Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Akatani didn't know where he was, didn't know how long it had been since he'd been outside. All he knew was that he'd finally broken out of that dark room - dark as his hair, dark as his blood - and that he had to get to somewhere with a lot of people, preferably somewhere with Heroes that could save him. He had to find somewhere safe, he could feel his Quirk itching for release and it refused to do anything if he wasn't somewhere he could feel safe at so it would just continue hurting until he was somewhere he perceived as being safe where he wouldn't get hurt.

"Listener? Listener, are you okay?" A man with blond hair in a single swooping spike asked, a familiar speaker-voicebox around his neck.

Present Mic Akatani recognised the Hero, immediately dashing forward and wrapping his arms tight around the Hero's waist.

Present Mic was safe, he could keep Akatani safe from the bad man.

"Whoa there, listener. What's got you so excited?" Present Mic asked, but Akatani only held on tighter.

[ Safe. I'm safe. Heroes can keep me safe. Keep me safe from the bad man. I'm safe ] Akatani signed, his words making the Hero he was still holding onto worried.

"Listener? Can you tell me your name?" Present Mic asked, wrapping his arms around the thin child.

[ Happy Spark called me Yamikumo, and Kind Bush called me Kumo, and Warm Bunny called me Miku. My name is Yamikumo, I think ] Akatani signed, finger-spelling the names he’d been called by the faces he only vaguely remembered, leaving Present Mic a bit confused.

Akatani couldn't remember Happy Spark's real name, just blond hair and soft red eyes and sparks like little fireworks coming from his hands and protectiveness over Kind Bush and him. He couldn't remember Kind Bush's real name, just curly emerald green hair and bright green eyes and gentle words he couldn't hear without his Quirk being used. He couldn't remember Warm Bunny's real name, just straight forest black hair and kind jade green eyes and warm hugs that felt like safety.

"Yamikumo, can I take you somewhere, listener?" Present Mic asked, and Akatani nodded after he finished reading the Hero’s lips.

[ Need to be safe, it hurts. Can't use my Quirk until it's safe, it hurts ] Akatani signed, barely visible to the Hero he still hadn't let go of completely.

"I can take you to the school I work at, it has a lot of other Heroes too. We can go to one of the gyms there so you can use your Quirk. I promise it's safe there." Present Mic said to assure the black-haired kid who had come out of nowhere.

Akatani relaxed a little, tension leaving his body slightly at the promise. He could trust Present Mic, the adult was a Hero and wasn't mean.

Akatani hadn't let go of Present Mic once since they started walking, but he had gone down to just holding the Hero's hand instead of clinging to him like a small black-haired koala. He was going somewhere safe, he'd be able to use his Quirk and make it stop hurting because he was physically incapable of using his Quirk if he didn't feel safe. And he needed to be able to use his Quirk to understand people without reading their lips.

"Listener, I'm going to need both hands so I can register that I'm bringing in a guest, okay? Can you let go of my hand for that?" Present Mic asked gently, and Akatani switched from holding his hand to holding onto his leather jacket.

Present Mic pressed some buttons, and then a big gate opened and he led Akatani inside. The black-haired boy looked around in awe, surprised at how open everything was. There were so many trees, and the buildings were huge and had so many windows. Present Mic led Akatani somewhere, leading him into one of the huge buildings and switching Akatani’s hold on him from his jacket back to his hand. The red-eyed boy turned to look at the Hero, and Present Mic smiled at him.

“We’re going to go into the teacher’s lounge, so that I can introduce you to the other Heroes that work here. Then we can go to one of the gyms so your Quirk will stop hurting you.” Present Mic said, making sure Akatani could see his mouth clearly to read his lips; he must have tried talking to Akatani normally, then realised that the teen was Deaf and not mute.

[ What other Heroes work here? ] Akatani asked curiously, signing with one hand as he had been doing since latching onto the Hero and refusing to let go.

“Well there’s Cementoss, then Hound Dog, Ectoplasm, Power Loader, Vlad King, Snipe, Thirteen, Midnight, then Recovery Girl, then lastly there’s Eraserhead, my husband.” Present Mic said, and Akatani’s visible eye widened at how many Heroes worked at the school.

[ Ectoplasm and Vlad King are my favourite Heroes, and they work here? ] Akatani asked, getting a bit excited at meeting his most favourite Heroes of all time.

Happy Spark and Kind Bush had liked All Might the most, but he’d been too loud and bright for Akatani to like him more than his two most favouritest Heroes. Warm Bunny had gotten him an Ectoplasm lunchbox once, with a Vlad King water bottle to go with it so he had both his favourite Heroes with him when he ate. It was one of his clearest memories.

Chapter Text

Midoriya knew right away when something had changed, sitting next to his blond boyfriend Kaminari Denki on the couch in the Height’s Alliance common room. He could feel it deep in his bones, his Quirk settling and becoming less agitated than it had been since- don’t think about that he scolded himself silently.

“Kacchan.” Midoriya said, getting the explosive blond’s attention before he told his friend we’re not friends Deku get that through your head what he’d noticed.

[ I don’t know what happened but my Quirk doesn’t hurt like I'm used to ] The greenet signed at Bakugou, and the red-eyed blond immediately knew what he meant.

[ Do you think it means that Heart Protector is okay now? ] Bakugou signed back, immediately turning serious at the thought that Midoriya’s brother, who had gone missing when they were kids, might be safe for the first time since the day he didn't come back from the park.

[ I hope he is. I miss him and want him to come home. If we go to nearby police stations do you think they would tell us if they found him? ] Midoriya asked in response.

[ They better. We can ask the teachers if we can go off-campus to look ] Bakugou replied.

"Rakku, you know I understand sign language right?" Shinsou Hitoshi, Midoriya's other boyfriend, said after looking between the greenet and the explosive blond from where he was sitting on the greenet's other side.

"Shit." Bakugou said, immediately leaving the room and going to explode some training dummies.

“Who is Heart Protector, and is he okay?” Shinsou asked softly, and Midoriya swallowed a little.

“He- he’s my brother.” Midoriya said into the suddenly completely quiet room.

“Whoa, Midobro you have a brother? That’s so cool! Can we meet him?” Kirishima asked, not understanding the severity of what he was saying.

“Kumo- Kumo-otouto went missing when we were kids. I don’t know where he is.” Midoriya said, his tone suspiciously blank before he got off the couch he was sitting on with his boyfriends and left the common room.

The green-haired teen left the common room, taking the stairs up to the fifth floor instead of his usual elevator ride. Kaminari and Shinsou immediately got up to follow their green-haired boyfriend and comfort him after he revealed that information. The blond and purple-haired teens could hear Ashido begin to scold Kirishima when it was clearly a sensitive topic as they followed their dejected green bean boy.

Midoriya sat on the edge of his bed, and stared at the wall in front of him as his boyfriends moved to sit on either side of him.

"Kumo-otouto would play games with me and Kacchan in the park, and one day he had to run back to grab something. He didn't come home that day. Two weeks later, my father left for America. I was five years old." Midoriya whispered into the silent room.

Kaminari wrapped his arms loosely around his green-haired boyfriend, offering comfort in the way he best knew how. Shinsou began playing with Midoriya's hair to help him relax a bit.

"Can you tell us about what he was like, rakku?" Shinsou asked softly, and Midoriya let out a quiet, watery-sounding laugh.

"Kumo-otouto was amazing. He was my twin, but most people wouldn't realise because he had black hair and red eyes. I got my father's hair and Mom's eyes, he got our father's eyes and Mom's hair. Kacchan was the only one who could tell which one of us was actually using our Quirks, not even Mom could. Kumo-otouto and I used to play pranks on our classmates, but no one could prove it was us so we never got caught." Midoriya said, tears welling in his eyes from the memories of his brother.

"He sounds like someone I would've loved to be friends with, hātobīto." Kaminari murmured, and Midoriya gave a wobbly smile.

"He would've given you both the shovel talk long before we started dating, but would've started laughing halfway through." The green-haired boy told his boyfriends with a sad-sounding laugh as the tears started to fall.

Chapter Text

Akatani followed Present Mic into a room with a big table in the middle, and his mouth fell open when he saw both Ectoplasm and Vlad King sitting at the table. The other Heroes sitting there didn’t matter, his two most favourite Heroes were in front of him, both of them had made him cling even tighter to fighting for freedom. When his memories of Happy Spark and Kind Bush and Warm Bunny got murky and he couldn't remember them clearly anymore, Vlad King and Ectoplasm had given him hope and the strength he needed to not break.

“Hizashi, did you kidnap a child? I know I told you that you needed to do something in your free time, but this is not what I meant.” Hound Dog said, and Akatani’s mouth opened in offense.

“Dearie, when was the last time you took a shower or had clean clothes?” Recovery Girl asked, and the Heroes in the room took a closer look at Akatani’s state of being.

He was wearing a worn and dirty shirt that was at least three sizes too big. There were holes in it, and it fell to Akatani’s mid-thigh. His pants were too short, looked to be made for summer when it was late fall, and they stopped a few inches above his ankles. He wasn’t wearing any shoes, and the visible skin was paler than was considered normal for kids whose Quirks didn’t affect their appearance. He was far too thin for it to be healthy, his black hair looked worse than Aizawa’s on a bad day, and he looked like a light breeze would knock him over. His feet were bare and covered in dirt and scabbed over injuries.

[ I took these when the bad man was away and ran. I do not want to go back, I want to be safe and not hurt anymore ] Akatani signed after reading her lips, and the Heroes at the table seemed to get a bit angry for some reason.

"We need to discuss where to go from here, and we definitely need to figure out where Yamikumo-kun will be staying. I encountered him when he came running out of an alley, and his Quirk requires him to feel safe to be used. Yamikumo-kun admitted to me that it doesn't feel good when he can't use it, that he's in more and more pain-bordering discomfort the longer he goes without using it." Present Mic told the other Heroes in the room, and Akatani tugged on his jacket a little to get his attention.

[ Can I have a shower and clean clothes and food first please? I want to be clean again ] The red-eyed boy signed, and Present Mic nodded.

“Of course you can. Do you want to have any of us outside the room? You look to be about Midoriya-kun's size, we can have you wear some of his spare clothes until we can get you some of your own." Thirteen said, and Akatani's visible eye lit up a little.

The boy hadn't smiled once since running into Present Mic even with his apparent excitement. It was like he was an older, boy version of the Eri that Eraserhead and the work-study students had first encountered. The little girl herself had come out of her shell quite a bit since being adopted by Aizawa and Yamada, and most of 1-A considered her a little sister.

[ I will get food after the shower? ] Akatani signed, and Eraserhead assured that he would let Lunch Rush know to make something.

"Do you have any preference?" Eraserhead asked, signing the words as well for Akatani's benefit.

[ I like katsudon, Warm Bunny used to make it for mine and Kind Bush birthday year before the bad man took me ] Akatani signed, his visible eye dimming at the memory of that day.

"Who are, um, Warm Bunny and Kind Bush, Yamikumo-kun?" Ectoplasm asked, also signing to make it easier for the boy to understand him.

[ I don't remember their real names, but Warm Bunny is my mother and Kind Bush is my brother ] Akatani answered, and then left with Present Mic to take a shower and get clean clothes to change into.

Chapter Text

"Mass Manipulation"

Left hand makes things heavier

Right hand makes things lighter

Touching something with both hands or less than five fingers stops Quirk from activating

A secondary trait is that if either twin is in a prolonged situation where they aren't considered "safe" their Quirk will block out possibly harmful stimuli to protect them
Sound for Akatani Mikumo, touch for Midoriya Izuku
This is the reason Midoriya never really told anyone who could help about the bullying (it was still happening, just less so than if he was Quirkless like in canon), because he was unable to feel the painful touch from his classmates

Chapter Text

Midoriya felt as his Quirk settled even further, hurting less and less. Which meant that his brother was either close by or dying, and Midoriya knew immediately which one he preferred. Kaminari had fallen asleep against him, and Shinsou was beginning to nod off as well. The green-haired boy was reluctant to leave his boyfriends, but the curiosity to know if his missing brother was as close as being on campus was greater than his want to cuddle with Shinsou and Kaminari and take a nap.

Midoriya and his brother had what had become dubbed as 'Twin Quirks' , which were just corresponding and/or complementary Quirks that happened to be found exclusively in pairs of twins. Due to the nature of their shared Quirk, which gave both twins the ability to make anything heavier by touching it with their left hand and lighter by touching it with their right, Midoriya Inko had never had to buy weighted blankets or worry about something being too heavy for her to lift once since Midoriya Izuku and Akatani Mikumo's Quirks manifested. Touching something with both hands, or less than five fingers, kept the mass manipulation from happening, and the twins had been careful to only prank others using their Quirks on things that weren't needed and wouldn't be found as annoying.

The green-eyed boy left 1-A's dorms without anyone noticing, deciding to wander the campus to see if his red-eyed twin was anywhere close by. He’d found that when he was looking for something, sometimes the best solution was to just wander around in search of it. If Mikumo was on Yuuei campus, then Midoriya's best chance of finding him was to walk around without aim.

Thirty minutes later, Midoriya was climbing one of the trees when he spotted a boy with curly black hair and slightly too-big clothes walking with his homeroom teacher towards the main building. The boy immediately dropped from the tree and began jogging towards them, hope that the black-haired boy was his brother beginning to form in his chest. Hope that Mikumo was alive and near, hope that was near-euphoric in its intensity.

"Aizawa-sensei, who's this?" Midoriya asked when he reached them, startling his teacher and making the man turn around.

The boy with him did too, and green eyes met red. Midoriya's eyes widened a bit as his hope turned out to be reality, and he immediately began moving his hands to sign to his brother.

[ You are here. You are really here ] Midoriya signed, a smile making its way to his face from the sheer relief he felt.

[ Kind Bush? ] Mikumo signed, frowning a little as he asked if it was really his brother.

Midoriya nodded, and his brother immediately moved to hug him. Midoriya reciprocated, embracing his twin tightly because Mikumo was here with him for the first time in years and he needed to make sure his brother knew he'd missed him.

"You two know each other?" Aizawa-sensei asked, and Midoriya looked up to meet his teacher's gaze.

"Kumo-otouto is my brother, Sensei. He went missing when we were kids, and I'm not going to risk losing my twin again. I spent years trying and failing to get out of celebrating our birthday because he wasn't there and I'm not going to keep having a birthday party without my brother." Midoriya said, daring his teacher to separate the two from each other.

"We were heading to the dining hall to get Yamikumo-kun some food and hopefully begin to get him up to a healthy weight." Aizawa-sensei said, and Midoriya frowned.

"Kumo-otouto's name is Mikumo, and Yamikumo is Kacchan's nickname for him. Why are you using Kacchan's nickname, Sensei?" Midoriya asked before finally releasing his twin from his embrace.

Chapter Text

Akatani looked at Kind Bush, taking in his brother's green eyes and curly green hair. The freckles they shared dotted his cheeks and nose, and there was a light in the greenet's eyes that Akatani had seen blaze to life when their eyes met. It had turned from a dying candle to a blazing campfire, and the tight embrace as soon as Kind Bush confirmed it was him had felt like coming home. He was safe with his brother. For the first time since he'd been taken by the bad man, he was well and truly safe.

"I knew you had to be near, Kumo-otouto. You had to be either near or dying, because my Quirk started to settle like it was when we were kids, and I couldn't stand to even question which one was happening. I swear that I'm not gonna let anything hurt you again." Kind Bush said, making sure Akatani could see his mouth movements.

[ Missed you a lot ] Akatani signed, managing an almost-there smile with red eyes that were warmer than they’d been since he’d been kidnapped by the bad man.

[ I missed you more, Heart Protector ] Kind Bush signed, and Akatani felt something slide back into place at the sight of his sign name being formed by his brother’s hands.

“As touching as the sight of you two is, we still have to get Mikumo-kun some food. Midoriya-kun, are you wanting to come with us? Seeing your brother for the first time in years is a large thing, and I can understand if you want to stay with him. We were thinking of letting him borrow some of your clothes until we can get him his own, since you seemed to be the same size. Is that alright with you?” Eraserhead asked Kind Bush, and Kind Bush nodded with a determined smile.

“I haven’t seen my brother in ten years, Sensei, of course I’m staying with him. I’ll message Hitoshi and Denki to tell them where I am, and Kacchan to tell him that Kumo-otouto’s here.” Kind Bush said, pulling his phone out and doing what he said he would.

[Group Chat with Koneko, Arashi]

Gonna be in the
cafeteria for a bit
[delivered]

Then Kind Bush went to his chat with Happy Spark, and Akatani looked over his brother’s shoulder to see what he was going to write to the explosive blond.

[Kacchan]

Kumo-otouto is
here on campus
We’ll be in the cafeteria
with Aizawa-sensei

On my way

See you soon then
[seen]

“Hear that, Kumo-otouto? Kacchan’s coming to see us when we get to the cafeteria. You- you remember him, right?” Kind Bush asked.

[ K-A-C-C-H-A-N is Happy Spark? ] Akatani asked, and Kind Bush nodded with a bright smile.

“You do remember him.” The greenet said with a relieved sigh, and the three of them began walking to the cafeteria.

Once they got there, Eraserhead let Lunch Rush know to make two servings of Midoriya-spicy katsudon for Akatani and Kind Bush, and another serving for when Happy Spark arrived.

Akatani lit up when the smell from before he got taken filled his senses, even if he didn't smile. He was sitting pressed against Kind Bush's side, finding comfort in the warmth his brother was giving off.

[ Can I stay with Kind Bush and Happy Spark? ] Akatani asked Eraserhead, and the adult smiled behind his pretty scarf.

"I'm going to assume that Happy Spark is Bakugou-kun's sign name?" He asked, and Kind Bush nodded.

"Since Kumo-otouto is deaf, we came up with them when we were really young. Kacchan had just gotten his Quirk, and Kumo-otouto said that he looked really happy when he was sparking." Kind Bush explained with a soft laugh.

Akatani couldn't hear any noises himself, but the vibrations from Kind Bush's chest area let him know the general sound his brother was making.

Chapter Text

Midoriya wrapped an arm loosely around Mikumo, making sure not to touch his clothes with all five fingers to keep from messing with the weight of them. While their shared Quirk couldn't affect them directly, it could affect their clothing and belongings.

"Kacchan, Kumo-otouto's here!" Midoriya called when he spotted the aggressive blond entering the cafeteria, waving and letting him know where he, Mikumo, and Aizawa-sensei were sitting with warm katsudon.

"Yamikumo." Bakugou said once he was in Mikumo's line of sight, relaxing as he looked the other red-eyed boy up and down and saw no serious injuries.

[ Happy Spark! ] Mikumo signed, perking up when he saw Bakugou even if he didn't smile, making the blond's mouth quirk up in the barest hint of a bittersweet fond smile.

That was something Midoriya had noticed but didn't want to bring attention to. It was just like with Eri when she'd first been rescued. It was like someone had taken away Mikumo’s memories of happier times. Whoever had taken Mikumo from him, had made it to where Midoriya's red-eyed twin had forgotten how to smile.

“It’s good to see you again. I missed you.” Bakugou said, signing the words to make sure Mikumo understood what he was saying.

[ Missed Happy Spark too ] Mikumo signed, and Bakugou sat across from the twins, sliding in next to their teacher.

"He can stay with us in the dorms, right Sensei?" Midoriya asked as Mikumo took a bite of katsudon and then made a small happy sound at the taste.

“Do you think your classmates might overwhelm him if he does?” Aizawa-sensei responded, and Midoriya hummed a little.

“If they do, I’ll just yell at ‘em. Yamikumo isn’t a zoo exhibit to be gawked at, he’s a person and he should be treated as such.” Bakugou stated plainly, a mini explosion popping in his palm to make his point.

Mikumo looked to the mini explosion with brightening red eyes, perking up further as he saw the explosions for the first time in years.

[ Happy Spark made little sparks!!! ] Mikumo signed, somehow communicating excitement even though sign language was toneless.

Bakugou gave a little huff, a fond-wistful-nostalgic smile tugging at his mouth. Mikumo had always gotten so excited whenever he saw Bakugou’s Quirk go off, even when it had just manifested. Bakugou had been nearly as excited when the twins’ Quirks came in, the same day but just as far apart as their births were; Midoriya was older than Mikumo by ten minutes.

“Yeah, I made the little sparks.” Bakugou said, fondness for the red-eyed boy in his expression.

They talked for a bit longer, Mikumo inputting with sign from where he sat firmly tucked against his brother’s side. He didn't want to leave his brother after just finding Midoriya, so soon after managing to get away from the bad man.

After the discussion was over and everyone had eaten (Mikumo had only managed to eat half of his portion), the four began walking to the dorms. Mikumo was walking in between Midoriya and Bakugou, the red- and green-eyed boys not about to let anything happen to their friend and brother respectively. The red-eyed twin was holding his brother’s right hand in his left and Bakugou’s left hand in his right, and neither of them were about to pull away. They’d used to walk around like this all the time when they were younger, before Mikumo was taken and the twins' father left their mother to raise Midoriya alone.

The small group entered the dorms, and Mikumo moved slightly behind Midoriya and Bakugou when everyone turned to look at them. Midoriya felt his brother's grip on his hand tighten a little, Mikumo unsure of these new people he'd never seen before.

It is okay. They are friends and will not hurt you, brother Midoriya tapped against his brother's skin in Morse code, and the red-eyed of the two relaxed a little.

"Who's the new person?" Sero asked.

"This is Midoriya Miku-" Aizawa started to say, but was interrupted.

"Akatani Mikumo, sensei. My brother's family name isn't Midoriya, it's Akatani." Midoriya said, and several people looked over.

"You two don't look alike, kero." Asui pointed out.

"Why do you two have different family names?" Todoroki questioned.

"Because our parents were never married. It's the reason my father doesn't have to pay child support since he bailed on us." Midoriya shrugged, and earned a few stares.

"You bastard." Ashido said, before she fell over laughing.

Bakugou groaned and put his head in his hands.

"Not you too! He made that joke all the time in primary and middle school." The explosive blond griped.

"I'm sorry, our resident cinnamon roll did what now?" Uraraka blinked owlishly.

"You think that fucking menace to society is a cinnamon roll?" Bakugou lifted his head to stare at Uraraka like he couldn't believe she had the audacity to say that.

Chapter Text

Akatani wasn't sure of all these people, but Kind Bush said they were friends and that he wouldn't get hurt by them. So he guessed they couldn't be too bad, though Happy Spark had made a slightly exasperated grumble vibration like he used to when someone was being dumb about something that Happy Spark thought was obvious.

[ Happy Spark, do you think we can have C-U-R-R-Y tonight? I miss the way your F-A-M-I-L-Y made it ] Akatani signed to his old friend, and earned one of Happy Spark's pretty smiles that he hadn't seen since before he found his way to safety.

"Y- your sign name is- your sign name-" A boy with purple hair and eyebags said, Akatani reading his lips to find out what he said.

"Yamikumo was four when he came up with it, and I'd just gotten my Quirk. I'm not changing it." Happy Spark crossed his arms and gave the purple-hair-eyebags boy an unamused look.

Kind Bush nudged Akatani a little, and the red-eyed boy turned to his green-eyed brother.

[ One of my friends, I-I-D-A, asked if you wanted to watch a M-O-V-I-E with everyone. Do you? ] Kind Bush asked, and Akatani gave a hesitant nod.

[ Can we have S-U-B-T-I-T-L-E-S on so I can understand what is going on? ] The red-eyed twin asked, and Kind Bush nodded before turning to face a tall boy with blue hair and funny eyebrows.

The boy with purple hair and eyebags turned to Akatani then, and raised his hands after making sure he had the boy’s attention.

[ My name is S-H-I-N-S-O-U H-I-T-O-S-H-I, and my sign name is Tired Panda, what is yours? ] The boy with purple hair and eyebags, Shinsou, asked.

[ My name is A-K-A-T-A-N-I M-I-K-U-M-O, and my sign name is Heart Protector ] Akatani signed back, and began conversing with the purple-haired boy and another quiet boy who said his name was Kouda Kouji and that he didn’t have a sign name yet since he didn’t know anyone who was Deaf to give him one.

Kind Bush pulled Akatani to the couch, and sat between Shinsou and a blond boy who had a black bolt in his hair for some reason. Akatani sat next to Happy Spark, and the red-eyed blond would tap random things against his thigh to amuse him when there was a commercial or a lull in the action of the movie. Happy Spark tensed at one point, and judging from the rumble Akatani could feel coming from his chest he was talking loudly or yelling at someone. Akatani tapped against Happy Spark’s arm, and began signing once he had the blond’s attention.

[ Why is Happy Spark upset? Did someone say something mean? ] Akatani asked, and Happy Spark sighed a little.

“The class is being stupid, and the only people who have realised that you’re Deaf have been Shinsou and Kouda, so the rest have been talking or doing dumb shit to try and get your attention. Which, you know, isn’t going to work since you can’t fucking hear them.” Happy Spark explained, and Akatani wrinkled his nose.

[ So the F-A-I-L-S-A-F-E in my Q-U-I-R-K is making it hard for them to C-O-M-M-U-N-I-C-A-T-E with me? ] The dark-haired boy asked, and Happy Spark pinched his nose.

“Yes and no. Yes, because once your Quirk finally understands that you’re safe it’ll ease up on cutting out any auditory stimuli that could hurt you. No, because the class could just learn JSL if they really want to talk to you before that happens.” Happy Spark explained patiently, and Akatani shrugged before turning back to the movie and leaning against Happy Spark to absorb that nice relaxing heat the blond gave off without even meaning to.

Once the movie was over, Akatani gravitated to his brother and mimed Happy Spark’s explosions (hands held palm out, basically making grabby hands at the sky) in a silent question that didn’t quite translate into JSL properly.

[ Quiet Spark has been trying to get Angry Spark to agree, and if Angry Spark does then Happy Spark will not have to spark as much as he does ] Kind Bush explained, and Akatani relaxed a little with a smile in his eyes.

Quiet Spark was Happy Spark’s dad, and Angry Spark was his mom. And because of what Happy Spark had for his Quirk, he needed medicine to help make sure his Quirk didn’t make him pass out from the lowered blood pressure and lightheadedness it could cause if left untreated. Unfortunately, due to Angry Spark being under the impression that needing medicine to help made Happy Spark weak, it made it to where Happy Spark had to let off sparks constantly to imitate what the medicine could do.

“Who are Quiet Spark and Angry Spark?” Tired Panda asked, and Akatani looked to his brother after reading the purple-haired teen’s lips.

“They’re Kacchan’s parents. Kumo-otouto was just asking a question about something related to them.” Kind Bush explained, and the blond with Kind Bush and Tired Panda hugged Akatani’s brother from behind.

“Hi, my name is Kaminari Denki. You can give me a sign name if it’ll make it easier for you to talk to me, if you want. It might take me a while to understand what you’re saying though, because my JSL is rusty so I’ll have to relearn some phrases.” The blond said, smiling at Akatani in a way that reminded the ravenet of Warm Bunny and Kind Bush and home.

[ Can I call him Lightning Kitty? ] Akatani asked his brother, who grinned.

Tired Panda and Kind Bush both looked like they were trying to hold back laughter, smiling at Akatani as the blond boy looked between the three of them in confusion.

“Was I given a sign name already? What is it? Why are you laughing?” He asked the two, and Akatani felt the vaguest twitch by his ears.

A hint that his Quirk was beginning to actually believe that he was safe, and a sign that his hearing was going to start returning at the most sometime within the next two weeks.

Chapter Text

Midoriya let the hum of the movie put on next lull him into a half-asleep state, his Quirk nearly purring beneath his skin from how close Mikumo was and at the fact that his brother was safe again. He had his boyfriends on either side of him, his brother was sitting with Bakugou, the rest of the class was scattered around the room to watch the movies. Mikumo had always liked the heat Bakugou gave off because of his Quirk, and had declared when they were all toddlers that 'Happy Spark is my favouritest cuddle buddy forever and ever and ever' and had refused to change his mind on it even when Midoriya had pouted over it for an entire three hours.

“Deku, your damn twin fell asleep on me.” Bakugou said, purely using his facial expressions to convey feigned annoyance over something he’d once admitted he missed more than he felt was possible.

“So it’s just like when we were kids then?” Midoriya replied, a satisified smile settling itself on his face just a bit off-centre.

“Why don’t you just move him off you?” Jirou questioned, and the looks she was given by both Bakugou and Midoriya for daring to suggest such a thing made the girl shut her mouth.

“No.” Bakugou said, his tone leaving no room for anyone to argue.

“Kacchan likes cuddling with Kumo-otouto because Kumo-otouto has red eyes like him and I’m apparently too green looking for Kacchan to cuddle with.” Midoriya exposed with a sly grin.

“Were it not for your brother being asleep on me, I’d explode you right fucking here and now.” Bakugou threatened.

“But then Kumo-otouto might see, and what would he think of you then?” Midoriya shot back easily.

Bakugou clearly had to take a moment to think over the consequences. Which proved to everyone watching the minor drama that the blond clearly held Mikumo’s opinion in high regard and held affection for the dark-haired teen.

“Bakubabe’s a softie~” Ashido teased, and Bakugou glared at her.

“No the fuck I’m not.” He grumbled, completely debunking his argument when he shifted so Mikumo was more comfortable against him on the couch.

Mikumo slumped further into Bakugou, going half-boneless and looking almost angelic as some minor lighting from the telelvision highlighted his features and made his eyelashes leave small shadows on his cheeks. Midoriya’s darker-haired brother looked even smaller somehow, like his state of malnourishment had done more than just make him underweight for his age of fifteen years old.

“Hātobīto, are you getting tired?” Kaminari murmured, and Midoriya hummed in response, curling into his boyfriends some while staying exactly where he was in their laps.

“C’mon, rakku, up you get. You’ll be more comfortable if you go to sleep in an actual bed.” Shinsou teased lightly, and Midoriya grumbled what might have had the chance to have been a real response if his face hadn’t been pressed against Kaminari’s chest.

It was enough of a response for Shinsou’s OFA-enhanced Quirk to pull lightly on the green-haired boy’s mind. With a gentle command never actually spoken out loud, Shinsou made Midoriya allow him and Kaminari to take their shared boyfriend to his room. Midoriya was incredibly clingy and cuddly when sleepy, and his two boyfriends found it undeniably cute when he just draped himself over them for affection and attention.

“We’re getting this one to bed, see y’all in the morning.” Kaminari informed the students still awake downstairs, before he and Shinsou headed up the stairs with their nearly-asleep cargo.

Shinsou had put on quite a bit of muscle due to needing to be physically fit for OFA, and it showed in his lithe musculature as he effortlessly carried Midoriya up the stairs. Kaminari went ahead to open Midoriya’s door, and shut it once the three were inside the room full of hero merch. Predominant among the posters was All Might, though Ingenium and Present Mic and Snipe and Thirteen were also prevalent. There were a few, discreet objects denoting certain underground heroes; a yellow bit of hardened clay carved to look similar to Eraserhead’s goggles, a small grey-brown fuzzy pompom-like object that was supposed to represent Kessagiriman’s odd helmet, and a few others. Shinsou had gotten Midoriya the Eraserhead item while he was figuring out how to flirt with the unfairly pretty boy. The rather over-sized green bunny plush taking place on top of Midoriya’s pillows had been given to the mass manipulator by Kaminari, who had insisted that Midoriya looked exactly like it. Despite the greenet’s protests, Shinsou actually agreed with the blond.

“C’mon, sweetheart, time to get in bed.” Kaminari spoke softly to the barely-conscious boy in Shinsou’s arms, who let loose a soft grumble and curled into Shinsou’s chest some.

“Love, please. We can cuddle properly once we’re in your bed, alright? You don’t want Denki to be deprived of cuddles, do you, my dear?” Shinsou prompted lightly, and took a very light and gentle hold of his boyfriend’s mind at the quiet grumbled response to his words.

It was enough of a hold to convince Midoriya to get on the bed itself, and Shinsou let go once he had the surety that his boyfriend wouldn’t want him to use his Quirk to put him to sleep like he’d done many times before. Kaminari went and got pyjamas for the three out of Midoriya’s closet, and with a bit of prompting Midoriya got changed into his gold-and-violet pyjamas, while Kaminari and Shinsou got dressed in their emerald-and-violet and gold-and-emerald pyjamas respectively. Once they were all changed, the three got settled in Midoriya’s bed to sleep.

Shinsou couldn’t think of anywhere else he’d rather be than with his blond boyfriend snoring next to him and his green-haired one curled up like a cat on his other side. Even if Kaminari’s snoring was making it a bit harder to fall asleep than he had anticipated when they’d gotten under the covers. Curse the stupidly pretty blond, Shinsou should invest in something to make Kaminari stop snoring, or invest in something to stop the snoring from bothering him.

In the morning, Kaminari woke up first out of the three sharing Midoriya’s bed. Knowing how his boyfriends got, the blond left the room and headed downstairs to make them both some morning wake-up juice. It was as he was walking past the common room that he discovered that a few of his classmates were also awake. As evidenced by Ashido, Sero, and Kirishima crowding around a specific part of the common room while a camera was held in Kirishima’s hands.

"Why are Mido-kun and his brother so alike? Haven't they spent years apart?" Sero wondered quietly.

"Shut up and take the picture before Bakugou-kun wakes up and blows us up." Ashido hissed, glee clear in her yellow eyes

Bakugou shifted on the couch in his sleep, holding Mikumo close in a protective embrace. The red-eyed of Midoriya Inko's spawn was drooling on Bakugou's shirt some, and if it weren't for the class knowing that Mikumo was Midoriya's brother they would've wondered if Bakugou had acquired a sibling. The way the blond was very obviously protective over the ravenet in his sleep just gave off protective big brother vibes.

Shinsou carried his sleepy green-haired boyfriend downstairs at that moment, Midoriya barely awake enough to register that there were people nearby at all. Kaminari was already downstairs, getting Shinsou's coffee and Midoriya's tea ready for the two. Once the blond noticed his boyfriends, he gave Shinsou a wave to get the insomniac's attention and held up the cup of coffee in offering. Shinsou visibly perked up some at the silent communication, and carried his groggy cargo to Kaminari as quickly as he dared.

“I love you.” Shinsou said immediately after accepting the coffee, and Kaminari blushed as he usually did when Shinsou was randomly affectionate.

“I love you too.” Kaminari replied softly, and Midoriya lifted his head some.

A grumbled mess left the greenet’s mouth, though the sentiment was obviously one of affection.

“Yes, yes. I love you too, you nerd.” Kaminari smiled, and pressed a light kiss to Midoriya’s cheek before pressing one to Shinsou’s and stepping away to get food for the three of them.

Chapter Text

Akatani woke to someone gently brushing his curly black hair away from his face. He didn’t want to wake up, he liked the warm thing he was laying on and wanted to stay there. He didn’t care if it was time to be up, he wanted to continue sleeping.

Four double taps, five taps, Six quadruple traps plus one. A pause, long enough to tell it was there. Four double taps plus one, five quadruple taps, a pause, four double taps plus one, six triple taps plus one, a pause. Five quadruple taps, four double taps plus one, four triple taps plus one, five taps. Five quadruple taps, five triple taps. A pause, three double taps plus one, five taps, five quadruple taps. Five quadruple taps plus one, four quadruple taps. Akatani groggily put the taps together into a coherent sentence even with his want to stay asleep on his warm thing: Hey, it is time to get up.

The red-eyed boy drowsily gave five triple taps minus one, followed by five triple taps. His response was quite clear: No.

There was soft rumbling from the thing Akatani was laying on, and the malnourished teen opened his red eyes just enough to glare at whatever was daring to disturb him.

“Good morning. Are you going to get off of me now?” Happy Spark asked, speaking slowly and clearly enough for Akatani to read his lips since one of the blond’s hands were trapped under the dark-haired boy.

Akatani narrowed his eyes a little in groggy displeasure, and laid his head back on Happy Spark’s chest in response. His intention was quite clear, and there was a pleasant-feeling rumble underneath him as Happy Spark gave a small laugh at his reaction to being told it was time to get up.

There was a trickle of sensation within Akatani’s Quirk, similar to being poked somewhere ticklish. The black-haired of the mass twins shifted where he laid on Happy Spark, not wanting to leave the warmth he was receiving by laying on top of his friend the way he was. The trickle showed itself again, and Akatani swatted his hand in the direction of where he thought Kind Bush probably was in response, showing his displeasure as he got a bit more comfortable.

A barely-audible sound of laughter, sounding like it came from the far end of an extremely long tunnel that was underwater, and Akatani felt as his Quirk settled further in his chest. It was finally accepting that he was safe with his brother and Happy Spark and that he was finally home again. Soon, perhaps in only days or a few weeks, he would be able to hear again and he would be able to communicate verbally with the people that Kind Bush and Happy Spark called their friends. He wanted to see his mother again as soon as possible, but she had told Kind Bush and Happy Spark’s teacher that it was most definitely safer for him to be with his brother on the school campus until his hearing fully returned at the very least, and that she would visit as soon as she was free enough from her jobs she could spend more time than just the bare minimum of what it would take to drive to Yuuei and directly to whatever her next job was. Akatani understood well enough, Kind Bush had explained that their father had left their mother shortly after he’d been taken. He hadn’t replied to any attempts to contact him to say they’d found Akatani and that he was well on his way to full recovery.

Kind Bush and Akatani’s father was a bastard and the red-eyed of the twins just grew more sure that he had no love that he was willing to give to his father. He loved his mother, and he loved Kind Bush, and he loved Happy Spark, and he loved Angry Spark and Quiet Spark, but he did not love his father. He felt nothing at all for the man who had abandoned Kind Bush and Warm Bunny, and Akatani wasn’t going to change his mind on the matter. Once he fully had his hearing again, he was going to ask his mother if they could change his family name so that it matched that of his real family. He didn’t want to share a family name with someone who didn’t even try to stay during hard times.

Happy Spark tapped out more words on Akatani’s arm : I need to use the bathroom, please get off of me little brother.

Akatani relaxed with the familiar endearment from someone that was basically his and Kind Bush’s sibling in all but blood, and reluctantly got off of his favourite person outside his family. Once he was off, Happy Spark got off the couch and headed to the bathroom to do whatever he needed to. Akatani didn’t really care much, but now his pillow was gone even if the couch was warm where Happy Spark had been laying. He wanted a new person to act as his pillow, actual pillows were too cold and felt weird so he usually ended up using whoever was closest or warmest as a pillow instead. His incredibly strong anti-pillow stance had been quite amusing to both Kind Bush and Warm Bunny, even if his father had acted annoyed with it. Akatani’s father didn’t deserve the sign call that the black-haired boy had come up with, and so the boy would just never use it again to refer to that horrible person that had left without a second glance. Someone else could probably earn it better, a sign call like Safe Dragon belonged to someone who would actually embody it rather than someone who ran as soon as things stopped being good.

There was movement near, and Akatani drowsily moved so he was looking in the direction of whatever it was. It was his brother’s blond boyfriend, the one that Akatani had dubbed Lightning Kitty since he didn’t have a sign call yet.

[ I D-O N-O-T F-E-E-L W-A-R-M L-I-K-E Happy Spark D-O-E-S B-U-T Y-O-U C-A-N L-E-A-N O-N M-E I-F Y-O-U W-A-N-T T-O U-N-T-I-L Y-O-U A-R-E R-E-A-D-Y T-O B-E A-W-A-K-E ] The blond signed once he knew he had Akatani’s attention, all but Happy Spark’s sign call being spelled out like a beginner would do.

The offer helped placate Akatani a little from his grumpiness, and the red-eyed boy made grabby hands towards Lightning Kitty in reponse. Lightning Kitty moved closer, and sat down on the couch next to Akatani with a little smile on his face. He said something to someone out of Akatani’s line of sight, and the curly-haired teen moved so that he was properly leaning against his new pillow. Lightning Kitty hadn’t been lying, he wasn’t warm like Happy Spark was. He was warmer, and the Deaf boy happily curled into the feeling that was so relaxing to him. Kind Bush had better fucking marry this boy and Tired Panda when they were old enough, Akatani wanted this beautiful warmth to stay in his life.