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For all his life, Izuku had wanted nothing more than to be a superhero. And for all his life, he never thought that the day would actually come that his childhood dream would be a reality. But alas, it seems that the comic books he grew up reading weren’t as ridiculous as everyone thought they were.
There is much more to the universe than meets the eye, each and every concept coming to life in the form of a cosmic creature of unfathomable power called a Kwami. Or at least, that’s what Tikki told him when he first saw her after receiving his miraculous, and who is he to question a magical being that grants him superpowers?
Izuku was quick to accept the existence of Kwami, of magic and wonder that he had slowly come to believe was only in fairy tales and other such stories after everyone around him kept telling him so. It was foolish to live in those fantasies, they said, he should have more realistic goals, they said. And he did. He does; Izuku works hard every day to pursue a career that will allow him to help people, like a doctor, a nurse, a policeman, just something that could satisfy his desire to be helpful, to save those who need saving.
So what if people say he has a hero complex?
Maybe he does. And now he’s a literal superhero. The joke is on them, really.
Izuku takes his job as a protector of Tokyo very seriously, despite still being a high school student. Perhaps he should be a little worried that while, yes, he does get to live out his childhood dream, he didn’t exactly think about the other side of that particular coin. After all, he didn’t get these powers by chance. Master Toshinori, a frail man with an emaciated figure, entrusted him with the miraculous after it became clear there was a need for a hero when he could no longer use his own to stop the villains suddenly popping up left and right.
Yeah, he gets to kick ass with superpowers, but he also gets his ass kicked by bad guys on a near-daily basis. If his mother knew half the trouble he has got into ever since he started this, she would probably have his head. Lucky for him—really, his powers are laced with good luck in one way or another, according to Tikki—, when he fixes everything the villains broke, it also happens to fix any bruises he may have collected along the way.
Plus, there just so happens to be another wonderful thing to being a superhero, in Izuku’s humble opinion, and that’s his partner—not sidekick, their relationship is one of mutual respect, and neither is better than the other. In all honesty, Izuku always found the concept of sidekicks a little discouraging even as a child. Given how he was always made to play Kacchan’s sidekick while he got to be the one to beat all the bad guys (and him, on occasion), that’s sort of to be expected, but he really thought there should be a more trusting dynamic between those teaming up to fight evil.
He and his partner are there for each other, no matter what. While a sidekick may often be considered dispensable, replaceable, Izuku could never imagine being a hero without Kuro by his side. Kuro was the name he gave Izuku when they first met, seeing as he is dressed as a black cat.
At the time Izuku couldn’t help but laugh at the unoriginal housecat nickname, especially since he had such a striking image outside the simple black leather suit. After all, having hair split down the middle between a deep, fiery red and a white as pure as winter snow paired with mismatched blue and grey eyes was beyond memorable, and it was bound to make for some interesting name choices if taken into account. But when asked in return what his alias was, Izuku had to shut right up when he realised he had never even thought of one.
For someone who had been thinking of being a superhero almost ever since he was born, that was truly one of his most embarrassing moments. If he just went with something like Ladybeetle after chuckling at the other’s obvious choice, then he would just be the picture of hypocrisy. Their first fight together was spent with ‘Hey you’s thrown his way at every other moment, and honestly, Izuku might have been offended by the somewhat rude calls if it weren’t for the fact that it was really his fault.
Add to that how he ended up saving Izuku’s life, and he was done for. Figuratively speaking.
There was something about how he didn’t hesitate to jump right in front of an attack when Izuku faltered, still unsure of his own powers, of his own ability to handle such a big responsibility… And then there were the words he whispered as he held Izuku close to his chest, features twisted with the pain that spread through him from the hit he had taken to his flank for him.
“The guardian trusted you with this power, right? Just as he did me. It’s our power now. Our responsibility. There is no room for doubting ourselves.”
Maybe it had something to do with how he had said a similar thing to someone else that day, how he realised he wasn’t taking his own advice when he had been so earnest giving it, but it struck a particular chord in Izuku’s heart, filling him with an impossible warmth. He knew that from then on, he would trust Kuro with anything, that they were partners, in this together. It had to mean something that they shared the same beliefs, that he made him see what he was so blind to when it came to himself, seeing it in everyone else but failing to recognise his own potential.
Going home after that, after a battle well-fought, a battle won, Izuku thought hard about what this meant for him moving forward. There was no room for doubting himself, so what was he sure of? What did he want out of this?
It wasn’t fame nor glory; no one knew who he was underneath his spotted mask and his battle suit. Almost from birth, all Izuku wanted was to help people. When he felt alone and hopeless, he turned to those countless comic books because they made him feel like if the world was unjust, there would always be someone to fight for everyone’s happiness. He wanted to give people that sense that, no matter how bad things seem, there is hope of a better day to come.
Maybe it was cheesy, but Izuku was proud of himself when he met Kuro next and joyfully announced his superhero name.
“Nozomushi!” Izuku exclaimed, motioning with his arm as if presenting a show before standing with his hands on his hips in a power stance, grinning widely.
Kuro’s mask shifted with a subtle raise of his eyebrow, hidden by the red strands of hair falling over his left eye. There was a barely noticeable twitch to the corner of his mouth though, a hint of a smile that didn’t quite stick but was still there, and Izuku felt the encouragement behind the gesture, offering his reasoning even though his partner hadn’t necessarily asked.
“Ladybugs are supposed to bring good luck, but I want to bring hope. So, that’s me.”
“Nozomushi.” Kuro mused, the edges of his expression softening. “I like it.”
“Me too.”
That was the start of their journey as the heroes of Tokyo, fighting akuma, the manifestation of people’s negative emotions, taken advantage of by the villain who terrorised the city in his search for a power not meant to be his. They make a pretty good team, in Izuku’s perfectly unbiased opinion, and it has nothing to do with the feelings bubbling up inside him whenever he and Kuro meet to save the day. Perhaps he has developed a bit of a crush on his partner, taken by his dependable nature, by his kindness, and his fierceness. But the reason why they work together, is and always will be their trust and their support to one another.
If Izuku’s feelings run just a little deeper, then that’s something he has to live with.
“Midoriya?”
Izuku startles out of his thoughts at the sound of a deep, smooth voice, whipping around with an unintelligible squeak and wondering if anyone saw him transforming back in that alley after his timer ran out on him. He lets out a breath of relief when he sees his classmate’s familiar face, the rugged skin of an old scar over a crystal blue eye and little wisps of platinum blond hair sprinkled on the right side of his head of fire red locks. He had always found the partial heterochromia rather peculiar, eye-catching even, especially with how the speckled hair falls over an equally unusual right eye, as if a small section of cloudy sky is cutting into the deep blue sea.
If anyone asked him to describe his classmate, he would probably say he is something akin to a perfectly imperfect patchwork, mismatched, but beautiful all the same. Everyone thought so.
“Todoroki-kun…” Izuku breathes out, his lips stretching to a friendly smile.
“What are you doing here?”
Choking on his own spit at the question, Izuku scratches at the back of his head with a nervous little laugh, shifting from one foot to another and avoiding Todoroki’s gaze altogether. He had never really been a great liar, which doesn’t bode well for a superhero trying to hide his identity from his friends and family, but what choice does he have? Deflection, that’s what.
“I could ask you the same thing.”
“I was caught in the akuma attack and was hiding until now.” Todoroki answers with a noncommittal shrug, tone casual and matter of fact.
“Ah, yeah, me too. Please don’t tell my mom.” He whispers the last part, joining his hands in a plea as he bows his head slightly.
When Todoroki lets out a little amused huff, Izuku has to resist the urge to do a little victory dance, simply grinning when his friend rolls his eyes. “Your secret’s safe with me, I guess.”
“Thank you! I really appreciate it.” Adjusting his backpack over his shoulder, Tikki’s quiet giggle tickling the back of his neck with the tiny bursts of magic that come with the motion as she hides in the furry hood of his coat, Izuku turns to the street he means to follow. “Are you going home?”
“Yeah, you?”
They start walking side by side, falling into step with each other.
His relationship with Todoroki had started out rocky at best. When they first started high school at U.A., Todoroki was cold and standoffish, never really talking to anyone unless he had to. He held a lot of resentment in his heart, that much was obvious, but Izuku could never figure out why, no matter how much he tried to talk to him.
For some reason unknown to Izuku or any of his other classmates, Todoroki made it a point to keep his distance, to keep to himself and build walls around him to keep anyone from getting too close. A lot of people seemed to admire him though, which was to be expected, really. He was smart, cool, pretty. The girls all said so, and Izuku really couldn’t disagree when it was so objectively obvious.
But even with the popularity and praise from his peers, Izuku thought that Todoroki always looked really sad. It took him witnessing a very unfortunate exchange between Todoroki and his father for Izuku to start getting the picture.
He hadn’t meant to spy, he was just on his way to school when he saw Todoroki storm out of an expensive looking car before it even screeched to a halt, jaw clenched and expression closed off. A hulking man stepped out after him, calling his name as if it were an order rather than a request for his attention.
“That school is filling your head with ludicrous ideologies, Shouto! If you keep up this little rebellion of yours, I will get you back to home-schooling.”
At the time, Todoroki just kept walking at a brisk pace, ignoring his father’s protests and walking right past Izuku without even noticing his presence. He didn’t quite know what his classmate’s father meant by rebellion when he always seemed to get amazing grades, do well in general.
But then he noticed that he wouldn’t go home after class, instead staying in the library for hours before actually making his way home. Izuku noticed because, well, he did the same. Not because he was hiding from something though, like Todoroki apparently was; he was simply studying for his goals, learning all that he could about his career options after high school before the whole superhero business even started.
Izuku tried to find out what the fight with his father had been about then, but his advances were always met with cold glares, making him shiver as if he were feeling the winds of winter biting harshly at his skin. It must have been lonely keeping all of that pain to himself for so long, watching his entire life play out with no say in the matter, everything planned from the moment he was born, a child moulded into the perfect heir to a company that inspired no passion.
Eventually, Todoroki told him, unexpectedly and during a school event where tensions were high and the spirit of competition spurred everyone to action. He had noticed Izuku working in the library while he avoided the responsibilities his father thrust upon him; extracurriculars to heighten his skills to become the perfect businessman, uphold a legacy. Just like Izuku, he had his sight set on a different goal and he wanted to prove that he could achieve it without his father’s meddling, that he could one day be someone who could face the mother mental illness took away from him, leaving behind only a scar to remember her by.
To him, who saw Izuku working so hard to find his place in this world, beating him was like a symbolic assurance that he could do it too, maybe do it better.
“You don’t need to prove anything, Todoroki-kun. The power to be the person you want to be is already in you, it’s yours. It’s your responsibility to become that person, and you’re right, you don’t need anyone else to do it, but you also don’t have to do it alone.”
They were simple enough words, but Izuku believed them wholeheartedly, still does. And they seemed to have resonated with his classmate, now his friend, because finally, he started opening up to those around him. From then on, he started working harder to become someone he could be proud to show others, someone who would be able to help people in a way that he felt his father’s pharmaceutical company never could.
It was also that day when the first akuma showed up that the guardian couldn’t take down, when he tried to save Kacchan’s life from the sentient slime monster when everyone else ran the other way, despite his childhood friend’s protests that he didn’t need him. It was that day that the guardian saw him and gave him his miraculous, and it was that day that he met Kuro. He had to pierce his own ears with help from a video online, too, which was frankly a horrid experience he wouldn’t wish upon anyone—he still shudders at the thought.
In a way, he made more friends in one day than he had done throughout his life.
“Midoriya?” Todoroki calls again, his brow furrowed as he stares at him inquisitively.
“Ah, sorry, I was lost in thought. Yeah, I’m headed back now, before my mom worries herself sick. Didn’t you have piano lessons today?”
Todoroki hums, scratching at the edge of his scar with a sigh. “I missed it with this mess. My old man is going to think I’m avoiding them again.”
Letting out a little chuckle, Izuku nudges Todoroki’s side. “Aren’t you?”
His friend rolls his eyes in mock exasperation, getting him right back with a half-hearted shove, and if Izuku didn’t know any better, he’d say there’s a hint of a blush over his cheeks too.
“I’m not. I don’t want to give him more reasons to pull me out of school anymore. Plus, I guess some of these things could be useful in the future.”
Izuku nods in agreement, slowing down his step when he comes to the intersection where they usually part ways when walking home from school if they happen to leave together. He sees Todoroki hesitate, his grip on his messenger’s bag tightening as he sucks in a breath, gaze flickering from Izuku’s face to a far-off point in the horizon, expression thoughtful.
“Everything okay?”
“I-I—” Todoroki stutters, clearing his throat then shaking his head minutely, brushing his fingers over the cat patch stitched onto the flap of his bag before lifting it open and pulling out a large book. “I noticed you were looking for a medical book at the library recently, but they didn’t have it. Well, turns out it was part of my dad’s extensive collection so I… borrowed it. Permanently. For you.”
When he shoves the book onto Izuku’s hands, he notes how it is much heavier than he thought; too heavy to carry around all day, that’s for sure. Izuku blinks stupidly at the cover, mouth hanging open in a mix of shock and such overwhelming gratitude he doesn’t even know how to begin to express it. Though before he can get over his stupor, Todoroki speaks again.
“I doubt he will miss it. He hardly ever looks at any of these anymore, so please, just keep it. You want to be a doctor, right?”
“Well, I… I’m not sure yet but…” He’s not sure he can afford it, really. “I think so, something like that anyway.”
Todoroki nods, rubbing at the back of his neck with another little shrug. “It’s not quite Christmas yet, but consider this your gift. I guess. A thank you, for all you’ve done for me this past year too.”
“Todoroki-kun—”
His friend lifts a hand to stop whatever he means to say, a corner of his mouth tugging upwards just a little, softening the edges of his expression in a rare but wonderful small smile.
“No need to thank me. I’ll be off then, before my father decides I’m definitely staying away just to spite him.”
As soon as Todoroki is out of sight, having left him standing there, stunned and speechless, Tikki zips through his hood and hides between his wild curls, giggling into his ear. “That boy definitely likes you.”
“T-Todoroki-kun? Me?” Izuku splutters, shaking his head in denial. “No way. He’s just a friend.”
The Kwami hums in a way that definitely sounds disbelieving, but he just brushes her off, starting on his way home with a smile playing at his lips as he hugs the heavy book to his chest. He has dealt with his fair share of teasing over the years. All-powerful being or not, Tikki’s jabs are no different. There’s no way anyone would actually like him like that, Todoroki, Kuro…
He sighs wistfully, picking up his pace to catch the next train when he sees the time at the station’s screens. Much to his chagrin, when he gets home, his mother is still woefully stressed about the attack near his school, dropping everything she was doing to fuss over him and check him for any injuries whatsoever. Meanwhile, he bites back the comment that the city isn’t the only thing Tikki’s magic fixes, taking some comfort in the fact that she will always make things better no matter how bad they get.
You make them better, not Tikki. You’re the one using your Kwami’s power as your own, remember? His mind offers, the velvety voice sounding a little too much like his partner’s and drawing a light flush to his cheeks that he hopes his mother won’t notice.
Once she is satisfied with his lack of bruising or broken bones, she lets out a relieved sigh, sinking into a kitchen chair and noticing the book in his hands, humming curiously.
“Did the library have what you wanted after all?”
“Ah, no. It was a gift from a friend.”
“That Todoroki boy?” She asks, smiling, and Izuku chuckles lowly.
“Yeah, how did you know?”
“Just a feeling.” She says conspiringly, turning back to the half-done dinner with a little grunt as Tikki nudges Izuku’s cheek discreetly.
“Told you.”
Casually swatting at her when his mother isn’t looking, Izuku retreats to his bedroom to do some homework before going back to eat when he is called. Tikki chews on a cookie while he steals a few from the packet himself, flipping through the book Todoroki gave him every so often when he gets bored of math problems and literature exercises. At some point, he forgets homework altogether, immersed in the pages of his newest acquisition until his mother’s voice pulls him right out of the bubble he had inadvertently built around himself, as he tends to when lost in his interests.
With that little delay in his studies, he was fully planning to get back to it the moment he finished washing the dishes with his mother. But as he stares out the window, watching the artificial lights flicker outside while he dries a bowl with a rag, he catches sight of a black blur leaping across rooftops. His breath catches and his heart skips a beat, continuing in an excited new pace right after as it hammers against his ribs. They had just fought an akuma that afternoon, and it wasn’t really common for there to be more than one a day, but it wouldn’t be the first time either.
If there was really trouble, Izuku is sure that he would know, that he would find out or Kuro would somehow let him know something was amiss, but he can’t help but spring to his room the moment he drops the last bowl in the dishrack, calling for Tikki. She floats towards him from behind one of his figurines with a question in her eyes, tilting her head at the mild anxiety twisting his features.
“Did something happen?”
“I don’t know, I saw Kuro outside.” Her eyes widen slightly, leaning a bit closer and antennae bouncing with her movement. “I think we should check it out.”
“Won’t your mother notice, Izuku?”
Smiling sheepishly, he quickly throws a few pillows under his covers to make it look like he’s in bed just in case, cupping her in his hands and bringing her up to his face.
“Well, nothing stops villains from attacking at night, so it’s not like it wouldn’t happen at some point.”
“You’re right. Shall we then?”
Nodding, Izuku looks to his door one last time to make sure the coast is clear then turns back to his Kwami. “Tikki, transform me.”
Not having a window in his bedroom really makes sneaking out a lot more difficult than it could be, but the added agility that comes with the superpowers helps, at least. Once he manages to make it past his mother and onto the streets, he follows in the direction he had seen Kuro running to, hoping his partner didn’t get too far away in the time it took him to leave his home. He is about to call him when he spots a head of red and white hair wafting in the wind, stopping dead in his tracks and nearly crashing into a light post.
“Kuro!”
His partner snaps his head back with something akin to a startled hiss, blue and grey eyes wide and pupils blown in fright before he truly sees him and relaxes completely.
“Mushi…” He breathes as Izuku drops beside him. “What are you doing here?”
A little chuckle tips easily from his lips at the familiar conversation, plopping down into a sitting position, legs dangling over the edge of the roof. “I could ask you the same thing.” He repeats the same non-answer. “I don’t see an akuma going crazy anywhere.”
“There isn’t one.” Kuro says simply, leaning back on his hands and pointing to a restaurant worker taking out the trash in a back alley. “That’s today’s victim. I was checking on them.”
“Oh.” Izuku furrows his brow, watching the satisfied smile spread across their face down below as they wipe the sweat off their brow and lean against the wall to take a breather. “You do that often?”
“Yeah. These are traumatic experiences, you know? Being taken over, wreaking havoc and even hurting people you care about against your will. I know a little something about being controlled and… well, I just like making sure they’re all right after they go back to their lives.”
Kuro sighs, head hanging slightly, and Izuku feels his heart squeeze in his chest, swelling up with adoration until it’s fit to burst. This, among other things, is why he likes Kuro so much. He cares about people so deeply, he is so unbearably kind, thoughtful and attentive. It’s almost unfair, Izuku never had a chance to begin with.
“It’s not like I don’t trust you to make things better, by the way!” Kuro blurts all of a sudden, lifting his hands up in alarm as he seems to pale slightly. “You do an amazing job cleansing the akuma victims, I just—I want to make sure they’re okay, is all.”
“Ah, don’t worry.” Izuku assures, scratching at the back of his head. “I didn’t even think about that. I just thought it was really nice of you to go out of your way to do this.” He smiles, feeling his face heat slightly but hoping that the lighting up here is dim enough that Kuro won’t notice, that his cat eyes don’t actually see that much better at night.
Humming, Kuro shrinks in on himself one more time, seemingly embarrassed at the praise, and Izuku’s stomach flips in return, the thought that he may have that effect on his partner making him all sorts of giddy. Ah, he should really get these feelings under control.
Down in the alley, the person they saved together goes back inside, leaving them well and truly alone in this rooftop, nothing but the sounds of the city and the cold breeze to play in the background. They stay in a comfortable silence for a good while, side by side, and it takes all of Izuku’s willpower not to lean into Kuro, seeking his warmth, his comfort in this quiet night after another hectic day.
“And you?” Kuro jolts at the sound of Izuku’s voice shattering the calm atmosphere, turning to him and looking like a deer caught in headlights. “Are you okay, Kuro?”
Blinking a few times, his partner slowly averts his gaze to the horizon, exhaling as he curls his fingers over the roof ledge, nails scratching the concrete. “I think so.”
“What does that mean?”
“I’m just wondering if I’m doing the right thing with my life. So much has changed since…” He trails off, a distant gaze settling in his eyes.
Bringing his left hand up to his face, where the miraculous sits snuggly around his ring finger, he clenches it to a fist. Izuku watches silently, waiting for him to figure out whatever he means to say, if he even wants to say it, and when he turns back to him, their eyes meeting anew, he feels the breath knock right out of his lungs from the intensity in that one look. Had he not been actively holding himself in place, Izuku might have given in to the sudden urge to kiss his slightly parted lips.
Instead, he swallows thickly, inhaling through his nose, and leaning back just enough to escape Kuro’s gravitational pull.
“I know I act all confident when we’re fighting, but that’s just because I have someone’s words pushing me forward.” Kuro confesses in a small voice, looking down at his hanging feet as deep red tinges his cheeks in splotches. “Truth is, I sometimes doubt if the guardian picked right. Bit of a hypocrite, right?” Kuro huffs out a laugh that doesn’t sound all that humorous. “But you make me feel like I can do this, too. Just like this person, knowing you two have the same doubts when you always seem to do everything right, it’s… comforting.”
It’s Izuku’s turn to blush then, butterflies exploding in his gut and making it that much harder to push down his feelings. Whoever this person is, it’s abundantly clear that Kuro cares a lot about them, that they mean a lot to him. Perhaps they are to Kuro what he is to Izuku… They’re lucky if that’s the case, so wonderfully lucky.
“Well, you’re the reason I’m still here.” Izuku whispers, honest, cheeks burning hot to the point he feels like he might actually combust. It must go well with his costume, at least. “In a lot more ways than one. So, if my opinion counts for anything, I think the black cat miraculous couldn’t be in better hands.”
The corners of Kuro’s lips twitch into a bit of a smile, softening all the edges in his features, and something tugs at the back of Izuku’s mind for a split second, melting at the sound of tires screeching in the street, a car’s horn blaring and making them both cringe miserably. They both laugh quietly then, returning their eyes to the cityscape and relaxing into the comfort of their relationship, no matter what it really is beyond partners in crime fighting.
Soon, the night starts turning darker and they both have to part ways as they always do, exchanging a quick farewell with the knowledge that they’ll meet again soon enough. Perhaps it will be under less favourable circumstances, perhaps not, but Izuku will never not be happy to see him. Such are the whims of his heart, he supposes.
As he sneaks back into his own home, feeling more like a burglar than anything else, Izuku is relieved to find his dummy untouched when he steps into his darkened room. His homework sits right where he left it at his desk, unfinished, and so it will remain until tomorrow, when he hastily scribbles through the rest of the answers before his homeroom teacher even makes it inside.
For now, he will lie in bed and curl under his covers, feeling warm for more reasons than just the fluffy comforter atop cosy sheets. And as he lets sleep take him over, the day’s events filing into his subconscious to translate into nonsensical dreams, Izuku knows deep in his heart that, whatever the future brings, everything will be okay as long as Kuro is by his side.