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“Aizawa-sensei!”
The voice caused Shouta to instantly lift his head off his arms and blink. When his vision cleared, he could see the papers scattered all over the coffee table. The stiffness in his neck brought him further into consciousness.
“I’m sorry, sir. We didn’t mean to wake you.”
He blinked again.
Problem child?
He glanced over his shoulder, his neck popping with the movement. Momo and Izuku stood behind the couch, the latter’s eyebrows furrowing. He rubbed his eyes and sat himself on the couch.
“No need to apologize. I didn’t mean to doze off. What can I do for you two?”
“I know we already gave you the supply list for our class Halloween party,” Momo spoke up, “but I really
hope it won’t be a problem to get these additional items for the party tomorrow.”
He stopped rubbing his eyes, almost forgetting he gave permission for such an event. Although, given how nearly all of his students lit up when he approved their idea, he couldn’t bring himself to regret it. He held out his hand, and Momo gave him a piece of paper. Shouta’s eyebrows rose when he saw the amount of candy added to it, as if his students didn’t request enough sweets on their original list. Before he could even open his mouth, Izuku was already talking.
“We know we invited Eri to join us, but she probably won’t be staying for the entire party since we aren’t starting until seven. We thought we could get some extra candy so she could dress up and go trick-or-treating in the dorms before the party. Do you think she might like to do something like that?”
The paper crinkled when he tightened his grip on it.
These kids….
“I think she’d love that, Midoriya. That’s very considerate of you all. It shouldn’t be any problem to get this. I’ll send one of the staff during their free period if I need to. I know they were excited when you extended your invitation to them.”
The two students beamed even more than they did when he approved their Halloween party. Momo clasped her hands together.
“Thank you, sensei! The other girls and I would love to help make her a costume and get her ready beforehand!”
Shouta tucked the list away and nestled his face further into his capture weapon.
“I could bring her by the dorms right after classes tomorrow,” he said, picking up his pen. “I’d get to bed, you two. It’s getting late.”
He could hear the retreating footsteps.
“Get some sleep, too, sensei!”
His shoulders hunched up to his ears at Momo’s advice, and he checked his phone. His eyelids started drooping when the screen lit up and he saw the time.
Maybe she’s on to something….
He sighed. Collecting the papers, he stuffed them in his binder and trudged down the hall to his apartment.
*break*
Ochako ran her hands through Eri’s hair. Her heart soared when the little girl laughed, a smile quickly spreading across her face.
“Sorry, Eri! Does that tickle?”
Eri looked over her shoulder and nodded.
“It’s okay. Thank you for braiding my hair!”
Doing her best to not melt into a puddle at the gleam in Eri’s eyes, she leaned further over the back of the couch, separating the long, white hair into three different strands. Eri turned her gaze back to the five other girls surrounding her. Mina sat on the arm of the couch next to her. She whipped out one of her notebooks and twirled a pen in her hand.
“All right, Eri, you’ve got a big decision to make. What do you want to be for Halloween?”
“You could be a princess!” Toru suggested.
Ochako could feel the young girl tilt her head forward and could only imagine her knitting her eyebrows together in concentration. She wove the strands of hair effortlessly. The other girls started piping in.
“Or maybe an animal?” Tsuyu proposed. “What’s your favorite animal?”
“I like cats,” Eri said, fiddling with her dress, “but I don’t really want to dress up as a cat.”
“What about your favorite hero?”
Ochako almost fell over when Eri gasped and leaned forward at Kyouka’s suggestion, unintentionally bringing the brunette with her.
“I…I could be my favorite hero?”
She tied off the braid and sat down on the couch next to Eri. Her face instantly mirrored the girl’s wide eyes and radiant smile.
“Of course you can!”
“We’ll make sure you look just like them!” Mina chimed in, raising a fist in the air. “Everyone will think you’re the real deal! So, who’s your favorite hero?”
Eri didn’t hesitate for a second.
“Aizawa.”
Mina dropped the pen. The future heroines all glanced at each other. Momo had clasped her hands over her mouth. Kyouka’s jaw had dropped, but her expression quickly softened into a grin.
“You want to be Aizawa-sensei?” she asked.
Eri nodded vigorously. Her hands clenched into fists, and she stood on the couch. She was practically bouncing.
“Yes! You said I could be my favorite hero, right?”
Momo nodded before stealing Mina’s notebook and fallen pen, scribbling furiously on the paper. Mina blinked and shook herself out of her stupor. She reached out to put a hand on her shoulder.
“Aizawa-sensei is an amazing hero, Eri. Can you tell us why he’s your favorite?”
The young girl stilled.
“Well,” she started, pulling her braid over her shoulder and stroking it, “when I have a bad dream, he gives me a big hug until I fall back asleep. When I get scared, he holds my hand and says he’s always watching out for me, so I don’t really get scared anymore!” Her smile started growing bigger and bigger. “When big brother ‘Toshi is having a bad day, Aizawa hugs him, too, then they talk until he smiles again. Sometimes he’s sleepy, and sometimes he looks like he’s hurt, but he still plays with me and reads me books! He watches my favorite movies and even has tea parties with me! He always makes my favorite food—are you okay?”
Toru’s sniffle had caught her attention. The sleeves of her uniform rapidly waved back and forth.
“Of course! I…I’m just excited for Aizawa-sensei to see your costume!”
“I’ve written down all the components of his hero costume. It won’t be any problem to create his jumpsuit, capture weapon, and utility belt, and I think I can create a decent replica of his goggles.”
“I know ‘Toshi has some!” Eri jumped off the couch. “Do you think he’d let me borrow them?”
Kyouka held a hand out to her and stood up.
“I don’t see any problem with us asking.”
She led the girl toward the elevators, silence enveloping the common area until the doors opened with a ding. Ochako crossed her arms and grinned.
“So, are we going to ignore the fact that Eri just confirmed our homeroom teacher is a giant softie?”
“That depends,” Tsuyu croaked. “Do you want to get expelled?”
*break*
Kyouka walked down the hallway, not even bothering to keep up with the energetic child. Eri did wait until she got to the door at the end of the hall before knocking. They only had to wait a few seconds before Hitoshi opened the door. He wore a pair of black sweatpants and an orange, long-sleeved shirt with ‘costume’ written across the chest in curvy letters. The corners of his mouth twitched into a rare smile when he saw his adoptive sister.
“Hey, Eri,” he said, crouching down so he was eye-level with her, something she’d seen their homeroom teacher do on several occasions. “I didn’t expect to see you until the party.”
“Can I borrow your yellow goggles?” she asked.
Hitoshi tilted his head.
“What do you need them for?”
“She wants to go as her favorite hero for Halloween.”
He looked up at his classmate when she spoke. Needing no further explanation, he stood up and walked back into his room, returning before the door could completely close. He crouched right back down and handed her an exact replica of Eraserhead’s signature goggles. She beamed at him and lurched forward, wrapping her arms around his neck.
“Thank you, ‘Toshi! I promise I’ll take care of them!”
“I know you will.” He patted her back. “You can give them back tomorrow, okay?”
Eri nodded before running back down the hall. Hitoshi rose back up. All traces of the smile were gone. Kyouka raised an eyebrow, and her classmate immediately turned to retreat into his dorm.
“So, you made your own replica of Aizawa-sensei’s goggles?”
He froze, the door catching on his foot before it could slam shut. She could see the muscles in his back tense through his shirt. A few beats of silence passed between the two. He finally looked over his shoulder.
“It sucks when your favorite hero doesn’t have any merch and you have to make it yourself.”
With that, he let the door close. Kyouka couldn’t stop her own grin as she spun on her heel and made her way to the elevators.
*break*
“Thanks, sensei,” Katsuki muttered, taking the candy Shouta had given him and following Eijirou out of the common area.
A few chuckles echoed from the staff once the two disappeared. The erasure hero nearly joined them, the smirk still on his face.
How the hell did Kirishima convince him to swap hero costumes?
A tug underneath his hands brought him out of his thoughts. He helped Ojirou straighten the table cloth just as Rikidou, Shouji, and Hizashi emerged from the kitchen with a variety of platters in hand. Thirteen brought out a massive bowl, a green liquid sloshing within.
“Do you know what Eri’s costume is?” the rescue hero couldn’t help but ask.
Shouta reached under the table and pulled out a bag. He dug the cups out and stacked them on the table. Nemuri wandered over, and the rest of his students went back upstairs.
“You said your girls were helping her with it, right?”
He nodded.
“I brought her to the dorms a couple hours ago. She seemed pretty indecisive, but Yaoyorozu said she, Ochako, and Mina were helping her get ready and would bring her down when they were done.”
“Hey, All Might’s here!” Hizashi shouted, waving as the former Symbol of Peace entered Heights Alliance, Ken and Snipe right on his heels.
Toshinori waved back with his free hand, four bags occupying the other.
“Sorry to cut it so close, but we thought we would pick up some extra food for the kids!”
Like the rest of the staff, they’d forgone Halloween costumes for this event; the amount of grading and patrols this week pushed most of them to just wear their hero costumes. The three set out the contents of their bags on the table.
“Did Nemuri get enough candy?” Snipe asked, tossing a couple more bags on the table.
Shouta nodded again.
“All of the students have their candy for Eri to go trick-or-treating. There was even some to spare.”
Toshinori chuckled.
“I can only imagine how excited—“
A ding from the elevators caused everyone to stop and turn their heads toward the sound. Momo and Ochako rounded the corner. Shouta couldn’t miss the way they stared right at him. He fought the urge to squirm under their gazes. He cleared his throat.
“Did you get Eri to decide on a costume?”
Momo gave a swift nod, a smirk spreading across her face.
“She decided to dress up as someone she admires.”
“She’s a hero?” Hizashi blurted out.
“Actually,” Ochako corrected, raising a finger, “she dressed up as her number one hero.”
Eri ran out into the common area, her long—now black—hair flowing behind her. She wore a black jumpsuit with a belt wrapped around her waist. A gray scarf wrapped around her neck and shoulders. Shouta recognized a familiar pair of yellow goggles that he definitely didn’t comment on when he helped Hitoshi move into the dorms. All eyes in the room were on him, but he couldn’t take his own off the young girl coming straight for him. Mina leaned against the wall and crossed her arms.
“Relax, sensei! The dye isn’t permanent. It’ll come out when she washes her hair.”
Automatically, he knelt down to Eri’s level when she reached him, a smile stretched across her face from ear-to-ear. She took his hands and jumped up and down.
“Do you like my costume? Momo made it for me! ‘Toshi even let me borrow his goggles!”
He was grateful the scarf hid most of his quickly reddening face.
“I think that’s the cutest thing I’ve ever seen,” Thirteen gushed. “I have to get a picture of—Snipe, are you crying?”
Shouta barely heard the sputters of protest coming from his embarrassed colleague. Eri’s smile started to fade.
“Do…do you not like my costume?” she asked.
He moved his hands to grip her shoulders.
“I love it, but I think you’re missing something.”
He reached into his belt and fished out his hero license. Clipping it onto her own, her smile returned and shined even brighter than before.
“Watch out, looks like we got us a real pro!” Hizashi announced.
“She’s official!”
“Those villains don’t know what’s coming!”
More comments erupted from the staff, but Shouta couldn’t get himself to care once the girl embraced him. He returned the gesture instantly.
“I love you, Aizawa.”
He wrapped his arms tighter around her, placing one hand on the back of her head. It took him a moment to find his voice.
“I love you, too, Eri.”
None of the staff dared to comment when he held her there for a few more seconds. He took a deep breath before pulling away. Ochako and Mina had already left the common area. Momo rapidly typed on her phone before tucking it away. She grinned.
“Everyone’s ready whenever Eri is,” she said with a wave.
She left to head back up to her room. Eri’s eyes lit up.
“Does this mean I get to go trick-or-treating now?”
Shouta didn’t waste a second. He lifted her in his arms and stood up.
“I think it does. Let’s go get you some candy.”
He carried her to the elevators, and if the staff saw him wiping away a tear or two, they’d vow to never mention it.