ashido had even offered to try and melt away some of the rubble with her free hand, but Izuku had stopped her - too risky, they had no idea what it was like above them. One wrong move, and with the building so unstable...
Izuku swallowed thickly at the thought, wincing internally at the coppery taste of blood. Blood stuck to his sides, and the boy was sure he was hurt elsewhere...but he couldn't check.
He couldn't help the way his thoughts spiraled. What kind of hero couldn't keep standing? A pathetic one - was he really going to give up? When others depending on him to keep going, to be the decider between their life or death...
But his body was numb, as if he wasn't all there, and some part of him wanted to let go - to have a break, to get feeling back into his arms and legs. But doing that meant they got crushed and would die-
He couldn't stand for that...he wouldn't-
Something creaked above them, shifting, and Izuku paused, muscles tensing.
A beat of silence passed, and Izuku was about to chalk it up to the rubble above moving on its own, moving on its own accord because he couldn't hold it all up--
"Oi! Any-- down there?!"
Izuku's eyes widened at the muffled voice that broke through their makeshift room of cement, barely registering the cry of relief that came from one of the girls, before Ashido cried out. "Down here! We're down here!!"
Ashido began to sob, and Izuku nearly made his own noise of relief as he began hearing more voices, moving closer and closer, shifting the crumbled building above them to get the students and children out.
The heroes. The heroes were here!
There was a particularily loud sound above them, as if something has been tossed aside, too heavy for one person to throw before most dust and dirt crumbled around the group. To Izuku's left, some of the loose building trembled, only taking a moment for the worn wall to be kicked in, putting up a cloud of dust as bright light began to stream into their small room.
Izuku looked away, the bright light hurting his eyes, but he heard one of the two children let out a loud wail, and the soft voice of someone unknown to him.
"We'll take the kids out first, then we'll come back for the U.A students - oi, Rock Lock, get in there! Stabilize the wall."
The hero-in-training didn't have the time to process the name called out before a new shape blocked out the streaming light, a hand placing itself on the slab Izuku was holding up and twisting, quirk activating.
And just like that-- the weight was gone.
Izuku staggered forward, only to have his shoulders grabbed gently. Rock Lock - the very same hero who had helped with the raid of Overhaul and his Yakuza cronies, the Shie Hassaikai - helped the boy balance, before carefully helping him sit down. Izuku couldn't see his eyes, his own gaze gaining dark spots.
"Sit down, kiddo. Eraserhead will bring you out."
He didn't hear the slight worried tone that overtook the older man, gaze lingering a moment longer before he turned - presumably to help the two children first, as well as Ashido and Hagakure - considering they were stuck under fallen debris and probably in need of medical attention...
Black spots painted his vision, the voices muffled as a low buzz overtook his sense of hearing, and Izuku allowed his eyes to slide shut, even though he knew he should probably stay awake.
Just for a moment...I'll close my eyes for a moment...
"Midoriya!"
The boy in question jolted slightly at the call of his name, and Shouta sighed, jaw unclenching as he willed his racing heart to slow down.
He...he'd looked-- Shouta refused to finish that line of thought. He was crouched before the injured boy, a hand resting on his shoulder to see the pale face of his problem child stare up at him with half-lidded eyes. Blood slowly trickled from a gash in his temple...but that wasn't the worst of his injuries.
The boy's chest had a slight rattle to it when he breathed in, causing the boy to cough as he tried to speak.
"M-Mr. Aizawa?"
"Stay awake, Midoriya," Shouta said in a firm, but still gentle tone, allowing his eyes to quickly assert the rest of the damage.
His onyx eyes avoided the steel bar protruding from the student's chest, having entered from his lower back. The teacher ignored the heavy iron taste that stayed in the air, using a hand to life the boy's head when he began to lean too far to one side. "You're alright, Midoriya."
Izuku blinked blearily at him, sluggish, and Shouta knew he needed to get into an ambulance now. The paramedics were off getting the stretcher...he just needed to stay awake and not fall asleep. Shouta couldn't risk moving him, couldn't risk him falling unconscious with this much blood loss...
"I...are A-Ashido and Haga-akure...ok?"
"They are," Shouta told the boy softly, and saw Izuku open his mouth again. "So are the two kids. They got reunited with their mother. You did good, kiddo."
The student hummed slightly at that, his head leaning slightly into Shouta's grasp...it was only another moment before tears began to roll down Midoriya's cheeks.
"I...it hurts, Mr. Aizawa..."
He felt something squeeze him painfully at those words. "I know."
"Am...I going to-"
Shouta planted both his hands now firmly on Izuku's shoulders, stopping him from going further and making eye contact. He heard the paramedics shouting, getting closer. "You're going to be fine. You're not dying, Midoriya." The man took a breath to calm himself. "You have everyone waiting for you. So you can't give up, yeah? You're a fighter."
Izuku didn't seem to respond much to that, and so the underground hero moved away from the student, intending on allowing room for the paramedics to lift his wounded student onto the stretcher and begin treatment.
A feeble hand reached out, grasping the sleeve of his shirt with unforeseen strength in that state. Shouta, startled, met the eyes of Midoriya, who stared at him with a startling clarity he hadn't seen before - and with fear filling its depths.
"Don't go," the boy whispered, voice weak but piercing Shouta with the amount of sorrow it held, how small and vulnerable it make him look. "Please...don't go."
He was terrified...Shouta couldn't stand it, if the unfamiliar stinging in his eyes wasn't a big enough clue to that. So the hero steeled himself,
"Don't worry, kid," Shouta murmured thickly, moving back to the kid's side and placing his own hand over Izuku's, grasping the smaller hand in his own gently, but still grounding. The paramedics, the sirens, the cries - all falling on deaf ears as all the two focused on, was the grounding presence of one another - what Izuku truly needed, in that moment of uncertainty.
"If you don't go...then I won't, either."