Chapter Text
Yagi was loitering around the beach when he spotted a kid with curly mop of green hair.
"Hey,are you lost?" He softly asked.
He was in his civilian form yet he was keen to fulfill his heroic deeds.
"Yup!" The kid chirped as he smiled brightly.
Yagi was confused,never had he ever seen a kid who was this cheerful when they got lost.
"Did you separate from your family?" He asked,crouching down to the kid's height.
"No,I wanted to show off my All Might jumper...so I ran out of the house and then I was...here." The kid replied as he started to play with Yagi's hair.
"Alright li'l fella,what's your name?" He asked,petting the boy's green mop of hair.
"Hehe,it's Midoriya Izuku!" Izuku chirped,leaning into Yagi's soft touch.
"I see,so...do you know how to get home or do you have a card on which your parent's number is listed?" Yagi asked,finding the little boy's reaction as adorable.
"Hmmmmm,oh!Mom gave me this!" Izuku exclaimed as he took off the badge attached to his shirt and handed it to Yagi.
"Bingo!Thank Goodness the address is written here too!" Yagi sighed as he took out his phone and dialed the number which was written on the badge,meanwhile Izuku started playing with the sand,getting busy in making 'sand-castles' which in reality were just some tiny sandmountains.
After telling the current situation to Izuku's mother,Yagi assured her that he would deliver the boy safely.
"Young boy,we're going home!" Yagi happily exclaimed.
"Mhhmmm." Izuku hummed as he was too busy in making what he thought was a magnificent piece of art, honestly,he felt like a professional architect!
"Now then,let's go." Yagi scooped Izuku up and made a run for his house while the toddler squirmed under his hold,reaching out for his incomplete project but giving up halfway since there was no way he was going to escape the older man's firm grip.
In the end Izuku reached home safely and Yagi was given many apologies and gratitude for bringing Izuku home,by Inko however,he felt like Izuku was being pouty about something since the greenet returned him with a little frown.
The older man shrugged off the feeling and instead gave the toddler his bright,toothy grin making the greenet melt into a smile as well,all was well in the end.
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The next week,Yagi had an appointment with his doctor so he was at the Public Hospital,where he spotted Izuku.The greenet swayed his legs to and fro while sitting on the waiting seat beside Inko.
"Hey there,young Midoriya!" He greeted as he sat beside Izuku.
The greenet stared at him for a minute before Inko whispered something in his ear.Yagi concluded that the greenet might have had forgotten him and the mother helped him remember the blonde.
"Oh,it's the curly haired guy!" Izuku exclaimed as he reached his hands for Yagi's hair.
"Not this time buddy,anyways are you here with your mom?" He asked as he looked aside,bowing to Inko who was sitting beside Izuku,the little boy pouted a little but then he nodded.
"I'm getting my quirk checked today cuz I turned four!" Izuku replied as he raised his right hand showing Yagi four of his fingers.
"Wow,that's great,here an advance gift." Yagi chirped as he gave Izuku a lollipop,eyeing the mother for permission who gave a quick nod before shifting her attention towards the patients exiting and entering the room,patiently waiting for her turn.
"Thank You Curly haired guy!" Izuku exclaimed as he took the lollipop.
"Hahaha,my name is Yagi Toshinori,young Midoriya." Yagi ruffled the greenet's soft green curls as he replied.
"Yagi...Toshiyoi?" Izuku tried to pronounce Yagi's name but failed.
"No,no Yagi To-shi-no-ri." Yagi spelled out,excited for the outcome.
Izuku made an annoyed expression but then sighed,the name was too difficult for him to pronounce!
"Toshi!" Izuku exclaimed,giving up on the idea of pronouncing the full name.
"Well,that'll do I guess." Yagi sighed,followed by Izuku's giggles.
Izuku seemed like he wanted to converse more with the latter but it seemed that he had his turn for visiting the Doctor for his quirk checkup.He then waved at him as he entered the room,making the adult wave back with a soft smile plastered on his face.
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The following month when Yagi had just saved the day and transformed back to his civilian form,he heard a familiar name being shouted across the busy streets,'Izuku'.
He searched for the owner of the voice and found none other than Midoriya Inko.
"Madame,is everything alright?" He politely asked,although having a vague idea as to what the problem was since the little greenet couldn't be spotted beside his mother.
"M-Mr Yagi!Izuku...he's lost!" Inko sniffed,tears streaming down her face.
"What exactly happened,where did you lose him?"
"I-It was a rush-hour and he let go of my hand,I called him back and reached out but he ran away,I couldn't exactly see where he went off to....what should I do?!I've been looking for him for about 3 hours now." The mother cried,wiping away the warm drops which dripped from the corner of her eyes.
"Don't worry Mrs Midoriya,I'll find him no matter what,please rest assured." He comforted her,hoping she'd calm down as he reported for a case of a lost child to the nearest police station and started searching for Izuku himself.
Two hours had passed with no signs of Izuku.Inko had become a sobbing mess and Yagi became restless.He didn't know Izuku that well so there was no way he could know where he could have gone except for the beach they had first met on.He felt his heart ache after a scenario of the greenet trembling in fear of loneliness popped up in his head.The No.1 Hero swayed his head in denial,telling himself that everything would turn out just fine and that he'll find the toddler in no time.At this,he sighed and told Inko to keep on searching while he made his way towards the beach.
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And there he was,Izuku's front facing the sea as he sat there,hugging his knees.Sniffing could be heard from afar,which made Yagi's heart drop.He knew very well that Izuku wouldn't cry just because of getting lost due to his previous encounter with the latter,it was something else which was bugging him,taking into account the fact that the greenet had deliberately let go of his mother's hand and came here.
"What's the matter Young Midoriya?Why are you crying?" Yagi asked,sitting beside Izuku who just carried on sniffing,shifting a bit to glance in the older man's direction as he buried his face in his arms once again.
Yagi patted Izuku's curly locks as the greenet's breathing hitched at the reassuring touch.
"I-I don't have a quirk." Izuku broke out the sad news after a few hiccups and minutes of comforting pats on his back by Yagi.
"Don't worry,you'll develop one in the future." Yagi chirped,to which Izuku swayed his head in denial.
"I won't have one,the Doctor said so."
Yagi was speechless,it wasn't like he was unfamiliar with the pain of being born quirkless,he knew very well that no man was born equal and that an ideal world of equality was nothing but a fantasy.He was seeing his younger self in the toddler,but what could he possibly do?
"Now I can't become a hero.." The toddler gave a heart-wrenching cry,snot running down his nose with his eyes damp with the tears he had just shed.
"Hey don't say that!Y-you don't have to have a quirk to become a hero!Even a normal civilian can be a hero of someone!" Yagi exclaimed,hoping Izuku would feel better after hearing that,although he knew that it wouldn't help much.
"But I want to be everyone's hero!" Izuku stated,facing Yagi,taking the older man by surprise.
The toddler gave a solemn look,and no,it wasn't just a child's temporary muse but a fire burning inside those emerald orbs,the look made Yagi gulp as it showed the greenet's deep resolve and it certainly wasn't what a 4 year old child would give.
"Hehe,you already are my hero li'l buddy,you saved me from boredom!" Yagi broke into a smile,pinching Izuku's already swollen cheeks.
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Izuku was confused,why was this stranger cheering him up instead of his mother who just cried tears of hopelessness back in the hospital?He was vary of this closeness but right now that's all he needed.He wanted to be recognized for once,and this man who sat right beside him and albeit being a stranger,did so.
"I'll be glad if my hero saved me again!" Yagi chirped,rubbing the greenet's chubby cheeks which were pink due to the pinching.
At this,the greenet broke into a smile which rivaled the sun itself,"Count on me!"
"Now then....Izuku,your mom's worried about you,let's go back." Yagi picked up Izuku and placed him on his shoulders.
"I'm sorry..."
"I'm not the one you should be saying that to,let's return back to your mother and then properly apologize to her shall we?" Yagi replied as Izuku nodded in return, resting his cheek on the blonde's head as he heaved out a sigh,feeling a bit lightheaded after drowning out his feelings,he was glad his heart didn't ache that much.
⬛ ⬛ ⬛ ⬛
A few months followed by and the pro-hero in disguise was at the store,shopping for grocery.
"Let's see...carrots,peas and potatoes....might as well add some tomatoes in there too..." Yagi trailed off,putting the said veggies in his cart as he walked to the snacks aisle,"Instant noodles are a must,can't cook a decent meal for myself either ways...hm?"
The blonde felt his shirt being tugged from behind,he turned around to find a green mop of curls which obviously belonged to Izuku.
"Let me guess you're lost again?"
"No,I'm here with mom." The greenet replied, averting his eyes in shame.
"And where's your mom?" Yagi asked,raising his eyebrow slightly.
"I don't know..." Izuku trailed off as he gazed down at his feet.
"In other words you're lost." Yagi sighed as Izuku pouted in defeat.
"Mom was looking for gummy bears and then I found them and brought them back to the cart but mom wasn't there,then I came here and then-"
"You found me,kid you got lucky this time but don't walk around carelessly." Yagi sighed only to receive a guilty frown from the greenet.
"I'm sorry...."
"I've done most of my shopping.....and I guess we can search for your mother together." Yagi sighed,putting the greenet into the cart making him giggle a little as he 'wheeeed' across the grocery store while the blonde internally reprimanded himself for deleting the latter's mother's contact number.
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"Hmmmm..." The blonde narrowed his eyes,searching hard for the greenet's mother,"Can't find her anywhere eh?"
Yagi looked down at Izuku who was busy in eating the chocolate bar he had just bought for him to make him not panic at the absence of his mother,although the greenet didn't show any signs of worry from the start,talk about being carefree.But then again,that's the definition of kids however,this toddler was a case of enhanced carelessness about his surroundings.
Much to his luck,they bumped into her a few minutes later.At this point Izuku's hands had become sticky and brown with chocolate all over his face and hands.
"Izuku!My God!One time I look away and the other you're gone,baby don't do that!" Inko sighed in relief after holding the greenet snugly in her arms.
She then took notice of the blonde who was watching over them with a smile,however,he had his concerns.
"Does he gets lost every now and then.....?This is the third time that has happened every time I bumped into him."
Inko felt ashamed as she felt like her parenting was being questioned,and yes,her child getting lost all the time wasn't a good sign.
"That is.....why don't we talk over dinner?Please accept this as a thank you." Inko sighed as Yagi hesitated but ended up accepting the offer anyway.
⬛ ⬛ ⬛ ⬛
"It's a small apartment but please make yourself comfortable." Inko smiled,letting Izuku climb down her arms as the greenet waited for Yagi to take off his shoes.
"Mom make hamburgers please!" Izuku pleaded as he grabbed the blonde's hand,pulling him in excitedly.
"Of course,I'll make chocolate pudding as a sweet-dish as well." Inko beamed as Izuku jumped in happiness,still tightly holding onto Yagi's hand.
"What do you like to eat Toshi?" Izuku asked.
"Hmmm anything's fine by me."
"Really!?You can eat carrots and green peppers too!?" Izuku exclaimed.
"Yup,cuz I'm a big man." Yagi chuckled as Izuku awed in amazement.
The greenet then pulled the blonde upstairs,to his room.Upon entering the toddler's room,the no.1 hero was seen with a baffled expression as he saw each and every poster,toy figurine,etc of his' in Izuku's room.
"I HAVE COME!" Izuku squeaked as he stood infront of a giant poster of All Might while he encouraged Yagi to do the same and to his surprise,Yagi imitated the pro hero's signature exclamation perfectly,if he were to be a little more buffed,the toddler would've mistaken him for the number one hero.Although,what he didn't know was that the older man present right beside him was the said pro-hero himself.
Izuku showed Yagi his All Might's sticker collection and the older man was surprised that Izuku's wardrobe was full of All Might Jumpers.Izuku pulled out his pro-hero toy figurines and pleaded the older man to be his play mate for a while and since the pro-hero had nothing else to do,he obliged.
Although Yagi couldn't understand the strange scenarios Izuku came up with,the older man played along with them,slightly amused by the greenet's imagination.
One scenario was of a villain who could steal other quirks and was coincidentally an immortal due to his various quirks and then came All Might to the rescue.Ironically,the greenet had unknowingly played out a scenario which was very much true,although he hadn't had the chance to defeat that villain as of now.
The second was its continuation where that said villain had a successor who continued his legacy while All Might also had a heir who defeated the evil with the help of his predecessor.Yagi was shocked at the child's wild imagination and how on-point the first half was but before the toddler could further go into the plot,Inko called them downstairs for dinner.
Yagi admitted to himself,playing pretend with the greenet was pretty interesting.
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The family quietly had their dinner and although Yagi preferred eating alone,he internally noted to himself that having company around during meals wasn't bad at all.
He had noticed quite a few things about the family,one of them being that Inko was a single-parent,according to Izuku; his father was away on a long trip to heaven and that pretty much explained the absence of the father.Secondly,both of the greenet's parents had quirks,so his quirklessness wasn't hereditary.
"Mr Yagi,I'm thankful to you for taking care of him when....he gets lost." Inko sighed,biting onto her lip as a wave of shame washed over her,she felt pathetic.
"Izuku's father,he passed away a year ago....and ever since then,it's been a bit of a hurdle for both of us." She added as she hugged the greenet who was trying to hop down the chair,"At first Izuku often went looking for his father in the neighborhood but that led to this habit of constantly disappearing when I look away for about a second.Sometimes he deliberately runs away.It's not like he always does this but from time to time it happens.I do ask him as to why he does that but as of now,I have no idea why.He is cheerful most of the times and although this recent quirklessness might be the reason for his current behavior but previously this wasn't the case."
After a while of thoughtful silence,Yagi decided to speak up,"I'm no expert in child psychology nor am I a parent but I think the problem lies in lack of communication.If I may ask,what do you do for work?"
"I'm a professor at the Musutafu University." Inko replied.
"Is Izuku at a nursery when you're away at your job?"
"Well....yes..."
"See,I think after the death of his father,he must have had missed his company.If you don't give sufficient amount of time,the child won't reciprocate your feelings.Children don't understand the concept of 'working for a living',they only see how much they're looked after.If not,things can turn awry." Yagi replied,letting Izuku have his share of pudding as the toddler constantly eyed the sweet delight while playing with his stuffed bear.
"However I-"
"I think,for Izuku,rather than an empty lifestyle,he'd find comfort in your presence,no matter in how much tight conditions you both may be in,that is just my opinion though.You do need a stable job for a carefree life." The blonde cut her off as he eyed the greenet who was struggling to take a spoonful of the chocolate pudding.
A pregnant silence followed while both the adults silently stared at the little boy in question.
"I think you're right,it's best to find a job with less working hours and if possible,close to our home."
"I'll be glad to help anytime.Be it monetarily,I'll be available." Yagi smiled as he passed Inko a card with his personal number on it.
"I'm grateful for your help.Thank you for sparing your time for today and I'm sorry for the inconvenience."
"Don't mention it." The blonde smiled,sipping on his tea as comfortable silence followed them soon after and he didn't mind it at all.
⬛ ⬛ ⬛ ⬛
Two weeks had passed since the last meeting with the Midoriyas and Yagi was now in the mall shopping for new pair of clothes as his last ones were tattered during a villain extermination.He was about to buy his clothes when he spotted Izuku tottering around a fish tank.
"Are you lost again?" Yagi questioned,his brows knitted in worry.
"No,mommy's right there!"
Izuku pointed at Inko who motioned her hand for Izuku to come closer as she was seen pulling out an Endeavor and All Might T-shirt for the toddler from the clothing aisle.
At this Yagi picked up the toddler in his arms and walked towards her.
"Oh,Mr Yagi?Were you shopping for clothes as well?" Inko questioned,motioning towards the two T-shirts while Izuku pointed at the All Might one.
"Well,yes.My old clothes were getting pretty worn out so..." Yagi shrugged,somehow feeling flattered at Izuku's choice while Inko put back the Endeavor themed T-shirt.
"I see....Izuku,honey are you sure you want an All Might themed T-shirt?You already have several of them." Inko sighed as Izuku swiftly nodded,making Yagi smile in glee,yes All Might's T-shirts were better than Endeavour's,then again he felt confused as to why he was competing with the said hero on a mere T-shirt.
"Mom,can I watch the fishies?"
"Hmmm.....sure,why not." Inko smiled eyeing Yagi as if asking him the favor of bringing Izuku to the aquarium placed in the corner of the large room and he gladly complied since seeing a smile plastered on the greenet's face brought him so much joy.
Meanwhile Inko went to the counter for the shirt's payment.
"That one's All Might,this one's Endeavour and that one's Best Jeanist." Izuku pointed at the fishes,naming them to pass his time.
"You named this one All Might?" Yagi asked,amused at the toddler's naming sense.
"Yup,it has yellow skin,just like All Might's hair." Izuku pointed out.
"Izuku,Mr Yagi,are you done watching!?" Inko called out from afar while Izuku groaned at the thought of leaving his newly-made sea-friends
"C'mon,we'll meet All Might,Endeavour and Best Jeanist next time.Farewells shouldn't be made sad,those fishes will miss you too." Yagi cheered up the greenet,greatly succeeding in his task as Izuku happily waved at the said fishes while Yagi walked away with him in his arms.
After Yagi handed Izuku to Inko,the greenet started throwing a tantrum that he wanted to eat outside.Well, the family hadn't eaten outside for a long time so she agreed,inviting Yagi with them.He turned down the offer at first but couldn't resist the greenet's teary eyes.At the end he gave up on resisting the toddler's eyes and went along with the family.
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"Toshi,you weren't lying when you said you could eat carrots!?" Izuku exclaimed in awe as he saw Yagi munching on the salad.
"Big bad wolves hunt down liars you know?." Yagi joked,pinching the toddler's cheek,making him giggle in response.
"Say Toshi,you find me whenever I'm lost....so does that mean you can find papa as well?He hasn't come home for a long time!"
Yagi didn't know how to respond as he was never great with sensitive topics,plus the person sitting beside him was a toddler and that made the matter more difficult and complex.
"Izuku,dad's away in heaven." Inko replied,pain obviously visible in her eyes.
"Mom,when will dad come back from heaven,I wanna meet him!"
"He..he can't come back." Inko replied,her voice cracking as Hisashi's smile flashed in her mind.
"Why can't he come back?"
Yagi could feel the pain in the woman's eyes however what could he do?He was basically an outsider sitting in between them.
"H-hey buddy,try this jelly,it's so tasty!" Yagi exclaimed, not wanting to witness the situation become more sour than it already was.
Izuku blankly stared at his mother who sat in silence in front of him before sighing and giving a quick nod to the blonde as he happily enjoyed the sweet-dish, forgetting about his question soon after.
This sight made Yagi sigh in relief but the mother silently ate the dinner till the end,making the symbol of peace a tad bit worried,what was he to do with this cheerful yet lonely family?