Chapter Text
Masaru was accustomed to multi-tasking. It was not unusual for him to be found with multiple windows open on his computer while he sketched out designs and talked on the phone. So, it was no surprise for him when his phone rang while he was knee-deep in fabrics. “Bakugo Masaru speaking.”
“Hello, Bakugo-san. This is All Might. You’re listed as young Midoriya’s emergency contact and hopefully the best able to help deal with what is happening. I’ve already contacted his homeroom teacher, but…”
“What happened, All Might?” Masaru dropped everything and grabbed his other phone.
“Well, I was supervising two students to pick up groceries, and a young child knocked into Midoriya and accidentally activated his quirk. Unfortunately, there is not a lot of information on his quirk yet, given his age. But, um, Midoriya has… de-aged? He won’t speak with me and I was barely able to get him to go to the police station. He has a strong sense of stranger danger.”
“Okay. I’ll be there as soon as I can. I’ll handle it.” Izuku hit by de-age quirk. Grab Mr. Bunny from his room and come to the station.
“Thank you very much, Bakugo-san.”
He hung up his phone and double-checked the text he sent to Eraserhead. “Mitsuki! I have to deal with an emergency with Izu!” He called out while he detangled himself.
“Keep me updated!” She yelled back from her workspace.
He drove to the station, fretting. There were so many things that could go wrong with the decision he had made; Inko might be furious. She probably would be. This went beyond the scope of things that they could have prepared for; perhaps it was time to right some wrongs. He pulled into a parking spot and saw Eraserhead lurking by the door. “Shouta!”
“Masaru. What happened?”
“Do you have the bunny?” A nod. “All Might only told me that he was de-aged and has a stranger danger attitude.”
“What do you plan?”
“I’m going to talk to him, calm him down. Tell him that his mom is on a work trip and that we decided that it was time for his dad to spend time with him. At which point, you’ll come in and hand him his bunny, which he already associates with you.”
“And Inko?”
“I’ll deal with her when the time comes. This was my decision.”
“Thank you.”
The two men entered the building and easily found All Might towering over the other people crowding the station. “Ah! Eraserhead! Bakugo-san! Thank goodness.”
“Where is he, All Might?”
“Through here.” He motioned towards a small room with what was clearly a one-way window. The tiny boy sat in baggy clothes, coloring on a sheet of paper.
Masaru moved into the room and Izuku looked up at the noise. “Uncle! Uncle! You’re here!”
“Hey, Izu.” He hugged the green projectile that was in his arms. “Those clothes are a bit big. How old are you now?”
“Silly! I’m three! Like Kacchan!” He giggled.
“You’re so smart, they must’ve thought you were older since they gave you such big clothes!”
“Where’s Mama?” He leaned back to look into the man’s eyes. “Why are you getting me?”
“You know how sometimes Katsuki stays with you and your mom when Auntie and I travel for work?” The boy nodded. “Well, your mom is doing travel for work.”
“So, I get to sleepover with Kacchan?!?” The boy vibrated with excitement and Masaru couldn’t help but laugh.
“Not exactly, buddy.” He ruffled the fluffy hair. “You stayed over last night with us, but since your mom will be traveling for a while, we thought it would be a good idea for you to spend time with your dad.”
“My…dad?” His brow furrowed, scrunching up his entire tiny face.
“Yes. Your dad gave you Mr. Bunny, remember?” He nodded. “Well, I had your dad get him from home so that you have him with you.”
The boy shuffled his feet. “What if he doesn’t like me?” The voice was tiny and tremulous. Masaru’s heart broke a little. Outside the window, both pro-heroes flinched. “The kids at the playground say he’s gone because he didn’t want me…”
“What does your mom say?” He’d pulled the boy back into his embrace.
“That my daddy is a good person and she is the one that made him go away and that he loves me so much he got me Mr. Bunny.”
“Do you trust your mom?” The boy nodded aggressively. “Then, I think, we should believe what she says. Are you ready to meet him?”
“I’m scared. But I’ll… I’ll be brave, like Kacchan and All Might!” He shook but stepped out of the safety of Masaru’s arms.
“I’ll tell him to come in, then.” He smiled and walked over to the door, letting it close behind him. “The floor is yours. Text me if you need anything.” All Might looked quizzical but Shouta straightened his back and stepped into the room.
Text me if you need anything. Masaru’s words echoed in Shouta’s head as he stepped through the door to meet his son. He’s scared to meet me. He’s so tiny and he’s scared to meet me. He knelt down a few paces away from the kid and gave him his softest smile. The smile he got in return wasn’t the million watt one he normally received, but it was a smile, nonetheless. “Hi, Izuku.”
“H-hi.” The boy would barely meet his gaze, shuffling around and wringing his hands.
“I brought a friend with me. He says you’re his best friend.” The boy looked up at him this time and held still. Shouta held out the stuffed rabbit. “I haven’t gotten to see him in a while, but he said that it’s okay because he was able to play with you.”
“Mr. Bunny.” The whisper fell from his lips as he approached to grab his toy and hold it to his chest. “You got me Mr. Bunny, Mama said so.”
“I did. Back when you were still itty-bitty. Now, you’re so big!” He smiled a wobbly smile.
“I’m three!” He announced, holding up one pudgy hand with three fingers out. “Kacchan is three, too, but he’s a little older than me.”
“Is Kacchan your friend?”
“Yeah! Kacchan is so cool! We’re going to be heroes together when we grow up! Like All Might! Kacchan is strong and brave and isn’t even scared of the dark!” The boy came a little closer as he talked.
“Are you scared of the dark?”
“A little… but I have my All Might nightlight so it doesn’t get too dark… do you have an All Might nightlight?”
“I don’t, but maybe we can go get one before we go home.”
“Really?” Wide eyes gleamed at him.
“Yes. We’ll get you some hero clothes and things, too.”
“I really like heroes!”
“Well, that’s good, because home is at U.A. High School.”
“U.A. High School!!! That’s where Kacchan and I are going to go when we get bigger! That’s where heroes go to school! You live at U.A.?”
“I sure do. I live there with my students and with a very special person.”
“Who’s that?”
“Do you ever listen to Put Your Hands Up radio?”
“That’s the new one! The one with the hero! Present Mic!”
“Present Mic is my husband.” The boy gasped. “Which means, he’s very excited to meet you and be your papa.”
“Are you a hero, too?” Izuku glanced around before whispering.
“I am. But I’m an underground hero, so people don’t know about me. Can you keep that a secret?” The boy nodded solemnly. He stood up. “Do you want to hold my hand or have me carry you? Present Mic, your papa, said he’d meet us at the hero store so we can get you a few things.” The boy stared intently at the floor before jerking his head in a nod and slipping his small hand into Shouta’s larger one. “Do you want your drawings?”
He shook his head. “No. Mr. Yagi can have them. He helped me get to the police.” He glanced up. “Do you know Mr. Yagi?”
“I do. He works with me at U.A.”
“Okay! Then I’ll say thank you when I see him there.” The father and son walked out into the daylight, hands grasping each other’s. In Shouta’s other hand was a bag of Izuku’s teen clothes and in Izuku’s was his precious stuffed bunny. Maybe, this can be a blessing. It can be our second chance.
Shouta had never been so apprehensive of the general public as he was when he escorted this tiny, green, fragile, tiny boy onto the train to head towards the store Hizashi waited for them at. He was terrified of the two of them getting separated, and when the hero merch store finally came into view, he felt like he could finally breathe again. He paused before reaching the store, turning to his side, and crouching down to look at his kid. “Izuku, I told you who my husband is, but he’s not in his hero uniform. So, he’s going to look different than you might expect, okay?” The boy nodded. He’d been looking around, fascinated by all the people and quirks he could see.
They finished the small trek and were greeted by the loud blond, hair pulled into a ponytail and his day-to-day glasses on. Izuku’s eyes were huge and his mouth was open. Shouta couldn’t stop the smile that crossed his face as the love of his life knelt down and held out a hand to the small boy. “Hey, little listener. I’m Hizashi.”
“Daddy said you’re my papa.” He was resolute and shook the hero’s hand.
Hizashi chuckled. “If you’ll have me as your papa.” The boy nodded. “Well, then, how about we get you some new clothes and stuff? We have a few of your things at our apartment, but I think it’s high time we spoil you!”
“Hizashi.” Shouta gave him a warning look.
“Oh, nothing too extravagant. Plus, a little guy like this is bound to grow fast so we’ll have to make sure we get stuff in multiple sizes, just in case.” Izuku giggled at Hizashi’s initial pout and then smile as he nudged Izuku a little.
“Oh wow!” Izuku’s entire body wiggled. “There’s so much hero stuff! And heroes I don’t know, too! Look! They have an entire wall of All Might! And, and, and look! There’s stuff for…” his voice suddenly dropped into a loud whisper. “Stuff for you, papa!”
“There sure is! Now, I made a small list of things we’ll need for you, and I bet you’ll want most of it from here. So far, I have a backpack to carry your new stuff, some notebooks and art supplies, clothing, and a nightlight. Plus a few toys. What do you think, Sho?”
“I think that sounds like a great start. Izuku, where do you want to start?”
“Ummmm…” He looked around anxiously. “There’s so much…” He started scuffing his feet.
Shouta knelt down again, handing Hizashi Izuku’s bag of clothes. “We have all the time we want today to get you things. We can go through the whole store and you put whatever you’d like into the cart and then we can decide at the end what your favorites are. Okay?”
“Really?”
“Really.”
“Then… can we start with All Might? And then papa? And then Gang Orca? And Best Jeanist? And Mirko? Do you think they’ll have stuff for the Wild Wild Pussycats?” Hizashi laughed and steered the cart he’d gotten towards the wall of All Might. After two hours, and boy did Shouta underestimate how much knowledge a three-year-old could contain, they finally finished their initial collection of items. Each time they entered a new section of the store, Izuku started to spout off as many facts about that hero as he could think of. The two heroes could only imagine how much knowledge the boy had as a teen if he was this well-versed as a preschooler.
Shouta was exhausted. Shopping in general was enough to tire him, let alone doing it with an energetic child and excitable husband. There was nothing else he’d rather be doing, though. They sat in the back of the store to sort through the pile of merchandise and decide what Izuku liked best. He decided on a Wild Wild Pussy Cat writing set, an All Might nightlight and stuffed toy, and a Present Mic backpack. They were pretty sure he had a shirt with every hero possible on it (in varying sizes to anticipate his probable growth) and jeans from the Best Jeanist collection. As they were checking out, Hizashi leaned over to whisper to Shouta, “When he outgrows them, let’s have the hero sign it for him. I think Jeanist would be willing to help turn them into a blanket for him.”
“That’s a great idea, ‘Zashi.” He leaned into his husband’s shoulder before they were finally ready to leave. Midoriya insisted on helping to carry stuff, so they put several things into his new backpack. Mr. Bunny and All Might’s heads stuck out of the top of it and with free hands, he held onto both of his fathers’. It was a bit of a walk back to U.A. and the child refused to acknowledge his slowly growing sleepiness, vehemently denying it when asked. The parents’ eyes met over his head with a fond look, knowing that he would be ready to pass out when they finally arrived home.
Or so they had thought. Neither had anticipated the surge of energy that would come with the boy’s excitement over entering the U.A. grounds. “It’s really U.A.!!! The hero high school! Kacchan and I are going to go here when we’re big! All Might went here! So did Endeavor! And.. and…” He trailed off before blushing when he saw his fathers looking at him. “Sorry.”
“What’re you apologizing for, Izuku?” Shouta met the boy’s eyes.
“I’m being annoying again.” He glanced away before shyly looking back at Shouta.
“I like listening to you, Izuku. You are smart and have so much to say.”
Hizashi nodded. “And little listener, that’s amazing. Did you know that people used to say I talked too much?” The boy’s eyes widened, and he shook his head while Shouta rolled his eyes. “Well, now I get to talk all the time on the radio and people like it!” The boy smiled again. “So sometimes, things that some people think are annoying are really things that make us special. And we will never think you’re annoying.”
“Promise?”
“Promise, kiddo.” Shouta smiled at his kid. “Did you know that Hizashi and I went to school here, too?”
“Really!?!”
“Oh, yeah! I have all kinds of stories from when we were heroes-in-training, little listener!” He started off on one of his early encounters with Nedzu while they crossed campus and entered the apartment. They showed Izuku to his room, which was sparsely filled but had a futon with his All Might pillow and blanket from his dorm room already prepared.
“We didn’t want to decorate it too much until we knew what you liked.” Shouta smiled at the boy. “But this is your room. Why don’t we put away your new things and watch a show before dinner?” With that plan in mind, the three set out to get Izuku’s room ready for a little boy to live in. Clothes were carefully put away and his writing stuff set onto the small desk. He arranged his stuffed toys carefully on his futon and they plugged in the nightlight to finalize it.
“We’ll have some more toys for you tomorrow, okay?” Hizashi grinned.
“Thank you, daddy, papa.” He blushed and hid his face as he called them that.
“Of course, Izu.” Shouta wrapped him in a hug, like he had been wanting to do all day, and had tiny arms wrap around his neck in response. “Now, let’s get you into some better fitting clothes and watch a show! Do you need help?”
“I can do it!” He rushed forward to grab a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt they had gotten earlier and was partially through pulling off the large shirt when he got tangled. Shouta laughed as he leaned forward to help right things.
“I think maybe you can do it better with things that fit you, huh?”
The boy nodded and continued to change, proudly showing off his Crimson Riot themed clothing. Hizashi had left to prepare dinner and Shouta laid out on the couch with Izuku by his feet to watch old reruns of an All Might cartoon. It didn’t take long for Izuku to migrate to his father’s arms, and before the first episode was over, they were both cuddled up asleep. Dinner was ready around 45 minutes later. Hizashi couldn’t help but take several pictures before he woke them up to eat.